Diwan Abatur: A text on the otherworldly journey of the soul according to the beliefs of the Mandaeans. Edition, translation, commentary

• Applicant: Dr. Bogdan Burtea
• Subject Area: Islamic Studies, Arabian Studies, Semitic Studies
• Term: from 2018 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 389574579

The project aims to prepare a critical edition based upon all manuscripts with a translation and a commentary of the Mandaean Diuan Abatur. Being one of the major works of Mandaean literary production it deals with the fate of the soul in the afterlife. In the three years of research the following objectives will be accomplished: the preparation of a critical scholarly edition, the linguistic analysis of the text, the annotation of mythological motives, the highlighting of the religious and historical background of the text in the context of the Mandaean literature, the evaluation of Mandaean intersections with Judaism, Oriental Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Gnosticism. As the manuscripts of Diuan Abatur are abounding in illustrations the study will also take into account its iconographical programme and will analyse the features of the Mandaean drawings.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants