Part II: Ba’al Celebrates His Victory Over Yahm

For this part of the myth, i have compared the transliterations of de Moor and Driver with translations by Cassuto, Coogan, Gaster, Ginsberg, and Driver as edited by J. C. Gibson.

For bibliographic information, see Sources.

3 A - V AB

Gordon, ’nt, i-iii

Col. i

(ca. 25 lines missing)

  1. "Do not lower [your heads]."
  2. Then Radamin does [serve/service to] Mightiest
  3. Ba’al; he does [wait upon/honor] the Prince, Lord of
  4. the Earth. He does rise, he sets (the table)/prepares food
  5. and gives it to him to eat;
  6. he divides a breast before him,
  7. with a sharp blade
  8. he does cut up a fatling. He does get up,
  9. he makes ready a feast and gives him drink;
  10. he places a cup into his hand(s),
  11. a flagon into both his two hands,
  12. a large beaker, great to see, a jar
  13. of [men of heaven (D/G)/ sky folk (Ga)], a holy cup
  14. such as/which should never woman/women see/regard/behold, a goblet
  15. such as/which should never `Athirat set her eye on; a thousand
  16. pitchers he takes of (new autumn) wine,
  17. ten thousand he mixes in - his mixture (D/G)/the mixing bowl (C). ALT: 16. barrels it holds, wine enough (Ga) 17. to be mixed in ten thousand portions. While he is mixing it, (Ga)
  18. One does rise, one chants and sings,
  19. cymbals in the hands of the minstrel;
  20. sings the youngster with a sweet voice
  21. over/of Ba’al in the Heights
  22. of Tsaphon, the North. Catches sight does Ba’al of
  23. his daughters, he sets his eye on Pidraya
  24. daughter of `Ar/mist/light; also on Talaya
  25. daughter of Rabb/showers/rain; Pidar knows
  26. [- - -]t. `im[-]lt
  27. [- - -? ]
  28. [ ]rt
. . . . . . . . . .
[Lacuna of about 20 lines according to Gaster;
ca. 12-14 lines say Driver/Gibson
]

B

Col. ii

  1. There comes she, bathed in the scent
  2. of henna enough for seven maidens, in a scent
  3. of coriander/saffron and ambergris/murex. Closes the gates
  4. of the house does ’Anat and meets she the messengers
  5. at the base of the mountain. And lo, ’Anat
  6. gives battle in the valley; Mightily she cuts in pieces the people of
  7. the two cities; She slaughters the people of the Western Shore;
  8. She destroys the men of the Eastern Sunrise.
  9. Beneath her like balls roll heads,
  10. above her like locusts fly palms of hands; like avenging grasshoppers
  11. are the hands of the quick warriors. She hangs
  12. heads on her back; she binds
  13. hands to her belt. Up to her knees she wades
  14. in blood of the swift soldiers, to her thighs in the gore
  15. of quick warriors. With her shafts she drives out
  16. the enemies; with her bow-string the foes.
  17. And lo, ’Anat to her house proceeds;
  18. Betakes herself does the goddess to her palace.
  19. But not sated is she with the fighting in the valley,
  20. by her cutting down the sons of the (two) cities. She sets up
  21. chairs for swift soldiers; she sets up tables
  22. for troops; footstools for heroes.
  23. Greatly she battles and beholds;
  24. ’Anat hews & cleaves and observes;
  25. Swelled are her innards with laughter, filled
  26. is her heart with joy, the liver of ’Anat with
  27. triumph. Up to her knees she wades in blood
  28. of swift soldiers, to her thighs in the gore of quick warriors.
  29. until she is sated she fights in the house.
  30. she hews and cleaves amid the tables. Wiped
  31. from the house is the blood of swift soldiers; Poured (out) is oil
  32. of peace[-offering] (for peace & well-being) from a bowl. She washes her hands,
  33. Batalat ’Anat, the Maiden; her fingers, Yabamat Li`imim: the Kindred of the Peoples (of Ugarit)/ Thousand (Deities);
  34. She washes her hands of the blood of swift soldiers,
  35. her fingers of the gore of quick warriors.
  36. Puts back chairs with chairs, tables
  37. with tables, footstools she puts back with footstools.
  38. She scoops up water and washes,
  39. in dew of the Heavens, oil of the Earth (i.e., fat of the land), rain
  40. from Rider of the Clouds/which pour the clouds; dew that the heavens pour out,
  41. rain the stars pour, spray the stars shed.
  42. She adorns herself with murex/ambergris, one thousand tracts away
  43. its source in the sea.

