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 Like the heart of heaven may I be bright; may the power 85 May Marduk's vessel of purification bestow favor! May the flaming censer of the god . . . make me bright! At the command of Ia, 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! 12 12 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. A PRAYER TO NABU IN SICKNESS (GOD OF WRITING AND OF WISDOM) O hero, prince, first-born of Marduk! O prudent ruler, offspring of Zarpanitu! O Nabu, bearer of the tablet of the destiny of the gods, director of Esagila! Lord of Ezida, shadow of Borsippa! 5 Darling of Ea, giver of life! Prince of Babylon, protector of the living! God of the hill of dwelling, the fortress of the nations, the lord of temples! Thy name is... in the mouth of the peoples, O sidu! O son of the mighty prince Marduk, in thy mouth is justice! 10 In thy illustrious name, at the command of thy mighty godhead, I [so and so, the son of so and so,] who am smitten with disease, thy servant, Whom the hand of the demon and the breath of the ... 15... mercy in my heart! May they command mercy! May my god stand at my right hand! May my goddess stand at my left hand! May the favorable sidu, the favorable lamassu... with me! 13 13 On the conclusion of the prayer there follows a section of four lines containing directions for the making of certain offerings. Who causeth her word to be obeyed, who estab- Who appeaseth the anger of God and . . .! 5 Who accepteth petition and sighing! . [Lines 6 and 7 are broken.] ... O seed of Ezida, the house of the living creature of the great gods! Queen of Borsippa, lady of the dwelling! 10 O lady Tasmitu, whose command is mighty! [The next few lines are broken. After stating (line 14) that he is crying before the goddess, the suppliant describes her merciful character, as the giver of peace and prosperity. At line 20 he once more addresses her by name and proceeds to make his request.] 20 O Tasmitu, goddess of supplication and love, lady of...! I [so and so, the son of so and so], whose god is [so and so], whose goddess is [so and so], have turned toward thee, O lady! Harken to my supplication! Before Nabu thy spouse, the lord, the prince, the firstborn son Of Esagila, intercede for me! 25 May he harken to my cry at the word of thy mouth! May he remove my sighing, may he learn my supplication! VOL. I.-28. At his mighty word may god and goddess deal graciously with me! May the sickness of my body be torn away! May the groaning of my flesh be consumed! 30 May the consumption of my muscles be removed! sorcery, poison, May the ban be torn away, may the... be consumed May May mercy be established among men and their habita tions! 35 May god and king ordain favor At thy mighty command that is not altered, and thy true 14 Of the two ceremonial sections a few phrases only have been pre served. The first prescribes that the sprinkling of pure water and the offering of incense of harru-wood shall accompany the recital of the incantation, while the second apparently deals, among other matters, with the rite of the knotted cord. |