Mitanni and Vedic India
3500 years old Mittani Dynasty and it's Sanskrit/Rig Vedic Connection :
Aryans and Zoroastrians
The kingdom of the Mitanni Indo-Iranian dynasty that ruled in the land of the Hurrians was located
in the upper Euphrates-Tigris basin - land that is now part of northern
At its greatest extent (for a brief period at the height of its dynastic power),
The Hurrian lands are today a part of Greater Kurdistan.
Wassukanni / Washukanni - Mitanni
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Reputed
location of the |
The
The name Washukanni is similar to the Kurdish word bashkani, bash meaning good and kanî meaning well or source (Kurdish has the same name, kani, for well and source). The Luwian word vasu also means good. The name is similar to the Sanskrit word vasukhani meaning 'mine of wealth'.
Some believe the ancient city of
The Mitanni
The
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Tushratta's
letter to Amenhotep III of |
For a period, the extent of
Despite Tusratta's problems, he was not beyond offering his daughter Tadukhipa in marriage to the King Amenhotep III of
The beleaguered Tusratta was then murdered by his son in a palace coup. Tusratta's other son, Prince Shattiwaza, fled Mitanni and was eventually given sanctuary by the Hittite King Suppiluliuma with whom he concluded a treaty c. 1380 BCE, which we know as the Suppiluliuma-Shattiwaza
Treaty (discovered in 1907 CE in Hattusa, near present-day Bogazkale (Boğazkale,
formerly Bogazköy) in north-central Turkey. In the treaty, the Hittite King Suppiluliuma agreed to assist Shattiwaza gain the
The Suppiluliuma-Shattiwaza Treaty is a source of considerable information about the
Following the capture of Wassukanni, the Hittites installed new rulers in
In our page on the Hittites, we note:
"In the Bogazkale archives, native Hurrian is used frequently for a wide range of non-official texts such as those on rituals and even the Epic of Gilgamesh - more so than native Hattian. Native Hurrian texts have been found throughout the region. One such text dated to 1750 BCE was found at Tell Hariri (ancient Mari), a Middle Euphrates site, and another at Ras Shamra (Ugarit) on the Syrian coast indicating Hurrian i.e. Mitanni influence in the region preceded the rise of Hittite power. A similar language to Hurrian is the language of Urartu located to the west of the Hittite lands at the headwaters of the
According to the literature (cf. The Hittites by O. R. Gurney, Penguin Books 1981), The Hurrians were migrants to the Upper Euphrates and Habur basin from the Elburz Mountains east across the Taurus Mountains from about 2300 BCE onwards."
Famed Charioteers
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The
The
Expertise in Horse Training
The Hittite archives of Hattusa, near present-day Bogazkale contained what is the oldest surviving horse training manual in the world. The elaborate work was written c. 1345 BCE on four tablets and contains 1080 lines by a
assussanni a form of the Sanskrit asva-sani meaning 'horse trainer',
aika wartanna meaning one turn (cf. Vedic Sanskrit ek vartanam),
tera wartanna meaning three turns (cf. Vedic Sanskrit tri vartanam),
panza wartanna meaning five turns (cf. Vedic Sanskrit panca vartanam),
satta wartanna meaning seven turns (cf. Vedic Sanskrit sapta vartanam),
and
navartanna meaning nine turns (cf. Vedic Sanskrit nava vartanam).
[Regrettably, writers do not mention the Old Iranian equivalents.]
A Hurrian text from Yorgan Tepe also uses Indo-Iranian words to describe the colour of horses, words such as babru for brown, parita for grey, and pinkara for a reddish hue.
The Kikkuli manual for training chariot horses highlights the links between the
The methods used in the Kikkuli method enabled horses to be trained without injury. The text detailed a 214-day training regime using interval training and sports medicine techniques such as the principle of progression, peak loading systems, electrolyte replacement, fartlek training, intervals and repetitions and was directed at horses with a high proportion of slow-twitch muscle fibres.
the Kikkuli horses were stabled, rugged, washed down with warm water and fed oats, barley and hay at least three times per day.
Kikkuli's interval training technique stressed the leading of horses at a trot, canter and gallop, before subjecting them to the weight bearing stress of a rider, driver or chariot. Workouts sometimes numbered three a day with scheduled rest days. Kikkuli's interval training contained three stages - the first two for developing strong legs and a strong cardio-muscular system, and the third for increasing neuromuscular conditioning. His workouts included brief recoveries to lower the heart rate. Swimming was also included in intervals of three to five sessions, with rest periods after each session. The horses were also subject to warming down periods and the method's example of
cantering included intermediate pauses to lower the heart rate partially and as the training advanced the workouts included intervals at the canter.
Mitanni
The names of the
The names of proto-Indo-Iranian dieties are also found to form the names of the Kassite rulers of
Arta
Several
Philologists trace the
However, for some reason, none of the writers that we have come across link the name to their Old Iranian or Old Persian equivalents - equivalents that will be closer to the Mitanni names as we have demonstrated with the use of arta above.
Society Structure & Rule of Law
Land Conveyance
The aristocratic families usually received their landed property as an inalienable fief, in other words, The land grant included a provision that the land could only be transferred to children of the owner - it could not be sold. Nevertheless, sellers and buyers found a convenient work-around and the prohibition against selling landed property was circumvented by the owner of property 'adopting' the buyer for an acceptable sum of money. The wealthy landlord Tehiptilla was 'adopted' almost two hundred times, acquiring tremendous holdings of landed property in this way without interference by the local governmental authorities.
Agriculture & Manufacturing
The system of planting crops included a productive two-field system of agriculture in which an agricultural plot was divided into two fields where each field was cultivated only once every two years.
Records indicate that sheep were bred for their wool on which an extensive woollen and textile industry was based. The manufactured textiles were collected by the palace were exported on a large scale.
According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, "glass was produced on a large scale for the first time around 1600 BCE, perhaps in the
Trade
Trade in the Euphrates-Tigris basin was conducted using the extensive river network and the
Prehistory of the Aryans
We find the prehistory of the Aryans recorded in the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta (in particular the Zamyad Yasht 19), in Middle Persian texts, in the poet Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh or Book of Kings, and in the Hindu Scriptures, the Vedas.
The significance of the prehistory contained in these texts, is not necessarily a sense of recorded time, but rather a record of sequential human development that is unique amongst existing ancient literature. Unlike other ancient myths and legends, the individual reign of a legendary Aryan king, at times thousands of years in length, includes developments that correspond to archaeological /
historical ages such as the Stone and Metal Ages. For instance, the developments during the reign of the first Aryan king, Gaya Maretan (see below) parallels what archaeologists and historians now call the Stone Ages. Therefore we can refer to the legendary reign of Gaya Maretan as the Stone Age of Aryan history.
It would be unreasonable to expect the prehistory to contain a detailed record of individual kings from the dawn of history. The names of the kings that were preserved by legend, were in all likelihood those whose reigns were noteworthy in some fashion, and the length of their reigns would have been expanded to include that of their less noteworthy predecessors and successors. As a
consequence, the length of a legendary reign often spans the length of several human lifetimes.
In addition to a being a sequential record of human development, Zoroastrian texts also provide us with a sequential listing of early nations associated with the Aryans. Together with archaeological records, this information can be combined to construct a history of the Aryans.
Aryan Stone Age
Age of Gaya Maretan
[
Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, complemented by the Farvardin Yasht 13.87, recounts that Aryan prehistory started with Gaya Maretan, founder of the Aryan nation. The Shahnameh states that he was the first Aryan King and that during his reign, people lived in the mountains (also see Aryan homeland location: Mountains - Hara Berezaiti) and wore animal skins and leaves. They gathered fruits and other plant foods. Animals were first domesticated, and the herding of cattle began.
During the age of Gaya Maretan, religion and religious rites were developed. According to the Avesta and the Shahnameh, Gaya Maretan was a Mazdayasni, a worshipper of Mazda or God. In the oldest Hindu scriptures, the Rig Veda, worship in a supreme God, Asura Varuna, preceded
deva or polytheistic worship amongst the Aryans. (For further information on Pre-Zoroastrian Aryan religious practices, see our page on Aryan Religions.)
The Shahnameh tells us that Ahriman, the leader of the deva worshippers was envious of Gaya Maretan and wanted to seize Gaya Maretan's throne, the throne of the Aryans. As a result, the first religious wars between the Mazda and deva worshippers took place during this period. At first
the deva worshippers were victorious in a battle in which Gaya Maretan's son Siyamak was killed. Gaya Maretan regrouped, assembled an army under the command of his grandson Haoshyangha (Hushang - see below), and defeated the deva worshippers. While this second battle
established the Mazdayasni as the dominant religious group between the Mazda and deva worshippers, the two groups continued to live together in close proximity. (Later, at the end of the Jamshidi / Yima era, dominance would shift to the deva worshippers (see below), after which it would move back and forth between the two groups.)
Implicit in the references to ancient Aryans in the literature, is the development and establishment of national governance through the establishment of a hereditary kingship and a royal line. In this system of governance, Aryan kings had a sacred responsibility to protect the people, establish and uphold the law, encourage human development and lead the progress of society to a better life. When Aryan kings maintained this sacred trust and ethical compact (what in modern days we call a social contract), they were said to rule in grace in keeping with their khvarenah.
Aryan Metal Age
Pishdadian Era
Age of Hushang
Civilization came to the Aryan world during the age of Haoshyangha (Hushang),
Gaya Maretan's grandson.
Some texts state that Hushang was the first Aryan king. In any event, Hushang developed governance according to the rule of law and as a result he was called paradhata (first law giver). The title paradhata evolved to peshdat and then pishdad, a title that became the name given to the dynasty started by Hushang. Allied to the rule of law was the concept of common justice.
During the Age of Hushang, the Aryans developed agriculture and furthered the domestication of animals and - two elements essential for the development of settled, civilized societies.
The domestication of animals that had started with the herding of cattle during the Age of Gaya Maretan, now developed to include animal husbandry and the domestication of horses, ass and sheep. The domesticated animals were used for ploughing, as beasts of burden, for transportation, and for the making of dairy products. The animal and dairy products were used to pay taxes - and taxation was born.
To support agriculture, the Aryans during the age of Hushang dug irrigation canals and ducts. They learnt to bake bread as well.
Discovery of Fire-Making
Jashne Sadeh / Festival of the Hundredth Day
The Hushang Age also saw the discovery of how to make fire. This discovery is celebrated annually by people of Iranian (Persian) descent at the Jashne Sadeh, meaning the festival of the hundredth day. Yazdi Zoroastrians celebrate Sadeh 100 days before the New Year's day (Nowruz), while Kermani
Zoroastrians celebrate the festival 100 days after the Ayathrem gahambar. (For further details, please see our page on Fire.)
The discovery of fire also led to the extraction metal from ore. According to legend, during this era, people acquired the skills of blacksmithing, crafting axes, saws and mattocks (a tool like a pickaxe with one end of its blade flattened at right angles to its handle and used for loosening soil and cutting through roots.)
The Age of Hushang was therefore the start of the Metal Age in Aryan history. However, unlike other metal ages which started with the processing of copper, Aryan and Saka legends place the use of gold before the use of copper in
The Age of Hushang was also the start of the agricultural age and the age during which the Aryans began to establish an international trade network. In general, it was the start of the age of civilization.
Age of Tahmuras
Haoshyangha was succeeded by his son Tahmuras during whose reign, the art of shearing
sheep, weaving and the making of clothes and draperies were developed. The reared animals were fed barley, grass, and hay, indicating that rather than leaving reared animals to graze in pasture, the animals were fed a diet that increased their strength and productivity. As a result, the horses became
strong and swift. Fowl and other birds were added to the list of reared animal. Falconry and the taming of hawks were also developed during this age. The law of the land developed to include laws that required the animals be reared with kindness. These are probably the first records of animal humane laws in history.
