Sacred Texts Zoroastrianism Index Previous Next
Buy this Book at Amazon.com
Pahlavi Texts, Part I (SBE05), E.W. West, tr. [1880], at sacred-texts.com
1. It is revealed by a passage of the Avesta that Zaratûst, seated before Aûharmazd, always wanted information (vâk) from him; and he spoke to Aûharmazd thus: 'Thy head, hands, feet, hair, face, and tongue are in my eyes just like those even which are my own, and you have the clothing men have; give me a hand, so that I may grasp thy hand.'
2. Aûharmazd said thus: 'I am an intangible spirit; it is not possible to grasp my hand.'
3. Zaratûst spoke thus: 'Thou art intangible, and Vohûman, Ardavahist, Shatvaîrô 3, Spendarmad, Horvadad, and Amerôdad are intangible, and when I depart from thy presence, and do not see thee nor even them—since of the person whom 4 I see and worship there is something—should thou and the seven archangels be worshipped by me, or not 5?'
4. Aûharmazd said thus: ‘They should be; I tell thee, O Zaratûst the Spîtâmân! that each individual of us has produced his own one creation (dâyak) for the world, by means of which they may set going in its body, in the world, that activity which they would exercise in the spiritual existence. 5. In the world that which is mine, who am Aûharmazd, is the righteous man, of Vohûman are the cattle, of Ardavahist is the fire, of Shatvaîrô is the metal, of Spendarmad are the earth and virtuous woman, of Horvadad is the water, and of Amerôdad is the vegetation. 6. Whoever has learned 1 the care of all these seven, acts and pleases well, his soul never comes into the possession of Aharman and the demons; when he has exercised his care of them, he has exercised his care of the seven archangels, and ought to teach all mankind in the world.
7. ‘Whoever wishes to propitiate Aûharmazd in the world, wishes to promote the things of Aûharmazd; and whoever he be, with whom Aûharmazd ever is in every place (gâs) 2, it is necessary that he should 3 propitiate the righteous man, in whatever
has happened and whatever occurs to him, and should act for his happiness, and afford him protection from the vile. 8. Since the righteous man is a counterpart of Aûharmazd the lord, and when the righteous man acts it is caused by him who is Aûharmazd, whoever propitiates the righteous man, his fame and welfare exist a long time in the world, and the splendour of Aûharmazd and pleasure and joy become his own in heaven (vahist).
9. ‘Whoever wishes to propitiate Vohûman in the world, and wishes to act for his happiness, is he who wishes to promote the things of Vohûman; and it is necessary for him, so that Vohûman may be ever with him, that he should propitiate, at every place (gâs) and time, the well-yielding (hûdhâk) cattle, in whatever has happened and whatever occurs, and should act for their happiness; and in the terrible days and the hurried times (gâs) which befall them, he should afford them protection from the oppressive and idle. 10. He should not give them as a bribe to a man who is a wicked tyrant, but should keep them in a pleasant and warm locality and place (gâs); and in summer he should provide them a store of straw and corn, so that it be not necessary to keep them on the pastures (karak) in winter; and he should not deliver them it up for this purpose, that is, "So that I may give them up to the vile," because it is necessary to give to the good; and he should not drive them apart from their young, and should not put the young apart from their milk. 11. Since they are counterparts of him (Vohûman) himself in the world, the well-yielding cattle, whoever propitiates those which are well-yielding cattle his fame subsists in the world, and
the splendour of Aûharmazd becomes his own in the best existence 1.
12. ‘Whoever wishes to propitiate Ardavahist in the world is he who wishes to promote his things; and it is necessary for him, so that Ardavahist may be with him at every place (gâs) and time, that he should propitiate the fire of Aûharmazd, in whatever has happened and whatever occurs, and should act for its happiness; he should not put upon it wood, incense, and holy-water 2 which are stolen and extorted, and he should not cook at it a ration (bâhar) which is violently extorted from men. 13. For it is a counterpart of him (Ardavahist) himself in the world, the fire of Aûharmazd; and whoever propitiates those which are fires of Aûharmazd his fame subsists in the world, and the splendour of Aûharmazd becomes his own in heaven.
