Picture of cuneiform tablet from http://www.bible-history.com/babylonia/BabyloniaThe Gilgamesh_Epic.htm

 

The Great Flood in the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh

This translation of the Epic of Gilgamesh is by Robert Temple (Random Century Group Ltd., London, 1991), and was copied from the following web page:

http://www.angelfire.com/tx/gatestobabylon/temple2.html

The story of the great flood comes toward the end of the Gilgamesh Epic, in Tablet 11. Gilgamesh, after many trials, succeeds in making his way to the home of Ziusudra, the Noah figure in this Babylonian saga. He asks Ziusudra for the secret of his eternal life, which results in the story of the great flood:

 

'O Gilgamesh, I will disclose unto you a hidden thing. Yes, a secret of the gods will I tell unto you:

You know the city Shuruppak, which lies upon the River Euphrates. That city was of great antiquity

And ancient were the gods who still lived within it

In their hearts they resolved

To bring on the Great Flood

 

Ziusudra recounts how Enki, one of the gods, warned him of the coming disaster and instructed him to build a huge boat to preserve life.

 

And into the boat take the seed of all living creatures.

The boat you will build

Will have dimensions carefully measured

Its length and its width shall be equal

And roof it as I have my subterranean watery abyss."

 

Ziusudra questions Enki about what explanation he should give to people in his city for why he is building his boat, and Enki tells him to lie and explain that the god Enlil is mad at him and he has to flee from this god in a big boat to be closer to his lord Enki. Ziusudra is also instructed to say that Enki will shower abundance of wealth upon them.
 

Ziusudra draws up his plan for the ship—an exact cube of 180 feet (or 60 meters) for each side. This shape, which obviously is not intended for a sailing vessel, forms a modest sized barge with six decks, providing seven levels for storage.

 

I delineated its exterior shape

And fashioned it together

Cross-pinned it six times

Thus dividing it into seven

And the ground plan I divided into nine parts

I drove water plugs into it

Saw to the punting holes and laid up what was needful

Into the furnace I poured six [or three] shar measures of bitumen

Followed by three shar measures of asphalt. [one shar = 8,000 gallons]

The basket-bearers carried three shar measures of oil

Besides one shar measures of oil stowed away the boatman.

 

Ziusudra expends considerable resources feeding his workers so that they can complete the project in a short time period. He then loads the barge.

 

I slaughtered bullocks for the people

Every day I slew sheep

As though it were river water

I gave to the workmen

Red wine, white wine, must, oil

To feast as if it were New Year's day

I opened the container and laid my hands in unguent

On the seventh day the boat was completed.

. . . .

Whatever I had I loaded aboard,

Whatever I had of silver I loaded aboard,

Whatever I had of gold I loaded aboard

Whatever I had of seed of all living creatures

I loaded aboard.

I caused all my family and kinsfolk to go aboard.

The beasts of the field,

The wild creatures of the plain,

All the craftsmen -

All these I made to go aboard.

 

The sun god also gets involved in the conspiracy.

 

Shamash the Sun had set for me a specific time, saying:

'When He who rains down His misfortune in the twilight

Does rain down His misfortune like a blight,

Then board your boat without further ado

And make sure your door is safely pulled to.'

That precise time had indeed arrived:

'When He who rains down His misfortune in the twilight

Does rain down His misfortune like a blight'.

 

As the terrible storm approaches, Ziusudra boards the boat. (For explanations of the identities of the various Babylonian deities, see http://www.sacred-texts.com/ane/assyrbab.htm)

 

I scrutinised all the weather signs;

How awesome was the weather to behold!

I boarded the boat without further ado

And made sure that the door was safely pulled to.

I committed the navigation of the great house and its contents

To the boatman Puzur-Amurri.

When on the horizon

The first intimations of dawn

A black cloud rose from the horizon

Inside it Adad the storm thundered,

While Shullat and Hanish, the storm-heralds, rose ahead,

Moving as advance messengers over hill and plain.

Nergal, the God of the Underworld, tore out the posts.

Ninurta, the God of War and Irrigation, came forth and burst the dikes.

The Anunnaki - the Great Gods - raised their torches,

Lighting up the land with their brightness.

Astonishment at Adad the Storm reached to the very heavens.

He turned to blackness all that had been visible.

He broke the land like a pot.

For a whole day the South Storm blew,

Gathering speed as it blew, drowning the mountains,

Overcoming the people as in battle.

Brother saw not brother.

 

The storm is so violent that even the gods cower in fear from it.

 

From heaven no mortal could any longer be seen.

Even the gods were struck by terror at the deluge,

And, fleeing, they ascended to the celestial band of An.