Art too developed under the patronage of the king.
During the age of Tahmuras, the deva worshippers rose in rebellion, a rebellion that was put down. As part of the agreement to spare their lives, the deva-worshippers taught Tahmuras thirty different alphabets from different nations to east, west and south, thus teaching him the science of delineating sounds. From this account, it would appear that the deva-worshippers were the
original travellers who had knowledge of the lands of
To the structure of Aryan governance, Tahmuras added a prime minister charged
with the administration of justice.
Age of Jamshid
The Name Yima and Yama in the Avesta and Vedas
In the Avesta, Jamshid is called Yima-Srira or Yima Khshaeta, meaning Yima the radiant,
son of Vivanghat. In an Old Persian tablet found at Persepolis, he is called Yama-kshedda, and eventually in Middle Persian Pahlavi, his name is transformed to Jam-sheed (to this day, the Parsees of India continue this penchant for converting the Y sound to a J sound). In the Vedas, he is called Yama, son of Vivasvant.
The Avestan references to Yima are found in Vendidad Fargard 2, Gatha 32.8, Yasna 9.4-5, Avan Yasht 5.25-6, Ram Yasht 15.15-6, Ashishvangh Yasht 17.28-31 and Jamyad Yasht 19.30-44.
While in the Avesta, Gaya Maretan is the first mortal, in the Rig Veda, Yama is the first mortal. This might indicate that for the Avestan people history started with Gaya Maretan, while for the people of the Rig Veda, their history as a people - as an identifiable or sovereign group - started with Yama. The Avesta and Vedas start to share prehistory with Yima / Yama.
Start of the Tragic Aryan Epic Cycles
In the legends, the legendary king who follows Tahmuras is Yima Khshaeta (later called Jamshid). As
we have done previously, in an effort to extract historical developments from the myths and legends, we will say that the Jamshedi age followed the age of Tahmuras.
During the Jamshidi age (the age of Yima), the rule of law - a law grounded in grace and justice - developed and heralded a golden age during which time Airyana Vaeja, the Aryan homeland, became a paradise on earth. In legend, Jamshid is considered one of the wisest and greatest kings ever, but one who would nevertheless fell from grace, thus heralding the start of tragic epic cycles in Aryan history, cycles that rotated between good and evil times. (For a further discussion on this golden era, please see our section on Airyana Vaeja as paradise in our page on the possible location
of Airyana Vaeja.) Regrettably, subsequent monarchs did not learn from past errors and declines, dooming themselves and the Aryan nation to repeat the tragic epic cycle.
Since the Jamshedi age in legend lasted for over one thousand two hundred years, it would be unrealistic to expect this to be an accurate time period. Rather, it could indicate a long period of history that may have spanned several dynasties. Within this age, an early king, perhaps an eponymous Yima, would have ushered in a golden era - one that was sustained by subsequent
Jamshedi age kings who may have continued presiding over significant societal change for the better. However, later kings might have become arrogant and complacent.
We have examples of this scenario is later times where is have more historical information. For instance, in the last of the tragic epic cycles - the age of the Persian kings - we have historical records of an age that lasted about a thousand years from the Achaemenians to the Sassanians
(about the same span of time as the Jamshidi age). During the Persian age, there was a golden era brought on by the rule of Cyrus the Great. Later, there came a time when the kings became arrogant. The dissention from within weakened the
Zoroastrians need to pay heed to the lessons of history, least those who have sacrificed so much to preserve these legends have done so in vain. History has been kind to Zoroastrians when they gained grace, but cruel and unforgiving when Zoroastrian leaders lost their grace. Arrogance, internal bickering, dissension and a loss of fundamental ethical principles are some of the symptoms of a fall from grace.
Metal Age Developments
During the Jamshidi age, iron was used to manufacture helmets, chain-mail tunics, breastplates, and coats of armour both for man and horse. Weaving was developed to a high art and included silk, cotton, and animal hair to produced finely woven and brocaded fabrics.
Calendar, Nowruz and Weather
The age saw the establishment of a calendar with the spring equinox being set as New Year's day
- Nowruz. Holidays were promulgated and music began to be composed.
At the outset of the Jamshedi era, the weather in the Aryan homeland, Airyana Vaeja was fair and equitable, with the spring equinox heralding the start of spring and a renewal after the winter.
However, a thousand two hundred years after the start of the Jamshedi era, there was a sudden climate chill (Vendidad 2.22-25) and a drastic cooling (also see Aryans, page 3) - a mini Ice Age of sorts.
Knowledge of
The Vara Settlement
The concept of the vara enabled sustainable living for a people and their live-stock in a mountainous region beset with harsh winters. Surviving severe winters without migrating to warmer regions must have been an incredible challenge and a profound development for the people of those days.
If we put the mythological aspects of the legend aside, the description of the vara in the Vendidad indicates the start of settlement / urban planning in Aryan history. The Jamshidi concept was for the vara to be a self-contained, self-sustaining communal dwelling area built according to a set of uniform principles. There were to be separate areas for humans and animals, as well as for seed and hay storage. Fruit trees and crops were to be planted within the vara area. Water for the inhabitants and crops was to be brought to the vara via a channel and stored in a reservoir. Designated festivals also included a sharing of food resources. In addition, during the Jamshidi era, clay began to be used as a building and construction material for the first time. The houses of the vara were to be constructed using clay and wooden pillars.
The vara settlement was to be of three sizes: a settlement of a thousand inhabitants with nine streets, six hundred inhabitants with six streets, and three hundred inhabitants with three streets.
Also see the page on the Pamirs.
Territorial Expansion
The Avesta tells us that during in the first thousand two hundred years of the Yima / Jamshedi era, the territory of Airyana Vaeja expanded up to four and a half times "southwards, on the way of the sun" (prior to the climate change), presumably into Afghanistan and possibly even the upper Indus valley. The people who remained in the original mountainous Aryan homeland appear to have dealt with the severe winters by staying in the varas for the entire winter, snowed in and cut off from the rest of the world, in the same manner as the Yagnobi in Tajikistan (close to the Pamir region) live through the winter to this day (also see Weather Change in Airyana Vaeja During Jamshid's Reign in our pages on the Aryans).
Professional Guilds & Initiation
King Jamshid developed the concept of specialized professions. He instituted the four main
professional guilds of priests and learned (athravan), nobles and warriors (rathestaran), farmers (vasteryosan), and artisans (hutokhshan), with members of each profession working in freedom and dignity. Farmers had their own land free from dispute. King Jamshid also instituted the tradition of the wearing the sacred thread or belt as an mark that the wearer had been initiated into the guilds
(see (Sad-dar - 'Hundred Doors' chapter 10, and chapter 39.18-19, Dadestan-i Denig - 'Religious Decisions').
The Hindu Vedas list four similar professions called varnas (from var, to enclose, cf. Av. vara meaning enclosure): the priests and learned (brahman), nobles and warriors (khshtriya), merchants and farmers (vaishyas), labourers and artisans (sudra). Each
The Vedic name for the systems of professions, varnas, and the Avestan name for the Jamshedi settlements, varas - both from the root vara meaning enclosure is significant and bears further examination.
The Hindu initiation ceremony like the Zoroastrian initiation ceremony is also called a thread ceremony. Hinduism calls the initiate a dvijas meaning twice born signifying that the initiate is "born again" into spiritual life. Zoroastrianism uses the term navjote meaning new life. The Hindu initiation is conducted during a person's teen or early adult years. The Zoroastrian age for initiation was the age or reason, deemed by tradition to be fifteen years of age.
Hinduism developed the professional guilds into a caste system, a development that violated principles that Zarathushtra would promote. The initiation ceremony in Hinduism is now limited to men of the first three castes, while the initiation ceremony in Zoroastrianism is available to all women and men. In Zoroastrianism, the initiation ceremony is an initiation into the faith and a
coming-of-age ceremony for all Zoroastrians - rather than an initiation into a guild or caste.
Start of Human History in the Hindu Vedas
In the Vedas, human history starts with Yama and Hindu reverence for Yama, King Jamshid, grew while he lost favour with the Mazdayasni Aryan predecessors of the Zoroastrians. The Avesta tells us that the once wise, noble and honoured King Yima grew too proud, thought himself a god, and lost his place and grace - his khvarenah. In his hymns (Gatha 32.8), Zarathushtra laments that King Jamshid lost his way and became a sinner.
It is within the realm of possibilities that the Jamshidi king at that time abandoned the Mazdayasni faith in favour of becoming a deva worshipper, thereby becoming the first deva-worshipping Aryan king. (For an explanation of the different Aryans religions and the schism between them, please see our page on Aryan religions.)
End of the First Tragic Aryan Epic Cycle
Following Jamshid's loss of grace, the vassal kings and lords of Airyana Vaeja withdrew from the
court of Jamshid and Airyana Vaeja. A hundred years later, weakened by internal dissention, Airyana Vaeja was invaded by an evil foreign king, Zahak (also spelt Zahhak and called Azi Dahaka in the Avesta). That event marked the end of the first tragic epic cycle in Aryan history and also the end
of the first part of Pishdadian royal rule. The foreign domination supported by the deva worshippers lasted for a thousand years.
The Jamshidi loss of grace and arrogance had resulted in a nation that became weak from within and one that fell prey to conquest and domination by a foreign king for a thousand years until their liberation by Feridoon.
Regrettably, the Aryans would not learn from this painful lesson in history. In eras yet to come, the Aryan nation would rise and fall with epochs of golden ages followed by despair brought about by an abdication of the ruler's sacred trust and ethical compact to rule for the benefit of the people.
Our examination of the Aryan's prehistory continues on the page Legendary History.
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Pre-Zoroastrian Aryan Religions
Our sources for information about the
pre-Zoroastrian Aryan religions are the Zoroastrian and Hindu scriptures: the Avesta and Vedas
respectively, the Middle
Persian Zoroastrian texts and the poet Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh.
The description of the old Aryan religions, the names of their deities, and the
groups that worshipped them, are not uniformly described in our reference
texts. However, in reading the texts, some common themes do emerge, themes that
allow us to attempt an understanding of the early Aryan religious beliefs,
customs, and groupings - as well as the relationship between the different
Aryan groups.
We will examine three primary pre-Zoroastrian Aryan religions mentioned in our source texts: Mazda worship, Daeva or Deva worship and Asura worship.
1. Mazda Worship
Mazdayasni
In the Avesta's book of Yashts, verse 13.87 of the
Farvardin Yasht as well as the Middle Persian Denkard
at 3.35 mention that Mazda, God, was worshipped by the Aryans from the time
of the first Aryan king Gaya Maretan - in other words from the outset of Aryan
history. This statement is corroborated by the poet Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh, and by Middle
Persian Zoroastrian texts. In these texts, Gaya Maretan and his people were
the first Mazdayasni meaning Mazda worshippers, the worshippers of God.
The word 'mazda' is thought by some to be related to the Sanskrit 'medha'
meaning intelligent or wise. In usage, the word Mazda was used to mean God,
that is, a creator who caused creation through wisdom, indeed, through a divine
thought. Mazda therefore can be translated as God.
Paoiryo-Tkaesha
The opening paragraphs of the Avesta's Farvardin
Yasht and the Yasht's verse
13.150 also tell us that Gaya Maretan and the other Pre-Zoroastrian
Mazdayasni were called paoiryo-tkaesha meaning keepers of the original ancient
law. In order to differentiate early Mazda worship from the later Zoroastrian
Mazda worship, we will call this original Aryan religion, Mazdayasni
Paoiryo-Tkaesha.
