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Dropsie College Theses Learning

Spring 4-19-1956

Aramaic and Mandean Magic and Their Demonology

Wilber B. Wallis

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Aramaic and Mandean Magic and Their Demonology

Abstract
The Aramaic texts to be discussed in this thesis are magical incantations against evil powers. The texts
are written on earthenware bowls found in archaeological investigations or by chance in Iraq and Iran. The
bowls and texts appear to date from Sassanian Babylonia(1

Degree Type
Dissertation

Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

First Advisor
Cyrus H. Gordon

Third Advisor
Meir M. Bravmann

Subject Categories
Anthropology | Cultural History | History of Religion | Jewish Studies | Language Interpretation and
Translation | Religion | Translation Studies

Comments
Library at the Katz Center - Archives Room Manuscript. BF1591 .W366 1956.
 ARAMA ID AND ¥.ANDEAN MAGIC
AND
THE IR DEMONOLOGY

A Dieeertation Presented to
the Faculty of the Dropsie College
for Hebrew and Cognate Learning

In Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

by

Wil ber B. Wallis

January - 1955
 APPROVAL

This dissertation, entitled

ARAMAIC MAG IC AL"\ID THE NEW TESTAMENT

by

Wilber B. Wallis

Candidate f or the de gree of

Doctor of Philosophy
has been read a...~d approved by
 iii.

FOREWORD

It is wit h a distinct sense of privile ge and

ple·a s ur e t hat I ackno wled ge my gratitude to t he

Dropsie Colle ge and its faculty. The ins truct-

ion of Professor Solomon L. Skoss in Syriac was

instrumental in the execution of this t hes is.

May his memory continue to be an inspiration to

us all ! Professor Cyrus H. Gordon 's ges t ures of

consideration and f r i endship a r e past computation.

President Abra ham A. Neuman is an eloquent exam ple

of that high tradition of Hebra ic learning and

culture to whi ch Christianity owes so much .

 iv.

ABBREVIATIONS

AF Rosenthal: Die aramaistische Forschung.

AIT Mont gome ry: Arama ic Incanta tion Texts.

AP Charles: The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha.

BDB Brown, Driver, Briggs : Lexicon.

BZ Drower: The Bo ok of t he Zodiac.

CK Ibgnon-: Inscri ptions Manda ites.

DA Drawer: Diwan Abatur.

EB Cheyne , Black: Encyclopaed i a Biblica.

HDB Hastings: Dictionary of the Bible.

IMCK Pognon: Inscriptions Mand a ites.

IN Justi: Iranisches Namenbu ch .

IS Christen sen: L 1 Iran sous lee Sassanides .

J a at·row Di ct'ioria-ry J ast row: A Dictionary o f the Targumim , the

Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midra shic
Litera ture.

LP Gordon: The Living Past.

MG Noeldeke : Ma.."Yl.daische Gr ammatik .

MLBT Margolis: Ma.Y1ual of the Aramaic La n guage.

MM II Drowe r: The Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran.

UH Go rdon: Uga ritic Handbook.

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Fo r eword • • • • •• iii

Abbreviations. • iv

PART I. A DISCUSSION OF RELATIONSH IPS

I. Introduction .. .. . .... . . • • • . 1

A. Gene r al characteristics of bowl s

B. Discovery and pub lication of bowl texts

C. Pro blem of pre sent investigation

II. Cha racteristics and Conce pts of Aramaic Bowl Magic • • • • 5

A. Be lief in demon existence and activity

B. The Incantat ion

1. Ex oue r e operate principle

2. Belief in powers of wo rds and names

3. Spe cial char a cteristics due to Mandaean,

Syriac , and J ewish affinities

4. Details of content of bowl texts

a. Length

b. Typical contents of incantations :

Invocation , names of client and
family , designation of bowl,
categorization of demons and
trou bles , na.-nes i n which spells
are invoked

c. Conclusion - Lite r ary devices and

figures used to expr ess se paration
and expulsion of demons

d. Concept of sealing

e. Designation of propitious day

f. Eclecticism and conservatism

C• The Praxis

1. The use of the bowl; burial and inversion

 vi.

2. The writing of t he bowl

5. Activities of tha masic frn

4. Use of puppets and symbolic objects

D. The Magician

1. Identity of magician

2. Self-confidence of magician

5. Confidence of pub lic in magician -

psychic satisfaction

III. Outstanding Cultural Relationships of the Bowl

Magic in Sassanian Babylon ia • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 12

A. Introductory

B. To J ews

1. Script

2. Old Testament quotat ions

5. Na.mes
4. Cultural connections of Scripts used
5. Religious writings
6. Relation to Ta l mud

7. Jos hua bar Perahi a

8. Relation of texts to Old Testament magic

and late r history

c. Relations to Mandaeans

1. Scri pt

2. Relation to ot he r Mandaean v1 rit ings

D. Relations to Persian Culture

l. Names

2. Mazdaism

5. Di ffus ion of magic

E. Relations to Christianity

1. Names
 vii.

2. Official attitude toward magic

3 • Peshitta
4. Analysis of terminology of New Testam ent
and bowl texts

5. Analysis and discussion of evidence

from terminolo gy

rJ. Analysis of Te rminology

A. Words • . . .. . .. . • • 9 • . . . • 20
• • • • •

B. Phrases • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
c. Frequent ly 6ccu r ing words • • • • . . . . . . . . • • 39

D. Infrequent ly occuring words • ... . . •••• • 40

v. Ana l ysi s and Conclusion •• • • 41
Notes t o Part I . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.,,.
i::;

PART II. TEXTS , TRA.i.~SLAT IONS, COMMENTARIES

I. Selected Mandaean Incantation Text s • • • • •• • 49

Appendix I. Magical Bowl Discussions s ince Rosenthal . • • 109

Appendix II. Text Abb r eviations •• .......... • • 110

Bi bliogr aphy . .... .... . . . .. . . . .. . . • • 112

 PART I

A DISCUSSION OF RELATIONSHIPS
 CHAPTER I

INTRODUO T ION
 1.

CH1'1.PrER I.

I. Introduction

A. General Characteristics of Bowls

The Aramaic texts to be discussed in thi s thesis are magical

incantations against evil powers. The texts are written on earlh-

enware bmvls found in archeological investigations or by chance in

Iraq and Iran . The bowls and texts appear to date from Sassanian

Babylonia . (1

The bmvls have been found at the site of residences and of

graveyards . Sometimes more than one bowl text is written for the

same client. (2 This fact , taken with the mention of "the four cor-

ners of the house" , ( 3 suggests that the bowls were placed to fonn a

magical ring of apotropaic influence around the house. Some bowls

have been found by excavators in the immediate vicinity of coffins , ( 4

while some of the bowls of Pognon bear the inscription "this belongs

to the graveyard" • (5

The bowls vary in si ze from about 16cm. to 28cm. in diameter ,

and in depth from 5cm. to 16cm. (6 The size and shape of the bowls

are approximately those of a modern porridge 'bov1l .

The texts are inscribed in ink on the inside of the bowls, with

an occasional notation or addition on the outside . The inscription

begins at the center and spirals outward to the rim. Three scripts

are used : the Mandaean, the Syriac , and the Hebrew square characters .

The incantations are defensive ma gic against evil spirits , curses

and incantations of enemies of the clients . There is often, in the

Ma.ndaean bowls ,, the invocation of "Life" . ( 7 The client is mentioned

by name, and sometimes the incantation. is put in the first person as

though being written by the client . (8 There is always a specification

that the evil spirits or incantations are bound or repelled £rom the
person and property of the client. Often the activities of demons are

described in detail, their bringing evil dreams and apparitions and

mental and bodily afflictions. Noteworthy in some of the bowls ~S -

the colorful, imaginative and dramatic imagery used to portray the

driving away of the demons • ( 9

In addition to the written incantations , some bowls have c rude

drawings . (lO Some of these drawings represent the magician with arms

upraised to drive away the demon . Others represent the demons bound

hand and foot , and impoftent to harm the c lient. Still others represent

the Lilith, portraying her as an adulterous woman , naked., with hair

disheveled and streaming wildly, expelled by the reception of the

divorce -writ . This feature of the bowls reflects the ancient Semitic

practice as reflected in Hosea 2:2, 3 . (11 The drawings appearing on

Pognon's bowls seem to portray the witches oY practitioners of black

magic who pronounce incantations and spells . Male and female figure s

are attempted. Of particular interest is the portrayal of "horn.s"

curving downward from the head . Pognon's texts occasionally refer to

the "breaking" of these horns . (l 2 This is perhaps depicted by the

curving downward in the drawings . These drawings of the type found

on Pognon' s Mandaean bov1ls might yield further information if expert-

ly compared with such magical Mandaean drawings as appear in Mrs. Drawer's

edition of the Diwan Abatur . (l3

B. Discovery and Publication of Bowl Texts

The finding and publishing of the Aramaic incantation bowl - texts

began with Layard ' s work at Nineveh in 1853. (1 4 The University of

Pennsylvania Expedition of 1888-89 found bowls at Nippur . (15 Pognon's

bowls were from Khouabir. They have been found over a wide area in

Iraq and Iran .

Publication and critical discussion have advanced with increasing

 3.

discoveries and placing in museums . Montgomery ' s Aramaic Incantation

Texts from Nippur remains the most comprehensive work on the incanta-

tion texts . He acknowle dges the work of M. A. Levy (1855); J . Hal ~vy

(1873) ; Moise Schwab and E. Babelon (1882 , 1885, 1891 , 1892); He

Hyvernat (1885); J . Wohlstein 1893 , 1894; R. StUbe (1895) ; H. Pognon

1892 , 1898 - 99; and M. Lidzbarski, among others . (16 Since Montgomery' s

work , many texts have been published by Montgomery ' s pupil , c. H.

Gordon . (17 G. R. Driver has published one bowl, (l 8 and J . Obermann

two . (1 9 F . Rosenthal gives a summary of text publication and critical

discussion . (20 For a bibliography of material which has appeared

since Rosenthal, see Appendix I .

The special problem to be discussed in the present investigation

is the relation of the terminology of these Aramaic incantation texts

to the New Testament terminology.

Montgomery has made possible such a study as is proposed by show-

ing the relationships of the bov,rl magic historically and geographically.

His conclusion is that

"the bowl magic is in part the lineal descendant of

the old Babylonian sorcery vr>,Hc at the same time •••

it takes its place in that great field of Hellenistic

magic which pervaded the whole of the western world

at the beginning of the Christian era 11 • (21

Further, Hellenistic magic was influenced by Egyptian elements .

The texts are eclectic : "Babylonian, Jewish, Mandaean, Gnostic,

Hellenistic, and indirectly Egyptian, elements are there, in various

combinations". (22

c. Problem of Present Investigation

The New Testament and Christianity a ppeared in a world where

magic had a large place, as the narrative of the New Testament shows . (23
 4.
The objective of this thesis , a discussion of the te rmino logy of magic 6

demonology , and angelology of the New Testament vis - a - vis that of the

bowl - texts , may be regarded as preliminary to a fuller discussion of

the important question of Christian origins in the light of first

century magical c onditions . The Peshitto Syriac New Testament i s a

factor of special interes t in this thesis . In the Peshitto are found

names of demons and phrases similar to those found in the bowl - texts .

Also , the Peshitto is closer in time and pr ovenience to the bowls than

the original Greek New Testament and may be expected to reveal the way

Christian translators met the problems of presenting the New Testament

to the Aramaic speaking world, in which the bowl magic was to be found .
 CHAPI'ER II

CHARACTERISTICS AND CONCEPTS

 5.

II . Characteristics and Concepts of Aramaic Bowl Magic

A. Belief in Demon Existence and Activity

The belief in the existence and baneful activity of evil powers

underlies the existence of the bowl magic . These evil powers are

classified and discussed by Montgomery : ( 24

as (1) Evil spirits , as personal beings ;

(2) Evil agencies , such as the workings of black magic ;

(3) Natural evils, especially physical ma.ladies .

B. The Incantation

1. ~ opera opera.to principle

The basic concept of all magic is present in the conception that

the incantation accomplishes the desired end~ opere operato . Whereas

in religion there is some interest in the higher powers in the wa~r of

propitiating them or winning their favor , in magic the powers or deities

are used in a mechanical way : when an action is performed or incantation

given in the proper way, it produces a given effect . (Compare discussion

of this principle in Hodge , Systematic Theology, III , PP • 509-14) . The

bowl-magic is "a purely magical s ystem" . (25

2. Belief in powers of words and names

It is evident in the bowl incantations that there is a belief in

the power of the name of a deity or angel . If the name is known , he can

be induced to do the will of the magician . In this use of the name there

is no religious appeal to the deity as such : the pronunciation of the

name is sufficient to invoke his power .

The interesting ph rase " in the name ofn is discussed below in relation

to its occurrences in the New Testament .

3. Special characte istics due to Mandaean, Syriac , and Jewish

affinities

There a.re special characteristics of the bowl incantations which

 6.
may be expla ined by Mandaean , Sy riac, or Je wish inf luence.

As distinctive o f t h e Je wi sh influence is t he use of Script ure

quotations. There are no clear c ase s wh ere pu r ely pagan te~s are

writt en in square characters, (26 so t hat the use of the 11 Rabbini c 11

sc ri pt may be an indicati on of s pe ci fi c all y Jew ish inf luen ce.

As d istin ctive of the fandaean texts are the a bs ence of Scriptu re

r e f ere nces, the invoca tion of 11 Li fe 11 , 11 The Gr e at Li fe 11 , 11 Li fe is Vic-

torious", and the oc currenc e of te rm inology f ound in other Mandaean

s ources: 11 Pirawi s 11 , 11 J ordan 11 , "The Gr e at Jordan of Life 11 • On t he

exterior of some o f the bo wl s published by Po gnon , t here is t he nota-

tion 11 t h is pe r tains to the cemetery". This may not be specifically

Handaean , but on ly an accident o f discovery.

The Syriac bowls are written in a form of the Est range l o Script.( 2 7

The material used i n some of t he Syriac bowls illus t r ates the danger

of as s um i ng that the use o f the Estrangelo Script implies a non-Je wis h

or non -C h ristian content . It is just in t he Syriac bowls t hat t here

is mention of Jesus ba r Perah ia, Jesus the Healer , and f requent allu-

sions to t he Old Testament narrative.

4. Details of content o f bowl texts

a. The bowl-text inca.~tations have peculiarities re f lecting

t he circumstan c es of thei r writing . The length is s u ch as could be

conve n ien tly written on t he small bowls: a typical text ma y have fr om

150 -200 words, though some are s horter. Th is conformity o f t he appro-

priate le ngth o f t h e i nc antation to t he size of the medium used su ggests

t hat t h e composition o f bowl incantations was an art with a long histo ry,

during which t h e magicians had been co mpelled to co nform t heir compositions

to t h e conditions of the bowl praxis.

b. The bowl texts vary widel y in t he order of arrangement

of t h e co ntents, but cert a i n typic a l items re gularly appear. There is

often an invocation: 11 In t hy name, 0 Lord of heaven and earth 11 •

In the Ma.ndaea.n bowls is found 11 I n the name of Life ~" Invariably the

name of the client and often of the members of his or her family will

appear with repetitious legal exactness .

Not invariably, but frequently , there is the formal designation

of the bowl for its function of repelling and frust ating the evil

designs of demons and men .

The categorization of the names of demons and evil influences is

very full and detailed . The legal conce pt and mentality of mentioning

all possible contingencies is carried out with a vengeance .

c. Often there is a resounding and dramatic conclusion to

the incantation, but the customary ending is the stereotyped Amen,

Amen , Selah .

Central in the whole incantation is the full and specific

l anguage fo r the binding , frust ating and expul sion of the evil in-

fluences . The demons are bound , hobbled , repelled , turned away, and

adjured . This terminology is enlarge d by telling devices , especially

that of the divorce-writ or Ge~ .

d. Outstanding among the concepts reflected in the bowls

is that of sealing . This concept probab l y came from the ancient

practice of putting the cylinder-seal imprint on clay tablets as a

signature and mark of personal possession . The terminology is re -

fleeted in the Old Testament narrative , Darius seals the stone

enclosing Daniel in the lions' den with his seal and that of his

lords . The concept is reflected in the tenninology of the New

Testament at John 3:33 , and frequently elsewhere . The rites of

sealing in the Revelation Chapter 7 are much like Ezekiel Chapter 9 .

This mention of sealing may point to the ancient origin of the bov-ll

incantations if the sealing referred to is that of the sealing of

clay tablets - whose use ceased before the Christian era - or the

sealing of papyrus rolls , as reflected in the "seals" of the

 s.
Revelation as a common Hellenistic practice .

The concept of sea.ling as reflected in text 4 of Mont-

gomery raises an interesting problem . Montgomery has translated ,

"now you are conquered , you are charmed; charmed, you are charmed and

sealed in ea.ch one of the four corners of his house 11 • Professor Gordon

has rightly remarked :

"The fa.ct is that the last thing the ancients wished

to do was to trap on their own property the demons which

might subsequently escape and work mischief on the spot .

The bowls a.re calculated to do the exact opposite : name -

ly, to exorcise and get rid of them." (28

But why the translation above " in each of the four cor-

ners ••• "? Since the language of the b owls is archaic , this may be a

partitive use of the beth , as shown in the Ugaritic texts and the

Bible . ( 29 Compare also the }~ in a similar context in Pognon ' s

bovrls Numbers 1 and 4 .

0 . There is s ometimes the designation of the day of the

execution of the incantation a.s the most appropriate and propitious

day . For example , in Montgomery' s text 6 : n ••• this day out of all

days , and this month out of all months , and this year out of all years ,

and this sea.son out of all seasons" •

f. An obvious element of the incantations is the appeal to

the pa.st and various powerful precedents . It is noteworthy that the

most readily indentifiable appeal found in the b~nls i s to the Biblical

tradition . YHWH, the living God , YHWH of Hosts and similar Biblical

phrases frequently appear . I have noted elsewhere that while there is

appeal to the Old Testament , there seems to be no definable influence

of the New Testament . ( 3o This circumstance seems to emphasize the

conservatism of the bowl magi c. Yet Montgomery has shown that there

is a large element of Egypto-Hellenistic magic in the bowl magic - a

larger element than the Hebraic . ( 3 l So the bowl magic, though

tending to conserve the ancient Babylonian sorcery, yet was signifi-

cantly modified by the Hellenistic influence , preswna.bly after

Alexander the Great . There remains then, the question why a major

historical movement , namely Christianity, having elements which

might evoke emulati on or reaction left no traces on the bowl magic .

It may be that this question is premature , and future discoveries

and publications of bowl-texts will clarify the problem (see further

discussion below, p .43) .

C. The Praxis

1. The use of the bowl; burial and inversion

The burial of the bowls inverted is one fact here which challenges

attention . The reason for inversion is obscure since the idea of

thus trapping the demons is untenable . The burial of the bowls near

and around coffins in cemeteries is understandable , though why they

should be buried at the site of a residence i s obscure .

2. The writing of the bowl

In bowl 18 of Pognon there is an indi cation of the circumstances

under which the bowl was written . The magician says he is sitting on

an unbroken stone , writing on a new bowl .

3. Activities of the ma gi cian

There are indications that the presentation of the bowl to the

client ,ms accompanied by a series of magical acts or a ceremony . ( 32

The drawings on some of Montgomery' s bowls representing the magician

waving a palm leaf may indicate an activity to drive away evil spirits .

The figure with upraised hands and curving horns drawn on some of

Pognon's bowls may be the magician with a mask or hood , engaged in a

magical ritual . (33

 10 .
4. Use of puppets and symbolic objects

There are indications of the use of puppets and symboli c

objects . ( 34 In Montgomery ' s text 12 we read ., "I a djure thee, the

angel which descends from heaven - there being kneaded (something)

in the shape of a horn - on which honey is poured" .

