The Joan Palevsky Imprint in Classical Literature In honor of beloved Virgil— “O degli altri poeti onore e lume...” —Dante, Inferno The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous contribution to this book provided by the Classical Literature Endowment Fund of the University of California Press Foundation, which is supported by a major gift from Joan Palevsky. The Legend of Mar Qardagh THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE CLASSICAL HERITAGE Peter Brown, General Editor i Art and Ceremony in Late Antiquity, by Sabine G. MacCormack ii Synesius of Cyrene: Philosopher-Bishop, by Jay Alan Bregman iii Theodosian Empresses: Women and Imperial Dominion in Late Antiquity, by Kenneth G. Holum iv John Chrysostom and the Jews: Rhetoric and Reality in the Late Fourth Century, by Robert L. Wilken v Biography in Late Antiquity: The Quest for the Holy Man, by Patricia Cox vi Pachomius: The Making of a Community in Fourth-Century Egypt, by Philip Rousseau vii Change in Byzantine Culture in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries, by A. P. Kazhdan and Ann Wharton Epstein viii Leadership and Community in Late Antique Gaul, by Raymond Van Dam ix Homer the Theologian: Neoplatonist Allegorical Reading and the Growth of the Epic Tradition, by Robert Lamberton x Procopius and the Sixth Century, by Averil Cameron xi Guardians of Language: The Grammarian and Society in Late Antiquity, by Robert A. Kaster xii Civic Coins and Civic Politics in the Roman East, a.d. 180–275, by Kenneth Harl xiii Holy Women of the Syrian Orient, introduced and translated by Sebastian P. Brock and Susan Ashbrook Harvey xiv Gregory the Great: Perfection in Imperfection, by Carole Straw xv “Apex Omnium”: Religion in the “Res gestae” of Ammianus, by R. L. Rike xvi Dioscorus of Aphrodito: His Work and His World, by Leslie S. B. MacCoull xvii On Roman Time: The Codex-Calendar of 354 and the Rhythms of Urban Life in Late Antiquity, by Michele Renee Salzman xviii Asceticism and Society in Crisis: John of Ephesus and “The Lives of the Eastern Saints,” by Susan Ashbrook Harvey xix Barbarians and Politics at the Court of Arcadius, by Alan Cameron and Jacqueline Long, with a contribution by Lee Sherry xx Basil of Caesarea, by Philip Rousseau xxi In Praise of Later Roman Emperors: The Panegyrici Latini, introduction, translation, and historical commentary by C. E. V. Nixon and Barbara Saylor Rodgers xxii Ambrose of Milan: Church and Court in a Christian Capital, by Neil B. McLynn xxiii Public Disputation, Power, and Social Order in Late Antiquity, by Richard Lim xxiv The Making of a Heretic: Gender, Authority, and the Priscillianist Controversy, by Virginia Burrus xxv Symeon the Holy Fool: Leontius’s “Life” and the Late Antique City, by Derek Krueger xxvi The Shadows of Poetry: Vergil in the Mind of Augustine, by Sabine MacCormack xxvii Paulinus of Nola: Life, Letters, and Poems, by Dennis E. Trout xxviii The Barbarian Plain: Saint Sergius between Rome and Iran, by Elizabeth Key Fowden xxix The Private Orations of Themistius, translated, annotated, and introduced by Robert J. Penella xxx The Memory of the Eyes: Pilgrims to Living Saints in Christian Late Antiquity, by Georgia Frank xxi Greek Biography and Panegyric in Late Antiquity, edited by Tomas Hägg and Philip Rousseau xxxii Subtle Bodies: Representing Angels in Byzantium, by Glenn Peers xxxiii Wandering, Begging Monks: Social Order and the Promotion of Monasticism in Late Antiquity, by Daniel Folger Caner xxxiv Failure of Empire: Valens and the Roman State in the Fourth Century a.d., by Noel Lenski xxxv Merovingian Mortuary Archaeology and the Making of the Early Middle Ages, by Bonnie Effros xxxvi Quùayr ‘Amra: Art and the Umayyad Elite in Late Antique Syria, by Garth Fowden xxxvii Holy Bishops in Late Antiquity: The Nature of Christian Leadership in an Age of Transition, by Claudia Rapp xxxviii Encountering the Sacred: The Debate on Christian Pilgrimage in Late Antiquity, by Brouria Bitton-Ashkelony xxxix There Is No Crime for Those Who Have Christ: Religious Violence in the Christian Roman Empire, by Michael Gaddis xl The Legend of Mar Qardagh: Narrative and Christian Heroism in Late Antique Iraq, by Joel Thomas Walker xli City and School in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria, by Edward J. Watts xlii Scenting Salvation: Ancient Christianity and the Olfactory Imagination, by Susan Ashbrook Harvey The Legend of Mar Qardagh Narrative and Christian Heroism in Late Antique Iraq Joel Thomas Walker UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS Berkeley Los Angeles London University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university presses in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advancing scholarship in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Its activities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philanthropic contributions from individuals and institutions. For more information, visit www.ucpress.edu. University of California Press Berkeley and Los Angeles, California University of California Press, Ltd. London, England © 2006 by The Regents of the University of California Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Walker, Joel Thomas, 1968–. The legend of Mar Qardagh : narrative and Christian heroism in late antique Iraq / Joel Thomas Walker. p. cm. (The transformation of the classical heritage ; 40) Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 0-520-24578-4 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Qardagh, Mar. 2. Tashºita de-Mar tardagh sahda. 