The Old Testament In the Light of The Historical Records and Legends Part 10

and to "the land of the enemy," seem to point to imprisonment and expulsion, and the words "Who is the bridegroom (whom thou hast kept?) for ever?" indicate clearly the opinion in which the hero held the G.o.ddess.

From generalities, however, he proceeds to more specific charges-

"To Tammuz, the husband of thy youth, From year to year thou causest bitter weeping.

Thou lovedst the bright-coloured Allala bird, Thou smotest him and brokest his wings, He stayed in the forests crying, 'My wings!'

Thou lovedst also a lion, perfect in strength, By sevens didst thou cut wounds in him.

Thou lovedst also a horse, glorious in war, Harness, spur, and bit (?) thou laidest upon him, Seven _kaspu_ (49 miles) thou madest him gallop, Distress and sweat thou causedst him, To his mother Silili thou causedst bitter weeping.

Thou lovedst also a shepherd of the flock, Who constantly laid out before thee rich foods (?), Daily slaughtering for thee suckling kids, Thou smotest him and changedst him to a jackal, His own shepherd-boy drove him away, And his dogs bit his limbs.

Thou lovedst also Iullanu, thy father's gardener, Who constantly transmitted (?) thy provisions (?), Daily making thy dishes bright.

Thou raisedst thine eyes to him, and preparedst food.

'My Iullanu, divide the food, let us eat, And stretch forth thine hand, and taste of our dish.'

Iullanu said to thee: 'Me, what (is this that) thou askest me?

My mother, do not cook (this), I have never eaten (of it)- For should I eat foods of enchantments and witcheries?

[Food bringing?] cold, exhaustion, madness (?)?'

Thou heardest this [the speech of Iullanu], Thou smotest him, and changedst him into a statue (?), Thou settest him in the midst of (thy) dom(ain?), He raiseth not the libation-vase, he descendeth (?) not....

And as for me, thou wouldst love me and (make me) even as these!"

Itar being angry at these reproaches and accusations of the Babylonian hero, immediately ascended to heaven and complained to her father Anu and her mother Anatum that Gilgame had reproached her with her enchantments and witcheries, and after a long conversation, a divine bull is sent against the hero and his friend. The heavenly animal is overcome, princ.i.p.ally by the activity of ea-bani, who after its death, when the G.o.ddess Itar was lamenting its overthrow, cut off a portion of the body, and threw it at her. Great were the rejoicings at Erech the walled at the triumph of the hero and his counsellor, and after the feast that was held, they all lay down to sleep. ea-bani also lay down with the rest, and during the night he saw a dream, of the details of which nothing is known, though, from the words with which it seems to be introduced, "My friend, on account of what do the G.o.ds take counsel," it may be supposed that the defiance and opposition which these mortals had offered to the G.o.ddess Itar was engaging the attention of the heavenly powers with a view to some action being taken. As it is with these words that ea-bani begins to tell his dream to Gilgame, there is no doubt that the Babylonians regarded the former as having been admitted, whilst asleep (as in the case of the Babylonian Noah), into the councils of the G.o.ds. The solitary line that is quoted above is the first of the seventh tablet.

The details of the legend now again become obscure, but thus much can be gathered, namely, that Gilgame in his turn had a dream, and that, all appearance, ea-bani interpreted it. Later on, ea-bani falls ill, and lies without moving for twelve days. Though unwilling to regard his friend as dead, Gilgame mourns for him bitterly, and decides to make a journey, apparently with the object of finding out about his friend ea-bani, and ascertaining whether there were any means of bringing him back to earth again.

He sets out, and comes to the place where the "scorpion-men," with their heads reaching to heaven, and their b.r.e.a.s.t.s on a level with Hades, guarded the place of the rising and the setting sun. The horror of their appearance, which was death to behold, is forcibly described on the tablet. The hero was struck with terror on seeing them, but as he was of divine origin ("his body is of the flesh of the G.o.ds," as the scorpion-man says to his female), death has no power over him on account of them. He seems to describe to them his journey, and the object he had in view.

