Beneath the Veil
It's authentic, Rodgers. Every single one. They are all authentic. The dating of the tablets, the layers they were found in, the method by which they were found, and even the language style I've noticed from my own translations have all checked out. These are likely older than what we have of the Baal cycle. And with some of the spellings of words, I wouldn't be surprised if the myth itself is ancient. Perhaps nearly back to the mid-second millennium BCE.
When I returned to Mancur's Mansion last night, I was greeted by Vincent. The boisterous man had been absent the day before, hence why I had to write him a note. But when I arrived, he had with him a plethora of papers from scholars and experts in their fields. I recognized some names, Rodgers; one of which, Armstrong, works with you in your department.
We discussed the findings of the experts along with my translation. I arrived at the terrible conclusion: these tablets are ancient, Rodgers, and they threaten to rewrite much of what we know about the Canaanite idea of the world... and potentially even Babylonian understandings. This "place beyond the spheres" is something neither of us had answers for, and I know from your responses that you also have not even a suggestion of what it could be. Keep all this in mind as I now dive into the text that I translated that night.
The third tablet begins just where the second left off. Anat has been taken to Beth-Ayin and though the place is described as empty and dark, Anat is explicitly not alone. It seems she is in the halls of a grand palace. I say grand because the direct translation is palace-palace and I recognized this as similar to the Babylonian technique of showing how great something is by repetition. For example, where lugal is a king, you can repeat the suffix -gal ("big") to make lugalgal meaning "great king" or "high king". We do the same sort of thing even today: you like Vanessa, but you don't like-like Vanessa. This sort of contrastive focus reduplication is something that we've always done as a species and here it is on full display. The author wants to get across this isn't just a palace, but a grand palace – a palace of palaces.
It is in this palace-palace that Anat is tended, and interrogated, by this mysterious burning being. It is also here where we get a second title for this character:
In a palace-palace the burning one attends to Anat,
The scorching one to the violent goddess.
The burning one. The scorching one. Apt names, I feel, for a being the author wants to align with some sort of final, all-consuming fire. The next line starts the interrogation and again this burning one is described as having no mouth and yet talking. This becomes a rather repetitive theme and I'm not exactly sure why yet. This contrast, though, is important and appears to relate that this being is able to communicate outside of what we would consider natural means. Perhaps her voice is emitted a different way or perhaps she is able to project her thoughts? I am not sure.
She asks Anat for her name and Anat answers, including her title as "Mistress of the Peoples". This is noteworthy as she has not been called this by the writer since she arrived in this forever-cave. The burning being asks why Anat has come and Anat has not forgotten her brother. Baal is said to be her motivation:
The violent goddess answers,
"To aid my brother against his adversary,
To join with Baal against the Usurper.
The Bull of Heaven sent me below the Pit
Even to this place beyond the spheres."
Note again, Rodgers, how Anat is referred to as "the violent goddess" even though she just described herself as the "Mistress of the Peoples". I find this interesting, it's as if the writer wants to convey that that title isn't who she is anymore; like she's holding on to some past version of herself, a past title. I'm reminded of Horon in Tablet I removing her crown with the explanation of "Can such things be taken to the grave?" It seems that no, status cannot be taken to the grave... or beyond. But status can be achieved in this place. Again, I am getting ahead of myself.
I also do have to wonder if this "Usurper" is from this foreign place? Perhaps that is why El sent Anat here: to fight whatever monsters were here to learn how to fight the Usurper? Anyway, the burning being informs Anat of where she is and, of course, the place name has been gouged out. Note that I say it has been "gouged" and not "chipped" or "damaged". I say this because I'm almost confident that this text, as preserved as it is, was censored at one time in the ancient world.
