Once they had crossed the ocean, Gilgamesh asked Uta-napishtim questions on the secret of Death and Life.

“For this I have wandered over the world,

I have crossed many difficult ranges,

I have crossed the seas,

I have wearied myself with travelling,

My joints are aching

and I have lost acquaintance with sleep,

Which is sweet.”

What happened to Enkidu, my friend, lays heavy upon me. How can I keep silent, how can I rest, when my friend, whom I loved, has turned to clay. Am I not myself to be laid in the earth for ever?