Pir-napitim, the Babylonian Noah, is mentioned in the course of the conversation, and it may be supposed that it is on account of his desire to visit him that he asks these monsters for advice. He afterwards comes into contact with the G.o.ddess Siduri, "who sits upon the throne of the sea," and she, on seeing him, shuts her gate. He speaks to her of this, and threatens to break it open. Having gained admission, he apparently tells the G.o.ddess the reason of his journey, and she, in return, describes to him the way that he would have to take, the sea that he would have to cross, and of the deep waters of death that bar the way to the abode of the Babylonian Noah, who had attained unto everlasting life, and whose pilot or boatman, Ur-anabi, was to take the Erechite hero to his presence.

After a long conversation with Ur-anabi, concerning the road that they will take, they start together, and after pa.s.sing through a forest, they embark in a s.h.i.+p, and reach, at the end of a month and ten days, the "waters of death." There Gilgame does something a number of times, and afterwards sees afar off Pir-napitim, the Babylonian Noah, who apparently communes with himself concerning the visitor who has come to his sh.o.r.es.

The conversation which follows is very mutilated, but in the course of his explanation of the reason of his visit, Gilgame relates all his adventures-how he had traversed all the countries, and crossed difficult mountains, his visit to Siduri, and her refusal to open the door to him, with many other things. The conversation apparently, after a time, becomes of a philosophical nature, for, in the course of it, Pir-napitim says-

"Always have we built a house, Always do we seal (?) (the contract).

Always have brothers share together, Always is the seed in (the earth?), Always the river rises bringing a flood."

He then discourses, apparently among other things, of death, and says-

"The Anunnaki, the great G.o.ds, are a.s.sembled (?).

Mammitum, maker of fate, sets with them the destinies.

They have made life and death, (But) the death-days are not made known."

With these words the tenth tablet of the Gilgame series comes to an end.

The Eleventh Tablet Of The Gilgame Series, Containing The Story Of The Flood.

As this tablet is the most complete of the series, it may not be considered out of place to give here a description of the outward appearance of the doc.u.ment-or, rather, of the doc.u.ments, for there are many copies. This description will serve, to a certain extent, for all the other tablets of the series, when in their complete state.

The size of the doc.u.ment which best shows the form is about 8- inches wide, by 5-7/8 inches high. It is rectangular in form, and is inscribed on both sides with three columns of writing (six in all). The total number of lines, as given in the text published in the second edition of the fourth vol. of the _Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia_, is 293, including the catch-line and colophon, but as many of these lines are, in reality, double ones (the scribes frequently squeezed two lines into the s.p.a.ce of one, so as to economize s.p.a.ce), the original number of the lines was probably nearer 326, or, with the catch-line and colophon, 330. It is probable that the other tablets of the series were not so closely written as this, and in these cases the number of lines is fewer.

The tablet opens with the continuation of the conversation between Gilgame and "Pir-napitim the remote"-

"Gilgame said also to him, to Pir-napitim the remote: 'I perceive thee, O Pir-napitim, Thy features are not changed-like me art thou, And thou (thyself) art not changed, like me art thou.

Put an end in thine heart to the making of resistance, (Here?) art thou placed, does that rise against thee, (Now?) that thou remainest, and hast attained life in the a.s.sembly of the G.o.ds?'

Pir-napitim said also to him, to Gilgame: 'Let me tell thee, Gilgame, the account of my preservation, And let me tell thee, even thee, the decision of the G.o.ds.

urippak, the city which thou knowest, Lies (upon the bank) of the Euphrates.

That city was old, and the G.o.ds within it.

The great G.o.ds decided in their hearts to make a flood.

There (?) was (?) their father Anu, Their counsellor, the warrior Ellila, Their throne-bearer, Ninip, Their leader, En-nu-gi.

Nin-igi-azaga, the G.o.d Ae, communed with them, and Repeated their command to the earth: "Earth, earth! Town, town!

O earth, hear: and town, understand!

Surippakite, son of Umbara-Tutu, Destroy the house, build a s.h.i.+p, Leave what thou hast (?), see to thy life.

Destroy the hostile and save life, Take up the seed of life, all of it, into the midst of the s.h.i.+p.