Ahura-Tkaesha
The Farvardin Yasht's verses 89 & 90 mention that later in Aryan history,
Zarathushtra proclaimed the Ahura-tkaesha, the laws of the Lord (Ahura). If the
word 'mazda' related to the creative aspect of the divinity grounded in an
ultimate concept of wisdom, the word 'ahura' related to the aspect of having
dominion over creation through order and laws that are innate in every part and
particle of creation (cf. fravashi).
Zarathushtra used these two concepts to propound a belief described as Mazdayasno
Zarathushtrish Vidaevo Ahura-Tkaesho, that is, Zarathushtrian Mazda-Worship
opposed to the daeva through the laws of the Lord (Ahura). For the sake of
brevity, we can call Zarathushtrian Mazda-Worship (i.e. post Zarathushtra) as
Mazdayasni Ahura-Tkaesha.
Since, as we have just observed, both the pre- and post- Zoroastrian religions
are called Mazdayasni, many authors have assumed that Zarathushtra was a
reformer of a Mazdayasni religion that predated him, rather than the founder of
a new religion. While Zarathushtra may have used previous concepts and while
his followers may have incorporated elements of a previous religion, or religions,
back into Zoroastrianism, Zarathushtra's teachings were different enough for
him to have initially experienced great difficulty in getting others to listen
to him. Our section on the war
of religion further illustrates the radical nature of his teachings -
regardless of the words used for divinity. There are other reasons not to
assume that Zarathushtra was a reformer. His concept of being a Mazdayasni was
quite different from previous concepts labelled as 'Mazdayasni'. There is an
explanation for these assertions:
First, Mazda-yasni translated directly simply means God-worship rather than
being the name of a religion. The form and doctrine of worship before
Zarathushtra was very different from that preached by Zarathushtra, just as
religions today who profess a worship of God i.e. God-worshippers, are
radically different. Next, it is commonly assumed that Mazda is an Avestan name
for God rather than a word for God - an assumption that may lead to incorrect
conclusions. The difference is that if Mazda is the Avestan word for God,
saying that the Aryans worshipped Mazda since the time of Gayo Maretan is the
same as saying that the Aryans worshipped God (a supreme God) from ancient
times. Mazda, or God, could have had different names through the ages, or the
word for God could have changed with a change in language. For instance, if Varuna (also see below),
a principle asura
in the Vedas, was the name for God (Mazda) at one stage in Aryan history, then
Varuna worship could also be called Mazda worship or the worship of God.
A parallel to this concept is found in the Christian Old and New Testaments as
well as the Jewish Torah. There, the worship of Yahweh and Jehovah, or for that
matter all the Judeo-Christian words or names for God, are synonymous with the
worship of God. Despite the use of different words or names for God in the
different languages of the Bible, Christians do not conclude that the Bible
chronicles the worship of multiple gods throughout history. Christians say that
Abraham worshipped God even though the attributes assigned to the Abrahamic God
might be quite different from the more modern Christian assignment of divine
attributes - thereby making Judaism and Christianity related but very different
religions. Similarly, if we say that Gaya Maretan was a Mazda worshipper, the
word or name for God in Pre-Zoroastrian Aryan history could have been Varuna or
some other word / name, and the beliefs of the corresponding religions could
also have been different, but nevertheless related, as would have been Varuna
and Mitra worship, two asuras
mentioned in the Rig Veda. In any event, Mazda worship before Zarathushtra
might have been related but was quite different from Zarathushtra's Mazda
worship.
The Avesta's book of Yashts, as well as portions of other Avestan books, may
give us clues about the pre-Zoroastrian Mazdayasni beliefs, thereby serving a
function in the Avesta similar to the Christian Bible's Old Testament.
2. Daeva or Deva Worship
[Note: The words deva (Vedic Sanskrit), daeva (Avestan Old Iranian) and div (Middle and Modern Persian) are commonly considered to be variations of the same word, div being the more modern (Middle Persian) word. While the different words may at times be applied in a similar fashion, there are times when they have different connotations.]
Deva
The devas are the gods of the Hindu
scriptures.
The earliest of the Hindu scriptures, the Rig
Veda provides us with information about pre-Zoroastrian Vedic-Aryan deva
worship.
Daeva and Div
The daeva and div in the
Avesta and other Persian texts, are evil qualities, personification of evil
qualities and demons. The terms 'demon', evil person and 'negative value' (or
'base quality') are freely interchangeable in the Zoroastrian concept of the
daeva or div (as mentioned earlier, div is the later version of the Avestan
word daeva).
The demonization of the Rig Vedic deva, primarily Indra, in the Avesta, the
naming of a book of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta as the Vi-daevo-data
(modern name: Vendidad) meaning the law against the daeva, as well as the name
of the religion preached by Zarathushtra: Mazdayasno Zarathushtrish Vidaevo
Ahura-Tkaesho, that is, Zarathushtrian Mazda-Worship opposed to the daeva
through the laws of the Lord (Ahura), together signify the strong opposition of
the Mazda worshippers to the daeva and the defining of Zoroastrian Mazda
worship through it opposition to the daeva.
Not all the daeva in Zoroastrian and Persian texts are the devas mentioned in
the Vedas. The Mazda worshippers began to use the word daeva generically to
mean all demonic forces of evil. The word daeva and div came to include the
personification of vices, other Aryan gods who were not part of the Vedic
pantheon, as well as the gods of non-Aryan peoples.
In the chapter 32 of the Gathas, Zarathushtra speaks about the daeva, evil and
the lie, a concept he introduces in Y.30.6. In Yasna 32.3 Zarathushtra states:
"At yush deava vispaongha
akat manangho sta chithrem."
translated as:
But all you daeva
Are the progeny of wicked thoughts (thinking).
The manner in which Zarathushtra refers to the daeva is ambiguous. Zarathushtra
refers to the daeva as a group who collectively chose evil. He does not name
the daeva in his hymns. However, some of the negative qualities he speaks about
- such as aeshma, wrath, and achistem mano, evil mind,(Y.30.6) became named as
daeva elsewhere in the Avesta.
In the Avesta's Aban (Avan) Yasht (5.94), we read of the Daevayasni, the
daeva worshippers. In the Vendidad's chapter 19, the Daevayasni are juxtaposed
against the Mazdayasni.
Further, a book of the Avesta, is Vi-daevo-data (the Vendidad),
meaning the law against the daeva, mentions (in verses 10.9 and 19.43) Indra, a
Rig Vedic deva (see
below), by name. Verses 10.9 to 10.16 mention additional daeva: Sauru,
Naunghaithya, Tauru, Zairi, Aeshma, Akatasha, Zaurva, Buiti, Driwi, Daiwi,
Kasvi, Paitisha, the daeva of Varenya (Varena) and the daeva of Mazana,
presumed to be a nation (not mentioned in Vendidad's list of sixteen nations) -
modern Mazandaran. Daeva mentioned elsewhere in the Vendidad are Akem-Mano /
Aka-Manah (evil mind) (19.4),
Of the daeva listed in the Vendidad, only Indra has a direct Vedic equivalent.
Sauru is thought to be the Vedic Sarva (sometimes used in the Vedas as a name
of Shiva). Similarly, Naunghaithya is thought to be the Vedic Nasatya. In the
Vendidad, Indra operates under the auspices of angra
mainyu, the evil spirit (in later texts, the embodiment of angra mainyu is
Ahriman, the devil incarnate).
Deva Indra
|
|
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The Rig-Vedic deva, Indra, |
Indra is a principle deva in the Rig
Veda where he has more verses addressed to him than any other deva. In the
image to the right, Indra is seen riding his elephant Airavata. Unlike the
invisible, non-anthropomorphic, genderless, non-iconic Mazda, the devas are
represented and worshipped as idols or graven images.
Indra's arch foe was the asura Vrita who was "manifested by the father of
a youth killed by Indra. The young man had three heads, one for studying, one
for eating, and one for watching. Indra was extremely jealous of the peaceful,
studious youth. Finally, Indra was so enraged that he hurled a thunderbolt at
him and cut of his heads." (p. 502, Dictionary of Ancient Deities
by Patricia Turner, Charles Russell Coulter). Vrita emerged from the slain
youth's body and was granted invincibility during night and day, to materials
wet or dry, on land and on water.
Thereafter, in encounters between Indra and Vrita, Vrita was either victorious
or succeeded in frustrating Indra's exploits, until that is, Indra was aided by
Vishnu as the trickster (also see
below). On Vishnu's advice Indra feigned a friendship and made a truce with
Vrita. Then, after many years, Vishnu and Indra discovered the means to
penetrate Vrita's invisibility. One day, while they were walking on a seashore
at twilight - a time that was neither day nor night - the wily Vishnu gathered
the froth of the ocean - which was neither wet nor dry - and threw it at Vrita
standing at water's edge - a spot that was neither land nor water - engulfing
and choking the asura.
We read into the myth, core values of the deva and asura worshippers, as well
as the methods the deva-worshippers employed in order to co-exist for
generations with the dominant asura-worshippers: bidding their time while
plotting to gain power through subterfuge.
Div as Evil People
In Ferdowsi's epic, the kingdom of King Gaya Maretan was attacked by divs led by Ahriman's son - a battle that is discussed further below.
Div as Vices
The Shahnameh goes on to list in its pages nine principle vices called divs:
Az - greed
Niaz - desire
Khashm - wrath
Rashk - envy
Nang - dishonour
Kin - vengeance
Nammaam - tell-tale
Do-ruy - two-faced
Napak-din - heretic
These divs and vices closely parallel the daeva characteristics - the demonic personification of vices - mentioned in the Avesta. The vices are considered evil by Zoroastrians and the antithesis of the virtues of an ashavan.
Nature of the Div (Evil)
Book 3 of the
Denkard (a Middle Persian non-scriptural text) gives us interesting
observations into the perceived nature of the div: Evil has no creative powers.
If we extrapolate the statement we are led to the concept that Mazda, God, is
creative [Dk 3.40: "The Self-existent is One, and God alone has
created"], constructive and pure (cf. Pak Yazdan, a Pure Divinity) while
the div is the dualistic antithesis - it is destructive and polluting. Therefore
demonic forces cannot create. They can only pollute and contaminate, and
thereby cause evil or transform something good to evil - like a drop of poison
contaminating pure water and thereby transforming it from something life-giving
to something deathly. When entities through an act of choice, choose evil and
set about their acts of deception or destruction, they become that element of
evil [Dk. 3.144 "Because of wisdom (i.e. choice) that a person is a doer
of good or evil deeds". Also see Dk 3.33.].
The consequence is that since divs can only destroy, they will ultimately
destroy themselves - that is the promise of Zoroastrian eschatology. However,
the good must participate to bring about and facilitate that eventuality.
Other Denkard passages and Middle Persian texts question whether Ahriman and
the divs exist at all. Perhaps referring to Chapter 30 of the Gathas, they postulate that existence or
being is a result of the creative process from which life and goodness emerged.
The evil mind (akem-mano / aka-manah), other aspects of evil, and the
personification of evil, are progressions of being or existence's dual aspect -
the aspect of not-being or anti-existence. The symbolic analogy here is that
darkness is not an independent entity. It is the absence of light - it is
not-light. Darkness is banished instantly when light emerges [Dk 3.142: Where
there is much shining of light, there is permanence of light and disappearance
of darkness]. The banishment of darkness is enduring if the light is enduring
as with an ever-burning flame. Yet a flame is fragile. It is extinguished not
by darkness, but by the lack of attention by those who must nurture it and fed
it pure foods as a mind is fed the food of good thoughts and the body, good
deeds. It follows that Ahriman and the divs cannot exist independently, but
manifest themselves in the absence of goodness. Therefore evil would cease to
be manifest if goodness were all pervasive - an ultimate goal towards which
Zoroastrians dedicate themselves. Once again, the good must play an active part
for without the spread of light, without the maintenance of an ever-burning
flame, the darkness of evil cannot be banished. [cf. Dk 3.27, 33, 34, 40, 50,
130, 132, 142.]