D. The ~agician

1. Identity of magi cian

The ractitioner is not always or even generally , personally

identified , rut text 2 of Montgomery is a striking instance of

citing the name of the magician : "Again , I come , I Pabak bar

Kufithai , in my own might , on my person polished annor of iron ,

my head of iron , my figure of pure fire ."

2. Se lf confidence of magician

A much more important personal qualification of the magician

is reflected in the texts . There is always a tone of confidence ;

no doubt is even expressed as to the efficacy of the incantation

eithe r to turn away the evil pov,ers , or if the y molest the client ,

to destroy them. For example, in text 6 of Montgomery., the magician

says :

"and whoever will transgress against this p ress

and does not accept these rites , shall split violent-

ly and burst in the midst, and the sound of him shall

resound with the resonance of brass in the spheres of

heaven., and his abode shall be in the seventh hell of

the sea from this day and forever ."

3. Confidence of public in magician - psychic satisfaction

Along with the invincible self- confidence - or assumption of it -

on the part of the practitioner went also the confidence of the public
 11 .

in the efficacy of the incantations and the power of the magician .

No doubt the ability of the magician to give psychic satisfaction

accounted for the prevalence and success of the bowl magic . The

confidence of the magician , the written charm , the impressive ce e-

mony perhaps attending the presentation of the bowls , all no doubt

had their effect in restoring the peace of mind and confidence of the
client .
 OH.APTER III

OUTSTANDING CULTURAL RELATIONSHIPS

 12 .

III• Outstanding Cultural Relationships of the Bowl Ma.gic in Sa.ssanian

Babyloni a

A, Introductory

The Aramaic bowl magic is to be viewed as an integral pa.rt of

the life of Sassanian Babylonia , affecting religious, economic , and

s oc ial life . Some inferences can be drawn from the texts as to re -

lationships in these spheres . Also , since the existence of various

ethnic and religious divisions in the population of Sa.ssa.nian Baby-

lonia. a.re already known, it becomes a matter of primary interest to

try to discern through the medium of the bowl inscriptions fresh

evidence a.s to the re l ationships between these groups , a.swell as their

relation to the magic itself . The principal religious groups known in

this period are: Jews , Chr istians, Zoroastrians, Ma.ndaeans , Buddhists . (35

The Buddhists may be set aside for the present purpose . The Zoroastrians

also may be passed over , on the strength of Montgomery' s opinion that

there is "hardly a. trace of them even in a wo r d of the Zoroastr ian

system upon our bowl-magic . This is the more remarkable as it belongs

to Persian soil an d flourished under the Sassanian Empire , while the

dualism, demonology and magical pract ice of Persia would have been so

natural a nursing mother to the supe rstition we have been studying . 11 (3 6

We are left then wi th the Jewish community, the Mandaeans , and the

Christians as the practical concerns of the present investigation .

A detailed anthropological study of the bowl - magic vis -a-vis the

Talmud would offer a fruitful and entrancing fi eld of investigation.

A similar study of the bowl -magic in relation to the traditional lit-

erature and cult of the Mandaeans suggests itself . In this investi -

gation, for the sake of completeness, some ideas relating to these

fields are suggested . In the ma.in, however , consi deration will be

given to the rel ation of bowl-ma.gic to Christianity . Within this

 13

field, detailed consideration will be given to the Syriac New Testa-

ment , and t h rough it , to the Greek New Testament .

B. Jews

1. Script

The fact that many of the text s are written in .Hebrew square

characters would indicate that that phase of the magical praxis

was derived from the Jewish culture .

2. Old Testament quotations

Quotations from the Old Testament indicate a contact and bor-

rowing from Jewish culture . The spelling is not Massoretic and the

quotations e.re not exact . (37 Hence , Montgomery concludes that such

use of the Scripture "is not such as we should expect from any Jew

even moderately versed in the Old Testament" • (38 However, Talmudic

Old Testament quotations are also loose in spelling and phraseology .

Mo r e cogent in proving la.ck of real familiarity with the Old Testa-

ment would be the stereotyped character of the quotations . (38 The

bowl quotations may be contrasted with the New Testament use of Old

Testament quotations in that the New Testament uses them in an exe -

getical way and argues from them : in the bowls they are quoted on

the strength of the appeal to the prestige of the naterial quoted,

and for their relevance as exorcisms .

3. Names

Names of individuals in the texts shovr connections with Jewish

as well as with Christian and pagan culture . (40

4. Cultural connections of Scripts used

The practitioners of magic were generally anonymous , so no clear

inferences can be drawn from the names . The fact of the existence of

three scripts in the bowls would in part be explained by the magician's

 14 .
following the script in which he was trained and with which he was

culturally connected. However, Montgomery points out that t he magic

is so eclectic that even in texts showing distinct Jevrish affinities

there is no certainty that the exorcists or clients were Jewish . ( 4 l

5. Religious writings

The presence of the Jewish Mesopotamian corrnnunity, possessing

ancient writings of high religious value is no doubt the source of

the Jewish coloring of the magical texts .

6. Relation to Talmud

The magic of the bowls should be evaluated in connection with /

the notices of magic in the Talmud to ascertain whether the prepon-

derance is in the direction of simi larity or difference.

7. Joshua bar Perahia

The appeal in certai n of the b owl texts (Montgomery 8 , 9, 17,

32 , 33) to Joshua bar Perahia is of special i nterest in the discussion

of Jewish affinities . He is a member of one of the pairs of Zugoth

cited in Pirke Aboth 1 : 6 . This Joshua is anachronistically associated

with Jesus the Nazarene in Sanhedrin 107b . The fact that Talmudi c

tradition connects Joshua bar Perahia with Jesus , and that a magical

bowl incantation (Montgomery , 34) calls him Jesus the Healer would )

indicate a Jewish r eaction to the activity of the historical Jesus

of Nazareth . ( 4 2 Joshua bar Perahia was presented as a healer and

exorci st of great efficacy, the traditional Jewish counterpart to

the power of Jesus of Nazareth . It may be suggested , however , that

the mention of Jesus in Montgomery 34 does not s pea ifically mention

him as bar Perahia . If , as Montgomery points out (43 the title given

to the Jesus of text 34 became the epithet of the Nazar ene Jesus ,

why could this not be a reference to Jesus of Nazareth, whose activi-

ties would be known fr om the Syriac New Testament? The absence of

other references in the bowls to spe cifically Christian institutions

 15 .
and teaching may render this doubtful , but the possibi lity is

interesting .

8. Relation of texts to Old Testament magi c and later histor y

The presence of J ewish elements in the bowl texts , and the

eviden e of Jewish interest in magic in Babylonia , makes it desirable

to put such data in relation to the ancient context of the Old Testa-

ment and in relation to the subsequent Jewish history . The bowl

texts , says Montgomery , "are precursors of that se of magical lit-

erature which has come down to us under Je'Wish auspices ." (44 What

is the explanation of the more or less suc ce ssful suppression of

magic in the Old Testament , but the progressive recognition and

legitimatiza tion of it in Midrashi c, Talmudic , and Gaonic periods?

A comparison of the Old Testament data suggests that one of

the means of suppressing magic was the crown . (45 In early I s rael ,

Saul opposed it , albeit inconsistently (I Samuel 28 : 3) . Jehu

reproached Joram for the witchcraft of Jezebel (II Kings 9 : 22) .

Conversely , when the crovm was lax , the traffic in occult practices

flourished : in the time of Manasseh this was the case (II Kings 21:6) .

These clues suggest that after the exile when the Jewish c ommunity

had no king and were living in a land where occult practices were

prominent , the cultivation of and interest in magic would increase .

Also , in the Scripture narrative , prevalence of magic goes

along with idolatry . When people drifted from the sincere and

exclusive worship of YRWB toward the service of heathen gods, witch-

craft , divination, and enchantments were concomitants (II Kings 17:7-17) .

The kingly opposition to witchcraft is elsewhere evidenced in the

Semitic world in the Code of Hammurabi (Law No . 2) . Here also , how-

ever , religion is involved, since the one accused of witchcraft must

submit t o trial by ordeal by being thrown into the Euphrates, the

 16 .

sign f or which in this law has added the determinat i ve for deity .

c. Relations to Mandaeans

1. Script

As in the case of texts wr itten in Jewish cha racters , the

script a rgued for Jewish influence , so t he presence of texts written

in Mandaean script would argue for special Mandaean influence. Such

influence would spring from the esoteric characte r of t he Mandaean

cult and traditional literature, both of which have imgical affinities .

2. Relation to other Mandaean writings

The bowl ma.gic could be profitab l y inve s tigated in relation to

the Mandaean writings which have been made available since Montgomery ' s

work : Diwan Abatur and Sfar Malwashia , for example, as published by

L. s. Drower . It would be an interesting que sti on whether Mandaean

ideas were influenced by or influenced the bowl magic . The impress

of Jewish environment on Mandaea.n literat ure is shown in t he Sfa.r

Malwashia ( 45 in a prediction taken to be J ewish , since the calcula-

tion begins with Sat ur day and the words "Daniel said" pr ecede • It

is always possible that the reference is more remote to t he mythologi -

cal Danie l of Uga.ri tic lite rature rather than to t he familiar Bibli cal

figure . In the same Ma.nda.ean work (BZ, P • 80) we rea d :

11 this is an Explanat ion of Counter-Spells to drive

out Devils, Shidi and Piqdi ; and the Counter-Spells

which Solomon , son of David , taught a nd revealed frora

the Explanations which Hibil Ziwa. declared . "

The date of this eclectic text i s uncertain, but the reference to

Solomon a s a. magic ian is familiar from other bowls , the Arabian Nights ,

and from Josephus . ( 47 He re the power of Solomon is subordinated to

Hibil Ziwa, the Ma.ndaea.n spirit of li ght , sometimes i dentified with

t he savior spirit Manda. d Hiia. . ( 48
 17 .

D. Relations of Bowl Magic to Persian Culture

1. Names

The mos·t obvious relationship suggested by the bowl texts is in

the names appeari ng in them. Montgomery's opinion is that Persian

names are the most frequent in occurrence in the bowl texts . ( 49 The

mere occurrence of Persian names does not, however , indicate necessarily

that the person designated was of native Iranian stock . He could be

Je,vish. The names need not be distinctively Christian, though some

such occur, ( 50 to be possessed by a Christian .

2. Mazdaism

That adherents of Jewish, Christian, or Zoroastrian religions

should have resource to magicians suggests an interesting relation

of magic to religion and official or normative worship and doctrine .

The white , or defensive magic of the bowls t akes its place as a tol-

erated, officially frowned-upon practice . The official Zoroa strian

attitude toward magical practices may be surmised from the elaborate

organization and far-reaching power of the Zoroastrian clergy. (51

The practice of magic was p robably viewed as an encroachment on offi-

cial religion . Yet in antiquity, magic and astrology seem to have

been especially associated with the Persians . The ancients gave the

name of the magi to the practice of the magical art .

3. Diffusion of magic

The wide range of provenience of the incantation bowls suggests

their use by the more numerous native Iranians , as well as by t he

Jewish, Christian a.nd Mandaea.n minority groups . Here the mere sta-

tistics of the number of bowls found may eventually prove significant .

The tabulation of hundreds or thousands instead of the few score now

available could give an impressive picture of one segment of Sassa.nian

life .
E. Relations to Christianity

1. Names

As in the case of Jews and Persians , the occurrence of Christian

names in the Aramaic incantation bowls indicates that Christians too

resorted to the magicians . ( 52

2. Official attitude toward magic

As with the Jewish and Zoroastrian religions, so in Christianity

there was no doubt official disapproval of magic . Such an attitude is

found reflected in Demonstration I of Aphrahat "and /ft is neces sari/

that a man should separate himself from the observance of hours and

Sabbaths and moons and seasons, and divinations and sorceries and

Chaldaean arts and magic •••• " ( 53

There does not seem to be specific mention of the bowl magic in

the Syriac literature .

3. Peshitto

One of the pr incipal monuments of the industry of Syrian Christians

is their translation of the New Testament . It is unnecessary here to

discuss details of the origin of the Syriac New Testament . It is suf-

ficient to note that translations of the Gospels of the Greek New

Testament were in existence by the middle of the second century, if

not earlier . Further , the Peshitto came into general acceptance early

in the 5th century . ( 54 Montgomery's conclusion regarding the date of

the bowl collection he published is 600 A. D. as a tenninus ad quern . ( 55

He also notes that bowl texts may have extended over a series of cen-

turies . (5 6 Hence the bowl-magic and the Syriac New Testament were in

the same general area for two or three centur ies where mutual influence

coul d operate .

4. Analysis of terminology of New Testament and bowl texts

It is these coincidences of terminology and expression which are

presented in the following discussion .

 19.
The scheme of arrangement of the data here presented is based on

the terminology pertaining to magic, angelology , and demonology found

in the Greek New Testament. Each item of this collection is traced in

the Peshitto . If a coincidence is discovered between the bovrl text

terminology and the Syriac, this fact is noted . There is also pre -

sented a series of phrases which more or less strikingly coincide in

the bowl texts and in the Syriac New Testament . Each of these is

discussed . In s ome cases there is a clarification of the New Testa-

ment expression from the bowl texts •

In the followin g cha pte r, the not ation 11 not found 11 does not

necessarily mean t hat t he word or r oot does not occur in the bowl

text s , but t hat it does not occur in t he s ense i n whi ch it occur s

in t he New Testament .

Fo r the s ystem of abbreviations used, se e Appendix II.

 CHAPTER IT

ANALYSIS OF TERMINO LOGY

 20.
WORDS
1. ayye:)..oc

PESHITTA

Matt. 1:20. 24J 2:13. 19; 4:6. 11; 13:39. 41. 49; 16:27;
18:10; 22:30; 24:31. 36; 25:31. 41J 26:53; 28:2. 5;
Mark 1:13; 8:38; 12:25; 13:27. 32; Luke 1:11. 13. 18. 19,
26, 28, 30, 34. 35, 38; 2:9, 10. 13, 15. 21J 4:10; 7:27J

9:26; 12:8, 9; 15:10; 16:10; 22:43; 24:23; John 1:52; 5:4;

12:29; 20:12; Acts 5:19; 6:15; 7:30. 35, 38, 53; 8:26;

10:3. 1, 22; 11:13; 12:1, 8, 9, 10, 11, 1s. 23; 23:8, 9;

27:23; Rom. 8:38; I Cor. 4:9; 6:3; 11:10; 13:l; II Cor. 11:14;
Gal. 1:8; 3:19; 4:14; Col. 2:18; II Thess. 1:7; I Time 3:16;

5:21; Heb. 1:4, 5, 6, 7, 13; 2:2, 5, 7, 9, 16; 12:22; 13:2;

I Pet. 1:12; 3:22; II Pet. 2:4, 11; Jude 6; Rev. 1:1, 20;
2:1, a, 12, 10; 3:1, s, 1, 14; 5:2, 11; 7:1, 2, 11; 8:2, 3,

4, 5, 6, 13; 9:11, 13, 14, 15; 10:1, 6, 7, s, 9, 10; 11:15;

12:7, 9; 14:6, 9, 10, 15, 17, 18, 19; 15:1, 6, 7, 8; 16:1, 5;

17:1, 7; 18:1, 21; 19:17; 20:lJ 21:9, 12, 17; 22:6, 8, 16.
BOWLS

Mo:4:1; 8:14,15; 12:5,6; 13:3,4; 25:5; 28:5; 36:7; 37:8;

38:8; 40:19J Pog:l; 2; 3; 4; 5; 13; 15; 18; 22; 23; 24; 29;

Lidz:l; 2; 3; 4; 5; Schwab:A; B; F; G; I; M; N; Wohl:24 22;

2416J Go:C:4; F:3; J:9a M:23; 6:4; 7:6,8; Frg:19745:11;

Frg. Iraq:9726:5; Malmo:25 ,498:10,22.

' , OtKOC ( Za ~avac)

2. av~t
K:l::11';,Y:l
 21.
PESHITTA
I Pet. 5:8.

BOWLS
Mo:2:3; Go:11:5; Pog:l; 2; 3; 4; 6; 7; 11; 12; 20; 28.

, ,
apx11

a.

PESHITTA

Rom. 8:28.

Mo:11 :5; Lidz:5; Schwab:A; Go:G:3; Iraq:9137:2.

PESHITTA
I Cor. 15:24.

BOWLS

Not feund.

PESHITfA

Eph. 1:21; 3:10; 6:12; Col. 1:16; 2:10, 15.

BOWLS
Not f'ound.
 22.
4. ~acrKa. i vw

con

PESHITI'A

Gal• 3:1.

BOWIS

Go:7:9; Lidz:4; Schwab:I.

PESHITTA

Luke 1:19, 26.

BOWIS

Mo:7:8; 9:11; 10:2; 14:4; 15:9; 20:5; 34:7J Lidz:l; 4J

Schwab:L; P; Hyv; Wohl:2422; Go:F:3,7; 6:4; 8:lOJ

Prince. Ex:4283.52.

s. .
5a 1:1: ov i oµa \

PESHITTA

Matt. 4:24J 8:16, 28, 33; 9:32; 12:22J Mark 1:32;

Luke 8:36J John 10:21.

BOWLS

Not found.
 23.
be

PESHITTA
Matt. 15:22•

BOWLS

Not found.

PESHITTA
Marie 5:15, 16, 18.

BOWLS

Not found.

7• O<l-1. f .OV t ov

PESHITTA.

Matt. 7:22; 12:24; 17:18; Mark 1:39; 6:13; 7:26, 29, 30;

9:38; 16:9, 17; Luke 4:33, 35, 41J 7:33J 8:33, 35, 38J

9:1; 10:17; 11:14; 13:32; I Cor. 10:20, 21J I Tim. 4:lJ

James 2:19; Rev. 16:14; 18:2.

BOWLS

Mo:1:8; 2:7; 5:2; 6:1; 7:5, 14, 17; 8:7; 10:3; 11:4, 5;

12:4, 9; 16:l0J 19:14, 16; 20:3; 25:lJ 29:6, 9; 30:2J

32:4; 34:9; 35:3; 37:6; Pog:8; 26; Lidz:5; Schwab:A; GJ

 24.
MJ PJ QJ HyvJ Wohl:2426; Go:A:2J B:5, 8; G:3; D:5; H:2,

3,5,9,12J K:2; 2:2,3,6; 5:9,121 7:8J 8:6J 11:17;

Frg:19745:4; Frg. Iraq:11113; Malmo:25.498:11,17;
Prince. Ex:4283:11,18; MBTa:1,6.

be Ki,,

PESHITTA

Matt. 9:32 1 33, 34; 10:8; 11:18; 12:24, 27, 28;

Marlc l:34J 3:15, 22; Luke 8:27, 30; 9:42, 49;

11:15, 18, 19, 20J John 7:20; 8148, 49, 52; 10:20, 21;
Rev. 9:20.

BOWLS

Mo:1:6; 2:7; 3:1,11; 5:2; 6:1; 8:7; 10:4; 11:4,5;

12:4,10; 16:8,10; 19:14.16; 20:3; 25:1; 30:2J 32:4,7;

35:3; 39:5; Pog:8; 26; Lidz:5; Schwab:A; M; RJ

Wohl:2426J Go:G:3; M:12; 0:lOJ 5:9,12; 7:8; 8:6J 11:1?~

o• Kil W' l Kn 1 i

PESHITTA
Luke 8:2.

BOWLS

Schwab:B; F; I; Q; R; Wohl:2422; Go:H:2.

 25.
PESHITTA.

Matt. 8:31.

BOWLS

See citations at 7a above.

PESHITTA.

