A hymn to Shul-pa-ed (Shul-pa-ed A): translation

Version A

^1-9Hero, who shines forth like moonlight over the upper city! Hero Cul-pa-ed, who shines forth like moonlight over the upper city! Eminent and famous Cul-pa-ed, who shines forth like moonlight over the upper city! Lord of great divine powers, god who appears in glory, Cul-pa-ed, of great divine powers, god who appears in glory, lordly in battle, who makes vegetation grow tall in the Land! Lord who raises his great arms, battle-club that smashes all enemies! Pre-eminent brother-in-law of father Enlil, good youth! Enlil has named your august name.

^10-18Lordly with weapons in the thick of battle! Owner of the rebel lands, lordly in the rebel lands, my king, you are an august god! You are an august god, and your wife is an august queen. You are beloved by Ninhursaja. You are a hero before whom the gods are very fearful. Hero Cul-pa-ed, lordly in heaven and on earth, my ......, may your name be truly called upon in all the foreign lands! My king, may your greatness be truly called upon in all the foreign lands!

^19-30August ......, rising flood, storm which approaches mankind! People bring their prayers to you like anxious birds. Rising ......, imbued with awesomeness, no one ...... you. Of terrifying appearance, endowed with fearsome splendour, you are imbued with great awesomeness. You are a hurricane that approaches mankind, a great ...... that sweeps men down, ...... that ...... mankind! In the mountains you measure the fields like a ....... ...... emitted from heaven, without compare, ......, who brings daylight to the mountains, ......, battering ......, ......, who flashes like lightning.

^31-40Falling upon mankind like a ...... bird of grief, a namtar demon with no hands or feet, suited (?) to the night, prowling at night like a namtar demon, ......, shaped like a ...... -- you, hero Cul-pa-ed, are the lord of orchards and gardens, plantations and green reed-beds, of the quadrupeds of the wide high desert, of the animals, the living creatures of the plains. An, king of the gods, has put them in your hands; he has put them in your hands, and you are their lord. Hero Cul-pa-ed, they cannot escape your clutches.

^41-48It is his food that anyone who has food eats; it is his water that anyone who has water drinks. And so people no longer call upon the name of their personal gods, but ...... in every mouth the name of him who is their only god. The hand ...... of his god ....... He does not ...... the hand, he does not ...... the mouth. He takes away ....... ......, he gives you your .......

^49-61You are the throne-bearer of An and Enlil, the fierce constable of the gods, and the table-steward of Enlil. You do not ...... these people what you have placed. He brings (?) to you ....... ...... that he has handed you. ......, after you have ...... from above; the heavy ...... cover ...... like a garment. ......, after ...... has said ......, ......, he addresses a prayer to you. After he has declared his ...... of lament to you, he calls (?) to you like a ...... of a boat in an inundation, and raises ...... to you.

^62-85You make him shine like gold, and polish him like bronze, then you restore him to the benign hands of his god. ...... shining, and lifts his head proudly. ...... appears gloriously in the Land.
5 lines fragmentary
......, you release ...... for your beloved. ......, you place ...... for your little ones. ......, you release ...... for your little ones. ......, you release ...... for your great ones.
2 lines fragmentary
...... on the fifteenth day.
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You are the merciful king of the foreign lands ......, looking mercifully .......
1 line fragmentary

Version B (fragment of a divergent version)

unknown no. of lines missing

^1-8 6 lines fragmentary
....... like Cul-pa-ed. My king ...... may he call your name.

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Revision history

22.vii.1999-27.vii.1999 : JAB : adapting translation
02.xii.1999 : GZ : proofreading
05.xii.1999 : GC : tagging
22.xii.1999 : ER : proofreading SGML
22.xii.1999 : ER : converting to HTML 4.0
7.ix.2001 : ER : header and footer reformatted; substantive content of file not changed