My story began when the city of Uruk was prospering more than ever,
winning all the wars and increasing its economy, as had never happened in all
of Sumeria. All thanks to King Lugalbanda, a sovereign loved by the entire
kingdom and feared by all his enemies. He had become so famous that he aroused
the curiosity of Ninsun, a very powerful goddess.
One day, she decided to go down to earth and meet him personally,
falling in love with the wise king. Lugalbanda had decorated his entire kingdom
to receive the goddess in the best way. He saw this encounter only as an
opportunity to unify his power with divinity, however, deep down he did not see
himself capable of falling completely in love with any woman. But to his
surprise, he ended up fascinated by Ninsun's beauty, marrying her just a week
after meeting her.
Years passed since the beginning of the relationship and love grew more
and more between them. The city of Uruk was gaining more wealth and power than
ever, ending up being the economic and governmental center of Babylon.
Furthermore, to the joy of the people, the goddess was pregnant. This could
mean nothing other than the perfect successor to the throne. Something new for
humanity was going to happen, the first birth between a human and a goddess.
That child was me, Gilgamesh, a name given by my father. The first man with one
part human and two divine parts.
I began to grow up in the palace of Uruk, surrounded by luxuries that no
other child possessed. However, in exchange for all this, I had to train hard
with my father and learn all the combat strategies he knew. After all, he was
going to be the heir to an empire, and even more so with the unification of
Babylon. He was no longer just the prince of a small city, but he was destined
to be the king of the entire Babylonian Empire.
When Lugalbanda turned 46, a terrible illness took hold of him, causing
both physical and brain damage. His end as king had come, and no matter how
hard he tried, he was not able to continue with his mandate. Both my mother
Ninsun and her subordinates constantly advised him to leave the kingdom, since
he was beginning to make illogical and harmful decisions for the people. It was
obvious that I had to inherit the throne, however, he thought I was not ready
yet. I was still a 12-year-old kid, and to be honest, even I didn't know what
being a king entailed.
After multiple complaints from the inhabitants and arguments with my
mother, Lugalbanda finally agreed to leave the kingdom under my command. And
one day when we were eating as a family, he ordered all the subordinates to
leave the room to talk to me privately.
"Son, I have worked so hard to gain command of Babylon... No one
knows all the suffering and hard decisions I was forced to make," my
father told me with tears in his eyes. Promise me that power will never corrupt
your heart!
—Father, only you know how hard I have trained. I will never let his
teachings be in vain! —I had to pretend to be prepared, since I was their only
hope.
—All our people love me for the prosperity I offered them, but they are
unaware of all the violence that wealth entails. I hope with all my being that
you don't make the same mistakes as me. You are more god than human, therefore,
you have more strength, intelligence and cunning than anyone else. Don't abuse
your power, better help the kingdom in everything you can, and one day everyone
will respect you.
—Do you have doubts about me, father? —I asked, worried about his
speech.
He approached the living room window, looking at the people and
buildings surrounding the palace. I could see on his face the anguish and worry
that tormented him.
—No son, you are the only one who could rule an empire as powerful as
Babylon. But you have to remember that we are part of Sumeria, our small
continent. Many empires coexist here, and I fear that they will try to take
advantage of your weakness.
—I'm not weak!
"You're a child... You still have a lot to learn," he added.
You have not experienced war, and I ask the great god Anu that you never face
it.
—Father, everything will be fine, you'll see! The gods will always
protect and help me, I am convinced!
Again his eyes filled with tears, and for the first time, I felt that
Lugalbanda was proud of his son. He approached me, put his hand on my shoulder,
and kissed my forehead. I was surprised by his gesture, since I always knew how
much he loved me, but I had never expressed it with such parental warmth.
"Your coronation will take place tomorrow," he told me while
keeping his hand on my shoulder. I know you will be a powerful and respected
king, even more than me.
The living room door opened quickly and my mother entered. He hugged us
both tightly, almost leaving us breathless. After all, she is a goddess, not
even we could match her strength. Because of this, me and my father started
laughing out loud, surprised by his passion and madness. Despite everything, we
were a happy family, and they wanted all the good in the world for me.
When night came, I went to sleep quite nervous. The next day would be
very special, both for me and for the Babylonian Empire. I was going to become
king, an idea that continued to torment and fascinate me at the same time.
However, deep down I felt more than qualified for this task. He knew my
strength and intelligence, and thanks to my pride I was able to sleep
peacefully that night.
The next day, my mother woke me up for my coronation. I was so nervous I
could barely keep still. All the servants worked hard to prepare the immense
patio of the palace, since it was the place where the ceremony would take
place. From there the entire town could be present, because it was located
right in the center of the city.
