2 The first words of the Visperad.
^ Paradise.
* Towards the abode of the Immortals.
^ Fed with ambrosia {afx^poaiov elbap) like Poseidon's steeds (II. XIII, 35; cf Ovid, Metam. IV, 214).
" Doubtful (simam/^a simoithram/i'a).
■^ Metal. See Vend. Introd. IV, 33.
« Upairispata. ' See Yt. XII.
MIHIR VAST. 15;
* At his left hand drives the most upright A'ista \
the holy one, bearing libations in her hands, clothed
with white clothes, and white herself; and the cursing
thought 2 of the Law of Mazda.
127. 'Close by him drives the strong cursing
thought 2 of the wise man, opposing foes in the
shape of a boar, a sharp-toothed he-boar, a sharp-
jawed boar, that kills at one stroke, pursuing,
wrathful, with a dripping face ^ strong and swift
to run, and rushing all around *.
* Behind him drives Atar ^ all in a blaze, and the awful kingly Glory.
128. 'On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord
of wide pastures, stand a thousand bows well-made,
with a string of cowgut ; they go through the
heavenly space ^ they fall through the heavenly
space upon the skulls of the Daevas.
129. ' On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord
of wide pastures, stand a thousand vulture-feathered
arrows, with a golden mouth \ with a horn shaft,
with a brass tail, and well-made. They go through
the heavenly space, they fall through the heavenly
space upon the skulls of the Daevas.
1 30. ' On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord
of wide pastures, stand a thousand spears well-made
and sharp-piercing. They go through the heavenly
space, they fall through the heavenly space upon
the skulls of the Daevas.
*On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord of
1 See Yt. XVI. ^ See above, p. 12, note 13. ' Cf. Yt. X, 70.
* Or better, rushing before (pairi-vaza; cf. the translations of pairi-da-^z^yu, Yt. X, 144 and pairi-vara, Yt. I, 19). Cf. Yt. XIV, 15.
^ The Genius of Fire. ' See p. 95, note i. ''A golden point.
154 YA^TS AND SIROZAHS.
wide pastures, stand a thousand steel-hammers, two-
edged, well-made. They go through the heavenly-
space, they fall through the heavenly space upon
the skulls of the Daevas.
131. 'On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord
of wide pastures, stand a thousand swords, two-
edged and well-made. They go through the hea-
venly space, they fall through the heavenly space
upon the skulls of the Daevas.
'On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord of
wide pastures, stand a thousand maces of iron, well-
made. They go through the heavenly space, they
fall through the heavenly space upon the skulls of
the Daevas.
132. 'On a side of the chariot of Mithra, the lord
of wide pastures, stands a beautiful well-falling club,
with a hundred knots, a hundred edges, that rushes
forward and fells men down ; a club cast out of
red brass, of strong, golden brass ; the strongest of
all weapons, the most victorious of all weapons \ It
goes through the heavenly space 2, it falls through
the heavenly space upon the skulls of the Daevas.
133. 'After he has smitten the Daevas, after he
has smitten down the men who lied unto Mithra,
Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, drives forward
through Arezahe and Savahe, through Fradadhafshu
and Vidadhafshu, through Vourubare^ti and Vouru-
^are^ti, through this our Karshvare, the bright
ZTz^aniratha ^.
134. 'Angra Mainyu, who is all death, flees away in fear; Aeshma, the evil-doing Peshotanu, flees
^ Cf. Yt. X, 96. 2 The text has, they go
^ See above, p. 123, note 5.
Mihir Vast. 155
away in fear ; the long-handed Bushyasta flees away
in fear ; all the Daevas unseen and the Varenya
fiends flee away in fear.
135. 'Oh! may we never fall across the rush of
Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, when in anger !
May Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, never smite
us in his anger ; he who stands up upon this earth
as the strongest of all gods, the most valiant of all
gods, the most energetic of all gods, the swiftest of
all gods, the most fiend-smiting of all gods, he,
Mithra, the lord of wide pastures^
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
XXXII.
136. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
' For whom white stallions, yoked to his chariot,
draw it, on one golden wheel, with a full shining
axle.
