Shamash is the sun who sees all things: the living and the dead, the opened document and the sealed one, the lone man without friends, the child the impotent couple cannot conceive. As judge of the gods, he inscribes the omen in the entrails of the lamb; he is the source of divination, the origin of fate. His temple stands at Sippar; his light is that of heaven and earth.
This prayer — Shamash 1 in modern classification, a shuilla or "lifted-hand" prayer — survives in multiple manuscripts from the first millennium BCE. It falls into three movements: a long invocation cataloguing the god's powers, a petition (in the fuller version, preceded by a self-introduction and a lament), and a short conditional call for the gods to praise Shamash if he grants the request.
The fuller version recorded here follows MS G from the site of Ḫuzirina, in which the supplicant names himself as Aplutu and details the evil omens troubling him: a broken chariot part, red ants in the house, bad signs of every kind. Other manuscripts use a generic placeholder name or royal names, demonstrating that the prayer could be adapted to any supplicant. The shorter versions of the prayer — which skip the self-introduction and lament entirely — ask Shamash simply for a good life, with no stated cause.
This is a Good Works Translation from Standard Babylonian Akkadian, produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church with AI assistance.
O most exalted, perfect heir of Namrasit —
O ever-renewing light,
who brings joy to the people,
who sets them free —
O Shamash, who gives justice to the dead and the living,
who sees all things whatsoever:
O Shamash, light of heaven and earth,
radiance of all the lands —
lord of Sippar, canopy of E-babbar,
beloved brother of Marduk,
mainstay of Babylon.
At your light, humanity takes heed.
At your command, the Igigi gods wait in attendance.
The wide peoples, the black-headed ones,
sing your heroic deeds.
To the lone young man you give a friend.
To the impotent you grant an heir.
The bolted bars of heaven you open.
To the one who cannot see you bring light.
The encased tablet, still unopened, you read.
On the entrails of the sheep you inscribe the omen;
you set judgment in place.
Judge of the gods, lord of the Igigi —
O Shamash, you are the lord of the land's fate.
I am Aplutu, son of his god,
whose god is Sîn, whose goddess is Nikkal.
The sting of the omen has fallen upon me
and pursues me without end.
On account of the evil of a piece of my chariot that broke,
on account of the evil of red ants seen in my house,
on account of the evil of signs,
ominous portents, bad and unfavorable,
that are in my house and stand against me —
I am afraid, anxious,
and ceaselessly in dread.
Decree my fate; make my path favorable.
May my signs be favorable.
May my dreams be good.
Make good the dream I have seen.
May I go well; may I find friends.
Throughout my days, may there be good fortune.
Grant me favorable portents.
In the street, may my words find favor.
May god and king hold me in high esteem.
May the influential and the great do what I say.
May I live my days in joy and celebration.
May Truth stand at my right hand.
May Justice stand at my left.
May a healing god walk always at my side.
May the guardian of well-being never cease from behind me.
May Bunene, your vizier, speak well of me to you.
May Aya, your beloved wife, say to you: peace.
O Shamash, foremost of the gods —
show mercy.
May the heavens rejoice in you;
may the earth be glad.
May the gods of the whole world bless you.
May the great gods bring your heart content.
Colophon
Translation from Standard Babylonian Akkadian by the New Tianmu Anglican Church (tulku, March 2026). Source transliteration: Alan Lenzi (ed.), Reading Akkadian Prayers and Hymns: An Introduction, Society of Biblical Literature, 2011, pp. 367–383, based on the critical edition by Mayer, UFBG (1976), pp. 503–510. Lines 18–25 follow MS G (Ḫuzirina). Lenzi's English translation was consulted as reference for grammatical constructions; this English is independently derived from the Akkadian. First millennium BCE.
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Source Text
A Shuilla: Shamash 1 — Standard Babylonian Akkadian
surbû gitmālu apil Namraṣīt
nūru eddēššû pētû pān nišī mukallim nūra
Šamaš muštēšir mīti u balāṭi bār kal mimma šumšu
Šamaš nūr šamê u erṣetim šarūr mātāti
bēl Sippar ṣulūl E-babbar
talīm Marduk tuklat Bābili
ana nūrīka upaqqā tenīšētum
ana qibītīka utaqqû ilū Igigi
nišī rapšāti ṣalmāt qaqqadi idallalā qurdīka
eṭla ēda tappâ tušarši
ana lā išari tanamdin apla
edlūti sikkūr šamê tupatti
ana lā nāṭili tašakkan nūru
ṭuppa arma lā petâ tašassi
ina libbi immeri tašaṭṭar šīra tašakkan dīna
dayyān ilī bēl Igigi
Šamaš bēl šīmat māti attā-ma
anāku Aplūtu mār ilīšu
ša ilšu Sîn ištaršu Nikkal
siḫilti šīri šaknam-ma irteneddanni
ina lumun mimma ḫuṣāb narkabtīya ša iššebru
ina lumun kulbābī sāmūti ša ina bītīya innamru
ina lumun idāti ittāti lemnēti lā ṭābāti
ša ina bītīya ibšâ ana pānīya ipparkā
palḫāku adrāku u šutādurāku
šīmtī šīm alaktī dummiq
līširā idātūya
lidmiqā šunātūya
šunat aṭṭula ana damqāti šukna
išariš lullik tappê lukšud
ša ūmīya lū damqāti
šutlimam-ma egirrê dumqi
ina sūqi lū magir qabûya
ilu u šarru lišāqirūʾinni
kabtu u rubû ša qabîya līpuš
ina ulṣi u rīšāti lubil ūmu
Kittu lizziz ina imittīya
Mīšar lizziz ina šumēlīya
littallak ilu mušallimu ina idīya
ayy-ipparku rābiṣu šulmu ina arkīya
lītamūka Bunene sukkalka damiqti
Aya ḫīrtu narāmtaka šilim liqbīka
Šamaš ašarēd ilī attā rišâ rēmu
šamû liḫdūka erṣetim lirīška
ilū ša kiššati likrubūka
ilū rabûtu libbaka liṭibbū
Akkadian transliteration: Alan Lenzi (ed.), Reading Akkadian Prayers and Hymns: An Introduction, Society of Biblical Literature, 2011, pp. 367–383 (normalised text), based on Mayer, UFBG, pp. 503–510. Lines 18–25 follow MS G (Sultantepe / Ḫuzirina). Standard Babylonian, first millennium BCE. Survives in multiple Neo-Babylonian and Neo-Assyrian manuscripts.
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