Reading akkadian PRayeRs & Hymns An Introduction

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READING AKKADIAN PRAYERS AND HYMNS: AN INTRODUCTION
kaššaptu takšipanni kišpī ikšipanni kišipši
ēpišu īpušanni ipšū īpušanni epussu
ēpištu tēpšanni ipšū īpušanni epussi
O Nusku most great, offspring of Anu,
. . .
A (male) witch bewitched me; bewitch him with the witchcraft with which
he bewitched me.
A (female) witch bewitched me; bewitch her with the witchcraft with which
she bewitched me.
A sorcerer performed magic on me; perform on him the magic which he
performed on me.
A sorceress performed magic on me; perform on her the magic which she
performed on me.
THE PRAYER:
This prayer to Nusku is part of an apotropaic ritual whose purpose is to
provide relief from a dream with a possible bad portent. 7 The text introduces the
prayer with a simple indication of direct speech, umma šū-ma—in fact, this is
part of the ritual instructions. Unlike the common tri-partite structure of most
prayers, this prayer has two parts: an extremely short invocation and a complicated
petition, as the following indicates.
I) Invocation (lines 1–2a)
A) Name, relationship, and function
II) Petition (2b–11)
A) Plea for help (2b)
B) Nature of concern (2c–4)
1) Potential bad portents from a dream
2) Time of dream
3) Nature of knowledge of dream
a) The god’s
b) The supplicant’s
C) Request for remedy (5–7a)
1) In the case of a positive dream
2) In the case of a negative dream
a) Request that portent not be effective
b) Statement of disassociation
D) Ritual analogies and final petition (7b–11)
7 The prayer begins on line 3 of fragments K.3333+K.8583+Sm.1069, hereafter called MS A.
Another now very fragmentary tablet that once contained all or part of the incantation is 79-7-8,
77, rev. 1′–18′, hereafter called MS B.