137. * If Mithra takes his libations to his own
dwelling 2, " Happy that man, I think," — said Ahura
Mazda, — "O holy ZarathuJtra ! for whom a holy
priest, as pious as any in the world ^, who is the
Word incarnate, offers up a sacrifice unto Mithra with
bundles of baresma and with the [proper] words.
' " Straight to that man, I think, will Mithra come, to visit his dwelling,
138. * " When Mithras boons will come to him, as
he follows God's teaching, and thinks according to
God's teaching.
' " Woe to that man, I think," — said Ahura Mazda, —
' §§ i34-i35 = §§ 97-98. ' Cf. Yt. X, 32.
* Doubtful. Possibly, * of a pious conscience.'
156 YAS'TS AND siROZAHS.
" O holy Zarathui-tra ! for whom an unholy priest,
not pious ^, who is not the Word incarnate, stands
behind the baresma, however full may be the
bundles of baresma he ties, however long may be
the sacrifice he performs."
139. ' He does not delight Ahura Mazda, nor the
other Amesha-Spe;ztas, nor Mithra, the lord of wide
pastures, he who thus scorns Mazda, and the other
Amesha-Spe;2tas, and Mithra, the lord of wide
pastures, and the Law, and Rashnu, and Ar^ta/*,
who makes the world grow, who makes the world
increase.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth
being heard
XXXIII.
140. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake.
* I will offer up a sacrifice unto the good Mithra,
O Spitama ! unto the strong, heavenly god, who is
foremost, highly merciful, and peerless ; whose house
is above ^, a stout and strong warrior ;
141. 'Victorious and armed with a well-fashioned
weapon, watchful in darkness and undeceivable. He
is the stoutest of the stoutest, he is the strongest of
the strongest, he is the most intelligent of the gods,
he is victorious and endowed with Glory : he, of the
ten thousand eyes, 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 ....
^ An unqualified priest; cf. Vend. IX, 47-57; XVIII, i seq. ^ Or, ' whose house is great.'
Mihir Ya.St. 157
XXXIV.
142. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, .... sleepless, and ever awake ;
'Who, with his manifold knowledge, powerfully
increases the creation of Spe;«ta Mainyu, and is a
well-created and most great Yazata, self-shining like
the moon, when he makes his own body shine ;
143. 'Whose face is flashing with light like the
face of the star Ti^trya^ whose chariot is embraced
by that goddess who is foremost amongst those who
have no deceit in them ^ O Spitama ! who is fairer
than any creature in the world, and full of light to
shine. I will worship that chariot, wrought by the
Maker, Ahura Mazda, inlaid with stars and made of
a heavenly substance ; (the chariot) of Mithra, who
has ten thousand spies, the powerful, all-knowing,
undeceivable god.
' For his brightness and glory, I will offer him a sacrifice worth being heard ....
XXXV.
144. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra, the lord of wide
pastures, who is truth-speaking, a chief in assemblies,
with a thousand ears, well-shapen, with a thousand
eyes, high, with full knowledge, strong, sleepless, and
ever awake.
' We sacrifice unto the Mithra around countries ^ ; 'We sacrifice unto the Mithra within countries;
^ See Yt. VIII. ' Ashi Vanguhi (?) ; cf. § 68.
^ Who watches around countries: aiwida/iyyum is translated U^^ ^j^\j^^,j^ (Pers. tr. of Mihir Nyayij-).
158 YA^TS AND SIROZAHS.
'We sacrifice unto the Mithra in this country^; ' We sacrifice unto the Mithra above countries ;
* We sacrifice unto the Mithra under countries ;
'We sacrifice unto the Mithra before countries ^i
' We sacrifice unto the Mithra behind countries.
145. 'We sacrifice unto Mithra and Ahura, the
two great, imperishable, holy gods^; and unto the
stars, and the moon, and the sun, with the trees that
yield up baresma^ We sacrifice unto Mithra, the
lord of all countries.
' For his brightness and glory, I will oflfer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard, namely, unto Mithra, the lord of wide pastures.
'Yatha ahft vairyo: The will of the Lord is the law of holiness ....