The gods cowered like dogs,

Crouching by the outer wall of that celestial band.

Inanna, Goddess of Love and Battle, cried out like a suffering mortal -

She, the sweet-voiced,

She, the Lady of the Gods,

How did she lament aloud, crying:

'Verily, the Old Age has crumbled into dust!

Because I spoke evil in the Assembly of Gods!

Oh, how could I command havoc for the destruction of my people

When I myself gave birth to my people?

Now the spawn of fishes, the sea is glutted with their bodies!'

The Anunnaki - the Great Gods -wept with her,

Their lips were shut tight in distress in the Assembly, one and all.

 

The storm lasts for one week.

 

For six days and seven nights

The flood wind blew as the South Storm swept the land.

At sunrise in the seventh day

The South Storm, bringer of the flood, and

Which had fought like an army, abated its attack.

The sea grew quieter,

The storm subsided,

The flood ceased.

I looked at the weather;

It had gone quiet.

All men had returned to clay.

 

Ziusudra sends out birds to determine when it is safe to leave the boat.

 

The land had been levelled like a terrace.

O opened a dove flap

And light fell upon my face.

I bowed, sat down and wept,

Tears flowing down my cheeks.

I peered in every direction but the sea was everywhere,

In each of the 14 regions

There emerged a mountain peak for that point.

The boat came to rest on Mount Nisir.

Mount Nisir held the boat fast,

Allowing no shifting position.

One day, a second day, Mount Nisir held the boat fast,

Allowing no shifting position.

A 3rd day, a 4th day and a 6th day, Mount Nisir held the boat fast,

Allowing no shifting position.

When the seventh day dawned,

I brought a dove out and set it free.

The dove went forth but then returned.

The dove found no resting-place and turned back.

I brought out a swallow and set it free.

The swallow went forth but then returned

The swallow found no resting-place and turned back.

I brought out a raven and set it free.

The raven flew forth but saw the waters were sinking,

She ate, circled, croaked, but did not return back.

 

When Ziusudra leaves the ark, he offers sacrifice to the gods.

 

Then I sent forth all the four winds

And offered a sacrifice

On the peak of the mountain

I poured out a libation.

Twice seven were the cult-vessels I set up,

Heaping upon their pot-stands sweet cane,

Cedar, myrtle,

The gods smelled the savour.

The gods gathered like fliers around the sacrificer.

Now when Inanna, the Lady of the Gods, arrived,

She lifted up the magnificent jewels which An the Great god

Had made according to her desire, and said:

'O ye gods here present!

Just as surely as I shall not forget

The lapis lazuli around my neck,

So shall I remember these days,

Never forgetting them.

Let the gods come to the offering.

But let not Enlil come to the offering;

For he, unreasoning, brought on the deluge

And delivered my people over to destruction!'

 

Enlil is not happy when he discovers what happened.

 

Now when Enlil arrived and saw the boat,

He waxed wroth,

He was filled with fury against the heavenly Igigi gods and said:

'What! - Has any mortal escaped?

No mortal was to survive the destruction!'

 

But the other gods do not share his opinion.

 

Ninurta, God of War, opened his mouth to speak, said to valiant Enlil:

'Who besides the god Enki could devise such a plan?

The god Enki alone understands every matter.'

Enki opened his mouth to speak, saying to valiant Enlil:

'O wisest of gods, O great warrior hero,

How could you, taking no counsel,

Bring on the deluge?

He who has sinned, on him lay his sin.

He who has transgressed, on him lay his transgression

But oh be merciful, lest all be destroyed.

Be long suffering, that man may not perish.

Rather than your bringing on the deluge,

Oh, that a lion had come to diminish mankind!

Rather than you bringing on the deluge,

Oh, that a famine had arisen

To lay mankind low.

Rather than you bringing in the deluge

Oh, that Erra, god of Pestilence, had come

To strike mankind down.

What is more, it was not I

Not I who revealed the Secret of the Great Gods,

I allowed Ziusudra, he who abounds in wisdom

To see a dream

It was thus that he perceived

The secret of the Great Gods

Now then take counsel concerning him.'

 

Ziusudra and his wife are given eternal life and sent to dwell at the source of the rivers.

 

Then Enlil went up into the ship.

He grasped my hand,

He caused me to go aboard,

He caused my wife to go aboard,

He made her to kneel beside me

He stood there between us,

He touched our foreheads and blessed us;

"Until now, Ziusudra has been a more mortal

But from now shall Ziusudra and his wife

Be like unto us gods.

Ziusudra shall reside far away -

At the confluence of the celestial rivers -

There shall he dwell!"

And so they took me and made me reside far away,

At the confluence of the celestial rivers.