Maqlu

Tablet VII

Incantation. My hand is Manzad, my scorpion;
… she, the sorceress, piles up her spells.
I … you, like the rainbow in the sky,
I blow on you like the north wind, the west wind,
5. I destroy your clouds and dispel your bad weather!
I destroy your sorcery which you have piled up day and night,
And the messages of murder which you send me.
The ferryboat calls, the harbour calls,
The sailors are resting the whole time;
10. Wrappings are put at the door and the bolt,
The incantations of Siduri and Ningišzida are laid,
The sorcery, the incantations, the evil calls, the evil word of my sorcerer and my sorceress,
Should not come close, should not come in!
They should not enter the house through the door!
15. May Ningišzida throw them out!
May they keel over and catch their helpers!
May god, king, master and prince look at them in an evil way!
May my sorceress not escape from the power of god!
But I, upon the order of Marduk, master of the vigilant,
20. And of Asarluhi, master of incantation,
May everything I have done be propitious!
May the sorceries which you have created turn into wind!
Incantation. I fructify you, my self; I fructify you, my body;
Like Sumuqan fructifies his cattle,
25. The ewe with her lamb, the gazelle with her kid, the she-ass with her foal,
Like the plough fructifies the earth, and the earth receives from the plough its seeds,
I have put an incantation on myself.
May it fructify me and drive the evil out!
May they tear away the sorcery from my body,
30. The great gods!
Incantation. Pure oil, light oil, shining oil!
Oil which cleans the gods!
Oil which cures the tendon of man.
Oil of the incantation of Ea, oil of the incantation of Asarluhi!
35. I have let you drip with the oil of the cure,
That Ea has given to heal.
I have rubbed you with the oil of life,
Have laid next to you the incantation of Ea, lord of Eridu, of Ninigikug,
Have chased the Asakku, the Ahhazu,
40. The chill out of your body.
I have removed the scream, the fear, the trembling of your body,
Have healed the tendons of your ailing members.
Upon the order of Ea, king of the Apsu,
With the formula of Ea, with the incantation of Asarluhi,
45. With a big dressing of Gula,
With the healing hands of Nindinugga,
And of Ninahaquddu, master of incantation,
Let N., son of N., know, O Ea, your incantation of life!
May the seven Apkallu of Eridu heal his body! Incantation formula.
50. Incantation. Enlil is my head, the star Kaksiša my figure;
The forehead is the divine moon-crescent,
My arms are the curved sword of the gate of Marduk;
My ears are a tablet, my trampling feet a snake.
You, great gods who are lit in the Heavens,
55. Like … sorcery, spells, malediction,
Do not come close to you, do not push up against you,
So may sorcery, spells, malediction not come close to me, not push up against me! Incantation.
Incantation. Whoever you are, sorceress, who has made an image of me,
Who has observed my figure and made a statue of me,
60. Has seen my strength, has made my appearance powerful,
Has studied the shape of my body,
Has reproduced my features,
Has bound my members,
Has tied up my members,
65. Has bent my nerves;
Ea, the enchanter of the gods has sent me;
In front of Šamaš I have drawn your picture,
I have drawn your figure, I have observed your strength,
I have made your appearance powerful, espied the shape of your body,
70. I have reproduced your features with pure flour,
I have bound your members, I have tied up your members,
I have bent your nerves;
I have done to you the spell that you did to me,
I have let you have the evil encounter that you let me have,
75. I have let you suffer the revenge that you let me suffer!
Your sorcery, your tricks, your evil, your maleficence,
Your evil plottings,
Your evil messages,
Your love, your hate, your injustice, your murder,
80. Your paralysis of the mouth, your calumnies: may your head stop!
With the water of my body and the cleansing water of my hands, may it be taken away,
And go to your head and your figure; but may I have life!
May affection come to me, favour come to me!
Incantation. Catcher of catchers!
85. Sorceress of sorceresses!
Whose net has been spread in the streets,
Whose eyes gaze around on the city square;
She selects the men of the city,
Along with the men of the city she also selects me.
90. She hangs around the girls of the city,
Along with the girls of the city she also hangs around me.
I seek out against you Kurgarras and ecstatics;
I will break your bond.
