evil forces and a quest for life. In Popol Vuh the twins battle the Lords of the underworld for control of the sun, which is represented by the ball with which their game is played. It is my opinion that the ball also represents life since the Mayans were so dependent on agriculture the sun was a life force for them. In Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh and Enkidu battle the evil monster, when Enkidu is killed in battle Gilgamesh makes it his life’s work to find the secret to eternal life.Both of these texts also have parts to them that are strikingly similar to the Bible. For example, both texts have a scene in which the gods become enraged with man and flood the earth to wash away the sinners. Popol Vuh also has a scene where prophets climb to the top of a mountain to receive the word of god, much like Moses in the Bible.Now there are fewer differences between Popol Vuh and Gilgamesh than there were similarities but I believe these differences to be greater. The first and most relevant difference in my mind is that the two texts have almost completely different purposes. Popol Vuh was intended to be a complete religious history of the Mayan civilization, a Mayan bible if you will; it was intended to pass down Mayan beliefs and traditions for future generations. Gilgamesh on the other hand simply recounts one story that only involves aspects of Mesopotamian religion. Gilgamesh was merely intended to pass one story down to future generations for the purpose of entertainment. In my opinion two books cannot be called similar if their intentions are not the same, it would be like calling religious fiction similar to the Bible.Another difference that is very important is the time of the translation. Seeing as how the majority of historians are present minded, the time of a texts translation could make an incredible difference in the outcome of the text. Gilgamesh was translated long before Popol Vuh and has been translated many times in many way...
