Babylonian liturgies; Sumerian texts from the early period and from ...

— XLVlll
first section is ijased upon an old song' and represents Gula of Isin weeping for
the temples ol Xippur and Isiu. Melody upon melody follows, several of them
clearly old Isin song's arranged with popular refrains and selections which can be
traced in other compositions. So far as the general sense is concerned any one of
these songs is complete in itself and show s us llic great niotlier goddess weeping
because of the Avrath i>f Hnlil. The tasli of the liturgists appears to have consisted
in selecting old songs with tiiis idea. lH us Ihis succession of jjsalms becomes
wearisome lor each repeats the same general uh'a. I>ut the rhythms vary greatly,
and no doubt the musical motifs did also. Xole for example the movements of the
lirsl lines of a few songs. Section [wn liegins : —
ir;ii iirn-mH-iiiii iriii urn iin'iinu
ii';ii itru-iniiniu niii/i'i sirr:t inii urii-iii/iniu
• .Mas my city. alas my city.
.Vlas my cily, oh master of song, alas my city '.
Compare with this the opening strains of the third section: —
(•'(////' ihui umiiiii iljzfilc
iliiii rdin (• iluH iiimini ibznlc
The plain ^^ itli lament she tills.
With lament, yea the plam -with lament she fills ".
Here follows a long section repeated again in the fifth and eighth sections, like-
wise after tAX'o lines of a new uielody.
In a lew K)ng litanies ^^e find between sections a single line ruled off from the
preceding- song and from the following by double lines (in the late period by a
sing-le line, j The meaning of these interludes lias always been a mystery for they
have no connection with what precedes or follow s. The habit of taking up a pause
between two melodies in this way originated in thi' cloisters of Sumer. for the liturgy
we have jusi discussed contains at least two such interludes. Sections two and three
are divided b\ a sins