ept back the ferry, have shut off the wall,[393]
Have thus checked the enchantment from all quarters.
Anu and Anatum have commissioned me.
Whom shall I send to Belit of the field?[394]
Into the mouth of the sorcerer and sorceress cast the lock.[395]
Recite the incantation of the chief of gods, Marduk.[396]
'Let them[397] call to thee but answer them not,
Let them address thee, but hearken not to them.
Let me call to thee, and do thou answer me,
Let me address thee, and do thou hearken unto me.'
By the command of Anu, Anatum, and Belit, recite the incantation.

The hymns to the fire-god, Nusku (or Girru), of which the 'Maklu' series
naturally furnishes many specimens,[398] are all pretty much alike. I
choose one which illustrates in greater detail the symbolical burning of
the image of the witch:[399]

Nusku, great offspring of Anu,
The likeness of his father, the first-born of Bel,
The product of the deep, sprung from Ea,[400]
I raise the torch to illumine thee, yea, thee.
The sorcerer who has bewitched me,
Through the witchcraft by means of which he has bewitched me, do thou
bewitch him.
The sorceress who has bewitched me,
Through the witchcraft by means of which she has bewitched me, bewitch
thou her.
The charmer who has charmed me,
Through the charm with which he has charmed me, charm thou him.
The witch who has charmed me,
Through the charm with which she has charmed me, charm thou her.
Those who have made images of me, reproducing my features,
Who have taken away my breath, torn my hairs,
Who have rent my clothes, have hindered my feet from treading the
dust,
May the fire-god, the strong one, break their charm.

Just as the witches were burnt in effigy, so also the demons were
supposed to be similarly dispelled. Immediately following the
incantation comes one directed against the demons:

I raise the torch, their images I burn,
Of the _utukku_, the _shedu_, the _rabisu_, the _ekimmu_,
The _labartu_, the _labasi_, the _akhkhasu_,
Of _lilu_ and _lilitu_ and _ardat lili_,
And every evil that seizes hold of men.
Tremble, melt away, and disappear!
May your smoke rise to heaven,
May Shamash destroy your limbs,
May the son of Ea [_i.e._, may the fire-god],
The great magician, restrain your strength (?).

The witch who has caused the evil may be unknown. For such a case one of
the incantations runs:[401]

Who art