^ Spiritual happiness, bliss. ^ Vend. XVIII, 51 [m].
^ See above, p. 26, note 2. §§ 3^-34 =§§ 56-59-
* Doubtful (reading arenaZ-^aSsha?).
^ See § 82, note.
MiniR VAST. 129
;^S. 'Sad is the abode, unpeopled with children,
where abide men who lie unto Mithra, and, verily,
the fiendish killer of faithful men. The grazing cow
goes a sad straying way, driven along the vales ^ of
the Mithradru^es : they ^ stand on the road, letting
tears run over their chins ^
39. ' Their falcon-feathered arrows, shot from the
string of the well-bent bow, fly towards the mark, and
hit it not, as Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, angry,
offended, and unsatisfied, comes and meets them.
* Their spears, well whetted and sharp, their long
spears fly from their hands towards the mark, and
hit it not, as Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, angry,
offended, and unsatisfied, comes and meets them.
40. * Their swords, well thrust and striking at the
heads of men, hit not the mark, as Mithra, the lord
of wide pastures, angry, off"ended, and unsatisfied,
comes and meets them.
* Their clubs, well falling and striking at the heads
of men, hit not the mark, as Mithra, the lord of wide
pastures, angry, offended, and unsatisfied, comes and
meets them.
41. 'Mithra strikes fear into them; Rashnu *
strikes a counter-fear into theni'^- the holy Sraosha
blows them away from every side towards the two
Yazatas, the maintainers of the world ^. They make
the ranks of the army melt away, as Mithra, the lord
^ Doubtful. 2 The cattle.
' The meaning is, that the cattle of the INIithradru^es do not thrive, and that their pasture-fields are waste.
* See Yt. XII.
^ As they flee from INIithra, they fall into the hands of Rashnu.
® Thratara; one might feel inclined to read thrastara, 'the fear-striking;' cf. § 36.
of wide pastures, angry, offended, and unsatisfied, comes and meets them^.
42. ' They cry unto MIthra, the lord of wide
pastures, saying : " O Mithra, thou lord of wide pas-
tures ! here are our fiery horses taking us away, as
they flee from Mithra ; here are our sturdy arms cut
to pieces by the sword, O Mithra!"
43. ' And then Mithra, the lord of wide pastures,
throw^s them to the ground, killing their fifties and
their hundreds, their hundreds and their thousands,
their thousands and their tens of thousands, their
tens of thousands and their myriads of myriads ;
as Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, is angry and
offended.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth
being heard ....
44. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, . . . . sleepless, and ever awake ;
* Whose dwelling, wide as the earth, extends over
the material world, large-, unconfined^, and bright,
a far-and-wlde-extending abode.
45. 'Whose eight friends^ sit as spies for Mithra,
on all the heights, at all the watching-places, observ-
ing the man who lies unto Mithra, looking at those,
rememberinor those who have lied unto Mithra, but
guarding the ways of those whose life Is sought by
1 Cf.§§ 99-101.
2 Doubtful. The text is corrupt.
^ Doubtful. The number eight has probably an astronomical signification, each of the eight ratis of Mithra occupying one of the eight points of the compass.
Mihir Vast. 131
men who lie unto Mithra, and, verily, by the fiendish killers of faithful men.
46. * Helping and guarding, guarding behind and
guarding in front, Mithra, the lord of wide pastures,
proves an undeceivable spy and watcher for the man
to whom he comes to help with all the strength of
his soul, he of the ten thousand spies, the powerful,
all-knowing, undeceivable god.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
47. *We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
' A god of high renown and old age ^ whom wide-
hoofed horses carry against havocking hosts, against
enemies coming in battle array, in the strife of con-
flicting nations^,
48. ' And when Mithra drives along towards the
havocking hosts, towards the enemies coming in
battle array, in the strife of the conflicting nations,
then he binds the hands of those who have lied unto
Mithra, he confounds their eye-sight, he takes the
hearing from their ears ; they can no longer move
their feet ; they can no longer withstand those
people, those foes, when Mithra, the lord of wide
pastures, bears them ill-will.
' For his brightness and glory, I will ofier him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
49. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake;
50. ' For whom the Maker, Ahura Mazda, has
1 Doubtful. 2 cf. § 8.
132 YAi-TS AND siROZAHS.
built up a dwelling on the Hara Berezaiti, the bright
mountain around which the many (stars) revolve \
where come neither night nor darkness, no cold
wind and no hot wind, no deathful sickness, no un-
cleanness made by the Daevas, and the clouds
cannot reach up unto the Haraiti Bareza^;
51. 'A dwelling that all the Amesha-Spe^ittas, in
one accord with the sun, made for him in the fulness
of faith of a devoted heart, and he survevs the whole
of the material world from the Haraiti Bareza.
52. 'And when there rushes a wicked worker of
evil, swiftly, with a swift step, Mithra, the lord of
wide pastures, goes and yokes his horses to his
chariot, along with the holy, powerful Sraosha and
Nairyo-sangha ^, who strikes a blow that smites the
army, that smites the strength of the malicious ^
* For his brightness and glory, I will oflfer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
53. ' We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
54. ' Who, with hands lifted up, ever cries unto
Ahura Mazda, saying : " I am the kind keeper of all
creatures, I am the kind maintainer of all creatures ;
yet men worship me not with a sacrifice in which
I am invoked by my own name, as they worship the
other gods with sacrifices in which they are invoked
by their own names.
55^ '"If men would worship me with a sacrifice
^ Bundahij V, 3 seq. ; cf. Yt. XII, 13, and Yt. X, 13.
^ The Haraiti Bareza is the same as Hara Berezaiti.
^ Sirozah I, 9, notes 4 and 5. * Doubtful (mayaoj).
