Origin/Historian/Author: Babylonian
Source: The Sacred Books and Literature of the East, By Prof. Charles F. Horne, Ph.D.
The Sacred Books and Literature of the East Translations conducted by:
Morris Jastrow, Jr., LL.D., Rev. A.H. Sayce, LL.D., Robert W. Rogers, LL.D., George A. Barton, LL.D., Leonard W. King, F.S.A., Stephen Langdon, PH.D., Arno Poebel, PH.D., and other scholars.
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Introduction:
This lengthy Babylonian prayer offers its user which materials are required, along with an accompanied ritual to invoke the power of the god Marduk to cure an affliction or illness.
Full Text Below [1]
O Marduk, lord of lands, the mighty . . .
Powerful, unique, perfect . . .
The exalted hero, who suffers no change . . .
20 The strong one, the king who . . .
O Marduk the illustrious, the great one who . . .
The mighty . . . the illustrious!
The storm of the weapons, the battle . . .
O . . .! the perfect . . .!
25 … the great . . .!
. . . Marduk, the lord . . .
O Marduk, the lord . . .
O Marduk, the lord . . .
Lord of the heavens, of mountains and of oceans, who … the hills!
Lord of … and fortresses, who guideth the rivers!
30 Who bestoweth corn and grain, who createth wheat and barley, who reneweth the green herb!
Who createth the handiwork of god and goddess; in the midst of their … art thou!
The ruler of the Anunnaki, the director of the Igigi!
The wise, the first-born of Ea, the creator of the whole of mankind!
Thou art lord, and like my father and my mother among the . . . art thou!
35 Thou art like the Sun-god also; their darkness thou dost lighten!
A cry and a shout of joy . . .
Thou guidest him that is in need . . .
Their wisdom . . .
Lands and distant peoples . . .
40 Thou art compassionate . . .
. . . I am weak . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Thou boldest his hand . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
[At line 45 the suppliant makes a formal statement of his own name along with that of his father, after which the tablet continues broken for several lines, only disconnected words having been preserved. When the lines once more become connected we find the suppliant imploring that the life of his body may be restored, the disease from which he is suffering being put down to the influence of magic. He concludes a description of his symptoms with the words : ” My powers and my soul are bewitched and there is no righteous decision!” He therefore makes a direct appeal to the god in the following words:]
O lord, at this time stand beside me and harken to my cries, give judgment, make my decision!
60 The sickness … do thou destroy, and take thou away the disease of my body!
O my god and goddess, judge ye mankind, and possess me!
By the command of thy mouth may there never approach anything evil, the magic of the sorcerer and of the sorceress!
May there never approach me the poisons of the evil . . . of men!
May there never approach the evil of dreams, of powers and portents of heaven and of earth!
65 Never may the evil of the portent of city and land overtake me!
In spite of the evil mouth, the evil tongue of men, in thy sight let me be perfect!
Let nothing evil ever restrain the plant of the god of joy that is placed upon my neck!
The evil curse, the mouth that is unfavorable, let it cast aside!
Like alabaster let my light shine, let me never have affliction!
REVERSE OF TABLET
70 Like lapis lazuli may my life be precious in the sight, let it establish mercy!
Like gold, O my god and my goddess, may prosperity be with me!
In the mouth of the peoples may I be blessed!
Like a seal may my sins be torn away!
May the evil curse, that is unfavorable, never draw nigh, may it never be oppressive!
75 Before thee may my name and posterity prosper!
May the plants and . . . that are set before thee loosen my sin!
Never may there approach me the wrath or anger of the god,
With misery, disgrace and sin; from the curse
May the raising of my hand, the invocation of the great gods, give release!
80 At thy mighty command let me approach! Command thou life!
Like heaven may I shine among the enchantments that possess me!
Like the earth may I be bright in the midst of spells that are not good!
Like the heart of heaven may I be bright; may the power of my sins be destroyed!
May the binu-wood purify me, may the . . . -plant deliver me, may the ukuru-wood remove my sin!
85 May Marduk’s vessel of purification bestow favor!
May the flaming censer of the god . . . make me bright!
At the command of Ea, king of the Abyss, father of the gods, the lord of wisdom,
At the raising of my hand may thy heart have rest, O Marduk, the priest of the great gods, the arbiter of the Igigi!
The word of Ea let me glorify, and, O queen Damkina, let me have dominion!
90 May I thy servant [so and so? the son of so and so,] live, let me be perfect,
Let me revere thy divinity, and let me bow in humility
before thee!
O my god, let me revere thy power! O my goddess, let me tell of thy greatness! And may I the priest, thy servant, bow in humility before
thee! [2]
Footnotes
[1] The first line of the tablet forms a sort of heading or introduction, and, while stating the occasion of the prayer, contains a general direction to the effect that when the sickness has fallen on the man nothing evil or inauspicious is to be allowed to approach him. Then follows the first section on the tablet containing 14 lines of directions for ceremonies, which commence as follows : ” Perform the following. In the night sprinkle a green bough with pure water. Before Marduk the . . . drink-offering shalt thou set. Dates and . . . shalt thou heap up. A sa of oil, a drink-offering, water, honey, and butter shalt thou offer; thou shalt set there an incense-burner, corn . . . shalt thou heap up; a sa-na of incense shalt thou offer. The . . . -drink shalt thou pour out.” The rites in the next line and a half are obscure; at line 7 offerings of flesh are prescribed, three preparations of flesh being specified. In line 8 the command is given to take the oil of certain woods, and the next two lines contain a list of substances that are to be cast into the oil, including gold, fragments of various kinds of wood and plants, and incense. Beginning with line 11 certain offerings are specified in honor of the An-hul-mish, the offerings consisting of one piece of alabaster, one piece of gold, one piece of lapis lazuli, and one seal. In the principal prayer of the tablet reference is made to each of these four offerings (lines 69-73), and, as the prayer is addressed throughout to Marduk, it is obvious that An-hul-mish is merely a title of the god Marduk. The ceremonies conclude with an injunction to the officiating priest to hold the hand of the sick man and recite the incantation. The incantation then begins with line 17.
[2] On the conclusion of the prayer there follow three short sections of ceremonies, an incantation of ten lines, and a final section of ceremonial directions. After the first of these sections the sick man himself ceases to take part in the ritual, for the section concludes with the injunction that he shall go straight to his house without looking behind him. The remainder of the tablet deals with the due disposal of some of the offerings and objects that have been used in the ceremonies at the commencement of the obverse and in the course of the incantation.