THE GODS OF THE ARIANS IN IRAN.
The examination of the traditions of the East and West has simply led to
the confirmation of the result, which we gain from the Avesta--that the
name and the doctrine of Zarathrustra belong to Bactria. With regard to
the antiquity of the doctrine, the inscriptions of Darius and the
statements of the Greeks allowed us to draw the conclusion that it
became current and dominant in Bactria about the year 800 B.C.; and from
the analogy of the development of the Arians on both sides of the Ganges
we assumed that it was possible to place the date of Zarathrustra
himself about two centuries earlier. That the Arians of Iran were not
without gods and religious worship before Zarathrustra, if the fact
needed proof, might be shown from the statements in the Avesta regarding
the time previous to Zarathrustra. The examination of the legends of
this time established kindred forms and traits in the Avesta and the
Veda, and if, following this path further, we find in the Avesta views
of the nature and character of the gods corresponding to those of the
Veda, we might be confident in regarding them as the traditional
possession of the Arians, and their earliest forms of religion. If, in
fine, the coincidence of the Avesta with the Veda, on the one hand, and
with the accounts of the Greeks on the other, extended to all the
essential points in the doctrine and the law, the question stated
above--whether in the restoration of the canon of the sacred writings in
the midst of the fourth century of our era, under king Shapur II., the
Avesta underwent material alterations, would have to be answered in the
negative.
The poems of the Veda showed us in what directions the religious feeling
of the Indians in the Panjab moved. Drought, gloom, and night were
numbered among the injurious forces; the clear sky, the light, and
fertilising water were beneficent. The high spirits of light, which gave
new courage to the heart each morning, and exhibited the world in fresh
brilliance, were praised with thanksgivings; the spirits of the highest
heaven, Mitra and Varuna, the guardians of the world, the protectors of
purity and justice, were invoked earnestly, but less frequently than the
warlike victorious god who gave water, the god of storm and tempest, who
defeated the demons which obscured the sky and wished to carry away the
water (IV. 48). His comrades in the fight were the morning wind which
drove away the clouds of night, the winds which shattered the gloomy
clouds, and swept them from the sky. The spirit of fire, who by his
brilliant glow in the darkness of night kept off the beasts of prey and
fiends, who gathered men round the hearth, and summoned the gods to the
sacrifice, and carried up to them the food of the sacrifice, received
zealous worship in the hymns of the Veda.
We can call to mind the invocations of the Rigveda to Ushas, the goddess
of the dawn, who drives forth on the sky with red cows; to Surya and
Savitar, the spirits of the sun (IV. 45, 46). In the Avesta, prayers are
addressed to Ushahina and Hvare Kshaeta, the bright sun-god. Ushahina
is here the pure spirit of the celestial dawn, "who is possessed of
bright horses." Of the sun-god we are told: "Mount, bright sun, with thy
swift horses, and shine for all creatures on the way which Auramazda has
created in the air, the way rich in water which the gods have
created;"[178] just as in the Veda the sun is invoked to approach on his
ancient firm paths in the air, which are free from dust (IV. 46).
Sacrifice is offered to the sun, according to the Avesta, when he rises
above Hara berezaiti (the divine mountain).[179] The prayer to Mithra is
as follows: "To the mighty Yazata (_i.e._ the worthy of prayer), the
strong one, who brings good, will I offer sacrifice with libations; I
will encompass him with songs of thanksgiving. With libations we offer
sacrifice to Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, who speaketh true
things, the wise one, comely in shape, of a thousand ears and ten
thousand eyes, standing on a broad tower, strong, sleepless, and
watchful, who mounts above Hara berezaiti before the immortal sun, the
guider of horses--he who first in a form of gold ascends the beautiful
summits. For him the creator Auramazda has prepared a dwelling above
Hara berezaiti, where is neither night, nor darkness, nor winds chilling
nor scorching, nor the corruption of the slain; no filth created of
demons nor vapours ascend Hara berezaiti. From thence the giver of good
beholds the abode of the Arians, whose horse-guiding lords govern
splendid hosts, whose high mountains, rich in water and in pastures,
supply nourishment for the ox, where are deep lakes with broad streams,
and wide navigable rivers burst forth in tumult, on Iskata and
Pourata,[180] on Mouru (Merv), Haraeva (p. 11), and Gao, Cughdha
(Sogdiana), and Hvairiza (Choaresm). Where first they sacrifice to him,
there Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, descends with the victorious
wind. From anguish and pain, O Mithra, carry us, undeceived. Come to us
for our protection; come to us with joy; come to us with mercy; come to
us with healing; come to us with purification, the mighty, the strong,
the all-knowing, the tamer of dragons, the undeceived. Never lulled to
sleep, Mithra protects with his weapon the creatures of Auramazda. On
him the lord of the land, of the canton, the village, the house, calls
for help with uplifted hands, whose voice of woe, whether his voice be
loud or soft, reaches up to the stars and down to the earth. He to whom
Mithra is favourable, to him he cometh with aid; but with whomsoever he
is angry he destroys his house and village and canton and land, and the
glory of the land. Mithra gives swift horses to those who do not deceive
him; to the habitation in which he is satisfied he gives troops of
cattle and men. The fire of Auramazda gives the straightest path to
those who do not deceive Mithra. But if the lord of the house, the
village, the canton, the land deceives him, then Mithra in anger
destroys house and village, canton and land. Not all evil deeds, not all
deception, are seen by Mithra, saith the wicked man. But Mithra sees all
that is between heaven and earth. With ten thousand eyes he beholds the
man who hates and deceives him. His long arms with the might of Mithra
grasp what is in Eastern India (Hendu), and what is in Western, and what
is in the midst of this earth. The swiftest deceivers of Mithra do not
reach the goal; they do not escape on horseback, nor reach the goal in
chariots.
