I know.. its long.. but i really need someone's help for this essay! and its due today.. my friend helped me out but i never got the document on the email soo :S its due today guys someone help me out! especially for the intro and conclusion! THANKS! if you need to contact me i have MSN [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Many things today still remain a mystery to humans, just like the afterlife. This question dates long back before the present time, and each civilization had its own perception of the world of the dead. For ancient Egyptians, the next world was just a continuation of the last one without all the pain and miseries. As for the ancient Mesopotamian thought, the hereafter seemed to be a cruel place to live, and only those who had performed the correct burial and mourning rites were to live a good afterlife. Both of these civilizations share similarities but both are quite different from one another. Mesopotamia is believed to be the first civilization that existed because no documents have been found dating further back than this particular society (Oppenheim, 1964, P.109). This civilization had the belief that humans were created to serve the gods (Oates, 1979, P. 174). This belief was portrayed in the drawings and like the kings; the gods were fed, clothed and cared for (Oates, 1979, P.174). Temples were also created for the gods but the common man would not be permitted to enter (Oates, 1979, P.). Many different texts express the afterlife negatively, just like the myth of Inanna's descent to the Netherworld; it is depicted as follows: "Bereft of light, dust is their fare and clay their food. They reside in darkness and are clothed like birds" (Crawford, 1991, P.103). The Mesopotamian thought of afterlife is hard to understand since there is very little information and so much controversy. It is assumed that the Mesopotamian civilization believed that there was no heaven or hell, no revivification, and no last judgement for the fate of the afterlife (Scurlock, 1995, P.1883). However, they did believe in a type of continuation after death, but several burial and mourning rites had to be performed accurately (Scurlock, 1995, P.1883). For the burial, the dead body was cleaned and the mouth was fixed closed (Scurlock, 1995, P.1884). Perfume or oil was put on the cadaver which was then dressed in clean clothes and surrounded by personal items in its resting place, much like the Christian religion exercises today (Scurlock, 1995, P.1884). Mesopotamians assumed the deceased went to the Netherworld, so they even included sandals or full-size chariots for the kings in the graves for the expedition (Scurlock, 1995, P. 1884). The dead were buried with provisions which were believed to be used for the life in the other world to make it as enjoyable as possible (Crawford, 1991, P.103). A large amount of the things found in graves was food, tools, clothes, instruments and even games (Crawford, 1991, P.103). However, some claim that these objects were offerings to the divinities so the dead would be accepted to this new life (Scurlock, 1995, P.1884). However, it is accepted that it was a mixture of both since the body would have a lot of items buried with them (Crawford, 1991, P.123). According to archaeologists, one can improve the fate of the afterlife by donating offerings for the gods which is demonstrated in the text called 'The death of Ur- Namma' (Crawford, 1991, P.103). The mourning procedure could last more than several days, even up to seven if the individual was an outstanding and well-known person (Scurlock, 1995, P.1885). To increase the number of the grieving, professional mourners could also be hired (Scurlock, 1995, P.1885). Those who could afford it were buried in a sarcophagus, a tomb, or in a coffin but the vast majority were wrapped in a cloth with a small amount of poor pottery (Scurlock, 1995, P.1884). The Epic of Gilgamesh begins by talking about Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk, who is half divine and half human (Sanders, 1972, P.30). No man was equal to Gilgamesh, so the gods created Enkidu, Gilgamesh's equal, who is seen as a pure divine man with the appearance of a wild animal (Sanders, 1972, P.30). Enkidu encounters a prostitute and has a sexual relation with the mortal woman, thus humanizing him because he lost his innocence (Sanders, 1972, P.30). After a series of adventures, Enkidu and Gilgamesh killed Humbaba; the giant monster positioned by the gods to watch the Cedar forest, and also insulted Ishtar because Gilgamesh refused to become her husband (Sanders, 1972, P.34). While the two men (Gilgamesh & Enkidu) celebrate their new defeat after killing the Bull of Heaven, the gods hold a meeting and decide that one of the two men must die for their actions (Sanders, 1972, P.35). Gilgamesh seemed more innocent because he was touched by Humbaba's words, unlike Enkidu who refused to listen to Humbaba (Sanders, 1972, P.35). As a result of the gods' decision, Enkidu becomes sick and has a vision concerning the afterlife: There is the house whose people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat. They are clothed like bird with wings for covering, they see no light, they sit in darkness. (...) I saw the kings (...), their crowns put away for ever (...). They who had stood in the place of gods (...) stood now like servants to fetch