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Pahlavi Texts, Part I — SBE Vol. 5 (trans. E. W. West, 1880)

English·1879–1910·trans. E. W. West·388 passages

The text · part 13 of 18

After consecration, pieces are broken off the dréns by the officiating priest, and are eaten by himself and those present, beginning with the priests (see Haug’s Essays, pp. 396, 407, 408, AV. p. 147).

1 The baresém (Av. baresma) consists of a number of slender rods or taf (Pahl. tak), formerly twigs of some particular trees, but now thin metal wires are generally used. The number of these twigs varies according to the nature of the ceremony, but is usually from five to thirty-three. These twigs are laid upon the crescentshaped tops of two adjacent metal stands, each called a m4h-rf, ‘“moon-face,’ and both together forming the bares6m-d4n or ‘twig-stand.” The baresém is prepared for the sacred rites by the recital of certain prayers by the officiating priest, during which he washes the twigs with water, and ties them together with a kfistik or girdle formed of six thread-like ribbons split out of a leaflet of the date-palm and twisted together; this girdle, being

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33. And during her menstruation she is to be so seated that, from her body, ¢here are fifteen steps of three feet to water, fifteen steps to fire, fifteen steps to the sacred twigs, and three steps to a righteous man!, 34. And her food is to be carried forth in iron or leaden vessels; and the person (valman) who shall carry forth the food stands at three steps away from her?. 35. When worship is celebrated, every time at the dedication (shnfiimané)® of the consecration of sacred cakes (drén yast) z¢ is to be uttered aloud éy her; some say the Ithd and Ashem-vohti *.

CuaptTer IV.

1. A sacred thread-girdle (kisttk), should it be made of silk (parvand), is not proper; the hair (pashm) of a hairy goat and a hairy camel is passed twice round the twigs, is secured with a right-handed and left-handed knot on one side, and is then passed round a third time and secured with a similar double knot on the other side, exactly as the kfistfk or sacred thread-girdle is secured round the waist of a Parsi man or woman (see Haug’s Essays, pp. 396-399).

' See Vend. XVI, 9, 10. All the ceremonial apparatus must be kept as far removed as the sacred twigs.

2 See Vend. XVI, 11-14, which states that the food is to be carried forth on iron, lead, or the basest metal.

5 This is the time when the name of the angel or spirit is mentioned, in whose honour the cakes are consecrated (see § 32, note on dr6én, and Chap. VII, 8).

‘ The Itha is Yas. V (so called from its first word), which forms a part of the drén yast or formula of consecration (see § 32, note on drén). The Ashem-vohfi is probably that in Yas. VIII, 9, which concludes the consecration. The same details are given in Pahl. Vend. XVI, 17. These’ prayers also form a portion of all ceremonial worship, including the Yazisn.

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The Ashem-vohfi is probably that in Yas. VIII, 9, which concludes the consecration. The same details are given in Pahl. Vend. XVI, 17. These’ prayers also form a portion of all ceremonial worship, including the Yazisn.

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proper, and from other hairy creatures (mdyin6) it is proper among the lowly (nakhéztk). 2. The least fulness! necessary for z¢ is exactly three finger-dveadths ; when z¢ is exactly three fingeréreadths altogether? from one side, and when the rest is cut off, itis proper. 3. When ome retains the prayer znwardly* and has tied his girdle, and ties z¢ anew once again, he will untie that which he has tied, and it is not proper *.

4. Cloth of thick silk brocade (dtp4k5) and figured silk (parntk4n6) is not good for girdling 5; and cloth of hide when the hair is stripped from it, of wool, of hair, of cotton, of dyed silk, and of wood® is proper for shirting (saptkih). 5. Four fingerbreadths of shirt’ is the measure of zfs width away

1 Literally, ‘width ;’ that is, extra width, or slackness round the waist, as the girdle sits very loosely over a loose shirt; or, as the text implies, the slackness ought to admit three fingers together, projecting edgeways from the waist. After tying it so loosely, any unnecessary length of string may be cut off, when the girdle is put on for the first time. The necessary looseness is again mentioned in Chap. X, 1.

* Literally, ‘extreme to extreme ;’ r6ésman-4-réésman being Huzviris for sarAsar.

* That is, has begun the prayer formula (requisite while tying on the girdle) with a bas or muttered prayer (see Chap. III, 6, note).

‘ The meaning appears to be that he must not tie the girdle a second time without recommencing the prayer formula.

® This word, ayfby4ég,hanfh, is chiefly a transcript from the Avesta name of the kfstfk or girdle, aiwyaunghana. Probably garments in general are meant.

* Perhaps darfn may mean cloth of bark, hemp, or flax here.

* The sacred shirt, worn by Parsis of both sexes (young children excepted) in India, is a very loose tunic of white muslin, with very short loose sleeves covering part of the upper arm. It is called sadaro (Pers. sudarah) in Gugar&ti, and shaptk (Pers. shabf) in Pahlavi.

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from each side, from the neck to the skirt (parik); and as fo the length before and behind, as much as is proper to cover up is good. 6. So much length and breadth, when it is double or thickened !, are not proper; when on the separation (ddr m4nak) of the two folds ome remains clothed on one side, both when he wears the girdle (kdstik), aza@ when he does not wear the girdle, even then it is not undress (vishadakth)*.

7. When a shirt of one fold is put on, and the skirt has concealed both sides, the girdle is tied over it, avd it is proper. 8. When two shirts are put on, and they shall tie the girdle over that which is above, then 7¢ is for him a root of the sin owing to? running about uncovered *.

9. By a man and woman, until fifteen years of age, there is no committal of ¢he sin of running about uncovered®; and the sin of unseasonable

1 Assuming that aftabarftd stands for astabarfd; the Huz. aft being substituted for the Paz. ast. The text appears to refer to lined or stuffed shirts, such as would be very suitable for the cold winters of Persia, like the clothing padded with cotton wool used by natives of the cooler parts of India in the cold season.

* That is, the degree of nakedness which is sinful (see §§ 8-10).

8 K2o has 14, ‘not,’ instead of r&t, ‘owing to;’ this would reverse the meaning of the sentence, but it is not the usual place for the negative particle.

‘ This sin is called vishad-dQbé4risnth ; it is mentioned in Pahl. Vend. V, 167, VII, 48, but not described there. The usual definition of the sin is ‘walking about without the sacred threadgirdle;’ and it is generally classed with the two other Parsi sins of ‘walking with one boot’ and ‘making water on foot’ (see AV. XXV, 5, 6); sometimes a fourth Parsi sin, ‘ unseasonable chatter,’ is associated with them, as in the text, but this is supposed to be punished in a different manner in hell (see AV. XXIII).

