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“lifting the gods” (na“ûilàni) against his adversary.^24 Scholars have
differed in their interpretation of the technical terminology exhibited
by some thirty documents that mention this special Nuzi procedure.^25
Its main features may be outlined as follows.3.5.1 Most of the trials in which na“ûilàni had to be performed
belong to the sphere of criminal law, but the same procedure was
at times also prescribed in litigation concerning ownership of land
or movable property.^26 The aim of this “suprarational” legal proce-
dure was to give a litigant—in most cases, the defendant—who lacked
testimonial support an opportunity to challenge the statements deliv-
ered before the judges by the opponent’s witnesses or, more rarely,
by the opponent himself. The technicalities of this judicial ritual are
still far from clear: the Nuzi sources do not provide explicit evidence
and there is no adequate comparative documentation from other
Mesopotamian legal corpora.3.5.2 On etymological grounds alone, we can be certain that na“û
ilànidoes not correspond to the well-known nì“ilim, “oath (lit.: life)
of god” (i.e., “(to swear) by the life of a god”).^27 Nevertheless, it is
clear that the “lifting of the gods” implied a personal confrontation
of one litigant and/or his supporting witnesses with the (image of
the) gods belonging to (?) or produced by (?) the opponent. The pro-
cedure did not take place in court in the judges’ presence. Indirect
but strong evidence thereof is provided by the frequent occurrences
of the formula stating that the parties were “sent” (“apàru) to per-
form the ritual: the bailiffs (manzatu¢lu) were to accompany those
ordered to “lift the gods”; after completion of the ritual they would
deliver a full report to the court.3.5.3 Whatever the procedural stages and formulaic features of the
ritual might have been,^28 the sources attest to three possible out-(^24) Cf. Frymer-Kensky, “Suprarational.. .,” 121–22.
(^25) Cf. Liebesny, “Evidence.. .,” 134–137; Hayden, Court Procedure.. ., 34–39;
Frymer-Kensky, “Suprarational.. .,” 120–131.
(^26) Cf. Frymer-Kensky, “Suprarational.. .,” 122.
(^27) Note, in the latter case, the use of the singulariluvs. the plural ilàni.
(^28) Cf. the speculative rendering of CAD N/2, 83b–84a, s.v. na“ûA 1a 3': “to lift
an image or sacred object during the oath ceremony.”
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