Lilith and Gilgamesh

Ancient Sumeria gives us the following tale:

After heaven and earth had been separated 

     and mankind had been created,

after Anûum, Enlil and Ereskigal had taken possession 

         of heaven, earth and the underworld;

after Enki had set sail for the underworld 

     and the sea ebbed and flowed in honor of its lord;

on this day, a huluppu tree 

     which had been planted on the banks of the Euphrates 

     and nourished by its waters

was uprooted by the south wind 

     and carried away by the Euphrates.

A goddess who was wandering among the banks 

     seized the swaying tree

And -- at the behest of Anu and Enlil -- 

     brought it to Inanna's garden in Uruk.

Inanna tended the tree carefully and lovingly 

     she hoped to have a throne and a bed 

made for herself from its wood.

    After ten years, the tree had matured.

But in the meantime, she found to her dismay 

   that her hopes could not be fulfilled.

because during that time 

     a dragon had built its nest at the foot of the tree

the Zu-bird was raising its young in the crown, 

     and the dark maid Lilith had built her house in the middle.

a dragon had built its nest at the foot of the tree 

    the Zu-bird was raising its young in the crown, 

and the demon Lilith had built her house in the middle.

   But Gilgamesh, who had heard of Inanna's plight, 

came to her rescue.

  He took his heavy shield 

killed the dragon with his heavy bronze axe, 

  which weighed seven talents and seven minas.

Then the Zu-bird flew into the mountains 

   with its young,

while Lilith, petrified with fear, 

     tore down her house and fled into the wilderness..."

     Here we have the first reference of Lilith written around 2,000 BCE.  The story follows a historical King of Uruk who struggles against the female divinity Ishtar.  The narrative is very similar to Marduk's quest in the The Enuma Elish of Babylon and the journey of Aeneas in The Aeneid   Marduk comes face to face with Lilith before she is reinvented (or relocates) o the Garden of Eden.  Both stories are incredibly similar and both center around a a fabled tree near the Euphrates.  Lilith herself leaves her green home to inhabits the wilderness.  The goddess Inanna who I've often described as a Sumerian Mary can also be compared to Eve and has been several times by scholars and theologians.  Review the evidence for yourself and ask, "Just how old are you, Lilith? Why are you so prevalent?  Why can we find you in every corner of the globe?