3. Asura Worship
The Rig Veda or other Hindu religious
texts do not directly mention Mazda worship or Mazda worshippers. Rather, they
mention a set of deities who carry the title asura.
The word asura is the Vedic equivalent of the Avestan ahura. Avestan
words can frequently be changed to their Sanskrit equivalent by replacing h
with s. Ahura is in turn said to be derived from the word ahu, meaning lord. As
with the English word 'lord', ahu is a descriptive title for both a human lord
(e.g. a feudal lord or landlord) and a divine lord. In the Avesta, God or
Mazda, is sometimes addressed as Ahura (Lord) and sometimes as Ahura Mazda
(Lord God). The use of the words in this manner can also be found in the
Judeo-Christian Bible.
It is pertinent to note that in the older Veda, the Rig Veda, the term asura or
lord is used (as in the Avesta) for individual gods and for people - but never
for a group of gods. In other words, asura does not define a class of gods.
Rather it is a title. In these older Vedic texts, the term deva, however, is
used for both individual gods and the group of devas (visve devah). In other
words, deva is used both as a title - a superior god - and as the name for the
group of gods. Some gods with the title asura are also referred to as devas.
This nomenclature changes in the later Vedic texts, where the word asura is
used as a title and as the name of a group of gods, gods who had evolved into
demons.
There is a considerable difference in the way asuras are treated in the older
and younger Vedic texts and the difference may help us understand the manner in
which the Aryan religions, and the relationship between them, evolved.
In the earlier Vedas, the devas and asuras are said to have been born of a
common parent, but the asuras were the older (purva-deva) and stronger siblings
- powerful and beneficent gods who merited equal if not greater respect than
the devas.
In the later Vedic texts starting with the Atharva Veda, the asuras are
referred to in the plural, that is as a group of deities. It is also in these
later texts that the asuras are depicted as being opposed to the devas. In
conflicts between the two, the asuras were invariably victorious. The devas
were victorious when they used a ruse or received the help of a benefactor
trickster such as Vishnu.
In the post Vedic texts such as the Bhagavad-Gita,
Puranas
and Itihasas,
the asuras are transformed and treated as a group of demons who possess the
vices of pride, arrogance, conceit, anger, harshness, and ignorance (Gita
16.4). In the Brahmana
texts, the asuras are hostile and opposed to the devas with whom they are in
constant conflict.
However, no individual god who carries the title asura in the Rig Veda ever
appears as an inimical adversary of the deva gods in the later Hindu religious
texts, and none of the gods who bore the title asura in the older Rig Veda are
mentioned in these later texts. In other words, the asuras of the earlier texts
are not to be considered as demons. In one later text, the Upanishad,
the new character of the asuras are accompanied with a new word, sura, meaning
god, thereby implying that asura meant a-sura or a not-god.
It stands to reason that the change in the way the asuras were perceived by the
deva worshippers closely parallels the changes in the relations between the
asura and deva worshippers. There is an acknowledgement that the asura worship
preceded deva worship and that in the early years, the asura worshippers were
the dominant group.
A name that appears to be common to both the Avesta and
Vedas is the Vedic asura Mitra (also see below)
and the Avestan Mithra. In the Vedas, Mitra is often addressed together
with the asura Varuna.
While the Vedas tend to anthropomorphize all its deities, it is probable that
the asuras, Varuna, Mithra and Agni were originally invisible,
non-anthropomorphic, genderless, non-iconic deities (cf. the attributes of
Mazda) who may have been worshipped together as Asura worship or exclusively as
Mazda worship.
References:
Asura in Early Vedic Religion, Hale, Wash Edward (1986), Delhi, Motilal
Banarsidass
Review - Asura in Early Vedic Religion, Journal of the
American Oriental Society, The, Oct-Dec, 1993 by Stanley Insler.
Differences Between Deva & Asura Worship
In his book, The Hymns of Atharvan
Zarathushtra, Jatindra Mohan Chatterji calls the Rig Vedic devas the seen
gods, and asuras the unseen gods. In other words the devas like Indra
were anthropomorphic and capable of representation as idols, while the asuras
like Mitra were, for the main part, non-anthropomorphic and formless.
In the Rig Veda, the devas preside over natural phenomena and the exercise of
power and might while the asuras preside over the establishment of a moral and
social order. For instance, the deva Indra is guardian of the weather
and victory in battle earning the title sahasra-mushka, 'the one with a
thousand testicles' (Rig Veda 6.45.3), while the asuras Varuna and Mitra
are the guardians of the cosmic and moral laws of rita (cf. asha).
In the Rig Veda (4.42.1-6), when Varuna declares, "I, Varuna, am the king;
first for me were appointed the dignities of asura, the Lord. I let the dripping
waters rise up, and through rta I uphold the sky." Indra replies,
"Men who ride swiftly, having good horses, call on me when surrounded in
battle. I, the bountiful Indra, provoke strife. I whirl up the dust, my
strength is overwhelming... . No godlike power can check me - I who am
unassailable. When draughts of Soma, when songs have made me frenzied, then
both the unbounded regions are filled with fear." The hymns addressed to
Varuna are more ethical and devout in tone than the others, and form the most
noble or high-minded portion of the Rig Veda.
If the qualities of the gods reflect the values of the worshippers, then for
asura worshippers building and maintaining a peaceful society based on law and
order was a priority. For the deva worshippers, the priority would have been
the exercise of power through might and fear. The asuras are ethical where the
devas are materialistic. While in the Rig Veda both deities and their
respective allies are worshipped, Indra and deva worship clearly take precedence.
The largest number of Rig Vedic hymns are dedicated to Indra - nearly 250 out
of a total of 1028. Agni, an asura, is invoked in about 200 hymns, a greater
number than the number of hymns dedicated to Varuna.
In Buddhism, the asuras are seen as lesser deities who are never satisfied and
who continuously strive to better themselves. Zoroastrianism sees continuously
striving for improvement towards excellence as a fundamental purpose of life.
The characteristics assigned to the devas and asuras reflected what beliefs the
rulers and their supporting priests wished to promote in society. The ideal of
continuously striving to improve oneself could have promoted ambition amongst
the common people, while some rulers and priests may have thought it more desirable
to promote satisfaction or resignation to one's lot in life - a life that had
been divinely ordained. Rulers and priests so inclined would have promoted deva
worship that included the caste system rather than asura worship that saw
working to better oneself as a virtue and not a sin.
As in our example above, the differences between what the devas and asuras
represented became differences in core beliefs, values, the nature of human
beings, and the organization of society. These differences appear to have
become strong enough to produce a deep societal divide - a schism - with the
deva worshippers on one side, and the asura and Mazda worshippers on the other
side. The Mazda worshippers were the Iranian-Aryans, The deva worshippers are
generally thought of as being Indian-Aryans though they could have been any of
the non-Iranian groups.
Incorporation of Pre-Zoroastrian Asuras into Mazda Worship & Zoroastrianism
Some of the asuras
such as Mitra, are included in the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta,
as angels (fereshtes or yazatas) and guardians or lords
(ahuras/asuras) of core Zoroastrian values and ideals.
In the Avesta, the names of the yazatas are also names for core values and
ideals. For instance, as an angel in the Avesta, Mithra is the guardian of the
values and qualities associated with friendship. In day-to-day language, Mithra
means a friend, the ideals of loyal, trustworthy, caring and kind friendship
and the qualities of kindness, helpfulness and benevolence. As a core value
Mithra is the value of keeping of promises.
We do not know if the incorporation of asura worship into Mazda worship took
place before, during or after Zarathushtra's time. In the hymns of
Zarathushtra, the Gathas, Zarathushtra does not accommodate or incorporate the
asuras in the manner that we see elsewhere in the Avesta. Indeed, depending on
the interpretation of the Gathas being read, Zarathushtra can be seen as
preaching an uncompromising monotheism. Regardless of the interpretations that
abound, the Avesta taken as a whole together with Middle Persian literature and
Ferdowsi's Shahnameh provide the full spectrum of belief and a consistent
ethic. The texts are a repository of a rich heritage consisting of some of the
earliest literature and history known to humankind - a history interwoven with
the references to the asuras and daevas.
» Pre-Zoroastrian Aryan Religions & Religious Wars. Page 2
Appendix: Hindu Religious Texts
1. The Rig Veda contains hymns
(mantras) about the mythology and ancient Vedic practice
(At Wikipedia: Description,
Translations, also Mandalas. At
Sacred Texts: Sanskrit, English.);
2. The Sama Veda consists mainly of Rig Vedic mantras, arranged in the
order required to perform the Soma ritual. (At Sacred Texts);
3. The Yajur Veda contains instructions for the soma rituals in prose
(at Sacred
Texts); and
4. The Atharva Veda consists of spells against enemies, sorcerers,
diseases and mistakes made during the sacrificial ritual. It also outlines
royal duties and expounds on spiritual matters. (At Sacred
Texts)
Each of the four Vedas are divided into two sections:
1. The Samhita or mantras, hymns, and
2. The Brahmanas - commentaries, interpretation and instructions for the
the rituals.
The Brahmanas are further sub-divided into two sections;
1. The Aranyakas, description of especially dangerous rituals such as
the Mahavrata and Pravargya, and
2. The Upanishads (see below)
Upanishads
The Upanishad , meaning sitting near (the teacher), are philosophical and metaphysical writings about the relationship between the soul and Brahman. Collectively, the Upanishads are called the Vedanta, the end of the Veda, because they appear at the end of each Veda, and because they are considered the culmination of Vedic knowledge.
Notes on the Vedas
The predominant deities of the Vedas, headed by Indra, are different from those in later, post-Vedic Hinduism. The central story of the Vedas is Indra's battle and eventual killing of the asura Vrita. The ritual focus is that of the yajna (cf. Avestan yasna) - the act of worship. The spiritual focus is in joining ancestral souls in the Vedic equivalent of heaven. The concept of reincarnation would enter Hinduism in the post-Vedic period. Reincarnation is not an native Aryan concept. The doctrinal focus is the purva or original mimamsa - inquiry or investigation.
Post Vedic Scriptures
1. Itihasas (epics like the Ramayana,
Mahabharata). The heroes of the epics are avatars, incarnation of God,
Vishnu, as human being: Rama, in the Ramayana, and Krishna, in the Mahabharata.
Unlike the gods of the Vedas and the mystic all-pervading and formless Brahman
in the Brahmanas, the avatars are developed loving and righteous personalities
(Sacred Texts: Ramayana) ;
2. Puranas (mythology),
3. Agamas (theological treatises)
3. Darshanas (philosophical texts), and
5. Dharmashastras (law books)
Bhagavad-Gita
Also known as the Gita, the Bhagavad Gita (meaning the song of God) is a section of the Mahabharata where Krishna exhorts the devotee to abandon the mortal self and give oneself to the infinite love of God. By loving God a person loves the immortal self, and thereby finds harmony and peace with the universe.
Puranas
The Puranas consist of narratives ranging from the history of the universe from creation to destruction, cosmology, philosophy, geography, genealogies and myths of kings, heroes, sages, and demigods. Some individual Puranas feature a particular deity and their exploits such as Durga-Devi and her killing of Mahish-Asura. The Puranas are usually written in the form of stories told by one person to another.
