Sumerian Rulers

"Chant to him the holy song, the incantation sung in its chambers -- the incantation of Nudimmud: "On that day when there is no snake, when there is no scorpion, when there is no hyena, when there is no lion, when there is neither dog nor wolf, when there is thus neither fear nor trembling, man has no rival! At such a time, may the lands of Šubur and Ḫamazi, the many-tongued, and , the great mountain of the me of magnificence, and , the land possessing all that is befitting, and the Martu land, resting in security -- the whole universe, the well-guarded people -- may they all address Enlil together in a single language! For at that time, for the ambitious lords, for the ambitious princes, for the ambitious kings, ... -- Enki, the lord of abundance and of steadfast decisions, the wise and knowing lord of the Land, the expert of the gods, chosen for wisdom, the lord of Eridug, shall change the speech in their mouths, as many as he had placed there, and so the speech of mankind is truly one."

"Lest I make the people fly off from that city like a wild dove from its tree, lest I make them fly around like a bird over its well-founded nest."

"May the people marvel admiringly, and may Utu witness it in joy."

"A man should not perish."

"Why will you go alone and keep company with no one on the journey? If our beneficent spirit does not stand by you there, if our good protective deity does not go with you there, you will never again stand with us where we stand, you will never again dwell with us where we dwell, you will never again set your feet on the ground where our feet are. You will not come back from the great mountains, where no one goes alone, whence no one returns to mankind!"

"Come now, my Lugalbanda. I shall give you some advice: may my advice be heeded. I shall say words to you: bear them in mind."

"Anzud flew on high, Lugalbanda walked on the ground. The bird, looking from above, spies the troops. Lugalbanda, looking from below, spies the dust that the troops have stirred up."

"Lugalbanda is wise and he achieves mighty exploits. In preparation of the sweet celestial cakes he added carefulness to carefulness."

"The king lay down not to sleep, he lay down to dream."

"Let the power of running be in my thighs, let me never grow tired! Let there be strength in my arms, let me stretch my arms wide, let my arms never become weak! Moving like the sunlight, like Inana, like the seven storms, those of Iškur, let me leap like a flame, blaze like lightning! Let me go wherever I look to, set foot wherever I cast my glance, reach wherever my heart desires and let me loosen my shoes in whatever place my heart has named to me! When Utu lets me reach Kulaba my city, let him who curses me have no joy thereof; let him who wishes to strive with me never say "Just let him come!" I shall have the woodcarvers fashion statues of you, and you will be breathtaking to look upon. Your name will be made famous thereby in Sumer and will redound to the credit of the temples of the great gods."

"Lugalbanda lies idle in the mountains, in the faraway places; he has ventured into the Zabu mountains. No mother is with him to offer advice, no father is with him to talk to him. No one is with him whom he knows, whom he values, no confidant is there to talk to him. In his heart he speaks to himself: "I shall treat the bird as befits him, I shall treat Anzud as befits him. I shall greet his wife affectionately. I shall seat Anzud's wife and Anzud's child at a banquet. An will fetch Ninguena for me from her mountain home -- the expert woman who redounds to her mother's credit, the expert who redounds to her mother's credit. Her fermenting-vat is of green lapis lazuli, her beer cask is of refined silver and of gold. If she stands by the beer, there is joy, if she sits by the beer, there is gladness; as cupbearer she mixes the beer, never wearying as she walks back and forth, Ninkasi, the keg at her side, on her hips; may she make my beer-serving perfect. When the bird has drunk the beer and is happy, when Anzud has drunk the beer and is happy, he can help me find the place to which the troops of Unug are going, Anzud can put me on the track of my brothers.""

"Utu, shepherd of the land, father of the black-headed, when you go to sleep, the people go to sleep with you; youth Utu, when you rise, the people rise with you."

"King whom one cannot reach in the distant sky! Suen whom one cannot reach in the distant sky! King who loves justice, who hates evil! Suen who loves justice, who hates evil! Justice brings joy justly to your heart."

"A lost dog is bad; a lost man is terrible."