® Indicating that it is not absolutely necessary to wear the sacred thread-girdle till one is fifteen years old (see Chap. X, 13).

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chatter! arises after fifteen years of age*. 10. The sin of running about uncovered, as far as three steps, is a Farman each step; at the fourth step z¢ is a Tandpohar $ sea.

11. A girdle to which ¢here is no fringe is proper ; and when they shall tie a woman’s ringlet (gurs)*‘ 2¢ is not proper.

12. Walking with one boot® as far as four steps is

1 This sin is called dr4y4n-gyisath, literally, ‘eagerness for chattering,’ and consists in talking while eating, praying, or at any other time when a prayer (v4g) has been taken inwardly and is not yet spoken out; many details regarding it are given in the next chapter. The sin consists in breaking the spell, or destroying the effect, of the vag.

* This is modified by Chap. V, 1, 2.

® See Chap. I, 1, 2. These particulars are deduced by the Pahlavi commentator from Vend. XVIII, 115, which refers, however, to a special case of going without girdle and shirt. He says (Pahl. Vend. XVIII, 116), ‘so that as far as the fourth step it is not more than (ai) a Sréshé-4aran4m, and at the fourth step it amounts to the root of a Tanapfhar within him; some say that he is within what is allowed him in going three s/eps. When he walks on very many steps it is also not more than a Tan&pfhar, and when he stops again 1/ 7s counted from the starting-point’ (compare § 12).

When he walks on very many steps it is also not more than a Tan&pfhar, and when he stops again 1/ 7s counted from the starting-point’ (compare § 12).

‘ Probably referring to the possibility of tying the girdle over a woman’s hair, when hanging loose down to her waist. The present custom among Parsi women in India is to cover up the whole of their hair with a white handkerchief tied closely over the head; but whether this is an ancient custom is uncertain.

5 This sin, which is mentioned in Bund. XXVIII, 13, is called aé-mQk-ddb4risnih or khadi-mfk-dab4risnth, literally, ‘running in one boot,’ and is usually so understood, but how there can be any risk of the committal of so inconvenient an offence is not explained. Dastir Hoshangji thinks that a€-mfk, ‘one boot,’ was formerly written avi-mQk, ‘ without boots ;’ and no doubt avi is sometimes written exactly like khad@, ‘one,’ (indicating, possibly, a phonetic change of avf into agvi). Perhaps, however, the word alludes to the Persian practice of wearing an outer boot

CHAPTER IV, IO-I4. 289

a Tandpfhar sez, when with one! movement; and after the fourth step as much as one shall walk is a Tanapfhar; and when he sits down and walks on the sin is the same that z¢ woudd de from his startingpoint (bdinth); and ¢here were some who said z¢ is a Tanapthar for each league (parasang).

13. At night, when they lie down, the shirt and girdle are to be worn, for they are more protecting for the body, and good for the soul. 14. When they lie down with the shirt and girdle, before sleep one shall utter one Ashem-voh(i, and with every coming and going of the breath (vayd) is a good work of three Sréshé-4arandms’; and if in that

(mk) over an inner one of thinner leather, when walking out of doors ; so that the sin of ‘running in one pair of boots’ would be something equivalent to walking out in one’s stockings; and this seems all the more probable from the separate account of walking ‘without boots or stockings,’ avimfgak, given in Chap. X, 12. But whatever may have been the original meaning of the word, Parsis nowadays understand that it forbids their walking without shoes; this should be recollected by any European official in India who fancies that Parsis ought to take off their shoes in his presence, as by insisting on such a practice he is compelling them to commit what they believe to be a serious sin.

? Assuming that han, ‘ this,’ stands for aé, ‘one’ (see p. 218, note 3). The amount of sinfulness in walking improperly shod appears to be deduced from that incurred by walking improperly dressed (see § 10).

* See Bund. XX, 2, The same details are given in Chap. X, 24.

’ The Av. sraosh6-farana appears to have been a scourge with which offenders were lashed by the assistant priests (see Vend. III, 125, 129, IV, 38, &c.), and a Sréshé-4arandm was, therefore, originally one lash with a scourge. As the gravity of an offence was measured by the number of lashes administered, when this term was transferred from the temporal to the spiritual gravity of sin, it was considered as the unit of weight by which sins were estimated ; and, by a further process of reasoning, the good works

(5) Up. 290 sleep decease occurs, his renunciation of st is accomplished '.

Cuapter V.

1, Of unseasonable chatter* that of children of five years of age has no root; and from five years till seven years, when ome is under the tuition of his necessary for counterbalancing sins were estimated by the same unit of weight. Regarding the amount of a Srésh6-4aran4m there is much uncertainty; according to Chap. XVI, 5 and Pahl. Vend. VI, 15 it is the same as a Farmén, and this appears to be the case also from a comparison of § 10 with Pahl. Vend. XVIII, 116 (see note on §10); but according to Chap. XI, 2 it is half a Farman, and the FarmAn is also probably the degree meant by the frequent mention of three Sréshé-daranams as the least weight of sin or good works that will turn the scale in which the soul's actions are weighed after death (see Chap. VI, 3). This uncertainty may perhaps have arisen from aé, ‘ one,’ and the cipher 3 being often written alike in Pahlavi. But, besides this uncertainty, there is some discordance between the various accounts of the actual weight of a Sréshékaranam, as may be seen in Chaps. X, 24, XI, 2, XVI, 5. Asa weight the Srésh6-4aranfm is not often mentioned in the Pahlavi Vendidad, for wherever it translates the Av. sraosh6-&arana it means ‘lashes with a scourge;’ but the weight of one Sréshédaran4m is mentioned in Pahl. Vend. VI, 15, three Srésh6-4aranéms in IV, 142, VII, 136, XVII, 11, XVIII, 55, 116, and five Srésh6daranams in XVI, 8.

1 Patitikih, ‘the dropping’ or renunciation of sin, is effected by confessing serious offences to a high-priest, and also by the recitation of a particular formula called the Patit, in which every imaginable sin is mentioned with a declaration of repentance of any such sins as the reciter may have committed. The priest ordains such atonement as he thinks necessary, but the remission of the sins depends upon the after performance of the atonement and the effectual determination to avoid such sins in future (see Chap. VIII, 1, 2, 8).

® See Chap. IV, 9.

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The priest ordains such atonement as he thinks necessary, but the remission of the sins depends upon the after performance of the atonement and the effectual determination to avoid such sins in future (see Chap. VIII, 1, 2, 8).

