Position in chronology
A balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana F)
Written in modern English
Inana declares that she will marvel at the fresh, soft foliage and lie down and run through it, longing for her bridegroom Ama-ucumgal-ana to speak tender words to her — the kind a farmer or shepherd would speak. Several lines break off here, their surfaces too damaged to read. She then describes a series of acts of nurturing: she will sprinkle water in Enlil's house and in his temple E-kur, making her mes tree put out new growth, and she will cause the king Ama-ucumgal-ana to flourish like a mes tree in the courtyard.
A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.
Translation — scholar edition
ETCSLI, the queen, will look with wonder at the foliage. I, Inana, will gaze at the soft foliage. May my bridegroom speak to me ...... kindly words such as a farmer or a shepherd would speak. I, the queen, will lie on the foliage. I, Inana, will run to the foliage. May they stand at my service ....... I will meet ...... Ama-ucumgal-ana. I will sprinkle water ....... I will make ...... shine. I will make my mes tree sprout forth. I will sprinkle water in the house of Enlil. I will make ...... shine. I will make my mes tree sprout forth. I will sprinkle water ...... in E-kur. I will make my king grow like a mes tree in the courtyard. I will sprinkle water in the house of Enlil. I will make the king Ama-ucumgal-ana grow like a mes tree in the courtyard.
Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature — scholar edition (Oxford, Black/Cunningham/Robson/Zólyomi).
Scholarly note
Composition c.4.08.06 in the ETCSL catalogue. Sumerian literary text reconstructed from multiple cuneiform manuscripts, the great majority Old Babylonian (c. 1900–1600 BCE). Translation reproduced from the ETCSL edition.
Attribution
Image: .
Translation excerpted from ETCSL c.4.08.06: A balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana F). Black, J.A., Cunningham, G., Robson, E. & Zólyomi, G. (eds.), The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature, Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Oxford. https://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin/etcsl.cgi?text=c.4.08.06.
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