SAA 03 013. Dialogue Between Assurbanipal and Nabû (ABRT 1 05-06)
Obverse | ||
o 1o 1 | [ad-da-na-ab]-⸢bu⸣-ub ta-na-at-ta-ka dPA ina UKKIN DINGIR-MEŠ GAL-MEŠ | (1) [I constantly spe]ak in praise of you, Nabû, in the assembly of the great gods; may [the host of] those who [wish] me ill not take possession of my life! |
o 22 | ||
o 33 | [ina É dšar-rat]—⸢NINA⸣.KI at-ta-na-aḫ-ḫar-ka qar-rad DINGIR-MEŠ ŠEŠ-MEŠ-šú | (3) [In the temple of the Queen of Ni]neveh I approach you, hero among the gods, his brothers; [you are the t]rust of Assurbanipal for ever and ever! |
o 44 | ||
o 55 | (5) [Ever since] I was [a small child] I have lain at the feet of Nabû; [do not abandon me] to the assembly of my ill-wishers, O Nabû!" | |
o 66 | ||
o 77 | (7) Pay a[ttent]ion, Assurbanipal! I am Nabû. Until the end of time your feet shall not grow slack, your hands not tremble; your lips shall not become weary in praying to me; your tongue shall not falter on your lips, | |
o 88 | ||
o 99 | ||
o 1010 | ||
o 1111 | (11) Because I will endow you with pleasant speech. I will lift your head and straighten your body in the House of Emašmaš. | |
o 1212 | ||
o 1313 | (13) Nabû continues: "That pleasant mouth of yours which constantly prays to Urkittu; your figure, which I created, prays incessantly to me in Emašmaš. | |
o 1414 | ||
o 1515 | la-an-ka ša ab-nu-u-ni it-ta-na-aḫ-ḫar-an-ni a-na i-tu-us-si ina É.MAŠ.MAŠ | |
o 1616 | (16) "Your fate, which I devised, incessantly prays to me thus: 'Bring safety into Egašankalamma!' | |
o 1717 | ||
o 1818 | ZI-MEŠ-ka it-ta-na-aḫ-ḫar-a-ni ma-a TI.LA-su ur-rik šá mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A | (18) "Your soul incessantly prays to me: 'Prolong the life of Assurbanipal!'" |
o 1919 | ka-mì-iṣ ina ki-in-ṣe-e-šú mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A it-ta-na-aḫ-ḫar a-na dAG EN-šú | (19) Assurbanipal is on his knees, praying incessantly to Nabû, his lord: Please, Nabû, do not abandon me! My life is written before you, my soul is deposited in the lap of Mullissu. |
o 2020 | ||
o 2121 | ||
o 2222 | ad-da-ni-ka dPA gaš-ru la tu-maš-šar-an-ni ía-ši ina bi-rit ḫa-da-nu-u-a | (22) Please, powerful Nabû, do not abandon me among those who wish me ill! |
o 2323 | (23) A dream god answered from the presence of Nabû, his lord: | |
o 2424 | (24) Fear not, Assurbanipal! I will give you long life, I will entrust pleasant breezes with your soul; my pleasant mouth shall ever bless you in the assembly of the great gods. | |
o 2525 | ||
o 2626 | pi-ia am-mì-u ša DÙG.GA ik-ta-nar-rab-ka ina UKKIN DINGIR-MEŠ GAL-MEŠ | |
Reverse | ||
r 1r 1 | ip-te-te mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A up-ni-šú it-ta-na-aḫ-ḫar a-na dPA EN-šú | (r 1) Assurbanipal opened his hands, praying incessantly to Nabû, his lord: |
r 22 | šá iṣ-ba-tu ina GÌR.2 dšar-rat—NINA.KI la i-lu-ad ina UKKIN DINGIR-MEŠ GAL-MEŠ | (r 2) May he who grasped the feet of the Queen of Nineveh not come to shame in the assembly of the great gods; may he who sits next to Urkittu not come to shame in the assembly of those who wish him ill! |
r 33 | šá ina qa-an-ni ša dur-kit-tu ka-mus la i-lu-ad ina UKKIN ḫa-da-nu-te-šú | |
r 44 | (r 4) Do not abandon me to the assembly of those who wish me ill, O Nabû! Do not abandon my life to the assembly of my adversaries!" | |
r 55 | ina UKKIN EN—ṣa-as-si-ia la tu-maš-šá-ra ZI-MEŠ-ia | |
r 66 | ṣe-eḫ-ru at-ta mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A ša ú-maš-šir-u-ka ina UGU dšar-rat—NINA.KI | (r 6) You were a child, Assurbanipal, when I left you with the Queen of Nineveh; you were a baby, Assurbanipal, when you sat in the lap of the Queen of Nineveh! Her four teats are placed in your mouth; two you suck, and two you milk to your face. |
r 77 | la-ku-u at-ta mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A ša áš-ba-ka ina bur-ki dšar-rat—NINA.KI | |
r 88 | er-bi zi-ze-e-šá ina pi-ka šak-na 02 te-en-ni-iq 02 ta-ḫal-líp ana pa-ni-ka | |
r 99 | ḫa-da-nu-te-ka mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A ki-i si-pi ina pa-an me-e i-šu*-ʾu | (r 9) Your ill-wishers, Assurbanipal, will fly away like pollen on the surface of the water. They will be squashed before your feet like burbillātu insects in spring! |
r 1010 | ki-i bur-bi-il-la-a-te ša pa-an šat-ti un-ta-at-ar!-ru-qu ina IGI GÌR.2-ka | |
r 1111 | ta-az-za-az mAN.ŠÁR—DÙ—A ina tar-ṣi DINGIR-MEŠ GAL-MEŠ tu-na-ʾa-ad ana dPA | (r 11) You, Assurbanipal, you will stand before the great gods and praise Nabû! |
rest uninscribed |
Adapted from Alasdair Livingstone, Court Poetry and Literary Miscellanea (State Archives of Assyria, 3), 1989. Lemmatised by Mikko Luukko, 2019-20, as part of the research programme of the Alexander von Humboldt Chair in the Ancient History of the Near and Middle East at LMU Munich (Karen Radner, Humboldt Professorship 2015). The annotated edition is released under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 3.0. Please cite this page as http://oracc.org/saao/P313430/.