THE MAGICAL TEXTS.
Turning to the first subdivision of Babylonian religious literature, we
find remains sufficient to justify us in concluding that there must have
been produced a vast number of texts containing formulas and directions
for securing a control over the spirits which were supposed at all times
to be able to exercise a certain amount of power over men. By virtue of
the aim served by these productions we may group them under the head of
magical texts, or incantations. We have already indicated the manner in
which these incantations grew into more or less rigid temple rituals.
This growth accounts for the fact that the incantations generally framed
in by ceremonial directions, prayers, and reflections, were combined
into a continuous series (or volume, as we would say) of varying length,
covering nine, ten, a dozen, twenty tablets or more. It has been
generally assumed that these incantation texts constitute the oldest
division of the religious literature of the Babylonians. The assertion
in an unqualified form is hardly accurate, for the incantation texts,
such as they lie before us, give evidence of having been submitted to
the influences of an age much later than the one in which their
substance was produced. Conceptions have been carried into them that
were originally absent, and a form given to them that obliges us to
distinguish between the underlying concepts, and the manner in which
these concepts have been combined with views that reflect a later and,
in many respects, a more advanced period. The incantation texts are
certainly no older than texts furnishing omens. Some of the incantation
texts indeed may not be any older than portions of the creation epic,
and in the latter, as in other parts of the religious literature, there
are elements as ancient and as primitive as anything to be found in the
omens or incantations. So much, however, is true, that the incantations
represent the earliest ritual proper to the Babylonian cult, and that
the conceptions underlying this ritual are the emanation of popular
thought, or, if you choose, of popular fancy of a most primitive
character. It is also true that, on the whole, the incantation texts
retain more traces of primitive popular thought than other divisions of
the religious literature with the exception of the omens. The remodeling
to which they were subjected did not destroy their original character to
the extent that might have been expected--a circumstance due in the
first instance to the persistency of the beliefs that called these texts
forth.
Many of the texts containing incantations were found by the modern
explorers in so mutilated a condition, that one can hardly hazard any
generalizations as to the system followed in putting the incantations
together. From the fact, however, that in so many instances the
incantations form a series of longer or shorter extent, we may, for the
present at least, conclude that the serial form was the method generally
followed; and at all events, if not the general method, certainly a
favorite one. Deviating from the ordinary custom of calling the series
according to the opening line of the first tablet, the incantation texts
were given a distinct title, which was either descriptive or chosen with
reference to their general contents. So one series which covered at
least sixteen tablets was known by the very natural name of the 'evil
demon'; the incantations that it contained being intended as a
protection against various classes of demons. Another is known as the
series of 'head sickness,' and which deals, though not exclusively, with
various forms of derangements having their seat in the brain. It covered
no less than nine tablets. Two others bear names that are almost
synonymous,--"Shurpu" and "Maklu," both signifying 'burning,' and so
called from the chief topic dealt with in them, the burning of images of
the sorcerers, and the incantations to be recited in connection with
this symbolical act. The "Maklu" series embraced eight tablets and
contained, according to Tallqvist's calculations,[341] originally about
1,550 lines, or upwards of 9,000 words. The "Shurpu" series, although
embracing nine tablets, appears to have been somewhat shorter. In view
of the extensive character of these series we are justified in speaking
of incantation 'rituals.' The texts were evidently prepared with a
practical purpose in view. The efficacy of certain formulas having been
demonstrated, it was obviously of importance that their exact form
should be preserved for future reference. But a given formula was
effective only for a given case, or at most for certain correlated
cases, and accordingly it became necessary to collect as many formulas
as possible to cover all emergencies. The priests, acting as exorcisers,
would be the ones interested in making such collections, and we may
assume, as already suggested, that each temple would develop a
collection of its own,--an incantation code that served as a guide for
its priests. The natural tendency would be for these codes to increase
from generation to generation, perhaps not rapidly, but steadily. New
cases not as yet provided for would arise, and new formulas with new
instructions would be produced; or the exorcisers at a certain temple
would learn of remedies tried elsewhere, and would embody them in their
own special code. In short, the growth of these incantation 'rituals'
was probably similar to the manner in which, on the basis of actual
practice, religious codes grew up around the sanctuaries of ancient
Israel,--a process that terminated in the production of the various
codes and rituals constituting the legal documents embodied in the
Pentateuch.
The prominence given to Ea and to his favorite seat, the city of Eridu,
in the incantations suggests the theory that many of our texts are to be
ultimately traced to the temple of Ea, that once stood at Eridu. In that
case an additional proof would be furnished of the great antiquity of
the use of incantations in Babylonia. We must sharply distinguish
however, as already emphasized, between the origin and the present form
of the rituals. Again, those parts of a ritual in which Gibil, or Nusku,
appears prominently would most naturally be produced by priests
connected with a temple sacred to the one or the other of these gods.
The practice of incantation, however, being common to all parts of
Babylonia, we can hardly suppose that any temple should have existed
which did not have its exorcising formulas. In the combination of these
formulas into a ritual, due consideration would naturally be had to the
special gods invoked, the obvious result of which would be to produce
the long lists of deities that are often embodied in a single
incantation. The details of this process can of course no longer be
discerned, but the inevitable tendency would be towards increasing
complications. The effort would be made to collect everything, and from
all known quarters. Hence the heterogeneous elements to be detected in
the texts, and which, while adding to their interest, also increase the
difficulty of their interpretation. In consequence of the presence of
such heterogeneous elements, it is difficult to determine within an
incantation series any guiding principles that prompted the collectors.
Still we can often distinguish large groups in a series that belong
together. So we have whole series of addresses to the fire-god ending
with incantations, and again a series of descriptions of the group of
seven spirits serving a similar purpose as introductions to
incantations, but we cannot see on what grounds the transition from one
subject to the other takes place. Indeed the transitions are generally
marked by their abruptness.
The only legitimate inference is that the main purpose of the collectors
of incantation texts was to exhaust the subject so far as lay in their
power. They included in their codes as much as possible. The exorciser
would have no difficulty in threading his way through the complicated
mass. He would select the division appropriate to the case before him
without much concern of what preceded or followed in the text. Moreover,
these divisions in the texts were clearly marked by dividing lines,
still to be seen on the clay tablets. These divisions correspond so
completely to divisions in the subject-matter that the purely practical
purpose they served can hardly be called into question, while at the
same time they furnish additional proof for the compiled character of
the texts.
As for the date of the composition of the texts, the union of the
Babylonian states under Hammurabi, with its necessary result, the
supremacy of Marduk, that finds its reflection in the texts, furnishes
us with a terminus _a quo_ beyond which we need not proceed for _final_
editing. On the other hand, there are indications in the language which
warrant us in not passing below 2000 B.C. as the period when many of the
incantation texts received their present form, and the editions were
completed from which many centuries afterwards the Assyrian scribes
prepared their copies for their royal masters.
There is, of course, no reason for assuming that all our texts should be
of one age, or that the copying and, in part, the editing should not
have gone on continually. Necessity for further copies would arise with
the steady growth of the temples. Priests would be engaged in making
copies for themselves, either for their edification as a pious work, or
for real use; and accordingly, in fixing upon any date for the texts,
one can hardly do more than assign certain broad limits within which the
texts, so far as their present contents are concerned, may have been
completed. The _copies_ themselves may of course belong to a much later
period without, for that reason, being more recent productions.
