Ginza Rabba: The Sabian Mandean Holy Book Full English Translation

The First Glorification Hymn: Monotheism

In the name of the Great Living One, I glorify my Lord with a pure heart. He is the Great Living One, the All-Seeing, the All-Powerful, the All-Knowing, the Almighty, the All-Wise. He is the Eternal, the Ancient, the Stranger to the realms of Light, the Self-Sufficient beyond the realms of Light.

He is the Word, the Hearing, and the Sight; He is the Healing and the Triumph, the Strength and the Steadfastness.
He is the Great Living One, the Delight of the Heart and the Forgiver of Sins. I glorify my Lord with a pure heart. O Lord of all realms, glorified are You, blessed, exalted, magnified, revered, eternal, the Great and Sublime. King of the Sublime Light, the Compassionate, the Oft-Returning, the Gracious, the Most Merciful.

The Great Living One, whose splendor has no limit, nor any bounds to His radiance. His power is all-pervading, His might is immense. He is the Great One who is unseen and unconfined. He has no partner in His dominion, nor consort in His scepter. Whoever places his trust in Him shall never be forsaken, and whoever glorifies His name shall never doubt. Whoever calls upon Him finds Him the All-Hearing, the Ever-Responding.

He was not, for He has ever been, nor shall He cease to be, for He is. Eternal above all realms. Death cannot approach Him, nor can nullity. Before Him the angels stand, resplendent in their light, prostrating, humbled, grateful, and glorifying. He is the One without limit or measure, whom neither darkness nor night can approach. He is Majesty and Perfection. He is Justice and Safety. He is Tenderness and Compassion.

The First since eternity, Creator of all things, Possessor of power without equal. Maker of all that is beautiful, Lord of all the realms of Light. Higher than all the angels, their God entirely. He is the Light in which there is no darkness, the Life in which there is no death, the Goodness in which there is no evil.

He is the Guide without wrath, the Sweetness that never runs dry, the Radiant One, Dweller in the Upper North, Origin of all luminaries, Father of all the angels. Abiding in His kingdom, Just in His omnipotence. He sent forth the Perfect and the Truthful, and imprinted His name upon the lips of the believers, and blessed them all with His blessing.

His power cannot be encompassed by number or reckoning. The flashes of His crown burst forth to every place, and the rays of His light stream from between the leaves of His diadem to fill all realms.

“Who can glorify You with Your due glorification?” said the angels, “for Your glorification is boundless. Who can bless You with Your due blessing, for Your blessing is countless. Who can magnify You with Your exaltedness, for Your exaltedness is beyond measure. Your depth cannot be fathomed, Your power cannot be contained, Your greatness cannot be beheld, and Your loftiness is greater than all things.”

Behold, they are all humbled. They know not Your name, nor can they discern Your form. Blessed are the Perfect who knew You with a pure heart, and believed in You sincerely, and bowed before Your greatness in truth. Blessed are the Perfect, the Truthful.

He is King since eternity. Steadfast is His throne. Vast is His kingdom. He has neither father nor son, and none shares His dominion. Blessed is He in every age, and glorified is He in every age. Existent since antiquity, enduring unto forever.

He said to the angels, “Be,” and they were. By His word the angels of Light came to be. From His pure radiance emerged the angels of Praise — boundless, countless, and imperishable. From His great light they emanated, brimming with glorification.

Perfect is His radiance. Resplendent is His light. Perfect and resplendent is their abode within Him. A light in which there is no nullity, a reverence in which there is no disobedience, a righteousness in which there is no discord, a faith in which there is no deceit, a truth in which there is no falsehood. He is the Good in which there is no evil, and therein they dwell, glorifying the Living One.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the radiance He bestowed upon them.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the raiment of radiance He granted them.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the robes of light He gave them.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the girdles of radiance He conferred upon them.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the crowns of radiance He bestowed upon them, and wrought for them.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the strength and steadfastness He granted them.

The angels of Radiance glorify the King of Light with the truth, loyalty, and faith He gifted them.