"Mithra, the lord of lands, whose countenance beams like the star
Tistrya, travels forth to the right end of the earth from the brilliant
Garonmana (the abode of the gods), equipped with golden helmet, and
silver coat of mail, with sharp long-shafted lance and swinging arrow,
on a beautiful chariot with a golden wheel and silver spokes, which four
white horses draw, their fore-hoofs shod with gold, their hinder hoofs
with silver, harnessed in the yoke which is bent over them. In his hand
is a club with a hundred studs, and a hundred blades, heavy at the end,
making havoc of men; bound with brass on the handle, mighty and golden,
the strongest and most victorious of weapons. Before him goes
Verethraghna in the form of a boar, sharp of tusk, fat, enraged,
striking at once with feet, claws, tail, and back of brass.[181] Next to
him goes the kindled fire, the strong, royal grace. As a protection of
the chariot are a thousand bows of bone, whose strings are made of the
sinews of oxen, a thousand arrows plumed with feathers of the Kahrkaca,
with golden points and wooden shafts, and flakes of bone and iron, a
thousand lances with sharp points, a thousand missiles of copper, a
thousand two-edged swords. Strong as spirits they travel onward, strong
as spirits they fall on the skulls of the Daevas.
"Before him of a truth, Angromainyu (the evil spirit) trembles, the
deadly one; before him trembles Aeshma, the wicked-minded, and
body-destroying; before him trembles Bushyancta, the long of hand, and
all invisible Daevas and the sinners from Varena. When the evil one, who
works wickedness, runs forth with swift step, Mithra, the lord of wide
pastures, swiftly harnesses his chariot, and Craosha, the pure and
strong, and Nairyocangha, the herald, beats him and his ranks. When
Mithra comes where the lands are against him (_i.e._ do not honour him)
he brings down his club on horse and rider. Against them he brings
mighty destruction and terror; he bears away the heads of the men who
deceive Mithra. Their arrows, swift-feathered, sent swiftly forth by the
string from the well-stretched bow, strike the air only; the lances,
sharp and running out with long shafts from the arm, strike the air
only; the missiles from the strings strike the air only; the
well-directed swords and well-slung clubs beat the air only; meanwhile,
angry, enraged, and not propitiated, Mithra approaches, the lord of wide
pastures. Thou, O Mithra, angry and mighty, takest the force from their
arms; thou takest the force from their arms, and the sight from their
eyes, and the hearing from their ears. The wind carries away the lances
which the opponents of Mithra throw; even though he throws well and hits
the body he inflicts no wound. Standing on the field of battle Mithra
annihilates the ranks; the wings quake, and he makes the centre to
tremble. They say: Our war-horses were led away by Mithra; by him were
our strong arms and swords annihilated. Mithra scares men before and
behind; Craosha, the pure, assists in slaying on all sides. Mithra
sweeps them away, slaying them by fifties and by hundreds; by hundreds
and by thousands; by thousands and tens of thousands, and without
number. We cannot sustain the weight of the angry lord who with the
force of a thousand meets the foe; who dashes on in his rage, and rests
not from the slaughter; who destroys all at a blow. May not the
mightiest, the swiftest, the most victorious of the Yazatas fall upon
us. Come to our help, O Mithra, high lord, when the arrow hisses aloud
and the horse neighs in his nostrils, and the missiles whizz, and the
strings speed forth the sharp, bony arrows. Whomsoever Mithra protects,
him the well-sharpened lance cannot reach, nor the arrow flying past
him.