® See Chap. IV, 9.

CHAPTER V, 1-5. 291

father azd innocent', it has no root z” him, and when sinful it has root 2” the father?. 2. And from eight years till ¢hey ave man and woman of fifteen years, if even ove is innocent during the performance of the ritual (yasté), but is able to say its Itha and Ashem-voht 3, and does not say ¢hem, zt is the root of unseasonable chatter for him‘; and when fe is able to perform 42s ritual by heart (narm), and says only the Ith and Ashem-vohd, some have said that such is as when his ritual is not performed and there is no offering (yastéfrid), and some ave said that it is not unseasonable chatter.

3. Unseasonable chatter may occur at every ceremonial (yazisn6); for him who has performed the ritual 2¢ is-a Tan4pdhar szz5; for him who has not performed the ritual z¢ is less, some Aave said three Sréshé-4arandms*. 4. The measure of unseasonable chatter is a Tandpdhar szz; this is where every ceremony, or every morsel, or every drop of urine is not completed’. 5. Of the unseasonable chatter of

1 That is, intending no harm, as contrasted with sinful or wilful chatter in defiance of instruction.

* Because the father is supposed to be responsible, in the next world, for the sins of the child, even as he will profit by its good works (see Chaps. X, 22, XII, 15).

® See Chap. III, 35.

* Inattention to prayers evinced by improper silence is thus put upon the same footing as inattention evinced by improper talking. This portion of the sentence is omitted in K2o.

5 See Chap. I, 1, 2. It is a greater sin in the officiating priests than in the other persons present at the ceremony.

* Probably a Farman sin (see Chap. IV, 14, note).

7 Referring to the three principal occasions when a prayer (v4g) is taken inwardly and retained until the completion of the action ; during which time it is unlawful to say anything but the prescribed prayers (see Chap. III, 6, note).

U 2

p. 292

him who has not performed the ritual Afarg? said this degree is slighter; Médék-m4h? said both are alike, and he spoke further of this, since for him who has not performed the ritual, and does not attend to* saying its Itha and Ashem-vohd, it is more severe than for him who has performed the ritual, and does not attend to consecrating its sacred cake (drén). 6. Méaédk-m4h said that it (the ceremonial)® does not become Gét6-khartd*; Afarg said that it amounts to an offering (yastéfrtd)® for every one, except for that person who £mows the ritual by heart, and through sinfulness will not perform 724; and it becomes 4zs at the time when, during his life azd by his command, it is recited with this intention, namely: ‘I wish to do #4, my faith (astéb4nth) is in the religion °.’

7. The deaf and dumb when it is not possible for him to say an Ashem does not commit unseasonable chatter’; and when it is possible for him to say an Ashem he shall three times say of it, ‘Ashem, ashem, ashem ;’ and if it be possible for him to say

1 See Chap. I, 3.

* Literally, ‘ believe or trust to.’

* During which unseasonable chatter occurs.

* Generally written Géti-kharfd (see Bund. XXX, 28); but, perhaps, we should here read yast6frid, ‘offering,’ though gétékkharid occurs in Chap. XII, 30.

5 The MSS. have merely st6frtd, which differs from the foregoing gét6-kharfd only in one Pahlavi letter, so we should probably read the same word in both cases, but which of them it ought to be is uncertain.

* Meaning, apparently, that he can obtain the benefit of any past ceremony, forfeited by wilful negligence, by repentance and a repetition of the ceremony during his lifetime.

7 By omitting to say it (see § 2). This clause of the sentence is omitted in Kao.

CHAPTER V, 6-—VI, 2. 293

‘ith4’ and ‘ashem-vohf\’ it is well, and when it is only possible for him to say ‘itha’ it matters not},

CuapTer VI,

1. The deaf and dumb and helpless (armést)®, though of unblemished conduct and proper disposition, is incapable of doing good works, and from the éme when he is born till the ¢ime when he shall die, all the duty and good works which they may perform in the world become his property (nafsman) as much as his even by whom /fey are performed; some say that it is thus: as much as they belong to Zaratfist®. 2. Though he does not do the good works not really originating with (ahambdni£) him, and does not commit the sin not really originating with zm, z¢ is better than though he were, able to do the good works not really originating with him, avd should not do ¢hem; but should commit the sin not really originating with Am; when, afterwards, he passes away, and then also comes to #zs account as to sin and good works, when the good works not really originating with him are more 4e zs in heaven (vahist), when the sin

1 That is, any one barely able to speak must repeat so much of the indispensable prayers as he is able to pronounce, otherwise he will commit sin.

3 That is, any one compelled to remain stationary or secluded, owing to bodily or mental infirmity (see Chap. II, 98); an idiot, or insane person, is probably meant here.

* This comment seems to imply that its writer was translating from an Avesta text, and here met with a word which some persons thought contained a reference to Zaratfst, but which he first translated so as to suit the context; perhaps Av. zarazdaiti may be suggested.

p. 294

not really originating with 42m is more 4e zs in hell, and when both are equal 4e zs among the everstationary (hamfstak4n)4. 3. When the good works are three Sréshé-faranams* more than the sins he ts in heaven (vahist), when the good works are one Tand4pdhar more he attains to the best existence (pahldm ahv4n)’, when his ceremony (yast) is per-

1 That is, he is treated, with regard to the actions merely imputed to him, precisely as all others are with regard to their own actions. With reference to the hamistak4n, Arda-Viraf states (AV.VI, 2, 5-12) that on his journey to the other world he * saw the souls of several people who remain in the same position,’ and he was informed that ‘they call this the place of the Hamistakfn (‘those ever-stationary”), and these souls remain 7” this place till the future existence; and /hey are the souls of those people whose good works and sin were equal. Speak out to the worldlings thus: “Consider not the easier good works with avarice and vexation! for every one whose good works are three Srésh6farandms more than Azs sin is for heaven, /hey whose sin is more are for hell, they # whom both are equal remain among’ these Hamistak4n till the future existence.” And their punishment is cold or heat from the changing of the atmosphere ; and they have no other adversity.’

* Probably equivalent to a Farm&n sin (see Chaps, I, 1, 2, IV, 14, note).

