Left Ginza | |
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The Left Ginza is one of the two parts of the Ginza Rabba, the longest and the most important holy scripture of Mandaeism. The other part of the Ginza Rabba is the Right Ginza. [1]
Summaries of each book (or tractate), based mostly on Häberl (2007), are provided below. [2] Translated excerpts are from Gelbert (2011), while Mandaic transliterations are derived from Gelbert (2011, 2021 [3] ).
Book 1 is a four-part prose text on the salvation process, beginning with the ascension to heaven of Seth, in advance of his father Adam (compare Sethian Gnosticism).
Book 2, poetic, comprises 28 hymns.
All of the hymns in Book 2 of the Left Ginza, in which the mana laments that it has been cast into the physical world, begin with the following refrain: [1]
I am a mana of the Great Life (mana ana ḏ-hiia rbia)
- I am a mana of the Mighty Life (mana ana ḏ-hiia rurbia)
I am a mana of the Great Life (mana ana ḏ-hiia rbia)
Since Mandaean priestly commentary texts often refer to hymns and prayers by their opening lines, the opening lines of each of the 28 hymns in the book are provided below. The English translations below are from Gelbert (2011), while the Mandaic transliterations are derived from Gelbert (2011, 2021 [3] ). Many of the opening lines are repeated but with the individual words ordered differently; in such cases, both versions are provided and are separated by semicolons.
Book 3, poetic, comprises 62 hymns, several of which are identical to or based on prayers in the Qolasta. Poems in Book 3 poetically describe the masiqta (ascension) of the soul to World of Light. They typically describe the soul ( nišimta ) being taken out of the ʿuṣṭuna, or "bodily trunk," and being guided by uthras through the matartas and past Ruha and the Seven Planets, as well as being taken up by the right hand into the World of Light and clothed in radiant garments of light.
The masiqta hymns in Book 3, many of which have close parallels in the Qolasta and Manichaean Psalms of Thomas (e.g., hymns 2-5, 7, 10, 15, 19-20, 22, 27, 41, and 43), are among the oldest Mandaic texts. [4] : 197 Van Bladel (2017) suggests that these hymns may have a common Elchasaite source. [5]
Since Mandaean priestly commentary texts often refer to hymns and prayers by their the opening lines, the opening lines of each of the 62 hymns in the book are provided below. The English translations below are from Gelbert (2011), while the Mandaic transliterations are derived from Gelbert (2011, 2021 [3] ).
Hymns 17 and 58 contain the following refrain:
Hymns 18, 37, and 45 all contain variations of the opening line, "As a child, my lifespan ended" (ianuq šilman kʿlai).
Hymn 62 contains the refrain, "Come, fall into the vessel ( mana )" (atun l-mana pil; atun pil l-mana).
Book 3 of the Left Ginza is followed by a colophon. There is only one colophon in the Left Ginza, whereas the Right Ginza has six colophons. [7]
Shlama beth Qidra is the earliest Mandaean scribe named in the Left Ginza's colophon. Zazai of Gawazta (fl. 270 AD) is not mentioned in the Left Ginza's colophon, although he is an important figure mentioned in the Right Ginza's colophons. [4] : 4
Several of the prayers in Drower's 1959 Canonical Prayerbook of the Mandaeans (CP), [8] mostly ʿniania ("responses") and masiqta prayers, correspond to hymns in Book 3 of the Left Ginza (GL 3): [7] [1]
GL chapter | CP prayer |
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3.2 | 96 |
3.3 | 94 |
3.4 | 92 |
3.5 (many lines) [1] | 69 |
3.7 | 98 |
3.10 [1] | 93 |
3.20 | 68 |
3.27 | 73 |
3.43 | 66 |
Several of the Left Ginza hymns correspond to some of the Psalms of Thomas . [6]
GL chapter | Psalms of Thomas |
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3.2 | 13, 18 |
3.15 | 2 |
3.22 | 13 |
3.41 | 13 |
3.43 | 6 |
Theodore bar Konai, c. 792 in the Book of the Scholion (Syriac: Kṯāḇā d-ʾeskoliyon), quotes the following passage as part of the teachings of the Kentaeans. The passage has close parallels with much of Left Ginza 3.11. [5] : 125
I am hastening and going to the souls.
When they saw me, they assembled before me.
They greeted me a thousand times and wailed and said to me,
‘O Son of Light, go and say to our Father,
"When will those in bonds be set free?
When will relief come to the pained who are in pain?
When will relief come to the souls who bear difficulty in Tibil?"’
I spoke and said to them,
‘When the Euphrates goes dry at its mouth,
and the Tigris dries from its stream,
and all the rivers dry up,
and all the stream-beds are leveled,
then relief will come to the souls.’
Compare Left Ginza 3.11: [1] : 126–127
I recite hymns and go along
to all the souls.
When they caught sight of me,
they assembled themselves and came out towards me.
They assembled themselves and came out towards me,
and they all greeted me.
They speak: "Son of the Good One! Speak to thy Father:
when will the captives be redeemed
When will the captives be redeemed
and will those who are anxious be relieved?"
