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| MS from Chaldean Archdiocese of Kirkuk, dated 1723 (MS ACK 00026) |
comes four Sundays before Nativity (Dec 25). I have skipped rubrics as well as those psalm verses that introduce most East Syriac hymnody. The translation is rather wooden, but I freely violate the original syntax for the sake of a semi-English result.
My hope is to prepare a translation of the hymnographic meat of the East Syriac Liturgical Cycle (Ḥudrā) on this blog. This translation is a draft and it purposefully avoids psalms, common qalē, and anything that is not part of that which is proper to a certain day of the liturgical year. Basically, I'm just doing the stuff that changes from day to day.
The Church of the East liturgical year begins with the Sunday nearest to December 1, which is then the Sunday of God the Word, or the First Sunday of Annunciation. God the Word is the first phrase in the Bāsāliqe̱ of that Sunday. Liturgical texts often refer to Sundays by this method, and the Bāsāliqe̱ is similar to a Byzantine Apolytikon. Its name suggest a Byzantine heritage: the royal (Bāsāliqe̱) hymn.
The First Sunday of Annunciation focuses on the Annunciation and Conception of St John the Baptist. The Second Sunday focuses on the Annunciation of Christ, and the Third Sunday on the Birth of the Baptist. The Forth Sunday of Annunciation, with the reading from Matthew 1.18-end, serves as a pre-feast for the coming Dominical Feast of the Nativity. Except for that fourth Sunday, all of the readings are from Luke. Typical for the East Syriac tradition, Sundays within the solar-lunar calendar composed of liturgical seasons are preferred for these events. There is no separate Feast of the Annunciation/Conception of St John the Baptist or of Christ, nor of the Nativity of the Baptist. Rather, the period of Annunciation is a four week preparation, which includes fasting from the beginning of December until Nativity. Our liturgical books begin with this the first Sunday of Annunciation.
The titles are names of the hymns that follow, so Bāsāliqe̱ refers to the Hymn of Bāsāliqe̱, etc. Translations into English are clunky, so I just provide the Syriac using the Library of Congress Syriac Romanization Chart. Bāsāliqe̱ means 'the royal ones.' Qalṯā is just a feminine diminutive of qālā, a melody or tune (lit. 'voice'), but here it refers to a bit of hymnody that opens antiphonal psalm chanting, which comes only during Midnight Office of a day on which the Divine Liturgy will be served. Mawṯḇā simply means a session, literally a period of sitting, which is exactly what we do as we chant a series of hymns particular to each day of the year. Maḏrāšā is an excerpted bit of the well known genera that St Ephrem excelled in; usually it is excerpted from the opening of a larger Maḏrāšā, often of St Ephrem, but sometimes from others. Lelyā literally means 'night', as in the hymn of the midnight office, which only is provided for feasts and Sundays.
I refer the following classes of liturgical commemoration: Feasts of the Lord, Splendid Feasts, Feast of a Saint, Sunday and ordinary day. There are seven feasts of the Lord: Nativity, Theophany, Resurrection, Ascension, Pentecost, Transfiguration, and the Exaltation of the Cross. Palm Sunday is called a 'Splendid' or 'Great' Feast.
The Syriac refers to a saint's feast as duḵrānā, or memorial, but this is not in the sense of praying for their repose, rather we pray for their intercession so it translates to the existing English understanding of a Feast, as in the Feast of Saint Anthony, or of St Stephen. So I will refer to the 'Feast of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary,' or the 'Feast of Mar Aḇā the Great,' although the Syriac technically reads 'the memorial/commemoration,' and I will reserve the term commemoration/memorial for the context of praying for the soul of a departed person as in a funeral or fortieth day commemoration/memorial.
These translations are made quickly, so please let me know through comments of any errors or typographical errors. To God belongs the Glory and to the translator the errors.
First Sunday of Annunciation (Subārā)
Bāsāliqe̱
God the Word from the Father did not take the likeness of a servant from angels but from the seed of Abraham, and in our humanity he did come in his grace that he save our race from error.