"In his might Mithra approaches; in power he goes forth to dominion, and
beholding from afar directs his glance with his eyes. Thou protectest
the lands which seek after the beneficence of Mithra, lord of wide
pastures; thou destroyest the lands which are wicked. O Mithra, lord of
wide pastures, master of the house, of the villages, the land!--let us
be protectors of thy fields, not the destroyers of them. As the sun
arises above Hara berezaiti so may I obtain my desires over the evil
Angromainyu. With uplifted arms, Mithra, the lord of wide pastures,
conveys us to immortality. With sacrifice named by name, with becoming
speech, O strong Mithra, will I make offerings to thee with libations.
Listen, O Mithra, to our sacrifice. Come to our sacrifice; come to our
libations. Carry them away to the place of meeting (_chinvat_); deposit
them in Garonmana. Thou, O Mithra, art the saviour and helper of lands
and men. Thou makest the dwellings, from which impurity is removed,
famous for women and chariots. Thou hast power over the peace and the
disquiet of lands; prosperous art thou in the battle, and strong. Give
us the gifts for which we entreat thee; abundance and power, prosperity
and purity, renown and bravery, and victory given by Ahura, the
overwhelming power of the highest purity (_asha vahista_), and
instruction in the sacred word, that so we may slay all enemies and
haters, and annihilate the hate of men and Daevas, of magicians and
Pairikas, of the violent, blind, and deaf. Stretch out thy widely
grasping hand, O Mithra; thou art the protector of the dwelling, and of
them that deceive not. Protect us in both worlds, the corporeal and
incorporeal, from the evil death, the evil Aeshma, the evil hosts, who
seek to raise their cruel banners, from the attacks which Aeshma may
make with Vidhatu the Daeva-created."[182]
The modern traits which have been introduced into this poem are easily
distinguished and removed. The relation in which Mithra is placed to
Auramazda, the chief of the good spirits, to the corporeal and
incorporeal world and the maintenance of the law, to Rashnu, the spirit
of justice, and other spirits of an abstract nature, and to the
instruction in the sacred word, are like the "Western and Eastern
India," obviously of the later origin. Setting them aside, the old form
of the god of light of the Arians in Iran meets us in vigorous and
powerful outlines. Indeed we have here more original conceptions of
Mithra than in the Veda, and find that idea of the god which formed part
of the yet undivided stock of the Arians in Iran and on the Indus (IV.
51). In the Avesta Mithra is still in direct conflict with the evil
spirits, from which in the Veda he is displaced by the storm-god, who
first came into prominence in the Panjab. That Mithra was once the
supreme deity of the Arians of Iran, is clear, not only from his
position as the most victorious opponent of the demons, but also from
the difficulty--which the Avesta betrays in more than one passage--of
subordinating him to Auramazda, who subsequently became supreme, and
establishing the precedence of the latter. In Mithra's habitation it is
never night. Highest of the spirits of light, he goes before the sun,
and first plants himself on the summits of the mountains. He is the
mightiest warrior against night and the spirits of night who tremble
before him. His light overpowers and destroys them. Thus he is able to
give victory in the battle to the army which worships him in truth; the
host with which he fights he fills with courage and power; that with
which he is angry he fills with terror, and causes their arrows to fly
forth in vain. In brilliant armour he travels onward, his club in his
hand; before him is victory, and beside him is fire. Mithra's club is
called Vazra, Indra's club is Vajra; the word is the same, the
distinction is due to the change of sound which separates the old
Bactrian from the language of the Veda and Sanskrit.[183] Lord of the
lands and nations, he looks down on the abode of the Arians; most
brilliant of deities, he sees all that is between heaven and earth. He
cannot be deceived and beguiled; the most secret wickedness is not
hidden from him; the swiftest criminal does not escape from him, and the
strongest succumbs to his anger. God of purity and truth, he watches
over purity and truth among men, punishes falsehood, rewards justice and
fidelity; he blesses the nations and houses which worship him with
goodly increase in men and flocks.
We saw what importance the Veda ascribed to the conquest over Vritra,
the cloud serpent, the black demon. The Arians in Iran also are
acquainted with the slaying of Vritra. The prayer to Mithra represents
Verethraghna as going before Mithra's victorious car (p. 110).
