The Ramayana

I love the differences that are presented here with Gilgamesh and Rama. First, I like Rama way more. Gilgamesh to me seemed way too over confident and had too much pride. Rama is almost here to simply do what is asked of him. He does not disrespect people and he seems to be pure of heart almost. It is funny how they are both heroes but are so different at the same time. They represent the far ends of the spectrum almost. You have Gilgamesh who is this man who is stronger than any man on earth and I would say doesn’t care about his people as much as he should being a leader. Rama on the other hand is yes extremely strong and a warrior, but he is also very kind hearted and cares about his people. You can see this in the way he is loved by everyone (not feared). He also has such a different way of looking and treating women. Yes the women in the stories are not “equal” to the men. However, Rama treats Sita like a man should treat his wife. He loves her and he values the husband/wife relationship while Gilgamesh had to sleep with every wife before their husband did.  Gilgamesh was all about him going off and battling all these different “opponents.” Rama’s epic tale is about fulfilling Dharma and making sure you are doing what you are meant to do on earth. Yes he has his fair share of battles, but the ultimate goal of his is to fulfill his life’s meaning. Overall, two great epics, but with two different perspectives on the types of “heroes.”