May warlocks bewitch you, I will break your bond.
95. May witches bewitch you, I will break your bond.
May Kurgarras bewitch you, I will break your bond.
May ecstatics bewitch you, I will break your bond.
May Narsindus bewitch you, I will break your bond.
May snakers bewitch you, I will break your bond.
100. May Agulgillu bewitch you, I will break your bond.
I eat your cheek, I tear your tongue,
I fill your eyes with saliva,
I let your arms fall in weakness.
You, yes you I let eat rotten garbage,
105. And everything that you have cursed, I turn on your head!
Incantation. Your enchantment, your sorcery, the sorcery of your sorceress,
The sorcery of your sorcerer,
Ea, the magician of the gods has undone and turned to water!
May your evil mouth be filled with earth,
110. May your evil tongue be tied with a string!
Upon the order of Enbilulu, master of life! Incantation formula.
Incantation. Your tied knots,
Your evil spells, your mean machinations,
Your evil messages,
115. Asarluhi, the magician of the gods, has undone and removed!
May your evil mouth be filled with earth,
May your evil tongue be tied with a string!
Upon the order of Enbilulu, master of life! Incantation formula.
Incantation. I have washed my hands, I have cleaned my body,
120. In pure spring water which comes from Eridu;
May all the mean, all the evil, all the bad luck,
Which in my body, my flesh, my muscles exists,
Anxiety through evil and unfavourable dreams, harbingers,
Anxiety through untrue dreams, evil and unlucky,
125. Through laying on of hands, strangling of life, of divination,
Through that which I see every day,
On which I step in the street, which I see on the sides,
The evil Šedu, the evil Utukku,
Illness, headache, distress,
130. Shrieking, fear, trembling, worries, fear, apathy,
Pain, aches, crumpling, cutting up of the body,
Fear, obsession, terror,
Sin, unfavourable events done by the gods, wrath,
Curse through the oath by a god, through the oath of the swearing hand,
135. Sorcery, spells, mean machinations of men,
May they all, with the water of my body and cleaning water of my hands,
Go over to the deceiving figure!
May my sin carry my image instead of me!
May street and path dissolve my sin!
140. May affection come to me, may favour come to me!
I have lived through the experience; may it be favourable to me!
May the day bring healing, the month joy, the year its bounty.
Ea, Šamaš, and Marduk, help me!
May the sorcery, the spells, be dissolved!
145. May the mean machinations of men,
And the oath leave my body!
Incantation. Dawn is breaking, my hands are washed;
… my sin is gone.
Because the sorceress enchanted me,
150. The witch made me sick,
May Šamaš bring salvation!
May the earth take me in!
Incantation. Dawn has broken; the doors are opened;
The traveller has passed through the gate;
155. The messenger has taken to the road.
Hey, witch: did you try to bewitch me?
Hey, enchantress: did you try to enchant me?
Now I am freed by the light of the rising sun;
Whatever witchcraft you did or had done,
160. May they turn back on you, yes you!
Incantation. Morning, ah morning!
Truly my sorcerer and my sorceress,
Have plucked their strings like minstrels.
At my gate stands Palil,
165. At the head of my bed stands Lugaledinna.
I send you, Palil, from my gate;
From the head of my bed, Lugaledinna.
Your discourse will turn around like a flood of a league, the flood of the street,
Your sorceries, your charms, your spells will seize you, yes you!
170. At dawn my hands are washed.
May a propitious beginning arise for me;
May happiness and good health ever accompany me,
Whatever I wish, may I attain my wish,
May the dream I dreamt be made favourable for me,
175. May anything evil, anything ominous,
The enchantments of sorcerer or sorceress,
By the command of Ea, Šamaš, Marduk, and the princess Belit-ili! Incantation formula.
Incantation. I have washed my hands, I have cleansed my hands for me;
The water of the high flood, the fertility of the river,
180. … … your strength,
… … your fertility,
Like to the waters sorcery, spells and evil words,
Do not approach, do not come close,
So may sorcery, spells and evil words not approach,
185. Not come close to me! Enenuru incantation formula.
Incantation. Until you shine, I wait for you, my master, Šamaš!
Tablet VII of Maqlu.