From Distant Days: Myths, Tales, and Poetry of Ancient Mesopotamia

Rating:
Summary: An impressive collection of Mesopotamian literature
Review: Benjamin Foster's book contains many original compositions from the major literary genres of Sumero-Akkadian culture: myths, king epics, omen literature, prayers, lamentations, love lyrics, wisdom literature, magic spells, and even humor. Indeed, although the Epic of Gilgamesh is noticeably absent, "From Distant Days" is one of the most comprehensive Mesopotamian anthologies available for the general reader.

Foster's introduction lays down the organization of the book and describes many of the structural markers used in Sumero-Akkadian literature. Each presented composition is also accompanied by an appropriate description that gives context for the modern reader. The translations in this book are very readable, with lacunae and omissions clearly marked. Also, the translations are current as of 1995, and include versions that are considerably more complete in some cases than ones available in other widely available anthologies.

My favorite parts of the book focused on the wisdom literature and lamentations, since the subject matter dealt primarily with human feelings and experiences, rather than monotonous praise of the gods. I was amazed at how the feelings expressed in these 3000-4000 year old compositions still managed to strike a chord of resonance with me. One also cannot help but notice the many parallels that exist between the Bible and the older literary corpus of Mesopotamia.

For the reader who is looking for a good anthology of Mesopotamian literature, I would readily recommend "From Distant Days". Furthermore, I believe this book along with two others would form an authoritative collection of Sumero-Akkadian original compositions translated into English. The two other books are "The Epic of Gilgamesh" by Andrew George (ISBN 0140449191) and "The Harps that Once..." by Thorkild Jacobsen (ISBN 0300072783).



Rating:
Summary: An uncluttered and wonderfully readable collection.
Review: FROM DISTANT DAYS : Myths, Tales, and Poetry of Ancient Mesopotamia. Translated by Benjamin R. Foster. 438 pp. Bethseda, Maryland : CDL Press, 1995. ISBN 1-883053-09-9 (pbk.)

I currently have three anthologies of Sumerian-Akkadian literature on my shelves: Stephanie Dalley's 'Myths from Mesopotamia' (1989), Thorkild Jacobsen's 'The Harps That Once' (1987), and the present book. All three are by specialists and are designed for the general reader; all, within the limits of their shared conventional viewpoint, are excellent; and anyone with a serious interest in this remote and fascinating literature will want to have all three.

Of the three, Dalley's is the most 'technical' translation, in the sense that it has far more extensive footnotes, and that it wisely prefers to retain original terms such as "Kurnugi" (page 155), instead of offering essentially misleading equivalents such as "Netherworld" (Foster, page 78) or "Hades" (Jacobsen, page 207 ff). Her translations also seem to me to be the most vigorous, but that's just a personal feeling, and all three of these tranlations are wonderfully readable.

Foster tells us that the present book is "a selection, rearrangement, and abridgement of 'Before the Muses, An Anthology of Akkadian Literature' (Bethseda, MD : CDL Press, 1993)" (page vii). His substantial anthology is organized as follows : 1. Gods and Their Deeds; 2. Kings and Their Deeds; 3. Divine Speech; 4. Hymns and Prayers; 5. Sorrow and Suffering; 6. Love and Sex; 7. Stories and Humor; 8. Wisdom; 9. Magic Spells.

As is the case with the Dalley and Jacobsen anthologies, all texts have been provided with their own brief introductions, and all gaps and losses of text in the original tablets have been indicated in the translations, though Foster's texts are much more lightly annotated. His book opens with a short 8-page Introduction, and is rounded out with a Glossary of Proper Names, but lacks both a Bibliography and an Index.

The book has clearly been designed as a reader's edition, with minimal impedimenta in the way of notes and so on that might interfere with the reader's enjoyment of the texts. Foster tells us that those who want to learn more about these texts, or to read further in Akkadian Literature, should consult his much fuller 2-volume work, 'Before the Muses.'

The book is well-printed on excellent paper in a large clear font that might have been a bit heavier, is bound in glossy wrappers, and has one of those abominable glued spines that crack when opened. I wonder what happened to stitching?

