A GENERAL, but tolerably complete idea of the magic conjuration of the Chaldeans, its processes and its principal applications, may be obtained from a document which Sir Henry Rawlinson and Mr. Edwin Norris published "in facsimile" in 1866, in the second volume of their collection of the Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia. This document is a large tablet from the library of the royal palace at Nineveh, containing a succession of 28 formulae of deprecatory incantations, unfortunately partly destroyed, against the action of evil spirits, the effects of sorcery, disease, and the principal misfortunes which may attack man in the course of his daily life. The whole forms a litany of some length, divided into paragraphs, which all finish with the same solemn invocation. It would seem, judging from the concluding paragraph, that the intention was not to use the detached formulae of this litany on special occasions, but to recite the whole as a protection [p.2] from all the fatal influences against which it provides. This tablet, however, like all the other works on magic from Assyria and Chaldea, is written in Accadian, that is, in the Turanian language, which was related to the Finnish and Tartaric dialects spoken by the primitive population of the marshy plains round the lower Euphrates. An Assyrian translation accompanies the ancient Accadian text, and is placed opposite to it. Centuries ago, when Assurbanipal, king of Assyria, of the VIIth century before our era, had the copy made which has been handed down to us, this kind of document could be understood only by aid of the Assyrian version, which may be traced to a much earlier date. The Accadian was already a dead language; but the Assyrians attributed so much the more mysterious power to the incantations expressed in this language, because the script had become unintelligible.
In order to place the reader at once in the midst of the strange world into which I ask him to follow me, I shall now reproduce in its entirety the formula of this tablet, those at least which it is possible to interpret, for there are still some phrases which defy explanation, and I shall accompany my translation with short notes. I have been preceded in this undertaking by M. Oppert, with whom in most cases I agree perfectly. Should anyone, however, wish to compare our two translations, he will find some differences, which almost all result from the fact, that the learned Professor of the College of France has translated from the Assyrian version, while I [p.3] have preferred to adhere to the original Accadian text. The Assyrian version is by no means always a literal one; and of this the reader may judge for himself, as I have annotated all the passages in which it differs from the earlier original. The Accadian text appears to he divided into rhythmical verses, each of which forms a separate line upon the tablet; I have marked these divisions carefully.
INCANTATION
1 The wicked god, the wicked demon,
the demon of the desert, the demon of the mountain,
the demon of the sea, the demon of the marsh,
the evil genius, the enormous urukir
the bad wind by itself,
the wicked demon which seizes the body(?), which disturbs the body.
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it
2 The demon who seizes man, the demon who seizes man,
the Gigim who works evil, the production of a wicked demon,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it
3 The consecrated prostitute with the rebellious heart, who abandons the place of prostitution,
the prostitute of the god Anna, who does not do his service,
to the evening of the beginning of the incomplete month,
the sacred slave who fails to go to his place,
who does not lacerate his chest,
who does not ... his hand,
making his chest resound, completing ....
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
4 That which does not go away, that which is not propitious,
that which grows up, ulcers of a bad kind,
poignant ulcers, enlarged ulcers, excoriated ulcers, ulcers ....
ulcers which spread, malignant ulcers,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
5 Disease of the bowels, the disease of the heart,
the palpitation of the diseased heart,
disease of the vision, disease of the head, malignant dysentery,
the tumour which swells,
ulceration of the reins, the micturation which wastes,
cruel agony which never ceases, nightmare,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
6 He who forges images, he who bewitches
the malevolent aspect, the evil eye,
the malevolent mouth, the malevolent tongue,
the malevolent lip, the finest sorcery,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
7 The nurse.
The nurse whose breast withers,
the nurse whose breast is bitter,
the nurse whose breast becomes ulcerated,
the nurse who dies of the ulceration of her breast,
the woman with child who does not preserve her offspring,
the woman with child whose embryo splits,
the woman with child whose embryo grows rotten,
the woman with child whose embryo does not prosper,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
8 Painful fever, violent fever,
the fever which never leaves man,
unremitting fever,
the lingering fever, malignant fever,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
9 Painful plague, violent plague,
plague which never leaves man,
unremitting plague,
the lingering plague, malignant plague,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
10 Painful disease of the bowels,
the infirmity which makes gloomy and cuts,
the never-ceasing infirmity, the infirmity of the veins,
the infirmity which does not go away, the malignant infirmity,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it
11 That which acts in the mouth, the poison noxious to the voice,
the expectoration of the consumption which noxiously prostrates,
scrofula, pustules, falling off of the nails,
purulent eruptions, inveterate tetters,
shingles causing pits and scars,
leprosy covering the skin,
food which reduces the body of man to a skeleton,
food which eaten is returned again,
liquids which make the drinker swell,
fatal poison which does not ... the earth,
the pestilential wind which comes from the desert and returns not,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
12 The frost which makes the earth to shiver,
the excess of heat which makes the skin of man to crack, evil destiny.