KTU 1.3

Col. iii

C

  1. . . . . . .
  2. . . . . . .
  3. . . . . . .
  4. a. She takes her lyre in hand,
Walls
4b. She puts the r`imt-instrument
5a. to her breast, sings of love for
Cassuto
4b. [..... passion
5a. for his bosom, (Ca-Co) (rightly) for the affection/love of
Driver
4b. She puts corals
5a. on her breast, sings of (her) love for
Gaster
4b. hath been implanted
5a. (in his breast/ unto the bosom) a feeling of tenderness of
Mightiest (5b)
  1. Ba’al, of affection of Pidraya bat `Ar, Flashing Brightningette daughter of Light/Mist
  2. of desire of Talaya bat Rab, Dewie daughter of Distillation/Rain, of love of `Aretsaya
  3. bat Ya’abdar, Earthie daughter of Wide/Broad [Flow/Flood/Expanse/Field]. Forthwith, O pages,
  4. and enter; at the feet of ’Anat bow
  5. and fall down; prostrate yourselves, do homage unto her,
  6. And bring word to Batalat ’Anat, the Maiden,
  7. repeat to Yabamat Li`imim, the Kindred of the Peoples (of Ugarit)/ Sister-in-law of the Thousand (Deities):
  8. "Message of Mighty `Aliyan Ba’al Puissant, word of the Mightiest of Warriors:
    "Withdraw/Banish/Remove from//Put in/on the earth
  9. war(fare)//an offering of loaves, Set in the land/dust mandrakes of love,
  10. pour forth peace(-offerings) in the midst of the earth,
  11. rain honey from a pot like a libation of love in the heart of the fields.
  12. You hurry! Your hasten! You rush!
  13. to me thy feet let run; to me
  14. let hasten thy legs. Truly a tale
  15. I have that I would tell thee,
  16. a word that I would recount to thee, a tale
  17. of trees and a whisper/charm of stones
  18. the sighing/murmur of the Heavens to the Earth,
  19. of the Seeps to the Stars,
  20. I understand lightning not known to the Heavens,
  21. a tale not known to humankind, nor yet understood
  22. by the multitudes of the Earth. Come, pray, and I myself
  23. shall reveal it, in the midst of my mountain, the divine Tsaphon of the North,
  24. in the holy place, the mountain of my inheritance, in the pleasant place, the hill of my triumph."
  25. Behold, ’Anat espies the two gods, On her, her feet
  26. stumble/shake/start to tap, behind her/roundabout her loins/back/hips seems as if about to burst/ crack/ shatter/ break,
  27. above her face sweats, she convulses/trembles/shakes the joints
  28. of her hips/backside, the muscles of/become weak/ quivers - her back/spine. [Comment: the standard reaction of a female character to an unexpected visit]
    She lifts up
  29. her voice and cries: Why have Gapen and `Ugar come?
  30. What foe does rise against Ba’al, enemy
  31. against the Rider on the Clouds? Did I not demolish the darling
  32. of `El, Yam the Sea? Did I not make an end of/finish off Nahar the River the great god divine Rabim (C)
  33. Did I not snare the Dragon, vanquish/envelope him?
  34. I did demolish the Wriggling/Twisting/Tortuous Serpent,
  35. the Tyrant with Seven Heads;
  36. I did demolish the Darling of the gods, `Arsh, Desire (C),
  37. I did silence/annihilate the Calf divine/of `El, ’Atik, the Quarrelsome, the Rebellious One
  38. I did destroy the Bitch of the gods, `Ishat, the Firey,
  39. I did make an end of/finish off the daughter of `El, Zabib/ Zebub, the Flame.
    [ He did fight (D/G)/I battled] for the silver (C)/I will again do battle (Ga) and
  40. was dispossessed/I took possession/will possess me of gold
    who banished/of him that would thrust (Ga)/Has driven been (C) - Ba’al

