Editing Epic of Gilgamesh (section)

=== Sumerian poems ===
There are five extant Gilgamesh stories in the form of older poems in [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]].{{sfn|George|2003|pp=141–208}} These probably circulated independently, rather than being in the form of a unified epic. Some of the names of the main characters in these poems differ slightly from later Akkadian names; for example, "Bilgames" is written instead of "Gilgamesh", and there are some differences in the underlying stories such as the fact that Enkidu is Gilgamesh's servant in the Sumerian version:
# ''[[Cedar Forest|Gilgamesh and Huwawa]]'' ([[incipit]]: ''The lord went to the Living One's Mountain'') and ''Ho, hurrah!''{{clarification needed|date=October 2024}} correspond to the [[Cedar Forest]] episode (Standard Babylonian version tablets II–V). Gilgamesh and Enkidu travel with other men to the Forest of Cedar. There, trapped by Huwawa, Gilgamesh tricks him (with Enkidu's assistance in one of the versions) into giving up his auras, thus losing his power.
# ''[[Bull of Heaven#Gilgamesh and the Bull of Heaven|Gilgamesh and the Bull of Heaven]]'' (incipit: ''Hero in battle'') corresponds to the [[Bull of Heaven]] episode (Standard Babylonian version tablet VI) in the Akkadian version. The Bull's voracious appetite causes drought and hardship in the land while Gilgamesh feasts. Lugalgabagal convinces him to face the Bull and attacks him alongside Enkidu.
# ''[[Gilgamesh and Aga]]'' (incipit: ''The envoys of [[Aga of Kish|Aga]]'' or ''Akka'') has no corresponding episode in the epic, but the themes of whether to show mercy to captives, and counsel from the city elders, also occur in the Standard Babylonian version of the Humbaba story. In the poem, Uruk faces a siege from a Kish army led by [[Aga of Kish|King Akka]], whom Gilgamesh defeats and forgives.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Katz |first1=Dina |title=Gilgamesh and Akka |date=1993 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-72371-67-6 |page=14 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bCn5-COYETwC&pg=PA14 |language=en |access-date=26 April 2020 |archive-date=12 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712074653/https://books.google.com/books?id=bCn5-COYETwC&pg=PA14 |url-status=live}}</ref>
# ''[[Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Netherworld]]'' (incipit: ''In those days, in those far-off days'') is the source for the Akkadian translation included as tablet XII in the Standard Babylonian version, telling of Enkidu's journey to the Netherworld. It is also the main source of information for the [[Eridu Genesis]] and the story of "[[Inanna#The huluppu tree|Inanna and the ''Huluppu'' Tree]]".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kramer |first=Samuel Noah |title=Sumerian Mythology: A Study of Spiritual and Literary Achievement in the Third Millennium B.C.: Revised Edition |date=1961 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |isbn=978-0-8122-1047-7 |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |pages=30–41}}</ref>
# ''[[Death of Gilgamesh]]'' (incipit: ''The great wild bull is lying down''), a poem about Gilgamesh's death, burial and consecration as a semigod, reigning and giving judgement over the dead. After dreaming of how the gods decide his fate after death, Gilgamesh takes counsel, prepares his funeral and offers gifts to the gods. Once deceased, he is buried under the Euphrates, taken off its course and later returned to it.