Prods Oktor Skjærvø - The Spirit of Zoroastrianism

Copyright 2011 by Prods O. Skjrv

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Skjrv, Prods O.

The spirit of Zoroastrianism / Prods O. Skjrv.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-0-300-17035-1 (cl : alk. paper)

1. ZoroastrianismSacred books. I. Title.

BL1510.S55 2011

295dc23

2011041889

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

The International Sacred Literature Trust was established to promote understanding and open discussion between and within faiths and to give voice in today's world to the wisdom that speaks across time and traditions.

What resources do the sacred traditions of the world possess to respond to the great global threats of poverty, war, ecological disaster, and spiritual despair?

Our starting-point is the sacred texts with their vision of a higher truth and their deep insights into the nature of humanity and the universe we inhabit. The publishing program is planned so that each faith community articulates its own teachings with the intention of enhancing its self-understanding as well as the understanding of those of other faiths and those of no faith.

The Trust especially encourages faiths to make available texts which are needed in translation for their own communities and also texts which are little known outside a particular tradition but which have the power to inspire, console, enlighten, and transform. These sources from the past become resources for the present and future when we make inspired use of them to guide us in shaping the contemporary world.

Our religious traditions are diverse but, as with the natural environment, we are discovering the global interdependence of human hearts and minds. The Trust invites all to participate in the modern experience of interfaith encounter and exchange which marks a new phase in the quest to discover our full humanity.

1 Zoroastrian Literature

Background

The Avesta and other Zoroastrian literature

2 Creation and the Divine World

Cosmic contrasts and the two Spirits

Order and chaos

Creation

Gods

Demons

The creation of living beings

3 Mythical History and the Zarathustra Myth

Hero-sacrificers of the first ages

4 Eschatology and the End of the World

5 Body and Soul

6 Death, Rewards, and Punishment

7 Ethics

8 Rituals

The Yasna, a ritual re-creation of the world

The Videvdad, a ritual purification of the world

Other rituals

9 On Kingship

10 Doctrinal Issues

Translations

From the Pahlavi texts

From the Old Persian inscriptions

From the Old Avesta

From the Young Avesta

From the Pahlavi texts

Hero-sacrificers of the first ages in the Young Avesta

Hero-sacrificers of the first ages in the Pahlavi texts

Zarathustra and the Gathic characters in the Gths

Zarathustra and the Gathic characters in the Young Avesta

Zarathustra in the Pahlavi texts

On the actors of the final battles

On the evils that are befalling and will befall Iran

On the resurrection and the Final Body

From the Young Avesta

From the Old Persian inscriptions

From the Pahlavi texts

From the Young Avesta

From the Old Persian inscriptions

From the Middle Persian inscriptions

From the Pahlavi texts

From the Young Avesta

From the Old Persian inscriptions

From the Pahlavi texts

From the Old Avesta

From the Young Avesta

From the Pahlavi texts

From the Avesta and Zand

From the Old Persian inscriptions

From the Middle Persian inscriptions

From the Pahlavi texts

Diverging practices in the Yasna

On right practices and foreign worship

From the Pahlavi books

The only comprehensive collection of translations of Zoroastrian texts is that by E. West in the Sacred Books of the East from about 1900. Since then, the only anthology of Zoroastrian literature in English is that by W. W. Malandra, which, however, contains only Avestan and Old Persian texts. In this book, I have tried to follow a number of key concepts from their earliest appearances in the Gths and the Young Avesta through the Pahlavi literature, including, in particular, texts illustrating priestly thinking and discussions about the faith, leaving out many of the better-known Avestan texts, which are included in Malandra's anthology. All the translations are my own, although I have, of course, consulted existing translations and discussions.

Some readers might have wished for more explanations, but the size of the book was limited, and I decided texts were more important. The bibliography contains suggestions for further reading. Additional information on individual terms can also be found in the Encyclopdia Iranica and its on-line version http://www.iranica.com/newsite. West's translations, useful although outdated, together with others, are now on-line, as well, at avesta.org, where texts on rituals are also to be found.

I am grateful to my long-time friend and collaborator Ursula Sims-Williams for bringing me into this project by suggesting my name and to Malcolm Gerratt for inviting me to do this volume and for his support. I would also like to thank the International Sacred Literature Trust, whose aim is to publish the great songs, poetry, stories and teachings from the spiritual heritage of humanity to enable us to draw upon the spiritual wisdom of the past in developing wisdom for the future. I am grateful for being allowed to be part of this project. Finally, I must thank Yale University Press for producing this attractive volume.

As the abstract vocabulary denoting divine entities is likely to be confusing, such terms are in upper case, e.g., Good Thought (as opposed to a good thought, etc.), Wrath (as opposed to wrath, anger), Tradition (the dn, as opposed to many traditions, etc.). Many of the divine names probably retained their full meaning in the Old Avestan texts and have been translated here. They were probably just names already in the Young Avestan texts, where they have not been translated, for instance, Ahura Mazd