Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 23 — The Zend-Avesta, Part II / Yasts & Nyayis (Darmesteter, page scans)

th being heard ....

XXV.

99. ' We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;

' From whom all the Daevas unseen and the
Varenya fiends flee away in fear^.

p. 3

Cf. § 132. '^ See Vend. Introd. V, 19.

See ibid. IV, 24. * Cf. § 69.

5 Cf. Yt. X, 69. ' §§ 97-98 = §§ 134-135-

' Cf. § 97.

p. 145

* The lord of nations, Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, drives forward at the right-hand side of this wide, round earth, whose ends lie afar.

100. ' At his right hand drives the good, holy
Sraosha ; at his left hand drives the tall and strong
Rashnu ; on all sides around him drive the waters,
the plants, and the Fravashis of the faithful.

loi. 'In his might, he ever brings to them falconfeathered arrows, and, when driving, he himself comes there, where are nations, enemy to Mithra, he, first and foremost, strikes blows with his club on the horse and his rider; he throws fear and fright upon the horse and his rider.

' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....

XXVI.

102. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;

* The warrior of the white horse, of the sharp spear, the long spear, the quick arrows ; foreseeing and clever ;

103. ' Whom Ahura Mazda has established to maintain and look over all this moving^ world, and who maintains and looks over all this moving world; who, never sleeping, wakefully guards the creation of Mazda ; who, never sleeping, wakefully maintains the creation of Mazda.

' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....

^ Fravoij; Parsi tradition translates large: fraz (tr. Phi.), buland (Asp., Yasna LVII, 15 [LVI, 7, 3]).

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XXVII.

104. ' We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;

'Whose long arms, strong with Mithra-strength, encompass what he seizes in the easternmost river ^ and what he beats with the westernmost river 2, what is by the Sanaka ^ of the Rangha and what is by the boundary of the earth *.

105. 'And thou, O Mithra! encompassing all this around, do thou reach it, all over, with thy arms.

* The man without glory \ led astray from the right way, grieves in his heart; the man without glory thinks thus in himself: " That careless Mithra does not see all the evil that is done, nor all the lies that are told."

106.

it, all over, with thy arms.

* The man without glory \ led astray from the right way, grieves in his heart; the man without glory thinks thus in himself: " That careless Mithra does not see all the evil that is done, nor all the lies that are told."

106. ' But I think thus in my heart :

' " Should the evil thoughts of the earthly man be a hundred times worse, they would not rise so high as the good thoughts of the heavenly Mithra ;

' " Should the evil words of the earthly man be a hundred times worse, they would not rise so high as the good words of the heavenly Mithra;

1 The Sind.

2 The Rangha or Tigris. The words ag^urvayeiti and nighne, 'he seizes, he beats,' are the words used of the priest laying the Haoma in the mortar and pounding it with the pestle (Yasna, X, 2 [4-5]). The Sind and the Rangha are thus compared with the two parts of the Havana, the land between is the Haoma, and Mithra's arms are the arms of the priest.

^ Sanake, an aira^ Xeyofifvov; opposed to the aodhas of the Rangha, Yt. XII, 19.

* The Arabian sea (?). Cf. Yt. XII, 21.

^ Who has not a ray of the celestial Hght : here, the man of little faith.

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* " Should the evil deeds of the earthly man be a hundred times worse, they would not rise so high as the good deeds of the heavenly Mithra ;

107. '"Should the heavenly wisdom^ in the earthly man be a hundred times greater, it would not rise so high as the heavenly wisdom in the heavenly Mithra;

"'And thus, should the ears of the earthly man hear a hundred times better, he would not hear so well as the heavenly Mithra, whose ear hears well, who has a thousand senses, and sees every man that tells a lie."

* Mithra stands up in his strength, he drives in the awfulness of royalty, and sends from his eyes beautiful looks that shine from afar, (saying) :

108. '" Who will offer me a sacrifice ? Who will lie unto me ? Who thinks me a god worthy of a good sacrifice ? Who thinks me worthy only of a bad sacrifice ? To whom shall I, in my might, impart brightness and glory ? To whom bodily health ? To whom shall I, in my might, impart riches and full weal ? Whom shall I bless by raising him a virtuous ^ offspring ?

109. '"To whom shall I give in return, without his thinking of it, the awful sovereignty, beautifully arrayed, with many armies, and most perfect ; the sovereignty of an all-powerful tyrant, who fells down heads, valiant, smiting, and unsmitten ; who orders chastisement to be done and his order is done at once, which he has ordered in his aneer ?"

' O Mithra !

arrayed, with many armies, and most perfect ; the sovereignty of an all-powerful tyrant, who fells down heads, valiant, smiting, and unsmitten ; who orders chastisement to be done and his order is done at once, which he has ordered in his aneer ?"

' O Mithra ! when thou art offended and not satisfied, he 3 soothes thy mind, and makes Mithra satisfied.

* See above, p. 4, n. 5. 2 Asna : Sansk. sujila (p. 34, n. 4).

* He who offers thee a good sacrifice; cf. § 108.

L 2

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1 10. *"To whom shall I, m my might, impart sickness and death ? To whom shall I impart poverty and sterility^? Of whom shall I at one stroke cut off the offspring ?

111. '"From whom shall I take away, without his thinking of It, the awful sovereignty, beautifully arrayed, with many armies, and most perfect; the sovereignty of an all-powerful tyrant, who fells down heads, valiant, smiting, and unsmltten ; who orders chastisement to be done and his order is done at once, which he has ordered In his anger."

*0 Mithra! while thou art satisfied and not angry, he moves thy heart to anger 2, and makes MIthra unsatisfied.

« For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....

XXVIII.

112. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;

'A warrior with a silver helm ^ a golden cuirass ^, who kills with the poniard, strong, valiant, lord of the borough. Bright are the ways of MIthra, by which he goes towards the country, when, wishing well, he turns Its plains and vales to pasture grounds,

113. 'And then cattle and males come to graze, as many as he wants.

'May Mithra and Ahura*, the high gods, come to us for help, when the poniard lifts up Its voice

1 Doubtful.

2 He who offers thee a bad sacrifice. ' Doubtful. * See Vend. Introd. IV, 8.

p. 149

aloud ^, when the nostrils of the horses quiver, when the poniards . . . . ^ when the strings of the bows whistle and shoot sharp arrows ; then the brood of those whose libations are hated fall smitten to the ground, with their hair torn off.

114. 'So mayest thou, O Mithra, lord of wide pastures ! give swiftness to our teams, strength to our own bodies, and that we may watch with full success those who hate us, smite down our foes, and destroy at one stroke our adversaries, our enemies, and those who hate us ^

' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....

XXIX.

115. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake.