Relation to the Socio-Political Essay

Comparison and Contrast of the General Tones of the Sumerian and Egyptian Hymns, in Relation to the Socio-Political and Geographic History of these Nations It is interesting to note that the Egyptian and Sumerian civilizations both sprung up beside rivers Egypt lies in the delta of the Nile while the Sumerian civilization was on the fertile Mesopotamia along the banks of Tigris and Euphrates. It is thus expected that both civilizations revere their river, and sort out them with gods, because the rivers prove to be vital to their existence and a channel of manners for them.These forces of nature are considered holy and addressed by prayers. Examples of such pleas flock be found in both sings A Sumero-Akadian Prayer to all God and the Hymn to the Nile. In these prayers, however, we welcome very different attitudes of the previous(predicate) people towards their gods. In the Sumero-Akadian prayer we will read a tincture of sorrow, grief and fear by a troubled soul oer his offen ces with the gods. The introduction fearfully desire for peace with the divinity May the rabies of my lords heart be quieted toward me. Throughout the text we will also find out that the gods are not named, but is rather just sacred as an existing being that may not be offended. This apparent(a) fear of the divinity may be attributed to the structure of the Mesopotamian civilizations, where the land was carve up into different city- produces believed to be owned by a deity. The Sumerian state is therefore not a solid state, but is a congeries of small states. Consistent fear of invasion made them turn into the prophesy beings for protection and blessing.As a further note, in the Sumero-Akadian civilizations, the power of governance is divided into two the lugal took care of the military powers and the even more justly ensi was the supreme religious leader who also controlled economic and technological expertness (Krejci and Krejcova, p. 31). It can therefore be seen that the fear of the gods was the way of the ensi to maintain political control over his dominions. Political and social structure in Egypt proven much different from the Sumerians. The whole of Egypt was controlled by only one dominion the Pharaohs.This unity gave the Egyptians more control over their surroundings and their country. Early on, the Egyptians had a clear sense of identity (Kemp, p. 25). This control is best exemplified by their capability to time and control the flooding of the Nile. However, geographically, the Egyptians were not as lucky as the Sumerians, as they were surrounded by deserts. This made them consider the Nile as a gift from the gods, a means by which they would live. It is therefore not strike that the Hymn to the Nile is a joyous song of praise.The overall theme of the hymn is perhaps best stated in the first lines Hail to thee, O Nile Who manifests thyself over this land, and comes to give life to EgyptReferencesMircea Eliade From Primitives to Zen A SUME RO-AKADIAN PRAYER past History SourcebookHymn to the Nile, c. 2100 BCE Jaroslav Krejci, Anna Krejcova (1990). Before the European Challenge The Great Civilizations of Asia and the midst East. SUNY Press. Barry J. Kemp (2006). Ancient Egypt Anatomy of a Civilization, 2nd Ed. Routledge