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Gilgamesh

The Epic of Gilgamesh is probably the oldest epic in world history. It was written over 3800 years ago in Babylonia and only came to light at the beginning of the 20th century from the rubble of ancient Nineveh in fragments of the cuneiform library of King Ashurbunipal. The Epic of Gilgamesh anticipates many motifs from Greek myths and biblical themes. We encounter the Flood as well as the Tower of Babel. The Minotaur, the god of the gods, appears, but the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice also echoes. We hear about the snake in paradise and the journey through Hades to the underworld. At the center of this epic are the great questions of our existence: man in conflict with God, the question of life and death, the fear of the end of the world, man's quest for immortality - themes that have retained their relevance.

Walter Jonas created this poem in 1943 when he was 33 years old – in the middle of the Second World War. The work was inspired by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, with whom Jonas was working at the time.

Text and plates:

20 Bildtafeln von Walter Jonas

1 The gods decree that the flood will destroy all animals and people. Only Utnapishtim is warned in time. He builds an ark in which he and his wife, along with one male and one female of every animal, escape.
2 The flood breaks in, destroying everything. Utnapishtim's ark alone is spared and floats on the water...
3 The gods regret their deed, for what are gods without men? They let the waters flow away: the earth is desolate and empty. But the smoke of a fire reaches the gods, and they discover the rescued Utnapishtim...
4 The earth blossoms and becomes fertile. A new human race begins. New cities grow up. Utnapishtim, the father, lives far away and isolated with his wife...
5 generations came and went, each building their share of mighty cities and towers reaching to the sky. There lives a mighty king...
6 Gilgamesh rules by force. Every virgin must belong to him first. The people lament and ask the gods to create a human who would be a match for Gilgamesh in strength.
7 But Engidu lives in the jungle with the animals, and people are afraid of him. No one dares to approach him...
8 But now the animals leave him, and he begins to be ashamed of his nakedness. The prostitute gives him part of her garment to cover his nakedness and leads the hesitant man by the hand into the city...
9 Engidu and Gilgamesh meet. They fall on each other and a fierce fight breaks out. Engidu forces Gilgamesh to his knees...
10 They set out and together kill the giant Chumbaba, the guardian of Ishtar, the goddess of love...
11 She asks the highest god of heaven, Anu, for the sky bull, threatening that otherwise all the dead will be released on the living. The sky bull is freed - and in a rage he throws himself at Gilgamesh...
12 Engidu falls ill. A black bird monster takes possession of his soul. Gilgamesh sees his friend die, but he cannot comprehend death.
13 The way there is blocked at one point by a scorpion creature that kills anyone who tries to pass through. But Gilgamesh's misery moves the monster - and moved by pity, Gilgamesh allows him to pass through...
14 Gilgamesh comes to a holy place where stone images are set up. In the distance are the waters of death, where the fisherman Urshanabi lives, who is supposed to ferry him across. Gilgamesh, in desperate rage, smashes the idols and tablets of the law...
15 The fisherman Urshanabi sails with Gilgamesh across the waters of death to the distant, ancient, eternal father of all people, to Utnapishtim and his wife. Gilgamesh asks Utnapishtim to tell him what he should do to achieve immortality...
16 Sleep is stronger. Exhausted from the last journey, he falls asleep. When he awakes, he knows that he cannot defeat death...
17 Gilgamesh returns home. He dives into the lake and gets the herb that Utnapishtim told him about. But when he drinks from a spring, thirsty from his journey, the herb is stolen from him by the snake...
18 In helpless despair he wants to summon the gods to fight with them. But for the summoning to take place, the night must be completely dark and silent. He has already raised his hands to heaven - a light goes on in a house...
19 The shadow of his dead friend rises from the underworld and calls to him. Engidu wants to lead Gilgamesh to the underworld, to the place where the dead live. But the condition is...
20 Gilgamesh descends into the underworld. However, he comes to the dead as a king. He wants to reach out to them. Then everything turns to dust and ashes. And now he must experience the law of the earth: dissolving into tears, horror and darkness.