Notes on the Post-Vedic Scriptures
In the post-Vedic scriptures, the focus of veneration of Indra in the Rig Veda, is replaced by the worship of Vishnu, Shiva and (Durga) Devi. Although Vishnu was a Vedic deity, he rises to pre-eminence in the post-Vedic scriptures. The Vedic yajna is replaced by a different religious ritual called the puja. The ritualistic purva mimamsa is replaced by the speculative philosophies of Vedanta also called the uttar, or later, mimamsa.
References to Asuras - Chronological Order in Vedic texts
Rig Veda books I, VIII, X; Atharva Veda; Sama Veda, Rig Veda Khilas (supplementary chapters) and the mantras of the Yajur Veda; Brahmanas.
Aryan Homeland & Neighbouring Lands in the Avesta
The homeland of the Aryans, or Aryan
lands was called Airyana Vaeja or Airyanam Dakhyunam in the
Avesta and Arya Varta in the Vedas.
The books of the Avesta as well as the Middle Persian Pahlavi texts such as the
Lesser Bundahishn, tell us that Airyana Vaeja, the Aryan homeland, was where
Zarathushtra's father lived (20.32) and where
Zarathushtra first expounded his beliefs (32.3).
In addition to mentioning Airyana Vaeja, the Zoroastrian scriptures, the books
of the Avesta, also mention neighbouring nations or lands.
These references, along with references to the terrain and weather in Airyana
Vaeja, give us clues about the location of the original Aryan homeland, as well
as information about the Aryan people, their neighbours, and their
relationships.
Earliest Mention of the Lands - Farvardin Yasht
Lands of Zarathushtra's Ministry
A chapter of the Avesta that has the
most intimate knowledge of Zarathushtra and his first followers, is the
Avesta's Farvardin Yasht - chapter 10 of the book of Yashts.
The Yasht (13.143 & 144) lists the names of individuals who were
the first "hearers and teachers" of Zarathushtra's teachings. The
Yasht memorializes and reveres the fravashis (spiritual souls) of these first
"hearers and teachers" of Zarathushtra's teachings. In addition to
specific names, it also memoralizes all the righteous people in the five
nations as well as those "all countries". The five nations mentioned
are Airyana Vaeja (called Airyanam Dakhyunam in the Yasht) as well as four
neighbouring lands. These four lands neighbouring Airyana Vaeja are Tuirya,
Sairima, Saini and Dahi. Since -nam is a usual ending for
many Avestan nouns, the nations are also named as Airyanam, Tuiryanam, Dahinam,
Sairimanam and Saininam.
Since the surviving texts of Zarathushtra's teachings, the hymns of the Gathas,
are in one language, we can say it is reasonable to assume that the nations in
which Zarathushtra spread his message were neighbours and spoke the same
language and dialect as well. For his message (which reference pre-Zoroastrian
beliefs) to have relevance, these peoples also likely shared the same, or
variations of the same, pre-Zoroastrian religion. We may conclude this
assumption by saying the five founding Zoroastrian nations likely shared the
same culture and ethnicity. In terms of size, we are left with the impression
that they can be compared to districts with a province today. The Gathas of
Zarathushtra are placed in the Avestan book of Yasna. While their language is
the same, the dialect of the other verses is different from that of the Gathas.
They were either written by followers at a different point in time or in a
neighbouring region that spoke a different dialect.
Other than Airyana Vaeja, none of the Farvardin Yasht's nations are mentioned
in the Vendidad's
list of Zoroastrian nations. The Vendidad is a book of the Zoroastrian
scriptures. Even though the Vendidad list preceded the formation of Media and
Persian making it over two thousand eight hundred years old, the nations are
for the most part recognizable today and we may conclude that the Vendidad list
is far more modern than the list of five nations of the Farvardin Yasht cited
in the paragraph above. Those nations either changed their names or became
parts of other nations.
Dahi, for instance find mention only once in King Xerxes' list of countries
that were part of the Persian empire. But in other lists and by the accounts of
Greek writers such as Strabo, it was a part of the Saka nations, two of which
find regular mention as part of the Persian Empire.
Tuirya is identified with Turan which later became known as Sugd. Dahi as a
name continued to exist, Dahi being one of the Saka nations. We do not as yet
known the present identity of the other lands.
Bakhdhi / Balkh (Bactria), which is noted in Ferdowsi's
Shahnameh (see Shahnameh
page 30) and other later tradition as a land where Zarathushtra spread his
message, is not mentioned in the Farvardin Yasht. However, Kava Vishtasp, Kava
being a title of the Kayanian kings of Bakhdhi / Balkh, is mentioned in the
Farvardin Yasht.
King Vishtasp of Bakhdi / Balkh
Among the Farvardin Yasht's list of
Zarathushtra's first "hearers and teachers" is Kavoish Vishtaspahe
(Kava Vishtasp) (13.99). In the Yasht, Kava Vishtasp has a special place
having a verse devoted to him. The common extrapolation is that Kava Vishtasp
is the Kai Gushtasp (Gushtasp is a later form of Vishtasp) mentioned in later
texts which also state that King Vishtasp's / Gushtasp's capital was Bakhdhi or
Bakhdi, i.e. present day Balkh in Northern Afghanistan.
Bakhdi is listed as a nation in the Vendidad but not in the Farvardin Yasht.
These later texts also tell us that Zarathushtra died in Bakhdi/Balkh, killed
by a Turanian.
Balkh is directly south of Samarkand over an eastern spur of the Pamir
mountains. The predecessors of present day Samarkand and Balkh are among the
first nations listed in another (and later) book of the Avesta - the Vendidad.
Nations listed in the Avesta
In addition to the Farvardin Yasht, two
other sections of the Avesta provide us with names of nations associated with
the Aryans, the Vendidad and the Meher Yasht.
The Avestan book of Vendidad starts with a list of sixteen nations (Chapter 1, 1-16), the first being Airyanem Vaejo or Airyana
Vaeja.
Other than the Aryan homeland Airyanem Vaeja (Airyanam Dakhyunam in the
Farvardin Yasht), the Vendidad does not mention the four other lands mentioned
in the Farvardin Yasht (see
above). Nor does the Farvardin Yasht mention any of the fifteen other lands
mentioned in the Vendidad. Three of the five Farvardin Yasht nations are not
known to us. The nations of the Vendidad can be more readily identified. The
only land common to both lists is the Aryan homeland. This, the other
information contained, and the language used in the texts indicate to us that
the Farvardin Yasht and the Vendidad were written at very different times, the
Farvardin Yasht being the older. The Vendidad itself was probably composed well
before 800 BCE since it does not list Persia or Media (also see
below), making the Farvardin Yasht an ancient composition.
The Meher Yasht also provides names of nations in 10.13-14. The Aryan
homeland is called Airyo Shayanem. Three of the nations mentioned in the Meher
Yasht, Mourum, Haroyum and Sughdhem i.e. Margush, Aria and Suguda, are also
part of the Vendidad list. Sughdhem is associated with the word Gava in the
Meher Yasht.
Depending on whether some of the words in the Meher Yasht are names of
countries, one or three additional lands are mentioned in the Meher Yasht which
are not part of the Vendidad list: Khairizem (associated with Kharazem i.e.
Khvarizem). Khairizem has been touted by a few authors as being the original
home of Zoroastrianism. This is unlikely and Kharazem likely gained this
reputation because at one time before the rise of Persia, Kharazem / Khvarizem
/ Khairizem was the dominant nation amongst the Aryan nations - and its lands
could have expanded to include ancient Airyana Vaeja. The other two possible
nations in the Meher Yasht are Aishkatem and Pourutem (some authors believe
these are names of nations while others believe they are words that are part of
the text).
The list of nations in the Vendidad is the most complete and one that provides
us with information we can use in narrowing down the location of Airyana Vaeja.
Persia not Part of the Original Listing of Vendidad Lands
The Vendidad, and indeed the entire Avesta, does not mention Persia or Media. This was because Persia and Media became nations after the Avestan canon was closed. However, The Achaemenian Persian Kings (c. 700 - 330 BCE) repeatedly proclaimed their Aryan heritage.
Sixteen Nations of the Vendidad
The list of sixteen nations in the Vendidad is as follows:
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"Good Lands and Countries" of the Vendidad |
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Vendidad Name |
Alternative Spelling |
Old Persian/ Pahlavi |
Greek / Western |
Present Name |
Features: - Good & |
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Airyana Vaeja |
Airan Vej (Phl.) |
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Iran |
- Good & lawful |
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Sughdha |
Suguda (OP) |
Sugd, Northwest Tajikistan, |
- Good land |
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3. Mourum |
Mouru |
Margu (OP) |
Marv / Merv, |
- Brave, holy |
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4. Bakhdhim |
Bakhdhi |
Bakhtrish (OP) |
Balkh, |
- Uplifted banner |
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5. Nisaim |
Nisaya |
Parthava (OP) |
N. Khorasan
(NE Iran) & Nisa |
- Good land |
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6. Haroyum |
Haroyu |
Haraiva (OP) |
Hari Rud (Herat), |
- Plentiful water |
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7. Vaekeretem |
Khnenta Vaekerata |
Kalpul (Phl.) |
Sattagydia |
Kabul, |
- Good land |
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8. Urvam |
Urva |
Uvarazmiya/Uvarazmish |
Khorezm, Uzbekistan |
- Rich pastures |
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Vehrkana |
Varkana (OP) |
Gorgan,
Golestan, |
- Good land |
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10. Harahvaitim |
Harahvaiti |
Harauvatish (OP) |
Arachosia |
Kandahar & Oruzan |
- Beautiful |
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11. Haetumantem |
Haetumant |
Zraka (OP) |
Drangiana |
Helmand - SE Afghanistan & |
- Brilliant, glorious |
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12. Rakham |
Ragha |
Raga (OP) |
Ragai |
Rai, Tehran & S. Alburz, |
- Three peoples |
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13. Chakhrem* |
Kakhra |
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Uncertain: Either Ghazni, SE Afghanistan or just west of Rai, N. Iran |
- Brave, righteous |
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14. Varenem |
Varena |
Patashkh-vargar or Dailam (Phl.) |
Western Hyrcania |
W. Mazandaran, Gilan & Northern Alburz (land of Mt. Damavand) North Iran |
- Home of Thraetaona (Feridoon) |
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15. Hapta Hendu** |
Hapta Hindu |
Hindava (OP) |
Indus |
Northern valley of the seven Indus
rivers** (Upper Indus Basin) |
- Wide expanses |
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16. Ranghaya |
Rangha |
later part of Arvastani Rum (Phl.) i.e. Eastern Roman empire |
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Lake Urmia, Upper Tigris, Kurdistan, Eastern & Central Turkey |
- Good land |
*Chakhrem is used in Yasht 13.89 and
means wheel (or revolving; cf. Persian charkh meaning wheel) and is used there
as chakhrem urvaesayata in the context of Zarathushtra being the first
member of every professional guild opposed to the daevas. Avestan Chakhrem
urvaesayata is similar to the Sanskrit chakhram vartay and chakhravartin
meaning 'chariot over the land' or 'ruler'. The western Mitanni were known for
their expertise in chariot-building and this may or may not have relevance.