Attention must also be directed to the so-called 'bilingual' form, in
which many of the incantation texts are edited; each line being first
written in the ideographic style, and then followed by a transliteration
into the phonetic style.[342] The use of the ideographic style is a
survival of the ancient period when all texts were written in this
manner, and the conservatism attaching to all things religious accounts
for the continuation of the ideographic style in the religious rituals
down to the latest period, beyond the time when even according to those
who see in the ideographic style a language distinct from Babylonian,
this supposed non-Semitic tongue was no longer spoken by the people, and
merely artificially maintained, like the Latin of the Middle Ages. The
frequent lack of correspondence in minor points between the ideographic
style and the phonetic transliteration shows that the latter was
intended merely as a version, as a guide and aid to the understanding of
the 'conservative' method of writing. It was not necessary for a
transliteration to be accurate, whereas, in the case of a translation,
the greatest care would naturally be taken to preserve the original
sacred text with all nicety and accuracy, since upon accuracy and nicety
the whole efficacy of the formulas rested. The redaction of the
incantation texts in the double style must not be regarded as a
necessary indication of high antiquity, but only as a proof that the
oldest incantation texts were written in the ideographic style, and that
for this reason the custom was continued down to the latest period. On
the other hand, the addition of the transliteration points to a period
when the old style could no longer be read by the priests with facility
without some guide, and incidentally proves again that the texts have
gone through an editing process. But in the course of time, additions to
the ritual were made, written in the phonetic style; and then it would
happen, as a concession to religious conservatism, that the text would
be translated back into the ideographic form. We would then have a
"bilingual" text, consisting of Babylonian and an artificial
"Sumero-Akkadian." That incantations were also composed in pure
Babylonian without reference to any "Sumero-Akkadian" original is
conclusively shown by the metrical traits frequently introduced. Many of
the sections--by no means all--can be divided into regular stanzas of
four, six, or eight lines, and frequently to the stanza is added a line
which forms what Professor D. H. Mueller[343] calls the "response." The
same metrical traits being found in other parts of the Babylonian
literature,--so, _e.g._, in the creation epic,--their occurrence in the
incantation texts is of course not accidental. When, therefore, we come
across a ritual as the "Maklu" series, written exclusively in the
phonetic style, and giving evidence of being in part a metrical
composition, we are justified in assuming this to have been the original
form. Again, in the case of another series,--the "Shurpu," in part
Babylonian, in part bilingual,[344]--since the Babylonian section shows
the metrical form, it is likely that the ideographic style represents a
transliteration of a phonetic, or pure Babylonian, original.
The chief value of the incantation texts lies, naturally, in the insight
they afford into the popular beliefs. As among other nations, so among
the Babylonians, the use of certain formulas to secure release from
ills, pains, and evils of any kind, either actual or portending, rests
upon the theory that the accidents and misfortunes to which man is heir
are due largely to the influence of more or less powerful spirits or
demons, acting independently or at the command of higher powers,--the
gods.
Through the incantation rituals we are enabled to specify the traits
popularly ascribed to these demons and the means employed to rid oneself
of their baneful grasp.
Demons.
The demons were of various kinds and of various grades of power. The
names of many of them, as _utukku_, _shedu_, _alu_, _gallu_, point to
'strength' and 'greatness' as their main attribute; other names, as
_lilu_, 'night-spirit,' and the feminine form _lilitu_, are indicative
of the moment chosen by them for their work; while again, names like
_ekimmu_, the 'seizer,' _akhkhazu_, the 'capturer,' _rabisu_, 'the one
that lies in wait,' _labartu_, 'the oppressor,' and _labasu_, 'the
overthrower,' show the aim that the demons have in view. Putting these
names together, we may form a general idea of the conceptions connected
with the demons. They lurk in hidden or remote places, in graves, in the
shadow of ruins, on the tops of mountains, in the wilderness. Their
favorite time of activity is at dead of night. They glide noiselessly
like serpents, entering houses through holes and crevices. They are
powerful, but their power is directed solely towards evil. They take
firm hold of their victims and torture them mercilessly.
To these demons all manner of evil is ascribed. Their presence was felt
in the destructive winds that swept the land. The pestilent fevers that
rise out of the marshes of the Euphrates valley and the diseases bred by
the humid heat of summer were alike traced to demons lurking in the
soil. Some of these diseases, moreover, were personified, as _Namtar_,
the demon of 'plague,' and _Ashakku_, the demon of 'wasting disease.'
But the petty annoyances that disturb the peace of man--a sudden fall,
an unlucky word, a headache, petty quarrels, and the like--were also due
to the instigation of the demons; while insanity and the stirring up of
the passions--love, hatred, and jealousy--were in a special sense
indicative of the presence and power of the demons. Men and women stood
in constant danger of them. Even the animals were not safe from their
attacks. They drive the birds out of their nests, strike down lambs and
bulls. It was impossible to forestall their attacks. They enter a man's
dwelling, they wander through the streets, they make their way into food
and drink. There is no place, however small, which they cannot invade,
and none, however large, that they cannot fill. In a text which
furnishes the sacred formulas by means of which one can get rid of the
demoniac influence, a description is given of the demons which may serve
as an illustration of what has just been said. The incantation is
directed against a variety of the demons:[345]
The _utukku_[346] of the field and the _utukku_ of the mountain,
The _utukku_ of the sea and the one that lurks in graves,
The evil _shedu_, the shining _alu_.
The evil wind, the terrible wind,
That sets one's hair on end.
Against these the spirits of heaven and earth are invoked. The text
proceeds:
The _utukku_ that seizes hold of a man,
The _ekimmu_ that seizes hold of a man,
The _ekimmu_ that works evil,
The _utukku_ that works evil.
And after invoking against these demons, likewise, the spirits of heaven
and earth, the text passes on to an enumeration of a long list of
physical ills: sickness of the entrails, of the heart, of the head, of
the stomach, of the kidneys, of the limbs and muscles, of the skin, and
of the senses, which are all ascribed to the influence of the demons.
Apart from the demons that are naught but the personification of certain
diseases, it does not appear that the demons were limited in their power
to one specific kind of action. In other words, sharp distinctions
between the demons do not appear to have been drawn. As appears from the
extracts above translated, the _utukku_, _shedu_, _alu_, and _ekimmu_
were grouped together, and hardly regarded as anything more than
descriptive epithets of a general class of demons. At the same time it
appears likely that at one time they were differentiated with a greater
degree of preciseness. So the _ekimmu_ appears to be the shadowy demon
that hovers around graves, a species of ghost or vampire that attacks
people in the dead of night and lays them prostrate. _Lilu_ and _lilitu_
are the spirits that flit by in the night. Of a specific character
likewise are the conceptions connected with a demon known as _ardat
lili_, 'maid of the night,' a strange female 'will-o'-the-wisp,' who
approaches men, arouses their passions, but does not permit a
satisfaction of them. Great importance being attached by the Babylonians
to dreams, the belief in a 'maid of the night' was probably due to the
unchecked play of the imagination during the hours of sleep. Bad dreams
came at the instigation of the demons, and such a demon as the _rabisu_
or the _labartu_ appears to have been especially associated with the
horrible sensations aroused by a 'nightmare.'[347] Again the _utukku_ is
represented at times as attacking the neck of man; the _gallu_ attacks
the hand, the _ekimmu_ the loins, the _alu_ the breast. But these
distinctions count for little in the texts. _Utukku_ becomes a general
name for demon, and _gallu_, _alu_, and _shedu_ are either used
synonymously with _utukku_ or thrown together with the latter in a
manner that clearly shows the general identity of the conceptions
ultimately connected with them. The same is the case with the _rabisu_
and _gallu_, with the _labartu_, _akhkhazu_, and _ekimmu_.
The demons were always given some shape, animal or human, for it was a
necessary corollary of the stage of religious thought to which the
belief in demons belongs, that the demon must not only be somewhere,
though invisible to mankind, but also _in_ something that manifests
life. Among animals, those calculated to inspire terror by their
mysterious movements were chosen, as serpents appearing and disappearing
with startling suddenness, or ugly scorpions, against whom it was
difficult to protect oneself, or the fabulous monsters with which graves
and pestiferous spots were peopled. Regions difficult of access--the
desert, the deep waters, the high mountains--were the favorite haunts of
the demons. Some of these demons were frequently pictured in the
boundary stones between fields, in order to emphasize the curses hurled
upon the head of him who should trespass on the lawful rights of the
owner of the land.[348] It is to such demons embodied in living form
that epithets such as the 'seizer,' the 'one that lurks,' and the like
apply with peculiar aptness. In a tablet belonging to a long series of
incantations,[349] we find references to various animals--the serpent,
the scorpion, monsters--that are regarded as the embodiment of demons.
In the distinctively religious art, the evil spirits are often pictured
as ugly monsters that were to inspire terror by their very aspect.