Anat's host doesn't seem to recognize Baal, or if she does, she doesn't seem to care and makes no mention of him. Instead, she points out that Anat was ill-equipped to deal with the warriors and she offers her home for the goddess to rest. Anat agrees and a unique thing happens again with Anat's titles. Up to this point, the writer has always referred to Anat in this place as the "violent goddess"; however, here is the first time that she is referred to by her most common epithet:
So Anat stays in the burning one's palace-palace
Maiden Anat remains in the [scorching] one's chambers.
Bare, Anat retires,
And bare [do] (they?) rise.
Anat is called "Maiden" for the first time since her arrival. Furthermore, Anat is mentioned to still be bare, as expected since she was ritually stripped of her belongings and coverings in the underworld; but that fourth line... Rodgers, I do wish I could have shared it with another scholar – because that fourth line, though slightly damaged, seems to translate that they are both bare when they rise. I can't help but feel that this fourth line is indeed accurate in that they are both naked when they awake and that it goes hand in hand with the return of Anat's more romantic title.
But let's move on as there is more to say on that further in the tablet. Right now, it's time for another mind-bending loanword. Or rather three loanwords:
A (rabshakeh) waits at the threshold,
Even a vizier at the door.
. . .
A (tartan) waits at the threshold,
Even a prince at the door.
. . .
A (rabsaris) waits at the threshold
Even a general at the door
Rodgers, what the hell is this tablet? Rabshakeh, tartan, and rabsaris are all Assyrian loanwords. I won't belabour their meaning as you were the one who taught them to me, but it is rather curious that again the line blurs in this place as to what words are apt for descriptions here. It's almost as if the divisions of creed, culture, space, and time have no meaning in this place. But that would be ridiculous to think, after all. This is just a story, even if words are appearing somewhat anachronistically.
You can tell that I've skipped lines in sharing the three loanwords, so now I will take the time to share with you just what these three individuals do in the story. First, though, let me share what they all have in common: they are all waiting for Anat and the fiery being outside the fiery being's bedroom (again, I'll touch on this later) and they are all subservient to the fiery being. I take this to mean that the fiery being is a leader of some sort. Perhaps a queen?
The first, a vizier of sorts, gives Anat "rough garments" of charcoal. Or at least something that is described in a word very closely related to charcoal but I can't be certain. These articles of clothing deliberately replace the clothing taken from her in the underworld according to the writer. Anat asks why she's given them and the answer is:
"Will the violent goddess meet her foes unclothed?
Continue on, Anat. Such are the rites of (Sheol)."
A similar thing plays out with the prince and the general. She is given armoured garments and a crown respectively. These are explicitly replacing the items removed from her in the underworld and the reasonings for the armour is that if she will fight, she must wear protection and if she will fight, she must be seen. Protection and status has been returned to her.
So if you haven't realised it yet, Rodgers, this redressing of Anat is a direct inverse of her undressing, with the events happening in the reverse order. She has been restored to how she entered the underworld in Tablet I. In fact, one could argue that these are more... permanent and potent items. The crown placed on her head, for instance, is directly translated battle-crown. That seems more directed to warfare to me. Also, in each reasoning, it is also repeated that these are the "rites of (Sheol)". Aside from more loanword headaches, this seems to tell me that Sheol is not an underworld, but some sort of... perhaps region or kingdom? I would expect the loanword Beth-Ayin to be used here considering that is where she is directly taken; but if I were to bet now, Beth-Ayin is a literal house – or grand palace – in the region of Sheol. This gives me pause.
During this exchange, she is only addressed by the three as either "Anat" or "violent goddess". This is despite her introducing herself with the epithet of "Mistress of the Peoples". Also, the narrator calls her "Maiden" and it seems this title has taken on a more personal tone as once battle begins in the following lines, that title is again dropped:
Maiden Anat and the burning one stride to battle,
The violent goddess and the scorching one march for war.
Behold! Anat gashes with her sword
And the enemy recoils in fear!
The violent goddess slashes with her sword
And the swarms are harvested.
See! The burning one crushes with her hammer
And the enemy cries out in anguish!
