Heroism in Gilgamesh, Exodus, and the Bhagavad-Gita

Introduction

The conception of heroism has taken many forms across cultures and throughout history. This paper examines three foundational narratives — the Book of Exodus, the Bhagavad-Gita, and the Epic of Gilgamesh — and explores how each one defines and portrays heroism. Although these stories emerge from very different cultural and religious traditions, they share strong parallels alongside their many differences. Each text will be discussed individually, with attention to the aspects and conception of heroism each one presents. While heroes manifest differently across traditions and eras, there are common threads that are easy to identify and describe.

Moses and the Book of Exodus

The most widely recognized of the three narratives, at least in the United States, is the Book of Exodus. Given the historically Christian character of much of American culture, the story of Moses is deeply familiar. Moses is the central hero of Exodus — the man who rescued and led the Israelites to freedom. Although his story appears across multiple books of the Bible, the core of his heroic journey unfolds in Exodus, the second book of the Christian Bible.

Despite his heroic role, many aspects of Moses's story are atypical for a conventional hero. The Bible clearly indicates that Moses had some form of speech impediment. When one imagines a leader or hero, one might expect strong oratorical ability, so this detail undermines the conventional heroic image. His fate at the end of his life is also poignant and, in some ways, tragic: he delivers the Israelites to the land they sought but is himself denied entry and dies alone, never reaching the promised destination.

Further complicating his story is the fact that Moses's wife, Zipporah, was not an Israelite — she was a Midianite from Sinai, as described in the second chapter of Exodus. Criticism of this came from unexpected quarters, including Moses's own family. Additionally, though Moses speaks with God throughout his journey, he is never permitted to see God's face. In more than one sense, Moses is treated as an outsider and a foreigner despite his sacrifices and his efforts on behalf of the Israelites. He faces criticism from his own people, his family, and, in certain respects, even from God. He is ultimately denied burial in the land to which he led his followers.

Even at the very beginning of his life, Moses was subject to rejection. Born to a Jewish slave in Egypt, his mother sent him away to protect him from harm. In short, Moses led a life of profound sacrifice and was treated poorly before, during, and until the very end of his leadership and his life (Holy Bible 2009).

Krishna and the Bhagavad-Gita

The second narrative is the Bhagavad-Gita, which is among the oldest of the three texts and forms part of the great Indian epic poem known as the Mahabharata. The central heroic figure is Krishna. A significant portion of the Bhagavad-Gita consists of a dialogue between Arjuna and Krishna. Arjuna is on the verge of battle but hesitates when he sees former friends and acquaintances arrayed on the opposing side. This gives him pause; he is uncertain whether he should proceed or whether he even has the right to engage in the conflict at all.

Krishna clearly rebukes Arjuna for this hesitation, because the battle cannot simply be wished away or ignored. At the same time, Krishna carefully charts a path grounded in love rather than in a lust for war. He enlightens and educates Arjuna through the different yogas — including karma yoga and Sankhya yoga, among others. Rather than serving as a traditional warrior hero, Krishna reveals himself as a wise teacher who guides Arjuna toward the right path through what Arjuna perceives as an insurmountable situation with no clear solution.

Krishna addresses many important subjects, but ethics and belief in the divine are clearly at the heart of his teaching. Not unlike many lessons found in the Bible, there is considerable emphasis on avoiding vice and cultivating virtue. The sins and failings described include avarice, anger, and misguided desire. Rather than positioning himself as a prototypical hero, Krishna teaches Arjuna — and by extension the reader — what he believes to be right conduct. The heroic ideal in the Bhagavad-Gita encompasses courage, duty, and sacrifice. Rather than selfishness and self-interest, Krishna asserts that courage and honor are paramount in living and acting rightly.

The use of a battlefield as the central setting distinguishes the Bhagavad-Gita sharply from both Exodus and the Epic of Gilgamesh. While the other two texts speak of escaping adversity in a literal or symbolic sense, the Bhagavad-Gita employs a far more assertive paradigm. It directly and unambiguously asserts that yielding to the will of others out of weakness is impermissible. In this respect, it stands in notable contrast to much of the Bible's teaching on humility and submission. In short, selflessness and courage constitute the true definition of virtue in the Bhagavad-Gita (Easwaran 2007).

Conclusion

While people today may look to modern heroes such as athletes and politicians, the deeper parts of history and mythology offer far richer and more instructive lessons about what heroism truly means. Being the hero is not always a rewarding or comfortable experience. It can be excruciating, and it can involve pain and death that the hero may feel is undeserved or disproportionate to their efforts. These ancient texts remind readers that heroism has always been defined not by victory alone, but by the willingness to endure, sacrifice, and serve — even at great personal cost.

Bibliography

Easwaran, Eknath. 2007. The Bhagavad Gita. Tomales, CA: Nilgiri Press.

George, A. R. 2003. The Epic of Gilgamesh.

Holy Bible. 2009. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.