Depicted on the monuments, singly or in groups,[350] the shape of wild
animals was given to the head, while the remainder of the body was
suggestive of a human form. With gaping mouths and armed with some
weapon, they stand ready to make an attack. The Assyrian kings, up to
the latest period, acknowledged the power of the demons by making huge
representations of them, which they placed at the approaches, entrances,
and divisions of their temples and palaces, in the hope of thus securing
their protection. The great bulls and lions with human heads--so
familiar to every one--are but another form of the same idea. These
colossal statues were actually known by the name _shedu_, which we have
seen is one of the general terms for 'demon.' But as a general thing,
this personal phase of the demon's existence is lost sight of. Even
though embodied in animal form, the demons could make themselves
invisible to man; and since most of their actions were performed in
secret, so that people were totally at their mercy, the differentiation
of the demons became a factor of minor importance. With so large a
quantity of demons at command, it was difficult to hit upon the one who
was manifesting himself by some evil at any given moment. Accordingly,
instead of a single mention, a number or a group were enumerated, and
the magic formulas pronounced against them in concert. We have one such
group of seven to whom quite a number of references are found in the
incantation texts. A section in one of these texts gives a vivid
description of them:[351]
Seven are they, they are seven,
In the subterranean deep, they are seven,
Perched (?) in the sky, they are seven,
In a section of the subterranean deep they were reared,
They are neither male nor are they female,
They are destructive whirlwinds,
They have no wife, nor do they beget offspring.
Compassion and mercy they do not know,
Prayer and supplication they do not hear,
Horses bred on the mountains, are they
Hostile to Ea[352] are they,
Powerful ones among the gods are they.
To work mischief in the street they settle themselves in the highway.
Evil are they, they are evil,
Seven are they, they are seven, seven, and again seven[353] are they.
These seven spirits, who are elsewhere compared to various animals, have
power even to bewitch the gods. The eclipse of the moon was attributed
to their baneful influence. The number seven is probably not to be taken
literally. As among so many nations,[354] seven had a sacred
significance for the Babylonians; but largely, if not solely, for the
reason, as I venture to think, because seven was a large number. In the
Old Testament seven is similarly used to designate a large number. A
group of seven spirits, accordingly, meant no more than a miscellaneous
mass of spirits, and we may therefore regard this 'song of the seven' as
a general characterization of the demons who, according to this view,
appear to move together in groups rather than singly. Elsewhere[355] we
are told of this same group of spirits 'that they were begotten in the
mountain of sunset,' _i.e._, in the west, 'and were reared in the
mountain of sunrise,' _i.e._, the east; 'that they dwell in the hollow
of the earth, and that they are proclaimed on the mountain tops.'
Evidently a description of this kind is intended to emphasize the
universal presence of the spirits. There is no place where they are not
found; and when we are furthermore told (apparently in contradiction to
what has just been said) 'that neither in heaven nor earth is their name
pronounced (_i.e._, are they known to be), that among the gods of the
earth (_i.e._, the pantheon) they are not recognized, that neither in
heaven nor earth do they exist,' this is but the reverse of the picture
intended to illustrate the capability of the spirits to disappear
without leaving any trace of their presence. They are everywhere and yet
invisible. They come and they go, and no one knows their place. Nothing
is proof against their approach. Of all the demons it is true, as of
this group, that they slip through bolts and doorposts and sockets,
gliding, as we are told, 'like snakes.' Such are the demons against whom
man must seek to protect himself.
The relationship of the demons or spirits to the gods of the pantheon
has been touched upon in a previous chapter.[356] It is sufficient here
to emphasize the fact that the dividing line between the two becomes at
times exceedingly faint. A deity, we have seen, is a spirit writ large;
but often the demon assumes dimensions and is clothed with power that
makes him 'little short of divine.' Strength is the attribute of the
demons as it is the chief feature of the gods. Both classes of powers
influence man's career. The names of the demons are preceded by the same
determinative that is used for the gods. As a matter of fact, many of
the spirits were originally worshipped as local deities in some
restricted territory, which, losing its importance, bequeaths the name
of its protective genius to posterity. In the realm of religious belief,
as in the domain of nature, absolute loss of something that once had
existence does not take place. Something remains. Hundreds of old local
gods of Babylonia thus survived in the literature as spirits or demons.
The tendency towards making a selection out of the great mass of gods
goes hand in hand with the multiplication of spirits that might, as
occasion presented itself, be invoked. In general, the larger affairs of
life were consigned into the hands of the gods; the petty
annoyances--accidents, pains, ill luck, and the like--were put down to
the account of the spirits. The gods were, on the whole, favorably
disposed towards man. They were angry at times, they sent punishments,
but they could be appeased. The spirits were, on the whole, hostile; and
although the Babylonians also invoked favorable and kind spirits, when a
spirit was hostile there was only one method of ridding oneself of the
pernicious influence,--to drive it out by means of formulas, and with
the help of a priest acting as exorciser.
Sorcerers and Sorceresses.
A widespread and apparently very ancient belief among the Babylonians
and Assyrians was that certain human beings possessed demoniac power,
and could exercise it for evil purposes over whomsoever they pleased.
This belief may have originated in the abnormal appearance presented by
certain individuals in consequence of physical deformities or
peculiarities. The uncanny impression made by dwarfs, persons with
misshapen limbs, with a strange look in their eyes, and, above all, the
insane would give rise to the view that some people, for the very reason
of their variation from the normal type, possessed peculiar powers. But
by the side of such as were distinguished by bodily defects, those who
outranked their fellows by virtue of their prowess or of natural gifts,
by keenness of intellect or cunning, would also be supposed to have
received their power through some demoniac source. With the giant and
the artificer there would thus be associated ideas of sorcery and
witchcraft, as with dwarfs, the deformed, and insane. The sorcerers
might be either male or female, but, for reasons which are hard to
fathom, the preference was given to females. Accordingly, it happens
that among the Babylonians, as in the Middle Ages, the witch appears
more frequently than the male sorcerer. The witches have all the powers
of the demons, and in the incantation texts the two are often thrown
together. Just as the demons, so the witches take away the breath of
man, defile his food and drink, or close up his mouth. They are able to
penetrate into the body of men, and thus produce similar physical and
mental disturbances as the animalic demons. In view of this close
relationship between witches and demons, we are justified in regarding
the two as varying aspects of one and the same belief. The witch appears
to be merely the person through whom the hitherto 'invisible' demon has
chosen to manifest itself. From being identical in character with the
demons, the witches reached a stage which made them superior to the
former. They could not only do everything that the demons did, but they
could also control the latter, whereas the demons had no power over
witches. Witches could invoke the demons at their will and bring such
persons as they chose within the demons' power. Various means were at
their disposal for bringing this about. The glance of a witch's 'evil
eye' was supposed to have great power.[357] Terrible were the sufferings
of the one on whom a witch threw the glance that kept the person under
her spell. The 'evil word,' as it was called, and by which the use of
certain magic formulas was meant, was another effective means at her
command for inflicting all manner of evil. Magical potions, too,
compounded of poisonous weeds, appear to have been prepared by them, and
which, entering the body of those whom they desired to punish, had a
disastrous effect. Such means might be denominated as direct. There were
others indirect which were even more effective, and which rested upon
the principle commonly known as 'sympathetic magic.'[358] Under the
notion that the symbolical acts of the sorcerers would have their effect
upon the one to be bewitched, the male sorcerer or the witch, as the
case might be, would tie knots in a rope. Repeating certain formulas
with each fresh knot, the witch would in this way symbolically strangle
the victim, seal his mouth, wrack his limbs, tear his entrails, and the
like.
Still more popular was the making of an image of the desired victim of
clay or pitch, honey, fat, or other soft material,[359] and either by
burning it inflict physical tortures upon the person represented, or by
undertaking various symbolical acts with it, such as burying it among
the dead, placing it in a coffin, casting it into a pit or into a
fountain, hiding it in an inaccessible place, placing it in spots that
had a peculiar significance, as the doorposts, the threshold, under the
arch of gates, would prognosticate in this way a fate corresponding to
one of these acts for the unfortunate victim.
The Exorcisers.