* This appears to be another name for Garédmé4n, ‘the abode of song,’ which is the highest heaven, or dwelling of Afharmazd. The lower heaven is here called Vahist, which is a general term for heaven in general. AV. VII-X, XVII, 27, and Mkh. VII, 9-12, 20, 21 describe four grades in heaven and four in hell, besides the intermediate neutral position of the Hamistak4an (AV. VI, Mkh. VII, 18, 19). The four grades of heaven, proceeding upwards, are Hiimat for good thoughts in the station of the stars, Hikht for good words in the station of the moon, Hfvarst for good deeds in the station of the sun, and Gar6dm4n where Afharmazd dwells (Vend. XIX, r2r). And the four grades of hell, proceeding downwards, are Dfs-himat for evil thoughts, Dfs-hOkht for evil words, Dfis-havarst for evil deeds, and the darkest hell (Vend. XIX, 147) where the evil spirit dwells. The p&hifm ahv4n of

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XIX, r2r). And the four grades of hell, proceeding downwards, are Dfs-himat for evil thoughts, Dfs-hOkht for evil words, Dfis-havarst for evil deeds, and the darkest hell (Vend. XIX, 147) where the evil spirit dwells. The p&hifm ahv4n of

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formed?. 4. Sdshyans* said that to come into that best existence it is not necessary to perform the ceremony, for when his good works are one* Tan4pihar more than the sin he attains to the best existence, and no account is 4akex of performing his ceremony; because in the heavenly existence (garédmantkth) it is not necessary to perform a ceremony, for an excess of good works must attain Garédman*. 5. As Séshyans said, in heaven (vahist) he who is below is elevated to him who is above; and it says thus: ‘ Happy indeed art thou, O man! who art in any way near unto that imperishable existence °.’

6. Kdshtand-bigéd* said that an infidel (akdtné)", when 42s good works are one Tandpdhar more than 4zs sin, is saved from hell.

the text is merely the Pahlavi form of Av. vahistem ahfim (Vend. VII, 133, XVIII, 69, XIX, 120, Yas. IX, 64), whence the term vahist (Pers. bahist) is also derived.

1 That is, when his surviving relatives have performed the proper religious ceremonies after his death.

* See Chap. I, 3.

* Reading a@, ‘one,’ and supposing that this Paz. form has been substituted for an original Huz. khad@k, ‘one.’ This supposition being necessary to account for the aé preceding its noun, instead of following it; and without it we ought to read ‘three’ instead of ‘one,’ which seems, however, hardly reconcileable with the context (but compare Pahl. Vend. VII, 136). This is an instance of the ambiguity occasioned by aé, ‘one,’ and the cipher 3 being often written alike in Pahlavi, as already noticed in p. 289, note 3. The word might also be taken as the conditional] verbal form a6, ‘shall be,’ but in that case it is likewise misplaced.

* See note on pahifim ahv4n in § 3.

* A somewhat similar exclamation to that in Vend. VII, 136.

* See Chap. I, 4, note.

7 That is, one of another religion; not an apostate, nor an atheist. :

p. 296

7. Of a pure law (d4@) are we of the good religion, and we are of the primitive faith; of a mixed law are those of the Sintk congregation’; of a vile

p. 136

* See Chap. I, 4, note.

7 That is, one of another religion; not an apostate, nor an atheist. :

p. 296

7. Of a pure law (d4@) are we of the good religion, and we are of the primitive faith; of a mixed law are those of the Sintk congregation’; of a vile

1 It is not easy to identify this Sintk vaskardth, but Professor J. Darmesteter suggests that the term may have been applied to the Manicheans settled in eastern Turkistén and western China, whence fhey may have been called Sinik (the country of the Sénf, Av. S4ini, being identified with Xinfstin or China in Bund. XV, 29, because 7Sin is the Arabic name of the latter). This is confirmed, to some extent, by a passage in the Dinkard (see Dastiir Péshétan’s edition of the Pahlavi text, p. 27), where three foreign religions are mentioned, that of the Jews from Arfim, that of the Messiah from the west, and that of M4nih from Turkistén. Darmesteter further points out the following passages in Barbier de Meynard’s French translation of Mas’afidi, which show that the Manicheans had considerable influence in eastern Turkistan as late as A.D. 944 :—

(Meynard, I, 268): ‘... the Turks, the Khuzlug, and the Taghazghaz, who occupy the town of Kfisan, situated between Khurésan and China, and who are now (a.p. 944) the most valiant, most powerful, and best governed of all the Turkish races »> and tribes. Their kings bear the title of frkh4n (“sub-khan?”), \7 and they alone, among all these nations, profess the religion of Mani’

Again, after stating that the Chinese were at first Samanians (Buddhists), it is added (Meynard, II, 258): ‘Their kingdom is contiguous to that of the Taghazghaz, who, as we have said above, are Manicheans, and proclaim the simultaneous existence of the two principles of light and darkness. These people were living in simplicity, and in a faith like that of the Turkish races, when there turned up among them a demon of the dualist sect, who showed them, in tempting language, two opposing principles in everything that exists in the world, such as life and death, health and sickness, riches and poverty, light and darkness, union and separation, connection and severance, rising and setting, existence and non-existence, night and day, &c. Then, he spoke to them of the various ailments which afflict rational beings, animals, children, idiots, and madmen; and he added that God could not be responsible for this evil, which was in distressing contradiction to the excellence which distinguishes his works, and that be was

p. 7

CHAPTER VI, 7—VIt, I. 297

law are the Zandtk?, the Christian (Tars4k), the Jew (Yahfa@), and others of this sort (sand)?

Cuapter VII.

1. The morning sun it is necessary to reverence (yastan6) till midday, and that of midday it is necessary to reverence till the afternoon time, and that of the afternoon time it is necessary to reverence till night®; whenever ome is quite prepared above any such imputation. By these quibbles, and others like them, he carried away their minds, and made them adopt his errors.’

The tenets of the Manicheans ought, no doubt, to have been considered by the Zoroastrians as a mixture of truth and error, just as those of the Sinik congregation are represented to be in our text; but such tenets being an heretical offshoot of Zoroastrianism, it argues unusual liberality in the priests if they preferred Manicheans to Christians, that is, heretics to infidels.

Kzo has altered sfnfk vaskardth into nisfntk (or vidinfk) sikaftth, which appears to be an attempt to bring the words within the limits of the writer’s knowledge, without paying much attention to their collective meaning.

A sect which (according to its name) probably adhered to a certain heretical interpretation (zand) in preference to the orthodox Avesta and Zand. Nérydsang, in his Sanskrit version of Mkh. XXXVI, 16, explains a Zandik as one who ‘thinks well of Aharman and the demons.’

