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Compare and contrast two ancient Mesopotamian civilizations Essay
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During the time of early civilizations people were creating communities, societies, cultures, political structures and religions all new to our world. It was trying times and ages of awakenings. Religion played a major part role in the history of our world and mankind some of the religions discovered at this time are still practiced today, and some have faded away. The two early civilizations that stand out to me are Mesopotamia and India. Although the two share some similarities, the differences in religious beliefs between Mesopotamia and India are clear. The people of Mesopotamia had a belief system that was polytheistic, which is a belief in multiple gods and goddesses. They believed there was a god or goddess for all aspects of the universe. They worshipped gods such as Anu the god of heaven, Enlil the god of water, and Ninhursag the mother goddess. The Babylonians and Assyrians of Mesopotamia also believed in Marduk and Assur the kings of the gods, Shamash was the god of the sun, Sin who was …show more content…
Ancient Hebrews believed in Monotheism, its acceptance in Mesopotamia was a gradual transition in that era. The god of the ancient Hebrews was Yahweh. There were two belief systems in India, Hinduism and Buddhism. The people who followed Hinduism worship one main god, Indra who was a war god. Indra guided the people through wars, and was responsible for the weather. There were also a number of gods that were responsible for one’s personal behaviors and the morals they believed to be important. Those were the gods who determined if the person was to go to heaven or to hell. In Buddhism there wasn’t a god they worship, rather people tried to reach holiness following the practices of Buddha. Buddha was a man named Siddhartha Gautama, who developed Buddhism through meditation, fasting and praying. Acrobatiq.
Religion was very big in both ancient civilizations. Many in the Gupta Empire believed in either Hinduism or Buddhism. The Gupta Empire even invented universities where people went to practice and learn about their religion along with regular subjects like math, reading, and writing. They had also spread Buddhism to China, who didn’t really have a big religion back then, and it is now the most popular religion in China today .
Mesopotamian temples were run like great households where the gods were fed lavish meals, entertained with music, and honored with devotion and ritual. Mesopotamians were religiously tolerant and accepted the possibility that different people might have different gods. They had a gloomy picture of the afterlife. Mesopotamian families had ceremonies to remember/ honor their dead. Religious teaching influenced daily life in a huge way. Religion played a big part in literature and art of Mesopotamia. Epic poems told how the world was created and of hero-king Gilgamesh, who tried to escape death by going on a journey to find the sole survivor of the great flood. The most imposing religious structure was the ziggurat, a tower in stages. Poetry about ziggurats was often compared to
The Nile and Indus River Valley civilizations were both unique civilizations in their own way in comparison. Yet despite being separated by thousands of miles there are similarities in these two ancient civilizations. It is seen that amongst ancient civilizations, rivers are fundamental for them to prosper and provide for a relatively stable society for which a people can grow and develop. There are general similarities with pinpoint differences as well as general differences with pinpoint similarities. Both civilizations have left their influence on human civilization and history, with their unique characteristics of their religion, way of life, social classes, cultures, technological advancements, government systems, rulers and notable
The Ancient Egypt and Ancient Mesopotamia grew up to be successful civilizations. The surroundings of where they are located assisted them in survival. Although their lifestyles were different, both civilizations became successful in their own ways. Finally, their similar belief was a very helpful guidance when their rulers governed. Without these factors, the two civilizations might not have been
Egypt and Mesopotamia were two of the world’s earliest city-based civilizations, creating the basis for Middle Eastern and Western history. Both Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations existed on the banks of major rivers. While Egyptian civilization thrived along the Nile, Mesopotamia settled between the Tigris and the Euphrates. Although they shared this characteristic, it was also the cause of many of their differences in political systems, religions, and social stability.
Two of the earliest and greatest civilizations, Mesopotamia and Egypt, show the transition from a Paleolithic society into a settled civilization. Both cultures had established kings; however, the Pharaoh is the god-king of Egypt, while in Mesopotamia the monarchs are priest-kings whom serve the gods. Although Mesopotamia and Egypt have some characteristics in common, which bring them under the “First Civilizations” category, their different views and beliefs about divine authority and how it is practiced set these civilizations apart and make them unique.