As a protection against the demons and witches, small images of some of
the protecting deities were placed at the entrances to houses, and
amulets of various kinds were carried about the person. Tablets, too,
were hung up in the house,--probably at the entrance,--on which extracts
from the religious texts were inscribed. These texts by virtue of their
sacred character assured protection against the entrance of demons.[360]
But when once a person had come under the baneful power of the demons,
recourse was had to a professional class of exorcisers, who acted as
mediators between the victims and the gods to whom the ultimate appeal
for help was made. These exorcisers were of course priests, and at an
early period of Babylonian culture it must have been one of the main
functions of priests to combat the influence of evil spirits. It was for
this purpose chiefly that the people came to the temples, and in so far
we are justified in regarding incantation formulas as belonging to the
oldest portion of the Babylonian temple rituals. In the course of time,
as the temples in the great religious centers developed into large
establishments, the priests were divided into classes, each with special
functions assigned to them. Some were concerned with the sacrifices,
others presided over the oracles, others were set aside for the night
and day watches which were observed in the temple, and it is likely that
the scribes formed a class by themselves. To this age of differentiation
in priestly functions belongs the special class who may be regarded as
the forerunners of the eastern _magi_ or magicians, and who by powers
and methods peculiar to them could ward off the dangerous attacks of the
demons and witches. The means employed by them may in general be
described as forming the complement to those used by the witches,--the
reverse side of the picture,--only that they were supposed to be
effective against sorcerers, witches, and demons alike. Against the
incantation formulas of the witches, incantations of superior force were
prescribed that might serve to overcome the baneful influence of the
former. The symbolical tying of knots was offset by symbolical
loosening, accompanied by formulas that might effect the gradual release
of the victim from the meshes of both the witches and the demons; or the
hoped-for release was symbolized by the peeling of the several skins of
an onion. Corresponding to the images made by the witches, the
exorcising priests advised the making of counter images of the witches,
and by a symbolical burning, accompanied by certain ceremonies and
conciliatory gifts to the gods, hoped to destroy the witches themselves.
Since, moreover, the favorite time chosen by the demons and witches for
their manifestations was the night, the three divisions of the
nights--evening, midnight, and dawn--that correspond to the temple
watches were frequently selected as the time for the incantations and
the symbolical acts. The address was often made to the gods of night. A
series of incantation formulas begins:
I call upon you, gods of the night,
With you I call upon the night, the veiled bride,[361]
I call at evening, midnight, and at dawn.
The formulas themselves, as we shall see, are characterized by their
large number rather than by any elements that they have in common. At
times they constitute a direct appeal to some god or gods, to some
particular spirit, or to the associated spirits of heaven and earth,
together with a direct indication of what is desired. An incantation
addressed to Nusku, the god of fire, closes:
Fire-god, mighty and lofty one of the gods,
Who dost overpower the wicked and the hostile,
Overpower them (the witches) so that I be not destroyed.
Let me thy servant live, let me
unharmed stand before thee,
Thou art my god, thou art my lord,
Thou art my judge, thou art my helper,
Thou art my avenger.
Preceding the direct appeal, there is usually a recital more or less
detailed of the woes with which one is afflicted. The victim tells of
the pains which torture him. Says one bewitched:
I stand upright, and cannot lie down,
neither night nor day. The witches have filled my
mouth with their knots.
With the aid of _upuntu_ weed,[362]
they have stuffed up my mouth.
The water that I drink have they diminished,
My joy is changed to pain, my pleasure to sorrow.
This recital, which is often wearisome by its length, may or may not end
in a direct appeal to some god or gods. The narrative of woes, however,
is merely introductory to the incantation itself. To prescribe the
formula to be used to the one appealing for help, is the special
function of the priest acting as exorciser. He recites the formula,
which is then repeated by the communicant.
Instead of an appeal to the gods for help, the incantation often
embodies threats hurled in the name of the gods at the demons or witches
in case they do not release their victim. Such incantations appear to
derive their power chiefly through the personage of the exorciser, who
believes himself to be able to control the evil spirits. So in one case,
after the sufferer has poured out his troubles, the exorciser replies,
threatening the witches with the same evils that they have
inflicted:[363]
They have used all kinds of charms
to entwine me as with ropes,
to catch me as in a cage,
to tie me as with cords,
to overpower me as in a net,
to twist me as with a sling,
to tear me as a fabric,
to fill me with dirty water as that which runs down a wall (?)
to throw me down as a wall.
At this point the exorciser takes up the thread and declares:
But I by command of Marduk, the lord of charms,
by Marduk, the master of bewitchment,
Both the male and female witch
as with ropes I will entwine,
as in a cage I will catch,
as with cords I will tie,
as in a net I will overpower,
as in a sling I will twist,
as a fabric I will tear,
with dirty water as from a wall I will fill,
as a wall throw them down.
Accompanying these threats, the actions indicated were symbolically
performed by the exorciser on effigies of the witches made, in this
case, of bitumen covered with pitch.
Corresponding again to the potions prepared by the witches, the priests
prepared draughts compounded of various weeds and herbs that were given
to the victim, or concoctions that were poured over his body. This
constituted the medicinal phase of the priest's labors, and marks the
connection between magic and medicine. Naturally such herbs and weeds
were chosen as through experience had proved effective.
The Gods of the Incantation Texts.
A feature of the incantation texts is the appeal to the gods, which is
seldom, if ever, wanting. Just as the kings sought, by the enumeration
of a large pantheon, to secure the protection of as large a number of
powers as possible, so the priests endeavored to strengthen their magic
formulas by including the mention of all the chief and a varying number
of the minor deities. This invocation of groups of deities, as the
invocation of groups of spirits, became more or less conventional, so
much so that, instead of mentioning the gods individually, the scribe
would content himself with an indication, at the proper point, of the
number of gods to be appealed to,--six, ten, fifteen, as the case may
be, to as many as fifty.[364] Precisely what gods he had in mind we are
no longer in a position to know, but no doubt the chief members of the
pantheon were included in the first place. Lists of these deities are
often added. The superior triad, Anu, Bel, and Ea, head the list, at
times accompanied by their consorts, at times standing alone. The second
class of triads, Sin, Shamash, and Ramman, follow, and then the other
great gods, Nin-ib, Marduk, Nergal, Nusku, and Gibil; and finally the
chief goddesses are added, notably Ishtar, Nin-karrak, or Gula, and Bau.
But besides the chief deities, an exceedingly large number of minor ones
are found interspersed through the incantation texts. Some are well
known, as Nin-girsu, Zamama, and Papsukal. Many of them are found in
other branches of the religious literature or in invocations attached to
historical texts, commemorative of some work undertaken and completed by
the kings; but a large proportion of these powers, not often
distinguishable from mere spirits, only appear once in the literary
remains of Babylonia. It is manifestly impossible, under such
circumstances, to specify their traits. In most cases, indeed, the
phonetic reading is unknown or uncertain. While a considerable
proportion may be put down as local gods, enjoying an independent,
albeit obscure, existence, at least an equal number will turn out to be
mere epithets of gods already known. In all cases where the god's name
actually appears as an epithet, we may be certain that such is the case.
So when a god is called simply _Dainu_, _i.e._, Judge, there can be
little doubt that Shamash, the sun-god, is meant; a god, 'great
mountain,' is none other than Bel; and similarly, such names as
'merciful,' 'hearer of prayer,' 'conqueror of enemy' are manifestly
titles belonging to certain well-known deities, and used much as among
the Greeks the gods were often referred to by the traits, physical or
moral, that distinguished them. As for the residue, who are independent
deities, while of course our knowledge of the Babylonian religion would
be increased did we know more of them than their names, it is not likely
that the worship of these gods, nor the conceptions connected with them,
involved any new principle. A mere enumeration would of course be of
little use. Moreover, such an enumeration would not be exhaustive, for
new deities are found in almost every additional text that is published.
Already this list counts considerably over two hundred. At most, such an
enumeration would merely illustrate what we already know,--the
exceedingly large number of local cults that once existed in Babylonia
and Assyria, and disappeared without leaving any trace but the more or
less accidental preservation of the name of the deity, who was once
regarded as the patron of the place. Lastly it is to be noted that,
besides gods, stars are invoked, as well as rivers, temples, and even
towns,--in short, anything that has sacred associations.
On a different level from the gods enumerated in groups stand those
deities who are introduced into the incantation texts at essential
points individually and for a special reason. Such deities are
comparatively few,--hardly more than half a dozen. These gods may be
called the gods of the incantation texts _par excellence_. Their help is
essential to ensure the effectiveness of the exorciser's task. They
stand in close and direct connection with the troubles from which relief
is prayed for. For physical ills, they act as healers. If the evil for
which the individual or the country suffers is due to some natural
phenomena,--an eclipse of the moon, of which people stood in great
terror, or a deluge or a famine,--the moon-god, the storm-god, some
phase of the sun-deity, or an agricultural god would naturally be
implored; while in a general way the heads of the pantheon, Marduk in
Babylonia and Ashur in Assyria, come in for a large share of attention.