Verethraghna means slayer of Verethra, or Vritra, and is the same word
as Vritrahan. Hence the attribute of Indra, which denotes the most
important achievement among his actions, is among the Iranians an
independent spirit. As the club of Indra belongs in the Avesta to
Mithra, so is Verethraghna his companion. No doubt at one time Mithra
had himself the surname Verethraghna in Iran, the attribute signifying
the conqueror of the worst and strongest of the evil spirits. But just
as in the Panjab, owing to the tropical storms of that region, the form
of Vritra came into prominence, and with it the form of Indra, so in the
Avesta did Verethraghna fade away when separated from Mithra. Here
Verethraghna is only the victorious strength, the conquest and slaughter
of the enemy,--victory itself. Verethraghna is the best armed of the
heavenly spirits, the strongest in might, the most victorious. Yet even
in the Avesta the Soma is offered to Verethraghna before the battle, as
in the Veda it is offered to Indra. Auramazda says to Zarathrustra:
"When the armies meet in battle, the orderly ranks are not defeated in
which sacrifice is liberally offered to Verethraghna, whom Ahura
created. The Arian lands should offer him sacrifice, and strew
sacrificial branches for him. They should offer beasts to him, bright
and gold-coloured." "To him the pure Zarathrustra offered sacrifice, and
Verethraghna came to him in the form of a strong wind, in the form of a
beautiful bull with golden ears and golden hoofs, in the form of a
shining horse, of a large, biting, and fierce camel, in the form of a
boar with strong tusks (as also in the prayer to Mithra), in the form of
a youth, in the form of a man carrying a sword with a golden handle, in
the form of the swiftest and largest of birds, in the form of a ram, and
a fighting goat. And Verethraghna gave Zarathrustra strength of arms,
health and vigour of body, and power of vision, like that of the horse
which sees in the night, and the gold-coloured vulture." In the battle
Verethraghna hastens through the ranks and inquires with Mithra and
Rashnu: "Who lies against Mithra? to whom shall I give death and
destruction, for I have the power?" "Verethraghna, the created of
Ahura, the bearer of splendour, I will praise"--such is a prayer in the
Avesta--"with audible praise, with offering. To Verethraghna will I
sacrifice. I will bring Haoma in order that I may conquer this army,
which comes up behind me. Verethraghna holds back the hands of the ranks
of the men who lie against Mithra; he veils their sight, and dulls their
ears, and suffers not their feet to advance. Verethraghna brings the
ranks together in battle; he destroys the ranks, and annihilates
them."[184]
In the Veda, the winds, the swift and strong Maruts, aided Indra against
the demons; Vayu, _i.e._ the blowing, the morning wind which chases away
the dark clouds, was Indra's charioteer (IV. 49). In the Avesta also,
Vayu, who blows before the morning light and the sun, and scares away
the goblins of the night, who first drinks "the Soma draught at the
morning sacrifice," takes a prominent position, and under his Vedic
name. The heroes of ancient days cried aloud to Vayu for victory, and he
brought help to them all. He is the strongest of the strong, the
swiftest of the swift, girded up and active, higher in stature, broader
in the hips and shoulders, than the rest of the gods. He sits on a
golden throne (p. 35); wears a golden helmet, golden armour, a girdle
and neckband of gold, and rides on a golden chariot. He says to
Zarathrustra: "I am called the beneficent, because I do good for
Auramazda. I am called the pure, the strong-winged, the mightiest, the
swiftest, the powerful for defeat, the expeller of the Daevas. I am
called the Hurling one, the Biting one, the sharp lance, the flashing
lance. I am called the Conqueror. These names must thou invoke at the
shock of the ranks in battle, in the stress of the conflict."[185] In
the Avesta, as we saw, Verethragna also appears in the form of the wind.
The "pure swift winds," the air, "which works on high, which purifies
the heaven from the right hand," are frequently invoked; the "strong
wind, created by Ahura," brings the rain-clouds which Tistrya (p. 120)
has liberated over the earth; the wind carries away the lances, which
those hurl who are hostile to Mithra. We saw above, how the Bactrians
were defeated by Artaxerxes I., "because the wind blew in their faces"
(p. 25). If in the Avesta, in accordance with the character of the
doctrine, the purifying force of the winds and fresh air is made
prominent, the other traits quoted are sufficient to permit us to
recognise the original conception formed by the Iranians of the spirits
of the winds.
