Sarh D Qabin D Sislam Rba (Drower Codex 38)

The explanatory commentary on the marriage ceremony of the Great Sislam is divided into sections. The first, which gives the name to the whole book, is devoted to a description of the actual and traditional procedure at a Mandean wedding. The other sections are the prayers, hymns and songs appointed for recital during the ceremony. They are written in the vernacular, a language close to the spoken Mandaic of today. The poems offer the problems of the language of mysticism. Arbitrary meanings are attached to simple words in an effort to convey the mystical and the divine. The commentary is concluded by an astrological appendix, about the procedure to follow for the consummation of marriage.