Matt. 4:1. 5• 8, 11; 13:39; 25:41; Luke 4:2• 3• 6• 13;

John 6:70; 8,44; 13:2; Aotsl0:38; 13:10; Eph. 4:27; 6:11;

I Tim. 3,6• 7• 11; II Tim. 2:26; 3:3; Titus 2:3; Heb. 2:14;
James 4:7; I Pet. 5:8; I John 3s8, 10; Jude 9; Rev. 2sl0;
12:9, 12; 20:2, 10.
BOWLS

Not found. Note Mo:351 f •

PESHITTA

Luke 8:12.

BOWLS

See references at 2 above •

10. 5 uvayt t C:
 PESHITl'A

Rom. 8s28.

BOWLS

Not found.

PESHITTA.

I Pet. 3:22 •

BOWLS

Not f'ound.

11. e: {ow}.o8u"'C"OC:
Ki~ngi Kn~, ;x,~ng Kn~,

PESHITTA

I Cor. Bsl, 4, 7J 10:19; Rev. 2:14, 20.

In Acts 15:29; 2ls26; I Cor. 8:10 translated

Kn"~1"il and implying "sacrifice to
idol"•

BOWI.S

Not found.
 27.

PESHITTA

I Co r. 10 :14; Ga l. 5 : 20 .

BOWLS

fot found .

b. K1:l1Hl 117n1

PES HITTA

Col. 5:5.

BOWLS
Not f ound .

PESHI TTA

I Pet. 4 : 3 .

BOWLS
Not found .

15. Ei 5wAoAa~p~c
1e, :in£> n7 £>
 27a.

PESHITTA

I Oor. 5 :10.,11; 6 :9 ; l0 :7; Eph . 5 :5 ; Rev . 21:8;

22: 15 .

BOWLS

Not f oun d.

14. E i 8w}.ov

PESHITTA

Acts 7:41 ; Rom. 2:22; I Oor . 8 :4, 7; 10:19; 12:2;

Rev . 9 :20 . (Act s 15:20 Kn.,:,,)

BOWLS

Mo :2:7 ; 5 : 2 ; 6 :1; 7:11; 12 :10; 15:6; 16 : 11; 19 :16;

57:6; 38 :8 ; 40 : 19; Lidz:l; 2; 4; Sc hwab: B; I; M; Q.;

Hyv; ~ohl:2422; 2426; Go :A:2; H: 2 , 7; 4 : 4 ; 5 :9 ,12;

6 : 1 , 2 .,6 ; 7 : 9; Fr g : 19745:9 .
 28.

PESHITTA

II Cor. 6 :16 •

BOWLS

Sae re.ferenoes at 7a above.

PESHIT'fA.

I Thess. l:9J I John 5:21.

BOWLS

Not .found.

15. r:: i 8w}.1,ov

Ki:iJHJ .n':>.

PESHITrA

I Cor. 8:10 •

BOWI.S

Not found.
 29.

PESHITTA

Acts 19:13.

BONLS

Not found.

17. s ; oucr{a

PESHI'.ITA

Eph. 6:12; Col. 2:15J I Pet. 3r22e

BOWLS

See citations at 3a above.

PESHI'.ITA

I Cor. 15:24; Eph. 1 :21; 2:2; 3:10; Col. 1:13, 16; 2:10.

BOWLS

See citations at 3a above.

rn. e x8 poc;; (Za:rn.v~c;;)

)t:l:l"T';,Y:l

PESHI'.ITA

Luke 10:19; I Tim. 6:14 {?).

 30.
BOWLS

See references at 2 above.

19. Gp ovo c

PESHITTA

Col. 1:16.

BOWI.S

Not found.

,
20• K Up t.O 't"!)C

u,,,c

PESHITTA

Eph. 1:21; Col. 1:16J Jude 8J II Pet. 2:10.

BOWLS

Not .found., but note Lidz:5.

1n1,n

PESHITTA

Act 13:6., a.

BCNII.S

Wohl:2422; 2426; 2414; 2416.

 31.
,
22. p.ayirnw

PESHITTA

Acts 8:9.

BONLS

Not found.

PESHITTA

Acts 8:11.

Hyv; Sohwab:B; CJ E; IJ MJ P; QJ R; Go:1:1, 2, 3J 5:4, 8;

6:1, 2, 6J 7:8J 9:3; 10:2, 3J 91776:4, 6, lOJ 8826:9-lOJ

MBTa:7.

FESHITTA

Jude 9; Rev. 12:7.

BOWLS

Mo:5:3; 7:8,17; 9:11; 14:4; 20:5; 34:7; Hyv; Wohl:2422J

2416J Go:F:3,7J 8:10.
PESHITTA

Matt. 8:16J Luke 10:20.

BOWLS

Mo:4slJ 6:2,9J 7:9,14J 8:16J 15:5J 16:8J 22:l,4J 24:4J

26:4; 30:3,5; 36:4,6; Poga26; Lidz:5; Schwab:A; B; DJ F;

G; I; M; Q; R; Wohl:2422J 2426J Go:A:31 H:1,2,8,9,10,llJ

2:2,6J 3:2,4J 6:1,2,7; 7:3,5,8; 11:10,12; Frg:H:1:h:6;

Prince. Ex:4283:12,13; Frg.Ire.q:11113; Malmo:25498:16.

PESHITTA

Matt. 12:45; Mark 9:17, 20; Luke 9:39; ll:26J Acts 16:lBJ

23:8,9J n Cor. 12:lOJ Eph. 2:2; Heb. 1:14; I John 4:1, 2, 3.

BOWLS

See citations at a above.

PESHITTA

Matt. 10:1; 12:43; Mark 1:26, 28; 3:11, 30; 5:2, 8, 30;

6:7; 7:25J 9:25; Luke 4:36; 6:18; 8:29; 9:42; 11:24;

 33.
Acts 5:16; 8:7J 9:13J Rev. 18:2.

BOWLS

Not found.

PESHITTA

Marlc 1:23.

BOWLS

Go:11 (cf. Go:1932.620

PESHI'.IT.A

Rev. 16:13.

BOWLS

Not found.

PESH! '.IT.A

Luke 7:21; 8:2.

BOWLS

See citations at 7c above.

 PESHITTA

Acts 19:12, 13.

BOWLS

See citations at 7a above.

PESHITrA.

Acts 19:15, 16.

BOWLS

Not found.

28
. • iC'\/ E 1":;•i~Q.
Vt"' -rr.~u8wv

PESHITTA

Acts 16:16.

BOWLS

See citations at 7a above.

~9.
"
~v su-µ.a
-
u
<;c
a ·q 1ov 1,, ou axa
• 8 ap-,;O·0
'
K:llt:J 1t,1t1.v , xn,,
PESHITTA

Luke 4:33.

BOWI.S

Not found.
 35.

30. ~VEUµ a Dat 0 0VtWV

K1):('u1 Kn i i

PESHITTA
Rev. 16:14.

BOWLS
Not found.

31. Za:i-avac:

PESHITTA
Matt. 4:10; 12c26; 16:23; Mark 1:13; 3:23, 26; 4:15;
8s33; Luke 10:18; 11:18; 13:16; 22:3, 31; John l3s27;

Acts 5:3; 26:18; Rom. 16:20; I Cor. 5:5; 7:5; II Cor. 2:11;
11:14; 12:7; I Thess. 2:18; II Thess. 2:9; I Time ls20;

5:15; Rev. 2:9, 13, 24; 4s9; 12:9; 20:2, 7.

BOWLS
In singular:
Sehwab:A; Go:Frg.Iraqsllll3 (and in Old Testament
quotations).

Frequently in plural •

32.
.
cpa.p1,1,aKOC

PESHITTA
Rev. 21:8; 22:16.
 35a.

PESHITTA

Matt. 4:24; 17:15 .

BOWLS

Go:A:2; H:2; 5:9,10.

 BOWLS

See references at 21 and 23.

,.
33. cp a pµ a.K \ ll

PESHITTA

Rev. 9:21J l8s23.

BOWLS

S-ee referenoes at 21 and 23.

PESHITTA
Ge.le 5:20.

BOWLS
Not found.
 PHRASES

1. 11 In the name of Je su s 11

Conybeare 1 s a r gument is that the r e is an assimi l a tion, in this

us age of the name o f Jesus Ch rist, to the usages of ancient magic.(57

It is to be noted that the New Testament is dist inctly rel igious in

s pirit and that the elements of t he Ch ris tian attitude toward Jes us \
a r e reli g ious: He is worshi pped as God. His name can be substituted f or \
Yahwe in Old Testament passages. (5 8 Hence, use of t he e xp re s sion II in

the name of11 i~ · a relig ious use, meaning 11 as His r ep resentative 11 ,

similar to the usage II in the name of a prophet 11 , and not a mechanical ,

/
ma g ical use. The distinct l y pe rs onal and r eligious u se o f the ex-

pr ession is illustrated by such a pass age as John 14: 14: 11 I f you

ask ~ anythin g in my name, I will d o it • 11

Th i s magica l use of t he e xp re ssion II in t he name of 11 is found

f r equently in the bowl te:l\.-ts . The r e the prevailing meaning is 11 by

the a uthority of 11 , or, 11 as the repre sentative of 11 •

2. ilThe Lord r ebuk e t he e 11 (Zec h . } : 2 and Jude 9)

Relevant narrative and t hese quot ed wo rds are not in the exist-

ing text of The Assumption of 1 oses . ( 59 Cha rles thinks the existing

Greek f r agments imply action su c h as is intimated by J ud e.( 60

Jude perhaps quotes in part f rom Zecha riah . The most significant

change f r om the text of Zechariah is t hat in Zechar iah t he s a ying is

a t tributed to YHWH , but in J ud e to Michael. J ude doe s n ot agree with

the Septuag int te xt of Rahlfs in word o rder, and also omits the over-
of
literal translation/the beth . Howe ve r, since the anc i ents did n ot
 ;58.

mak e true copies as we con ceive them, the variations in det a il are

not decisive a gainst a qu otation f rom Zechariah. Since Jude puts t he

saying in a setting di f fe rent f rom that used L~ Zechariah , t here is

still a problem as to why Jud e , if he did quote fro m Zechariah, puts

the s aying in a context diff ering f rom that of his source.

In Jude the expression stands in a narrative of Michae l I s conflict

with Satan over t he body of Moses . Jude I s point in quoting is to s how

t he chara cte r of the e vil men he is opposing . They s pe ak slightL'-1.g ly

of su pernatural powe rs, whereas even Michae l in his argument did not

s pe ak contemptuousl y , but said to Satan , 11 The Lord rebuke Thee . 11

Hence, in Zecha riah , Jude, and the bowls, t he quot a tion is used

in relat ion to evil powers . I t is obviously appropr iate in t he bowls .

3. " .•• casting on bed 11 (Mo:7: 17; and compa r e Rev. 2:22)
The divine dealin g wit h the evil woman consists in "casting her

into a bed 11 , and is paralleled by t h e t r eatment g ive n t ho se who comm it

adultery witb her: they are cas t i n to 11 g reat tribulation 11 • Mont gomery

n otes that 11 bed 11 is metapho rical of weakne ss and subjection. ( 61

4. " .. sharp sickles" (Mo:7:17)

The Pe shitta uses the same language at Re velation 14:14. The

obvious point of ori g in for the imagery of the Apocalypse is in Joel 7•

 FREQUE.JTLY OCOURING '1/0RDS

IN THE }JEW TESTAM2:NT RELAT ilJG TO DE1'-IONO LOGY , rn A1rGELOLOGY

K:>K';,t>

GG i, '}'1, 0 V tO V 1't1 Kll'J

K1 KW

ta 1. ·p.ov {i oua t K1KV7 ,ic.:i,,,

o1. a p o).. oc: Kl1p';,:>K

E tOW},ov ic , :>.?'15)
K1 :>Il!l

E t CW}.o8u -i;oc: K1:J.l1:>

"s:: '\ '\ , K1 :>Ji:>

Et uWJ\.0, .0,'Lp E t 0.

,, ~ '\ '\ , R1 :>.n:>

E t _,1(;JJ',O .1\.0. 't" p Tl C:

Es oucr i o. ltll:>'? V7

1".VE{3µa
11: ,, 1,:sn ,·,

3"VE Uµa, t.' OV11P OV R1Kt' , Knii

Kn i 1

:trVE U').lu 00. t ' 10V t WV 1't 1 KV7 ,11; ,,,

, ' ·, ,
!CV E u ~· 0. a i ·1ov t ou O.K.a.tlap-i;ou Kil i 1

K1 KW

Rl t>D
 40.

W'F'REQUENTLY OCCURING WORDS

W' THE 11TEW Ti!:ST.A.MEN T m:LAT HG TO DEMONOLOGY AND ANGE LOLOGY

' x ri,
ap
con
ra. ~pt~A
o ~va.µ t<:
' l'
E GOPK t c.r-r:q, C
Exep oc
8 povoc:
KJ'l i i Z)
,
µ ayoc:

:,
'}'.cay i a

:,I t xa. ~}..

er EATJV t cr.t ov.a t

,
cpap}'tO,K ta.
 CHAPTER V

ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSION

 41.

Ana lysi s and Discussion o f Evidence from Terminology

The New Testa~~nt t erm inolo gy , then , fal ls into t wo main groups .

The one is com posed of terms which occur compa r atively f re quently and

the othe r of t hose wh i ch occur seldom or only once. The c ha rts on

pages 59 and 40 exhibit an abstract of the data i."l tabular form.

The general conclusion to be noted is t hat it is the f requently

occuri.'lg group which shows a larger number of coincidences with the

bowl terminology. In the infrequently occuring g roup, there are some

t erms wh ich occur frequently in the bowls, notably the names of the

angels Gabriel and Michael, ilenemy 11 ( 1<:i:ii';,y .:i), and the tenn for

ma g ical arts ( i<wi n )•

These data indicate emphases a."l.d centers of interest in the New

Testament. The bowls likewise have emphases and centers of interest.

Mont gomery points out that the demon which has the g re atest individual

vo gue is the Lilith. ( 6 la Then follows the g roup of three terms which

f ind g reatest utility in the Pe shitta :

Then the bowls develop the exotic and specialized vocabula ry wh ich

occurs less frequently an d wh ich finds no pa r a llel in the Pes h itta.

Th ese are the name-demons, evil angels, blast-spirits, and the rare

and obscure s pecies. Mont gomery lists these with brief comments. ( 62

The New Testament, vis-a-vis the bowls, has its greatest in-

dividual interest, as re ga rds the demonic world, in t he personal

11
being , Sa t an , who is a lso very f re quently known as the ac cuser 11 •

He is t h e head of an organ ized hierarchy of evil, as i nt i mated in the

1 " s:: QO 8 , ,~ "'
terms 0.PX!J, uUV0;').'. ., 1. (;, f}OVO C, 8'oOU<J t a in the series 11 princi-

palities, powers, world-rulers of t h is darkness, spiritua l wickedness "

of Ephesians 6 (verse 12) and in the 11 angels, principalities, powers 11

o f Romans 8 :58. These beings, thus denominated by r athe r specialized

 42.

vocabulary, are most often re ferred to as the demons, devils, and

evil or unclean spirits.<

63 In the light of the character of Satan
11
as a ccuse r 11 , and the high sote rio lo gica l interest of the New Testa-

ment, to which t he demonic world is o pposed, I should say that the

center o f inte r est of tbe Ne,'I' Testament is pr edominantly et h ica l and

moral . There is a lso attention to the physica l and menta l ills wh ic h

accompany demonic activity. This aspect is fa r more in evidence in

the bowl texts •

In the light of these gene r a l indications, what was the de g re e ,

i f any , of mutual influence between bowls and Pes h itta ? One could
11 Satan 11
not argue fo r influence of Pes h itta on bowl magic f rom and
11
an gels 11 , f or these are al re ady a t hand in t he Old Testament, and the
11
distinctive few Testament tlrm acc use r 11 does not occur in the bowls.

No r would the use of in,, argue for i.>1f luence

one way or the other, since two of these are the common Semitic wo rds

already at hand and t he third is an Iran ian loan-wo rd wh ic h came into

Semi ti c currency throu gh the Mandaic and Syriac. ( 64 It is interesting

to note that the word K,.,, doe s not occur in the Targums and Talmud.
(65

Fu rt her , the development of specialized concepts of demoni c a ctivity

in the bowl s and in the Ne w Testament, a long with the corresponding

voca bularies, would also look a gainst pr onounced influence one way or

the other. The complete absence f rom t he Peshitta of the common term

Lilith would indicate a cleavage between t he two bodies of litera ture .

As in the c ase of the absence of K, .,, f rom the Talmudic literature,

so in t he absence o f .n.,;.,; f rom the New Testament one mi ght argue

for a negati ve re act ion to a term whi ch was unaccepta ble because of

pagan associations or fo r semantic re a sons undesirable. The f ormer

explanation would be in keeping with the attitude expressed by Aphrahat:

11
]It is ne ce ssary that a man shou ld separa te himsel f f rom the observance
of hours and Sabbaths and moons and se as ons, and divinations and

sorceries, and Oha ldaean arts and magic ••• 11 (

66

Con clusion

:Vhat is the explana t ion o f the g r eatly limited inf luence of the

New Tes t ament on the bowl magic, a s compa r ed with the numerous traces of in

influenc e f rom the Old Testament? The mag ic had had conta cts with the

Old Testament f or centuries , whereas the New Testament was a compara-

tively recent phenomenon . I n the f o rme r case abundant time was avail-

able f or the adoption of wo rds and formulae. I f , howe ver , the imp r ession

o f the work of J esus of Naza r eth wa s g r eat enou gh to evoke the Jewish

r eaction of putting forwa r d Jesus ben Pe r ah iah as a riva l, why would

not other bo rrowings f rom t he narra tive concernin g a success fu l

pr a ctitioner occur ? Strong Jewis h inf luence in the bowl magic mi ght

account for it, be cause of the gene r a l Je wis h re a ction to the Ch ristian

wr itings . Howe ve r, the bowl mag ic is a mixture and t he Jewish element

does not pre dominate, wh ile a pagan magical tra dition wou ld presamably

have no scru ple s about mate ri a l that suited its pu r poses. These general

consideration s po int to an ans we r i n t he con servatism of ma g ic: the

incant a tions had be en fo r med long befo re and need not be ex pected t o

re a ct s ha rply to a ne w fa ctor in the environment.

Further, the co incide n ce s of te mino logy be t ween the bowls and the

New Testament ma y be r e~er r ed to their common inhe ritan ce f rom t he Semitic

wo rld . The Ne w Testament is after a ll ba sed squa rely on the Old Testament

in i t s ideas and phraseolo gy . Allusions to and quotations f r om the Old

Testament are the very f ibre of t he Ne w Testament . Add to t h is its

translation back into an an cient Semitic language, and it is not r ema r kabl e

but only to be ex pe cted t hat coin cid en ces of terminology and phr a seolo gy
 44.

should appear . 1-·oreover , the translators of the Syriac we r e endeavor-

ing to make the Gr eek New Testament ava ilable in the ramaic idiom:

why should they not emp lo y many of the ling,l.l istic items f ound in t he

patois of t h eir audience?

 }, •'+5 .

NOTES TO Pi RT I

l. Se e Mont gomery 1 s di s cus s i on , AIT, PP • 102 - 105 .

2. E . g . ,1font gome r y 1 s te xts 12 and 16, and 51 and 3.5 .

3 . E. g ., 1-Iont gome r y N.o. 4.

4. AIT , p . 14-.

5. E.g., Moe. 5 ,8, 17.

6. A I T, p . 13 .

7. E . g . , Mont gome r y, H.o. 40 .

8. E.g ., Pognon 1 s bowl, No. 4 .

9. E . g . , Mont gome r y , No . 6 (end ) , and No . 17 . See a ls o t hose

c ite d by C. H. Gordon , The Living Pas t, PP • 209 - 215.