14. ‘Whoever wishes to propitiate Shatvaîrô in the world, and wishes to act for his happiness, is he who wishes to promote the things of Shatvaîrô; and whoever he be, it is necessary, so that Shatvaîrô may be with him at every place and time, that he should propitiate melted metal 3 at every place and time. 15. And the propitiation of melted metal is this, that he shall practise habits (âîyînŏ) of the
heart so unsullied and pure that, when they shall drop melted metal upon it, it does not burn. 16. And Âtarôpâd son of Mâraspend 1 even acted in this priestly fashion (dastôbarîh), so that the melted metal, when they drop it upon the region (khânŏ) of his pure heart, becomes as pleasant to him as though 2 they were milking milk upon it. 17. When they drop it upon the region of the heart of the wicked and sinners, it burns, and they die. 18. And one should not commit sin with metal, and with its burning; and should not give gold and silver to the vile. 19. For it is a counterpart of Shatvaîrô himself in the world for him, and since he propitiates those which are melted metals, his fame subsists in the world, and the splendour of Aûharmazd becomes his own in heaven.
20. ‘Whoever wishes to propitiate Spendarmad in the world, wishes to promote the things of Spendarmad; and whoever he be, it is necessary, so that Spendarmad may be with him, that he should propitiate, at every place and time, the earth and virtuous woman, in whatever has happened and in whatever occurs, and should act for their happiness. 21. For when he does not spread out (barâ lâ vêshêd) this earth, and it does not separate one piece from another, his body also will not be always
living upon it at every place and time 1. 22. On account of the lodgment of Spendarmad in the earth, when a robber, violent and worthy of death, and wives who are disrespectful to their husbands walk about in sinfulness in the world, and their husbands are active and virtuous, it becomes much distressed (zanŏîk). 23. This, too, is declared, that, whenever this earth becomes distressed (zanîk), it is most so at the time when sinners worthy of death are most; for it is declared, when sinners worthy of death walk upon it, its pain and uneasiness become as distressing (dûskhvâr) to it as the dead son on her bosom to a mother; and the lodgment of Spendarmad in the earth is little in that place whereon sinners worthy of death walk. 24. And her 2 happiness arises from that place when they shall perform tillage and cultivation on it, and a virtuous son is born upon it, and they rear cattle upon it; and it is so one's fame subsists in the world, and the splendour of Aûharmazd becomes one's own in heaven.
25. 'Whoever wishes to propitiate Horvadad and Amerôdad in the world, whereas that is necessary which promotes their things, whoever he be it is necessary that he should propitiate, at every place and time, the water and vegetation of Horvadad and Amerôdad, in whatever has happened and in
whatever occurs, and should seize upon those who consume and steal water and vegetation 1. 26. And he should not act oppressively, he should not walk the world in sinfulness, and should not bring bodily refuse (hîkhar), dead matter (nasâî) 2, or any other pollution to water; he should not destroy vegetation unlawfully, and should not give fruit to the idle and vile. 27. For when he commits sin against water and vegetation, even when it is committed against merely a single twig of it, and he has not atoned for it, when 3 he departs from the world the spirits of all the plants in the world stand up high in front of that man, and do not let him go to heaven. 28. And when he has committed sin against water, even when it is committed against a single drop of it, and he has not atoned for it, that also stands up as high as the plants stood, and does not let him go to heaven. 29. Since they are counterparts of Horvadad and Amerôdad themselves, the water and vegetation, whoever propitiates those which be water and vegetation, his fame subsists in the world, and a share of the splendour of Aûharmazd becomes his in heaven.'