2 Unless this paragraph be a continuation of the quotation from Kfshtané-biigéd’s commentary, which seems unlikely, its contents have an important bearing upon the age of the Shayast 14-shayast. As it does not mention Muhammadanism by name it could hardly have been written after the fall of the Sasanian dynasty, when that new faith had become much more important, in Persia, than those of the Christians and Jews.

® Referring to the recitation of the Khfrshéd Nyfyis, or ‘ salutation of the sun,’ which should be performed thrice a day, in the Hfvan, Rapftvin, and A(izérin G&hs, or periods of the day (seep. 298 for activity (khvésk4rth), and shall then do reverence, it is proper. 2. And when anything of that happens which zzaicates when it is not proper to wash the hands, and about this he considers that when he does not reverence the sun it will stop}, a¢ the time previous 0 ¢ha¢ in which it occurs the sun is to be fully reverenced by him, and, afterwards, when £zs hands are washed, it is to be reverenced again ; and when he does not reverence 2¢, except when innocent through not reverencing z¢?, then it becomes irreverence (14 yast) of the sun for him®.

3. As ¢o the sun it is better when ome reverences z¢ every time at the proper period (pavan gAs-i nafsman); when he does not reverence 7¢ for once z¢ is a sin of thirty stirs‘. 4. Reverencing the sun is every time a good work of one Tanapdhar®; and so of the moon and fire zz like manner *&. 5. When on account of cloudiness the sun is not visible (pé@4k), and one shall reverence 2z¢, it is proper.

Bund. XXV, 9); a few sentences in the Ny4yis, or formula of salutation, are altered to suit the particular G4h in which it is recited.

5. When on account of cloudiness the sun is not visible (pé@4k), and one shall reverence 2z¢, it is proper.

Bund. XXV, 9); a few sentences in the Ny4yis, or formula of salutation, are altered to suit the particular G4h in which it is recited.

1 K2o has, ‘it will protect :/;’ having read netrfinéd instead of ketrfinéd in its original. To pray with unwashed hands would be sinful (see Pahl. Vend. XIX, 84).

* That is, except when the omission is to avoid a worse evil, as in the instance just mentioned.

* Or, perhaps, ‘it does not become a Khfirshéd Yast (“a formula of praise in honour of the sun”) for him.’ This Yast forms a part of the Nydyis.

‘ That is, an Aredfs sin (see Chap. I, 2). M6 has, ‘when he does not reverence 7/ again.’

5 That is, a good work sufficient to counterbalance a Tanapthar sin, which puts the performance of a Ny4yis on the same footing as the consecration of a sacred cake or drén (see Chap. XVI, 6).

* The moon and fire have each a separate Nydyis. .

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6. And while one does not reverence the sun, the good works which they do that day are not their own ; some say that of the good works which they do within the law (d4a) of the good religion he has no share. 7. While they do not wash dirty hands any good work which they do is not their own, for while one does not utterly destroy corruption (nasis)! ¢here is no coming of the angels to his body, and when ¢here is no coming of the angels to his body he has no steadfastness in the religion, and when he has no steadfastness in the religion no good work whatever reaches unto him.

8. When one wishes to perform the propitiation (shnaman)? of fire, it is allowable to perform one ‘Aathré’ by itself, and, when two and the ‘mad vispaéibyé Aterebyéd, these three are thus the propitiation everywhere*; some say that it would be proper to perform z¢ while allowable, except that of the heterodox.

1 That is, the demon of corruption, who is supposed to enter and reside in all filth of the nature of dead matter, until expelled or destroyed by cleansing.

* A shnOman or khshnfimanéd (Av. khshnfiman) is a short formula of praise, reciting all the usual titles of the spirit intended to be propitiated by it, and is used for dedicating the prayers or ceremony specially to his service (see Chaps. ILI, 35, X, 2, XIV, 3). The propitiatory formulas for the thirty angels and archangels who preside over the days of the month constitute the Sirézah, or fornf of prayer ‘relating to the thirty days.’

> The propitiation of fire (as given in Sir6z. I, 9, Atas Nyayis 5, 6) consists of five sentences, each beginning with the word Athré6, ‘of the fire,’ and the last sentence also contains the words mad vispaéiby6é Atereby6, ‘ with all fires.’ The meaning of the text appears to be that it is allowable to use only one of these sentences (probably the last), but if two are used besides the last they are amply sufficient for practical purposes.

p. 300

9. Whoever shall extinguish’ a fire, by him ten fires are to be gathered together, by him ten punishments are to be endured, by him ten ants are to be destroyed ?, and by him holy-water (zéhar) is to be presented to the sacred fire (Atas-i VAhr4m).

CuaptTer VIII.

1. Sin which affects accusers * is to be atoned for (vig4risn) among the accusers, and that relating to

1 Literally, ‘kill,’

2 The ant being a creature of the evil spirit, on account of its carrying away corn.

* Vinas-i hamém4l&n, ‘sin relating to adversaries,’ Sins appear to be divided into two great classes, hamém4l and ribantk. A hamémAl sin seems to be any secular offence which injures some person or animal who, thereupon, becomes a hamémAl, ‘accuser’ (Av. hameretha, ‘opponent,’ Yas. LVI, x, 10), and who must first be satisfied by atonement, before confession to the high-priest, or renunciation of sin, can be of any avail for removing the sin (compare Matthew v. 23-26). The Rivayats assert that if a person dies without atoning for a hamém4l sin, his soul will be stopped at the Kinvad bridge (see Bund. XII, 7) on its way to the other world, and kept in a state of torment until the arrival of the ‘accuser,’ and after he is satisfied the sinner’s soul will be disposed of, in the usual manner, according to the balance of its good and bad actions. It is also probable that only a man of ‘the good religion,’ or an animal of the good creation, can be an ‘accuser.’ A rfibanfk sin, on the other hand, seems to be one which affects only the sinner’s own soul, and for which the high-priest can prescribe a sufficient atonement. It is doubtful, however, whether the Parsis nowadays have any very clear notions of the exact distinction between these two classes of sins, although aware of their names, which are mentioned in their Patit, or renunciation of sin. The explanations given in some editions of their Khurdah Avesta, or prayer-book, are confined to mentioning certain special instances of each class of sin; thus,

CHAPTER VII, 9—VIII, 3. 301

the soul is to be atoned for among the high-priests (radan), and when they do whatever the highpriests of the religion command the sin will depart, and the good works which they may thenceforth do will attain completion (avaspértk). 2. The sin of him who is worthy of death (marg-arg4n) is to be confessed (garzisn6d) unto the high-priests, and he is to deliver up 4zs body’; except o the high-priests he is not to deliver up /zs body.