All of them are gentle and benevolent, wise and truthful. There is no malice in them, nor deceit. Each dwells in the abode of the other without error, nor do they wrong one another. Honored and exalted, they are alike as the lashes of the eye. Their intentions are revealed to one another, and the tidings of what has passed and what is to come are known among them. They illuminate one another, they perfume one another, and they extend the handclasp of truth to one another. By the will of God they are eternal — they neither vanish nor grow old, they neither ache nor weaken.

Their garments are purer, their crowns more enduring, their progeny more pious. They neither hunger nor thirst, they neither burn nor freeze, they are neither wronged nor do they anger. No corruption lies in their trees, no bitterness in their fruits, no withering in their blossoms.

Their stations are sublime, their seas are serene, their waters flowing — sweeter than milk and cooler still. Whoever drinks of them shall taste no death, nor hear the sound of sorrow. Their years are beyond number, their lives beyond measure. Joyous and exultant, they set forth with swift steps, and over the white land of Ayar they soar — where Light is complete, with neither sunset nor shadow. Their faces are of light, translucent as crystal. All of them are humbled, glorifying God.

God, King of the Sublime Light, King of the Angels and the Uthras, praised be His name unto the eternity of eternities. And the Uthras, and the Angels, and the Messengers, and the Rituals, and the Proverbs, and the flowing Clouds, and the running Waters, and the towering Trees, and the Radiance with which they are adorned—all are from God, King of the Sublime Light.

And the Living One is the Purifier.

The Second Glorification Hymn: The Commandments

In the name of the Great Living One. I glorify my Lord with a pure heart. He is the King of the Sublime Light. He is God. From Him came the Angels and the Uthras. In His radiance and His light they are arrayed. Brighter than the sun and the moon, unsullied by any blemish. Majestic when they appear, swift when they move.

Have you seen how light descends from heaven to earth? Thus do they arrive. Their virtues are beyond number, their graces beyond measure. Such is the Kingdom of the Living One: justice and perfection, peace and faith, wholeness without want.

Blessed is he who knew You.

Blessed is he who spoke with knowledge from You.

Blessed is he who discerned You.

Blessed is he who was distinguished by You.

Blessed is he who hoped in You and placed his trust in You.

Blessed is he who drew from Your wisdom, and was delivered from the tyranny of this world by Your guidance.

Blessed are the Perfect, the Truthful, who knew You and discerned You, and ascended victorious to the World of Light.

Blessed are You, and glorified are You, O my Lord. O King of the Sublime Light… blessed and glorified are You unto the eternity of eternities. By Your command all things came to be, and by Your command all things were created. O Creator of Hibil Ziwa, Gabriel the Messenger, and Sender of him unto the world of darkness.

My Lord said to me: “Go to the world of darkness, wholly filled with evil. Wholly filled with evil. With calamity. With consuming fire. A world of restless sedition. A world of deceit and falsehood. Sown with thorns and brambles. Go to it, and subdue it. Spread out the earth, and raise up the heavens, and suspend within them the planets. Grant the sun its radiance, and the moon its splendor, and the stars their luster, and the water its sweetness, and the fire its glow, and let life begin by My command.

Bring forth by My command the fruits, the vines, and the trees, that the world may rejoice in them. And let there be a man and a woman. Name them Adam and Eve. Let the angels of fire prostrate before them, and whoever disobeys—his fate is the Fire. And let three of the angels of Light be companions to Adam. And through Ptahil shall the world be illuminated.”

The King of the Sublime Light spoke His word, and all things came to be. Ptahil descended, and he raised the heavens, and spread out the earth, and summoned the angels of fire. And the sun was granted radiance, and the moon was granted splendor, and the stars their luster, and each was raised to its orbit. And the tempests and the water and the fire were formed. And the fruits, and the vines, and the trees were formed, and the tame beasts, and the savage predators.

And from dust and red clay, and from blood and bitterness, and from the secret of the cosmos, Adam and Eve were fashioned, and the soul was settled within them by the power of the King of Light.

The Living One said: “Let the angels of fire prostrate before Adam. Let them not defy him in a single word.” And they prostrated, save for the Wicked One, who refused. And his Lord bound him fast in captivity.

I am the Pure Messenger. My Lord commanded me: “Go and call to Adam and Eve, his wife, with a voice resplendent. Teach Adam, that his heart may be illumined, and guide him, that his mind and his inner self may be enlightened. Be a companion to him, you and the two angels who shall descend to the world with you. Teach him and his wife, and their progeny, wisdom, lest Satan should lead them astray.