The pure waters, the well-flowing, the waters of the springs, pools, and
rivers are often mentioned in the Avesta and highly extolled. As with
the Arians in India, so in the Avesta, the great waters are placed high
up in the sky. The stars contain the seed of water; just as among the
Arians in India certain constellations at the appearance of which rain
fell, were considered to be the home of the waters. In the Avesta also
the water of the sky is the source and origin of the waters on earth. In
that book a female deity is the guardian of these waters, the goddess
Ardvicura Anahita, _i.e._ the lofty, stainless one, "to whom Auramazda
gave the waters in charge." She is at one and the same time the source
of the heavenly water, which springs up on the golden height of
Hukairya, the summit of the divine mountain, and the spirit of this
source and of the water coming from it. At the height of a thousand men,
the spring Ardvicura flows down from the golden Hukairya; it has a
thousand basins, and a thousand streams, each stream is forty days'
journey in length for an active traveller.[186] The goddess who pours
out this water is a strong, well-grown maiden of brilliant countenance,
and beautiful arms, which are more brilliant and larger than horses. On
her brow she bears a golden diadem, adorned with a hundred stars; she
has golden ear-rings and neck-band, a flowing lower garment with many
folds of gold, and golden shoes on her feet. Her breasts fall down over
her girdle; her upper robe is of bright otter skins, _i.e._ of the
smooth skins of the animal of the water. She carries a golden Paitidana,
and holds the reins of her chariot which is drawn by four white beasts
of draught. The deity of the water of the sky is in the Avesta the most
beneficent of the goddesses; the source of water is also the source of
fruitfulness and life. She cleanses the seed of men, and gives a happy
delivery to women; those who are with child entreat her assistance. To
men she gives swift horses and strong comrades, if duly invoked and
worshipped. We have already seen how the heroes of old days, Yima,
Thraetaona, Kerecacpa, Kava Uca, Kava Hucrava, Vistacpa, sacrificed
horses, cows, and smaller cattle to Ardvicura, in order to win victory
over the evil spirits, the dragons, the giants, and the enemies of Iran
(p. 32, 34 ff.). Zarathrustra asks the stainless Ardvicura what
sacrifice he must offer to her, in order that Auramazda may not hold
back his course in the height above the sun, that serpents may not
injure the water by their sweat and poison. And Ardvicura gave command
that prayer and sacrifice should be offered to her from the ascent of
the sun till daybreak; the sacrifice was to be consumed by the
sacrificers and priests in honour of the goddess; the impure, blind,
dumb, and all afflicted with infirmities were to be kept far from it.
"Come to me, come down, Ardvicura," is the invocation, "from the stars
to the earth which Auramazda made; to thee, the excellent, mighty lords
of the lands, the sons of the lords of the lands, will offer
sacrifice."[187]
The divine mountain, on which the Ardvicura rises, is in the Avesta "the
mighty navel of water (_apam napal_)," "in a course swift as the horse,
Auramazda causes the water to stream forth from it." On this mountain is
the deep lake Vourukasha, _i.e._ having wide shores, in which the waters
collect together. Out of this lake the water-clouds rise, which are to
bring the fertilising rain to the earth. Though the tropic storms are
wanting in Iran, the fertilising of the land by the water of the
springs, rivers, and lakes, and by rain was of no less importance there
than in the Panjab. Hence in the Avesta we again meet with the contest
of the good spirits against Vritra, and in Iran also these spirits are
opposed to the demons of blight. It is demons of this kind, which,
according to the Avesta, keep back the rain-clouds above Vourukasha, and
men say: "When will Tistrya (Sirius) rise, the bright, the majestic,
the lord of the stars? When will the streams of water flow which are
stronger than horses?" And Tistrya, whom Angromainyu slays not, nor the
magicians and Pairikas, nor the magicians among men, gleams forth from
the navel of the waters; he runs to Lake Vourukasha like an arrow, in
the form of a horse, a beautiful brilliant horse, with yellow ears, and
golden horse-cloth. Auramazda and Mithra prepare the way for him. Ashi
vanguhi and Parendi follow in his wake with swift chariots. There goes
to meet him the Daeva Apaosha, _i.e._ the witherer, in the form of a
black, bald horse, with bald ears, bald back and tail, and ugly brand.
For three days and three nights they struggle; and the Daeva Apaosha
scares away the brilliant Tistrya from Lake Vourukasha for the distance
of a _Hathra_. And Tistrya speaks and says: "If men honour me with the
sacrifice named by name, with duly performed sacrifice, and prayer, then
at the appointed time I shall come to the pure men; hostile chariots and
uplifted banners will not come nigh to the Arian lands, and I shall have
gained the strength of ten horses, ten bulls, ten mountains, and ten
flowing waters." And Auramazda sacrificed to Tistrya and brought him
that strength, and Tistrya fought with the Daeva Apaosha till midday,
and conquered and overpowered him, and scared him away from Vourukasha.
And Tistrya announced blessing for the waters and the trees; the streams
of the waters will come to you without opposition, the cloud rises out
of Lake Vourukasha, and the vapours gather above on Mount Hendava in the
midst of Lake Vourukasha, and Tistrya drives forth the vapours, the pure
ones, whence clouds are formed, and the strong wind drives clouds and
rain to the villages and hamlets, to the seven Kareshvare (the seven
parts of the earth). And Auramazda gave command to Zarathrustra that the
Arian lands should offer sacrifice to Tistrya, should sprinkle
sacrificial rice, and sacrifice a bright, light-hued, Haoma-coloured
animal in order that he might withstand the Pairika Dushyairya (_i.e._
blight). "If I had not created Tistrya," Auramazda says, "this Pairika
would have carried on war day and night, but Tistrya binds her with two
and three fetters." "We praise Tistrya, the brilliant majestic star,
which drives away the Pairika; he blows her away from Lake Vourukasha;
then the clouds draw up, spreading themselves afar, which contain the
fertilising water."[188]
Another spirit which fights against the demons in the Avesta is called
Craosha. On the divine mountain stands "his triumphant dwelling with a
thousand pillars, on the topmost height of the great mountain, illumined
within with a light of its own, decked with stars without;" his chariot
is drawn by four spotless horses, which are swifter than clouds, swifter
than winds, swifter than storms, swifter than birds with strong wings. A
strong, well-armed, victorious youth, the strongest and swiftest among
young men, who fears not the Daevas, and before whom they fly in terror
to the darkness, Craosha is the companion of Mithra; with him he
overthrows the ranks of the hosts with whom Mithra is angry (p. 111).
