What is not clear, though, is culturally what types of behavior was considered perfectly acceptable and simply obvious to members of that culture. For more on this, see: (Ackerman)
But to have different cultures in time and location find ways of explaining certain principles in such similar manner leads one to believe that there is perhaps more to myth and ritual than simple repetition of stories. In a sense, then, to envision the future, we must re-craft the past, and the way that seems to happen is in the combination of myth and ritual (Bittarello)
However, this is also a concern in the modern age when life changes drastically, and we do not have a mythos with which to deal with changing times. The rituals allow us organize maturity, to pass and live the stages of life in the appropriate manner, and, without actually speaking of it, to establish the right and wrong way to behave within the group (Campbell, 205-12)
The most complete version still in existence is a 12-clay tablet collection from 7th century Assyria, but the earliest Sumerian versions date from as early as 2150 B.C. (Dalley, 41-42)
The Mesopotamian Civilization included much of what is now modern Iraq, parts of Iran, and Turkey, and into some of the mountains of Armenia (Pollock). Relationship to Previous Periods -- it is likely that primitive hunter-gatherers decided to experiment with some of the grains that grew naturally around the banks of the two rivers, and found that with the proper are, they could have a more regular source of food than relying on daily foraging (Dalling)
It was one of the first verifiable areas of organized cities and domestication of plants and animals. Modern scholarship has extended the actual area of influence for Mesopotamia as far north as parts of Southeastern Turkey and parts of Khuzestan, forming a much larger area of organized civilization (Dlott)
All of the functions of mythology are tied to this concept, which allows us to know our place in the universe. (Doniger, 20-31)
Myths generally take place in a primitive age, when the world had not yet achieved its current form. They explain how the world gained its current form and how customs, institutions, and taboos were established (Doty)
Legends are stories that are traditionally true, set in more recent times and told as verifiable fact. Legends typically feature humans as the main character, in contrast to myths which usually focus on an ubermensch or super-human, figure (Dundes) Distinctions between myth, legend, and folklore are meant only as a tool to group traditional stories since, in many cultures it is unnecessary to divide their stories
Enkidu represents all stages of civilization -- he is a nomad who becomes a shepherd, hunter, and then city dweller. Hi arrival at Uruk tames Gilgamesh who now leaves the new brides to their husbands (Hooker)
One theory indicates that in settled areas that were developed around a political or religious leadership, populations increased, infant mortality decreased, and the division of labor increased. Additionally, as populations grew, more pressure existed on the local food supply, requiring more coordination and organization that eventually led to political structure (Kreis)
By retelling myths, human beings detach themselves from the present and return to the mythical age, thereby bringing themselves closer to the divine. In fact, in some cases, a society will reenact a myth in an attempt to reproduce the conditions of the mythical age: for example, it will reenact the healing performed by a god at the beginning of time in order to heal someone in the present (Moyers)
Contribution(s) to Western Civilization -- There are numerous "firsts" for Mesopotamia: the invention of writing and record keeping (in cuneiform); basic architecture (city planning and building of ziggurats (pyramids); establishment of domestication techniques for plants and animals; the basis of religion, myth, and literature; the establishment of a Code of Law (Code of Hammurabi, c. 1780 BC); formation of formal government; economic rules and regulations; technology (copper working, glass making, water storage, irrigation); formal medical system including written diagnosis and planning (Museum)
). The Mesopotamian Civilization included much of what is now modern Iraq, parts of Iran, and Turkey, and into some of the mountains of Armenia (Pollock)
The opposite is also true; many scholars believe that some of the Ancient Mideastern myths (Sumer, Assyria, etc.) "lent" some of their mytos to Genesis (Rosenberg, 450-60)
This mystical experience is meant to help humans have a core spirituality that can come as close as possible to envisioning a Supreme Being; to understand that which cannot be communicated directly. Some, in fact, believe that this part of the ritual/mythical experience is what allows humans to communicate in metaphors and think in the abstract (Schillbrack, 86-9)
However, from the beginning of civilization, ritual and myth have described the world -- and may be considered false today, but if looked upon as explanations for the way the world worked, all myths are still metaphorically true. Indeed, as science advances, particularly the subject of physics, the lines blur even more between reality and the notion of myth (Tracy, 285-91)
1780 BC); formation of formal government; economic rules and regulations; technology (copper working, glass making, water storage, irrigation); formal medical system including written diagnosis and planning (Museum). The Hammurabi Code though was the first important record of humans granting contracts, rights to families and other individuals, and even though a male dominated society, to understand a primitive concept of human rights (Van De Mieroop)
The idea of myth is so tied into culture that even our motion picture industry has the need for particular stories to remain focal themes. Whatever the genre, even if those genres did not exist when the particular story originated, the classic nature of the values of certain subjects continues to resonate for human audiences (Voytilla)
And once commerce began, it was important to find a way to use some sort of "token system" in which to account for trade goods. Out of this grew a rather advanced system of writing, which then led to even more advances -- literature, formal religion, and a way to pass down cultural activities from generation to generation in ways other than oral traditions (Woods)