Gilgamesh, The Ox and Astrology

In the Sumerian epic, Innana sends a Bull to attack Gilgamesh. The bull was identified with the constellation Taurus.

In the tablet translation it is written:

“O Gilgamesh, king and conqueror of the dreadful blaze; wild bull who plunders the mountain, who crosses the sea, glory to him, and from the brave the greater glory is Enki’s!.”

Commentary on the myth and etymology.

In regards to the Bull, it is rather an Ox and water buffalo, which reflects an agricultural society and its awareness of various species in use. In the word – Gilgamesh, which also reflects its ancient Armenian dialect, we come across – GOMESH (գոմէշ), which is “a domesticated ox 🐂 or water Buffalo 🐃” where ‘Gom’ (գոմ) is the “farmhouse”.

As for the word – Taurus, it is derived originally from Tavar (տավար), a general term for “any form of cows, oxen, or similar types of animal specifies” and less do so with the Bull. Don’t let the English word Taurus with – ur distract you.

However, the word – “Tauro” has been used for a bull or bison, including the exclamation of “Toro!” in a bullfight in Spain. Thus, its etymological root is less ambiguous and more specific to the ancient Armenian etymology rather than the vague and reconstructed proto-indo-European (PIE) designation.

Furthermore, the “slaying of the Bull” in mythology is more of an astronomical and astrological description, as its main character is always the SUN going through the constellations, and in this case, it was in the Age of Taurus, 6000-4000 BC ( someplace it between 4000 BC – 2100 BC) and also in the Age of Aries, signifying the Sun’s movements through the Astrological Ages.

We can also see that of Mihr or Mithra (as the Sun) slaying the “Bull” which was the Taurus constellation in Mithraism, reflected during that time segment in the Armenian Kingdom of Mitanni then to other regions and cultures.

In the Age of Pisces, the significance was placed on the Fish and many references of “fish” and “fishermen” in the Bible (e.g. multiplying fish, etc.) ( people eating fish), which was the earliest sign of Christianity and also the Lamb being sacrificed, to signify the Age of Aries.

Therefore, this was all a poetry and reflection of the people’s imagination of the stars and cosmos and less of anything historical. Unfortunately, those who were unlearned and unaware of the nonhistorical poetry at the time took it literally and has been erroneously embedded in societies as a real story that took place in reality.

By Vahan Setyan, 2022

Vahan Setyan, Author, Sovereign Government Delegate, and Diplomat on International Peace and Cultural Preservation