Thrice in each day he comes to smite the Daevas, with the axe of a
woodman in his hand. Thus he fights against the evil Angromainyu,
against Aeshma, and the Daevas Kunda, Banga, and Vibanga; thus he forces
the conquered Daevi Druj to answer him. In the dark he is wakeful
against the evil ones; he protects the world from them when the sun has
set; in each night he comes thrice upon the earth with his weapons in
his hand. About the third watch of the night he arouses the bird
Parodarsh, _i.e._ the cock, that by his cry he may scare away the
goblins of the night, and may banish the Daevi Bushyancta, which holds
men imprisoned in sleep.[189] Craosha, moreover, protects the sacrifices
which are offered to the good gods, and which the evil one would carry
away or defile. One of the priests who took part in the sacred
ceremonies held a club, the Craosha-club, in his hand, in order to scare
the demons and keep them back. Of the two instruments which in the book
of the law are used for flagellation, and by which the evil spirits are
driven from the bodies of men, one is called the Craosha-whip (_Craosha
charana_).
We remember the numerous hymns of the Veda which celebrate the benefits
conferred upon men by Agni, the spirit of fire, who is born from the
double wood, and descends to earth in the lightning from the water-bed
of the storm-cloud; the glow of this bright youth preserves men from
beasts of prey, from murderers and evil spirits, helps the gods to
victory, and contends in battle in the van; at the same time a royal
house-lord and priest, Agni is in the Veda the upholder of the religious
worship, the mediator between heaven and earth (IV. 40). The Avesta is
filled with similar conceptions, though less poetical in form. Here the
power as victorious of fire against the demon takes the first place. We
saw that Mithra's chariot carried the kindled fire. "The sacred, strong
fire" is invoked as a "warrior," as a "protector," as a slayer of the
evil spirits, as the giver of good. To whatever side, we are told in the
book of the law, the wind carries the smoke of the fire, it comes back
thence as a slayer of thousands. "Happy is the man," we are told in an
invocation, "to whom thou comest in strength, O Fire, son of Auramazda,
more friendly than the friendliest, worthy beyond others of
supplication. O Fire, we approach thee with perfect purity, with a good
spirit; mayest thou come down to us bringing help."[190] He who uses dry
selected wood for the fire, him the fire blesses, saying: "May herds of
cattle gather round thee, and abundance of men; may all things succeed
according to the wish of thy soul. Live out thy life happily to the full
extent to which thou wilt live. The fire speaks with all those for whom
it shines the whole night through, and cooks food; from all it demands
good nourishment. The fire looks on the hands of all who come; what does
the friend bring to the friend, he who approaches to him who sits
alone?[191]" The Gathas of the Avesta also speak of the pieces of wood
for friction, out of which springs the fire that shows the way;[192] and
in another passage we hear of the fire Urvazista which dwells in wood.
The Avesta distinguishes between the fire Cpenista, _i.e._ the
house-lord, the hearth-fire (it is the same name that is given to the
hearth-fire in India), the most victorious fire Verethraghna, which
slays all the demons, and by which, according to the custom of the
Parsees, the fires of the hearth must be renewed year by year, and the
fire of lightning, which is called Vazista. This last, which comes down
direct from heaven, is the "most sacred of all fires, which slays the
demon Cpenjaghra."[193] In the Avesta the priests are called Athravas, a
name which, no doubt, goes back to the worship of fire (_athar_); among
the Indians Atharvan entices the fire from the wood, and together with
Manu and Dadhyanch kindles the first sacrificial fire; the fourth Veda
is called after him (IV. 280). In the Avesta also the red glowing fires,
which gleamed on the earth in the days of King Yima, are repeatedly
mentioned (p. 32); it extols "the brilliance of the Arian lands,"
denotes the fire-priests as possessors of the true faith, and assures us
that what is right may be known from the clear, blazing flames.[194]
The sacrifice offered by the Arians beyond the Indus to Indra, the
Maruts, and spirits of light, to strengthen them against the demons, the
draught prepared from the Soma, is known to us; we have shown how this
Soma which strengthens the gods became itself a god in the fancy of the
Indians--a mighty nourisher and sustainer of the gods. The same custom
and deity are found in the Avesta, only the name has become Haoma,
according to the phonetic laws of the Bactrian language. The legend has
already shown us what importance was ascribed in Iran to the worship of
the god Haoma, and the sacrifice of this liquor. Yima was born to
Vivanghana as a reward because he had first poured out the Haoma and
worshipped the god. To Athwya, the second worshipper of Haoma,
Thraetaona was born; and to Thrita, the third, Kerecacpa, the hero (p.