30. Aûharmazd said this also to Zaratûst, namely:
[paragraph continues] 'My will and pleasure is that the observance and propitiation of these seven archangels shall be as I have told thee; and do thou, too, speak thus unto men, so that they may commit no sin and may not become wicked, and the splendour of Aûharmazd may become their own in heaven.'
31. Completed in peace, pleasure, and joy 1.
372:1 This Appendix consists of a number of fragments found in the old MS. M6, and of somewhat the same character as the Shâyast lâ-shâyast, but they have no claim to be considered as a portion of that work. Excepting Chaps. XVIII, XIX, XXI, they are not found in the other old MS. K20, and beyond the fact that they must be more than five centuries old their age is quite uncertain, though some of them are probably older than others.
372:2 This chapter follows the Patît-i Khûd in M6, and is also found in L15, fols. 16-28; for a Pâzand version of it, see L22, fols. 113-122, and L7, fols. 70-76.
372:3 Written Shatrôîvar throughout this chapter; these six (see Bund. I, 26) with Aûharmazd himself, are the, seven archangels.
372:4 Reading mûn, 'whom,' instead of amat, 'when' (see Bund. I, 7, note).
372:5 Zaratûst is doubtful whether he ought to worship beings of p. 373 whose existence he had had no tangible evidence, when he no longer saw them; fearing, perhaps, that they might have been mere dreams or optical illusions. But he is told that each of these spiritual beings is the protector of one class of worldly existences, and that the proper treatment of these existences is a man's best means of reverencing the spiritual beings interested in their welfare.
373:1 Or 'taught,' for the verb has both meanings.
373:2 Or 'at all times;' it is always doubtful whether gâs means 'time' or 'place.'
373:3 Throughout this chapter a conditional meaning is given to the verbs by prefixing hanâ, aê, or 1 (all representing Pâz. aê or e) to the present tense, instead of affixing it.
375:1 See Chap. VI, 3.
375:2 Holy-water is not put upon the fire, for that would be sinful, but it is presented to the fire, and the outside of the fire-place is sprinkled or washed with it (see Haug's Essays, p. 403). The 'fire of Aûharmazd' means any fire, whether sacred or used for household purposes.
375:3 The word may be read either aîyên or asîn (Av. ayangh, Pers. âyan, âhan, or âhîn), which is usually translated 'iron,' but also means 'metal' generally, as it certainly does here, and very probably likewise in B. Yt. I, 1, 5, II, 14, 22.
376:1 The primate and prime minister of Shâpûr II (A.D. 309-379), who is said to have undergone the ordeal of having melted metal poured upon his chest, in order to prove the truth of the Mazdayasnian religion. The metal used is generally called rûî, 'brass,' but here it is aîyên, 'iron,' though a more fusible metal than either was, no doubt, used.
376:2 Reading amat, 'though,' instead of mûn, 'which' (see Bund. I, 7, note).
377:1 Meaning that the earth must be tilled in order to support its inhabitants, but there is some doubt as to the exact wording of the translation.
377:2 Spendarmad is a female archangel; perhaps, however, the earth is meant here, as it is said to be most pleased by the existence of fire-temples, dwellings of righteous people, cultivation, stables, and pastures (see Vend. III, 1-20).
378:1 Reading mûn, 'who,' instead of amat, 'when,' and dûgend, 'they steal,' instead of dûgd (perhaps for dûgak, 'thievish'); and supposing the verb to be vakhdûnêd, 'takes, seizes,' and not vâdûnêd, 'makes, acts.' If the reverse be assumed, the translation would be thus: 'should act for their happiness. When they consume water and vegetation he should not act thievishly and oppressively.'
378:2 For the meaning of hîkhar and nasâî, see note on Chap. II, 30.
378:3 Reading amat, 'when,' instead of mûn, 'who' (see Bund. I, 7, note).
379:1 This is the most usual concluding phrase of short Pahlavi texts, and indicates that this account of the best mode of propitiating the archangels is to be considered as a separate text. It is followed in M6 by the paragraphs which constitute the next two chapters.