10 . Both l ont gome r y and Pognon have f a csimiles .
0

11. C. H. Gord on, 11 Hos

2 :4-5 in t he Li ght of New Semitic In -

scriptions , 11 Zeitscbri f t fu r d ie a lttestame ntlic he ·:iissensc haft, 13

( 1936 ), pp . 277 - 280; a.11.d 14 ( 1957), P• 176 •

12 . E. g ., Nos . 15 a n d 17.

13 . The draw in gs appe a r i n photo g r aphic text -reproduc tion on

a fol ded insert .

14 . AIT, P• 16 .

15 . AIT, P• 15.
16 . AIT, PP• 17-21.

17 . See Rosenthal, AF; fo r publ ic at ion s sin c e Ros e nt ha l see

Append i x I.
11
18 . A Mag ic Bowl, 11 Revue d 1 Ass yriolo gie , XXVII (1950) ,

PP • 61-64 .
 46.

NOTES (cont i nued )

19. In American J ournal of Semitic Languages, LVII ( 1940).,

pp• 1-29 •

20. Ar, , PP • 218-223; 233-231J.•

21. AIT, P• 8 .
22. AIT, P• 115 .
25. E.g., Acts 8 :9-24; 13 :4-12; 19 : 18-19.

24. AIT , P• 69 .
25. AIT, P• 111.

26. The use of t he t erm 11 pagan 11 is probably mis leading . In

one sen se, all use of ma gic is pagan as opposed to the Biblica l

spirit of f ait h and persona l relations h ip with God. But the bowl
II
incant a tions were interconf'ess ional 11 (Go·r don., Orien talia , 10jl94.!7,

p. 558). And their content very genera lly s h ows some conne ction with

the Biblica l tra dition . Even in the c a se of the Mandaean texts, with

the general omission of Scripture texts, there a r e names of Biblical

angels Gabriel and Michael, and other an gelic nBl!lles formed on the

same analogy . :Mont gome ry believe s that the Ma."1.daea.i.1 text of Lidzba rski,

No. 5, is secondary to his Rabbinic text, No . 11; " •• probably i.-ri. the

Iifippu r community the Mandaeans got their ma g i c f rom the peoples of

other diale ct s • 11 (AIT, p . 39) Nor are the Mandaean bowls specifically

Mandaean in relig i on . (AIT, p . 39 ) Hence, omissions of a.-ri.y such

identifying items may be accidental and cannot be the basis of' a

11
generalization that some texts a re pagan . 11

27. E.g., Montgomery 1 s bowls Nos . 31-.?7 and AIT, PP • 32-,5.

28. LP, p. 199.

29. See UH I, pp. 81-82, for exam ples from Uga ritic and Bible .
 47.
NOTES ( continued)

30 . See fu r ther, pp . 14 , 15.

51. See AI T , PP • 106-116 , es pe c ially P • 115 ·t;op and 116 top.

32. E cg ., indi cations of a bone u s ed in ritual : C. H. Gordon ,

" Ar ama i c L-rlcantation Bowls ., 11 Orienta lia, 10 (1941), PP • 349-550.

53 . Nos . 4, 14 , 15 .
34 . Of. Gordon, o p. cit., P • 126 (text 6)i

"mouth s shut 11

"e yes bl i n ded 11

11 e a r s deafened 11

nboun.d by hand "

"t ied by foot 11

a lso p . 350, note ( 1) . See a l so Gordon , 11 An I n cantation in Est ran-

ge lo Scri pt, 11 Or i enta lia , 18 (1949), p. 336: the te a r ing of s he et

of meta l is sympathet ic magic e qua ling the b re ak i ng of the curse.

35 • I S , PP • 30-41!.•
36 • A IT , p • ll6 •

57 . AIT, PP • 63 ,64.
38. AIT, P • 63.
39 . See also fontgomery 1 s o p inion (AIT, p . 112) tha t passages

of re a l reli gio us i mpo rt are not used .

40. AIT, PP • 49-50 .

41. AIT, P • 50.
42. Prof . O. H. Gordon pointed t h is out to me i n a p rivate
communi c a tion .

43. AIT, P• 227.

44. AIT , P • 108 .

45 . I am indebted to Pro f. C. H. Go r d on fo r this va luabl e

sugge stion.
 48.

NOTES (continued )

46. BZ, p . 161 .

47 . g, VIII, 2, 5 .
48 . Diwan Abatur , p. 42.
49. AIT, pp . 49 , 50 .
50 . See AIT , P • 50; and Gordon 1 s text A: 4 : 11 Gregory 11 and

11 Sunday-daughter 11 •

51. IS, pp . 116-122 .

52 . AIT., P • 50, and note 50, above .

55. Nicene and Post•·Nicene Fat he r s, Vol XIII, p . 552.

54. EB, c ol . 5000 .

55 . AIT, P• 105 .
56 . AIT , P • 105.

57. JQ, R., IX, P• 66 .

58 . E . g ., Is. 45 :25 and Phil . 2 :9-11.

59 . AP, II, PP • 407-424.

60. I bid ., P • 408, note.

61. AI T., P • 155. 6 la. AIT, p • 75 •

62. AIT, pp. 78-8"5 •
65 . The statemen t of 'dhitehou se ( HDB ., Vol. I., p . 592 b) t hat

11 in the Peshi t t a K1K \t!7 is the rende ring of the 8aqi,ovtov of the
Ne w Testa ent 11 is inc omp lete. 5a t }1. 0 '.i/, \QV is a lso rende r ed by

about 26 t imes, as against about 28 times for 1e,xw •

64 . AIT., P• 74 .
65 . AIT., p . 74 .
66 . Ni cene and Post..;'.acen e Fathers ., Vo l . XUI, p . 552.
 PART II

TEXTS I TRANSLATIONS I COMMENTARIES

 SELECTED lY,ANDAEAN nrnANTAT ION TEXTS

The texts he re presented a r e a selection of Mandae an in-

cantation texts, offered wit h translite r a tion into conventional

square characte rs, with t r ans lation and brie f philological notes

to s ome of them.

The sou rces of the texts are as f ollows:

Text No . Place of Publicat ion

1 Po gnon, H. Memo ires de la Societe de Linguisti-

~ , VIII (1894), 11 Une Incantation

contre les genies malfaisants en

Handai te, 11 pp . 194-234.

2 Il✓IOK, Text 1.

5 Ibid., Text 2.

4 Ibid. , Text 5.
5 Ibid., Text 4.
6 Ibid., Text 5.
7 Ibid • , Text 13.

8 I bid., Text 15.

9 lb id • , Text 17 •

10 Ib i d., Text 18.

11 Ibid • , Text 22 .

12 I bid ., Text 25.

13 I bid., Text 27.

14 Ibid., Text 28.

15 Ib id ., Text 29.

16 Ibid., Text 31.

17 Gordon, C.H. Arch iv Orientalni, IX (1937), Text

M, PP • 95-100.
 50.

Text No. Place of Publication

18 Ibid. , Text N, pp. 100-103.

11
19 Lidzbarski, Mark . 1andaische Zaube rtexts, 11

Ephemeris f ur Semitische Epi gr aphi k ,

I, Text 5: PP• 89-106.

 51.

K' i 'OY (3) lKT'~~i.'.:i i:J ~piilYb? fi7,iiln (2) KniOR ••• ~b'W:J
Ri R:lK1 inK7Wi ~:J (4) nK'7'? ~,,oy, il7Ti 1 .,,, ~o:i R'iilK

KnKWiil KnR:Jpl KhK'?'? (5) Ki'OYi ~ ' Vii1 K'i.'.:i'T Ki' 1 1,,,0,
tt'l~i'l''ili tt' iKittl i (6) K'iKii1i l '.:J' l:tO R'b? 'il J1?'i Ki1b1
-'Vi K?b i Jiil?' ~.:IR~b i K~Rl K K'l~? Kn~.:i, ~o Kn ~,o,, K'l'KO
K'i'OY ( o) K1 K1 ill:J? KJ i • ,;,1 ~ '?' !li:l (7) Ji ? ' b ' j?Kbi Jii1?
Ki 'OY1 KhKl' ~O ~n~ ib1i ~.,~,:::i ~,r~,, ~,~,:::i R' b? 'il Jiil?i.'.:i

KhK7pi;b 1 Kh~'l' ''l'K ~nKlilK~ KnKpK ~nKw' :J ~'ilii Jiil?i.'.:i (8)

-1Yl K? J'il' K~1;!~ ~'?~) ; (9) ••• K7 Jiil'K~ 'i1 KnKi!lK'l'i

fiiKT?i ~i~l l R'l''WK i.'.:i i:J ' KPi ilYb? fil R'JOYl K? ~ ' J? i ~' ?~
Kn ' K:J J'T ~il O' nil i ,,oy (10) l \'il ' Kl :1)7i ' Kbi.'.:i h!l ~:JlRh.'.:ii1
_,, lKi'Uil{iJ ,:i t(i:Jl 'Rpin:nn ~il !l i ~OR 'l :J i K?.'.:i 'ili ~, ,,

- p il (11) Jii1hK l:11i K ••• ~l:Jii Rhh ~ ' ~b i.'.:i h5J fi:J.:J Kh .'.:iii fii RT

Rhb 'T Jb i Jil'bK'? Jiil?KbD Jbi Jiil7Kb07 Ji.:l'b~' Jb KnK:J

<> -
-b',- K7 ••• 7i.J. ' ~i 5J it:J Jb i '. l i ' Kil?1 ~P i 5J i?, Kb?~ i Jii1'K1V'i1 -
KhiR~li ~nbKhi1 i Rh .'.:i RTi KniOKi ' Kb? K OK?R? Jiil' Kw'i1 ~n
-i.'.:i iJ: ' RPiilYb •• ·o ,Rl:Ji K?::l'ili ~,,, Rh'K::l J'T ~i17 fi1?,,m,
J'l ~T ~ ''Kili Kn~.:i::i,, n.:i:::i,, , ~o ,:, n5J n:i ••• RT ' um
 TEXT 1

In the name •••• (2) may there be health for Meherqaison of Kuashizag

(3) the demons are fastened in stocks of iron and the Liliths are secured

with (4) chains of lead. The male sorcerers, the devils are bound, and (5)

the Liliths are bound, the female sorceresses who give evil dreams and

thoughts (6) and apparitions and evil visions and evil appearances to the

sons of men, who defile the sons of me,&, who soil them, and place the

sons or men (7) in the thick olouds of darkness. They are bound, all the

evil dreams and evil visions and hateful apparitions. They are bound, (8)

all evil spirits, tortured, noisome, powerful, enchained. foul beings •••

(9) ••• they shall not see, they shall not look with evil intent on Meherqai

son or Kuashizag, the husband, nor on Duktanbeh daughter or Kumai his wife,

nor on the /_fr sons!. (10) Bound and sealed is this house, dwelling, and

mansion and buildings, and body of Meherqai, the husband, son of Kuashizag

and of his wife Duktanbeh daughter of Kumai, the spouse and of the ,Lfr male

sor:iiJ and their (11) female daughters from their righ~ to their left, and
from their left to their right and from the hair of their heads unto the

tips of their toes, and from the tips of their toes ujf.tiJ the hair of

their heads for ever and ever~ And may there be health and victory and

sealing and sure defense for this house, dwelling and mansion and buildings

of Meherqai son of Kuashizaf y ...L15ukt~eh daughter of Kumai and to her

sons and daughters. And Life is victorious~

 55 .

OOt NTARY ON TEXT 1

1. 11 In t he name " pr obably f ol lowe d by 11 of life 11 , as often.

2. Fo r the r epetit i on of the pr eposition and anticipatory placing

of suffix c f . MG 551 .
5. Root iox cf . G 243 and 69 . The half -vowel of t he nea r open

syllable is repre s e nted o rth o g r aph ica ll y by t he ayin . Does thi s

me an it was f elt to be an i o re? Cf . MG 4.

11 i ron 11 : 1) used a s mat e r le c tionis f o r Ei. Cf . AI T p . 29 .

11 bound 11 : l a ck o f agr eemen t in numbe r.

4. 11 de vils 11 : lac k of a g r eeme nt in numbe r.

6. 11 def ile 11 : a root occuring infreque ntly i n t he bowls. Used to

tran slate . . cr.ic

rev c uµ,a , a.·ea p 't" ov of Ne w Testa~ent.

8. " f oul beings": lit. 11 f oul ones of t heir heads 11 • Pos s ibly a use of

11 head "== person .

Cf . t he "eve r lasting chains" of Jude 6 and "c ha i ns of lea d" of

line 5.
9. 11 s ee 11 : a ppa rently :91" but parallel to Kt>:)• ,,., i s seeming l y

of r are oc cu re nc e i n t he bowl t exts .

 54 .

2.

K' ~ J 91 n~ ,,p , ~n K~ ,7 7,n, ,~ (2) i,n,, i~,,~, x~,gy

-7YJi (4) ~' W~J ' ~J~o, ~n~ ) p1iii K' p ,,,,, K' i Jil1 i (3)
-Yi i'09 (5) ~h~b~Ji ~ '7'7l ." ' ipb i ~' ~'71 J'M7~ ' ~1K~i

~n~,Mb ••• n~ Kn~ n~ ,,,, ' Kn ' J i Kn~ ,,r ~ 'Ji Jb KJ ' ~

Kh'JJ ~7 iY ,~ ttn(JYni K'71h7i WJ~n,n i KbJn'n,, 7 KT'h (6)

,,~K7i KhK~i7 J'M7i~ ~'l7i P 'JK11 K~K7b pKJK~ (7) OiWJ

KJi i' ' ~Ji i~i n,,nJ M)' b P 'Mii (8) Kh~7Mb n ~ n~w n~,
-iii Kh~J~ib (9) JiM7 iJ1 K) KiJi b i K'ii~~ JiM7iJi li' KwYi

KnK' iP i ~nK~ i7 Ji M7 i~ n(1 K' ~b> )7j P 'Mi nKJK K~i WMi ~nK J

Kn~n~,, K,,,, {10)

 55.

TEXT 2

Reversed and averted and chased are (2) all curses and incantations
of women (3) and men, boys and girls, of evil enemies (4) and all my foes

who curse and pronounce incantations by day and by night. (5) They botmd

and turned away from the four corners of my house which belongs to me Path•

Shaphta daughter of Mahlaphta. (6) Thou shalt leave and not return, thou

shalt be cast down and not be lifted up, thou shalt be dried up like the

embryo of an egg,(7) in the name of Tabaq the angel who grasps and seizes

all curses which have cursed Path-Shaphta daughter of Mahlaphta. (8) Yea,

be distant from her by the power of Adonai Yourba prince of all evil spirits

and leader of all the great (9) chariots of darkness, do thou be distant and
do not come near her all curses and incantations (10) of the night and of

the day.
 56 .

CQl.lMEr TARY 0~ TEXT 2

5. 11 f rom the fou r come r s 11 : this expression is pa r allel to the

expression in 0 :4: 1-2 : the demons a re not bound in t he house,

but driven f rom it .

8. Why should the e xorcism be pronoun c ed in t he name o f the pr ince

o f t he evil spirits? Possibl y t he rationale is that one part of

the kingdom of darkness is compe lled to a ct agains t anothe r part

by t he power of the c harm : Satan is divided against h i mself!

Cf. Ma r k 5 : 22 -26. ote tha t t he cha r ge a gains t Jesus was that

He was c as ting out devils by the prince o f' devils . Compare t he

Exterior of TEXT 4.
 57 .

K'lip1iii~'WlY1i ~'iJil1 (2) ~n' ~i pi ~n~~,7 1'M7i~ ~ ~, ~,

~,~,,, 11n7iJi ~'J~J17YJi ' ~W' J ' ~J~o,, (3) ~n~ 'li p,,,,
~n '17 ~' Ji l b~~ , Yi Ki 'OY ~n ~bYJi (4) ' 7'7J ~'ipbi
~' J~'ni i~b~n,n,, ?'i'h (5) ~il Mb iJ • jJ J~J ~, , , , ~n,~J1
P'J~11 (6) ~J. 7b p j~ Oi J ,h~Jj 7iY 1J J'ni ~,,,,n,,
nJ'b P'Mi ~,Jnb jj il ~JJ7 ,,~~71 ~n~~,, <1,n,,~) ~'l~,,
l'l~iJ1 b i ,,~, 1,n,,~,) 1,n,~w,, ~Ji ~J,1~1 (7) n;,nJ
1'M7i~ n~)'~bl?i (8) P'Mi nK Ji i ~,w,n~ Kn~Jii, ~nKJ~ib
ilMb iJ wil~J~J7 ~n bY1i ~,,,, <i ~n~'ipi ~n ~i>,
 58.

TEXT 3

Reversed are all curses and incantations (2) of men and women, and
boys and girls, (3) evil foes and enemies, and all who curse and utter in•

cantations in the night (4) and in the day. Bound and turned away from the

four comers of my house Babanush son of Mahnush. (5) Thou shalt go and

not return, and thou shalt be thrown down and not raised up, and thou shalt

be dried up like the embryo of an egg in the name of Angel Tab'iq (6) l'lho
seizes and grasps all curses that curse Babanush son of Mahnush. Be far

from him by the might of (7) Adona Raba the ehief of all evil demons and
leaders of all the great chariots of darkness, thou art distant (8) and

none of the curses and incantations of day or night shall reach Babanush

son of Mahnush.
 59 .

4.

_,, K'~ JY1 ~n~'iP1 ~n~tJ 17 l'il7 iJ (2) ~'i11i ~J'iJi ~J' ~Y
-i7YJi (4) ~' ~ YJ ' ~J~o, ~n~ 'J p1,1, ~'Ji p11,, (3) ~'1J1l
-'~Y, (5) K1' 0Y ~n~bYJ i ~,,,,, K'1po , K' ~'~i Jiil71J ' ~JKJ
? i'h ~ iJilb n~ ~' OK hK1 ~'7Y11 '~n'J1 ~hK 'i? ~'Ji~ lb KJ
Oi 'i17J Kh'J) K71Y 1J W~JYhi ~,,,n,, 'i17JJn'n , ~bJh'n?i (6)

nKJi K'i~K,1 ~nK~ ,, J'il?iJ (~'l/ 7i (7) P'JK11 ~ J~,~ pRJ~

Jb ···~'O>~ n~J n~ ' Ku 'Oi ilJ'b P'il11 Wi)~ib) n~ ~' OK

f~~ii ~ 'OK (n~J i ~,JJ ••• J~K Jbi 'ii1i1iiJi~ , ••1 J'i17 il
-b1 K'iiJYJi171(J1 Jiil' ~~ ')1 J ii' (8) ' KJi1 ~1 il?'ilJ ilJ' b
ilJ'~bJ?i P'i11 n (K J~ ~J i iii ~nKJiii ~n~JJib J'il71Ji KJK1Ji

( ,) KW' t.?i' J' b KhKtJi? j?'ilii •.• K'7'7 .. ~ ~n~~ v7 J'i17iJ (9)
ii nKJ J Jb (10) P'ilii ~ 'iJ'~ ilJJ 1· b P' ili i ~' OKh'J (n:J)

(J'il' Ki , b 79> ~h~'J 0 i KhK~YJ K'7' b 7i Y KJ i Wil 79 ~i iii)

-'yp, ID J1 Kn~~i7 i ~n~iKb 7Y ~n,,pK ilJt~~, iliKb 7Y •••
• • • ~nK
 60 .

TEXT 4

Reversed and averted and chased (2) are all curses and incantations

of women and men (3) of boys and girls of evil enemies (4) and foes all who

curse and utter incantations of night and day. Bound (5) and turned are

they back from the four corners of my house. namely Bat-Asia daughter of

Mahnush. Thou shalt go (6) and not return, thou shalt be cast down and

n0t raised up. yea, thou shalt be dried up like the embryo of an egg in
the name of the angel Tabaq who seizes ( 7) and grasps all curses that curse

Bat-Asia daughter of Malmush and be distant from Sisai daughter of Bat-Asia

••••• from Gisba •••• , from Kuze huroi, and from Apr ••• son of Bat-Asia, be
distant from her by the power of Adonai (8) Yourba prince of all shrine /

spirits and leader of all the great chariots of darkness, be thou far from

her and may they not approach her ( 9) all curses.•.• and may be the curses-

be far frc.,m Shisha lJ. daughtey of Bat-Asia and be far from her male off•
spring and from her daughters ••••

Exterior

,lfurned the lighffi againsfl darkness, turned the flood against the fire,
the hateful things against their m.asters •••• against his lord, the incanta-
tions are turned against their female deities. their own curses and incan-

tations •••
 61.

COMMENTARY ON TEXT 4

Exterior : This charm s hows s ometh ing of the r ationa le of averting

curses. The powe r of t he magician turns them aga inst one anothe r

and against t he hostile magician.

 62.

5.

K~i~, ~ ~' ~Y ---~~ l, KnKt (n>~ Klbi1i ~n,oK K''n(~ K)b, J

K'lip,,,, K'1Ji1,, ~'WlY1 (2) KnK ,,p, 1nKo ,, 1,n,,~ K'n,,
_, K' ~,~~ 1in7 ,~ ' KJIJ17YJ1 K' WYJ (3) ' Kl~c, KnK 'l p,,,,
~nK,,7 ~'JiK Jb ~ ~, yi (4) ~i'OY n~bYJ1 K'7'7J K'iPb
-,, 7Kf'n ,r,, (5), ,,, ' iJYO n~ ~,nn,lK K' 7'1 ' Kn 'J1
pKJ~ C1WJ Kh' JJ K7iy 1J t;JKJyn, ~,,,n,, ~'J~n, n , ~bJh'h
K''M nilK7 K'i~i ,, KnK~,, J'M7,~ ~,~,, P' JK11 (6) K~K7b
-' ~~Yi KJi1' ' KliiK1 (7) n,,nJ Ml'b p,n,, ,w,,, K'iJYO n~
-,n, KnKJi ,, KnKJ~Kib l' M,,~, Kl KiJibi K,,,~, 1,n,iJi ,,
,,n,,J Ml'ObJ7i p, n, nK l ~ Ml'Obl71 P'Mi n~ l K (8) KJ 'W
7,n,,~ (9) Ml' b p,n,, ' ~lw,1 MJ ~1~TK'7 nl,~bl7, KnK~ ,,
Kn~~ ,7 K'n1i KJ'i~ 7' ~9 KhKbYi1 K'7'71 .Kh~'ivi ~nK~i7
 TEXT 5

In the n8JIJ.le 0'!7 life: health and healing and sealing and gue.rffiin.i/-
Reversed and averted back and repelled are all curses and incantations (2) of

women and men. of boys and girls, of my evil (3) enemies and adversaries all

who curse and make incantations night and day. Bound (4) and turned away are

they from the four corners of my house, Anuth-Hiya daughter of Sibre-Liyeshu

(5) and from my husband thou shalt go and not return. thou shalt be thrown

down and not raised up, and thou shalt be dried up like the embryo of an egg
in the name of the Angel Tabaq (6) who grasps and seizes all curses that have

been pronollD.eed against Anath Hiya daughter of Sibre-Liyeshu and be far from
her by the power of (7) Adonai Yourba prince of all shrine spirits and leader

of all the great chariots of darkness (8) be thou far away and do not approach

her, be thou distant and do not come near her all curses and let them not

approach Yazad paneh Gusnai. Be distant from him (9) all curses and incanta-

tions of night and day. The curses are turned back and confused and thrust

awayl
 64 .

cm -1E1 T RY ON TEXT 5

1. 11 life 11 : t he writer bega."Yl wit h one f onnula , and broke off to

be gin anothe r.

11 curses 11 : t he r oot t>1? ap pea r s in a magica l context in

Exodus 7:14, 22 a nd 8 :) , 14.

4. Sibre Liyeshu : His-h ope-in-Jesus. Cf. AIT P • 50 .

8. Yazad: for t he name see JN , p .

 6.

( 3 ) i n~t> i 1? J"i17 :i .. R::l' ID!\L .,,p, ·. (,2 ) l(mtt:J 17 p i11;, i:J R:l" ID!1 !J~

"~J ~o, ~n~"Ji p1, ,, (4) R"Ji p,,, , R' ~J91, R'>iJil1 ~nR'iPi
l'i17 1:J ~,, 09 R' iJpbi R"t> ' 71 l' i171:J1 (5 ) ' ~J~j 7J j R"~ 'J
J'i17i:J ~:i, ::,~ ~ , , ,, ' ~J~i7Ji ~~'J ' ~JR01 (6) ~, ,p , ~n~~ , ,
-t>i7J"i1?i:J ~.,o~ l'i171) R~" ~9 R"iJ i l i ~nR,,p, (7) ~n~ti ,,
- ROi ~n~ 'Jipiii i R'J1 j?ii11 R'> WJ9i R'iJ il1 (8) RJi R'iPi RnR
-J~1, ~'iJ il 91 R'iPi Rn~~ , , (9) l'i11? i:i R'i'OY ' RW'J "Xl
l b ~' i ' Y (10) ' R~ l b R'i' 09 RJ ROi ~' ~Jii R'Ji piii i R' ~
R' ~ "J ~ lb ~"i ' OY Jb i W ~ , ••• , ~' ~J ~., , i1 ' ~.,,., 09 l'T ~i1
R'> J ~'> . J ~.,~ Jb ~'ii 09 l b ~'ii09 W ~1JR1 i ~bW'> J C'J ( 11 )
Jb ••• W'> l b R' ~ "J ~ ~i1'> R"i ' 09 (1 2 ) R'> W9 ~'>i'> 09 ~ ,~ Jb
w1;,J i ~,n ••• Jb ~.,~ l b i ,w
 66 .

TEXT 6

Interior

Turned back are all curses (2) and incantations. Turned back are

all curses (3) and incantations of men and women and boys and girls, of my

evil enemies and f'oes (4) yea, all who curse and make incantations. Bound

are all curses and incantations (5) of my evil enemies and f'oes of the

night. Turned back are all curses (6) and incantations of men. Turned back

are all of them, bound are curses and incantations (7) of men and women, boys

and girls, of my evil enemies. They are bound all (8) curses and incantations

of men and women and boys and girls, of my evil enemies. They are bound •••

all (9) curses and incantations of men and women, and boys and women ••• (10)

Exterior

This belongs to the place of graves

 OOMMfil TARY O TEXT 6

9 - 12 The t e xt ce ase s to make sense, but the 11 nonse nse 11 may be

i mportant magically .

Exterior: An inte r e sting indication of the use made of the charm .

Of . als o AIT p . 14 , f or circum stances of disc ove r y of bowl s a t

Nip pur.
 68.

7.

i .• VJ ~il Jb ~)n~,,p, ~n~~,, (2) (~) ,n,, ~~,,~, ~ ~, ~,

n~iJ1iY1 (4) <~'b))w 7 p hKi~J1 ~p,~ ,~p ~b ,nn (3) iJ

~,n ~,nyp11 ~,~i,b ~'J YJ (5) ~,n, ~J~ipi ~,,Ji ~nil ,,p
~n~r,r ~ ~'WJY1 J'n'~7~P ~n ,,,,, (6) ~hKi hOY ~'JYJ ~~ li ~

Rh,, bi ~p,, ~p,, 1,n,~n y (7) 7~ ~D~ ' , ~~ ,,, ~hi 'J1'T
-o~ ciwJ ~h~ihOY hR7, (8) ~,~~7b ~J'~ • ,~) T'J~~,1 K'iKn
-OY •, ~) (9) h'JiJl h'Ji)n ' KJii~i ~,,~p , 9, p~n 9, pn,pn
791 ~,n~Ji ~Jbip 1,n,,~,, h' ~no T'J'hTni KJ ~ ~,~~7b i Kh
11n,,~, JiJ'hilbi ~,,~1,nJ . 1,n,,~, (10) JiJ'n,, pn, ~,w,n
1,n,~JKibKi 1~,~pn, Ji T~i JO JK7Y~i ~ ~ib~ , ~'JhYi ~,r~,
~iJl J'J'ib~ 1~, ~,b~ , J'n~p,,, 'K•i~, 1'n~,~ ' ~ii!? (11)

~,~~,b J'rn (i (12) 1,n,90, w) T'J~,, ~n~~,, ~,,m ~~'Ph

~b,ib ~')h~,, l''iyJ~, 1''~' ~'1irl a, ... p~n ... biWJ ~h~ihOYi
,~,p, ~~,, ~n~,~,~K7 R'WJY1 Xh~'iPi ~n~~,, (13) K'i~1
••• ,~~, b ,,noy {14) •, J h'J,Jl '~J,, ~ ciwJ ~,,~y, KJ1JJ
 TEXT 7

Overturned and averted and repelled (2) are the curses and incanta-

tions from the bGdy of ••• • (3) son of' ~tima. Sound of the earth which
shakes\, Sound of the heavens (4) which are turned back\ So1.md of' clamor

and comnotion and war (5) among the angels of the firmament\ There is con-

fusion among the Ishtars and (6) Liliths. Noise of violent, angrJ women

who curse and trample (7) behind them(?). The spittle is spit out, and

bitter are the curses we have pronounced in the name of' the seven angels

(8) and three(?) Ishtars in the name of Istqutquf' strong and holy and

(in the name of) Adonai ~ubit ~nubit (9) in the name of Esther the queen.
I who have seen them have tumed back over them the great arch which is

over enchantments, and I have twisted (10) all of them together, I have
bound all the mysteries that are in me {\). They said: "He has deprived

us of our mystery and has bound us." · I said to them: (11) "Annulled are

the curses which you have pronounced and extirpated is that which you have
spat." She said to them: "We declare, 0 mighty being who annuls the

curses we pronounce in the names of these (12) angels and Ishtars in the

name of•••• Shrail and Shabqail who dwell on high, who annul (13) curses

and incantations which women who are accustomed to curse have pronounced

and uttered at the gate of the temple in the name of Adonai Snubit in the
•
name of Esther the que £ail ..•• Ht;ima So be it, A.men,
•
 70.

CO -1HE -ITARY ON TEXT 7

4. "turned back 11 : see CK p . 38 and Mont gomery's l exical rema rk

AIT p . 287, whe r e he proposes i:i, as t he r oot. Would

this account fo r the zayin ?

4-5 11 wa r 11 : c f . Rev .12:7-9.

11
6-7 11 trample 11 : an alternative re ading wo uld be who rub their

rumps 11 ( ?) 11 who crawl on thei r rumps 11 ( ?)

9 -10 Evidence of the power and e ffe ctiveness the ma gician claims

f or his charm .
 Cl, Ol~L~ r••• L, ~ LCI ! Cc.l! l,C ~
CLCL, ~,4 Cl 4~c••• XfUL••• 4L Cl~l!~ L4~Q••• 4, ~lc.L CL ~, ~,!
•• ~c.L!d~ ~qCI~ b_L!,c,! a'i ~L , ~ La'i ~••• C~LO ~•••L~c.4 Cl 4~C~ (g~)
CL ~, ~,! ~4 (91) C~Q~ L! Ll!X f GL!~L~ Lili~LL(u9 cw,l ~4 ••••
Cl~I. ~ , ~uc , u LCl!Cl!c.C L! ,! 4CL4L!,! 4LCl~Lrn L4~Cl (L,) L! 4, ~.1. ,L
~o , ~ 4LCl~l!~ L4~ Cl ( L) ,w 4, ~J.,L (v1) CL fl4, a'i ,! 'C4~4~ ~b4-
0lLO GLI ,cL, ~ Lal4C1Lr~cd ~c~u )~o, ~ _hcrno, ~ c, '24, Cl~LI~ cri 4~4~
Le. ~ LCI ! 4L ClilJ~ LCL OIJ~ •••• 4~QLILl ( £1) 4c. ~J.,L CL Ole. ~,{ C-
- LQ -
'CJ. ~4L! Qc.C L! LQ{ 4LCl~IJ~ b~L! , i _h4G4~'C CI CL ~IJ~ CCL ~Q~ Q{ L! L~-
LCd 4L Cl~Lrn LCL! c, ~ La'i L4c. Lrn LQ! 41. Cl)tl!~ (,n) L~'('c,L.~ L~'CL L!

- -
(11) 4LQ~U~ L~C~ L~Q~ L4~ , a , ~ LQl 4LCl~IJ~ LJ.Cc.lJ~ LJ. ~Qt..U~
-
4c. ~l,L CL. ~ , ~ ,! CL4L!,1 4LQ~U~ b4~Cl L,L! 4c. ~J.c.L CL a, a'i,! Q{

L, ~J.LLi L, ~dt.. Li (01) L~ LL G~c.c.4 LOL!Q~~,4 l!~Ll4L! LIJ~CdL4L!

L~ bL!Cc~l 'CJ. ~Lc,1L 4~a~c,! ~a c , u4 ,c,l LQLC1 ,c~4,c,l c.r. ~L~,
4, ~.1.,L CL ~, a ,! l ~C(L~4L! Cl ! c, c~ L4c. C~ ! 4ot,! LCI ! (6) QL~-
c,w,1 C~ Ld, ~ bCI CJ., ~c. L! ! (s) bLc. ~~, w,! I. QL 4L! ~L~ , b4~QIJCL!
ct 1..d, ~ (l) 1u(~0 , ~ Lt.."11~ d Ll!C~L dL. ci , w,l bL ~CI~ LC1$:L ,-
LL! I. GL,··•4 LC~ l ~I. LG~c.,4 LOL!Q~ ,4 I. QL!Q c.C,! 1.coc ,c,!
Gtt..~ L, ~J.,L CL w, a ,! 1.cw, u ~4~ ,w,l ~.1.1..~, 1., ~.1.L1.l ( 9 ) , ~d-
e~ Ldi4 !:6:Ctll, ~ .r., LC, ~t.rn b4~, a,L LC1c1..aud ( s) LCIC, c~ c;w ~.1.i !)
( £ ) ~LCI~ , d~4 w401, ~ 1..Cll!tL~, 1. d~4 r Lct.., i ( v ) LC ~~ , ~ c d1..~-

c~1.e1~ bl! ,, ~ ~(o) LLI~ (z) uw 1.,4w 4, ~.1. ,L CL a , ~,! d~4 d~4~
·e

•t L
 TEXT 8

In the name of Life may there be he,La"!7th (2) for Yez:id son of Shishin.

Hark\ the cry\ (3) Ye women, hear the ery of -the weak who have been crushed,

the cry of' men (4) who contend in 1::attle, the cry of ill-tempered women who

curse and harm and afflict this body of Yazid son of Shishin. There have

come down on them Azdai and Yazrun (6) and Yaqrun and Pre@ the great and
Urpail and Sahtail. He has seized, he has grasped (7) the locks of the hair
•
of their heads, he has shattered their horns which were high and attached them

to the tresses of the hair (8) of their heads and said to her: ttLoose the
curses which you have pronounced against Yazid son of Shishin." They said

-to him: "Because of the pain in our hearts we have cursed and because of (9)

the bitterness of our Palate we have decreed and eursed." "I have taken you

captive and I adjure you by Azdai and Yazrun, and Yakrun, and (10) Urpail

and Sahtiel to free and send forth Yazid son of Shishin J!roi/ all curses
pronoUJ!lced upon Yazid son of Shishin (11) from curses of father and mother

who curse, and from curses of prostitute and female singer and from curses

of the great Lady and fetus and from curses (12) of laborer and his master

who has defrauded him of his pay, and from curses of brothers who do not

divide -the portions equitably with one another, and from the curses of

Burma ••• which she has lodged against Yazid son of Shishin in the name of
idols and •••• Thou art the physician who heals souls with a word: cure

the curses which have been uttered against Yazid (14) son of Shishin. I

a :Jll sitting on a rock not broken and I have written all the curses which

have been ut tered against Yazid son of Shishin on (15) a new bowl of clay,

and I have sent it ••••that they may release •••• in the name of the angel

Shrail, o~ -the angel Barkiel •••• the curses which have been utteffeg

against Yazid son of Shishin. The m,La"iJ is delivered from.•••• and from
prison.
 CO :!MENTARY ON TEXT 8

11 . 11 g r eat lady ": I s this a r eferenc e to Is ht a r as a godd ess r athe r

than as a gene r ic n am e fo r evil spirits? The tre nd is fo r forme r

deities to be c ome e vil spir its. Cf . AI T p . 70 .

12 . "c urses o f Bu r ma ••• 11 The sc r ibe in t h is line has c o rrected

e rrors by sup r a linea r addit ions of a , fo r o and 0 f or .n •

Compa ri son wi t h Gordo n ' s text M, li:ies 16- 17 , o ffe r s a pa r tial

s olution o f' Po gn on 1 s diffi culty, JJvICK pp . 4-8-49 . The last

element i n t he 11 ille g i bl e 11 wo r d following 11 3ustha 11 or 11 Burma 11 ,

on t he ana l o gy of Text M, is 'f • What pr e c e d e s t he n is the

pe r sona l name of the so rc eress known to be p r actising b l a ck

magi c. In eac h text t he i i s followed by a ffaite ve r b . The

r emamin g pa r t of the p r oper name r ern ai..ns doubtful : perhap s

Burma -iha? This manne r of co rrection is unusua l i f not unique .

Genera lly a s c ribe begins again wi t h out any attempt a t co rrection .

11 Labo rer ••• pay 11 : Of . J ames 5 :4 . Th is o pp r ession of t he poo r is

st r ong ly c ondemne d i n the Sc r iptu r e : it would gene r ate a malignant

c urse .

The ext e r io r o f th i s bowl has on one side a c rudel y drawn f i gu r e ,vit h the

le gend ll' lK? , il • In c ontras t wit h t he figu r e on the e xteri o r of

Te xt 5, the 11 ho:m s II c u r ve downward , sy1llpathe tic ally , suggesting t he

idea of the i..ncantation . The fla t he ad suggests the imag ine d fo rm

of the malign be ing . The c irc l e s on t he to r so p r es umab l y rep r esent

fema l e b r easts . Only this f i gu r e has the t wo ova l objects on o r

t hrou gh t he r i ght t h i gh . I f Pognon 1 s s ugge st i o~ t hat t h e spelling

ll':,. lC? may be r ead lllCl,? , many o f the det a ils of Li bat in the
 74.
co_;vn,fE: TARY N TE./T 8

1,randaean mytholo gy a r e ix1teresting : e . g . 11 Li bat is oft en invoked

in so rcery 11 , 1'01MII p . 80 . See a ls o DA p . 38 . Compa re a l so the

f i gu r e on t he exterior of Po gnon I s bow l No . 6: is it meant to be

t he moon? See al so Hontgome r y 1 s note , AIT p . 2 17.

 75 .

9.

K't~ .'.31 ( 3 ) ~ 'iJl 7Rp ~ 'iJhtl1 K' ~ 7i1 (2) 7 ~p '~ti,~ ~7K p 7~p

~::i,:mi JK~1:J1 (4) J~tJ( '}97'1 Rh~ 'J'1'i K ') !OJ~ 1;,l\ p Ri p::2

-~KJ J:l i1'JV1 h~ i1'.'.l1i 1 1 (5) i1' iK i i ) ~J1 ~1;,i1tl1 Kil~ J'i Ki1J

J1ii ~ '1 ' ~1 TRJ1' ~1;,y ( 6 ) h ' i1 .'.l1 Kh~Jp 1.'.l J1 h JJJ 1 ~ ' i ::l'T J1 i1

K' p, :i (7) J'J' J' OJ1 1'i1J' ~i1l 1;,,~~~o , K:li ;, ~, ~, 1,,p~ ,,
Ji'iu ' i i K'T.'.l tl J1.'.l il2:) i ~tlXi°i Ji'}Oip '7~:lh i Ji i1 ' 1,i!7 ' i 1 K'T.'.l tl

;1 ,,,r ,1;,, ~.,,~i i1 J.t1tJ~,0> l( ' i ~ ••• 1;,i bK i (8 )

, ::i io i !:>1?i1ti'?