baked meats in the house of dust, to carry cooked meat and cold water from the water- skin. (...) (There) were high priests and acolytes, (...) there were servers of the temple, (...) Samuqan, god of the cattle, and there was Ereshkigal the Queen of the Underworld (Sanders, 1972, P.92). This vision that Enkidu has shows that everyone obtains the same afterlife, no matter what status the individual had in the previous life. Enkidu describes the Netherworld as ¨the house from which none who enters ever returns, down the road from which there is no coming back¨ (Sanders, 1972, P.92). Enkidu passes away and Gilgamesh mourns the loss of a companion, realizing that life is not eternal; unlike he wants it to be (Sanders, 1972, P.36). He seeks for immortality and experiences a sequence of events which allows him to be so close to his goal, but in the end he does not attain it (Sanders, 1972, P.43). This again proves that everyone gets treated the same way, because Gilgamesh was two-thirds god and still gained the same destiny as everyone else. In comparison, exposed by the burial traditions, it is assumed that the Egyptians believed in the afterlife and anticipated it would be similar to the life they were acquainted with (Lesko, 1995, P.1763). Egyptians believed in the ka, a spiritual portion of the individual which resided in the body during life and survived after death (Lesko, 1995, P.1764). A ka would be explained as something imaginary but is meant to be considered as existing (Lesko, 1995, P.1764). A person's ka could be a person's image or even a statue which represented the individual (Lesko, 1995, P.1764). If and when the corpse was to decay, the ka could still guarantee a continuous life (Lesko, 1995, P.1764). Egyptians also believed in the ba, which was in one sense the soul, which could leave the body by visions and dreams (Casson, 2001, P. 118). If the ka and the ba abandoned the body, it would result in the death of the individual (Casson, 2001, P.118). However, through the mummification and grave burials, the ka and the ba could return to the body, retuning it back to life (Casson, 2001, P.118). Like the Mesopotamians, rations, clothes, cosmetics, weapons and tools were also provided for the dead (Casson, 2001, P.114). Figurines of servants were also placed in the graves because they were to maintain supplying in the afterlife. The Egyptians would perform the mummification process which was then followed by religious traditions, essentially the 'Opening of the Mouth' ceremony (Lesko, 1995, P.1766). This ritual implicated a traditional object, the adze, which came in contact with the mouth, the ears, the eyes, and the nostrils, signifying their opening and the individual's rebirth (Lesko, 1995, P. 1766). This same ritual was also completed on picture representations and statues which represented the mummies (Lesko, 1995, P.1766). The Egyptians did not approve suicide in order to escape and begin a new life in the other world (Lesko, 1995, P.1766). Capital punishment had to be authorized by the pharaoh and was only used for people found responsible of severe offences (Lesko, 1995, P.1766). A book created, the Book of the Dead, thoroughly explains a list of violations that one must not come upon in order to be introduced to Osiris (Lesko, 1995, P.1768). The Egyptians also believed that the ideal land consisted of fabricating offerings for the deity Osiris (Lesko, 1995, P.1768). The myth of Osiris clearly shows the perception the Egyptians had. Osiris was the son of Chronos, the Earth-god, and Rhea, the Sky- goddess (Budge, 1973, P.2). His brother Seth was extremely jealous of Osiris and murdered him, cutting his body to pieces and scattered them all over Egypt (Casson, 2001, P.88). Isis, Osiris' wife, went looking for her husband's body and found all the pieces except one which had been eaten by the fish (Budge, 1973, P.7). She, somehow, resuscitated her husband and had a child which she named Horus (Casson, 2001, P. 88). Horus seeked revenge for his father and fought with Seth and defeated him, thus allowing him to gain the throne (Casson, 2001, P. 88). Since Osiris resurrected, he became the god of the underworld, judge of the dead (Casson, 2001, P.88). The deceased would meet Osiris for their last judgement (Casson, 2001, P.89). Every Egyptian was eligible for the afterlife (Casson, 2001, P.115). The dead person had to prove that they were eligible to obtain eternal life and happiness (Casson, 2001, P.115). Beside Osiris would stand Anubis, the jackal god which was in charge of the weighing of the heart (Casson, 2001, P. 117). This process involved in placing the heart of the individual on one side, which Egyptians believed to be the mind of the defendant (Casson, 2001, P.117). On the other side would be a feather, the symbol of maat, which meant order and truth (Casson, 2001, P.117). If the heart and feather were not balanced, the individual was found guilty and would be eaten by a monster (Casson, 2001, P.118). The Mesopotamian had a pessimistic view of the afterlife. However, The Mesopotamian were rational and knew death was the reality of life, even for gods and kings (Scurlock, 1995, P.1893). --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Correct my English" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/correct-my-english -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