"Utu, I greet you! Let me be ill no longer! Hero, 's son, I greet you! Let me be ill no longer! Utu, you have let me come up into the mountains in the company of my brothers. In the mountain cave, the most dreadful spot on earth, let me be ill no longer! Here where there is no mother, there is no father, there is no acquaintance, no one whom I value, my mother is not here to say "Alas, my child!" My brother is not here to say "Alas, my brother!" … Don't make me flow away like water in a violent death! Don't make me eat saltpetre as if it were barley! Don't make me fall like a throw-stick somewhere in the desert unknown to me! Afflicted with a name which excites my brothers' scorn, let me be ill no longer! Afflicted with the derision of my comrades, let me be ill no longer! Let me not come to an end in the mountains like a weakling!"

"The orders are rigorous: you should not neglect your work load. They are to proceed with the building work by night and in the heat of noon. You will not be sleeping during the night or in the heat of noon!"

"How could I bear a grudge? I am securing the foundations of the province, and making it obedient. My lord, no king can rival you; let your heart be glad!"

"Your matter is an important matter, and your affairs are great affairs."

"A man such as he knows my heart, as your eyes know. My lord, with the open eye of a god."

"I have not neglected the instructions of my lord Culgi: both at night and in the noonday heat."

"Say to my lord: this is what Puzur-Culgi, the commander of the fortress Igi-hursaja, your servant, says: All the gold and silver that my lord has been fashioning for the gods -- is it not for his own life? For the life of the troops and his land, my king has built the great fortress Igi-hursaja for the people of his land, because of the wicked enemy. [...] May it be known that, by night or by day the enemy's sins are forever grave. I am the loyal servant of my lord Culgi. Let this not be the death of me! May my lord know!"

"My lord continues to maintain his sublime reputation in the south and the uplands, from the rising to the setting sun, as far as the borders of the entire Land."

"My lord, your word is the word of An, [...] Your decreed destiny has been bestowed on you as on a god."

"The citizens of the territory of Gutium, [..] Mari and , who will listen at all times, are before me. Whatever you say, my lord, I will do."

"My lord, the vast territory which has been given to you as booty has been made obedient: it is of one mind. The people, abundant as vegetation, belong to Culgi, shepherd of the reliable word. You are the god of mankind, in the south and the highlands. They keep their gaze fixed on you. The widespread people, abundant as vegetation, say: "Hail, my lord!", from the flooding Tigris and Euphrates."

"My lord, you have given me instructions about every matter, from the waters of the sea and the land of , from the salt waters and the borders of the land of the Martu, to the side of . [...] Their various cities and all their environs, their canals, fields, arable tracts and their embankments and ditches. [...] All the cities are listening to my lord. [...] I have established strong guards for their fortresses, and I have made all their troops submit."

"Lord of true speech, pay attention to my words!"

"You impose silence. [...] You subdue the rebel lands."

"Shepherd Culgi, you spread fearsomeness over the foreign countries. [...] Shepherd, your offspring will praise you duly."

"We are going, we are going, [...] we are going to the house, to the [house] of the lord, to the [city] of Prince Culgi, to the city that has been restored, to where speech and opinions are good, to where lips and hearts are pure, to where feet are firm on the ground. We are going to the shrine Nibru, Dur-an-ki, to [...] brick-built Tutub, to the majestic Abzu, brick-built g, to the E-cumeca with the princely divine powers, in Urim to the house of Suen, to the E-kic-nu-jal of Nanna, to the Agrun-kug, the beloved house of the lady, to the E-hursaj, the house of the king, to the E-namtila of Prince Culgi."

"Lord of all the great divine powers, borne by ! Youthful Utu, lord of all the great divine powers, borne by Ningal."

"Youthful Utu chose the shepherd in his heart. Years of plenty are assigned to Culgi, the trustworthy shepherd, the king, as his fate. From the shrine in Nibru, Enlil bestowed this on the trustworthy shepherd, whose fate is determined by Utu."

"Because of your purity, youthful Utu has made everything abundant for you; may a sweet life be your lot, son of Ninsumun."

"Utu, assign a sweet destiny to the king."

"Like a mace with three lion-heads, he makes the mountains tremble and then destroys the rebel lands."

