| Diwan Maṣbuta ḏ-Hibil Ziwa | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Rows ofuthras inDiwan Maṣbuta ḏ-Hibil Ziwa (DC 35) | |
| Information | |
| Religion | Mandaeism |
| Language | Mandaic language |
The Baptism of Hibil Ziwa orDiwan Maṣbuta ḏ-Hibil Ziwa (Classical Mandaic:ࡃࡉࡅࡀࡍ ࡌࡀࡑࡁࡅࡕࡀ ࡖࡄࡉࡁࡉࡋ ࡆࡉࡅࡀ, "Scroll of the Baptism of Hibil Ziwa") is aMandaean illustrated scroll. It describes thesoteriological descent ofHibil Ziwa to theWorld of Darkness, and hisbaptisms before and after. The scroll is essentially also a commentary on themaṣbuta, or Mandaean ritual baptism.[1]
The scroll is lavishly illustrated, showing figures of dozens ofuthras and mythological creatures and realms.
The beginning of the text is missing, and the text as it exists opens with Yawar Hibil approaching theKing of Light, who baptises him in 360yardeni, clothes him in 360 robes of light, and bestows him with the Great Mystery, seven staves, and other attributes. Hibil is dispatched to theWorld of Darkness, descends to confront and sealKrun, and ascends to the world ofQin, where he secretly takes the mysteries of the jewel, mirror and bitter herb from Qin when she reveals them, and capturesRuha, who is pregnant withUr, also takingPtahil.[2]
He ascends further to the world ofGaf and offers prayers to the King of Light, who sends forManda d-Hayyi to send a Letter of Kushta and phial of oil to Hibil, which are received, but Hibil and his companions remain detained by the powers of darkness, until amasiqta is performed, following which they ascend to the middle world, alarming the guards, in response to which theGreat Mana dispatchesYushamin, who interrogates Hibil's identity and permits him re-entry to the World of Light. The remainder of the text is a detailed ritual commentary and instruction on the 360-fold baptism performed on Hibil after returning, which is a form of baptism traditionally used to restore ritual purity to a priest.[2]
TheDiwan Maṣbuta d-Hibil Ziwa and theHaran Gawaita were published, with English translation, byE. S. Drower in 1953. Drower's translation was primarily based on manuscript 35 of theDrower Collection (abbreviatedDC 35), and includes an autobiographical appendix byYahya Bihram following the final colophon. Portions of the text, including hymns, were also present in, and cross-referenced with, a related text in manuscript 50 (DC 50,Šarḥ ḏ-Maṣbuta Rabia).[2] A typesetted Mandaic version of DC 35 was published byMajid Fandi Al-Mubaraki in 2002.[3]
BL Add. 23,602B, titledKholasta sive liturgica Sabiorum Libri Joannis Fragmenta Mendaice, is a book of fragments that was probably obtained by ColonelJohn George Taylor. It contains fragments ofMaṣbuta ḏ-Hibil Ziua andAlma Rišaia Rba.[4]
MSRRC 2U, another manuscript version ofMaṣbuta ḏ-Hibil Ziwa, was copied in 1168 A.H. (1754–5 A.D.). DC 35 (from 1247 A.H. (1831–2 A.D.)) was copied from RRC 2U.[5]
The narrative portion of the text parallels book 5 of theRight Ginza, while book 4 includes a considerably shorter account of a baptism of Hibil,Sheetil andAnush.
It has also been compared to theHymn of the Pearl from the apocryphalActs of Thomas.[6]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
