(1) I cleave the heaven, I open the horizon and I travel over the earth on foot. There come forward to me the Glorious and the Great ones, for I am furnished with numberless Words of Might

(57) When the river is full and green like the flowing sap which comes out of Osiris, I take its water, I draw from its flood like the great god who is in the domain of the water, and who keeps watch over it for fear that the gods may drink from its water, and who inspires dread to the glorious ones

(2) O thou great Coverer of Heaven, in thy name of Stretcher [of Heaven], grant that I may have the command of water, even as Sut hath command of force on the night of the Great Disaster: grant that I may prevail over those who preside at the Inundation, even as that venerable god prevaileth over them, whose name they know not. May I prevail over them

(2) Grant ye that I may have the command of water even as the mighty Sut had the command of his enemies on the Day of Disaster to the Earth. May I prevail over the Long-armed ones in their corners, [69] even as that glorious and ready god prevaileth over them, whose name they know not. May I prevail over the Long-armed ones

(38) Thou sailest over the Heaven, thou travellest over earth and in splendour thou reachest the zenith; the two divisions of Heaven are in obeisance to thee, and yield adoration to thee

(39) Through mastery of the upward-life comes freedom from the dangers of water, morass, and thorny places, and the power of ascension is gained.

(8) As the flowing rivers disappear in the sea, losing their name and their form, thus a wise man, freed from name and form, goes to the divine Person, who is greater than the great.

(10) For they departed from the land of Ararat eastward to Shinar; for in his days they built the city and the tower, saying, " Go to, let us ascend thereby into heaven." *

(6) Beneath the water people are who sigh And make this water bubble at the surface, As the eye tells thee wheresoe'er it turns. Fixed in the mire they say, 'We sullen were In the sweet air, which by the sun is gladdened, Bearing within ourselves the sluggish reek; Now we are sullen in this sable mire.' This hymn do they keep gurgling in their throats, For with unbroken words they cannot say it." Thus we went circling round the filthy fen A great arc 'twixt the dry bank and the swamp, With eyes turned unto those who gorge the mire; Unto the foot of a tower we came at last.

(89) And again I raised mine eyes towards heaven and saw a lofty roof, with seven water torrents thereon, and those torrents flowed with much water into an enclosure.

(4) My temples throbbed(?)... He gave me water to drink from his waterskin." "My friend, the god to whom we go is not the wild bull? He is totally different? The wild bull that you saw is Shamash, the protector, in difficulties he holds our hand. The one who gave you water to drink from his waterskin is your personal) god, who brings honor to you, Lugalbanda. We should join together and do one thing, a deed such as has never (before) been done in the land. At twenty leagues they broke for some food, at thirty leagues they stopped for the night, walking fifty leagues in a whole day, a walk of a month and a half. They dug a well facing Shamash, Gilgamesh climbed up a mountain peak, made a libation of flour, and said: "Mountain, bring me a dream, a favorable message from Shamash.

(1) Oh thou Leg in the Northern Sky, and in that most conspicuous but inaccessible Stream; I rise up and come to light as a god, I am conspicuous but inaccessible

(3) Withouten which whoso his life consumes Such vestige leaveth of himself on earth, As smoke in air or in the water foam. And therefore raise thee up, o'ercome the anguish With spirit that o'ercometh every battle, If with its heavy body it sink not. A longer stairway it behoves thee mount; 'Tis not enough from these to have departed; Let it avail thee, if thou understand me." Then I uprose, showing myself provided Better with breath than I did feel myself, And said: "Go on, for I am strong and bold." Upward we took our way along the crag, Which jagged was, and narrow, and difficult, And more precipitous far than that before. Speaking I went, not to appear exhausted; Whereat a voice from the next moat came forth, Not well adapted to articulate words. I know not what it said, though o'er the back I now was of the arch that passes there; But he seemed moved to anger who was speaking. I was bent downward, but my living eyes Could not attain the bottom, for the dark; Wherefore I: "Master, see that thou arrive

(11) As the many torrents of the rivers rush toward the ocean, so do the heroes of the mortal world rush into Thy fiercely flaming mouths.