Col. iv

  1. from the Heights of Tsaphon, the North, who stops/pecks like a bird,
  2. his ear, [who drove/have they driven/that would drive] him from the throne of his kingdom,
  3. from (the cushion on/his dais, from) the seat of his dominion.
  4. What foe then rises against Ba’al, what enemy against the Rider on the Clouds?’
  5. And the servitors do answer and give reply: "No foe rises
  6. against Ba’al, enemy against the Rider on the Clouds.
  7. The message of Mighty Ba’al, the word of the Mightiest
  8. among Warriors: "Withdraw/Banish/Remove from the earth war//Put in/on the earth an offering of loaves
  9. Set in the land/dust mandrakes of love, pour forth peace(-offerings)
  10. in the midst of the earth, rain honey from a pot like a libation of love in the heart of the fields.
  11. Hurry; hasten; rush! to me thy feet
  12. let run; to me let hasten thy legs.
  13. Truly a tale I have that I would tell thee, a word
  14. that I would recount to thee, a tale of trees and a whisper/charm
  15. of stones; a tale not known by humankind, nor yet understood
  16. by the multitudes of the earth. The sighing/murmur of the Heavens to the Earth,
  17. of the Deeps to the Stars, I understand lightning
  18. not known to the Heavens. Come, pray, and I myself
  19. shall reveal it, in the midst of my mountain, the divine Tsaphon of the North,
  20. in the holy place, in the mountain of my inheritance."
  21. And answers Maiden ’Anat, replies
  22. Yabamat Li`imim: "Shall even I [(withdraw/banish/remove from)//(put in/on)]
  23. the earth [war//an offering of loaves], shall I set in the land
  24. mandrakes of love, shall I pour peace in the midst of the earth,
  25. rain honey from a pot like a libation of love on the heart of the fields? Let set
  26. in the heavens Ba’al his thunder-bolt,
  27. let him kindle/cause to shine forth [ name ] his (lightning-)flash! Then shall I
  28. withdraw/banish/remove from the earth war//put in the earth an offering of loaves
  29. I shall set in the land/dust mandrakes of love, I shall pour
  30. peace(-offerings) in the midst of the earth, rain honey from a pot like a libation of love
  31. in the heart of the fields. Also one more word
  32. I will say: Be off, be off/Go, go, servitors divine!
  33. You remain/delay/are slow while/but I do quit/depart

Driver/Gibson
78. `Ughar for the most distant of gods, `Inbab
79a. for the most distant of ghosts,
Coogan
78. Is not my mountain far from `El, My cave
79a. far from the gods?
Gaster
78. To the city, to the distant gods, off to H-n-b-b!
79a. Off to the distant netherworld gods,
Mark Smith
78. `Ughar is indeed far, O Gods, `inbvbi
79a. is indeed far, O Deities:

  1. b. two layers/lengths
  2. beneath the wells/springs of the earth, [three spans beneath its/ Three, the expanse/ stretches of] marshes/caves/hollows
  3. Then indeed she sets her face towards Ba’al in the Heights of Tsaphon, the North,
  4. across a thousand fields, ten thousand tracts.
  5. The coming of his sister Ba’al espies, the swift approach
  6. of the daughter-in-law of his father. He does remove the women from his presence
  7. and does set an ox before her, a fatling too
  8. in front of her. She scoops up water and washes,
  9. in dew of the Heavens, oil of the Earth [fat of the land], dew that the heavens pour out,
  10. rain the stars pour/spray the stars shed.
  11. She adorns herself with murex/ambergris, one thousand tracts away is its source in the sea.
  12. with dew [   ]

