Throughout history, the origin and creation of man has been questioned and our purpose on earth has been questioned as well. Different cultures have different beliefs towards this idea, and these stories were originally passed along orally. Eventually a popular oral story, the Epic of Gilgamesh, was written on 22,000 clay tablets. With time, more and more written creation stories were created. Many people believe that this epic poem heavily influenced the hebrew creation stories. This isn't hard to believe , because of the similarities within the two. However, there are still numerous differences within the two.
The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Epic of Creation were etched in cuneiform style and both revolved around a polytheistic mindset. The idea of gods and goddesses were a theme within these stories.
For example, Gilgamesh was believed to be two-thirds God and one third human.
Whereas in the Epic of Creation, man was formed from a goddess. In Genesis, Man(Adam) was created from dust and eve was later created from the rib of Adam.
The story of Gilgamesh and the story in Genesis compares through the similarities found in Enkidu and Eve. In both stories, Eve and Enkidu were created to be a partner, and ultimately be a better half to the other main characters.
In all three stories the number 7 plays an importance , which is interesting because of how that theme was carried on throughout years and put into these different stories. Another similarity is that all three stories were created to answer the fundamental question that lingers the minds of many, and that question is How we were made and to what purpose were we made.
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