Here, as a brief example of Foster's style, are the opening lines of his 'When Ishtar [i.e., Inanna] Went to the Netherworld,' with my obliques added to indicate line breaks :

"To the netherworld, land of n[o return], / Ishtar, daughter of Sin, [set] her mind. / Indeed, the daughter of Sin did set her mind / To the gloomy house, seat of the ne[therworld], / To the house which none leaves who enters, / To the road whose journey has no return, / To the house whose entrants are bereft of light..." (page 78).

Those with access to the Dalley and Jacobsen will find it interesting to compare Foster's version with theirs. His rhythms seem a little more stately and relaxed, a little less vigorous, and he seems less sparing of words. But, as I've indicated, all three books, though differing in flavor, are intensely readable, and we should be grateful to Professors Dalley, Jacobsen, and Foster, for the enormous labors which must have gone into them.

What I said in my review of Jacobsen applies equally here. The limits of Foster's book are the limits of the official point-of-view. Within these limits his book becomes a labor of love, a wonderfully readable literary treatment of some of the world's most ancient, fascinating and beautiful literature by a noted authority, and one that can be strongly recommended to all sensitive readers.

Readers, however, shouldn't take Foster as gospel but as something vastly more interesting, since what Ishtar/Inanna may well have been visiting was not the "Netherworld" but the mines of Africa. But to understand this you'll have to read linguist and scholar Zechariah Sitchin's 'The 12th Planet.' Only he provides a framework in which all becomes intelligible.

Rating:
Summary: An uncluttered and wonderfully readable collection.
Review: FROM DISTANT DAYS : Myths, Tales, and Poetry of Ancient Mesopotamia. Translated by Benjamin R. Foster. 438 pp. Bethseda, Maryland : CDL Press, 1995. ISBN 1-883053-09-9 (pbk.)

I currently have three anthologies of Sumerian-Akkadian literature on my shelves: Stephanie Dalley's 'Myths from Mesopotamia' (1989), Thorkild Jacobsen's 'The Harps That Once' (1987), and the present book. All three are by specialists and are designed for the general reader; all, within the limits of their shared conventional viewpoint, are excellent; and anyone with a serious interest in this remote and fascinating literature will want to have all three.

Of the three, Dalley's is the most 'technical' translation, in the sense that it has far more extensive footnotes, and that it wisely prefers to retain original terms such as "Kurnugi" (page 155), instead of offering essentially misleading equivalents such as "Netherworld" (Foster, page 78) or "Hades" (Jacobsen, page 207 ff). Her translations also seem to me to be the most vigorous, but that's just a personal feeling, and all three of these tranlations are wonderfully readable.

Foster tells us that the present book is "a selection, rearrangement, and abridgement of 'Before the Muses, An Anthology of Akkadian Literature' (Bethseda, MD : CDL Press, 1993)" (page vii). His substantial anthology is organized as follows : 1. Gods and Their Deeds; 2. Kings and Their Deeds; 3. Divine Speech; 4. Hymns and Prayers; 5. Sorrow and Suffering; 6. Love and Sex; 7. Stories and Humor; 8. Wisdom; 9. Magic Spells.

As is the case with the Dalley and Jacobsen anthologies, all texts have been provided with their own brief introductions, and all gaps and losses of text in the original tablets have been indicated in the translations, though Foster's texts are much more lightly annotated. His book opens with a short 8-page Introduction, and is rounded out with a Glossary of Proper Names, but lacks both a Bibliography and an Index.

The book has clearly been designed as a reader's edition, with minimal impedimenta in the way of notes and so on that might interfere with the reader's enjoyment of the texts. Foster tells us that those who want to learn more about these texts, or to read further in Akkadian Literature, should consult his much fuller 2-volume work, 'Before the Muses.'

The book is well-printed on excellent paper in a large clear font that might have been a bit heavier, is bound in glossy wrappers, and has one of those abominable glued spines that crack when opened. I wonder what happened to stitching?