As already intimated in a previous chapter,[365] the god who plays
perhaps the most prominent role in the incantation texts is Ea. He
occupies this rank primarily by virtue of his being the god of humanity;
but another factor which enters into consideration, though in an
indirect fashion, is his character as a water-god. Water, being one of
the means of purification frequently referred to in the texts, acquires
a symbolical significance among the Babylonians, as among so many other
nations. Ea, therefore, as the water-god of the ancient sacred town,
Eridu, acquires additional popularity through this circumstance. The
titles that he receives in the texts emphasize his power to heal and
protect. He is the great physician who knows all secret sources whence
healing can be obtained for the maladies and ills caused by the demons
and sorcerers. He is therefore in a peculiar sense 'the lord of the
fates' of mankind, the chief exorciser, the all-wise magician of the
gods, at whose command and under whose protection, the priest performs
his symbolical acts. Not only does humanity turn to Ea: the gods, too,
appeal to him in their distress. The eclipse of the moon was regarded by
the popular faith as a sort of bewitchment of the great orb through the
seven evil spirits. All the heavenly bodies are affected by such an
event. Anu is powerless. It is only through Ea that Sin is released,
just as though he were a human individual. But Ea is rarely approached
directly. At his side stands his son Marduk, who acts as a mediator.
Marduk listens to the petition addressed to him by the exorcising priest
on behalf of the victim, and carries the word to Father Ea. The latter,
after first declaring Marduk to be his equal in knowledge, proceeds to
dictate the cure. Marduk, accordingly, is given the same titles as his
father, Ea. He, too, is the lord of life, the master of the exorcising
art, the chief magician among the gods.
The importance thus given to Marduk is an indication of a later period,
and must be taken in connection with the supremacy accorded to the god
after the union of the Babylonian states. Originally, Ea is the god to
whom the direct appeal was made. Marduk is an afterthought that points
to the remodeling of the ancient texts after the period of Hammurabi.
Damkina, the consort of Ea, is occasionally invoked, but it is
significant that Sarpanitum, the consort of Marduk, is rarely mentioned.
The burning of images and witches, or of other objects, being so
frequently resorted to as a means of destroying baneful influences, the
god of fire occupies a rank hardly secondary to Ea. Here, too, the
mystical element involved in the use of fire adds to the effectiveness
of the method. Water and fire are the two great sources of symbolical
purification that we meet with in both primitive and advanced rituals of
the past.[366] The fire-god appears in the texts under the double form
of Gibil and Nusku. The former occurs with greater frequency than the
latter, but the two are used so interchangeably as to be in every
respect identical. The amalgamation of the two may indeed be due to the
growth of the incantation rituals of Babylon. In some districts Gibil
was worshipped as the special god of fire, in others Nusku, much as we
found the sun-god worshipped under the names of _Shamas_ and _Utu_, and
similarly in the case of other deities. On the supposition that the
incantation rituals are the result of a complicated literary process,
involving the collection of all known formulas, and the bringing of them
into some kind of connection with one another, this existence of a
twofold fire-god finds a ready explanation. At Babylon we know Nusku was
worshipped as the fire-god. Gibil belongs therefore to another section,
perhaps to one farther south. He is in all probability the older god of
the two, and the preponderating occurrence of his name in the texts may
be taken as a proof of the ancient origin of those parts in which it
occurs. There being no special motive why he should be supplanted by
Nusku, his preeminence was not interfered with through the remodeling to
which the texts were subjected. While bearing in mind that Gibil and
Nusku are two distinct deities, we may, for the sake of convenience,
treat them together under the double designation of Gibil-Nusku.
Gibil and Nusku are called 'sons of Anu'; Gibil, indeed, is spoken of as
the first-born of heaven, and the image of his father. The conception is
probably mythological, resting upon the belief in the heavenly origin of
fire held by all nations. Gibil-Nusku is exalted as the 'lofty one'
among the gods, whose command is supreme. He is at once the great
messenger of the gods and their chief counsellor. Clothed in splendor,
his light is unquenchable. A large variety of other attributes are
assigned to him, all emphasizing his strength, his majesty, his
brilliancy, and the terror that he is able to inspire. The importance of
fire to mankind made Gibil-Nusku the founder of cities, and in general
the god of civilization. As the fire-god, Gibil-Nusku is more especially
invoked at the symbolical burning of the images of the witches. With a
raised torch in one hand, the bewitched person repeats the incantation
recited by the exorciser. Frequently the instruction is added that the
incantation is to be recited in a whisper, corresponding to the soft
tones in which the demons, witches, and ghosts are supposed to convey
their messages. The incantations in which the fire-god is exalted in
grandiloquent terms belong to the finest productions of this branch of
the religious literature. The addresses to Gibil-Nusku are veritable
hymns that are worthy of better associations. One of these addresses
begins:
Nusku, great god, counsellor of the great gods,[367]
Guarding the sacrificial gifts[368] of all the heavenly spirits,
Founder of cities, renewer of the sanctuaries,
Glorious day, whose command is supreme,
Messenger of Anu, carrying out the decrees of Bel,
Obedient to Bel, counsellor, mountain[369] of the earthly spirits,
Mighty in battle, whose attack is powerful,
Without thee no table is spread in the temple.
Without thee, Shamash, the judge executes no judgment.
I, thy servant so and so, the son of so and so,[370]
Whose god is so and so, and whose goddess so and so,[371]
I turn to thee, I seek thee, I raise my hands to thee,
I prostrate myself before thee.
Burn the sorcerer and sorceress,
May the life of my sorcerer and sorceress be destroyed.
Let me live that I may exalt thee and proudly pay homage to thee.
This incantation, we are told, is to be recited in a whisper, in the
presence of an image of wax. The image is burnt as the words are spoken,
and as it is consumed the power of the witch is supposed to wane. The
reference to the indispensable presence of the fire-god in the temple is
rather interesting. Sacrifice always entailed the use of fire. To
whatever deity the offering was made, Gibil-Nusku could not in any case
be overlooked. The fire constituted the medium, as it were, between the
worshipper and the deity addressed. The fire-god is in truth the
messenger who carries the sacrifice into the presence of the god
worshipped. Even Shamash, though himself personifying fire, is forced to
acknowledge the power of Gibil-Nusku, who, we are told elsewhere, is
invoked, even when sacrifices are made to the sun-god.
Besides being the son of Anu, Gibil-Nusku is brought into association
with the two other members of the triad, Bel and Ea. He is the messenger
of Bel and the son of Ea. The former conception is again mythical. Fire
is also the instrument of the gods, and Nusku is particularly called the
messenger of Bel because Bel is one of the highest gods. In reality he
is the messenger of all the gods, and is frequently so designated. His
connection with Ea, on the other hand, seems to be the result of the
systematizing efforts of the schoolmen. Ea occupying the chief rank in
the incantations, the subsidiary role of Gibil-Nusku is indicated by
making him, just as Marduk, the son of Ea. In this way, too, the two
great means of purification--water and fire--are combined under a single
aspect. The combination was all the more appropriate since the fire-god,
as the promoter of culture, shared with Ea the protection of humanity.
Accordingly, all the titles of Ea are bestowed in one place or the other
upon Gibil-Nusku. But, after all, Gibil-Nusku is merely a phase of the
solar deity,[372] and hence by the side of this fire-god, Shamash and
the other solar deities, though in a measure subsidiary to Gibil-Nusku,
are frequently invoked. Shamash, as the great judge, was a personage
especially appropriate for occasions which involved a decision in favor
of the bewitched and against the witches or demons. Gibil-Nusku, like
Shamash, is exalted as the great judge who comes to the aid of the
oppressed. Similarly, the fire-god receives the attributes belonging to
Ninib, Nergal, and the various phases of the latter, such as
Lugal-edinna, Lugal-gira, and Alamu. These gods, then, and their
consorts, because of their relationship to the fire-god, are introduced
into the incantations, and what is more to the point, the various phases
of Nergal and Ninib are introduced without any trace of the distinctions
that originally differentiated them from one another.[373] Besides the
great solar deities, minor ones, as Nin-gish-zida[374] and I-shum, are
frequently added in long lists of protecting spirits to whom the appeal
for help is directed. The attempt is also made to illustrate their
relationship to the great fire-god. So I-shum becomes the messenger of
Nusku, while Nin-gish-zida (though in the days of Gudea a male
deity[375]) appears to be regarded, as Tallqvist has suggested, as the
consort of Nusku.