Qalṯā
How can a barren woman bare, said Zachariah answering the angel* for I am old and my wife barren; how can such a deed be believed? + The barren woman in earnest met the Mother of Light before her conception and said thy child is glorious among all born. +
*[ʿirā, henceforth translated 'watcher,' but is a synonym for an angel, as in books of Daniel and Enoch)]
Mawṯḇā
The Lord of All was well pleased to renew the corrupted image from the virgin who birthed Christ, she the glorious dwelling of the Holy Spirit. An edict sealed in its existence without beginning was sent from on high and it was sealed in peace and tranquility upon the earthly and heavenly that together were freed from error. I am Gabriel who before the awesome greatness arise to serve. The Father did send me that I proclaim the tidings in which rejoiceth all the world. Thou shalt conceive wonder in wonder for the power of the Spirit doth form him in the members of thy body that he be a dwelling to his hiddenness, and in him be reconciled those above with those below and together confess him saying: Savior of all, Glory to Thee
Gabriel the head of the angelic powers was sent to the Holy Virgin, blessed amongst women, and as he was awed, nevertheless did he dare to proclaim to her and say + Peace to three woman filled of grace. Peace to thee mother of the Savior of creation. Peace to thee who bearest he who of the cherubim and seraphim is exalted. Peace to thee whose son is worshiped of the magi and of the shepherds. + Peace to thee who was found worthy to be feasted as the temple of God the Word. Peace to thee who was the vessel of all prophecy fulfilled. Peace to thee who bearest without union, as saith Isaiah. + Peace to him, the cherub who is greater than the sun. Peace to thee the harbor that received the dew from above. Peace to them, the lives that were generated of Eve. Peace to thee for from thee is born the king, Christ, Hallelujah.
The chief angel Gabriel proclaimed in great awe and trembling the glorious birth of Jesus our Savior to the virgin; he spoke to her and said: + Peace to thee woman filled with wonder. Peace to thee who givest birth unto man and savior. Peace to thee from from thee ariseth the liberator of all. Peace to thee for of thee is born hope and life. + Peace to thee that thou was accounted worthy to be the dwelling of the temple of God the Word. Peace to thee, thou who wast ministress of the two covenants. Peace to thee virgin birth-giver as Isaiah prophesied. + Peace to him the splendor that shineth more brilliant than all lights. Peace to thee, palace chosen by the King and his residence. Peace to them who unto us giveth glad tidings from thy womb. Peace to thee for from thee is risen he in whom all creation rejoiceth. Hallelujah.
The Chief of watchers descended and proclaimed to the virgin, born of mortals, a proclamation in which rejoiceth all the world and in the peace with which he did greet, all fear did leave her. + And to her he gave the edict sent from the Father that peace be fulfilled and tranquility reign upon those on Earth as for their sake, he was sent from the heights to be the messenger and envoy of heavenly tidings. + And he shall proclaim the birth of him who is the savior of the worlds, born of the power of the Spirit, of the virgin without union and in the joy of his nativity doth a new world proclaim. + That in that world rule unity and the fulness of love as sorrow, death, and corruption are undone and in all God be with his creation, to Him we raise up praise, saying: Hallelujah.
Gabriel of Light flew and did descend from the fiery ranks, he who is vested in a flame of fire, he rended the heights and came down to the depths carrying in his peace an edict + The envoy from the fiery ranks came and stood between the Father and creation, and he saw her, the virgin comely and adorned in chastity and he pressed three seals upon the door of the temple + And in the peace with which the Holy Spirit greeted did he move upon her sanctuary, a sealed and signed palace, within which the prince dwelleth. The seal of her virginity doth testify that her conception and birth-giving is all wonderful + For he who was formed is the forming will of all babes, and he is the power to create from something as well as from nothing. Blessed are thou Mary for the new sun shineth forth from thee that the power of his light did account thee worthy of the sun in the firmament: Hallelujah.
What mind, what word, what hearing is capable of the boundless sea of mercies, Lord, who is eternal in his existence, and before the worlds as God was born outside of time, Word from the Father, in the end of time, he did perfectly put on a body and soul from the mother that did bear him, and he did not break the seals of virginity. For this, she is called the Christ's birth-giver. And thus, he did not change as he willed to be revealed in our humanity--Oh depth of the richness and wisdom of God--that her, that virginal eve--her womb was enkindled and did well. Eve that in pain bringeth forth children became in her the fountain that giveth forth life that Emanuel without seed was conceived and born of her, and that our mortal race be from corruption released and freed. To Him we all glorify and say, beyond comprehension the Lord of All, Glory to thee.
LORD, our Lord, hidden in his existence with the Father, the wakeful chief angel revealed his hiddenness through the virgin. The watcher of light, who wearest the light, carried the epistle filled with life and good hope to mortals, Mary saw the watcher wearing flames and she feared him, spoke to him and said to him: + I have not known a man, how does thou assure me of this? The envoy replied to the daughter of mortals: Unto thee the Lord of All doth come and with thee dost he fulfill his will and of thee hast he conceived a man in whom will dwell all the fulness of God bodily. At that spiritual Word did the Holy Spirit move upon sanctuary of the blessed one, the King made his dwelling in the palace of her flesh; the spiritual envoy saw, wondered, and became silent as he opened his wings of spirit and flew as an luminous one and flying to the wakeful ones and revealed to them that the hidden will beginneth of the virgin + Christ who saved the race of mankind from slavery to the Deceiver, to Him be glory.
