Egypt and Mesopotamia: Similarities and Differences in Religion

The civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt both have many things in common, including having adjacent rivers. However both Rivers are very different in regards to when the rivers flood. The Nile river of Egypt floods varies periodically and accurately making it very easy to tell when the river will flood for the crops of the Egyptian people. In Mesopotamia the Euphrates and Tigris flood unpredictably, making it almost impossible to raise a civilization there. Nevertheless the Mesopotamian people found a way around this by using technology such irrigation. This supplies water to land or crops to help growth, typically done by channels. Although both are great civilizations they have very fundamental differences from cultural to religious.

Religion in the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia played a significant role in developing and organizing the society. Based on the common belief of the world’s divine creation, both civilizations had regular rituals and ceremonies to honor the supernatural beings. In rituals and ceremonies, the cult was expressed as the manifestation of components that symbolized the divine such as the cult images, temples, and shrines. Since religion was an important aspect in the people’s daily lives, it also had an impact on the ruling system in the two civilizations. Even though Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia have similar foundational beliefs about the cult, different cultic practices imply the difference in the structure and the scope of

Mesopotamia and Egypt had different religions. Mesopotamia made figurines that would pray for them as they did other things. Egyptians worshipped their pharaohs as if they were gods. If one of their pharaohs dies, they would bury them in their own temples. The Egyptians also mummified the dead bodies. Mesopotamia had 7 Mesopotamian gods that represented the elements. Mesopotamia and Egypt were both religious, but had different

The introduction of writing, the wheel, the calendar, and astronomy. Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt allowed human beings, for the first time in history, to settle down in one place and farm instead of chasing their often dangerous wild animal food sources. Both civilizations shared similarities and differences in their climate, politics, intellect, religion, arts and architecture, technology, economics, and social structures, that allowed them to flourish and become two of the most well-known ancient civilizations.

The Egyptian and Mesopotamian religion and society were similar, but their government system was different. The religions in Egypt and Mesopotamia were similar because both were polytheistic, had beliefs of an afterlife, as well as priests who were part of the upper levels of the social hierarchy. Social similarities between Egypt and Mesopotamia included: rigid social structure, dependence on slavery, and authoritative religious structure. However, the system of government was different because Egyptian society was governed by a theocratic monarchy, while Mesopotamia was ruled by a traditional monarchy.

Known as one of the earliest civilizations, Mesopotamia and Egypt both share set amounts of similarities along with a share of striking distinctions. Environmentally, these two civilizations were formed in similar surroundings, yet their weather patterns show distinctions. Politically, both governments derived from a monarch, yet their laws and punishments distinguished the two’s court systems. Economically, they both shared prosperous success in similar manners. Socially, although the two lands followed a hierarchy, the value of women contrasted. Culturally, they both believed in a higher order of creation; however, their views of them were polar opposites. Intellectually, these two societies developed skilled abilities and creations that

Historians are confident that Mesopotamia and Egypt are the earliest documented civilizations based on archaeological evidence. They are known for their innovations in technology, agriculture, and law, which society uses today. The evidence from various researches by credible historians and archeologist shows that indeed both civilizations had a legal system whether written or not. The Mesopotamian people were tame by rules put forth by Hammurabi – the sixth king of Ancient Babylon – referred to as Hammurabi’s Code by historians. The Mesopotamian government went to great lengths to spell out their laws, and consequences for breaking them, in depth detail; on the other hand, Egypt failed to do the same. While less visible proof of Egyptian law exists today, there is evidence that proves they had a structured and progressive legal society. Even though both societies were advanced, their legal system in many ways contrasted each other.

