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Sumerian poems and lamentations – 03 In Praise of Ur-Namma
Identifier
022183
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
A description of the experience
From A praise poem of Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma C)
Enlil has given me the task of keeping the Land secure, with unscathed troops. I am clad in linen in the jipar. I lie down on the splendid bed in its delightful bedchamber. I cause the people to eat splendid food; I am their Enkimdu (i.e. the god of irrigation and cultivation) . I am the good shepherd whose sheep multiply greatly.
Since I have been adorned with their rulership, no one imposes taxes on my abundant crops which grow tall. My commands bring about joy in the great fortresses of the mountains. The joy of my city and the territory of Sumer delights me. I release water into the canals of Sumer, making the trees grow tall on their banks.
From Praise of Ur-Namma the Canal-Digger (Ur-Namma D)
in my city I dug a canal of abundance and named it the Kec-kug canal; in Urim, I dug a canal of abundance and named it the Kec-kug canal. I named it the Pabi-luh canal, a lasting name worthy to be praised. The watercourse of my city is full of fish, and the air above it is full of birds. The watercourse of Urim is full of fish, and the air above it is full of birds. In my city honey-plants are planted, and the carp grow fat. In Urim honey-plants are planted, and the carp grow fat. The gizi reed of my city is so sweet that the cows eat them. The gizi reed of Urim is so sweet that the cows eat them. Since my ......, it is teeming with fish and birds. In Urim ....... May the watercourse bring them (the fish) into my canal, may they be carried in baskets to him. May the watercourse bring them into Urim, into my canal, may they be carried in baskets to him.