"Before I speak to my father,
I will say it to you:
...
until the Euphrates dries up at its mouth
and the Tigris changes its course,
until all the seas dry up
and all the rivers, brooks and springs have overflowed
There will be relief for the souls
who live here in the house of trial (purgatory)."
The Qolastā, Qulasta, or Qolusta is the canonical prayer book of the Mandaeans, a Gnostic ethnoreligious group from Iraq and Iran. The Mandaic word qolastā means "collection". The prayerbook is a collection of Mandaic prayers regarding baptisms (masbuta) and other sacred rituals involved in the ascension of the soul (masiqta).
The Psalms of Thomas are a set of third-century psalms found appended to the end of a Coptic Manichaean psalm book, which was in turn part of the Medinet Madi library excavated in 1929. The psalms were originally published in 1938 by Charles Allberry.
A rasta is a white ceremonial garment that Mandaeans wear during most baptismal rites, religious ceremonies, and during periods of uncleanliness. It signifies the purity of the World of Light. The rasta is worn equally by the laypersons and the priests. If a Mandaean dies in clothes other than a rasta, it is believed that they will not reenter the World of Light, unless the rite "Ahaba ḏ-Mania" can be performed "for those who have died not wearing the ritual garment."
In Mandaeism, Rūha is the queen of the World of Darkness or underworld. She rules the underworld together with her son Ur, the king of the World of Darkness, and her entourage of the seven planets and twelve constellations, who are also her offspring with Ur.
In Mandaeism, the World of Light or Lightworld is the primeval, transcendental world from which Tibil and the World of Darkness emerged.
An uthra or ʿutra is a "divine messenger of the light" in Mandaeism. Charles G. Häberl and James F. McGrath translate it as "excellency". Jorunn Jacobsen Buckley defines them as "Lightworld beings, called 'utras ." Aldihisi (2008) compares them to the yazata of Zoroastrianism. According to E. S. Drower, "an 'uthra is an ethereal being, a spirit of light and Life."
The Right Ginza is one of the two parts of the Ginza Rabba, the longest and the most important holy scripture of Mandaeism. The other part of the Ginza Rabba is the Left Ginza.
In Mandaeism, Hayyi Rabbi, 'The Great Living God', is the supreme God from which all things emanate.
Dinanukht is a mythological character in the Ginza Rabba, one of the main religious scriptures of Mandaeism, who is portrayed as an anthropomorphic book. Book 6 of the Right Ginza describes his ascension to the World of Light.
In Mandaeism, Sam Ziwa is an uthra from the World of Light. Sam Ziwa is considered to be the Mandaean equivalent of Shem.
In Mandaean cosmology, Piriawis, also known as the Yardna Rabba, is the sacred life-giving river (yardna) of the World of Light. It is the heavenly counterpart of rivers on earth (Tibil), which are considered by Mandaeans to be manifestations of the heavenly Piriawis.
In Mandaeism, Simat Hayyi or Simat Hiia, the personification of life, is an uthra from the World of Light who is married to Yawar Ziwa.
The Mandaic word mana (ࡌࡀࡍࡀ) is a term that is roughly equivalent to the philosophical concept of nous. It has been variously translated as "mind", "soul", "treasure", "Garment", "Intelligence", "Heart", "Spirit", "Being"; or alternatively as "nous", "consciousness", or "vessel".
The Asiet Malkia or Asut Malkia is one of the most commonly recited prayers in Mandaeism. In the prayer, the reciter wishes health and victory upon dozens of heavenly and ancestral figures. According to E. S. Drower, it is recited daily by priests and also before all baptisms (masbuta), ritual meals (lofani), and various rites.
In Mandaeism, a ʿniana prayer is recited during rituals such as the masiqta and priest initiation ceremonies. There is a total of 26 ʿniana prayers. They form part of the Qolasta.
In Mandaeism, a dmuta or dmut is a spiritual counterpart or "mirror image" in the World of Light. People, spirits, and places are often considered to have both earthly and heavenly counterparts (dmuta) that can dynamically interact with each other. A few examples include:
In Mandaeism, Yufin-Yufafin or Yupin-Yupapin is an uthra in the World of Light. In the Ginza Rabba, Yufin-Yufafin is mentioned in Books 3 and 5.4 of the Right Ginza and Book 1 of the Left Ginza, whereas "Yufin-Uthra" is mentioned in Book 4 of the Right Ginza. He is also mentioned in many Qolasta prayers, including prayers 5, 9, 22, 28, 46, 77, 105, and 171, in which he is often mentioned along with uthras such as Sam Mana Smira and Nbaṭ.
In Mandaeism, the bshuma is a religious formula that is often written at the beginnings of chapters in Mandaean texts and prayers. The Islamic equivalent is the basmala.
In Mandaeism, the nishimta or nishma is the human soul. It is can also be considered as equivalent to the "psyche" or "ego". It is distinct from ruha ('spirit'), as well as from mana ('nous'). In Mandaeism, humans are considered to be made up of the physical body (pagra), soul (nišimta), and spirit (ruha).
Zihrun, is an uthra in the World of Light. He is the main subject of the Mandaean scroll Zihrun Raza Kasia.