"Youthful Utu, [...] brilliant light, great lion, [...] hero emerging from the holy interior of heaven, storm whose splendour covers the Land and is laden with great awesomeness; Utu, king of justice that befits the true offspring, made Culgi, the trustworthy shepherd, glorious in the battle. The great wild bull, youthful Utu, who like a torch illuminates the Land from the holy heavens; the wise one of all the countries, the fearsome radiance of Urac, the just god among the , the long, holy dragon, the first-born son cherished by Suen, the lord born to command -- Utu bestowed the kingship of the Land on Culgi."

"By consulting omens and according to my heart's desire I have benefitted the life of the troops and the province."

"In order that the ruler and the general manager can build everything for you concerning the fortress, carry out this work on the fortress now. The reputation of this fortress shall not be diminished."

"[O]ver all the foreign lands and the widespread people, each of their towns and all their provinces, and the people of the widespread Land lay in green meadows. I made them rest in spacious habitations, in peaceful dwelling places. As for their men and women: the man among them goes wherever he pleases, and the woman with spindle and hair clasp goes wherever she pleases. After they had set up stock-pens in the vastness of the desert, and established their tents and camps, the workmen and the labourers spend the days in the fields."

"When the master-builder has taken up the work concerned, he is to re-establish securely any place where the fortification has fallen into ruins. Let him reinforce and also rebuild it."

"You are important, but you do not even know your own soldiers. Your eyes have learnt something about these men, and about Apillaca's heroism. If you, Aradju, are indeed my servant, you should both pay attention to my written communications. Come to an understanding, you two! Secure the foundations of the provinces! It is urgent!"

"Let my roar be emitted over all the lands. Let my powerful arm, my heroic arm, fall upon all the lands. Let my storm cover the Land."

"As I myself ordered, you were to secure the provinces, and to correctly guide the people and make them obedient. [...] That was how I had instructed you. Why have you not acted as I ordered you?"

"The man to whom I have sent you is not your subordinate -- he will not accept orders from your hand! [...] If I do not make my 'Sage of the Assembly' feel just as important as I am, if he does not sit on a throne on a dais, furnished with a high-quality cloth cover, if his feet do not rest on a golden footstool, if he is not allowed by his own highest authority both to appoint and then to remove a governor from his function as governor, an official from his charge, if he does not kill or blind anyone, if he does not elevate his favourite over others -- how else can he secure the provinces? If you truly love me, you will not bear him a grudge!"

"You have made me so happy with the news and everything. Who could give me a house-born slave such as you are? Who has such a capable man, so beneficial to his lord? [...] From today, you are my son who makes me happy. The cities of the province, the land of the Martu, Elam -- all of them I have placed before you: you are just as important as I am. So sit before them on a throne on a golden dais! [...] Let their messengers prostrate themselves in front of you! [...] Remove a governor -- appoint a governor! Appoint a commander! Designate a captain-general! Certainly you should put a man to death, a man who has killed: blind the man who has killed! Build your house of manhood for an attendant who has been favourably looked upon! Make sure your recompense is great! Now, you should not suddenly alter your word about all that I have been sending to you."

"To strut about in the E-kur is a glory for Bird, as its singing is sweet. … It shall utter its cries in the temple of the great gods. The Anuna gods rejoice at its voice. It is suitable for banquets in the great dining hall of the gods."

"Like Enki, king of the abzu, I am successful in finding solutions, and am wise in words."

"Let deserved praise be sung for me, that in every mouth I have put prudence, an attractive quality. [...] Let praise be sung, that I have shown strength in grappling and wrestling. [...] That I have made a return visit to the shrine Nibru and back along the road to Urim, and have marched a distance of 30 dana."

"When I am radiant in the holy crown like a brilliance that is renewed daily, and the majestic sceptre that amasses abundance has been entrusted into my hands, on my firmly founded throne, [...] granted as a gift, [...] I lift my head high. I am Culgi, the good shepherd of Sumer, and I have always established justice. Like a flood, like onrushing water, I have torn out wickedness as being unclean. As much great praise as I have had sung about me -- by the name of Enlil, none is false, and all is true."

"Father, let me have the Bull of Heaven To kill Gilgamesh and his city. For if you do not grant me the Bull of Heaven, I will pull down the Gates of Hell itself, Crush the doorposts and flatten the door, And I will let the dead leave And let the dead roam the earth And they shall eat the living. The dead will overwhelm all the living!"