Indian Religion In Ancient Iran And Zarathushtra

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The Indian Religion In Ancient Iran And Zarathushtra

Subhash Kak

Iranian history has many connections with India, and the Parsi texts

and traditions have thrown much light on these links. Parsis, who

fled their native land in 910 AD (according to Qissa-e-Sanjana) to

escape religious persecution, arrived as refugees from the Arab

conquest of Iran. Upon landing on the shores, they were welcomed by

the Gujarati king, Jadhav Rana. They have since made unique

contributions to Indian society. The study of their texts has thrown

much light on even earlier connections between the Indians and the

Iranians.

 

The Parsi religion is popularly called Zoroastrian after the Greek

version of the name of the prophet Zarathushtra (zarat, like

Sanskrit harit, golden; ushtra, Sanskrit or Old Persian for camel)

who has been variously estimated to have lived either around the

time 1200 BC or perhaps half a millennium later. A Greek tradition

assigns him to an age 258 years prior to Alexander, that is the 6th

century BC. (Ernst Herzfeld in his Zoroaster and His World has

argued for the later date in contrast to the earlier date by Mary

Boyce in her History of Zoroastrianism. In my judgment, Herzfeld's

arguments are stronger.) The name by which the Zoroastrians call

their own religion is Mazdayasna, the religion of Ahura Mazda

(Sanskrit medha, wisdom). The Rigveda 8.6.10 has the expression

medhaam ritasya, "wisdom of truth."

 

Zarathushtra presented his religion as rival to the religion of the

daevas, that is Daevayasna. Zarathushtra came from Bactria in

northeast Iran, near Afghanistan. The Avesta speaks of several lands

that include the Sapta-Sindhu (that is the Sindhu-Sarasvati region).

The scripture of the Zoroastrians is the Avesta. It includes the

Yasna (Sanskrit Yajna) with the Gathas of Zarathushtra, Videvdat or

Vendidad (Vi-daeva-dat, anti-Daeva), and Yasht (Sanskrit Yajat,

worship), which are hymns for worship. During the Sasanian period

the Avesta was translated into Pahlavi and this version is called

Zend Avesta.

 

It has been assumed for some time that the daevas of the Mazda faith

are the same as the Vedic devas and therefore Zarathushtra inverted

the deva-asura dichotomy of the Vedic period. In reality, the

situation is more complex and the Vedic and the Zarathushtrian

systems are much less different than is generally supposed.

 

>From Kashmir, which belongs square within the Vedic world, comes

crucial evidence regarding a three-way division consisting of devas,

asuras, and daevas. The scheme reflects the three fundamental gunas

of Indian thought: sattva, rajas, and tamas.

 

Deva, or devata (sattva): power related to understanding

Asura (rajas): power related to activity

Daeva (tamas): power related to acquisitiveness

 

Kashmiri folklore is full of tales where daevas are counterpoints to

devas and asuras. Sometimes the term rakshasa is used as a synonym

for daeva. This term rakshasa occurs very frequently in Sanskrit

literature. The word rakshas appears in the Rigveda, the Aitareya

Brahmana and it is also considered equivalent to Nirriti. The

rakshasa form of marriage is the violent seizure or rape of a girl

after the defeat or destruction of her relatives.

 

It is entirely possible that the term daeva came into Kashmir late

as a result of the immigration of Persians. If that were the case,

the reason why it took root is because it served as a synonym for an

existing idea. It is equally possible that the term has been current

in Kashmir from ancient times and its usage there parallels that by

Zarathushtra from the nearby Bactria.

 

The Vedic view is to see the world in triple categories. Later

Puranic gloss simplified this into dichotomies like that of deva

versus asura (including rakshasa). Zarathushtra made a similar

simplification using the dichotomy of asura (including deva under

the label yazata) and daeva. The asuras are the ground on which the

devas emerge; likewise, without proper action one can slip into the

false path. The Zarathushtrian reduction is not particularly

different from the Puranic.

 

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Here is a list of devas that are included by the Zoroastrians

amongst the forces of the good where I provide the corresponding

Sanskrit spelling within brackets:

 

The three great asuras:

 

Ahura Mazda (Asura Medha)

Mithra (Mitra): Also Mihr, together with Raman (Rama)

Baga (Bhaga)

 

Common deities (Yajatas):

 

Apas (Apah): Cosmic Waters; Aban

Aradvi (Sarasvati): also Harahvati and the goddess Anahita

Airyaman (Aryaman)

Asman (Ashman)

Atar (Atharvan): Agni

Dadar (Data)

Gav (Gauh)

Hvar (Svar): Sun; in later Persian the prefix Khor as in Khordad

(given by Sun)

Ushah (Usha): Dawn

Vad (Vata): Wind

Vayu (Vayu): Breath

Verethraghan (Vritrahan): Indra as destroyer of the veil of

ignorance (Vritra) as in the Vedas = Persian Bahram

Vivahvant (Vivasvant): Sun

Yima (Yama); as in Jam or Jamshed

 

Common cultural concepts:

 