Night being a favorite time for the recital of the incantations, it was
natural that the orb of night, the god Sin, should be added to the
pantheon of the exorciser. Though playing a minor role, the moon-god is
never omitted when a long series of protecting spirits is invoked. But
there are occasions when Sin becomes the chief deity invoked. Reference
has already been made to the general terror that moon eclipses inspired.
The disappearance of the moon was looked upon as a sign of the god's
displeasure or as a defeat of the moon in a conflict with other planets.
Disaster of some kind--war, pestilence, internal disturbances--was sure
to follow upon an eclipse, unless the anger of the god could be appeased
or his weakness overcome. In the case of such general troubles affecting
the whole country, it is the kings themselves who seek out the priests.
Rituals were prepared to meet the various contingencies. The king begins
the ceremony by a prayer addressed to Sin. One of these prayers
begins:[376]
O Sin, O Nannar! mighty one ...
O Sin, thou who alone givest light,
Extending light to mankind,
Showing favor to the black-headed ones,[377]
Thy light shines in heaven ...
Thy torch is brilliant as fire;
Thy light fills the broad earth.
...
Thy light is glorious as the Sun ...
Before thee the great gods lie prostrate;
The fate of the world rests with thee.
An eclipse has taken place, portending evil to the country, and
libations have been poured out on days carefully selected as favorable
ones. The king continues:
I have poured out to thee, with wailing,[378] a libation at night;
I have offered thee a drink-offering with shouts;
Prostrate and standing erect[379] I implore thee.
With the prayer to Sin, appeals to other gods and also goddesses are
frequently combined,--to Marduk, Ishtar, Tashmitum, Nabu, Ramman, and
the like. The incantations themselves, consisting of fervent appeals to
remove the evil, actual or portending, are preceded by certain
ceremonies,--the burning of incense, the pouring out of some drink, or
by symbolical acts, as the binding of cords; and the god is appealed to
once more to answer the prayer.
Again, just as Gibil-Nusku entails the invocation of a large variety of
solar deities, so Ea, as the water-god, leads to the introduction of
various water-gods and spirits. Perhaps the most prominent of these is
the god Naru, whose name, signifying 'river,'[380] is clearly the
personification of the watery element, though of the minor bodies of
water. Next in order comes the goddess Nin-akha-kuddu.[381] She is
invoked as 'goddess of purification.' From her association in several
passages with the great deep, and with the city of Eridu--metaphorically
used for the great deep--one may be permitted to conclude that she, too,
was conceived of as a water-god or a water-spirit. She is 'the lady of
spells,' who is asked to take possession of the body of the sufferer,
and thus free him from the control of demons or witches. By the side of
this goddess, Gula, 'the great physician,' is often appealed to. Again,
the demons being in some cases the ghosts of the departed, or such as
hover around graves, Nin-kigal, or Allatu, the mistress of the lower
world, is an important ally, whose aid is desired in the struggle
against the evil spirits. Lastly, it is interesting to note that
Izdubar, or Gilgamesh, the famous hero of the great Babylonian epic,
occurs also in incantations[382]--a welcome indication of the antiquity
of the myth, and the proof, at the same time, that the epic is built on
a foundation of myth. From the mythological side, Gilgamesh appears to
be a solar deity. The connection of a solar god with fire would account
for his appearance in the magical texts. However obscure some of the
points connected with the gods of the incantation texts may be, so much
is certain, that the two factors of water and fire, and the part played
by these elements in the ceremonies, control and explain the choice of
most of the gods and goddesses introduced, though--be it expressly
noted--not of all occurring in the magical texts.
The Ritual and Formulas.
Coming to the incantations themselves, they can best be characterized as
appeals interspersed with words of a more or less mystic character. The
force and efficacy of the incantation lie not so much in the meaning of
the words uttered, as in the simple fact that they _are_ to be uttered.
These incantations were combined into a ritual, and indications were
given of the occasions on which the incantations were to be used. An
analysis of one of these rituals will serve to illustrate this branch of
the religious literature of the Babylonians. I choose for this purpose
the series known as Maklu, _i.e._, Burning,[383] the interpretation of
which has been so considerably advanced by Dr. Tallqvist's admirable
work. The first tablet of the series opens with an invocation to the
gods of night. After complaining of his sad condition, the bewitched
individual continues as follows:
Arise ye great gods, hear my complaint;
Grant me justice, take cognizance of my condition.
I have made an image of my sorcerer and sorceress;
I have humbled myself before you and bring to you my cause
Because of the evil they (_i.e._, the witches) have done,
Of the impure things which they have handled,[384]
May she[385] die! Let me live!
May her charm, her witchcraft, her sorcery (?) be broken.
May the plucked sprig (?) of the _binu_ tree purify me.
May it release me; may the evil odor[386] of my mouth be scattered to
the winds.
May the _mashtakal_ herb[387] which fills the earth cleanse me.
Before you let me shine like the _kankal_ herb.
Let me be as brilliant and pure as the _lardu_ herb.
The charm of the sorceress is evil;
May her words return to her mouth,[388] her tongue be cut off.
Because of her witchcraft, may the gods of night smite her,
The three watches of the night[389] break her evil charm.
May her mouth be wax[390] (?), her tongue honey.
May the word causing my misfortune that she has spoken dissolve like
wax (?).
May the charm that she has wound up melt like honey,
So that her magic knot be cut in twain, her work destroyed,
All her words scattered across the plains
By the order that the gods have given.
The section closes with the ordinary request of the exorciser to the
victim: "Recite this incantation." It will be seen how closely the
principle of sympathetic magic is followed. The individual having been
bewitched by means of certain herbs concocted probably into potions,
other herbs are prepared by the exorciser as an antidote. The emphasis
laid upon purification, too, is noteworthy. There are numerous synonyms
employed for which it is difficult to find the adequate equivalent in
English. The terms reach out beyond the literal to the symbolical
purification. The victim wishes to become pure, cleansed of all
impurities, so that he may be resplendent as the gods are pure,
brilliant, and glorious, pure as the water, brilliant and glorious as
the fire.
The length of the formulas varies. Often they consist only of a few
lines. So the one immediately following appeals to Gilgamesh in these
words:
Earth, Earth, Earth,
Gilgamesh is the master of your witchcraft.
What you have done, I know;
What I do, you know not.
All the mischief wrought by my sorceresses is destroyed, dissolved--
is gone.
At times the conditions under which the witches are pictured as acting
are very elaborate. They are represented as dwelling in places with
which mythological conceptions are connected; they are ferried across
the river separating their city from human habitations; they are
protected against attacks by the walls which surround their habitations.
To effect a release, the exorcisers, it would appear, made
representations by means of drawings on clay of these habitations of the
witches. They thereupon symbolically cut off the approaches and laid
siege to the towns. This, at least, appears to be the meaning of an
incantation beginning:
My city is Sappan,[391] my city is Sappan;
The gates of my city Sappan are two,
One towards sunrise, the other towards sunset.[392]
I carry a box, a pot with _mashtakal_ herbs;
To the gods of heaven I offer water;
As I for you secure your purification,
So do you purify me!
The victim imitates the conduct of the witch, goes about as she does,
with a pot in which the potions are made, performs the symbolical act
which should purify him of the evil that is in him, and hopes, in this
way, to obtain his own release. The description continues:
I have kept back the ferry, have shut off the wall,[393]
Have thus checked the enchantment from all quarters.
Anu and Anatum have commissioned me.
Whom shall I send to Belit of the field?[394]
Into the mouth of the sorcerer and sorceress cast the lock.[395]
Recite the incantation of the chief of gods, Marduk.[396]
'Let them[397] call to thee but answer them not,
Let them address thee, but hearken not to them.
Let me call to thee, and do thou answer me,
Let me address thee, and do thou hearken unto me.'
By the command of Anu, Anatum, and Belit, recite the incantation.
The hymns to the fire-god, Nusku (or Girru), of which the 'Maklu' series
naturally furnishes many specimens,[398] are all pretty much alike. I
choose one which illustrates in greater detail the symbolical burning of
the image of the witch:[399]
Nusku, great offspring of Anu,
The likeness of his father, the first-born of Bel,
The product of the deep, sprung from Ea,[400]
I raise the torch to illumine thee, yea, thee.
The sorcerer who has bewitched me,
Through the witchcraft by means of which he has bewitched me, do thou
bewitch him.