One of the earliest civilizations to develop was Mesopotamia in 3100. Mesopotamia developed next to the Tigris and Euphrates river valley because the water was a big advantage. The Sumerians, who lived in Sumer, learned how to build houses and they learned how to grow crops. Both of which are huge advantages compared to the Homo Habilis because they didn’t need to move anywhere for food and they could settle down in one place for the rest of their lives. They started developing cities and communities so they could all live in one place. Once they established their city, they started to develop political figures such as kings or stand in gods and thus, religion came into the picture. With the rise of “gods” came polytheism, which means they worshiped more than one god or goddess. The people of Sumer would build temples known as a ziggurat to worship their gods. The Sumerians and Akkadians were both advanced in the arts and science and they also developed a spoken language so they could communicate with each other. Along with language came reading and writing. The Sumerians created cuneiform, which is pictographs, and that was how they
In Egypt, people believed in many Gods that controlled different aspects of their lives and nature. The Greeks also believed in many Gods, which ruled over different aspects of life, but in Greece, different city states centered their religious beliefs on specific Gods.
believed in many gods unlike the people of the Jewish fate who believed in one
The ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt began to develop circa 3,000 B.C. Located near rivers, the lands offered fertile soil and an excess of crops that drew in many people. As more people arrived, the small settlements flourished into large, thriving civilizations. Many aspects of Mesopotamia and Egypt, such as their cities, their strongly organized government, and their religion, greatly contributed to the success of these two civilizations.
People of the ancient world often had questions about their existence and how life and people came to be on earth. Most ancient people answered these questions through religion. The Sumerians were the first important group of people to inhabit Mesopotamia and they were known to practice a form of worship called polytheism, which is the worship of several gods. Mesopotamians associated different gods with natural events, emotions, and other occurrences. Their main deities included An (the god of the heavens), Enlil (Lord Storm), Enki (god of wisdom), and Nihursaga (the mother of all living things)(p.22). The Mesopotamians believed that the gods controlled all of the events and occurrences in life. An ancient text called “Creation of Man by the Mother Goddess” (p.34) helps us understand how the M...
What similarities and differences did Egypt and Mesopotamia have and why was Egypt more politically unified than its neighbor, Mesopotamia? I think in order to answer these questions it is important to look at how both societies lived. Egypt and Mesopotamia were two civilizations existing during the time period of 2000-1200 BCE.(text, 97) These civilizations were shaped by their environment, involved with trade, and faced changes in government after the 100 year drought; however, they differed in that Egypt was shaped by the Nile, traded goods for goods and changed their outlook on the pharaoh who was ruler of all; whereas, Mesopotamia was shaped by the Tigris and Euphrates, traded money for goods, and had a ruler over rulers. The governed harmonic life style of Egypt led this society to be more politically unified; whereas, Mesopotamia’s government led to many different ways of structure, thus creating a less unified society.
Ancient Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, and Greece were all historical civilizations that made history the way it is today. The three civilizations differed in many different ways, but they were also quite similar in other aspects. The focus of survival, beliefs, daily life, and many other focuses connect the three civilizations.
The Mesopotamian people believed in a higher being, like most civilizations have for centuries. Their belief system consisted of many gods, each representing an aspect of Mesopotamian life. From the Epic of Gilgamesh we learn that they believed that the gods are the creators of everything around them. This is seen in this epic with the creation of Enkindu, by the goddess of creation, Aruru. We also can conclude that the god of the heavens, Anu, ruled the gods. The Mesopotamian people also had gods for death, love, and even cattle. The Mesopotamian people used the gods to explain just about every aspect of their life. Their gods were all-powerful, and could grant people godly features. For example, Gilgamesh embarks on a quest for eternal life from the gods when his fear of death becomes a reality with the death of Enkindu.
How did people revere their gods differently among three civilizations? Did they worship with the same general intent? What were gods’ role(s) in people’s lives? A brief exploration into the religions of Egypt, Greece, and the Hebrew people may bring insight to these questions. Although the main idea of higher beings remains constant throughout societies’ religion, their form of presence in people’s lives varies. I will present the relationship between the leaders and the gods, as well as resemblance to monotheism and systems of government.