Arta (Rita): Asha; Cosmic Order

Druj (Druh): opposite of Asha, falsehood

Haoma (Soma)

Nahn (Snana): ritual bath

Hamkar (Samskara)

Humayi (Su+maya): good maya

Frashasti (Prashasti)

Saena (Shyena): the eagle; also Simurgh

Urvar (urvar): the original plant or productive ground; later

Persian ruvan, soul

Vah, Vah (Svaha, Svaha)

Yasna (yajna); also Jashn; the act of worship

Yatu (yatu): magic; jadu

Yazata (yajata); worthy of worship

Zaotar (hota): priest

 

Zarathushtra's six immortals born of Amesha Spenta (Boundless

Immortality):

 

Vohu Manah (Su Manah): Good Intention; Persian Bahman

Asha Vahishta (Asha Vasishtha): Best Law; Ardvahisht

Kshathra Vairya (Kshatra Vairya): Heroic Dominion

Spenta Armaiti (Spanda Aramati): Bounteous Devotion

Haurvatat (Sarvatata): Wholeness

Amaratat (Amaratata): Immortality

 

Zarathushtra nowhere names the daevas born of Angra Mainyu (Pahlavi

Ahriman, Hostile Spirit), but Middle Iranian books label Indar

(Indra), Nanhaithya (Nasatya), and Savol. These appear to be a

personification of the acquisitive aspects of the devas.

 

The list of common deities and concepts will make it clear that the

Zoroastrian system is essentially the same as the Vedic one. The

presence of Indra in the list of the daevas seems to mirror the

relegation of Indra that started in the Puranic times where instead

of connecting to Svar through the intermediate region of which Indra

is lord, a direct worship of the Great Lord (Vishnu or Shiva) was

stressed. This innovation is not counter to the Vedic system since

the triple division is a recursive order. The devas are a part of

the good forces in the Zoroastrian system under the label of yazata

(yajata, the adored-ones).

 

The Zoroastrian mythology remembers the Vedic sages and heroes such

as Kavi Sushravah (Kay Khosrau), Kavi Ushanas (Kay Us). The names

Kshatra Virya (Shahriyar) and Suvarnah (Khwarrah, Farrah) help find

the logic of certain names. The daeva in modern Persian are known as

deev.

 

The commonality of the fire ritual is well known. Less known is the

ritual of the nine-nights (barashnom i no-shab) which is like the

Indian ritual of the same name (navaratri).

 

Zarathushtra made a clear distinction between the good way

(ashavant) and the false way (dregvant). The pre-Zoroastrian

religion of Iran has sometimes been labeled pagan. In reality, it

appears to have been Vedic. Zarathushtra's innovation lay in his

emphasis on the dichotomy of good and bad. But in details it

retained the earlier structure of the Vedic divinities and their

relationship as well as the central role of the fire ritual.

 

Herodotus states that the "Persians built no temples, no altars,

made no images or statues" (Herodotus 1.131-2). Arrian in the Indica

(7) says that Indians "did not build temples for the gods." To the

outsider also, the two religions of the Persians and the Indians

looked similar.

 

Elsewhere, I have summarized the evidence regarding the presence of

the Indian religion in West Asia in the second millennium BC

(www.ece.lsu.edu/kak/akhena.pdf). This spread appears with the

Kassites in 1750 BC in Mesopotamia who worshiped Surya and later for

centuries in the empire of the Vedic worshiping Mitanni. These

ruling groups represented a minority in a population that spoke

other languages. Other Vedic religion worshiping groups were

undoubtedly in the intermediate region of Iran which itself

consisted of several ethnic groups including the Elamite and the

Turkic.

 

Zarathushtra brought a new element into the picture from the

northeast. Linguistically, he happened to be "h" speaking in

opposition to the Indic "s" speaking as in haptah versus saptah for

week, or hvar versus svar for the Sun. He also brought the

categorization of good versus evil onto the framework to create a

new structure which was to be influential in the shaping of the

Judeo-Christian tradition.

 

The old Vedic religion survived for a pretty long time in corners of

Iran. The evidence of the survival of the devas comes from the

daiva -- inscription of Khshayarshan (Xerxes) (ruled 486-465 BC).

The revolt by the daiva worshipers in West Iran is directly referred

to:

 

 

Proclaims Khshayarshan the King: When I became king, there is among

these countries one which was in rebellion. Afterwards Ahuramazda

bore me aid. By the favor of Ahuramazda I smote that country and put

it down in its place.

And among these countries there was a place where previously daiva

were worshiped. Afterwards, by the favor of Ahuramazda I destroyed

that sanctuary of daiva, and I made proclamation: 'The daiva shall

not be worshiped!' Where previously the daiva were worshiped, there

I worshiped Ahuramazda at the proper time and in the proper manner.

And there was other business that had been done ill. That I made

good. That which I did, all did by the favor of Ahuramazda.

Ahuramazda bore me aid until I completed the work.

 

Note:

For Avesta and other Zoroastrian texts, see www.avesta.org

http://www.sulekha.com/expressions/column.asp?cid=305849