27, 28). To Zarathrustra, who was born to Pourushacpa for a similar
service, when he is dressing the sacred fire at the break of dawn, and
singing the sacred hymns, the god Haoma appears: "Who art thou," asks
Zarathrustra, "who appearest to my sight as the most perfect in the
corporeal world, with thy brilliant, immortal body?" Haoma answered him:
"I am the pure Haoma, who protect men from evil. Call on me, press out
my juice in order to enjoy me; praise me as all other fire-priests
praise me." Then said Zarathrustra: "Supplication to Haoma! Haoma, the
good, is well-created; duly-created is he, and gives health; he bestows
kindness, is victorious, and of golden colour. Thy wisdom, O golden one,
I praise; thy strength, thy victory, thy healing power, thy greatness. I
praise the mountains, the high ones, where thou, Haoma, growest; I
praise the earth, the wide and patient, thy mother, O pure Haoma. Mayest
thou grow on the paths of the birds. To the horsemen, who spur their
horses, Haoma gives power and strength; to the maidens who have long
remained unmarried, he gives true and vigorous husbands, gifted with
good understanding, and to wives beautiful children and a pure
posterity. To those who repeat the Nackas (the chapters of the Avesta)
he gives sanctity and greatness. Praise to thee, Haoma; thou knowest the
words which are spoken with truth. Praise to thee, Haoma, who by thine
own power art a mighty king. To thee Auramazda first gave the girdle
glittering with stars; girt with this thou lingerest on the summits of
the mountains in order to maintain in sincerity the commands of the
sacred sayings. O Haoma, lord of the house, of the village, of the land,
lord of wisdom, I call on thee for greatness and victory, for favour to
my body, and rich food. O thou who art of golden colour, I entreat thee
for skill and power, passing through the whole body, for beauty and
health, for prosperity and increase, for greatness spreading over the
whole form. The first boon for which I entreat thee, O Haoma, who
removest death, is that I may attain to the excellent habitation of the
saints, the bright dwelling where there is abundance of all good things;
the second boon is that this body may endure; the third, that my life
may be long; the fourth, that I may go through the earth powerful and
glad, troubling the tormentors, and slaying the Druj; the fifth is that
I may walk victorious on the earth and slay the evil. For this thing
also, as a sixth boon, O Haoma, who removest death, I entreat thee: may
I be the first to see the thief, the murderer, and the wolf: may none of
these previously see me. Keep far from us the hatred of those who hate
us; tear out the hearts of those who give poison. If in this house, this
place, this village, this sacrifice, there is a man who does harm, take
from him the power to go, obscure his reason, break asunder his heart
with the commandment. Let him not be mighty in the feet, let him not be
mighty in the hands. O Haoma, I make a prayer to thee, that thou mayest
go a sovereign lord through the worlds, triumphing over hatred and the
evil. Thou shouldest triumph over the hatred of all who hate thee, over
the hatred of the Daevas and men, the evil spirits and magicians, the
perverse, blind, and dumb, the two-footed murderers and insidious
creatures, the four-footed wolves, and the numerous hosts which creep
and fly."[195]
Further, we find in the Avesta that the "priest" offers Haoma to Mithra,
Craosha, and Drvacpa on the divine mountain.[196] The plant of which
this god is the genius, grows, according to the books of the Parsees, as
white heavenly Haoma only on the tree Gaokerena, _i.e._ the heavenly
tree which stands on the divine mountain or in the spring Ardvicura; the
yellow Haoma which grows upon the earth is only a copy or descendant of
the white Haoma. In Iran also the preparation and expression of the
Haoma juice is accompanied by a long and minute ritual; and the offering
of the sacrifice, which is still performed among the Parsees of India,
requires long invocations and responses between the celebrant and the
ministering priests. At the present day the Parsees send from time to
time one of their priests to Kerman in order to bring from their ancient
home twigs of Haoma for the sacrifice.