~,, ~••• n~::ip>iJ (9) JihkJ::t';,i ,,~,r 1, ( ,)~J::i,, i1 'iJ~, n~

••• iJ JKii ii1tli i ' ~p i p hD 'i i~~i i ~lii~~ h~ ~p i p1 ~h~~ ~7

~iKitl Ji'.:li T'J t!)7 1~:i ,, 1 ::i ~::i Jtl i17~i ~-> (10) ••• t1 i •••

i,,~, ... l'~';,n,j(wi) (11 ) ••• l••··

 76.

TEXT 9

Hark\ Harle\ hear the cry (2) of the weak who are crushed; the

cry ef men who (3) contend in battle, the cry of impious women who litter

.
curses and (4) imprecations and who afflict this body of Mahlephuna son

of Dadia (5) and Yazduyeh daughter of Rashnuyeh, their male offspring and
female offspring. (6) Azdai, Yazrun, Yaqrun, great Prial, Sahtiel have

descended upon them. They have seized them, they have taken them - ( 7) by

the tresses of the hair of their heads and have shattered their high horns;

he has laid hold of the locks of their heads (8) and said •••• "ffeJnul the
curses you have pronounced against Mahlaphuna son of Dadar and Yazduyeh

daughter of Rashnuyeh and their male offspring and their tfemaliJ offspring
(9) ••••••• Annul the curses against Quqai daughter of Atruga, against

Papruyeh daughter of Quqai and against Mehruaan son of••••••" (10) They

said to him, "Because of the pains of our heart and because of bitterness

we cursed ••• " (11) "I have taken you prisoners ••• "

Exterior

This belongs to the /fti/metary

 77.

10.

;--. 7~p ~:ntbt:J i,~p (2) 'l;,}tp ., ~:nt.J nEJ 11::iti1'nil .,, :-i,.,1il11 ~n ,oi
K"~.J 9 7~p ~J~ppp::i 1"~~.J1 (3) ~.,i~Jl 7 ~p 1 ~"i jh "h1 ~ "W7il

"~iT }\ l" il " 1'7~ J'l"iD (4) 1~ J":Jb1 J ~£)~:J7::> 1 J~tl ., ~7i ~h~ ".Jil<'r
J"J" t)i101 (5) ?"Ytiil01 ?"Y~E) 1i1 ~Ji ?"Yi::i ]1 ip~ .,, ]1 i1 T .,,
- ~ll.:)1 ~b~,, 1.,n.,~w.,,::i l"il' ~J;p ,~Jn, l" il "~ .,,, ~.,,p,,p::i
-71 <:~,~>1"7ib~ , l" il "~~ .,, , l"il" ~"T .J b1 ~, ••• (6) l".'.l'i ::i

-,i11 Q'b J" .J) t17 ],Cl971 1'::l":J il?~,~~1

(7) ~i ~i b i jb J"h-0 ~

-,~.J "t , r.n p ::i "7~111 J UI~ ••• (1 :) 1;, J ibtn l "J'{:)7 , l "..Ji ~T 1 1~::i.:i
-ilb1 1?"9)~~,,y, (8) 7"Y(i~, 11:)p~ .,, 111,r~.,, ., ~,r~::i J"::l
l" il71:J ~11~b11;, ,,::i jb Ji Jtl~n;p ~, i17 p::i ·n), ~., -w.,n, ,.,,ti
~h ".Jii !\~i7) jb (9) 1"11~~,, ~b9 1 ~JRi RI1b 17 lb l'I1ti~,,
-:JJ l ~7:J~71 ::JEJ7i lt ' ;-i~=j ~n(~i7) Jb1 il? i " 1' ••• j b ~11"71\l/ i
-"11 ~ Oi lV:1 h~tl~71 J "lu " .- (10) ~.lltl 1~ Jb (1~.,i~ii'J> l7.) ~t, 71

'RO~ ~7~7bJ ~n~ "ilb ~ ., O~bi ~ ., ~ h~.J~ n~.J ~ ~'0~ ••• ~' i:J
1111~ .,, ,~,r~ • ,v::i 11::iti> (11) -~nil~, ~.,,o/ ~,, ~n~o,,
-ni1~7 1P 1t1~,1 }\J1~ t)i1;, 1' ' • • • no, ••• ?'9EJ iii 7'9iEJ1 l rip~.,,
-,, J'i17 (i::i> (12) J".J'Jin::i;;, ::i.,n, ~"YTJ~71 ~7~?l ~Y 11::ib~
-1~0 79 l".J' i~i~ wy, J"J'::i,n::iy, J"nY r-n "iil. ~o~::i :3> ~n ·ti
J"il" , ~n 79 "~.J ~.J n~~ 11 ::ib~nn~ ,7 ~.,,tl~71 ~n~ti i7 l'il"~
7"!1'.JiJ tJ 1 J lD 77.) 7"9itt7 O'l t7J ~ :Ji:11 l\ "imr.7 1"J"il1 (1 3 ) Kb7K

l~ K1JKl K"i~ "b 1••• )b Kh~~ i7 K"iW K~~ K7b )1hKJi KJK7b

<1) b i m;)i • • • •
 78.

TEXT 10

Let there be healing for Htatbun daughter of Nanai. Hark~ (2)

Hark\ I hear the cry of the weak who are crushed and of warriors (3) who

contend in battle., the cry of impious women who eurse, work witchcraf't

and bring affliction. (4) Azdai and Yazdrun and Yaqrun., Prial the great.

and Rophiel and Sahtiel (5) have descended upon them and seized them by
•
the locks of their heads and have shattered their lofty horns on their

heads and have grasped them (6) by the•••• of hair of their heads and

said to them: "J!:nnug the curses you have uttered." They said to him.,
"Because of the pain in our heart we curse and because of the bitterness

of our (7) palate we deer ee and curse." Is aid to ,/_thei/ "I have taken
you prisoners and I adjure you by Azdai and Yazdrun and Yaq,['°run and P_yiel

and (8) Urpaiel and Sa~tiel to annul Lfhe cursey and release A~tatbun from
all curses that you have pronouncea: from eurse of father and mother which

you have uttered; from (9) J.cuiJse of prostitute and fetus, from ••• and from

cur£siJ of brothers who do not divide eqgitabli7., from f_cuf/se (10) of

Shishin which he has pronounced in the name of image spirits ••• Thou art

the physiciam, thou art the physician who heals with the word; heal the

curses which have ffieen uttered againsg Ahtaffibu:i/ in the name of Azda.i
and Yazdrun and Yaqrun and Priel and Urpiel •••• curses which have been

pronounced against Ahtatbun. (11) I seat myself on a rock that is not

broken and I write (12) all the curses £oi/ a new bowl; I sit, and I write

and I send to their authors the curses which were uttered against Ahtatbun

daughter of Nanai., to their senders, (13) that they may release and bless in

the name of Shriel the angel., in the name of the angel Barkiel. Ye angels,

annul the curses from ••• the man is delivered £rom •••
 79 .

COMMENTARY ON TEXT 10

9. 11 brothe r s 11 : the thought of div iding the inheritanc e un fa irly ,

o r r efus ing to divide, occurs in Luke 12: 15 .

10. 11 image-spi r i t s 11 : the wo rd is co n sistentl y u s e d in t h e Pes hitta

f or idols and i do l a try . Cf . AIT P• 72.

12. Th is passage may suggest t he circumstances of t he wr iting of

t he bowl . Mo r e li ght is need ed on t he pr axis accompanying the

wr iting of the inc ant a tion , t hou gh this passage , and t he very fa ct

of the writ te n incant a tion suggest t hat the writing of the c ha r m

was the essentia l thing .

 80.

11.

-oy, (3) ~,:i.,n, ~, ,} ~, ,,, ~n(,:i,) (2) il<1?"yi1n ~n , (01 1(

~,:i,~ Jb ,,:i~w, r..i , ::i Rr.i ,.,p (4) fi:i.,,~; ~~~~ XjJt.:,, ~n~,p
(6) XJi ~~Jj b~JJ ,n ~J~ n"nY Riil Ji Ri,ri (5) ~ "ilYpi

-"b7 (7) xn,:i (,> n, ~r.i ~:i,~ ;yn,n~, 1in7~ ~.,,n, ~' ' Rbip
-7 1(,n-, l\nir..i1 R'1?,::rn:i1;,, 1,ji('.'.lJ ~,'17, ~7 , 1,.,l(TRi 7R:J
-i(nl( J ~":J1ii17 ~'.'.lJ 79 ~1;,nWYi ~7.:l~i1 1 (,;i l(r..i , p (8) ::l~.'Pb

i,,~7, Jin~ J:J R'OiJJ1;,i Ji' l\~ 'R)~ ' ID ip.'.11;,i (9) •••7 Ji'

P" ~n}\r.i,p mc1~JlnY 1 • •• (10) ••• 1 ,,Rnl\:i:i t:Ji R.'.l'T

•.• (11) ••• (~T~i l'Tl(il:,) n'nR 1il~7.:l 7Y R'ibR i nl\il~nRnny,,

~"7"ibRi 0l(1K~ n.'.lJ 1;,y Ji n~1;,n Y iilRb 79 JilR jitlXi ••• nx

-~J~ir..iR i JX.'.l'iiln7 ~r~, J'T Ril ••• ,~r.i~J n.,,r..i~, (12) ;,:i
(13) RQ)iR 1,:i,R7~ 1,,nn 9.'.l 0~1~, l('jJJ 1,:i,biln 7Y Jil'?
l(' Jl(77.:l ; ., ~ ,,, 1;, ' YVJ'.JJ 1;, ":sr rilbi 1;, "Y' ~iii l\b,ib 17.:l) ~, J R'?b
,~r..i,w ... K.,,r..i~, (14) 1,:i,l\7R 1,mi: Rb , l(ib Jb iP:ii),(b>
~n~1;,ni l(1'T7 ;,,~J~~ ,~, ••• 1;, 11.'.1~1;,Jpj, K' 'RiJij RiJl
7Y Ji17l(.'.lir.i~, 7~ J1JJ1;,i (15) ~Ji ~.'.lii~" 79 ~.,,~, ~,,n,9
-
R1,ilj1 ~,n:i, Rnl\JJW 7i179 ,,J.,n ., ••• l\T~i J"TXil JiiDJ'n
-i9 JiJ., ~7y J~i~.'.19.'.li l(i'Oi (16) W"bR~ JiJ.,~79 Ji1iJyji
~.'.litii ~Jjt)J RJ~J ~"l7nyJi Ki"T l\Ji ~l~n:i i1J"iil1Tb1 ~.,,n
-lt)l1;,•i ~'?J'ni,) K":J1~l>1 (17) ~::i~:i J1J"1'79 (!)1;,.,l1;,ny.:i,
J'JRi ~'"ii ~.,., ~nn ~ "bin X"j?biYJ 1i:i.'.lii~Y.'.li JiJ" ~1l"7J 1,:i
 81.

TEXT 11

Mj_a.y thiJre be h£eiJling (2) for the house end dwelling and mansion

(3) and threshold and good residence where resides (4) Qayuma son of Marshabur.

From the seven firmaments of (5) i llumination and light I have come. I an

Nbat, Nbat the great Pri(6)mordial One whom Life has sent, and I have come

against the seven masters £o!7 the house (7) to tum away their magie arts,
to confuse their work, to destroy lJ.heiiJ imaginations, to restrain(8) their

stature which is high, because they were sent against the sons to destroy

their house •••• (9) to pierce their /_eyi]s, to smite their daughters , to do
great damage in their houses (lo) •••• their bodies a re bent and not straight-
ened out. They said, "Vlhy have you been sent against the sons of men?" They

said to me, "/J.n all (12) you have said, we will hearken to yoiJ•••• This
secret do not reveal to us." I said to them, "If you harm the sons of men,

there will be sent against you r£oyr (13) angels from on high: Rahziel,
•
Mahziel, Kabshiel, and Dushiel: the angels, the angels have come against
•
you from on high ." (14) They said, " •••thy name, a strange being, we will

receive your ••• because of the splendor of th~ three Uthras who live by

the great Jordan (15) and we will no-t deceive you." And I said to them, ttif

you will renounce -this secret ••• There moves over you the great shekinah of
the light, (16) the Sun and the Moon are moved against you, the Uthras who

watch over the great circle of light move against you, the gate shall be

closed to you on the east and the west, the gate of the north and the south
shall be closed against you (17) and you shall be seized by the feet and

hu rled into the dee p pits beneath ." Life is vict orious •• •
 82.

COMMENTARY ON TEXT 11

5. 11 Nbat 11 : The b ook of the Great Nbat is the fourteenth book

of the Ginza Rba, MM II: p. 224; DA:p. 42.

10-17. The conve rsation between the magician and the evil powers

reve als the confi de nt t one o :f tl1e ma gi cian.

14. 11 Uth r as 11 used only of beneficent beings, life-g iving and life-

su sta i n ing spirits, MM II: pp . 94-95 .

11 Jordan 11 : a pparently not the Jo r dan of Pale stine. See the

note in MM II: pp . xxiv-xxv.

 12.

i1Ji~ '> :J1;, i11;,., , ;,n Ki11t:J .'.l1 Knm,il Kill'i i (2) Kli (i o~) K" '>il1 Kb,w:.i
,il::i, Kh l ~ ,~ (4) i :l ~p~~ , 01 nl~"lYJ1;,, ~1;,J'>i11;,1 ~i 11 1 ( 3)

~hK:l1j? l (5) J1 N0:! 1 ~PiJ '>T J1il'> K.:J:21 1lR i K1J l"l:J l~'llt Y
l"il "Ri:J 1t:J i "i?1;,11 l"il" ~,~ , ~ ~.,,~, J"il,,~ 1,nR l ~ "1" i1K1

'> Kb1p K":li1i ~ ""i11 K1;, K1;,b1 Kib '> b J~l ::i, K::li b 1~ JKl:l (6)
-
- b h ":l1 K'>i'>Il K'>b '> n ,n, K:i, ,., Jj'>j~ K"1"?PK (7) K"1'0Y ...
K~il) K?:9 K'>i'> O:S,, (8) K'>'> K?Y K'>i1K7:9 K"i'O>' Kl K:ll1:lK Ki1K1;,K Ki
Ki '> OY K"" K? :9 K'> i Jh :J K'>i'>O:S,, K'>'> Knn R'> ilK?:9 K~i"O)Y K'>'> lb
••• '> 0>7 t .,., ~ b (9) l'PiJ '>mJ

~h l ,J ,::i (5) Rpb ,c (4) 1 ••• oi (3) ill"lK'>) (2) -1 Ki~Kl

1il (6)
 84.

TEXT 12

This is the guardian (2) of the dwelling (3) of s ••• (4) of Sume.qa (5) son of

Kusenta

Interior
In the name of Life may there be healing (2) magical equipment, seal-

ing and guarding for the house (3) and dwelling and mansion and edifice of

Sumaqa son of (4) Kushenta and Bhar-Ezag daughter of Kuar-Anushand their male
•
offspring and female (5) offspring and all their livestock with cloven hoofs

and without cloven hoofs. (6) The malediction of the great name, the male-

diction of the utterance and word of the great primordial Lifel•••• Bound
are the (7) keys of the dwelling of Yurba, sealed are the doors of the house

of the Lord God Abugbanai (8) Bound are the upper dei/Jii/s, b/_oui/d are the
intermediate deities, bound are the lower deities, bound are the upper image

spirits, bound are the (9) intermediate image spirits, boffin.fl••••

Exterior
 C 1-il,IBlIT RY o: TEXT 12

7. 11 Yu r ba 11 • Conside r ed by Mandaeans to be of the powe r s of

darkness . Cf . I-lMII , PP • 265 - 269 .

8. 11 deities 11 • An examp l e of the dete r ioration of a deity into

an inferior evil being .

 86.

13 .

(3) ~ ' ~ii1 1,n,,1 ~b, 1,n, , ~ (20 7,no,0Jb1 1,n,o,oJ

~bn~,n, ~' Wii1 (4) ~'i1i1b ~')~bn1 , ~'JiJ ~J~~, (3)

J'in, 7,n , ~, ~bn7n1 ~'~ii1 (5) ~ 'Ji b 1'in1, J'n, ~ ,
-
7,n ••• J b1 1, n , o , J (6) J1h'bii1 J1 h ' b '10 ~') ~W '7
~'iJl1 ~' Wii1 ~) 1b1 (7) ~:lib1 ~' Wii1 7,n, £)b1 1,n, , t:i!)
-
(8) ~ ' ~ )J ~ ') ~ n,, ~h~ ' Ji i1h~'1i r. ,:i,~,- ' ~ ii1 ~'b' n,

~'P'.il , ~'n1ti1 ' , :i 1,n ,1Vt::ibi 1,n,,1127!1 1t:) n;1p11

~h ~17 1'(171J1 K'7>~~:i (9) ~') ~10 1 ~ 'J' D;l ~'7l il1
(10) }C J, i11 ~ , ,:i ,1 1 ii1,i::n 1'n~pn}t' ~n1t1n ~ 1(fll('), 1 ,
-T i1nb1 1 ~ii1'1 nl7 • 1 }Ci• •• }C 'i:lhb1 1 ~h~b~ ••• ~ 'i~Jh bi
••• bi ~' ~ii1 inb1~ • •• ~ ' ~ ii1 (11) ~'iltii1i K'b7i1:l ~,

(12) ~ , ii1 ~'i:11l i bi:l ~' W) ~7 1 ~' ~) Y 1b1J ~'i(211J

K~1 7hb7 ~, i1 ~7~P 1,:i ••• ~J~ il ~ibJi ~n, ••• ,n~,
... ,.n ,
 TEXT 13

You are broken and shattered (2) you are broken and annulled, ye
charms (3) of seven fortresses,
.
you of eight cities,
- (4) ye enchantments
of three hundred and sixty two sa tra.pies, ( 5) ye enchantments of three

hundred and sixty two languages. Ye are closed up, ye are banned (6) ye

are broken and shJ.a.tteiJed ye are broken and annulled ye enchan-bn.ents of

the west (7) and of the east, of the north and of the south, ye enchant-
ments of the four corners of the house and of the eight extremities (8)

of the firmamenffi. Ye are anyulled and foiled evil ones new and old, ye

spheres tu med baek and useless bases £or the earti/ ( 9) and all ye curses-

and ince.ffitations iJew and old, all ye works of darkness (10) that are shut
out •• • the day and those that are shut out ••• • and the portion of the month

and those who appear in dreams, in hallucinations (11) the witchcrafts •••

the s orcerers ••• men in the form of women and to women in the form of men,

sorcerers (12) ••• sorcerers 'Who follow the funeral processions, sorcerers

who come (13) ••• who •••• and may there be healing •••

Exterior
 88.

cm. ~NT RY ON TEXT 13

4. 11 thr ee hundred .•• 11 Fo r the h istorical data, see Pa t on ,

Esther, ICC, pp. 123-124, and Ma rcus, J osephus, J ewi sh

Antiquities , VI, pp . 296-97 . :tfotice also 360 11 broods 11

of the Lilith in Mont gomery I s text 38 :5 ,6, ll. Three hundred

sixty is the number of da ys in t he Mandaean year . The

same number is g ive n to spirits who created and who govern

t h e mat er ial world . See MM II, p. 251.

8. 11 bases ••• 11 See Pognon , OK, pp . 79-60 and MM II, PP• 253-

255, fo r details of Mandaean cosmogony .

11 . 11 men .•• 11 See AIT, p . 82 , fo r literature and discussion of

incubae and suc c ubae .