(ca. 15 lines)

E

reverse of a small fragment which has the last few lines of N T I

X. But there is not
1*. a house for Ba’al like the gods, no court

  1. like the sons of `Athirat. The dwelling of `El the shelter
  2. of his son; the dwelling of Lady `Athirat of the sea
  3. the dwelling of Pidraya bat `Ar, Flashing Brightningette daughter Light/Mist, the shelter
  4. of Talaya bat Rabb, Dewie daughter of Rain, the dwelling of `Artsaya, Earthie,
  5. daughter of ya’abdar, the Broad/Wide Flow/Flood/Expanse/Field, the dwelling of the brides
  6. noble/perfect/beautiful/bewitching. And Maiden ’Anat answers:
  7. "Attend to me, will Bull `El my father;
  8. he will attend to me and I will tell him what I shall do.

Col. v

  1. I shall surely drag him like a lamb to the ground,
  2. I shall make his grey hairs run with blood, the grey hairs of his beard
  3. with gore, if he gives not Ba’al a house like the gods
  4. and a court like the sons of `Athirat." She plants/ stamps her feet
  5. and [quake does(D/G)/leaves (C)] the earth; then indeed she sets her face
  6. towards `El at the source of the two rivers, in the midst of the springs/pool of
  7. the two oceans double deeps; she [penetrates the mountains (D/G)/opens the pavillion (C)] of `El and enters
    [Lilinah's Comment: Scholars vary in opinion whether this should be mountain or tent/pavillion. Bearing in mind the stature of `El, and the tendency in the literature of many Semitic cultures to employ plays-on-words, perhaps both meanings are implied]
  8. the massif/shrine of the king, Father of Years/Time mtsr
  9. she enters the mountains [ qn[-]`a[-]n[- -]lt ]
  10. The Bull `El her father hears her voice; . . . . . . . . . .
  11. from the seven chambers, through the eight entrances
  12. of the closed room . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  13. he does look . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  14. above . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  15. at the feet of the pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  16. much . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  17. Shapash, the luminary/torch of the gods, [does glow hot/is obscured by dust];
  18. the heavens are wearied by the hand of divine Mot.
  19. And Maiden ’Anat speaks: "In the building of your mansion,
  20. O `El, in the building of your mansion do not rejoice,
  21. do not rejoice in the raising/height of your palace,
  22. lest I seize them with my right hand, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  23. by the might of my long arm, lest I smash
  24. your head, make your grey hairs run with blood,
  25. the grey hairs of your beard with gore." Answers
  26. `El from the seven chambers, through the eight
  27. entrances of the closed room: "I know, daughter, that you are - like men/gentle -
  28. and that there exists not among goddesses - contempt (D/G)/ restraint (C) - like yours. What do you desire,
    [Lilinah's Commentary: it is possible that the conflicting meanings are again implied as a play on words]
  29. O Maiden ’Anat?" And Maiden ’Anat answers:
  30. "Your decree, `El, is wise; your wisdom
  31. is everlasting eternal. A life of good fortune is your decree.
  32. our king is Mightiest Ba’al, our judge,
  33. there is none over him/higher. [We two/All of us] his chalice
  34. would/must bear, [we two/all of us] would/must bear his cup."
  35. Groaning he indeed cries out to (D/G)/Cries loudly does (C) Bull `El his/her father, to `El,
  36. the king who installed/created him/her, he cries out to (D/G)/Cries does (C) `Athirat
  37. and her sons, `Elat the goddess and the company of her kinsfolk:
  38. "But there is not a house for Ba’al like the gods
  39. no court like the sons of `Athirat. The dwelling of `El,
  40. the shelter of his son; the dwelling of Lady `Athirat
  41. of the sea, the dwelling of Pidraya bat `Ar, Flashing Brightnignette, daughter of Mist/Light,
  42. the shelter of Talaya bat Rabb, Dewie daughter of showers, the dwelling
  43. of `Artsaya bat ya’abdar, Earthie daughter of the broad/wide floods/expanse/field, the dwelling
  44. of the brides noble/perfect/beautiful/bewitching" . . .
(ca. 22 lines)