Teach them the Prayer, that they may uphold it, glorifying the King of the Sublime Light three times by day, and twice by night. Say to them: Take for yourselves spouses, and beget from among you, that your number may increase. And when you approach your spouses, wash and purify yourselves.

Say, O My servants: Do not commit adultery, do not steal, and do not kill the human soul.
O Perfect Ones and Believers. O Believers and Perfect Ones: Do not alter your speech, nor love falsehood and sin. Do not hoard gold and silver, for the world is vain, and its possessions perish. Do not prostrate to Satan, nor worship idols and effigies.

Whoever prostrates to Satan, his fate is the Fire. What a terrible fate, and what a terrible abode, abiding therein until the Day of Judgment—the hour of the world’s end, the hour when the Judge shall reckon the soul of every man.

O Perfect Ones and Believers: Do not learn the incantations of Satan, nor bear false witness against any man. And when you sit in judgment, let those of justice and honor among you bear witness, and do not pervert the verdicts. For he who perverts judgment—his fate is the Fire.

Do not surrender righteous servants to wicked masters, nor the weak to tyrannical oppressors. O Believers and Perfect Ones, honor your fathers, and honor your mothers, and honor all your elder brethren. For he who does not honor his parents stands condemned until the Day of Judgment.

Do not look upon what is not yours. Do not covet it, nor seek after it. And do not protest, in error, against what your Lord has granted you. For every blessing bestowed is by the will of the Lord of the Worlds.

If affliction befalls you, then endure, and stand firm in your faith. Do not twist your tongues, nor bend your knees, nor bow your heads, nor prostrate before Satan, the accursed.

Call those whom you love to listen to the glorifications your Lord has bestowed upon you, that perhaps they may believe and obey. If he believes in God and bears witness to Him, then honor him, and draw him near to you, and treat him kindly with all that you possess. But if he refuses to hear, or if he hears and is not humbled, then his Lord is the Most Exalted.

O Believers and Perfect Ones, if you see a captive who is a truthful believer, then ransom him. Do not reckon gold and silver as the saviors of the soul. Only truth, faith, glorification, and benevolence can save it. By these you rescue the soul, bringing it forth from darkness into light, from straying into guidance, from disbelief into faith... so that it may delight in prayer and glorification after deviance and disobedience.

O My chosen ones. O Believers: guide the blind. Be gracious to the poor. And when you give alms, O My chosen ones, do not make it known. Let not your right hand know what your left hand has given, nor your left know what your right has given. Wretched is he who gives alms and corrupts it with public display.

O My chosen ones: if you see one who is hungry, feed him. If you see one who thirsts, give him drink. If you see one who is naked, clothe him. Blessed is he who gave, for he shall be rewarded. Blessed is he who clothed, for he shall be robed in garments of light. Blessed is he who ransomed a captive, for the messengers of the King of Light shall receive him.

Whoever learns My glorifications—his name is remembered in the highest heavens. Whoever is illumined by My words becomes one of the Uthras (Angels). And whoever is delivered from the seduction of Satan ascends to the peaceful Land of Light. And whoever is killed for the love of God—that one is the purified.

O My beloved. O you who believe in Me: Fast the Great Fast—the fast of the heart, the mind, and the conscience. Let your eyes fast, and your mouths, and your hands. Do not slander nor malign. Do not look upon evil, nor commit it. Do not listen to falsehood. Do not eavesdrop behind doors. Keep your mouths free from lies. And do not draw near to deceit.

Restrain your hearts from malice, envy, and division.

Restrain your hands from killing and from theft.

Restrain your bodies from lying with the spouses of others, for that is the consuming Fire.

Restrain your knees from bowing to Satan and to the idols of falsehood.

Restrain your feet from walking toward that which is not yours.

This is the Great Fast—do not break it, until you depart from this world.

Whoever errs, then repents, and thereafter returns to his right mind—verily, God is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful. He is the King of Light, the Compassionate, the Oft-Returning, the Generous.