(5) He led us on to where the rock was cleft; There smote upon my forehead with his wings, Then a safe passage promised unto me. As on the right hand, to ascend the mount Where seated is the church that lordeth it O'er the well-guided, above Rubaconte, The bold abruptness of the ascent is broken By stairways that were made there in the age When still were safe the ledger and the stave, E'en thus attempered is the bank which falls Sheer downward from the second circle there; But on this, side and that the high rock graze. As we were turning thitherward our persons, "Beati pauperes spiritu," voices Sang in such wise that speech could tell it not. Ah me! how different are these entrances From the Infernal! for with anthems here One enters, and below with wild laments. We now were hunting up the sacred stairs, And it appeared to me by far more easy Than on the plain it had appeared before. Whence I: "My Master, say, what heavy thing Has been uplifted from me, so that hardly Aught of fatigue is felt by me in walking?"

(2) One climbs Sanleo and descends in Noli, And mounts the summit of Bismantova, With feet alone; but here one needs must fly; With the swift pinions and the plumes I say Of great desire, conducted after him Who gave me hope, and made a light for me. We mounted upward through the rifted rock, And on each side the border pressed upon us, And feet and hands the ground beneath required. When we were come upon the upper rim Of the high bank, out on the open slope, "My Master," said I, "what way shall we take?" And he to me: "No step of thine descend; Still up the mount behind me win thy way, Till some sage escort shall appear to us." The summit was so high it vanquished sight, And the hillside precipitous far more Than line from middle quadrant to the centre. Spent with fatigue was I, when I began: "O my sweet Father! turn thee and behold How I remain alone, unless thou stay!" "O son," he said, "up yonder drag thyself," Pointing me to a terrace somewhat higher, Which on that side encircles all the hill.

(36) But seeing the wrath also is in that water in the deep above the earth, therefore constantly, through the kindling of the stars, and of the water in the wrath, such palpable water generateth itself, which, with its outermost birth, stands in death.

(4) "God seeth all things, and in Him, blest spirit, Thy sight is," said I, "so that never will Of his can possibly from thee be hidden; Thy voice, then, that for ever makes the heavens Glad, with the singing of those holy fires Which of their six wings make themselves a cowl, Wherefore does it not satisfy my longings? Indeed, I would not wait thy questioning If I in thee were as thou art in me." "The greatest of the valleys where the water Expands itself," forthwith its words began, "That sea excepted which the earth engarlands, Between discordant shores against the sun Extends so far, that it meridian makes Where it was wont before to make the horizon. I was a dweller on that valley's shore 'Twixt Ebro and Magra that with journey short Doth from the Tuscan part the Genoese. With the same sunset and same sunrise nearly Sit Buggia and the city whence I was, That with its blood once made the harbour hot. Folco that people called me unto whom My name was known; and now with me this heaven Imprints itself, as I did once with it;

(5) fra-na (in-breath), ap-d-na (out-breath), vy-a-na (diffused breath) — eight syllables. Of eight syllables, verily, is one line of the GayatrT. And that [series], indeed, is that [line] of it. As much breathing as there is here, so much indeed does he win who knows thus that line of it. That is its fourth, the sightly, foot, namely the one above- the-darksome who glows yonder. This fourth is the same as the Turlya. It is called the ' sightly (darsatam) foot,' because it has come into sight (dadrse), as it were. And he is called far above everything darksome. Thus he glows with luster and glory who knows thus that foot of it

(6) So eager did I render my companions, With this brief exhortation, for the voyage, That then I hardly could have held them back. And having turned our stern unto the morning, We of the oars made wings for our mad flight, Evermore gaining on the larboard side. Already all the stars of the other pole The night beheld, and ours so very low It did not rise above the ocean floor. Five times rekindled and as many quenched Had been the splendour underneath the moon, Since we had entered into the deep pass, When there appeared to us a mountain, dim From distance, and it seemed to me so high As I had never any one beheld. Joyful were we, and soon it turned to weeping; For out of the new land a whirlwind rose, And smote upon the fore part of the ship. Three times it made her whirl with all the waters, At the fourth time it made the stern uplift, And the prow downward go, as pleased Another, Until the sea above us closed again."