Background information
from Drower
Various sections
of the Canonical Prayerbook
Copyists
BOOK OF SOULS Prayers 1-31
MASIQTA Prayers 32-72
The Letter ('ngirta) Prayer 73
COLOPHON #74
HYMNS OF PRAISE Prayers 75-77
The Responses ('niania) Prayers 78-103
The Rusma (Daily Ablution Prayers)--Prayer 104
ASIET MALKIA Prayer 105
Rahmia (Daily Devotional Prayers)--Prayers 106-168
Colophon 169
Tab Taba Ltabia (the full Commemoration prayer forthe dead and living--Prayer 170
Hymns of Praise--Prayers 171-172
Sumhata (The Names)--Prayers 173-176
Little New Year's Feast Prayer--Prayer 177
Prayers for honoring the crown--Prayer 178
Hymns of marriage and a new priest (including the series Kt Azil Bhira Dakia-- Prayer 179-198
Colophon 199
Prayers 200-283
Colophon 284
Prayers 285-304
Coronation Prayers and hymns (including two for myrtle)-- Prayers 305-328
Colophon 329
BANNER HYMNS Prayers 330- 347
Blessed Oblation Prayers and Hymns--Prayers 348- 374
Blessings on the chief celebrant after Blessed Oblation-- Prayers 375-381
Myrtle prayers and hymns--Prayers 382-385
Various prayers 386-409
Prayer of Yahia--Prayer 410
Odd hymns--411- 412
OF THE MANDAEANS
'Niania
PRAYERS 91 -103
My vigilance and praisegiving
Are my ferrymen across (the waters of death) ;
A transformation brought me over,
A cloud of light took me over.
In purity shalt thou rise to the Place of Light.
92
In the name of the Life!
Go in peace, chosen, pure and guiltless one;
Thou art without spot.
Thou hast proven thyself by (thy sojourn on ) earth
And thy destiny leapt upward from its struggles
From its struggles thy destiny leapt upward.
Above all the world thou hast spoken.
Chosen and pure one (saying),
"I am a seer, a diviner;
A seer am I and a diviner!"
The worlds assembled for judgement,
For judgement the worlds assembled
And judgement was pronounced on them,
On them was judgement pronounced,
On those who did not perform the works
Of right-dealing Man.
But thou alone, Chosen and Pure One,
Fair mana, that art burnished bright,
Thou goest not to the judgement hall.
Judgement will not be pronounced over thee,
Over thee judgement will not be pronounced;
Because thou didst perform the works
Of right-dealing mankind.
This , that they endure and bear,
Thou (O) Chosen One, wilt not find before thee.
Escape the clutch of the planets
And the forces of this wvorld!
Take, put on thy garment of radiance,
Set on thy living wreath!
Bow thyself! and worship!
Prostrate (thyself) and praise the Great Life.
Praise the Place of Life
To which thy fathers go.
Thou (O) Chosen One,
Wast not from here;
From this place thou wast not transplanted
Thy planting, thy place was the Place of Life,
Thy home the Everlasting Abode.
They have set up for thee a throne of rest
In which there is no heat or wrath.
There is kept for thee a girdle
In which there is no trouble or fault .
Good one! Rise to the House of Life!
And go to the Everlasting Abode !
They will hang thy lamp amongst lamps of light
And they will shine in thy time, and lit thy moment.
Arise! Behold the Place of Light!
Renowned is Life and victorious
And victorious the man who went thither.
93
The mana rejoiceth in its treasure
And in the glory of Life
Which resteth on it.
I have acknowledged thee
(O) elect righteous one,
For thou settest my soul free
From transitory things.
94
Hail to thee, hail to thee, soul
That hast departed from the world!
Thou leavest corruption and the stinking body
In which thou hast been: (thou leanest)
Its abode, the abode of the wicked,
The place which is all sinning,
The world of darkness,
Of hatred, jealousy and dissensions,
The abode in which the planets go about,
Bringing pains and blemishes,
Pains they bring, and blemishes,
Every day causing them tribulation.
Rise up, rise up, soul!
