Gilgamesh: A New Translation of the Ancient Epic by Sophus Helle

As a teen I read an Argentinian comic series about Gilgamesh, who unlike the original epic, is given the gift of immortality. Great comic! Since then the character of Gilgamesh has always stuck with me. Recently I read a couple of books: The History of Magic by Chris Gosden, in which Gilgamesh is briefly mentioned, and Heaven and Hell by Bart D. Ehrman in which the author explores the ideas of the afterlife in the epic. Both readings renovated my curiosity and motivated me to read the actual epic. After some research, I found this translation by Helle which I can totally recommend, if you are more interested in clarity rather than exact fidelity to the original text. 

This edition includes an excellent introduction and 5 essays, 40 pages of notes, and 25 pages of bibliography. All are very useful to provide historical, literary, linguistic and archaeological context as well as highlighting the emotional, human, and psychological aspects of the poem. Reading about how Assyriologists, etc. worked to translate and piece together the remains of the Sumerian, Assyrian, Babylonian, etc. tablet remains. All the different ways in which the tablets can be translated and interpreted. How the story of Gilgamesh evolved since ancient Sumerian times, in shorter poems, until some Babylonian scholar put the poems together to produce a longer version. The version that we have now has been pieced together from several tablet fragments, from different timeframes. Not all pieces have been found, so there are gaps in the text. Also, for some portions of the poem, there are several versions of the texts, so only one has been chosen and the rest were left. Helle explains how names and linguistic styles changed across millennia as culture, religion and language evolved. It is important to recognise the job of translators who must select the best versions of the text, and then translate them in a way that captures what they believe was the sentiment of the ancient Mesopotamian. 

The following is an extract from an Old Babylonian version of the Epic, which was removed from the Standard Babylonian version to be replaced by another monologue. This touches on the theme of immortality: 

“Gilgamesh where are you going? 

You will not find the life you seek. 

When gods created humankind, 

they decreed death for the humans, 

eternal life they kept for themselves. 

So, Gilgamesh, fill your belly, 

and be happy night and day. 

Let all your days be merry, 

dance and play day and night. 

Let your clothes be clean, 

wash your head in water. 

Look at the child holding your hand, 

and let your life delight in your lap. 

This is the fate of humankind.” 

In Dying to be Read an essay by Sophus Helle. 

The Epic is emotional, heroic, tragic and philosophical. I read it with increased interest, imagining how ancient people would seat around reciting, singing or acting the story, century after century. I totally recommend the Epic, and this translation, especially if you are interested in themes like attitudes towards death and immortality: as in “eternal life and of the literary kind.”