3. On account of the dexterity (farhang) of horsemen it is not ¢hey business to hunt (nakh4tr kardan6); and it is not allowable for any one else to hunt for game, except for 42m whose wealth is less than three hundred sttrs *.

murder, seduction, unnecessary slaughter of cattle, embezzlement, slander, seizing land by force, and a few other evil deeds are stated to be hamémél sins; while unnatural offences and intercourse with women of another race and religion are said to be rabantk sins. In the Pahlavi Vendidad these classes of sins are rarely mentioned, but hamém4lan occurs in Pahl. Vend. III, rg1, IV, 23, XIII, 38; hamémalih in III, rr9; and rfibanfk in XIII, 38 ; although, perhaps, not always in the sense of sin.

1 By committing a marg-arg4n or mortal sin, that is, a sin worthy of death, he has forfeited his life, and ought to place it at the disposal of the rad, or high-priest.

® This section, intended to preserve game for the poor, is evidently out of place here, as it has no connection with the context.

- With reference to the property qualification for hunting, it appears, from a passage in the Persian MS. Mg about the proper dowry for a privileged wife, that 2000 dirhams of silver were worth 2300 riipis, and that 2 dirhams were 2} tolas; this was written in a.p. 1723, when neither the rfpft nor the tola were of uniform amount, though now the rfpf is exactly a tola weight of silver. As the stfr was four dirhams (see Chap. I, 2), three hundred stirs would have been 1380 rfipis or 1350 tolas of silver, according to the standards mentioned in Ms; so that hunting was intended to be confined to those whose property was less than 1350-1380 rfpis ; but how

p. 302

4. The ceremonial worship (yazisn) of those worthy of death, which they do not perform by way of renunciation of sez’, is the ceremonial whzch is demon worship; and when the officiating priest (aérpat) does not know z¢ the merit (kirfak) of the ceremonial goes to the store (gang) of the angels, and they give the enjoyment which avzses from that merit in the spiritual exzstence to the soul of that person who fas at once (aév4&) become righteous in mind.

5. When the mortal sinner (marg-arg4nd) has delivered his body and wealth at once to the highpriests, and engages mentally in renunciation as to the sin which as occurred, and the high-priests give him ¢hezy decision (dastébarth) as to duty and good works, the duty and good works which were before performed by him come back ¢4o fim; and when they inflict punishment for three nights ?, he does not enter hell. 6. And if the high-priest orders the cutting off of 4s head Ze is righteous on the spot *, and the three nzghts’ (satdth) ceremony is to be celebrated for 4zm, and the account of the this limitation is to be reconciled with the fact that hunting was a favourite pursuit of kings and nobles does not appear, unless it be considered as a sacerdotal protest against that practice.

? That is, in those cases when they do not have the yazisn performed as an atonement for sin, by order of the high-priest after confession.

* This appears to refer to temporal punishment, inflicted by order of the high-priest, for the purpose of saving him from the ‘punishment of the three nights’ in the other world, mentioned in Bund. XXX, 16.

* Reading pavan gin&k; but M6 marks the phrase as pavan din&k (for din4), ‘through the decree,’ which is probably an error.

CHAPTER VIII, 4-9. - 303

three nights (satQth) does not affect him’. 7. And if he does not engage in renunciation 4e zs in hell till the future existence; and in zs future body they will bring 42m from hell, and for every mortal sem they will cut off 42s head once, and the last time they wz/l make cm alive again, and will inflict (numayend) three hights’ severe punishment?

8. However a man engages in renunciation of sin the duty of his state of renunciation (patitth) is to be engaged therein openly and mentally in renunciation; the duty of openness is this, that the sin which he knows fas assailed him, is to be specially confessed (bara gédbisnd) by him; and the mental duty is this, that he engages in renunciation with this thought, that ‘henceforth I w2// not commit sin.’ g. And that which occurs before the renunciation, except pious alms, it is well for him not to be overlooked ‘ by him, and not to be kept® secret by him; for when he shall overlook®, or shall keep secret, about sin committed, it becomes for him as

1 That is, the usual ceremonies after death are not to be withheld in this world, and his soul is able to pass through the usual investigation, as to his sins and good works, on its way to the other world, without delay. This period of three nights (satfith, ‘the triplet’), which Pazand writers miscall sedés or sadis, is the time during which the soul is supposed to hover about the body, before finally departing for the other world (see Mkh. II, 114, 158- 160, AV. IV, 9-14, XVII, 2-9).

2 The same statement is made in nearly the same words in Pahl. Vend. VII, 136. This is the future three nights’ punishment for impenitent sinners, mentioned in Bund. XXX, 16.

* Literally, ‘which he knows thus: “It assailed me.

* Reading avénisnd, but the word can also be read khunfnisnd, ‘to be made celebrated, to be boasted of.’

5 Literally, ‘carried on, borne away.’

* Reading avénéd, but it may be khunfnéd, ‘boast of.’

”?

p. 304

p. 16

* Literally, ‘which he knows thus: “It assailed me.

* Reading avénisnd, but the word can also be read khunfnisnd, ‘to be made celebrated, to be boasted of.’

5 Literally, ‘carried on, borne away.’

* Reading avénéd, but it may be khunfnéd, ‘boast of.’

”?

p. 304

much, some say, as three Sréshé-4arandms’; some say that when he keeps secret about a sin of three Sréshé-4aranams he is worthy of death; some say much otherwise*. 10. Ataré-p4d son of Zarattst® had remarked (péd4ktntd) ¢o a disciple, about this duty, thus: ‘Conform to the renunciation of sez/’ and one‘ time a secret was kept by him, and he ordered him thus: ‘Henceforth be thou never apparent in this duty!’ and after that he looked upon the supplication (avakhshth) and much repentance of that disciple, and even then he did not become the high-priest (dastébar) over him.

11, The rule is® this, that of those who would be proper for this priestly duty (dastébarth), that person is proper who is perfect in (narm) the commentary (zand) of the law, and the punishment of sin is easy for him, and he has controlled himself ; some say thus: ‘By whom a course of priestly studies (aérpatastan) is performed.’ 12. And the punishment of sin deg easy for him, and his having controlled himself are proper; and when, in danger before a menstruous woman, he engages in renunciation it is proper.

1 Probably the same as a Farmén sin (see Chaps. I, 1, 2, IV, 14).

* Or ‘many other sAings.’