They took me to the dressing room, where two beautiful women were
waiting to give me a look fit for a king. The clothing was made of shiny gold
threads, as it had been carved by the best dressmakers in the empire.
"Today is a great day, young Gilgamesh," one of them told me.
I remember that at that moment I got very nervous. He was fascinated by
her beauty, her honey-colored eyes, and the white and immaculate smile she had.
He only thought that, one day, he would have an even more beautiful woman as
his queen.
—Hurry up! —my mother shouted entering the room.
With my clothing made of gold, I went out to the central hall of the
palace. All eyes were fixed on me, and in the crowd I could see the tears of
the most senior subordinates. Those who had been faithfully serving my father
since his inception were going to have a new king. Therefore, the fact that
they were crying seemed quite logical to me, since they were the ones who took
care of me since I was little.
Ninsun, my mother, had made a torch of golden flames with her divine
magic. This would not go out during the entire ceremony, since it contained the
power of a goddess like her. The gold color clearly symbolized gold and
luxuries. And as he told me, the fire represented me, the king who would fill
his people with luxuries and burn his enemies.
To my surprise, the one who was going to carry the torch was going to be
Ukubu, my father's strongest warrior. Since I should walk with this in front of
me towards the coronation, the person in charge of my training until I am 18
years old. Normally, it was my father who had trained me since I was little,
but due to his illness this was no longer going to be possible. Therefore, he
decided to put his best general to take charge.
I've always hated preparations, so I begged my mother to get started
now. Said and done, everyone got into position. Ukubu carried the torch held in
his strong hands, stood in front of me, and opened the enormous patio doors
that led to the outskirts of the palace. My parents had placed themselves on my
sides, Ninsun on the left and Lugalbanda on the right. While a woman was behind
us carrying the crown made of gold, ruby and lapis lazuli.
When the large doors opened wide, the first thing I noticed was a line
of musicians with their respective instruments making way for us. The lyre, the
lute and the harp were just some of the instruments that he could appreciate at
that time, accompanied by a woman and a man reciting verses with their voices.
Music worthy of a king, so beautiful that I will never forget the pleasure my
ears felt.
As I raised my head, I could see thousands of people surrounding the
palace, each one breaking their chests shouting my name. I couldn't even see
the houses of the city, given the enormous cloud of women, men and children
that surrounded me. I was so nervous my heart almost jumped out of my chest. In
that moment I was able to understand what it means to be king, as well as the
responsibility of caring for and protecting so many people. However, what I
could see was barely the population of Uruk, but thinking that I would have all
of Babylon under my command, the anguish increased even more.
—Relax! —my mother whispered embarrassed, since I had remained
motionless.
"Leave it! It's not easy to deal with all this at once, especially
as a child," my father reproached him.
I hated it when he called me 'kid', but I avoided opening my mouth so as
not to provoke a possible argument among everyone. Furthermore, Ninsun was also
very nervous, and both I and my father, thanks to her, learned that it was not
a good idea to anger a goddess.
In front of us, with firm and slow steps, came the Enheduanna, the name
assigned to the high priestess with the greatest influence in the empire. And
with a single gesture raising his hand, he achieved absolute silence among the
entire crowd. She was going to be the one to recite prayers to the three great
gods of our culture: Anu, god of the universe; Enlil, god of heaven and earth;
and Shamash, god of justice and the sun. They were in charge of protecting the
world and our beloved Sumerian continent. Although to be honest, I only prayed
to Shamash, because he was the one I admired the most of all.
—Anu, bless young Gilgamesh, two parts god and one human. "He is
the one who will unite heaven with earth, and who will do justice to your
name," Enheduanna exclaimed with such emotion that it made my hair curl.
The high priestess took the crown from the woman who was holding it in
her hands. He kisses it right in the center, and proceeds to give it to my
parents so they can do the same ritual.
Shortly after, four men brought me the king's throne, made of pure gold
and lapis lazuli crystals. Obviously, I had to sit down to receive the crown,
which the Enheduanna had again.
—Son, you are already king... I am proud of you! —my father told me
crying.
The high priestess placed the crown on my head, and in the euphoria of
the moment began to shout to the audience:
—Long live Gilgamesh! —He shouted this phrase several times, while the
crowd repeated his words.
Perhaps, that was the exact moment where my excessive pride was born.
Well, in those moments I felt like the most powerful man in the world. I
already had an entire empire under my command, and with my strength and
intelligence, no enemy could match me. Or at least that's what I thought, due
to the rush of the moment.
After finishing the coronation, the
musicians returned to give us another auditory delight. All the people began to
dance happily, and the music continued to resonate throughout the vicinity of
the palace