Sidra ḏ-Nišmata

The ''Sidra ḏ-Nišmata'' (; Modern Mandaic: ''Sedrā d-Nešmāthā''), also known as the ''Book of Souls'' or ''Book of Gadana'', is a collection of Mandaean litugical prayers that constitutes the first part of the Qulasta. It is typically considered to consist of 103 prayers. The Sidra ḏ-Nišmata'' most likely constitutes the oldest stratum of Mandaean literature and dates to at least the 3rd century CE or earlier.

The ''Sidra ḏ-Nišmata'' contains the most important prayers used in core Mandaean rituals, namely the masbuta and masiqta.

Structure

Matthew Morgenstern (in the ''Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon'') and Majid Fandi Al-Mubaraki (2010) considers the ''Sidra ḏ-Nišmata'' to contain 103 prayers, (1998 edition: ISBN 0-9585705-1-5) which correspond to the first 103 prayers in both Mark Lidzbarski's ''Mandäische Liturgien'' (1920)Lidzbarski, Mark. 1920. ''Mandäische Liturgien''. Abhandlungen der Königlichen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, phil.-hist. Klasse, NF 17.1. Berlin. and E. S. Drower's ''Canonical Prayerbook of the Mandaeans'' (1959).

The ''Sidra ḏ-Nišmata'' consists of the following sections:
*''Part 1'': Prayers 1–74
**Prayers 1–31: masbuta liturgy
**Prayers 32–72: masiqta liturgy
**CP 73–74: the 2 "Letter" (''engirta'') prayers
*''Part 2'': Prayers 75–77: 3 long prayers of praise
*''Part 3'': Prayers 78–103: the "responses" (''eniania'')

Types of prayers

Eric Segelberg (1958) lists the following types of prayers in the ''Sidra ḏ-Nišmata''.

*''buta'' (plural form: ''bauata''; generic Mandaic term for prayers)
**Prayers 1, 3, 5: prayers for the crown
**Prayer 7: prayer for the pandama
**Prayers 9–11: prayers at the river bank
**Prayers 22–24: prayers over the oil
**Prayers 25–28: ''buta hatamta'' or "sealing prayer"
**Prayer 32: opening masiqta prayer
**Prayers 75–77: long baptismal prayers
*''qaiamta'': Prayers 56– 65
*''pugdama'' (): Prayers 8, 14, 19, 34; also applies to Prayers 5, 47, 48
*''šrita'' (plural form: ''širiata'') (loosening or deconsecrating prayers): Prayers 2, 4, 6, 31, 55
*''draša''
**Prayers 21, 30, 88– 90
*'' eniana''
**Prayers 79– 81: three hymns in the beginning of the baptismal rite
**Prayer 82: hymn after the acts in the water
**Prayer 83– 87: hymns said after the sealing prayers

List of prayers

Below is a list of individual prayers of the ''Sidra ḏ-Nišmata'' based on the text of Drower (1959), with additional notes from Segelberg (1958) and Buckley (2002).

Maṣbuta liturgy

*3 sets of paired prayers for the burzinqa
** Prayer 1: prayer containing a creation narrative
** Prayer 2: ''šrita'' (loosening prayer) dedicated to Zihrun
** Prayer 3: prayer to Yawar Ziwa bar Nhur Hiia, Hamgai Ziwa bar Hamgagai Ziwa, Zihrun
** Prayer 4: ''šrita'' (loosening prayer)
** Prayer 5: prayer to Yufin-Yufafin, Eit Enṣibat Eutria, Eit Yawar bar Enṣibat Eutria
** Prayer 6: ''šrita'' (loosening prayer)

* Prayer 7: pandama prayer
* Prayer 8: longer incense ('' riha'') prayer containing a litany

*"Adjutores baptismi" (''adiauria ḏ-maṣbuta'') prayers
** Prayer 9: litany
** Prayer 10: short prayer about the yardna
** Prayer 11: short prayer to Yawar Ziwa and seven manas

* Prayer 12: prayer of Yur bar Barit opening up the yardna
* Prayer 13: descent to the yardna, attended by ʿuthria
* Prayer 14: margna prayer (''pugdama'' or declaration of the margna)

*Exorcism prayers
** Prayer 15: prayer for binding demons
** Prayer 16: "perfected gem" prayer
** Prayer 17: invocation of ʿuthria so that evil spirits would flee

* Prayer 18: long prayer blessing the yardna which begins with the invocation of Piriawis (main prayer said during the maṣbuta immersion)
* Prayer 19: short prayer for crowning with the klila, and pronouncing ʿuthria names over the baptized person ("Manda created/called me")
* Prayer 20: yardna prayer beginning with a blessing of the outer door (''tira baraia''), for deconsecrating the yardna
* Prayer 21: ascent from the yardna; the prayer rejects the sun, moon, and fire as witnesses

*Oil ('' miša'') prayers
** Prayer 22: invocation of ʿuthria before anointing with oil
** Prayer 23: praising the oil
** Prayer 24: oil driving off evil spirits and healing illnesses

*Sealing (''haṭamta'') prayers
** Prayer 25: long litany
** Prayer 26: short prayer sealing the baptized souls
** Prayer 27: prayer invoking ʿUṣar-Hai and Pta-Hai, Manda ḏ-Hiia, and Hayyi
** Prayer 28: prayer of healing and driving off illnesses

* Prayer 29: short prayer of rising up
* Prayer 30: prayer about conquering the mountain, fire, and sea (''draša'' of the maṣbuta)
* Prayer 31: final ''šrita'' (loosening prayer)