Here, as a brief example of Foster's style, are the opening lines of his 'When Ishtar [i.e., Inanna] Went to the Netherworld,' with my obliques added to indicate line breaks :

"To the netherworld, land of n[o return], / Ishtar, daughter of Sin, [set] her mind. / Indeed, the daughter of Sin did set her mind / To the gloomy house, seat of the ne[therworld], / To the house which none leaves who enters, / To the road whose journey has no return, / To the house whose entrants are bereft of light..." (page 78).

Those with access to the Dalley and Jacobsen will find it interesting to compare Foster's version with theirs. His rhythms seem a little more stately and relaxed, a little less vigorous, and he seems less sparing of words. But, as I've indicated, all three books, though differing in flavor, are intensely readable, and we should be grateful to Professors Dalley, Jacobsen, and Foster, for the enormous labors which must have gone into them.

What I said in my review of Jacobsen applies equally here. The limits of Foster's book are the limits of the official point-of-view. Within these limits his book becomes a labor of love, a wonderfully readable literary treatment of some of the world's most ancient, fascinating and beautiful literature by a noted authority, and one that can be strongly recommended to all sensitive readers.

Readers, however, shouldn't take Foster as gospel but as something vastly more interesting, since what Ishtar/Inanna may well have been visiting was not the "Netherworld" but the mines of Africa. But to understand this you'll have to read linguist and scholar Zechariah Sitchin's 'The 12th Planet.' Only he provides a framework in which all becomes intelligible.

Rating:
Summary: From Distant Days
Review: This has just about everything, although, as the author notes in his preface, this is an abridgment of an earlier work, Before the Muses: Anthology of Akkadian Literature. The selections are arranged by type, beginning with myths and epics--the Enuma Elish and a composite Akkadian flood story--and working its way through deeds of kings, hymns, prayers, proverbs, magic spells, elegies and celebrations. There is also some satire--a land deed drawn up for birds and a curse against a bleating goat.

Foster provides an introduction to each piece, and to sections of the longer pieces. There are gaps in most narratives, and Foster notes them. He also provides footnotes explaining the more obscure points and allusions, as well as some issues with translations. At points, it is less than a leisurely read, but Foster seems determined to present the material in plain but telling language.

I have quoted often from the book and return to it frequently. One piece, an elegy for a woman who died in childbirth, has always moved me. It is told from the point of view of the dead woman. After remembering a happy life with her husband, she says that the day she went into labor, her face "grew overcast." Despite her pleas and the pleas of her husband to Belet-illi, the goddess of childbirth, "shrouded her face" She concludes:

[All... ] those days I was with my husband,

While I lived with him who was my lover,

Death was creeping stealthily into my bedroom,

It forced my from my house,

It cut me off from my lover,

It set my foot toward the land from which I shall not return.

Rating:
Summary: From Distant Days
Review: This has just about everything, although, as the author notes in his preface, this is an abridgment of an earlier work, Before the Muses: Anthology of Akkadian Literature. The selections are arranged by type, beginning with myths and epics--the Enuma Elish and a composite Akkadian flood story--and working its way through deeds of kings, hymns, prayers, proverbs, magic spells, elegies and celebrations. There is also some satire--a land deed drawn up for birds and a curse against a bleating goat.

Foster provides an introduction to each piece, and to sections of the longer pieces. There are gaps in most narratives, and Foster notes them. He also provides footnotes explaining the more obscure points and allusions, as well as some issues with translations. At points, it is less than a leisurely read, but Foster seems determined to present the material in plain but telling language.

I have quoted often from the book and return to it frequently. One piece, an elegy for a woman who died in childbirth, has always moved me. It is told from the point of view of the dead woman. After remembering a happy life with her husband, she says that the day she went into labor, her face "grew overcast." Despite her pleas and the pleas of her husband to Belet-illi, the goddess of childbirth, "shrouded her face" She concludes:

[All... ] those days I was with my husband,

While I lived with him who was my lover,

Death was creeping stealthily into my bedroom,

It forced my from my house,

It cut me off from my lover,

It set my foot toward the land from which I shall not return.