The scorching one flays [with her hammer]
And multitudes are felled.
Firstly of a slight note, I did have to use contextual clues as well as a secondary fragment to restructure that second to last sentence. But more importantly is the flip from "Maiden Anat" to just "Anat" or "violent goddess" when in battle. I have also included the subsequent lines that have the burning being fighting as I want to highlight the themes of battle that repeat. Just as the previous tablet, they are both described as fighting in the same ways: Anat slashes and gashes with swords, while her host crushes and flays with a hammer. They are also much more efficient and unstoppable together.
The narrator says that they fight for a period of "one hundred times one hundred" but I noticed that days have more or less been dropped from these periods. As a matter of fact, all units of time are missing. Time seems to not pass, though events still take place. Even when Anat retires, it is not because it is night time, but because there is a lull in the fighting. In the earlier tablets, it is mentioned that Shahar and Shalim cannot reach where she is. If the personifications of dawn and dusk cannot reach her, then is there no day or night where she is? I am interested in what you think about this, Rodgers.
They continue to fight and we get a phrase also found in the Baal Cycle. Anat's belly is described as "filled with victory" and the burning being's heart is "filled with joy" and the fighting is enough, as if something has been satisfied. Again, my theory or idea of there being some sort of... checkpoint rears its head here.
Now comes the point where things take a rather surprising turn. And yes, I realise that already this tale is rather tall, but just see what comes next, Rodgers. Anat and her host return to Beth-Ayin after a hard fought victory over the "swarms"; more specifically, they return to the fiery one's bedroom again. And then we get this:
At the door, the violent goddess removes the battle-crown,
At the threshold, Anat uncovers her head.
She has no mouth yet she speaks,
"Why have you removed the battle-crown from your head?"
The violent goddess answers,
"Shall I retire burdened with status?
[Continue on,] burning one. Such are the rites of Mount Inbubu."
Over the course of three stanzas, Anat removes her coverings and sets them aside to go to bed. It is noteworthy because this is obviously unexpected by her host. Anat responds that she's going to be sleeping, so why would she wear a crown? Also note that these are called the "rites of Mount Inbubu" here. In the second stanza, she calls them the "rites of Mount Ugr" but at the final stanza, when it is her final element of clothing, we get this explanation:
She has no mouth yet she speaks,
"Why have you removed the rough garments from your body?"
The Maiden Anat answers,
"Shall I retire with rough cloth against smooth stone?
Continue on, (lovely one?). Such are the rites of Anat."
These are the "rites of Anat". She has taken ownership of herself and her status. She was stripped in the underworld and then reclothed in Sheol, both events were outside of her control: they were done to her. Here, she removes what she's been given by her own choice and takes ownership of when she dons status. Further, look at what she says in the fourth line: "rough cloth against smooth stone." Of course, most may chalk this up to rough sleeping conditions in the distant past, but I don't. Recall that her host was described as having skin similar to polished stone, Rodgers.
And finally, at the last line, we have a new epithet for the host, and this is not an epithet told to Anat nor an epithet used by the narrator. In fact, I did my best to translate it, but it may truly be a hapax legomenon. It never appears in the rest of the tablet nor has it appeared before, and I doubt I will ever see it again. It roughly translates to either "brilliant one" or "lovely one" and I believe the writer meant for it to be an amorous term, such as "beautiful" or "fetching". After all, the context surrounding and following this is quite charged:
Maiden Anat retires with the burning one.
She goes down with the scorching one.
She rises with the burning one and dresses for battle,
I think, without a doubt, that the writer has paired Anat with another being; one that is distinctly described with female pronouns. I will admit that I have not read entirely everything on the Canaanites, but I do not expect I would find much in the way of homosexual relations - especially between two women - in their extant texts. The closest ancient text that comes to mind is the relationship between Gilgamesh and Enkidu in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Yet another way, this tablet changes so much.