' I bless the sacrifice and prayer, and the strength
and vigour of Mithra, the lord of wide pastures, who
has a thousand ears, ten thousand eyes, a Yazata
invoked by his own name ; and that of Rama
'AshemVohu: Holiness is the best of all good ....
'[Give] unto that man*' brightness and glory, .... give him the
bright, all-happy, blissful abode of the holy Ones !'
^ Ada/zz'yum: o^l^^-i- ^ji}j^ ^j^', cf. Yasna XXVI, 9 [28].
' Pairida^^z'yiim : cu-^l^^^J:.^ ^ji^. »5T
8 Cf. Vend. Introd. IV, 8. * Cf. Vend. p. 22, note a.
* Cf. Sirozah I, 16. ^ Who sacrifices to Mithra.
A_-, ,, . „ .,*„,. a
Srosh Vast Hadhokht. 1 59
XI. SROSH YA^-T HADHOKHT.
There are two Yajts dedicated to Sraosha, the angel of divine wor- ship^: one is a part of the Yasna (LVII [LVI]), and this, the other, is called the Srosh Yzst Hadhokht. Whether it belonged to the so- called Hadhokht Nosk ^, one of the twenty-one Nosks of which the original Avesta was formed ', or whether it was recited in the Hadhokht sacrifice *, a particular liturgy, is a matter on which we have no sufficient information.
The two Yajts have a few developments in common (see §§ 8- 9, 10-13): the Hadhokht is more liturgical, the Yasna Yast is more descriptive, and has to a greater degree the poetical imagery of a Ya^t.
The Srosh Yajt Hadhokht is recited every day, during -any gah except the Rapitvin. A Pahlavi translation of this Yast is extant (East India Office, XII, 102; Paris, Supplement Persan, XXXIII, 259 ; edited in Etudes Iraniennes, II), and Anquetil mentions a Sanskrit translation.
o. May Ahura Mazda be rejoiced I . . . .
Ashem Vohu : Holiness is the best of all good ....
I confess myself a worshipper of Mazda, a follower of Zara- thuj-tra, one who hates the Daevas and obeys the laws of Ahura ;
For sacrifice, prayer, propitiation, and glorification unto [Havani], the holy and master of holiness ....
Unto the holy, strong Sraosha, who is the incar- nate Word, a mighty-speared and lordly god,
Be propitiation, with sacrifice, prayer, propitiation, and glorification.
Yatha ahu vairyo: The will of the Lord is the law of holiness ....
^ Cf. Vend. Introd. IV, 31. 2 j^id. Ill, 3.
' See an account of the Hadhokht Nosk in the Dinkart (West,
Pahlavi Texts, I, 225, note); cf. Introd. to Yt. XXI.
* Cf. § 18, note.
l6o YASTS AND SIROZAHS.
1. We sacrifice unto the holy, tall-formed, fiend-
smiting Sraosha, who makes the world increase,
the holy and master of holiness.
Good prayer, excellent prayer to the worlds \ O Zarathui-tra !
2. This it is that takes away the friendship of
the fiend and fiends, of the he-fiend and of the she-
fiend ; it turns away in giddiness their eyes, minds,
ears ^, hands, feet, mouths, and tongues ^ ; as good
prayer, without deceit and without harm, is Manly
Courage *, and turns away the Dru^ ^.
3. The holy Sraosha, the best protector of the poor, is fiend-smiting; he is the best smiter of the Dru^.
The faithful one who pronounces most words of
blessing is the most victorious in victory ; the
Mathra Spe;/ta takes best the unseen Dru^ away.
The Ahuna Vairya ^ is the best fiend-smiter among
all spells ; the word of truth is the fighter "^ that is
the best of all fiend-smiters.
The Law of the worshippers of Mazda is the
truest giver of all the good things, of all those that
are the offspring of the good principle; and so is
the Law of Zarathu^tra,
4. And he who should pronounce that word ^,
O Zarathu^tra ! either a man or a woman, with a
mind all intent on holiness, with words all intent on
^ ' Has been taught to the world, namely, the Law ' (Pahl. Comm.).
^ Doubtful. ' Derezva: Pahl. huzvan; cf. Yt. I, 28,