^ Cf. Yt. VIII, II, 24, and Yt. X, 74.
Mihir Vast. 133
in which I were invoked by my own name, as they
worship the other Yazatas with sacrifices in which
they are invoked by their own names, then I would
come to the faithful at the appointed time ; I would
come in the appointed time of my beautiful, im-
mortal life."
56 \ ' But the pious man, holding libations in his
hands, does worship thee with a sacrifice, in which
thou art invoked by thy own name, and with the
proper words.
' With a sacrifice, in which thou art invoked by thy
own name, with the proper words will I offer thee
libations, O powerful Mithra !
' With a sacrifice, in which thou art Invoked by thy
own name, with the proper words will I offer thee
libations, O most beneficent Mithra !
' With a sacrifice, in which thou art invoked by thy
own name, with the proper words will I offer thee
libations, O thou undeceivable Mithra !
57. ' Listen unto our sacrifice, O Mithra! Be thou
pleased with our sacrifice, O Mithra! Come and sit
at our sacrifice ! Accept our libations ! Accept them
as they have been consecrated ! Gather them toge-
ther with love and lay them in the Garo-nmana!
58. ' Grant us these boons which we beg of thee,
O powerful god! in accordance with the words of
revelation, namely, riches, strength, and victory,
good conscience and bliss, good fame and a good
soul ; wisdom and the knowledge that gives happi-
ness, the victorious strength given by Ahura, the
crushing Ascendant of Asha-Vahi^ta, and conver-
sation (with God) on the Holy Word.
134 YASTS AND siR6zAHS.
59. * Grant that we, in a good spirit and high spirit,
exalted in joy and a good spirit, may smite all our
foes ; that we, in a good spirit and high spirit,
exalted in joy and a good spirit, may smite all our
enemies ; that we, in a good spirit and high spirit,
exalted in joy and a good spirit, may smite all the
malice of Daevas and Men, of the Yatus and
Pairikas, of the oppressors, the blind, and the
deaf.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
60. ' We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
'Whose renown is good, whose shape is good,
whose glory is good ; who has boons to give at his
will, who has pasture-fields to give at his will ;
harmless to the tiller of the ground, . . . . ^ benefi-
cent ; he, of the ten thousand spies, the powerful,
all-knowing, undeceivable god.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
61. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
' Firm-legged -, a watcher fully awake ; valiant, a
chief in assemblies ; making the waters flow for-
ward ; listening to appeals ; making the waters run
and the plants grow up ; ruling over the Karsh-
^ The text is corrupt (vaso-yaonai inatam ?).
^ Eredhw6-za?zgem: sudr/a'/ia^ahghata, kila karye yad pada- bhyam yu^yate kartum vyavasayi ^aktaj-^^a (Yasna LXII, 5 [LXI, 13]).
Mihir Ya6'T. 1 35
vares^; delivering^; happy ^; iindeceivable; endowed with many senses^; a creature of wisdom ;
62. 'Who gives neither strength nor vigour to him
who has lied unto Mithra ; who gives neither glory
nor any boon to him who has lied unto Mithra.
63. ' Thou takest away the strength from their
arms, being angry and all-powerful ; thou takest the
swiftness from their feet, the eye-sight from their
eyes, the hearing from their ears.
* Not the wound of the well-sharpened spear or of
the flying arrow reaches that man to whom Mithra
comes for help with all the strength of his soul, he,
of the ten-thousand spies, the powerful, all-knowing,
undeceivable god ^.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
64. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
' Who takes possession ^ of the beautiful, wide-
expanding law, greatly and powerfully, and whose face
looks over all the seven Karshvares of the earth ;
65. ' W^ho is swift amongst the swift, liberal
amongst the liberal, strong amongst the strong, a
chief of assembly amongst the chiefs of assemblies ;
increase-giving, fatness-giving, cattle-giving, sove-
reignty-giving, son-giving, cheerfulness '-giving, and
bliss ''-giving.
^ Kari-o-razanghem: ke^-var virai (Pahl. tr. ibid.). "^ From Ahriman ; cf. Yasna XXIX, 6 (vy an a = vi>('arijn,vijuddhata.) ^ Yaokh.ytiva7z/: kamakomand (possessing whatever he wishes for. Vend. XX, i [3]).
* See Yt. X, 82, note. « From Yt. X, 23-24.
* Cf. Yasna XLIII, 7: vyanaya: amat vandinit, yat gn'h«ati. ' Cf. Yt. X, 5, p. 121, notes i and 2.
136 YA5TS AND sIroZAHS.
66. ' With whom proceed Ashi Vanguhi, and Pa-
rendi on her hght chariot S the awful Manly Courage,
the awful kingly Glory, the awful sovereign Sky, the
awful cursinor thouorht - of the wise, the awful Fra-
vashis of the faithful, and he who keeps united toge-
ther the many faithful worshippers of Mazda \
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
67. ' We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures,
sleepless, and ever awake ;
*Who drives along on his high-wheeled chariot,
made of a heavenly* substance, from the Karshvare
of Arezahi ^ to the Karshvare of //z^aniratha, the
bright one ; accompanied by ^ the wheel of sove-
reignty ^ the Glory made by Mazda, and the Victory
made by Ahura ;
68. 'Whose chariot is embraced^ by the great
Ashi Vanguhi ; to whom the Law of Mazda opens a
way, that he may go easily ; whom four heavenly
steeds, white, shining, seen afar, beneficent, endowed
with knowledge, swiftly ^ carry along the heavenly
space^^ while the cursing thought of the wise pushes
it forward ;
69. ' From whom all the Daevas unseen and the Varenya fiends ^^ flee away in fear. Oh ! may we
1 Cf. Yt. VIII, 38. ^ See above, p. 12, note 13.