The sorceress who has bewitched me,
Through the witchcraft by means of which she has bewitched me, bewitch
thou her.
The charmer who has charmed me,
Through the charm with which he has charmed me, charm thou him.
The witch who has charmed me,
Through the charm with which she has charmed me, charm thou her.
Those who have made images of me, reproducing my features,
Who have taken away my breath, torn my hairs,
Who have rent my clothes, have hindered my feet from treading the
dust,
May the fire-god, the strong one, break their charm.
Just as the witches were burnt in effigy, so also the demons were
supposed to be similarly dispelled. Immediately following the
incantation comes one directed against the demons:
I raise the torch, their images I burn,
Of the _utukku_, the _shedu_, the _rabisu_, the _ekimmu_,
The _labartu_, the _labasi_, the _akhkhasu_,
Of _lilu_ and _lilitu_ and _ardat lili_,
And every evil that seizes hold of men.
Tremble, melt away, and disappear!
May your smoke rise to heaven,
May Shamash destroy your limbs,
May the son of Ea [_i.e._, may the fire-god],
The great magician, restrain your strength (?).
The witch who has caused the evil may be unknown. For such a case one of
the incantations runs:[401]
Who art thou, sorceress, who bears her evil word within her heart,
Through whose tongue my misfortune is produced,
Through whose lips I have been poisoned,
In whose footsteps death follows?
Sorceress, I seize thy mouth, seize thy tongue,
I seize thy searching eyes,
I seize thy ever-moving feet,
I seize thy knees ever active,
I seize thy hands ever stretched out,
I tie thy hands behind thee.
May Sin ... destroy thy body,
May he cast thee into an abyss of fire and water.
Sorceress, as the circle of this seal-ring,[402]
May thy face grow pale and wan.
Of the same character as this, are a variety of other incantations, all
applicable to cases in which the sorceress is unknown. As the last
specimen of the 'Maklu' series, I choose an incantation addressed to the
demons, which is interesting because of the direct character of the
commands it contains:
Away, away, far away, far away,
For shame, for shame, fly away, fly away,
Round about face, go away, far away,
Out of my body, away,
Out of my body, far away,
Out of my body, away for shame,
Out of my body, fly away,
Out of my body, round about face,
Out of my body, go away,
Into my body, come not back,
Towards my body, do not approach,
Towards my body, draw not nigh,
My body torture not.
By Shamash the mighty, be ye foresworn.
By Ea, the lord of everything, be ye foresworn.
By Marduk, the chief magician of the gods, be ye foresworn.
By the fire-god, be ye foresworn.
From my body be ye restrained!
Repetition and variation in the use of certain phrases make up, as will
be seen from the specimens given, a large part of the incantation. A
curious illustration of the importance attributed to such repetition is
furnished by the eighth and last tablet of the 'Maklu' series. It
consists of seven divisions, each beginning with a repetition of the
headlines of the various sections of the preceding seven tablets; and
only after the headlines of each of the tablets have been exhausted,
does the real incantation begin. This eighth tablet contains therefore a
kind of summary of all the others, the purpose of which is to gather
together all the power and influence of the seven others.
The 'Maklu' ritual deals so largely with the fire-god that a specimen
from another series, to illustrate the position of Ea and Marduk in the
incantations, seems called for. The 'Shurpu' series introduces Ea and
Marduk more particularly. The fifth tablet of this series begins:[403]
The evil curse rests like a _gallu_ upon the man,
The pain-giving voice[404] has settled upon him,
The voice that is not good has settled upon him,
The evil curse, the charm that produces insanity,
The evil curse has killed that man as a sheep,
His god has departed from his body,[405]
His goddess has ... taken her place outside,[406]
The pain-giving voice covers him as a garment and confuses him.
Marduk sees him,
And proceeds to the house of his father Ea and speaks:
"My father, the evil curse as a demon has settled on the man."
He says it for a second time.
"What that man should do, I do not know; by what can he be cured?"
Ea answers his son Marduk:
"My son, can I add aught that thou dost not know?
Marduk, what can I tell thee that thou dost not know?
What I know, also thou knowest.
My son Marduk, take him to the overseer of the house of perfect
purification,
Dissolve his spell, release him from the charm, and from the
troublesome bodily disease.
Whether it be the curse of his father,
Or the curse of his mother,
Or the curse of his brother,
Or the curse of an unknown,[407]
May the bewitchment through the charm of Ea be peeled off like an
onion.
May it be cut off like a date.
May it be removed like a husk.
O power of the spirit of heaven, be thou invoked!
O spirit of earth, be thou invoked!"
The purification by water, which is here only incidentally referred to,
is more fully touched upon in other incantations, where Ea tells Marduk
that the victim must take
Glittering water, pure water,
Holy water, resplendent water,
The water twice seven times may he bring,
May he make pure, may he make resplendent.
May the evil _rabisu_ depart,
May he betake himself outside,
May the protecting _shedu_, the protecting _lamassu_,
Settle upon his body.
Spirit of heaven, be thou invoked!
Spirit of earth, be thou invoked![408]
Still other methods of magical cure besides the use of water and of
potions were in vogue. In a tablet of the same ritual to which the last
extract belongs, and which is especially concerned with certain classes
of diseases produced by the demons, the sick man is told to take
White wool, which has been spun into thread,
To attach it to his couch[409] in front and at the top,
Black wool which has been spun into thread
To bind at his left side.
Then follows the incantation which he is to recite:
The evil _ulukku, alu, ekimmu_,
The evil _gallu_, the evil god, _rabisu_,
_Labartu, labasu, akhkhazu_,
_Lilu_ and _lilit_ and _ardat lili_,
Sorcery, charm, bewitchment,
The sickness, the cruel artifice,
Their head against his head,
Their hand against his hand,
Their foot against his foot,
May they not place,
May they never draw nigh.
Spirit of heaven, be thou foresworn!
Spirit of earth, be thou foresworn!
It is interesting to note the introduction of ethical ideas into these
texts, despite the primitive character of the beliefs upon which the
incantations repose. The possibility was considered that the attack of
the demons was a punishment sent in some way for committed sins. The
incantation series 'Shurpu' furnishes us with a long list of wrongs for
which a person may be held enthralled in the power of the demons or
sorcerers. The exorciser in petitioning that the ban may be relieved,
enumerates at length the various causes for which the evil may have been
sent:[410]
Has he sinned against a god,
Is his guilt against a goddess,
Is it a wrongful deed against his master,
Hatred towards his elder brother,
Has he despised father or mother,
Insulted his elder sister,
Has he given too little,[411]
Has he withheld too much,
For "no" said "yes,"
For "yes" said "no"?[412]
...
Has he used false weights?
...
Has he taken an incorrect amount,
Not taken the correct sum,
Has he fixed a false boundary,
Not fixed a just boundary,
Has he removed a boundary, a limit, or a territory,
Has he possessed himself of his neighbor's house,
Has he approached his neighbor's wife,
Has he shed the blood of his neighbor,
Robbed his neighbor's dress?
...
Was he frank in speaking,
But false in heart,
Was it "yes" with his mouth,
But "no" in his heart?[413]
In this way the exorciser proceeds to enumerate an exceedingly long list
of sins--no less than one hundred--most of which are ethical
misdemeanors, while others are merely ceremonial transgressions. In the
third tablet of this series[414] there is even a longer list of causes
for the ban which Marduk, the "chief exorciser" among the gods, is
called upon to loosen. Here again we find an equal proportion of moral
transgressions placed on a par with errors in performing religious rites
or unwillful offences in neglecting conventional methods of doing
things.