 ~U~CCLl (£1) _!:Q••• ~CLL,l

(z1) ••• 4d~41:aoc~~ acG~u~ccLl LQ, .aud,;. ~G u~ccLl L L~ ~L-

4~Q~c~ ~cu~ccLl L~UGcuLl w~L,uLl 4c,~ La~ l LQl 4~ 4c~
,~ ~LLU~ccLl ~cc~o,~u~ co~u~ cc 49 ··· (11) ••• u~ccLl h-
Ll ~q c, ~ QlQU~CCLl (01) ··· ~tcL! LlWLL,~ LCLU~CCL! ~LLL-

CCL! (s) LQ ••• CCL! LLOL4, ~ ~~4U~CCL! LQ4L~ IL~U~CcLl

a~! LQlC~ l lCC~U~CCL! LlCLC,~ l CC~CU~ CCL! L~Q CL,~ ~Q CU~-

~~4C L~, i ~4c~~u ~4~,cLl La~l Leo,~ (e) co, ~u ~4~L,cL! L-

~L4 u ~4~ ,CL4 La~! L~LL LdLLci c~ (l) LL4~U ~4~,cL! La~!
~4 a~! LLC4~U L~~d, ~u (9) ~4~,cLl L~4 a~! LlCL~ LQC~U
4,G~U LCQ, ~U LLCQ, ~U (g) LLCO, i c, ~,~ LLC~, , ~ 4~4, G,~ L-
(£) LQ4 Q L~L~CCL! L~4 L~CL~CCL! (t) L~4 ~~lCLU~CCLl LL-
~O LU~ UW L,4W 4L~CLLL (z) GU COL,LLL ~4, 4 A4 am4~ccLl

·~
 90 .

'.I.EXT 14

' Let there be salvation f'or Denduk (2) daughter of' Kosriduk. A

curse ( ?) on him who sent you and (3) directed you and upon him who loves

you (4) and upon her who loves you, upon her who taught and proved you,

yea upon her 'Who proved, (5) upon her who desires to prove and those who
desire to instruct, and upon 'Whatsoever woman who gives you food and drink

(6) and upon whatsoever woman who bas brought to you a marriage-portion
and a part and upon the woman who has brought to you a gift and an of'feri ng
(7) upon whatsoever woman who has put a garment on you, whoever has (8)

clothed you, who has bought and sold you, whoever worked for you (9) •••

who has stripped you, who has named you, who has invited you (lo) ••• who

has admonished you, has sent you, who has tested you with temptaffiions
..J...
•••• (11) •• You have been turned away, you belong to the wicked one

and whoever ••• (12) ••• the woman who has beaten you and hurled you (13)
who •••• the image-apirita.
 91 .

OOMME:rTTARY ON TEXT 14

11
2. curse ••• 11 The idea of a curse or ma lediction seems to be

r equ ired by t he context . The root is not c lea r: Pognon

suggests the Hebrew <t77K, I1'10K, p . 279.

This text, I t hin.I{ , does not have close parallels with any thus

f ar publis hed. It emphasixes the wide variety i n tbe motifs

which are adopted to exp r ess t he idea of re pe l ling and ex-

orc izin g demons .

 92 .

15.

R'i7~7~ RJ~'1p, J1.'.J'7'b1 ~nK~ 17 (2) ~''i711 ~.'.J'1.'.J ;,,' ••• ~

(4) Kh~'iP~ K'7Jpb1 ~n~~ 17 ~,7 ... b'J K'lOb KpiJ~ (3)

~1bi7 (5) 1'T1'i7J ~, n ,n ~b1 WJ Kino~ ••• ) ~b, ~J ~i1~7~ ,,J

-
- b1 ~,noy, (6) ~,,.:JY1 ii7~7~ 1K?Y1 , ~b ••• 7b lb ~o~ , ~n,,,
(7) ,,,, ~, iJ ,,,~ ~ ~n~ J Y.'.J n'J ••• iJ Fi~KTi 71~.lbK ~)'

~n~,,p, ~n(~>~,, ···1''0K n19J iJ ,,,nyriJ K'?'17 ~n , 1p1

~' IDii7 7Y Ki, ~ ,,~y l:\nKi1'b ?Y (8) Kn~'iP~ , ~~ , i7i ~b ;~

(9) ~'?'b 71 .E);,,' K.'.J1 i7 ?>1 Ki ,i7J 71 :9 l01;7?37 ~ ••• O

1 Q~ !JY
7:9 Kn~~,7 K.'.J'~Y );\J ••• J'iP ?Y l'i7'KiKb 7Y Rn~' J 01 ~nR~YJ
Km( 'iP1 1' ~Ji l\m\°t:ii? (10) ~n~il-tb 7!7 ~mPip~ ~.'.J ' .E)Y1 l:\i~b
-~~7 1 ~i1.:JYi ~i7~7R OKi,p O' j?1?1J 7~, '1 ~?Y 7' ~n9h ~~~ Ji
, i ,r7, Rn'J71 ~'0);\ n'J ,J 1ii7YT1.:J (11) ~,, ,,;,.:J ~'7 1~

-J1i17(; ~K'~b7, 'Kbi77, .. ~nKJJ7"1 '}(JJ71 ••• 1'b n'J 1~0~1,.:J

(12) , ~.l'b ~.l'J 7i ..• ,~x ... b7~ ~,,n:911 K'7Ji7R ••• {')~n~'
)-< ••• Kb,m );\.'.J 7b ••• ~; ~b1 J ••• KO~ i ••• ~i7 ' i ~ibi7 J'TRi7J

n,~ <t J iii7YT.:J7 i7?'1i7n Kn i oK , 7in,n J' bi ~'i.:Jn.E), ~,n ...

R'O~
 TEXT 15

Interior

The curses are tuffeed aiJay, turned baek, and repelled ( 2) and your
words of incantation, deities who walk on the earth ••• the curses and they

receive the incantations, (4) each deity in the name •••the evil spirit in

the name. You will come with this (5) wine, and perfume and myrtle from ••••

which is upon you; the deith and the temple-spirit (6) the evil spirit which

is from him, because of Zapeh son or •••• Apadoi, son of Dawiwi (7) the in•

cantation upon me, Kuzehuroi, son of B£at-Asig••• the curses and incantations
are reversed upon their sender, the incantations (8) are turned back to the

women who sent them, the annulment is turned back on the sorcerers, the ••••

is tufJn.eiJ back on the time, the light is turned back on the darkness, the
flood (9) is turned back on the fire, evil things on their owners, ••••the

curses are turned be.ck on the one who sent them and the incantations are

returned to the women who uttered them (10) his own curses and his own in-

cantations will be turned back upon himself and upon eaeh one who stands

before the deity and image-spirit and who cursed me ••• (11) Kuzehuroi son

of Bat-Asia., and my house, my wife Kurasan •• •• my sons, my daughters, my

father-in-law, my we.te£r an§l my livestock •••• (12) on this wine, per.lfumiJ

•••• and myrtle ••• in the name of ••• the angel ••• and I said

Exterior

•••• and the image-spirits which are beneath you and may there be salvation
for Kuzehuroi son of Bat-Asia.
 94.

om 00. TARY 01 TEXT 15

5. 11 myrt l e 11 : s ee AIT, p . 18 1. See a lso t he f re qu e nt re f erences t o

my rtle i n .MMII , es pe c ia lly pp . 121-2 and 178-9 . The myrtle

wr eat h is looked upon a s the bestower of hea lt h and vigor.

Compare al so t he interest ing c ollocation of wine , per~~me, and

myrtle i n the ritua l desc ribe d i n -ur , pp . 205-209 .

11 t emple-s pi rit 11 : Sume rian e-ieur means 11 hou se o f t he mountain 11

wh ich is eq u ivalent to "s h rine 11 • I n t he bowls it is pract ically

the eq uiva l ent of ic,~, . Cf . Go rdon, 0 rienta lia, 10 , P • 276.

7. 11 son of Ba t-As ia . 11 In fa ndaea.'1. holy bo oks a n d ri tea, the mothe r• s

name , not the fathe r ' s , is mentioned . See :MM II, PP • 26-27, and

AIT, PP • 49-50.

8. 11 annu l ment 11 : in · i b l i c a l Aramaic the root has the meaning 11 i nte r-

p ret11, 11 i nterp reta tion 11 •

10 . 11 who cu r sed me •• 11 The ending in"1n. appe a rs to be the 3 pl. f . pf .

Cf . MG, pp . 223-4 .
 (£) ~~
(3) dLCLc. ~

(1) 4c)c.u

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•••QL!L! AL Uc.QLLl L4Uc. ~UQLl L4UL~QL1 L4U~ Ll Q~lL~ ~c.C~c.-

~04duL! Qc.CL! ~OLL J.~c.Cc.CL!L!LU~ L!Uc.d~ ~ Le,~ AL!L~c.CL1 ~l u···
Q~U~ LQL!c. ~U~ LL!~ LC~ 4C~L Q! LA(CLLL cyu COLc.LLL AOc.L~ Q~
••• ~ Cc. ~ c.~ L!4! 4 , ~ AG,Cc.~ LOL~C, ~ C~Q4c. ~ (11) CL41.!c.l 4L-

LLL GU CQLc.LLL (01) AOc.L,ULl LQOLc.ULl GC ,L, UL! LQ CLc.ULl

AO,Lc.~ ~o,L~ Loc o~L cc. ~"~ QC4c.~ ···{c:;c~L Ql GtLL! ~L,c~
~u ~ CL~··· LQ~J.,~ AO,L,~ LQC,~ L~QL,~ QC4c.~ a,c~u~ (s)
GG L,L,O ,LLC~ LC~ Ll.! c.c.~ AO,L,UL1 (g) LQOL,UL1 L!L~ ,~ L!LA-

LC,L!LU L!L~ , ~ 4LG,~ (l) ~CLL~,CL1 4CLJ.~ LQ, ~ dL,Lc.~ LLQ,L!

- - -
4,~ LAG@d~ CL CAU~ (g) QLLLU A4 !4~4 Q! !4'4~ ~L ~L!LLl
Q~QCLU~ L~4 QLL~ L4,UC~ (s) Qa~du~ A.1.,4 ··· G,4 A4 QLL !4,-
L~ (£) G~~ L~U~ Gld L!L~,~ ~.1.4 aQLL ooLL A4 (v) ,~Q~ ~4,ucw
A4 !4~4~ LA!4~1.!~ CCG~,cL! (3) 4t4~4~U~ L4CC~L A4~,cLl G -
 96.

TEXT 16

On the rock •••• (2 ) •••• and may he who annuls and s he who annu ls

curses pr evail ove r youl ( )) Get out , ye so rc e r e r s , be gone , de sc end

upon , descend upon (4) the sea that ca~not be c r oss ed and on the in-

acces sible mountains . (5) Go •• • fall on a rocky mountain and be

s hattered like a r otten egg (6) on a r ock f rom a r ock~ Their wicked-

ne s s has become co l d (? ) . Be disgr aced , you sorce rers l May (7) your

temple be like a pit c he r of cold water wh ic h has been cas t into the

Pirawis of t he g r eat J o r dan of Life . You are bound ( 8) and tie d

sorcere r s and so rc e r es s es , •••••• e ndowed with the evil eye ; they are

bound who are wicked and who utter evi l wo rds . (9 ) The y are bound,

the men ; they a r e bound , the women •••••• The evi l wo r ds ••• out of t he

body of Denduk daught er of Kos r iduk (10) ye a r e bo und a.nd t i ed; ye a re

bound and double bound •••• evi l ones , wit h r ol l ing orbs (? ) , untrust -

wo rthy bases , (11) a ll the cu r ses and calam i ties of darkness away f rom

Defnduk day7ghter of Kosriduk . He is boun d f rom whom ye have gone up,

(12) you r weapon is f r ustrat ed , t he new and old : i t is cast behind

you ••••may you command and not be obeyed nor appea r no r hea r. You r

eyes are bl ind and cann ot see .

Exterior

/JliJis ffie longs to7 the cemetery.

 97 .

COMdENTARY ON TEXT 16

5. 11 a nd be shattered ... 11 Mont gome r y, AI'r, P• 299 , an d Pognon

Il-iCK , p . 294s take pc ,!) as t he root. If the form is the

Etp . i mpv. the aleph ending is unusual. Cf . MG , P• 229, and

MLBT: p . 42. I f the f orm is a pe rfect, it wou ld be f . pl.

The text is ille g ible fo r the space of about seven letters

preceding 7, !) and it is uncertain wheth er 7' !l is a co mplete

form . Hence it is i mpossible to be sure of the parallelism.

The text mi ght read 11 they have cast t hemse lve s ••• and have been

s hattered ••• 11

6. 11 in cold •• 11 See Pognon I s remark s DvIC K, p . 91 .

7. 11 Pirawis ••• 11 The beth has assimilated to the following !)

•
Cf. MG , pp. 47-8. See 11 Piriawis 11 in MM II, PP • 102 and 305, and
Po gnon I s n ote, IMCK, pp. 96 -7. 11 Jord an 11 does not r efer to

J or dan of Palestine. Compare t he usage in DA, p. 6.

8. 11 evil eye ••• 11 See Pognon 1 s not e, D·'!CK , pp . 91 -2. Cf . also

BDB, c,, and Job. 15 : 12 . The win.'k: or f las h of t he eye could

be the ges ture, providin g semantic basis fo r apparent meaning

for whic h Pognon arg,u es.

12. "a ppear •• 11 If the form be taken as Etp ., 11 ap pe a r (in the guise

o f ) •• 11 , it would fit t he c onte xt he re. See J a s t row, Di ction~y.,

p. 313. Po gnon arg,-1es the.t t he magician put down the wrong

word.
 98 .

17.

' Kl ~1l 1 J ,ip ,p (3) Jb KnK '1PK 1 ini~ ,, (2) K'ilKi, Kj,,~

(5) 7Kp1 Kl Kb~1 i7Kp 7Kp J1'Kl ~ Jb1 ' ~l Kl (4) nKj K' j 1

f 1 KJ~ipJ (6) ~'ni1Kl1 l' ~~ li K'1J1l7Ky 1 K'1)n'b1 K' 7Kil

-~Kc, JK E' ~Kj 'Kb1 (7) JKW,JKb 1 Kt,i71 KnK 'l,'~T K' Wl, 7Kp
J1iKTK'1 (8) ' K1TK l'~'K7Y h'Ml K'JK1 K1lE J'T KilJ lKl'
J'l' J ' Ol 7'l'~'il0 ? 'Yt'.)i10 1 ?'KEi1Y1 KJi ? 'Y1E1 J11 KyK '1
iK)h1 l' ~i1 1bi ~ ,,p,, pj , l'i1'K~,,, l'i1' ~ 'Tl ~bi K'p, yJ (9)
1'il' ~ 'i1 l'ilK'Tl Kbi K'Pi YJ l'l'iKlb1 KbKii (10) l'' Kl1~p
nKJ K'JK? K'nt'.)K7i 7,,J (11) K'?iKbK 1 l'' Kili bi K'? Pi i yJ i

JK~l'i1i K1Kib Jb1 J'l ~K7 1 JY71 KJ'j Jb i17KibKi ' Kl ~3

• VT.l 1'~7 Kl' b1b1 l'~' K7 n'J~K ~'?KliKb~i J'lt'.)K7i J'li~Tl
-i KJi ?'YiE1 ]iipK 'i (13) Ki'1 ]1iT K'1 ~,,, ' Kii~ OiWJ
KnK~ ,, ,,~ Jb R'JK7 n,p, ~~ ,n, ~, , ~ ,n, 7'Y~'i10i ? 'YEii

KbY i KJKi ~hKt, 17 J7.i i l'h~K7i J' i1? i~ Kn~( 'iPK i pi~ 'l (14)
KhJti1 (15) Kn~ ,, Jbi Kni bK T1 ih 'l KT i Kht'.) '17 Jbi ~ ' t'.) '17,
-t'.)'17 Jb'l ill' b il? 'Tl il1l~1 1il~ 'l Ki 'l Yi Kht'.) '1 7 Jbi Kl1 ' 7 '1 ~ i
(16) i ,, ::im, ,, Jbi lP iKiil Jb l\nttr ,~:l lK7.&, ~,, ~ 'ilKi ~n

-i bK?WKi K' i ~' llE i ~'ii~Y ~ j , J Ji ~'ip~ 'l Ji~K7i ~'ii~i l'J'l
-K'il' b K' OK K7K7b:l ~h~ 'il' b J'il?'l~ K' OKbi ~'OK 11 Kl K Jil
-i ~ ' J 7 ~'i1 Kil' J i ~ 'iJ i1~ ' i ~l 71 Kh~ ~i7i ~7K7bJ (17) ~ll
-7j:)7 l'l~ :l i Oli l!J i i1 j') ~ .) ~ t{ ' :JK7 ~(~ l\ i,,.)J Jii17j:) ,~~,,

i1hK.'.l J7 i illJ?i C' JK il i i T7i ' Kp ip1;, (18) ·1~~~~1;,1 · KnK~ i7 l'M
7' YK~ , , , K::ii 7'YiK~, 11,pK 'i 7,,r~,, ' Ki TK c , w::i K' i ' CK i

p1;, l ''l t'.)K7i n~~ i, J'l' JKC i (19) l'l' ~ii10 n~ JK , , ~t,ilO i
 1
99.

TEXT 17

Turned away and repelled (2) are the cu rs es and incantations

from (3) Quqai son of Gushna l and Abi daughte r of ( 4) Nanai and

f r om their sons. Harld the sound I hea r is t he cry of t he ( 5) weak

who are c rushe d and the cry of men who strive and go down (6) into

battle and the c r y of impious women who cursed and who a ffli ct

(7) and practice sorcery and inau r e this body of Abi . There have

gone down against them Azdai, and ( 8 ) Yazarun and Yaqarun and the

great Prael and Urpael and Sahtael. And he has seized them , has
(9)
taken them by t he lo cks of the hair of thei r head s and by the t r esses
(10)
of their pates and he has b roken their horns tfiat were hi gh; he has

bound t hem by the locks of the hai r of t heir head and the tress es o f
11Re rn ove
thei r pates . And he said to them ( 11) what you have cursed

against Ab i daughter of Nanai. 11 And t he y said to him , 11

Because of

the pain in our heart we cu rs e and be cause o f the bitterness of ou r

11
palates ( 12) we ban and c u r se J1 And I said to them , I have made

you s we ar and I ad jure you in the name of the demon Azda i and the

demon Yazrun, and Yaqrun (13) and Gr eat Priel and Rupael and Sahitael

tha t you free and r elease Abi f rom all c u r ses ( 14) s._r1d incanta tions

that you have cursed, and f rom curses of f athe r and mother who

curse and f r om curs e of harlot and singing-girl and from curse of

(15) the grea t Lady and fetu s and f rom curse of hire l ing and em-

ployer who steals h is wage f rom h i m and from curse of brot hers who

do not d i vide aright ( the inheritance) a mon g the mselves and f rom

Ya h bwi (16) and aindadwi who curse a nd enchant in the name of temple -

s pirits and id ol spirits a nd have worked . Thou a r t t he heale r who

heals all wounds (17) wit h a wo rd : heal the wounds with the word
 100.

17.