** The seven Indus Rivers, Hapta Hindu (nation
#15 above), are: 1. the Indus (Veda-Sindhu), the 2. Kabul and 3. Kurram rivers
joining on the west and north banks of the Indus, and the 4. Jhelum (Veda-Vitasta), 5. Chenab
(Veda-Asikni), 6. Ravi (Veda-Airovati), and 7. Sutlej/Beas
(Veda-Vipasa) rivers joining the Indus' east and south banks. (There is some
discussion that the Saraswati River mentioned in Hindu Vedic texts was also an
Indus tributary - though this is not clear.) The Hindu texts are mainly
concerned with the eastern & southern tributaries while the Zoroastrian
texts are concerned with the upper reaches of the Indus and all its tributaries
whose valleys would have provided access to the plains - areas north and west
of the Punjab (Panj-ab meaning five waters in Persian) - i.e. present-day
North-West Frontier Province in Northern Pakistan, Northern Punjab and Kashmir
in India and Pakistan.
*** Gandhara/Waihind. The land of the upper Indus basin was known as Gandhara
or Waihind. Today, the region has Peshawar, Mardan, Mingora and Chitral as its
main cities. It would have extended into all the habitable valleys of the
south-eastern Hindu Kush. The Gandhara/Waihind region includes the Indus, Swat,
Chitral and Kabul River valleys. It may have extended south to Takshashila
(Taxila) (near present-day Islamabad) and present-day Jalalabad, Afghanistan,
in the west, thus bordering Vaekerata (Kabul) to the east.
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Nations of the Vendidad, Avesta |
Pattern in the Listing of Nations
There is a pattern in the listing:
1. The first three nations listed after Airyana Vaeja are in the southern
Uzbekistan, southern Turkmenistan, northern Afghanistan area. The balance of
the list of nations fan out, moving west and south in steps. The last two
nations are the most southeast and west of the initial group.
2. The nations border one another. The nation listed next to Airyana Vaeja is
Sukhdho/Sughdha - modern day Sugd in northern Tajikistan and southern
Uzbekistan.
3. The nations are all along the Aryan Trading routes - what are now called the
Silk
Roads (also see Tajikistan
pages) - an ancient set of trading roads between the Orient, the Occident
and the Indian sub-continent.
Relationship Between Airyana Vaeja and the Other Nations of the Avesta
The sixteen nations listed in the
Vendidad were selected by the author or authors of the Vendidad from among the
nations of the known world. The list is therefore not a list of the world's
nations, but a list of nations connected with Airyana Vaeja. The Vendidad
nations listed after Airyana Vaeja, are those to which Aryans migrated from
Airyana Vaeja, intermingling as they did, with the peoples of those lands.
While Zoroastrian-Aryans inhabited these lands, they were not necessarily the
majority people in these lands.
All of the Vendidad nations would at some point come together as part of the
larger Aryan, Iranian, or Persian empires.
Migration of the Aryans and Expansion of Aryan Lands
Before the era of legendary King
Jamshid, see (Aryan Prehistory and Location
of Aryan Homeland), the original Aryan homeland in the Avesta, Airyana
Vaeja, could not have been very large. However, starting in the Jamshidi era
and continuing up to the establishment of the Achaemenian Persian empire under Darius the Great, the
Aryan lands did grow considerably in size.
The Zoroastrian Avesta, the Hindu Vedas and other texts tell us that the Aryans migrated out
of Airyana Vaeja and that the lands associated with the Aryans increased in
size for the following reasons:
1. An increase in population during the Jamshidi era.
2. Climate change to severe winters and short summers.
3. Trading with neighbouring lands and settlement of significant populations in
these lands.
4. Establishment of kingdoms through settlement or conquest. A federation of
these kingdoms during the Feridoon Era / Pishdadian dynasty.
5. Inter-Aryan wars. The schism between the deva and Mazda worshippers cf.
reign of King Vishtasp and life of Zarathushtra
6. Establishment of the Persian empire that included the original federation of
kingdoms as well as additional lands.
These points are discussed further below.
As the Aryans migrated to the lands of their neighbours, they did not displace the original inhabitants. When the Persian Aryans eventually settled the southern Iran plateau, the area was populated by the Elamites with whom the Persians integrated. An examination of the present linguistic composition of Iran reveals that other, non Indo-Iranian linguistic groups are interspersed among Persian linguistic groups.
1. Jamshidi Era Expansion. Growth of Airyana Vaeja
The Vendidad tells us that in the first part of his reign,
legendary King Jamshid had doubled the extent of his lands to accommodate a
population increase. (The ancient Avestan name for King Jamshid was Yima-Srira
or Yima-Khshaeta, meaning Yima the radiant. He was similarly called Yama in the
Hindu scriptures, the Vedas.) Depending on how one interprets the texts, the
expansion could have been much larger - up to four and a half times in extent.
The expansion of lands was "southwards, on the way of the sun," which
could mean southward from the east to the west of Airyana Vaeja.
The Hindu Vedas state that the land procured by Yama (King Jamshid) became the
homeland of the Hindus.
Gateway to the Aryan Hindu Lands
The Hindu Rig and Atharva Vedas state:
1. Worship with oblation Yama the King, son of Vivasvat,
the assembler of people,
who departed from the deep to the heights,
and explored the road for many.
2. Yama was the first who found for us the route.
This home is not to be taken from us.
Those who are now born,
(go) by their own routes
to the place whereunto our ancient forefathers emigrated.
(Atharva Veda xviii.1.49 & Rig Veda x.14.1)
...they cross by fords the mighty streams
which the virtuous offerers of sacrifice pass
(Atharva Veda xviii.4.7)
The Hindu reverence for Yama, King Jamshid, grew at the same time when he lost
favour with the Mazdayasni predecessors of the Zoroastrians, who record that
King Yima lost his grace, grew too proud and thought himself a god. The Vedic
verses appear to state that the lands Yima acquired became part of the
permanent home of the Hindus - a land that would grow to include the entire
Indian subcontinent, and would become separate from the original Aryan
homeland. The comment above regarding a home that "cannot be taken from
us," indicates a previous vulnerability of the predecessors of the Hindus in
the original Aryan Homeland at the time the Vedas were written - a
vulnerability either from foreign or internal foes.
It is unlikely that the expansion during the Jamshidi era included the river
plains such as the lands that make up the Punjab today. Expansion into the
Indus plains would take place later in history. Hapta-Hindu, the seven Indus
lands that would include the plains, is the fifteenth, and last but one, nation
in the Vendidad's list of nations. The part of upper Indus occupied during the
Jamshidi era would include what are today's Eastern Afghanistan, the north of
Pakistan and India - the areas on both sides i.e. just north and south of the Hindu
Kush and Karakoram mountains. The limited size of the expansion is further
indication that the original Aryan homeland was not very large.
During the Jamshidi era, the lands just north and south of the Hindu Kush and
Karakoram were united. They would later separate politically and the two
mountain ranges, especially the Hindu Kush formed the primary border between
the two kingdoms.
There is yet another factor that links the upper Indus, the Hapta-Hindu with
the area immediately to the north and north-west i.e. the Badakshan-Pamir
region: the Rig Veda is commonly thought to have been written in the Upper Indus
region, and the language of the Rig Veda and the Old Avesta are so close that
they are commonly thought to be dialects such as that spoken in two
neighbouring provinces and that further, they emerged from a common language
philologists call Proto Indo-Iranian, another name for the language of united
ancient Aryans. [Also
see our page on Languages.]
2. Jamshidi Era Climate Change
The Vendidad and other texts also inform
us that at the outset of the Jamshedi era, the weather in the Aryan homeland,
Airyana Vaeja was fair and equitable, with the spring equinox heralding the
start of spring and a renewal after the winter. However, a thousand two hundred
years after the start of the Jamshedi era, there was a sudden climate chill (Vendidad
2.22-25) and a drastic cooling (also see Location of the Aryan homeland) and our page Aryan Prehistory - a mini Ice Age of sorts.
This sudden cooling could have encouraged further Aryan migration to the warmer
portions of the expanded Jamshidi lands
3. Aryan Trade
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Trading Roads (later called Silk Roads) c. 2000 BCE |
The Aryans started trading between themselves in the expanded Jamshedi lands as well as with their neighbours very early in their history - during the Stone Ages. Aryan trade is closely linked to Aryan migration and the sixteen Vendidad nations. A more detailed discussion can be found on our page on Aryan Trade.
Aryan Trade Routes - the Silk Roads
The Aryan trade routes would come to be
known as the Silk Roads. Aryan trade extended from China in the east, to Asia
Minor and Mesopotamia in the west, to the Iranian plateau and the Indus valley
in the south.
Sogdian
Aryan trading settlements have been found in China. Indeed, the earliest
known manuscript of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta, written in Sogdian,
has been found in China.
(Also see our page on Tajikistan.)
The pattern of the Vendidad's list of nations we noted above, moves from the
Central Asian core, progressively west and south along the Aryan Trading (Silk)
Roads into present-day Turkey and Pakistan.
[After the Zoroastrians migrated to India following the Arab invasion of Iran,
they revived their tradition of trading between the east and west, becoming
wealthy in the process.]
Trading allowed the Aryans to become familiar with, and later settle in, the
lands along the Silk Road. As the Aryans established permanent trading posts in
neighbouring lands, they also established settlements that became communities.
4. Feridoon Era Federation of Kingdoms. First Aryan Empire. Transformation to Airan
According to the Poet Ferdowsi's epic,
the Shahnameh, during the reign of legendary King Feridoon, the
lands he ruled came to include what we know as the sixteen lands mentioned in
the Vendidad. Feridoon decided to divide his sprawling empire the amongst his
three sons. To his eldest son Tur, he gave the eastern lands with its capital
in Turan - a nation that got its name from Tur. To his son Iraj, Feridoon gave Airan
(the country that Airyana Vaeja had evolved into) and Hind (Hapta Hindu, the
upper Indus lands). To his son Salm, Feridoon gave the western kingdoms. Tur,
however, felt that as the eldest son he had been slighted, for the lands of
Airan and Hind were the gems of the empire and the seat of its power. No sooner
had Feridoon divided his kingdom between his sons, that the jealous and
ambitious Tur persuaded Salm to join him in a plot to murder Iraj.
Within this legend is history. If we replace the Airan empire with the Airan
people, this myth tells us that the Aryans had spread to present day Turkey in
the west, the upper Indus valley in the south, to the borders of China in the
east and the deserts of the north. Further, the wars between the different
Aryan lands were internecine conflicts that punctuate Aryan history. By the
time of Feridoon, the centre of the Aryan nation had move to Bakhdhi (Balkh or
Bactria). (Also see our page on Turan.)
(Also see Legendary
Kings. Pishdadian Dynasty Part II)
5. Inter Aryan Wars
The internecine wars mentioned above included wars between the Aryan religious groups, the Mazda-Asura worshippers and the deva worshippers. The religious groups, their beliefs and the wars are discussed in our page on Aryan Religions.
6. Persian empire
The Achaemenian king, Cyrus II, the
Great (c. 600 to 576 - August 530 BCE), established the Persian empire and the
expansion continued under the reign of Darius I, the Great (522- 486 BCE). The
sixteen nations of the Vendidad made up the core of the nations that became
part of the Persian empire. Indeed, it may be said that the Persians by creating
the third Aryan empire, sought to unify all the Aryan lands (see
Aryana below) by continuing the tradition of legendary King
Feridoon who established the first Aryan empire, and the Medes
who established the second Aryan empire.
The nations listed by Darius the Great, King of Persia on an inscription at
Naqsh-e-Rustam as part of his Persian empire are: Pârsa (Persia), Mâda (Media),
Ûvja (Elam), Parthava (Parthia), Haraiva (Aria), Bâxtrish (Bactria), Suguda
(Sogdiana), Uvârazmish (Chorasmia), Zraka (Drangiana), Harauvatish (Arachosia),
Thatagush (Sattagydia), Gadâra (Gandara), Hidush (Sind), Sakâ haumavargâ
(Amyrgian Scythians), Sakâ tigraxaudâ (Scythians with pointed caps), Bâbirush
(Babylonia), Athurâ (Assyria), Arabâya (Arabia), Mudrâya (Egypt), Armina
(Armenia), Katpatuka (Cappadocia), Sparda (Sardis), Yauna (Ionia / Greece),
Sakâ tyaiy paradraya (Scythians who are across the sea), Skudra (Skudra), Yaunâ
takabarâ (petasos-wearing Ionians), Putâyâ (Libyans), Kûshiyâ (Ethiopians),
Maciyâ (people of Maka), Karkâ (Carians). See map of the Persian Achaemenian Empire.
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Darius' listing of Persian Empire
nations |
Greater Aryana - Classical References
Classical Hellenic authors such as
Strabo mention the lands of Ariana or Aryana and make a
distinction between the collection of kingdoms that formed Aryana and the
country or kingdom of Aria.
Strabo (2.1.31) implies that Ariana was a single national group whose members
formed the different Aryan kingdoms: "Ariana is not so accurately
described (as India being in the shape of a quadrilateral or rhomboid by
Eratosthenes), on account of its western side being interwoven with the
adjacent lands (of Persia and Media). Still it is pretty well distinguished by
its three other sides, which are formed by three nearly straight lines (see
following paragraph), and also by its name (Aryana, meaning land of the
Aryans), which shows it to be only one nation."
In the estimation of the Hellenic authors, Aryana included the larger group of
Aryan kingdoms including Aria, and was bordered by the Indus river in the east
(Pomponius Mela 1.12 states that "nearest to India is Ariana, then
Aria". Strabo 15.2.1 also states "Next to India is Ariana"), the
sea in the south, a line from Carmania (Kerman) to the Caspian Gates in the
west, and the Taurus Mountains (the chains for mountains that run west-east
from Anatolia and which include the Himalayas) in the north.
The land of Aryana included Media, Persia, the deserts of Gedrosia and
Carmania, that is, the provinces of Carmania, Gedrosia, Drangiana, Arachosia
(Strabo 11.10.1 ), Aria, the Paropamisadae, Bactria (called the ornament of
Ariana), Apollodorus of Artemita (Strabo 11.11.1) and Sogdiana where
Zarathushtra is said to have preached Ahura Mazda's laws "among the
Arianoi" (cf. Diodorus 1.94.2). These observations reconfirm the sixteen
nations of the Vendidad as being part of the Greater Aryan nation and add to
that list of nations the later more modern nations of Persia, Media, Carmania
(Kerman) and Chorasmia. This Greater Ariana formed the core of the Persian
Empire. Aelianus in De natura animalium 16.16, also mentions that there
were "Indian Arianians" and there is some suggestion that control of
Ariana fluctuated between Indian and Arian Arianians.
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Map of Ariana based on Eratosthenes' data in Strabo's Geography |
Strabo's Description of Greater Aryana
Strabo describes the extent of Greater
Aryana, a land that stretched about
(Strabo 15.2.1. Translation by H. C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): Next to India
(the Avestan Hapta-Hindu, the upper Indus and its tributaries) is Ariana, the
first portion of the country subject to the Persians, lying beyond the Indus,
and the first of the higher satrapies without the Taurus (Classical Hellenic
writers appear to have believed that a single mountain chain, the Taurus, ran
east-west through Asia). On the north it (Ariana) is bounded by the same
mountains as India (extensions of the Himalayas and mountains radiating from
the Pamir knot, i.e. the Taurus), on the south by the same sea, and by the same
river Indus, which separates it from India. It stretches thence towards the
west as far as the line drawn from the Caspian Gates (Caspiæ Pylæ ) to
Carmania, whence its figure is quadrilateral. The southern side begins from the
mouths of the Indus, and from Patalene, and terminates at Carmania and the
mouth of the Persian Gulf, by a promontory projecting a considerable distance
to the south. It then makes a bend towards the gulf in the direction of Persia.
(Strabo 15.2.1. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): After India one comes to
Ariana, the first portion of the country subject to the Persians after the
Indus River and of the upper satrapies situated outside the Taurus. Ariana is
bounded on the south and on the north by the same sea and the same mountains as
India, as also by the same river, the Indus, which flows between itself and
India; and from this river it extends towards the west as far as the line drawn
from the Caspian Gates to Carmania, so that its shape is quadrilateral. Now the
southern side begins at the outlets of the Indus and at Patalenê, and ends at
Carmania and the mouth of the Persian Gulf, where it has a promontory that
projects considerably towards the south; and then it takes a bend into the gulf
in the direction of Persis.
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Present-day map of the Indus River basin |
[Our note: the River Indus in the upper
section rises to the north-northeast, then turns to the east and eventually
rises to the southeast with its headwaters in present day Tibet.
[Note continued: Primary Boundary Between Aryana and Hapta Hindu. It is
either the river itself or the mountains, the Hindu Kush and Karakoram
on the Indus' left bank, that formed the primary boundary between ancient
northern India and Aryana. The name Hindi-Kush which is the Persian word for
Hindu-Killer, is significant as it implies a natural barrier to the invading
Hindu during any wars between the two groups. Today these mountains form the
border between present day Pakistan & India on the right bank and
Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Tibet on the left bank.
[Note continued: Just north of the Karakoram mountains (also called Kara Kunlun
with the Baltoro Muztagh and Gujerab as sub-ranges) that like the Hindu Kush,
stems from the Pamirs mountains (today mainly in Tajikistan). The region south
of the Karakoram, that is between the heights of the range and the Indus River
is called Gilgit-Baltistan, a part of Kashmir. A narrow region north of
the Karakoram and presently a part of China, is called Tash-Korgan/Tashkurgan,
an autonomous Tajik populated region. The Pamiri region includes the Kunlun
mountain range that forms the eastern Tajikistan border (with China), and
cities east of the range and presently in China: Tashkurgan, Khotan/Hotan, and
Kashgar/Kashi. The Tajik and Pamiri inhabited areas line the region north of
the Karakoram and Hindu Kush and these areas were all part of Greater Aryana.
[Note continued: The Takla Makan (Taklamakan) desert, nearly
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Balochistan / Baluchistan Region 1900s. Click to see a larger map |
[Note continued: Strabo's western
boundary for Aryana runs north-south from the Caspian Gates (just east of
present-day Tehran-Rey) to Carmania (Kerman-Hormuz). Strabo therefore considers
the territory of Aryana to included all of present-day Eastern Iran,
Afghanistan, Western Pakistan and Tajikistan. This is a Greater Aryana as
neither the lesser Aria (present-day Herat Province, Afghanistan) nor a single
satrapy of this enormous size continued to exist during Strabo's or Achaemenian
times. The territory described by Strabo includes most of the core Aryan
Vendidad nations.]
(Strabo 15.2.1. Translation by H. C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): The Arbies,
who have the same name as the river Arbis (today's Porali River, Balochistan,
Pakistan), are the first inhabitants we meet with in this country (about
(Strabo 15.2.1. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): Ariana is inhabited first
by the Arbies, whose name is like that of the River Arbis, which forms the
boundary between them and the next tribe, the Oreitae; and the Arbies have a
seaboard about one thousand stadia in length, as Nearchus says; but this too is
a portion of India. Then one comes to the Oreitae, an autonomous tribe. The
coasting voyage along the country of this tribe is one thousand eight hundred
stadia in length, and the next, along that of the Ichthyophagi, seven thousand
four hundred, and that along the country of the Carmanians as far as Persis,
three thousand seven hundred, so that the total voyage is twelve thousand nine
hundred stadia.
(Strabo 15.2.3. Translation by H. C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): Above the
Ichthyophagi is situated Gedrosia (Makran), a country less exposed to the heat
of the sun than India, but more so than the rest of Asia.
(Strabo 15.2.3. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): Above the country of the
Ichthyophagi is situated Gedrosia, a country less torrid than India, but more
torrid than the rest of Asia.
(Strabo 15.2.8. Translation by H. C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): The position
of the southern side of Ariana is thus situated, with reference to the
sea-coast, the country of the Gedrosii (today's Baluchistan) and the Oritæ
lying near and below it (eastern Makran coast).
(Strabo 15.2.8. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): Such, then, on the
southern side of Ariana, is about the geographical position of the seaboard and
of the lands of the Gedrosii and Oreitae, which lands are situated next above
the seaboard.
[Our note: While saying that the Arbis and Oreitae were the first people
encountered in Ariana while leaving India, Strabo also seems to say that they
are part of India and then again the Oreitae were autonomous. What we may
derive is that at one point in time, Arbis and Oreitae were part of ancient
Aryana. The distances:
(Strabo 15.2.8. Translation by H. C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): Eratosthenes
(276 - c. 195 BCE) speaks in the following manner and we cannot give a better
description: "Ariana," he says, "is bounded on the east by the
Indus, on the south by the Great Sea (i.e. Arabian Sea, then considered part of
the Indian Ocean), on the north by the Paropamisus and the succeeding chain of
mountains (today's Elburz in north-eastern Iran) as far as the Caspian Gates
(approaching today's Tehran i.e. north-central Iran and then a part of Media), on
the west by the same limits by which the territory of the Parthians is
separated from Media, and Carmania (today's Kerman) from Parætacene (modern
Isfahan?) and Persia.
(Strabo 15.2.8. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): It is a large country,
and even large country, and even Gedrosia reaches up into the interior as far
as the Drangae, the Arachoti, and the Paropamisadae, concerning whom
Eratosthenes has spoken as follows (for I am unable to give any better
description). He says that Ariana is bounded on the east by the Indus River, on
the south by the great sea, on the north by the Paropamisus mountain and the
mountains that follow it as far as the Caspian Gates, and that its parts on the
west are marked by the same boundaries by which Parthia is separated from Media
and Carmania from Paraetacenê and Persis.
(Strabo 15.2.8 continued. Translation by H.C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): The
breadth of the country is the length of the Indus, reckoned from the
Paropamisus as far as the mouths of that river, and amounts to 12,000, or
according to others to 13,000, stadia (2,400-
(Strabo 15.2.8 continued. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): He says that
the breadth of the country is the length of the Indus from the Paropamisus
mountain to the outlets, a distance of twelve thousand stadia (though some say thirteen
thousand); and that its length from the Caspian Gates, as recorded in the work
entitled Asiatic Stathmi, is stated in two ways: that is, as far as Alexandreia
in the country of the Arii, from the Caspian Gates through the country of the
Parthians, there is one and the same road; and then, from there, one road leads
in a straight line through Bactriana and over the mountain pass into Ortospana
to the meeting of the three roads from Bactra, which city is in the country of
the Paropamisadae; whereas the other turns off slightly from Aria towards the
south to Prophthasia in Drangiana, and the remainder of it leads back to the
boundaries of India and to the p143Indus; so that this road which leads through
the country of the Drangae and Arachoti is longer, its entire length being
fifteen thousand three hundred stadia. But if one should subtract one thousand
three hundred, one would have as the remainder the length of the country in a
straight line, fourteen thousand stadia; for the length of the seacoast is not
much less,125 although some writers increase the total, putting down, in
addition to the ten thousand stadia, Carmania with six thousand more; for they
obviously reckon the length either along with the gulfs or along the part of
the Carmanian seacoast that is inside the Persian Gulf.
[Our note: *2,800 km. This is a tremendous length. Even if we curve the road,
the length exceeds the distance between today's Tehran, Iran and Hotan/Khotan
that is part of Eastern China today. Significantly, this includes Tajikistan.]