Ascend to thy first homeland.
Rise, rise to thy first homeland,
The place from which thou wast transplanted,
To the place from which thou wast transplanted,
To thy good dwelling, (the dwelling) of 'uthras,
Bestir thyself! don thy garment of glory
And set on thy living wreath.
Rise! inhabit the S'kintas
Amongst the 'uthras, thy brethren.
As thou hast learnt, praise thy first Home;
And curse this place, the house of thy fostering;
For (during) the years that thou didst spend therein
Every day the Seven were thine enemies,
The Seven were thine enemies and the Twelve
Beset thee with persecution.
Renowned is Life and victorious,
And victorious the man who hath gone thither.
95
Her Sunday, her kus'ta and her alms
Bear witness for the soul.
Ye will be her witnesses
And will pass her through at the toll-house.
96
I am provided and provisioned:
'Uthras of light equipped me.
I am provisioned; for Life provided for me.
And I am equipped by 'uthras of light.
They provided me with provision of Truth
I lifted mine eyes to heaven
and my soul waited on the house of life.
And the life who heard my cry
sent toward me a deliverer.
The deliverer who came to me
brought me that which was lovely;
he opened out a robe and showed me its radiance
and I cast off the stinking body.
He grasped me with the palm of his right hand
and led me over the waters of death.
Over the waters of death he brought me
and led me onward; in the likeness of life he supported me.
Life supported life, Life found its own.
Its own self did Life find
and my soul found that for which it had looked.
renowned is life and victorious
and victorious the man who went hence.
97
He rose and took me with him
and did not leave me in the perishable dwelling.
98
The day on which the soul goeth forth,
on the day that the perfected one ascendeth,
on the day that the soul issueth from below
the spheres of death, of contention,
strife was thrown into the earth.
ruha's slaves sit bewailing
and the seven sit in consternation.
the robe of the stars is lent
and dust is cast on ruha's head.
the hell-beasts weep
and the demons of purgatories are panic-stricken.
the being who brought me hither,
who brought me that which was beautiful,
put on me a robe, clothed me in a robe of radiance,
in a wrapping of light he covered me.
he set on (my head) a wreath of ether
and (gave me) of that which life bestoweth on the 'uthras.
he set me up amongst 'uthras
and stood me up amidst the perfected (souls).
a wreath of ether he set on my head,
and gloriously he brought me forth from the world.
life supported life,
life found its own,
its own did life find,
and my soul found that for which it had looked.
renowned is life and victorious,
and victorious the man who went thither.
99
Ye are set up and raised up, my chosen ones,
by the word and certitude that came to you
the word and the certitude that came to the good,
the true word which came to believers.
my chosen, ye sought and ye found,
moreover ye shall seek and ye shall find.
ye sought and found, my chosen ones,
as the first (souls?) sought and found.
thou art victorious, manda-d-hiia.
and thou bringest to victory all who love thee.
and life is victorious.
[here recite "Blessed and praised is Life, that souls".]
100
In a building which life buildeth,
good trees flourish.
fragrant is the perfume of the trees
with the perfume of manda-d-hiia
which pervadeth them.
[here recite "Blessed and praised be Life"
of Shem son of Noah,and "Good is good for the good".]
101
The life hath founded a dwelling,
and radiance dawned
in the sublime ether!
i and my brethren, the 'uthras,
have set out every good thing ,
have set out the allotted portion of the great (life):
we have offered it up in purity to the place of light.
102
The building that life buildeth
will never come to nought.
[repeat this hymn after thou hast partaken of the communion
and then say "Darkness is crushed back into the Dark and Lightset up in its place".]
103
Darkness is crushed back into the dark
and light is set up in its place.
the life hath accepted your prayer,
the 'uthras have accepted your praise
the oblation is assigned to its lord,
and bounty to him who giveth it.
this soul ot n, and the souls of this masiqta rest at the
great place of light and the everlasting abode.
and life is victorious.
[here recite "In great radiance am I immersed" and lift thy hand for the masiqta and pray a prayer for thyself. and life is victorious.]