, ~p,p1;, K'10~:,1 Kno ,1;, K' OK l l1hK l:l71 i1l J 71 K' 1K i1 1T1;,1 ' ~p,p1;,

-1;,~ 1' il ' ~i K7J 7)7 (20) J'l'ile1Kil7 'l m, ~o::21;,'l i1l :17 1 ~''.l tt l1 'li'1?1
K71 K'nJI ' ,n K7K7l 7Y, K'~iKJ 'l K'P JK~ , ~ 'iKW J1l'i11 Kb

iljJ' KJ1;, K'10~1;,, ini~ ,1;, J'il71j7 (21) J'l'nJKn~, nJh ' K'T KJ

l ' l ' hiKi~w, ' l.{i~vJb 1'71 ~ii1K!i1 ~n1i1 KO~tj 7>1' t-t' ::i~,, ' i\j?1p1

-'i11 ~7.:>1;,K J'il'i~b 7~ ' ~p , p1;, ~,,~~71 ~h~~i7 J'l'h'i~ i (22)

-b 7')i'.'.Ji ::t 'l ~~1'77.:> 7';,i'i'il ( 2 3) tl 'ltt7:l io,~:n Kj,''.:1Kili 1 ~PiKi?J J'l

K''l t,1:\1;,i ~h~ti ,, l'l17'1.'.)7 l'l'l.::li j 'l l'J'liW ~'~t{7~ J'l h l K ~~ Kt;,
Jbi K'JI i1'1KT Jb'l 'Kp 'l p Jb J'lii~ i K' :lK71 (24) ' Kp i pT.;,
-KT h ''.:l Jb 'l K' i'O, (25) h'J Jb i i J l K'i~ 'b ilh~lJ Jb'l illJ

K7 ~0 J' bi l' bK ~ J'

~' 'l:lill{ ' i:t 'Kj?'lj?

Kn:n, ,::i ' i0 1Zi' 1l 'l .::i

l ':l 1V1 J hKJ ~ '::lK

i:l ~ ' i 11-ti ' ~Oi'( J

'KiKi

••••
 101.

TEXT 17 (continued)

and the curses t ha t Ya hbwi a nd Binda dwi have uttered a gainst Abi and

which any have uttered a gainst Abi . Seize and h o l d a ll curs e s wh ich

they have uttered (18) a gainst Quqai and h is wife Abi and his sons

and dau ght e r s and he a l i n the name of Azdai and Yazrun and Yaqrun

and g r eat Parael and g reat Rupael and Sahtael . Thou , seize and (19 )

tak e the c u r ses wh ic h t hey have curs ed a gainst uqai and his wife Abi

and his sons and dau ghte r s . May he hea l t he cu r se wh ic h is ut tered

a gainst Q.uqai a nd his wi f e Abi a nd h is son s and daught e r s . And send

th em ba ck (20) to thei r authors , unt il they f ree and deliver and bl ess

them. On t hat rock ( ?) wh ic h is not split I h ave put it(?). I have

s eated myself and I have written ( 2 1) all curses whi ch are u t tered

against the house of Q,uqa i a nd a gains t Ab i on a new bowl of clay

which c annot be annulled and I have di s mis s ed them and ( 22) thrown

the curses whi ch are uttered a gainst Quqai on t hei r au t hors until

they f r ee and re l e as e and bl ess in the name of (2.3 ) t he ange 1 Sh r ae l,

and the angel Ba r kae l. Ye angels , loosen and bl es s all the curs es

wh ic h are utt e r ed again st Quqai (24) and .Abi a nd r emove them from

Quqai and f r om h is wife Ab i and from b is sons and his dau ghters, as

a man is del ive r e d fro m prison ( 25) and f rom armo r y . Amen , amen,

Selah .

Second Pane l Fi rst Pa ne l

l} Yahbwi 1} q,uqai son of

2} son of Duk.ta - 2} Gushnai

J) nosh Bin - )) Abi daughte r of

4) dadwi son o f 4) Nanai

5) Dadi Cente r Panel

1) o f the gate

2) of t he temp le (?)
5) ...
 102.

18.

-(3) ,::i 70:>1 i1il :J i fin , ::i1;, il?'iiln (2) ~nr.inili }(Nti 1i ~n , o~

-iii i :J K' 1i11;,i (4) ' K!'l3 J 11:J !1Ki1K iliT7i Ki :Jl T'biiil Ki~~

-,p~~ i K'i1'.l ;(!'li~tl i1;,1 (5) 10Kti'"7 ~"l? i ~b_i :.1 t'.J "l7 i ,,oy n~
K"~iKi11 KnK::ip.l (6) K!'lKi!'lOYi i ~, ,:i,r ~ ,,:i,n :J i ~"ilK7~1 Kn ~.,

l b i (7) T"biiil Ki EK il K~iO:> l b K' ~ ":J K"i~J i Yi i ~"~ "YJ

- bi DJ liJ K~ ., , , ,09 ~nKJJ 1r.i , ~Jl 1~, fiJK"J':Ji R1;,:i,;, fi111

li"K:JK:> K"n7.:>Vb i ~'7~lii ~ "~"li (8) Jih Kn ~,o Ktl "l7 li" K
R,1:Ji (9) ilh"J Jb K:>' ~Y ~nK 'iP, ~nKtii71 li' KJii Y xw, ~b i
-iipi Kii~ WJ iJ"Y il!'l ":JJ KJ911;,i:> Jbi T' biiil KiD' iJ Kii0:>1
JKt>K1;,1 '~t'.J ' ~77 R,x~, n,,r.i,,~Kbi (10) n,,,p:)bi l "O.l ~J K:J

JK~K71 'l~" K71 ~JKJl n::ipl~i"!'l i' bi iil Ki :)K i :J KiiO:> K'7'1?
niKb7 ~7 Kb'7~Kbi ' KJ"b (11) ~pi1Kib i ~:>., 9 KtliO:J ~.,7,;7
K"t> "i:) "K~"~,5 ~n,::i,1 ~nKJJ1;,i FiJ J7 j il iT7i ~, ,,, ' K0"77

K"7"1 lb K" PilKibi (12) K'!'lbKWbi K"7tllbi K'E"t>i1i K"i"T l

-Jl lbi 'K!'l~J:J l bi "K.l :J lbi "KiT l b i T'biii1 ~i DK i J ~tli O:>

(R bitV:J 1> i w,,, (13) JiW:J":J 7Kb i ir7J K"n,::i::i K_:J_Y1 ,,:i Jbi "Kn
l' n o,~::i in::ipJ JK!'l ~b~ii Ki:l"T n"n~bKii 7"9iJl K:JK7b1
Kb "!'li1i (14) Ki"09 Kn~::ipJ K!'lKihOY JK.l Kbn i ~"i:J"T K"ii:JY
•
Khtli7 K~i~bi Kb"iOi ~ii b i K~ "73 i ~b"7l~ 0b"?J i Ki "Tl'Y
-Y7:J ~hil 'i:7:Ji KJKi1ii11 1' "hb0Ki1 KJ"i.'ti Kht' "J tO "Ki ~n,,px,

,:i KiiO:J Jb ~PW"~ 0 "b J}!J 1;~7i:l ~.?i:>O~i (15) l(b"lii ~b

K"~ " ~J K"~ii1 K!'liJ":JO'bi Knp~ Kn .,, p p i !D~n T" bi iil ~, ~~

-P' , ~nJ"Oi (16) T"biii1 ~i ~K , :i ~,,o:i l b~ ., , ::i ~.,,~::i ,~,

-1 nn"J [1bj l b Ki~i'P1i ~nD ii"?,i ~h iJ":l0 ' bi ~J'lt!J i7i ~hD i
-"J" P Jb i n i1~ ,::i ~.,~,,,, K!'ll J [lD} ni:J n~i1K fi,r l bi Kii :i
 TEXT 18

Salvation and protection and sealing (2) may there be to the

house and body of Cho sroes son of (3) Ap r a-Hormiz, the husband, and

to his wife Ahat, dau ghter of Nastai ( 4) and to Dodaya son of Ahat.

Bound and seized is the mouth and seized is the tongue (5) of the

curses, oaths and invocations of deities, male id ols and of female

(6) Is htars , of evil sorceries and wicked practices from Chosroes

son o f Apra-Horcaiz (7) and f r om his dwelling, mansion and buildings ,

and f rom bis · sons and from his daughters. Bound a r e the ton gues of

their mouths, seized are their lips . (8) They are shaken (?) and

hobbled; banned are the teeth and deafened the e a rs of the curses

and invocations, turned away from the house (9) and body of Ohos roes

son of Apra - Hormiz and from all that is in his house . cYtIBHS. Gift

and offering are accepted and they appoint it (10) and deliver it to

its owner , (author), ray curser who cursed me, Ohos:roes. Averted and

far removed (11) f r om me and de livered to its author, to him who

curses me; to him and his wife a."11.d his sons and hi s daughters and the

house of him who curses me . They are split, cut, snatched, and

estopped and banned (12) and far removed from me Chosroes son of

Ap r a - Honniz and f rom my sons and from my daughters and f rom my house

and from everything that is in my bouse . In thy name ! Suppress (13)

and tramplfl in the na~7 of the angel Gab r iel and male Ramptit a.~d

female Ra.mptan. In the name of the sixty male shrine-spirits and the

eight y female Ishtars, bound ( 14-) and se a led flnd cut and :muzzle_i7

and encompassed and whipped and blinded ( 'i') and stopped and deafened

a r e the curse and invocation and the envious eye of poverty and •••••

Muzzled and stoned (15) and clos ed are all the evil mouths f rom Chosroes

son of Apra-Hormiz. Let there go out invocation and dist ress and
 104 .

18.

T'bii~ ~ j ~~ i J ~ i i0 ~7 07'i~n ~nTiTi (17) ~n i O~ i 0lX

-
~~~:i:11;, , (1:i) :1,, fi1i? i
 TEXT 18 (continued)

poverty, evil sorceries and evil practices f rom Chos r oe s son of

Apra-Hormiz (16) and hatred and knocking and curse and poverty and

co nfusion and 'dickedness from the house of Chosroes from his ,1ife

Ahat , dau ghter of Masta( i), and Dodaya, son of Ahat, and from his

property. And may t he re be salvation and protection for Chosroes

son of Apr a -Hormiz and h is wife ai.'1.d hiL~ s_Q/ns and daughters.
 106.

19.

_.,,., , l'i71?iJ1 ~:1, 1-Cti ' 1?1Z1 i ,•.,,.,,, 1i:J1?n, ;:( .'.l ~ili :Jl( ,,oy , ,

l"ID ~h'7'7 hN:7J~n, ~h '7'7 O~i7i1 7'.'.l ~J' b i b i 7'7~ h'J~N: ~ h~

, fin,K:11 ~n.e:,, Jo,:i, ;,n,~:i:i ~:in~ ,, ~n , 1;,,1;, ~,:i,~r, ~n ~,j

l(~j?~1u , ?(7t}l(l, l(fil)~b, !fil(i n:i N:1'llti1~1 , l\h:J7i1b , :i r, r.i,,;,
_,, Ol(i1;,N:i7 7 , 1;,~:i , r.i ibi 7 ,,~ n,::i ~nKp111 , ~,p,,~, ~p :i ~;,, ~~

-J ' ~i1bh'h1 ~n , , ,, ~ 'Ji~r, fin~,:i h:J ~h'7 ' 7 n~,J~n , Kh '7

- --
~'iilO 7>' t)~7~U'l ~i ~J1(7b o,,~'iti~pi ilh'Jiib:li 7':l'? OHJi~~
-1;,il 7,1;,, :i, n:i J'i l(il 1,mc , 1;, ,1;,, }( 'ibiili l( 'i1i1, ~,,,.z7 , ~.,,.,,,
-- -
-ilb ,:i i'biii1i i1il Di ilh'~ J Jb 1 'hiKtl.E)N: l'Tl(il, Kh '7'7 ON:1
-'Wl( ':J!1N:J1- 1J
- nnN:J::i,
- -
i7Jj Jbi ;>71}(1 !') :)
-
~l"l~il~ i7H 1%), l(J'l.E)? 10

·· ~n ~'ii t(J~, , 11: ,,,~i11t1;, o,n, ~tit0 i:i ::i 1,, :i,, ~ti'l l('i

p i ~, ~i p i l(h'7'7 O~i7 ~i1 ON:i7i1 7'h~bib 7':JN:p~ 7'0'l 7ij?

- -
-i i10i~ Jb i i1J~'J'Ji i17J'i1 - -
ili i N:i ilh' KJ Jb j?ll:il ih~i pii~i
-J J Jbi ,1~1 n~ KhR il~ ilil' Jbi N:h:)7i1b i J l''biii11 ~'1 ~0 ' :J
-Jl(7 Ji7' ~ii1'hK7 i Ji'iKO'J Jbi Ji' ~Oi~ Jbi Ji h~ J :i i Ji' ~ 15
o,n,;,, i'DYi 7jt)J'b~ ~bRb'1 JiJ~ii'ilJ~7i ~, 1;,,1;,11i'Rb?'i1

Kh~il~ ffil'i N:h~?ilb iJ Y'biii11 fiJ l( 'J''i i17J'i1 ~ii N:i ~h ' ~J

-b~ 7'bi U7J N:i1~7~ 9'7l 1'l 1 ~hj? 'i Y:J fin~JJi i7J :J i Yi~i hD

-~ finp'TYJ ~n Jj?i.'.li ~'iJ'T ~Il~ ' 7 '7 N:'h~b'l"l'il, N:'h~i'OY 20

~i'P~'i ~Ji nbiw Xi1~7~ 9'7l i'l i i'i~i iJ ~J7b Jib'7~

N:Ol\JJ ok?tt7 J'i ltii st:t:J'l O' ~p , ,.,,~tri y,,., Yii' y, ,., n~~ , ~ ,~

Jbi Kn~1;,i1b ,~ T'biii71 fi.n,K) l b ~p~1b1 ~h'? '7 ~r -~ ~1 'bY

l'J~~~''i1i Ji'~l ~ Jbi y,~, n~ ~n~i1N: i11T

- 2~
 107.

TEXT 19

Fo r the binding of Abu gdana king of the devils and g reat

ruler of all Lilit hs. (2) I adjure you and I conjure you , Lilith

Haldas and Lilith Taklath , (3 ) g r anddaughte r of Lilith Zarnai , who

is residing in the house a..nd on the threshold of the house of (4)

Hormiz son of Mahlaphta and of' Ahatha dau ghter of Dade, and who

is s mitin g and (trying to) kill , and striking and ( 5 ) throttling

boys and girls. I adju re you and conju re you , Lilith Haldas,

(6) and Lilith Taklath , g r anddaughte r of Lilith Zarnai, tha t you

be smitten in (7) you r i nnermost heart even with the lance of

Qat riawis the mona rch who r ules over magi ca l arts (8) and devils

and demons and spirits a..nd curses and liliths. I have written

th is against you (9) Lilith Haldas and ( with) this I have banished

y ou f r om the house and body of Ho?"'miz son of Mahlaphta (10) and

from his spouse Ahatha daught er of Dade and from hi s sons and daugh -

ters. s the demons write (11) a divo rc e - writ fo r their wiv es in

truth--and they do not return or come back (? )-- here t ( 12 ) Ta.1<:e

your writ and rec eive you r ban , Ha ldas , Li l ith Ha lda s, and fle e and

get out (13) and be gone and bet ake yoursel f a fa r f r om the hou s e

and domicile a..nd dwelling and buildings and f r om the c ou c h ( ?) •••

(llJ ) and pillow of Hormiz son ofMablaphta and f r om his spouse

Ahatha daughter of Da de and from their sons (15) and dau ght e rs

and f rom thei r bed and pillow and you shall not ap pear to them

eithe r in dreams (16 ) of the n i ght o r in visions of the day be cause

the house ( 17) of Hormiz son of Mahlaphta is bound and sealed, his

d,1elling , hi s residence , h is build i ngs, and h is wife Ahatha (18)

 108.

T~XT 19 (continued)

daughter of Dade and his sons and daughte r s Ln the power of ~i r

Ge lip h the deity • In t hy name (19 ) 1 Amaticma-- ha s 1 Abarri.agwat

•
.
cod , Cod, co d , ya, ya , yad , yad, yat, yat ,--( 20 ) bound &"1.d se a led
.
are Lilit hs :nale and f emale by the mi ght of (2 1) Solomon the king

son of David, a.nd of Sir Ge liph the deity whose name is g re at and
•
powerful : (22 ) G-e li pb the deity who se name is specified and •• •

He establ ished t he days in t he beginning : . .

(23) sub i bat, subibat:

yodac , yodac, yodac : true a nd fi r-.m fo reve r is this divorce-writ;

( 24) bound by t h is bowl i s the lilith and fa r r emov ed from the

hou se of Horm iz son of Mahla phta and fro m (25 ) hi s s pouse Ahatha

daughter of Dade and f rom their ch ildren . And Life is victorious l

 109.

APPENDIX I

MAGICAL BOWL DISCUSS I ONS SINCE ROSE NTP.AL 1 S

DIE ARAMAISTISC HE F'ORSC HUNG

Gordon, Cy rus H. 11 Aramaic Incantation Bowls, 11 Orientalia ,

N . S ., 10, 1941, pp . 116-14•1, 272 -22-4 , 339-560 .

----· 11 A Worl d of Demons and Li liths , 11 (C hap . X) , in

The Living Past . New Yori<:: Jo hn Day , 1941.

----· 11 Two Ma gic Bowls in Teheran ., 11 Or i e nta lia,

N.S., 20, 1951, PP • 506-3 15 .

Obe rmann, Julian. 11 T\,;o Magic Bowls, 11 American Journal of

Semitic Langua ges , LV I I, 194 0 , pp . 1-29 .

Rossell, 'rfilliam H. A Handbook of Aramaic Magic a l Texts .

( Shelton Sem itic Series: :Number T\10, De pa r tment of Semitics

of Shelton Co ll ege) Skyl a nds, Ringwood, New Jers ey , 195;5 .

 110.

APPENDIX II

ABBREVIATIONS USED IN WORD ANALYSIS PP . 2 0-36

Pra ctically a ll of t he abb revi a tion s listed below are t ho se

adopted by Rosse ll , A Handbook o f Aramaic :Magi c a l Texts , PP • 115 -

118 . The bowls publis he d by Professor Gordon outside the A-L series,
11
the 1-11 se r i es and the Two Magic Bowls in Te he r an 11 , I have de-

s ignated by the nota tion Frg. (= fra gment) and/o r mus eum accession

number .

Text Numbers Place of Publication

11
Go : l to 9 • • • Gordon, C.H., Arama i c I nc antat ion

Bowls , 11 Or i enta lia , 10 (1941), pp . 116 -

141.

Go : 10 , 11 • • • • • I bid ., pp . 272-280 .
11
Go : A to F • • Gordon, C. H., Aramai c Magical Bowls, 11

Arc hiv Orienta lni, 6 (1934), PP • 319 - 334.

Go : G .. . I bid ., PP • 466 -474.

Go : H to L • • • • I bid ., 9 (1937 ), PP • 84-95 °

11
Go :MBTa & b Gordon, C. H., Two iagic Bow ls, 11

Orient a lia, 2 0 (195 1 ), PP • 306-315.

All the follo wing Gordon bowls are found i n Or ienta lia, 10 (1941 ) , pp .

276 -284 and 339-360.

19745

Iraq : 9726

Ma l mo 25 . 498

Iraq 9 737

Prince . Ex . 4 283

Iraq 11113
 lll.

Text Numbe rs Pl a ce of Publication

8826

Fr g H:l: h :6
11
Hyv. • • Hyvemat, H., Su r un vas e judeo -

baby l onien du musee Lyck l ama de 0annes, 11

Zeitsc h rift fu r Keilsc h rift fo r schung,

II ( 1885), pp . 113-148.

Mo: 1 to 40 • • • • • • Montgomery, J. A., Aramaic I n ca nta tion

Texts , Ph ila . (1913), pp • 117-255 .

Pog • • • • • • • Pognon , H., IMCK

Sc hwab: A to E . .. • • • Schwab, M., PSBA, XII, (1890) PP • 292-342 .

Schwab : F, G . • • Schwab, M., RA, II (1892), PP • 136 -142.

Schwab:H to R • • Sch wab, M., PSBA, XIII ( 1901) pp . 583 -595.

Wohl :2422 • • Wohlste in, J ., ZA, VIII (1893 ) PP • 313-

340 .
 112.

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