® This Ataré-pad-i Zaratistin is mentioned in a manuscript about 500 years old, belonging to Dastir Jam4spji, in Bombay, as having lived for 160 years, and having been supreme high-priest for ninety years: he is also mentioned in the sixth book of the Dinkard. He may, possibly, have been the Ataré-p4d mentioned in B. Yt. I, 7, but it is hazardous to identify an individual by a single name so common as Atar6-p4d used to be.

* Reading a6, ‘ one,’ instead of han4, ‘this’ (see p. 218, note 3).

* Assuming that the word 4fnak has been omitted at the beginning of this section (see Chap. X, 1).

CHAPTER VIII, 10-14. 305

I, 7, but it is hazardous to identify an individual by a single name so common as Atar6-p4d used to be.

* Reading a6, ‘ one,’ instead of han4, ‘this’ (see p. 218, note 3).

* Assuming that the word 4fnak has been omitted at the beginning of this section (see Chap. X, 1).

CHAPTER VIII, 10-14. 305

13. Néryésang! said thus: ‘Thou deemest z¢ most surprising that, of the renunciation of s¢z with energy, whatever may be its efficacy, they have been so much of the same? opinion, so that whenever they perform renunciation, however they perform z¢, and before whomever they perform 7¢, whenever a@ sz is not even mentally originating with one® a renunciation should be performed by him; and when very many mortal sins (margargdn) are committed by him, and he engages mentally in renunciation of every one separately, he is not on‘ the way to hell, owing to his renunciation; and if there be one of which he is not in renunciation the way to hell® is not closed to him, for he does not rely upon the beneficence (sid) of Attharmazd, and it is allowable to appoint a priestly retribution (rad tégisn) to fully atone for it, and when thou appointest a priestly retribution for it, and dost not fully atone, it is allowable to inflict 2¢ justly and strongly (drab6).’

14. When his sin is committed against (dén)

' This cannot be the learned Parsi translator of several Pahlavi texts into Sanskrit, who bore the same name, and is supposed to have lived in the fifteenth century. Being quoted in the Pahlavi Vendidad (see Chap. I, 4, note) he must have been one of the old commentators.

* K2o has h6manam, ‘I am,’ instead of ham, ‘the same;’ a mistake arising from reading am, ‘I am,’ for ham.

5 This applies to all cases of merely imputed sin, such as those committed by children, which are imputed to the father, and for which he is spiritually, as well as temporally, responsible.

* Reading pavan, ‘on,’ instead of baré, ‘out of’ (see p. 176, note 5).

® Most of this clause is omitted in K2o by mistake.

{s] xp. 306 accusers ' it will be necessary to act so that the head of the family (mtrak) shall not become evil-minded?, and shall not divorce the wife from matrimony, and they shall not bring * 42 on unto him; before his accusers he is to be engaged in renunciation, and when not, 4e is to be engaged in renunciation of the sin before the high-priests (rad4n), and it will become debts, and debt does not make a man wicked ¢; its effect is this, that in the future existence they may quite forsake him, and this becomes a great shame, and they disturb (k4vénd) his enjoyment. 15. 4s ¢o the sin which affects the accusers, when the female 4as atoned for it, its stem (payak) is atoned for; some say that the stem (payakghth) has no root; some say that z¢ ¢s just like a tree whose leaves wither away.

15. 4s ¢o the sin which affects the accusers, when the female 4as atoned for it, its stem (payak) is atoned for; some say that the stem (payakghth) has no root; some say that z¢ ¢s just like a tree whose leaves wither away.

16. Sin relating to the soul ®, when one engages in renunciation, stays away /vom him; when it shall be fully atoned for z¢ is well, and when he does not fully atone they will make him righteous by the three nights’ (satQth) punishment. 17. Kfshtanébigéd® said that even that which affects accusers, when ove engages in renunciation, stays away from him.

» HamémA4lan (see § 1); the particular instance of hamémAl sin here referred to is seduction.

* Reading dismfn4n instead of the unmeaning dfismfy4an of the MSS.

® Reading yaftyQna instead of the unmeaning y4ftam of the MSS. ; & being often written very much like m in Pahlavi.

* This clause about the hamém4l sin becoming a debt, to be settled with the ‘ accuser,’ either here or hereafter, is taken from Pahl. Vend. III, 151.

® That is, ribanfk sin (see § 1, note).

§ See Chap. I, 4, note.

CHAPTER VIII, 15-22. 307

18. Nésaf Barz-Mitré! spoke these three sayings, that is, ‘ Next-of-kin marriage will extirpate mortal sins (marg-arg4n4n), and the sacred twigs when their ablution is such as renders them improper for firewood, and a man when his wife decomes pregnant by him.’

19. Whoever commits a sin against (dén) water, and kills a lizard, or other noxious water-creature, has atoned for it; also when thou atonest to (dén) fire for that agazns¢ water it is proper?, azd when thou atonest to water for that agaznst fire it is proper; some say that even a scorpion is proper ¢o be killed, 20. And when a sin of one Tandpdhar ° is committed by him, and he shall consecrate a sacred cake (drén), or shall accomplish a good work of one Tan4pthar ‘, it has atoned for it.

21. When he has committed a mortal sez (margargan), and engages mentally in renunciation, and the high-priest (rad) knows that, though he ought to give up his body, he w2// not give z¢ up, it is allowable when he shall kill him; that is, because he relies upon the beneficence (sid) of Adharmazd.
22. Moreover, from the rule (mank) ‘ yazemna® kad na haka@’ (‘through being worshipped what then at

1 See Chap. I, 4, note.

* A blank space is left for this verb in M6, indicating that that MS. was copied from an original already old and not very legible.

® See Chap. I, 1, 2.

* Consecrating a sacred cake is a Tanapfihar good work (see Chap. XVI, 6). The theory of counterbalancing sins by good works of the same weight is here clearly enunciated.

5 Written izimn in the MSS. This quotation appears to be, from some part of the Avesta, no longer extant, and being only the first words of the passage its exact meaning is very uncertain. The section, generally, seems to refer to the beneficence of Aflharmazd.

xX 2p. 208 uv

xX 2p. 208 uv once,’ &c.) it is evident, and it becomes his through ceremonial ablution of the hands; it amounts to a whole quarry (k4n6) of good works, and the worship of God (yazisn-i yazd4nd) is to be performed for him', 23. Atar6-pad? son of Maraspend said that it is always necessary to be more diligent in performing one’s worship of God a¢ the time that many mortal sews are committed; all sins de¢ng admissible into renunciation, when thou shalt atone by complete self-sacrifice (pir-g4n-dAdtha), and when one engages in renunciation of the sin from z¢s root, he becomes free from the sin in renunciation of which sin he engaged; for Adharmazd will not leave his own creatures unto the evil spirit, unless on the path of non-renunciation.