The ethical features of the texts can, without much question, be put
down as the work of the later editors. They belong to a period when
already an advanced conception not only of right and wrong, but also of
sin had arisen among the religious leaders of the people, and perhaps
had made its way already among the masses, without, however, disturbing
the confidence in the traditional superstitions. The strange combination
of primitive and advanced religious beliefs is characteristic, as we
shall have occasion to see, of various divisions of the Babylonian
religious literature. The lapse from the ethical strain to the
incantation refrain is as sudden as it is common. The priest having
exhausted the category of possible sins or mishaps that have caused the
suffering of the petitioner, proceeds to invoke the gods, goddesses, and
the powerful spirits to loosen the ban. There is no question of
retribution for actual acts of injustice or violence, any more than
there is a question of genuine contrition. The enumeration of the causes
for the suffering constitutes in fact a part of the incantation. The
mention of the real cause in the long list--and the list aims to be
exhaustive, so that the exorciser may strike the real cause--goes a long
way towards ensuring the departure of the evil spirit. And if, besides
striking the real cause, the exorciser is fortunate enough in his
enumeration of the various gods, goddesses, and spirits to call by name
upon the _right_ god or spirit, the one who has the power over the demon
in question, his object is achieved. Speaking the right words and
pronouncing the right name, constitute, together with the performance of
the correct ceremony and the bringing of the right sacrifice, the
conditions upon which depends the success of the priest in the
incantation ritual. Hence the striking features of these texts, the
enumeration of long lists of causes for misfortune, long lists of powers
invoked, and a variety of ceremonies prescribed, in the hope that the
priest will "hit it" at one time or the other.
Incantations and Prayers.
The incantations naturally shade off into prayers. Frequently they are
prayers pure and simple. Powerful as the sacred formulas were supposed
to be, the ultimate appeal of the sufferer is to the gods. Upon their
favor it ultimately depends whether the mystic power contained in the
sacred words uttered shall manifest itself to the benefit of the
supplicant or not. While it is proper, therefore, to distinguish
incantations from prayers, the combination of the two could scarcely be
avoided by the priests, who, rising in a measure superior to the popular
beliefs, felt it to be inconsistent with a proper regard for the gods
not to give them a superior place in the magical texts. The addition, to
the sacred formulas, of prayers directly addressed to certain gods may
be put down as due to the adaptation of ancient texts to the needs of a
later age; and, on the other hand, the addition of incantations to what
appear to have been originally prayers, pure and simple, is a concession
made to the persistent belief in the efficacy of certain formulas when
properly uttered. Such combinations of prayers and incantations
constituted, as would appear, a special class of religious texts; and,
in the course of further editing,[415] a number of prayers addressed to
various deities were combined and interspersed with incantation and
ceremonial directions which were to accompany the prayers.
The incantations accordingly lead us to the next division in the
religious literature of the Babylonians,--the prayers and hymns.
FOOTNOTES:
[341] _Die Assyrische Beschwoerungsserie, Maqlu_, p. 14.
[342] There are some preserved solely in the ideographic style, and
others of which we have only the phonetic transliteration.
[343] _Die Propheten in ihrer urspruenglichen Form_, pp. 1, 6. This work
is a valuable investigation of the oldest form of the poetic
compositions of the Semites.
[344] The fifth and sixth tablets of the series. It is probable that
several editions were prepared,--some wholly Babylonian, others
bilingual.
[345] Haupt, _Akkadische und Sumerische Keilschrifttexte_, p. 83. col.
I. ll. 1-10.
[346] Wherever feasible, the Babylonian name of the demon will be used
in the translations.
[347] Our word 'nightmare' still embodies the same ancient view of the
cause of bad dreams as that found among the Babylonians.
[348] See above, p. 182.
[349] IV R. pl. 5.
[350] See Perrot and Chiplez, _History of Art in Chaldaea and Assyria_,
i. 61, 62; ii. 81 for illustrations.
[351] IV R. 2, col. v. ll. 30-60.
[352] The god of humanity. The phrase is equivalent to saying that the
spirits are hostile to mankind.
[353] Literally, 'to their second time,' _i.e._, repeat 'seven are
they.'
[354] See Hopkins, _The Holy Numbers in the Rig-Veda_ (Oriental
Studies), pp. 144-147.
[355] IV R. 15, col. ll. 21 _seq._
[356] See chapter xi.
[357] For the general views connected with the evil eye among all
nations, see Elworthy's recent volume, _The Evil Eye_. (London, 1896.)
[358] For illustrations taken from various nations, see Fraser, _The
Golden Bough_, ii. 9-12; ii. 85-89.
[359] See for illustrations of similar practices among Egyptians and
Greeks, Budge, _Life and Exploits of Alexander the Great_ (London,
1896), pp. xii-xvii.
[360] Mr. L. W. King describes (_Zeits. fuer Assyr._ xl. 50-62)
interesting fragments of the Dibbarra (or 'plague-god') legend found on
tablets which were evidently intended to be hung up. Mr. King suggests
that such tablets were hung up in the houses of the Babylonians whenever
a plague broke out. One is reminded of the _mezuzoth_, the metallic or
wooden cases, attached to the doorposts of their houses by the Jews, and
which originally served a similar purpose.
[361] Tallqvist, _Assyr. Beschwoerungsserie Maklu_, p. 115, suggests that
the 'veiled bride' may be a name of some goddess of the night. This is
improbable. It sounds more like a direct personification of the night,
for which an epithet as 'veiled bride' seems appropriate. The name may
have arisen in consequence of mythological conceptions affecting the
relationship between day and night.
[362] A magic potion compounded of this plant. 'Maklu' series, i. ll.
8-12.
[363] 'Maklu' series, ii. ll. 148-168.
[364] See Relsner, _Sumerisch-Babylonische Hymnen_ (Berlin, 1896), p.
15.
[365] See p. 137.
[366] Robertson Smith, _Religion of the Semites_, p. 352. Grimm,
_Deutsche Mythologie_, i. 508-596. Tylor, _Primitive Culture_, ii. 383
_seq._ See also the article "Hestia" in Roscher's _Ausfuehrliches Lexikon
der Griechischen und Roemischen Mythologie_.
[367] 'Maklu' series, ii. ll. 1-17.
[368] A reference to the sacred action of the fire in the burnt
offerings.
[369] A favorite title of several gods, Bel, Sin, etc., that emphasizes
their strength.
[370] Here the seeker for help inserts his name.
[371] Here the names of special deities are to be inserted.
[372] See above, Nusku, p. 220.
[373] See p. 67.
[374] A form of Nusku, according to Tallqvist, _Assyr. Beschwoer._ p.
146. It would be more accurate to say a form of Ninib. See p. 92.
[375] See p. 91.
[376] King, _Babylonian Magic_, p. 3.
[377] Humanity.
[378] The reference is to the formal lamentations on the occasion of the
death of any one. The moon-god, having disappeared, is bewailed as
though dead.
[379] _I.e._, under all conditions and at all times.
[380] The reading Naru is not altogether certain, but probable. See
Tallqvist, _Assyr. Beschwoer._ pp. 131, 132, whose suggestion, however,
that Naru may be a female deity, is not acceptable. _Elitti_ is probably
a scribal error.
[381] See above p. 103.
[382] Tallqvist, I. l. 38.
[383] See above, p. 254.
[384] To bewitch me.
[385] The witch.
[386] From which he suffers through the witches.
[387] The identification of the many herbs mentioned in the texts is as
yet impossible. The subject awaits investigation at the hands of one
versed in botanical lore.
[388] _I.e._, be ineffective.
[389] _I.e._, the gods presiding over the watches.
[390] Her words dissolve like wax and honey.
[391] Supposed to be situated at the northern point of the heavens.
[392] The vault of heaven was pictured as having two gates.
[393] So that the witch cannot leave her habitation.
[394] With the order 'to cast the lock,' etc.
[395] To prevent her from uttering her charms.
[396] The following four lines constitute the incantation.
[397] _I.e._, the witches.
[398] See above, p. 278, where one has been given.
[399] Maklu, I. 122-143.
[400] The fiery element belongs to all three divisions of the
universe,--to heaven, earth, and water.
[401] Maklu, III. ll. 89-103.
[402] Many of the seals used by the Babylonians were of white stone or
bone.
[403] Zimmern's edition, pp. 25-29.
[404] _I.e._, the evil word.
[405] His protecting deity has deserted him.
[406] Of his body.
[407] _I.e._, whoever may have invoked the evil demon to settle upon
him.
[408] The translation of these lines follows in all but some minor
passages the correct one given by Sayce, _Hibbert Lectures_, p. 446.
[409] Of the sick man.
[410] Zimmern, _Die Beschwoerungstafeln Shurpu_, pp. 5, 6.
[411] In mercantile transactions.
[412] _I.e._, lied.
[413] _I.e._, did he say one thing, but mean the contrary?
[414] Zimmern, _ib._ pp. 13-20.
[415] For details as to the manner in which this editing was done, see
King's admirable remarks in the Introduction to his _Babylonian Magic
and Sorcery_, pp. xx-xxiv.