InMandaeism, a rahma (Classical Mandaic: ࡓࡀࡄࡌࡀ; plural form: rahmia ࡓࡀࡄࡌࡉࡀ) is a daily devotional prayer that is recited during a specific time of the day or specific day of the week.[1]
E. S. Drower's version of the Qolasta, the Canonical Prayerbook of the Mandaeans, has 64 rahma prayers translated into English that are numbered from 106 to 169. In Drower's ordering, the rahma prayers directly follow the Asiet Malkia prayer (CP 105), while the Ṭabahatan prayer (CP 170) comes after the rahma prayers.[2]
Part 1 of the Oxford CollectioninMark Lidzbarski's Mandäische Liturgien (1920) contains 60 rahma prayers translated into German that correspond to prayers 106–160 and 165–169 in Drower (1959).[3]
Below, Oxford refers to Lidzbarski's (1920) numbering, while CP refers to Drower's (1959) number.
The first 13 prayers are recited during the three times of the day for prayer, which are dawn (sunrise), noontime (the "seventh hour"), and evening (sunset).
Rahma prayers recited after incense is offered:
There are 6 rahma prayers for each day of the week. Each set consists of alternating long and short prayers (i.e., the 1st prayer is a long one, the 2nd prayer is a short one, while the 3rd prayer is again a long one, etc.).
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The 2 prayers for novices in priest initiation ceremonies, recited on Saturday evening (sunset):
The 2 prayers for novices in priest initiation ceremonies, recited on Sunday dawn (sunrise):
The last 5 prayers are the prayers for the "Fruit(s) of Ether".