CuapTer IX,

1. The greater H4sar is one part in twelve parts of the day and night, and the lesser HAsar is one part in eighteen parts*.

1 Tt seems that the execution of the sinner after repentance is here considered as furnishing him with a store of good works, so that it is allowable to perform such ceremonies for him, after death, as are usually performed for righteous men; the reason being given in § 23. The end of this section and beginning of the next are omitted in K2o.

* Whether the prime minister of ShApfir II, or the last editor of the Dinkard (see Bund. XXXII, 3, 1), is not clear.

®> The Hésar is not only a measure of distance (see Bund. XXVI, 1), but also a measure of time (see Bund. XXV, 5). According to the text here the greater H4sar must be two hours, and the lesser H4sar (which is not mentioned in M6) must be one hour and twenty minutes. But Farh. Okh. (p. 43) says, ‘dvadasang-h&threm asti aghrem ayare, ‘of twelve HAsars is the

CHAPTER VIII, 23—Ix, q. 309

2. The priest (AsrQk) who passes away in idolatry! (adzdayakth) thou hast considered as desolate (virdn)?; and there is a high-priest (dast6bar) who is of a different opinion, there is oe who says he 7s as a non-Iranian (anafrd4n) country’ 3. It is declared that, when a supreme high-priest (zaratistrotQm) passes away in idolatry, an apostate (aharmék) will be born in that dwelling, and a rumour of this calamity is uttered* by that supreme high-priest.

4. In order to be steadfast in the good religion it is to be discussed with priests azd high-priests, and when oze does not discuss it is proper that he do not teach it.

longest day;” the day and night in which is the longest day are twelve of the greatest H4sars, eighteen of the medium, and twentyfour of the least ;’ according to which statement there ate three kinds of Hasar, that are respectively equivalent to two hours, one hour and twenty minutes, and one hour. As the longest day is said (Bund. XXV, 4) to be twice the length of the shortest day, and the greatest Hasar is twice the length of the least one, it may be conjectured that the H4sar varied with the length of the day, being a subdivision (one-eighth) of the time the sun was above the horizon; this would account for the greatest and least HAsars, which are one-eighth of the longest and shortest days, respectively ; but it does not account for the medium HAsar, which is not a mean between the two extremes, but one-ninth (instead of oneeighth) of the mean day of twelve hours. If the Hasar of distance were really a Parasang, as is sometimes stated, the connection between it and the Hasar of time would be obvious, as the average HAsar of one hour and twenty minutes is just the time requisite for walking a Parasang, which seems indeed to be stated in Farh. Okh. Pp. 42.

1 Or it may be ‘ passes over into idolatry.’

* K2o has girdn, ‘grievous.’

3 That is, he reads an4fr4n instead of viran ia the foregoing statement.

* Or, perhaps, ‘this calamity is at once announced.’

p. 310

5. The ceremonial worship (yazisn) which they perform in a fire-temple’, when not done aright, does not reach unto the demons; du¢ that which they perform zz other places, when they do not perform z¢ aright, does reach unto the demons; for there is no medium in worship, it reaches either unto the angels or unto the demons. 6. Of a man who has relinquished a dad habit, and through his good capabilities engages in renunciation of s¢z *, the good work advances unto the future existence.

7. Any one who shall die in a vessel (kastik) it is allowable, for fear of contamination (padvtshak), to throw into the water; some say that the water itself is the receptacle for the dead (khaz4nth).

8. This, too, zs declared: ‘When in the dark it is not allowable to eat food ; for the demons and fiends seize upon one-third of the wisdom and glory of him who eats food in the dark;’ and it is declared by that passage (gin4k) which Adtharmazd spoke to Zaratdst, thus: ‘ After the departure of the light let him not devour, with unwashed hands, the water and vegetables of Horvadad and Amerédad®; for if after the departure of the light thou devourest, with unwashed hands, the water and vegetables of Horvadad and Ameréddad, the fiend seizes away from thee two-thirds of the existing original wisdom

1 Literally, ‘in the dwelling of fires.’ The fire must always be sheltered from the sun’s rays, and in a fire-temple it is kept in a vaulted cell, with a door and one or two windows opening into the larger closed chamber which surrounds it.

* K2o has, ‘and it shall happen through his good capabilities.’

° The two archangels whose chief duties are the protection of water and plants, respectively (see Chap. XV, 5, 25-29, Bund. 1X, 2).

CHAPTER IX, 5-9. 311

which, when he seizes z# away, is the glory and religion which are auspicious for thee that day, so that diligence becomes a vexation this day’.’

g. In a passage of the fifth fargard of the Paz6n Nask? it is declared that one mentions these charac-

1 This passage does not appear to be now extant in the Avesta.

* This was the sixth nask or ‘book’ of the complete Mazdayasnian literature, according to the Dinkard, which calls it Past or Pasag; but according to the Dinf-vagarkard and the Riv4yats it was the seventh nask, called Pagam. For its contents, as given by the Dinf-vagarkard, see Haug’s Essays, pp. 128, 129. The following is a short summary of the account of it given in the eighth book of the Dinkard (that published in the Pahl.-P4z. Glossary, pp. 184, 185, being taken from the fifteenth nask, whose contents were mixed up with those of the seventh through the abstraction of several folios from the Iranian MS. of the Dinkard before M13, or any other copy, was written in India) :—

The Pet (or Pazag) is about the lawful slaughtering of animals in the ceremonial rites of fire and water at the season-festivals ; also where, when, and how the festivals are to be celebrated, their advantages, and the duties of the officiating priests. The rotation of days, months, and years, summer and winter, the ten days at the end of the winter, when the guardian spirits visit the world, and the ceremonies to be then performed. The time for gathering medicinal plants. The retribution necessary for the various sins affecting the soul, the advantage of providing for such retribution, and the harm from not providing it. The thirty-three principal chiefs of the spiritual and worldly existences. The miracles of great good works, and the heinous sinfulness of apostasy. How far a wife can give away her husband’s property, and when it is lawful for him to recover it. Whither winter flees when summer comes on, and where summer goes when winter comes on. The amount of disaster (véighn) in one century, and the duration of everything connected with such disaster. The summer and winter months, the names of the twelve months, their meaning, and the angels they are devoted to; also the thirty days of the month, and the five GAtha days at the end of the year, when the guardian spirits are to be reverenced.

The fifth fargard, quoted in the text, was probably that portion of the Nask which described the duties of the officiating priests.

p. 312