Each religion displays unique ways to relate to their gods. This difference is also seen in the Sumerian, Egyptian, and Hebrew religions. The Sumerians were polytheistic (many gods) and believed that gods were the cause of their unpredictable weather such as sudden floods and severe droughts. It is for this reason that they aimed to please the vengeful gods by following rules made by religious leaders. In addition, they built ziggurats in the city of their cities to honor the gods. Egyptians were also polytheistic. However, they believed that a pharaoh (a living god-king) was their connection to the many gods they worshiped. The pharaoh was thought to control the Nile River, which was the foundation of the empire. Also, much as they would pamper

The Egyptians were ruled by their pharos, which were their gods. The pharos could identify themselves with gods whom they please to be. There were many gods, like the son god and the sky god. The people honored these gods by building them temples. In other words, the people were very fond of the gods (Humanities, 18). In egypt, church and state were not separated, meaning that all their rules and regulations came from their gods. All their religion and governing was decided based on each other (Messner 8-30-2017). However, this was not something that was seen as negative to the Egyptians. The Egyptians were very thankful to their gods because their gods were kind to them. The promise of immortality and how much better the after life would be, encouraged the Egyptians (Humanities, 18). In contrast, the Sumerians had a more negative outlook to human existence because of the kind of treatment they received from their gods.

Thousands of years ago, in separate river valleys, two large settlements met the requirements needed to become two of the four first civilizations, and Egypt and Mesopotamia were formed. They were similar, as they both met the criteria to become a civilization, but they were also different, because geographic factors affected their lives differently. Three reasons why the society, government, and culture of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia were similar and different are: first, while both civilizations were located in a river valley, geographic conditions made sustaining society in Mesopotamia more difficult than in Ancient Egypt. Second, Mesopotamia and Egypt had effective bureaucracies, but the many sustained invasions throughout Ancient Mesopotamian history made the state less stable than Egypt. Lastly, although both religions were polytheistic, unpredictable war and flooding made Mesopotamian culture pessimistic, while Egyptian culture reflected Egypt’s stability.

The first category of culture is religion. There were several similarities between the Mesopotamians and Egyptians. The Mesopotamians and Egyptians had their own religion and beliefs. Both were polytheistic, meaning they believed in numerous gods or goddesses instead of one god or goddess. There were also several differences between the Mesopotamian and Egyptians. While the Mesopotamians and Egyptians worshiped thousands of deities, there were four main essential deities for the Mesopotamians: An, Enlil, Enki, and Ninhursaga. An was the god of heaven. Enlil was the god of wind and became the power of energy, force, and authority on the earth. Enki was the god of

Both regions taxed the people and punished those who could not pay. Mesopotamia forced citizens unable to pay taxes into slavery to pay their debts. Those greatly burdened from taxes in Egypt sometimes fled into the desert. Both civilizations had kings residing over them. The Egyptian king was called a pharaoh and they were believed to be a link to the gods. Mesopotamia had kings the lugal and kept order in the civilization. Hammurabi is a memorable king or lugal, because of his relentless military efforts and severe punishments. Religion maintained great amounts of power in influence in both Mesopotamia and Egypt. The priests in Mesopotamia were in the same social class as the king and temples called ziggurats were built devoted to the gods. In Egypt, the pharaoh was reveled for his connection to the gods and elaborate burials for constructed to help him in the afterlife. The government required the people to do service, which is how the great pyramids were constructed. Temples were also created for the gods, like in Mesopotamia. The regions shared many similarities in the political structure of the

Religion was an important factor in the everyday lives of Mesopotamians and ancient Egyptians. Both civilizations were polytheistic which meant they worshiped multiple gods. Many elaborate temples were built to praise them. The leaders in both regions were believed to be related to the gods because of the great power they held and wealth under their control. Mesopotamians and ancient Egyptians believed in the afterlife. When people died, they were buried with items to take along.

Egyptian rulers were viewed as completely divine incarnations of their gods: Horus in life, and Osiris in death. Egyptian citizens believed that so long

Religion was practiced throughout Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. Both the Mesopotamians and Egyptians shared polytheistic beliefs. Each god was responsible for an action, but they did not consider the gods to be equal in Mesopotamian society, in order to please the gods, a sacrifice must be made to please them in order to avoid the god’s wrath. The separation of church and state did not exist in both ancient civilizations, pharaohs of Egyptian society was known to be a god on Earth, the incarnation of Horus, the falcon god. The Mesopotamian rulers were known as a representative to the gods. Although they worship to several different gods, they do have differences between the two. The idea of an afterlife, In Mesopotamia didn’t exist but for the Egyptians the idea of an afterlife was of significant importance to them, rituals were held to ensure that the body and soul would be ready for an eternal life after death. The writing systems of both the Mesopotamians and the Egyptians have many similarities. Pictographic writing, which was developed by the