O My chosen ones: Do not draw near to the kings, the rulers, and the rebels of this world, nor place your trust in them—not in their weapons, nor in their multitudes. Do not bow your necks for the gold and silver they hoard, for it is the cause of every sedition. They shall leave it behind them on the day they go unto the Fire. They shall grasp its flames with their hands, and blow its blaze with their mouths. Their dominion shall vanish from them, and their delights shall end, and neither the gold nor the silver they once possessed shall intercede for them.

O all you who hearken to the call of God: when you rise and when you sit, when you go forth and when you return, when you eat or drink, or when you lie in your beds, or while you labor—remember God and glorify Him abundantly. Prepare the living water and be baptized. Baptize your souls with the Living Baptism which your Lord sent down upon you from the realms of Light, and with which all the Perfect Believers were baptized.

Bless the holy bread and eat, and glorify the holy water and drink, that your transgressions and your sins may be forgiven. Whoever is sealed with the seal of the Living One, and over whom the name of the King of Light is invoked, then remains steadfast and clings to his baptism and works righteousness—no delayer shall delay him on the Day of Reckoning.

Do not eat blood, nor carrion, nor the deformed, nor the pregnant, nor the nursing, nor that which has miscarried, nor the birds of prey, nor that which has been attacked by a beast of prey. And if you slaughter, then slaughter with a blade of iron.
Be modest, and wash, and purify, and cook, and invoke the Name—then eat.

O men: When you take spouses for yourselves, choose from among your own and love them.

Let each of you safeguard the other, and care for one another as the eyes care for the feet.

Love one another, and bear with one another, that you may cross the Great Sea of Suf.

O My chosen ones: Hearken, and act upon what I command you. For if you do not hear, or if you hear and do not act, then into the darkness into which the wicked have fallen, you too shall fall. They remain therein and do not ascend. Brethren of the body are vain; brethren of the spirit endure. Therefore, O brethren of Truth, abide in your love unchanging. For the First Name has set His signs upon your foreheads—the signs of the Living Water by which you shall ascend to the Land of Light.

Do not weep for your dead, nor hold mourning over them. For whoever rends his garment for the dead has defiled it. And whoever plucks a hair in grief for the dead shall be bound to the Mount of Darkness by a rope that does not perish.

The longer your lives, the more your transgressions multiply; so do not grieve when the soul departs from life, for from grief are born the evil spirits that outpace the soul in its ascent, and torment it in the House of Reckoning.

Whoever loves his dead, let him seek mercy for them. Establish prayer and glorification for them, and recite the supplications, and perform the rites of mercy on their behalf. Then radiance shall go before the soul, and light shall follow behind it, and the messengers of the Living One shall be at its right, and the angels of Light at its left, and it shall be delivered from torment and from the cauldrons of Fire.

Teach the soul that its heart must not doubt, and let it hear the language of peace: the Glorification which I have given you. Then its heart shall bear witness and be at peace.
Blessed is he who heard and believed. He shall ascend triumphant to the Land of Light.

Grant bread and water and shelter to the weary sons of man, and to the oppressed. Be just, and love one another in truth.

O My beloved: Let not the wages of a hired man remain with you overnight, nor defraud a partner, nor take treacherous vengeance upon a friend. For he who robs his companion and his partner—his eyes shall not behold the Light.

When you make a covenant, extend your right hands to one another, and do not betray your pledge. For the Uthras and the angels of Light bestow union and the covenant of Truth upon one another.

And know that your teachers instruct you in the word of Truth and Wisdom—do not raise your heads against them, but be tranquil and humble. And know that the sorcerers and the astrologers dwell in darkness, so do not seek them out.

Do not swear falsely, nor barter away your faith, nor consume the wealth of usury. And if you lend, do not lend in secret.

O My truthful and believing chosen ones: Do not commit adultery, nor act wantonly, nor let your hearts incline to the seduction of Satan. For the seduction of Satan is manifest error.

Be strong and steadfast. If you are persecuted, then endure persecution until you fulfill your appointed spans, supporting one another. And do not become angry, nor enraged, for anger and rage are filled with the whispering of Satan. So quench the fire of your wrath with faith.

If you see a wise man who is truthful, draw near to him and take from his wisdom. But if you see a wise man who is wicked, keep away from him as much as you are able. For the sages of evil are followers of Satan.