which unexpectedly cuts off a man's career,
parching thirst which aids the Spirit of the plague,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
15 He who in the gaol dies of hunger,
he who in the gaol dies of thirst,
he who being hungry in a pit (?)
beseeching (is therefore reduced to eat) dust.
he who in the earth or in the river,
perishes and dies,
the female slave who possesses no master,
the free woman who has no husband.
he who leaves an infamous memory of his name,
he who leaves no memory of his name,
he who in his hunger cannot recover,
he who falls ill and cries at the beginning of an incomplete month,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it
16 The protecting god of man,
who (guarantees) the prolongation of man’s life,
may he fortify him to the sight of the Sun!
The genius, the favourable giant,
may he penetrate into his head
for the prolongation of his life!
He will never depart from him!
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
The XVIIth formula presents difficulties which cannot be explained in the present state of our acquaintance with the Accadian language; we can only discern that it was the prescription of a protective and conjuring rite.
18 Two double bands of white cloth
upon the bed on the platform
as a talisman if he binds on the (right) hand,
two double bands of black cloth
if he binds on the left hand,
the bad demon, the wicked Alal, the wicked Gigim,
the bad Telal, the wicked god, the wicked Maskim,
the phantom, the spectre, the vampyre,
incubus, succubus, nightmare,
wicked sorcery, the philter, liquid poison,
that which gives pain, that which hurts, that which is evil,
their head upon his head,
their foot upon his foot,
they never seize him, they will never return.
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
A great gap occurs here, occasioned by a fracture of the tablet, in which at least two formula, and the beginning of a third, have disappeared. I discovered in the British Museum a small fragment, which is not in the published text, and which, finding here its proper place, shews the end of the XIXth formula.
........ May the wicked demon depart!
May they seize one another!
The propitious demon, the propitious giant,
may they penetrate into his body!
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
The first line of the XXth formula, which is found upon the same fragment, shows that its object was to cure some disease of the bowels.
The remainder of the XXIst contains an enumeration of all the parts of the house from which the magical words were to exclude demons. All this portion is extremely obscure, and its translation is rendered almost impossible by the multiplicity of the architectural terms employed, to which we have no key, particularly as the Assyrian version is here wanting.
22 The phantom, child of heaven,
which the gods remember,
the Imin, prince
of the lords.
the .......
which produces painful fever,
the vampyre which attacks man,
the Uruku multifold
upon humanity,
may they never seize him
Spirit of the heavens, conjure it!
Spirit of the earth, conjure it!
The tablet, in its present state, gives only the beginnings of the lines of the XXIIIrd and XXIVth incantations in the Accadian version; it is therefore impossible to try and translate them. All that can be discovered is, that in the first the god Silik-inulu-khi is invoked, to whom texts of the same kind generally attribute the role of a mediator, and who is compared further on to the Marduk of the official religion of the Assyrian period; the second is addressed to the god of fire, Izdubar, which we shall describe later with more precision.
The XXVth formula only exists in the Accadian; and that only as far as the first fourteen lines. These show, however, that it begins with an invocation to the water god, Nin-a-zu; it then treats of diverse maladies, and ends thus:
The sea,
the sea,
the desert without water,
the waters of the Tigris, the waters of the Euphrates,
the mountain of the west, the mountain of the east,
the agitated mountain,
may they close their chasms,
Spirit of the heavens, conjure!
Spirit of the earth, conjure!
26 Nin-ki-gal, spouse of the god Nin-a-zu,
may she cause him to turn his face toward the place where she is!
May the wicked demons depart!
May they seize one another!
The favourable demon, the favourable giant,
may they penetrate into his body!
Spirit of the heavens, conjure!
Spirit of the earth, conjure!
27 The god Ztak, the great messenger, the supreme ensnarer
amongst the gods, like the god of the heights.
May he penetrate his head
for the prolongation of his life!
He will never depart from him
Spirit of the heavens, conjure!
Spirit of the earth, conjure!
28 The man passing (on the earth), who makes sacrifices,
may pardon and peace flow for him like molten brass!
May the sun enlighten the days of this man!
Silik-mulu-khi, eldest son of the ocean,
strengthen in him peace and happiness
Spirit of the heavens, conjure!
Spirit of the earth, conjure!
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