For centuries religion has been a significant and intricate part of human societies. Some would say that religion is as important to mankind as food and water. While food and water keeps us going,religion provides a reason and purpose for that life. In short, religion is man's attempt to understand the world around them and their place in it. Furthermore, religious values maintain order and a code of how mankind should behave among their peers and families. As religion is man-made, it can reveal much about a society's standards and sense of self. So, religion is both a shaper as well as a reflection of society. The ancient Sumerian and Hebrew societies both held detailed religious beliefs which shaped their different perspectives. Each society also, under the canopy of their own religion, had a belief in and perception of the afterlife. Hense, their different beliefs in that afterlife can be seen as an explanation for the ways in which they perceived and lived life.

The Sumarians pursued life with voracious thirst and believed in enjoying life to the fullest, savoring all human pleasures. On the other hand, the Hebrew religion stressed the importanc

Gilgamesh, the people sought to gain fame, wealth, and pleasure in this life, while in Hebrew society the people sought to secure a good and eternal afterlife by repressing their flesh urges and abiding by their purging traditions. Two opposite mentalities, each the product of their own religious beliefs dictating the way these civilization lived and in the end, died.

The Epic of Gilgamesh presents a clear picture of Sumerian religious beliefs. Similar to Greek mythology, the Sumarians believed in many imperfect gods. These gods were not flawless or

endless darkness, and says, "dust is their food and clay is their meat." (29) This underworld, ruled by the goddess Irkalla, (29) is obviously not a fun place. It is in this belief that one glean an explanation for the Sumarians way of life. The Sumarians believed in living to the fullest. They took on life voraciously and

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