The following passage is about the palace of Irkalla(the epic of gilgamesh.) Enkidu tells Gilgamesh about the dream he has...where he sees himself entering a palace of the dead ( a large underground region below the earth. I just don't really understand the passage below. Can you tell me what role the dead play in the palace of Irkalla? Help, I am really weak in English.
‘ He turned his state towards me, and he led me away to the palace of Irkalla, the Queen of darkness, to the house from which none who enters ever returns, down the road from which there is no coming back.'There is the house whose people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat. They are clothed like birds " with wings for covering, they see no light, they sit in darkness. I entered the house of dust and I saw the kings of the earth, their crowns put away for ever; rulers and princes, all those who once wore kingly crowns and ruled the world in the days of old. They who had stood in the place of the gods like Ann and Enlil stood now like servants to fetch baked meats in the house of dust, to carry cooked meat and cold water from the water-skin. In the house of dust which I entered were high priests and acolytes, priests of the incantation and of ecstasy; there were servers of the temple, and there was Etana, that king of Dish whom the eagle carried to heaven in the days of old. I saw also Samuqan, god of cattle, and there was Ereshkigal the Queen of the Underworld; and Befit-Sheri squatted in front of her, she who is recorder of the gods and keeps the book of death. She held a tablet from which she read. She raised her head, she saw me and spoke:" Who has brought this one here?" Then I awoke like a man drained of blood who wanders alone in a waste of rashes; like one whom the bailiff has seized and his heart pounds with terror.'
So, based on the above passage about the palace of Irkalla, Can you tell me what role the dead play in the palace of Irkalla?
2007-12-12 13:01:23 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ History
please help!
2007-12-12 13:07:47 · update #1
i'm sorry but your answers are not making any sense to me.
2007-12-12 13:16:07 · update #2
The Dead play this role in the palace:
-The Kings, Princes, and Rulers sit like everyone else in the dark. The crowns put away for ever and no different than anyone else.
-Ann and Enlil who had stood where Gods were are now servants carrying dust and clay. ( This is like Adam and Eve, the humans who inherited the earth from God, now they are here to not as inheritors but as servants)
-All the priests and spiritual people who speak of things out of this world are here too.
-The King of Dish may have been a great ruler, enough to be mentioned alone, but he is here too and could not escape.
Those are the dead. There roles are to sit in darkness no matter who they were and eat dust and clay. As far as there role for Enkidu and Gilgamesh these dead folks represent what happens to you when you die. Ereshkigal and Befit-Sheri take note of who comes in. Enkidu wakes up at the moment where he would have been entering the house of dust. Obviously pointing towards what is going to happen to him soon...
2007-12-12 13:36:19 · answer #1 · answered by casimir2121 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The palace of Irkalla governed by the King and Queen of Darkness have come to a decision to show the world a bit of fun and games that there created. The dead have not yet been chosen to play any part in the final closure to happiness on earth
2007-12-12 13:13:57 · answer #2 · answered by MariaAntonietta 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The role of the dead is that of a powerful and constant reminder that all who die are truly dead, and not actually "wafted away to a heaven-like place". What is depicted here is the common destiny of all mankind = the grave.
2007-12-12 13:08:02 · answer #3 · answered by correrafan 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
umm not too sure, but it made it sound like the dead plays the role of the people before who worshiped worldly things and based there life on worldly things like gold and treasure, kings and queens, who not had helped or gave back anything to the world but tried to take it or made it there own. i guess, and now there are sovereign for it. it is said the poor and week shall inherit the earth but the rich will perish for the way they worship worldly things or something like that. well I'm lost too, lol well i hoped i helped and sorry if i made you anymore confused.
2007-12-12 13:10:35 · answer #4 · answered by Ricky D 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
hmmmmmm, i read that story but i don't recall that part of it. i sugest going to one of those sites that explains everything and also you should describe the content o your question on the line that says "Question".
2007-12-12 13:13:06 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm first give me ten points
2007-12-12 13:05:32 · answer #6 · answered by Alucard 3 · 0⤊ 5⤋
TO LONG TO READ NOW GIVE ME MY 10POINTS!
2007-12-12 13:04:00 · answer #7 · answered by blondie74 2 · 0⤊ 5⤋
i have no idea...it's too long...who's ikella?
2007-12-12 13:04:44 · answer #8 · answered by Kelsey#1 2 · 0⤊ 5⤋