O Believers. O Perfect Ones: Love for your companions what you love for yourselves, and despise for them what you despise for yourselves. And provision yourselves for your Hereafter with righteous deeds. So look, and listen, and believe, and accept the words of your Lord.

See with your eyes, and speak with your mouths, and hear with your ears, and believe with your hearts, and work with your hands in almsgiving and in feeding the needy. Act according to the will of your Lord, and do not act according to the will of Satan.

Let not the beauty of bodies ensnare you, for their beauty perishes. And do not prostrate to Satan, nor to the idols of this false world.

All who are born shall die, and all that is wrought by hands shall decay, and the entire world shall pass away. So where is the secret of divinity within it, if you truly reflect? Your staff on the Day of Reckoning shall be your deeds, upon which you shall lean—so consider what it is you rest upon.

O My chosen ones: Do not object to the decree of your Lord. Be righteous, gentle, and humble. Let repentance be within you, and adorn yourselves with tenderness, forbearance, and mercy—for these are of the nature of Light.

O men who take wives: beget children, for if you do not beget, your lineage shall cease. Do not take bondwomen as wives, nor cast your children into the houses of masters as slaves, for that is a grave transgression.

O women who belong to men: beware of what does not please God, nor appear seemly before people: adultery, and theft.

And beware of the practice of sorcery, for it is of the abomination of Satan.
The faithful wife bestows faithful love.

Do not separate from one another until your lives have ended.
Raise your children and discipline them, and teach them wisdom, and plant faith in their souls.

Let them walk the path of Truth. For whoever does not guide his children, and does not instruct them, God shall hold him to account. And whoever strives to guide his children, yet they are not guided—God shall hold them to account.

If one among you errs, correct him and support him. If he errs a second time, correct him and assist him. If he errs a third time, guide him, and let him hear the Prayer and Glorification to God. But if he disobeys and grows arrogant, and insists only upon iniquity, then uproot this vine from the roots, and plant in its place a vine that knows the path of Light. For they said to him, “Hearken,” but he did not hear. And they showed him the light of God, but he was not humbled—so he fell into torment.

Beware of mocking the afflicted, or deriding one with a blemish. For bodies may be humbled by ailments, but the soul is dishonored and humbled only by its deeds.

O My chosen ones. O Believers: Do not glorify the sun and the moon. It is God who commanded, and thus this radiance came to be for them and for the planets, that they might illumine the darkness. But when the Great Living One calls, they all shall fall into a fathomless abyss.

Those who prostrate to Adonai, who break faith with the First Call, and who compose for themselves a book—do not be among them. Do not be circumcised, and do not walk the path of those who do not stand firm upon their word.

From such as these shall come a destroying flood, and prophets of falsehood. They strip wisdom from their hearts, and play at divinity among their peoples. They write the Book of Deceit, and spread sedition and injustice.

I am the Pure Messenger. I say to all Nasoraeans:
Discern the words of these. They contradict one another. Prophet gives the lie to prophet, and king impugns king. They fawn upon men, and lure them with silver and gold, and with song and revelry, and with the setting up of clay and wood—thus they cast them into ruin. Or they resort to the sword, and spread oppression and injustice. Or with flattery, deceit, and cajolery, they make the sons of Adam go astray, placing the name of God in their mouths while they are liars. They say, “This is the word of God,” while into the word of God they slip corruption.

I am the Pure Messenger. I say to you: Do not hearken to the call of the prophets of falsehood. They imitate the Three Uthras who descended to the world, yet their lights are not like their lights, and their robes are not like their robes. Those— their garments are of light; but these—their raiment is of fire.

O My chosen ones: Wear white. Be robed in white—the vestments of radiance and the mantles of Light. And crown yourselves with white turbans like shining diadems, and gird yourselves with girdles of the Living Water with which the angels are girded. And be shod, and bear in your hands scepters like the scepters of the Living Water which the angels bear in the Land of Light.

O Truthful Ones: Do not speak of what you do not know, nor claim revelation—for none reveals save the Most High, the Great. Arm your souls with that which is sharper than iron: the weapon of Mandaean Wisdom, and the truthful words of your Lord. Counsel one another with kindness, for as you enact, you shall rescue. And do not be like the barren plant that drinks the water yet yields no fruit.

And the Living One is the Purifier.