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KTU 1.23 · the gracious gods
23.1.1-2
The Birth of the Gracious Gods 23.1.1-2 · I call the gracious gods
The hymn opens with a priest calling the gods by name.
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1𐎛𐎖𐎗𐎀𐎛𐎍𐎎𐎐𐎓
2𐎆𐎊𐎒𐎎𐎎𐎁𐎐𐎌𐎔
as the scribe pressed it into the clay, left to right, a small upright wedge between words
iqra1
𐎛i𐎖q𐎗r𐎀a1
ʾiqraʾu
I call
ilm2
𐎛i𐎍l𐎎m2
ʾilīma
the gods
, nʿ…3
𐎐n𐎓ʿ…3
naʿ…
the gracious…pleasant…
wysmm4
𐎆w𐎊y𐎒s𐎎m𐎎m4
wa-yasīmīma
and the beautifuland handsome
, bn5
𐎁b𐎐n5
banī
sons of
šp6
𐎌š𐎔p6
šap…
šp…
I call the gods, the gracious… and the beautiful, sons of šp…
I call the gods, the gracious… and the beautiful, sons of šp…
23.1.3-4
The Birth of the Gracious Gods 23.1.3-4 · A city on high
The hymn goes on describing the gods it calls, in words that are hard to pin down.
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3𐎊𐎚𐎐𐎎𐎖𐎗𐎚𐎍𐎓𐎍𐎊
4𐎁𐎎𐎄𐎁𐎗𐎌𐎔𐎎𐎊𐎄𐎗
as the scribe pressed it into the clay, left to right, a small upright wedge between words
who give a city on high, in the wilderness, on the bare heights, ydr…
The text opens as a liturgy. A speaker says “I call” and names the guests: the gracious and beautiful gods, who give the text its modern title. They are called again in line 23, and the story at the end tells how they were born.
The last word breaks off after two letters, šp. It may be “the heights” of line 4 or the sun goddess Shapash; the reading is argued.