3. Nestorian Church—Iraq—History. 4. Iraq—Church history. I. Tashºita de-Mar tardagh sahda. II. Title. III. Series. bx159.q37w35 2006 275.67'02'092—dc22 2005006212 Manufactured in the United States of America 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 10987654 321 This book is printed on New Leaf EcoBook 60, containing 60% post-consumer waste, processed chlorine free; 30% de-inked recycled fiber, elemental chlorine free; and 10% FSC-certified virgin fiber, totally chlorine free. EcoBook 60 is acid-free and meets the minimum requirements of ansi/astm d5634-01 (Permanence of Paper). For my parents, Dr. Rhett P. Walker and Corinna Thomas Walker, with love and gratitude contents acknowledgments xi abbreviations xiii transliteration and terminology xvii Introduction: Christianity in Late Antique Iraq and the Legend of Mar Qardagh 1 part i. The History of Mar Qardagh in English Translation, with Commentary Introduction to the Text 17 The History of the Heroic Deeds of Mar Qardagh the Victorious Martyr 19 Index of Scriptural Citations 71 part ii. Narrative and Christian Heroism in Late Antique Iraq 1. The Church of the East and the Hagiography of the Persian Martyrs 87 2. “We Rejoice in Your Heroic Deeds!” Christian Heroism and Sasanian Epic Tradition 121 3. Refuting the Eternity of the Stars: Philosophy between Byzantium and Late Antique Iraq 164 4. Conversion and the Family in the Acts of the Persian Martyrs 206 5. Remembering Mar Qardagh: The Origins and Evolution of an East-Syrian Martyr Cult 246 Epilogue: The Festival of Mar Qardagh at Melqi 281 appendix. the qardagh legend and the chronicle of arbela 287 select bibliography 291 index 335 maps follow page 2. figures follow page 73. acknowledgments This book began as a dissertation in the Department of History at Prince- ton University. It is a pleasure to thank again here the teachers and colleagues who made my years at Princeton (1991–97) a time of such memorable in- tellectual discovery and camaraderie. Under the rubric of the Program in the Ancient World, I was able to explore widely across traditional discipli- nary boundaries; and I remain grateful to the mentors and friends I found not only in the History Department, but also in the Departments of Reli- gion, Classics, Art History, and Near Eastern Studies. During his two terms as a visiting professor, Garth Fowden introduced me to the world “east of Byzantium.” When I decided to learn Syriac, John Marks provided thrice- weekly tutorials. Robert Lamberton and Anthony Grafton taught me not to be afraid of Neoplatonism or introductory astrology. I hope that the many others not named here will nevertheless recognize their influence in the pages of this book. Friends and teachers at the Oriental Institute in Oxford, the British School of Oriental and African Studies in London, and the De- partment of History at UCLA also had a formative influence on the early phases of this project. In Seattle, my colleagues in the Department of History at the University of Washington have been a constant source of stimulation and good advice. Special thanks go to Robert Stacey and John Findlay, the former and cur- rent chairs of the department, and also to the members of the History Re- search Group, who offered insightful comments on earlier versions of two chapters. My colleagues in Near Eastern Languages and Civilization—Scott Noegel, Brannon Wheeler, and Michael Williams—provided critical biblio- graphic and linguistic advice. Shannon Logan and Kathleen Moles chastened my prose and made me a better writer. My graduate students Bryan Aver- buch, Elizabeth Campbell, Adam Larson, and Monica Meadows translated xi xii acknowledgments and discussed several key texts with me. Barb Grayson, Cindy Blanding, and the staff at the Office of Interlibrary Loan cheerfully and efficiently processed what must have seemed like an endless string of obscure bibliographic re- quests. My former student, and friend, Greg Civay prepared the original maps, on which those in the book are based. Colleagues at other institutions generously shared their expertise on par- ticular issues. Sebastian Brock read the translation and chapter 3 and saved me from many errors. Philippe Gignoux commented on the entire manu- script and provided guidance on a wide range of Iranian matters. Michael Morony and Susan Harvey each in their own way encouraged and influenced this project from an early stage. While I have not yet answered all of their questions, I hope that I have opened new paths of inquiry that will also in- terest them.