Powerful ideas from top nonfiction
Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 7,500+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.
Get started
Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
Listen to the Intro
The Epic of Gilgamesh summary
Anonymous
A timeless tale of friendship, mortality, and the search for meaning
17 mins
Brief summary
The Epic of Gilgamesh narrates the adventures of Gilgamesh, a semi-divine king, alongside his companion Enkidu. The story explores themes of friendship, mortality, and the pursuit of wisdom in ancient Mesopotamian culture.
Table of Contents
The Epic of Gilgamesh
Summary of 5 key ideas
Audio & text in the Blinkist app
Key idea 1 of 5
The story behind the story
The story of Gilgamesh lay buried beneath the sands of Iraq for thousands of years, forgotten until the 1800s when European archaeologists uncovered its remains in the ruins of an ancient library. What they found was astonishing – a tale from Mesopotamia, the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, known today as Iraq.
In this cradle of civilization, a real king named Gilgamesh may have ruled the city of Uruk around 2700 BCE. His people lived among towering temples, bustling markets, and skilled scribes who pressed reed stalks into soft clay to record their world. Over generations, they turned their king's memory into a legend that spread across the ancient world.
You can find pieces of this story written in at least three ancient languages: Sumerian, Akkadian, and Babylonian. The version we know best today was written down around 1200 BCE, but the tale it tells is much older. Early merchants and travelers carried the story far beyond Mesopotamia. They shared it in market squares and royal courts across the ancient world, from Egypt to Turkey, and beyond.
When British Museum scholar George Smith first translated the epic into English in 1872, he found something truly amazing. The tale felt surprisingly modern, full of friendship, adventure, and the search for eternal life. In one scene, Gilgamesh stands before a tavern keeper named Siduri, asking how to live forever. She gives him wisdom that could have come from any contemporary self-help book: cherish your loved ones, celebrate life's simple pleasures, and accept that all humans must die.
The rediscovery of The Epic of Gilgamesh is still unfolding today. Archaeologists continue to unearth new fragments of the epic, hiding in museum collections or buried in ancient ruins. Some pieces fill in missing scenes, while others show us how the story changed as it traveled from one culture to another.
The next sections dive deep into Gilgamesh's adventures with his friend Enkidu, his grief at death's bitter truth, and his quest to live forever. And you'll discover why this tale has endured for four thousand years: its timeless lessons about what it means to be human.
Want to see all full key ideas from The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Key ideas in The Epic of Gilgamesh
More knowledge in less time
Read or listen
Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
Find your next read
Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
Shortcasts New
We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.
What is The Epic of Gilgamesh about?
The Epic of Gilgamesh, (2100 BCE), is the world's oldest surviving literary work. It tells the story of a tyrannical king's journey toward wisdom through friendship, loss, and the search for immortality.
Who should read The Epic of Gilgamesh?
- Environmental thinkers interested in ancient depictions of humanity's relationship with nature
- Those interested in mythology and ancient civilizations
- Anyone facing major life transitions who might benefit from a journey of arrogance to wisdom
Categories with The Epic of Gilgamesh
Book summaries like The Epic of Gilgamesh
People ❤️ Blinkist
Sven O.
It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.
Thi Viet Quynh N.
Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.
Jonathan A.
Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.
Renee D.
Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.
People also liked these summaries
4.7 Stars
Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
37 Million
Downloads on all platforms
10+ years
Experience igniting personal growth