Masiqta liturgy

* Prayer 32: short opening prayer
* Prayer 33: mambuha prayer dedicated to the Water of Life
* Prayer 34: shorter incense prayer
* Prayer 35: long prayer ("I sought to lift my eyes"), used for versatile ritual applications

*Pihta prayers
** Prayer 36: prayer to the Mana, Drop ( Niṭufta), Šar, Pirun
** Prayer 37: prayer to the Cloud (Anana)
** Prayer 38: prayer to Yawar Ziwa
** Prayer 39: prayer to the ''šuta'' (declaration) of Yawar
** Prayer 40: prayer to ʿUṣar
** Prayer 41: prayer to ʿUṣar Nhur
** Prayer 42: prayer to the ''šuta'' (declaration) of Yawar
** Prayer 43: prayer to Manda ḏ-Hiia

*Mambuha prayers
** Prayer 44: short prayer to Biriawiš
** Prayer 45: longer prayer

*Masiqta prayers
**Klila prayers
*** Prayer 46: klila prayer (''nhur nhura''). Almost identical to Prayer 5, except that the first two words of Prayer 46 are ''nhar nhura'' instead of ''nhur nhura'' in Prayer 5. As a result, Lidzbarski (1920) omits Prayer 46 as a duplicate of Prayer 5, although Drower (1959) and Gelbert & Lofts (2025) keep the prayer.
*** Prayer 47: klila prayer (''zhira u-mzahra'')
** Prayer 48: oil prayer
** Prayer 49: prayer for the spirit and soul; Ṣauriel is invoked
** Prayer 50: prayer mentioning "Hamamulai"
** Prayer 51: investiture prayer
** Prayer 52: prayer invoking Yusmir
** Prayer 53: masiqta sealing prayer (obtaining a letter from Abatur)
** Prayer 54: prayer invoking Yukašar (entering the scales of Abatur)
** Prayer 55: short pandama loosening prayer
** Prayer 56: short living water prayer
** Prayer 57: short incense prayer
** Prayer 58: litany
** Prayer 59: short pihta prayer
** Prayer 60: short mambuha prayer
** Prayer 61: klila prayer
** Prayer 62: short prayer praising the Naṣoraeans
** Prayer 63: oil prayer
** Prayer 64: short prayer ("The Life dwells in its own radiance and light.")
** Prayer 65: raising up of souls
** Prayer 66: Left Ginza 3.43
** Prayer 67: prayer of ascension
** Prayer 68: Left Ginza 3.20
** Prayer 69: "go in peace"
** Prayer 70: litany
** Prayer 71: prayer of Shum (Shem), son of Noah, which contains a litany
** Prayer 72: prayer asking Manda ḏ-Hiia for the forgiveness of sins

Engirta prayers

* Prayer 73: long prayer about a sealed letter
* Prayer 74: short prayer about the seal and word of Kušṭa

Three long prayers

* Prayer 75: "Mandaic targum" bearing many similarities to Psalm 114
* Prayer 76: prayer of perfecting the souls
* Prayer 77: litany

Eniania

* Prayer 78: short prelude prayer
* Prayer 79: short myrtle prayer (placing the klila on the margna)

*"Hear me" (''ʿunan ab ʿunian'') litanies
** Prayer 80: longer "hear me" litany
** Prayer 81: shorter "hear me" litany
* Prayer 82: short mambuha prayer

*Maṣbuta prayers
** Prayer 83: short prayer about plants planted and raised by the yardna
** Prayer 84: short maṣbuta prayer about the baptizer
** Prayer 85: short maṣbuta prayer about Shilmai, Nidbai, and Anush Uthra
** Prayer 86: short maṣbuta prayer about the yardna
** Prayer 87: short maṣbuta prayer about priests
** Prayer 88: long prayer
** Prayer 89: long prayer
** Prayer 90: long prayer

*Masiqta prayers
** Prayer 91: short prayer about crossing the waters of death
** Prayer 92: Left Ginza 3.4
** Prayer 93: short prayer about the Mana
** Prayer 94: Left Ginza 3.3
** Prayer 95: short prayer about Sunday, Kushta, and Zidqa (alms)
** Prayer 96: Left Ginza 3.2
** Prayer 97: short prayer about being taken to the World of Light
** Prayer 98: Left Ginza 3.7
** Prayer 99: prayer about the chosen ones
** Prayer 100: short prayer about fragrant trees
** Prayer 101: short prayer
** Prayer 102: short prayer about the building of Life
** Prayer 103: final masiqta prayer

References

External links

Sidra d-Nishmata
(primarily based on Code Sabéen 12; ''CP'' 5–10 are from Code Sabéen 15) in transliterated format at the ''Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon''

;Audio recordings of prayers
*Prayers recited by Rbai Rafid al-Sabti in the Netherlands

Mn iardna silqit
– "I rose up from the river" (Prayer 21) ( RRC: AUDIO-A12)

Nukraiia
(Prayer 49) (RRC: AUDIO-A9)

Zidana u-mzaudana
(Prayer 96) (RRC: AUDIO-A22)
*Prayers recited by Tarmida Yuhana Nashmi in Sydney, Australia

Qadmaiia nukraiia
( Prelude)

Zhir u-mzahar Zihrun
(Prayer 2)

Riha ḏ-basim
(Prayer 8)

ʿsir iama
(Prayer 15)

Manda Qran
(Prayer 19)

Hal hiia qadmaiia
(Prayer 34)

Ṭab ṭaba l-ṭaba
(Prayer 72)

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Qulasta
Mandaean prayer
Mandaean texts
Prayer books
Hymns
Funerary texts
3rd-century texts