F

Col. vi

(ca. 10 lines)

  1. . . . . . . . . . . . b
  2. . . . . . . . . . . . `ishk
  3. . . . . . . . . . . . bn ’nkm
  4. . . . . . . . . . . . `alp
  5. . . . . . . . . . . . ym.rbt
  6. . . . . . . . . . . . bnhrm
  7. Cross Byblos, cross
  8. Qa’al/Qeilah, cross the islands
  9. of Noph [of the heavens/on the far horizon]. Start away,
  10. O Fisherman of `Athirat,
  11. advance, Qodesh and `Amrur, Holy and Most Blessed One;
  12. Then of a truth do thou set
  13. thy face towards heq.k.ptah (= Memphis in Egypt)
  14. all broad (D/G)/the god of it all (C), Kaphtor (= Crete)
  15. the throne on which he sits, heq.k.ptah (= Memphis in Egypt)
  16. the land of his inheritance.
  17. Traversing a thousand fields, ten thousand
  18. spaces/acres, at the feet of Kothar
  19. do homage and bow down, prostrate
  20. thyself and do honor to him;
  21. and tell to Kothar-
  22. and-Khasis, repeat to Hayani,
  23. skilled worker by hand, the Clever Craftsman:
  24. The message of Mightiest Ba’al,
  25. the word of the Mightiest of Warriors:
(ca. 20 lines)

(2) III AB A

d. Fragment b

Placed immediately before II AB
(the numbers were assigned by scholars as they examined the tablets and do not necessarily indicate the order in which they were originally read)

  1. "Homage to Lady `Athirat of the Sea,
  2. Obeisance to the Progenitress of the Gods,
  3. (So) she will give a house to Ba’al like the gods',
  4. And a court like `Athirat's sons'." To his lads/pages
  5. surely Ba’al loudly cries: "Look,

  6. [gpn. w`ugr. b’glmt]
  7. [’mm. ym. bn. zlmt]
  8. rmt. pr’t. `ibr [mnt ]
  9. ts-chrrm. chblm. b’rpt
  10. tcht. bshmm. ’tsrm. cht
  11. [ - - glt. `isr - - - ] m
  12. [brq - - - - ymtm - ] h
Ginsberg's translations for the damaged lines:
  1. Gapan and `Ugar, sons of ’Ghulumat,
  2. ’Amamis twain, sons of Zulumat
  3. The stately, wing-spreading, . . . ;
  4. Winged ones twain, flock of clouds,
  5. Beneath [ . . . ]; Birdlike ones twain,
  6. . . . snow . . . flock of
  7. . . . "
Driver & Gibson translate thus:
  1. Gupn and `Ugar, in obscurity
  2. is veiled the daylight; veiled in darkness
  3. is the princess exalted. The pinions of [-----------]
  4. blazing are veiled. Flocks in the clouds,
  5. are circling round. In the heavens birds are circling round
  6. . . . the snow I shall bind
  7. the lightning [....................]
Gaster interprets:
  1. Gupen and `Ugar, amid the darkness
  2. where daylight is obscured,
  3. Amid the tall shaggy ostriches,
  4. the sun-scorched places where rain clouds
  5. . . .
  6. . . .
  7. . . .

(obscure beginnings of 5 more lines)

[continued in part 3: Ba'al Builds His Palace]

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