The s.h.i.+p which thou shalt make, even thou, Let its size be measured, Let it agree (as to) its height and its length; (Behold) the deep, launch her (thither)."

I understood and said to Ae, my lord: "[Behol]d, my lord, what thou, even thou, hast said, verily (?) It is excellent (?), (and) I will do (it).

(How?) may I answer the city-the young men and the elders?"

Ae opened his mouth and spake, He said to his servant, to me: "Thus, then, shalt thou say unto them; 'It has been told me (that) Ellila hates me, I will not dwell in ... and In the territory of Ellila I will not set my face- I will descend to the deep, with (Ae) my lord I shall (constantly) dwell.

(As for) you, he will cause abundance to rain down upon you, and (Beasts and?) birds (shall be) the prey (?) of the fishes, and ... he will enclose, (?), and ... of a storm (?), (In the night) the heavens will rain down upon (y)ou destruction." ' "

With these words the second paragraph comes to an end, the total number of lost or greatly mutilated lines being about nine. Very little of the contents of these lines can be made out, as not much more than traces of words remain. Where the lines begin to become fairly complete, the text seems to refer to the building of the s.h.i.+p, upon which four days had already been spent, its form being laid down on the fifth day. The description of the building, which is somewhat minute, is exceedingly difficult to translate, and any rendering of it must therefore, at the present time, be regarded as tentative. Its bulwarks seem to have risen four measures, and a deck (apparently) is mentioned. Its interior was pitched with six _ar_ of bitumen, and its outside with three _ar_ of pitch, or bitumen of a different kind. The provisionment of the vessel is next described, but this part is mutilated. A quant.i.ty of oil for the crew and pilot is referred to, and oxen were also slaughtered, apparently as a propitiatory sacrifice on the completion of the vessel. Various kinds of drink were then brought on board, both intoxicating and otherwise, plentiful (this may be regarded as the word to be supplied here) "like the waters of a river." After this we have references to the completion of certain details-holes for the cables above and below, etc., and with this the third paragraph comes to an end.

In the next paragraph Pir-napitim collects his goods and his family, and enters into the ark:-

"All I possessed I transferred thereto, All I possessed I transferred thereto, silver, All I possessed I transferred thereto, gold; All I possessed I transferred thereto, the seed of life, the whole I caused to go up into the midst of the s.h.i.+p. All my family and relatives, The beasts of the field, the animals of the field, the sons of the artificers-all of them I sent up.

The G.o.d ama appointed the time- _Muir kukki_-In the night I will cause the heavens to rain destruction, Enter into the midst of the s.h.i.+p and shut thy door."

"That time approached- _Muir kukki_-In the night the heavens rained destruction.

I saw the appearance of the day: I was afraid to look upon the day- I entered into the midst of the s.h.i.+p, and shut my door.

For the guiding of the s.h.i.+p, to Buzur-Kurgala, the pilot, I gave the great house with its goods.

At the appearance of dawn in the morning, There arose from the foundation of heaven a dark cloud: Rimmon thundered in the midst of it, and Nebo and arru went in front Then went the throne-bearers (over) mountain and plain.

Ura-gala dragged out the cables, Then came Ninip, casting down destruction, The Anunnaki raised (their) torches, With their brilliance they illuminated the land.

Rimmon's destruction reached to heaven, Everything bright to darkness turned, ... the land like ... it ...

The first day, the storm (?) ...

Swiftly it swept, and ... the land (?)....

Like a battle against the people it sought....

Brother saw not brother.

The people were not to be recognized. In heaven The G.o.ds feared the flood, and They fled, they ascended to the heaven of Anu.

The G.o.ds kenneled like dogs, crouched down in the enclosures.

Itar spake like a mother.(8) The lady of the G.o.ds(9) called out, making her voice resound: 'All that generation has turned to corruption.

Because I spoke evil in the a.s.sembly of the G.o.ds, When I spoke evil in the a.s.sembly of the G.o.ds, I spoke of battle for the destruction of my people.

Verily I have begotten (man), but where is he?

Like the sons of the fishes he fills the sea.'