They head out to war after rest and again their battle is described in the pleasantly gory detail expected of these epics. Blood up to your knees and guts to your thighs. Then, once their battling is again complete, they are said to return to Beth-Ayin victorious and they retire for a time. But the way it is written makes it seem as though it is less of a "and then this happened the next day" and more of a "and this is how things continued daily", albeit without the concept of days.
The final lines do get across that time has nearly no meaning. She doesn't just fight, she is described as staying there, as one stays at a home. She stays for "a time, time and a time" similar to how the book of Daniel describes "time, times and half a time." Not quite identical, but the same ambiguous idea regarding time ceasing to have standard meaning to gods gets across.
Finally, the biggest reveal of all and I feel somewhat... robbed. The final line again would read the name of where Anat is but it was gouged out. I would assume Sheol or Beth-Aven, but in previous locations in the text these names were not forcibly censored, so I knew it had to be the name of the place. I almost was resigned to marking it with my standard lacuna when something drew my eyes to the collection of secondary pieces and one in particular seemed to reflect the light just a bit too much. It must have been a trick of the flickering fire behind me, but I swore the piece almost glowed.
Regardless, I plucked the piece and peered at it. Rodgers... it had the name. It had that glorious and censored name in full and I translated it:
In (Neth'Kol?), Maiden Anat remains.
"Neth'Kol". Have you ever heard of such a place in any myth or legend? It seemed that my initial theory on "kol" being a portion of the name was correct, but this word is wholly unfamiliar to me. My only thought remains with the PIE peoples... If I hold onto Kol (or Kul), being a distinct secondary portion meaning "cover" or "conceal", then it would make sense to stick with PIE peoples language for the prefix. In this case, while "Neth" itself doesn't raise any flags, I do recognize that there is a PIE root word that means either "down" or "beneath" and that root word led to the word Nether. So perhaps this word is some long lost PIE word meaning "under the cover" or "beneath the veil"? Sort of a land that is a foundation and yet also hidden. Could you review your own studies for ancient terms and see if you find anything to corroborate this? Because I am grasping at straws, Rodgers.
Well, regardless of where this place is, the goddess Anat chose to stay there. This is the end of Tablet III and as has been my habit, I've included my full translation below for your own edification.
Now, I will end this email here. I need to get some rest. Yes, I'm aware that it is late morning for me, but I worked late into the night and when I did finally get to my flat, I found sleep hard to come by. It's been somewhat hot in my flat recently and while checking the A/C unit shows the temperature at a rather comfortable 15 degrees, it feels much closer to a balmy 24. I think my unit is on the fritz and I dread having to contact my landlord regarding this issue. But, now the temperature seems a bit more stable, so I believe I'll get more rest now.
Your tired friend,
Woodrow Collins
Sigla
<...> : Indicates damage to the tablet
Italics : Indicates a most literal translation for a phrase for apparent nonce words
[word or phrase] : Indicates short gaps or missing words in the parent text due to damage. The text inside is restored by either the more fragmentary parallel version or by context clues.
(word?) : Indicates damaged text that is still mostly readable but I am not 100% certain in the reading.
{words} : Indicates words inserted to give a better rendering in english or explanatory insertions
(italics) : Indicates apparent loanwords from other cultures
Tablet III
In darkness, Anat finds herself (accompanied?)
In emptiness, Anat is not alone.
In a palace-palace the burning one attends to Anat,
The scorching one to the violent goddess.
She has no mouth yet she asks,
"Violent goddess, who are you
To fight the swarm so viciously?"
The violent goddess answers,
"I am Anat, Mistress of the Peoples."
She has no mouth yet she speaks,
"Violent goddess, why are you here?
What has brought you to this place outside it all?"
The violent goddess answers,
"To aid my brother against his adversary,
To join with Baal against the Usurper.
The Bull of Heaven sent me below the Pit
Even to this place beyond the spheres."
She has no mouth yet she declares,
"Look! You have come to <...>
And have been found wanting.