The coincidence which we find above, in the forms of the legend, between
the Avesta and the Veda--Vivanghana, Yima, Athwya, Thrita, Kerecacpa,
and Uca are found in both--is not less marked in the conceptions of the
gods and their functions, and in the character of the worship. There can
be no doubt that the Arians of Iran believed themselves to be protected
and injured by the same spirits as the Arians in the Panjab. If on the
Indus invocations were addressed to Vritrahan, Vayu, the Maruts, and
Mitra, in Iran men prayed to Verethraghna, Vayu, and Mithra. In both
places Vritra and Ahi are the opponents of the god of light; in both
fire was worshipped; in both the power of the sacrificial liquor was
elevated into a mighty life-giving god. Among the Indians, as we saw,
the priest who addresses the invocation to the god at the sacrifice is
called Hotar; in the Avesta the Zaotar utters the prayers. Further
coincidences in the number and nature of the gods, in the worship, in
the laws and forms of purification, in the ceremonial, and even in the
shape of the universe, will show themselves as we proceed. It is true
that differences may also be found. Many of the numerous spirits of the
Rigveda are wanting in the Avesta; and again, some spirits in the
Avesta, such as Anahita, Craosha, Tistrya, are unknown to the Indians.
Variations such as these must occur where there has been a separate
development from a common root. But the factors in the coincidence of
the most important forms of the gods and heroes, and the distinctive
modes of worship, in the Avesta and the Rigveda, the very oldest
monument of the Arians in India, are so great that any doubt whether the
Avesta remained free from alterations and influences of an alien or
later nature in the revision under Shapur II., is entirely removed, and
we know that we possess in it the remains of an original document of
Iran, going back beyond the time of Cyrus. In the Avesta we have before
us the faithful expression of the ancient Iranian faith. Though not in
its original form this result is the more certain, because on the one
hand some deities, as for instance Mithra, and some myths like that of
Yima, exhibit older forms in the Avesta than in the Rigveda, while in
others we have almost an identity of language between the two. In the
Avesta as in the Veda the Soma is praised as "gold-coloured;" in both
fire is the "house-lord;" the sun goes on his "path free from dust;" the
power of the gods is increased by the sacrifice (p. 120). In both one
god offers sacrifice to another, in order to strengthen him; and the
invocations of the Avesta, like those of the Rigveda, ask for health and
long life for the suppliant; for possessions and wealth and favour, for
the power to see the thief, the murderer, and the wolf before they are
seen by him.
FOOTNOTES:
[178] "Gah Ushahin," 5; "Mihr Yasht," 13, 143.
[179] "Mihr Yasht," 118.
[180] Pouruta may be referred to the [Greek: Paryetai] of Ptolemy, whom
he places in the north of Arachosia.
[181] Cf. "Mihr Yasht," 127, where the boar is not Verethraghna but the
"curse of the sage."
[182] Windischmann, "Mithra; Abhl. fuer Kunde des Morgenlandes," 1, 1 ff.
[183] Haug, "Essays," p. 185. The Sassanids also carry the club now
called _guzr_.
[184] "Yasht Bahram," 57-62. Burnouf, "Commentaire sur le Yacna," p.
285.
[185] "Ram Yasht," 43-57.
[186] "Aban Yasht," 64 ff.; "Yacna," 74.
[187] Hang, "Essays," p. 179. The passages given in the text from the
Aban Yasht, notwithstanding the swelling breasts, shows how definitely
the form of Anahita belongs to the Iranian conception, how peculiarly
this goddess of fountains is represented in this form, and how
intimately connected she is with the whole Iranian system of the boon of
water, and the legends of the heroes. A brass tablet found at Graechwyl
in the canton of Berne, which exhibits the Persian Artemis with swelling
breasts, surrounded by four lions, with a bird of prey on her head and
serpents instead of ears, and wings on the shoulders, has decided J.
Stickel ("De monumento Graechwyliano") to regard the Persian Artemis as
identical with the Semitic goddess of birth. This tablet is due to the
syncretism of Roman times. Certain similarities between the Syrian
goddess of birth and fertility, Mylitta-Derceto, and the Persian goddess
of water, might lead to such a syncretism even under the Achaemenids, and
this coincidence might determine Artaxerxes Mnemon to erect images of
Anahita in Ecbatana and Susa after the pattern of the Semites. Beros.
fragm., 16 ed. Mueller, and below.
[188] "Tistar Yasht," 24 ff., 40, 49-58.
[189] "Yacna," 56; "Vend." 18, 39.
[190] "Vend." 8, 248-250; "Yacna," 26, 61, 23; "Yasht Farvardin," 77.
[191] "Vend." 18, 57-63, 19, 134.
[192] Roth, "Ueber Yacna, 31," Tuebingen, 1876, s. 6, 20.
[193] "Vend." 19, 135; "Yacna," 17, 69.
[194] "Yacna," 31, 3, 19.
[195] "Yacna," 9, 10, according to Burnouf, "Journ. Asiat." 1844-1846.
Cf. Spiegel "Avesta," 2, 68 ff.
[196] "Gosh Yasht," 17; "Mihr Yasht," 88; "Yacna," 56, 8.