Qānonā
Of ages ago did the Lord promise Abram and David of the birth of the Christ who was prepared to shine forth of Mary + The heavenly and the earthly raise up glory to the creator who in his mercy did descend to our race and put on our nature. + The embassy from the Lord that the wakeful [angel] did carry to the virgin, in it all blessings are gathered unto our nature, and to Satan, all sorrows.
Tešboḥṯā (Said until Theophany/Denḥā)
Blessed is the compassionate who in his grace did pour out our lives in his prophecy + With the eye of the Spirit did Isaiah see the wonderous birth of virginity + That without union Mary bore Emmanuel, the Son of God + Of her the Holy Spirit fashioned the united body, as it was written. + That it be a dwelling and worshiped temple to the effulgence of the Father in one sonship. + From the beginning of the wonderous conception, one honor was joined to him. + That all who are his be filled of him to universal salvation as doth please him. + On this the day of his annunciation (or birth, after Dec 25) do the wakeful [angels] sing hallelujah in praise upon the highest heights. + Also those upon earth pay worship in their offerings in a unity of honor. + One is Christ, the Son of God, worshiped by all in two natures. + For his divinity is born of the Father without beginning and above all time + And his humanity is born of Mary at the end of time in a united body. + His divinity is not from the nature of his mother and his humanity is not from the nature of the Father. + Both natures abide in their [respective] existence [qnomayhon]. + In one person of one sonship. + And just as there is divinity in three existences, one essence. + Thus there is in the sonship of the Son in two natures, one person. + Thus the Church of truth did learn to confess in the Son that is Christ. + We worship O Lord, they divinity and thy humanity without division. (repeat thrice). + One is the power, one the Lordship, one is the will in one Glory,+ To the Father, and the Son, and Holy Spirit: unto the age of ages. Amen and Amen.
Maḏrāšā
Refrain: Angels and youth sing praise before him who was born of a virgin, for by him was our race saved.
The super-essential being condescended in his love to raise up the humble to the name of his greatness and he did raise up the low to the divine station and unto them he opened the coffers of his wisdom: that they be enriched with his treasure, and that his wealth be spread and they be gladdened without sorrow and rule without danger. + In his will did he descend to Earth that the earthlings be raised up and he sent the angel, a forerunner of his love, the wakeful to the sleeping that he would preach to them in his name the proclamation of a truce, Peace sealed by his name and given to them, that in his name they turn from the wandering path taught them by the evil one though disobedience of the commandment. + The Super-essential entrusted the name of his greatness to a heavenly power who in turn did bear it without passion and fly to Earth to seed it in the hearing of the rib of Adam: Peace to thee, daughter of Eve the feeble: by thee is opened the door of life to the dying mortals that may be emancipated from slavery to death.
Lelyā
What mind can understand the sea of thy mercy, God? Oh depth of riches and understanding of eternal thoughts that were with God before time and so he desired in his love and his Word did he send us from the holy virgin, a garment of flesh to put on and go out into the world. And from the angels she so learned: Peace to thee, Full of Grace for from thee is born man and savior of the Worlds. Beyond comprehension, Lord of All, Glory to Thee!
Lord do not leave us and be not far from us who worship thee for in thee we take refuge. Lead us upon the path of life that we may all sing to thee: Praise to the LORD God.
Dṯāwdi ṭāḇā
The envoy of peace was sent that he proclaim the conception upon Earth and from the door through which death entered, life entered and death passed away.
Ṣaprā
Confess and worship the King without beginning who in his light created us as light.
Bareḵw
From heaven an angel [wakeful] was sent to Mary and in reverence he descended and greeted her with a Peace! filled with all good graces, and hope and life to mortals.
Blessed is he who sent the spirit to Mary that he proclaimed and she conceived; for he [the conceived one] giveth life and salvation to the soily nature of Adam.
Qankē
The Angel [Wakeful] Gabriel said to Zachariah that he shall have a son and John shall he be called that he tread the patch before the Son of the King that cometh glory for the salvation of all creation.
The cross bringeth all graces unto us for in it our mortal race was free. Mightily fortify us by the cross, O Lord, so that by it the evil one and his craft be vanquished.
Rāze̱
Christ's body and precious blood are upon the holy altar, so let us all draw nigh unto them, atremble and reverent and joining the angels joyfully exalt him: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God.
Bēym
Refrain: Thou, the Son who gavest us his body and blood, give us life in thy kingdom.
This is the day that is the first day for it is the first-fruit of all days, so let us, in this day, come and receive the body and blood of he who is the first-fruit of divinity.
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