You have fought in this place
And have been brought low.
Come, stay awhile in my palace as you recover
Remain in my chambers as you regain your strength.
For the swarms are endless and the war is eternal."
So Anat stays in the burning one's palace-palace
Maiden Anat remains in the [scorching] one's chambers.
Bare, Anat retires,
And bare [do] (they?) rise.
A (rabshakeh) waits at the threshold,
Even a vizier at the door.
In his hands are rough garments of (charcoal?)
He lets her through the door, and places the rough garments on her body
In place of her rough garments returned to Mount Zaphon.
"Why have you placed these rough garments on my body?"
"Will the violent goddess meet her foes unclothed?
Continue on, Anat. Such are the rites of (Sheol)."
A (tartan) waits at the threshold,
Even a prince at the door.
In his hands are armoured garments of onyx.
He lets her through the door, and places the armoured garments on her shoulders
In place of her armoured garments returned to Mount Zaphon.
"Why have you placed these armoured garments on my shoulders?"
"Will the violent goddess contend with the swarms unprotected?
Continue on, Anat. Such are the rites of (Sheol)."
A (rabsaris) waits at the threshold
Even a general at the door
In his hands is a battle-crown of ivory.
He lets her through the door, and places the battle-crown on her head
In place of her crown returned to Mount Zaphon.
"Why have you placed this battle-crown on my head?"
"Will the violent goddess contend with the swarms unseen?
Continue on, Anat. Such are the rites of (Sheol)."
Maiden Anat and the burning one stride to battle,
The violent goddess and the scorching one march for war.
Behold! Anat gashes with her sword
And the enemy recoils in fear!
The violent goddess slashes with her sword
And the swarms are harvested.
See! The burning one crushes with her hammer
And the enemy cries out in anguish!
The scorching one flays [with her hammer]
And multitudes are felled.
One hundred times [one hundred] they battle in the plains,
One thousand times one thousand they fight in the fields
Until Anat's belly is filled with victory,
Until the burning one's heart is filled with joy.
They fight until it is sufficient.
They contend until it is enough.
And the violent goddess returns with the burning one to her palace-palace,
Maiden Anat returns with the scorching one to her bed chamber.
At the door, the violent goddess removes the battle-crown,
At the threshold, Anat uncovers her head.
She has no mouth yet she speaks,
"Why have you removed the battle-crown from your head?"
The violent goddess answers,
"Shall I retire burdened with status?
[Continue on,] burning one. Such are the rites of Mount Inbubu."
At the door, the violent goddess removes the armoured garments,
At the threshold, Anat uncovers her shoulders.
She has no mouth yet she speaks,
"Why have you removed the armoured garments from your shoulders?"
The violent goddess answers,
"Shall I retire armed for war?
Continue on, scorching one. Such are the rites of Mount Inbubu."
At the door, the Maiden Anat removes the rough garments,
At the threshold, Anat uncovers her body.
She has no mouth yet she speaks,
"Why have you removed the rough garments from your body?"
The Maiden Anat answers,
"Shall I retire with rough cloth against smooth stone?
Continue on, (lovely one?). Such are the rites of Anat."
Maiden Anat retires with the burning one.
She goes down with the scorching one.
She rises with the burning one and dresses for battle,
The violent goddess readies with the scorching one and marches for war.
See how they harvest knee-deep in soldiers' blood!
Behold how they reap up to their thighs in warriors' gore!
<...> [make] heads {to} roll
and hands to fly.
A red mist goes up and fills <...>
The blood of the fallen stains the land.
<...>
<...>
They contend with the swarms
Until <...>
<...> [giants of the north] for a time
Until there is satisfaction with their battling
And they return to (Beth-Ayin), their bellies filled with victory.
Maiden Anat goes down with the scorching one to her bed chamber
In the place beyond the spheres the violent goddess stays for a time, time and a time.
In [Neth'Kol], Maiden Anat remains.