(Strabo 15.2.8 continued. Translation by H.C. Hamilton & W. Falconer): The
name also of Ariana is extended so as to include some part of Persia, Media,
and the north of Bactria and Sogdiana; for these nations speak nearly the same
language.
(Strabo 15.2.8 continued. Translation by Horace Leonard Jones): The name of
Ariana is further extended to a part of Persia and of Media, as also to the
Bactrians and Sogdians on the north; for these speak approximately the same
language, with but slight variations.
Airyana Vaeja's Features
In our page on Airyana Vaeja in the Zoroastrian scriptures [the Avesta's books of Yasht (13.143 & 144), Vendidad (Chapter 1, 1-16), and Yasna (10.13-14)], we made the following observations regarding the neighbours of Airyana Vaeja:
Sugd / Sogdiana
The second nation listed after Airyana Vaeja in the Vendidad, is Sukhdho / Sughdha - modern day Sugd in north-western Tajikistan and southern Uzbekistan.
Mouru / Margiana
The third nation listed after Airyana Vaeja in the Vendidad, is Mouru. Mouru is commonly identified with the area around modern Merv and the Murghab / Murgab river and its delta in present-day Turkmenistan - though this identification is by no means certain.
Balkh / Bactria & King Vishtasp
The fourth Vendidad nation is Bakhdhim / Bakhdhi / Bakhdi / Balkh located in Northern
Afghanistan. Among the first "hearers and teachers" of Zarathushtra's
message listed in the Farvardin Yasht (13.99)
was King Vishtasp. Later texts state that King Vishtasp, a king of the Kayanian
dynasty, was king of Bakhdhi/Balkh, and that Zarathushtra died in
Bakhdhi/Balkh, killed by a Turanian. In these texts, the Amu Darya (Oxus) river
formed the north-eastern border between ancient Bakhdhi and Turan (Sugd). Further upstream, a portion of the Amu Darya
river ran through Bakhdhi.
Balkh became the capital city of the Kayanian kings and ancient Airan, the
successor state to Airyana Vaeja and the predecessor state to modern Iran.
Today, all three regions noted above claim Zarathushtra as their native son and
make some claim to his legacy. The claims include the region being his
birthplace, where he received his revelations, where he first propounded his
religion, where he composed his message and the scriptures, and where he died.
No other region makes these claims to this extent.
What this indicates is, that regardless of the veracity of the claims, there is
a strong possibility that Zarathushtra travelled to these regions and that they
were within travelling distance of Airyana Vaeja, Zarathushtra's birthplace. By
listing these nations separately from Airyana Vaeja, the Avesta's Vendidad is
probably also stating that the three lands were separate from Airyana Vaeja.
Since Zoroastrian texts also tell us that Airyana Vaeja was Zarathushtra's
native home, we can surmise that while Zarathushtra could have travelled to
these lands spreading his message, none of them was his native home.
Airyana Vaeja's Terrain
The Meher Yasht gives us a most useful
understanding of Airyana Vaeja's location. It not only helps us to rule in
certain possibilities, it helps to rule out certain lands.
Verses 10.13-14
of the Meher Yasht state that the Aryan land had many mountains, valleys, and
pastures (pouru vastraongho) that supported cattle (gave). It was rich in
waters (afento), deep lakes (jafra varayo) and wide rivers. The land, while
mountainous had alpine meadows and fertile, well-watered vales.
Rivers of Airyana Vaeja: Daraja and Daitya
Mention is made that a significant river
Daraja (Darejya), on whose upper banks stood Zarathushtra's father's
house, ran through Airyana Vaeja. Another river in Airyana Vaeja is the Ditya,
also called Vanguhi Daitya in Vendidad and Daitik in Middle Persian. The
Vendidad at 1.2 (see) below and at 2.20 mentions the river Vanguhi Daitya in
Airyana Vaeja first as the river of Airyana Vaeja and then as the river where
King Jamsheed gained communion with Ahura Mazda, God. The Aban Yasht at 5.17
also speaks of the Vanguhi Daitya in Airyana Vaeja.
Both rivers are mentioned as separate rivers in the Lesser Bundahishn (24.14 - 16, E. W. West
in Sacred Books of the East Vol. 5, 1897): "14. The Daitya River is
the chief of streams. 15. The Daraja river is the chief of exalted rivers, for
the dwelling of the father of Zartosht was on its banks, and Zartosht was born
there." We read here that Zarathushtra (Zartosht in Middle Persian) was
born on the banks of the Daraja River in Airyana Vaeja (Iran Vej in Middle
Persian) upon whose banks stood his father's house. The Lesser Bundahishn at
20.32 states, "The Daraja river is in Eranvej, on the bank (bar) of which
was the dwelling of Pourushasp, the father of Zartosht (Zarathushtra)."
Veh Rivers
The Avestan word 'vanghuhi' stems from
'vanghu' meaning good. It is contracted to 'veh' in Middle Persian. Daitya is
said to relate to 'law' i.e. Zarathushtra receiving revealed law from Ahura
Mazda, God. In Hindu scriptures, the Daitya are a clan of Asuras.
The river called Vanguhi Daitya in Avestan is sometimes identified as the Veh
in Middle Persian Pahlavi texts. In the Middle Persian Bundahishns, the Veh
River is in turn is identified both as the Amu Darya / Oxus River as well as
the Indus River. However, in the Bundahishn, the Daitya river itself that in
Avestan passages is accompanied by the word Vanguhi is in the Bundahishn
mentioned without the word Vanguhi or Veh. While the Bundahishns state that
other rivers that otherwise have their own name are sometimes called Veh, the
Bundahishns' Veh River which seems identical to today's Amu Darya / Oxus is the
only river in the Bundahishns that is not directly associated with another
name. In other words in the Bundahishns, the river is only named the Veh and we
are not told if it had another accompanying of associated name.
Regarding identification of the Veh with the Oxus / Amu Darya River, the Lesser
Bundahishn at 20.22 states that "the Balkh river comes out from the Aparsen
likely Gk. Paropamisus (interestingly also called the Alburz in
some modern maps. ) at the eastern end of the Hindu Kush
mountain of Bamikan (likely Bamian/Bamiyan), and flows on to the Veh
river." Today, the Balkh river rises in the eastern Hindu Kush in Bamiyan
province and flows north into Balkh province. Before irrigation reduced its
flow, it was a tributary of the Amu Darya]. The Lesser Bundahishn at 20.22 also
states that "The Teremet river flows away to the Veh river." Teremet
is identified by West as Tajikistan's Termez today across the Amu Darya / Oxus
from Balkh province. Termez would have been the gateway to the northern valley
of Bakhdhi/Balkh, a valley that leads to Dushanbe, Tajikistan's present
capital.
*[Alburz/Elburz/Alborz mountains: (Also see Mountains
below) Today, the mountains of northern Iran are called the Elburz. Wikipedia also reports, "As
recently as the 19th century, a peak in the northernmost range in the Hindu
Kush system, just south of Balkh, was recorded as Mount Elburz in British army
maps." The name Alborz is said to derive from the Avestan Hara Berezaiti
or Hara-Berez, the Hara mountains. Hara-Barez became Har-borz and eventually
Al-borz. As did the legendary rivers of Airyana have their source in the
Hara-Bareza (meher Yasht 10.14), the Bundahishn continues the tradition of
ascribing the source of the principal Veh rivers in the Alborz.]
Middle Persian texts and the Shahnameh tell us that the Amu Darya or Oxus river (see
map below) formed a border of ancient Bakhdi, and that the border between Airan
(the later name form of Airyana Vaeja) and Turan was also the Amu Darya. The
Amu Darya river runs from the Pamirs (where it is called the Panj) to the Aral
Sea and today, to some extent, forms the border between four nations,
Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. A portion of the Amu
Darya river runs north of present day Balkh in Afghanistan.
Regarding identification of the Veh with the Indus River, the Greater
Bundahishn at 11.A.2 as translated by B. T. Anklesaria states, "The river
Veh passes on in the east, goes to the land of Sind and pours into the sea in
India. There they call it the river Mitran [and also call it the river
Indus]." The Lesser Bundahishn translated by E. W. West, at 20.7 states,
"The Mehrva River they call the Hendva River...". Hendva would be
connected to Hindu. 20.9 also states, "The Veh River passes on in the
east, goes through the land of Sind, and flows to the sea in Hindustan, and
they call it there the Mehra River." We note that this river is called
Hendva, Mehrava, Mehra, Mitran (Mithra/Mitra and Mehr are related words, the
former being the older form which seems to be the trend in the Greater
Bundahishn. The Lesser Bundahishn starts with the declaration at 20.1 that two
rivers flow from the north - from the Alburz (Mountains) - and that the one
towards the East is the Veh River.
We are therefore left with two Veh rivers, one identified with the Amu Darya
(Oxus) and the other with the Mitran or Mehra (the Indus). Masudi in his
Historical Encyclopaedia writes that the "Guebers (sic) i.e. Zoroastrians,
felt that the Jaihun (Oxus) was connected with the Indus to form one river, the
Veh." The ancients may have perceived the Veh as a mythical circumventing
river, one that circumvented Airyana in the east and the west - perhaps even
all the way around.
Rivers Flowing into Neighbouring Countries
Verse 10.14 of the Avesta's Mehr Yasht,
states that the rivers which originate in Airyo shayanem*, the Aryan abode,
flow swiftly into the countries of Mourum
[later Margu(sh) (English-Greek Margiana) and eventually Marv located in
today's Turkmenistan], Haroyum
(Aria in modern Afghanistan), Sughdhem
(Sugd in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) and Khairizem
[Khvarizem beside the Amu Darya (Oxus) River in Uzbekistan]. [*Note: shayanem
is used to denote a few countries/lands/abodes in the Vendidad's list of
sixteen nations. As "abode" or "dwelling place", the word
may denote a region rather than a country, a region over which the Airya had
spread by that time.]
There are very few sets of rivers that meet this description and they all
originate in the mountains of Afghanistan and Tajikistan radiating westward
from the Pamirs. Since 1. Bakhdhi (Balkh) is a significant omission from this
list, 2. Khairizem is a nation not mentioned directly in the Vendidad's list of
nations and appears to be a "younger" nation than the Vendidad
nations [together with Parsa (Persia) and Mada (Media) also not mentioned], and
3. the Aryan lands are called by a slightly different name than in the
Vendidad, one possibility is that this Meher Yasht description was part of the
younger Avesta, by time of whose writing, the original Aryan lands, Airyana
Vaeja, had begun to move westward along the northern Hindu Kush slopes, towards
the Kuh-e Baba, Kuh-e Hissar and Safid Kuh - the northern Afghanistan mountain
region south of Balkh. To us it is not without significance that there is a
Murgab River in the Pamir highlands of Tajikistan, then in the northern
Afghanistan and eventually in Pars.
The larger river flowing into Mourum (Eng-Gk Margiana) is the Murgab River;
the main river flowing through Haroyum (Eng-Gk Aria) is the Hari-Rud River;
the main river flowing through Sughdhem/Sugd (Eng-Gk Sogdiana) is the Zerafshan
River. The Kashka Darya also flows through Sughdhem. Sughdhem was
likely bordered by the Amu Darya (Oxus) in the west/south-west and Syr
Darya (Jaxartes) Rivers in the east/north-east. There are of course, other
smaller rivers. The Pamirs together with the Hindu Kush and its western
extensions including the Safeed Kuh and Siah Kuh mountains that border today's
Northern Afghanistan are where these rivers originate.
The Lesser & Greater Bundahishns at LB Chapter 20
and GB Chapter 11.A
respectively provide additional information. We reproduce here portions of the
Bundahishn related to the rivers of Central Asia identified above via the Meher
Yasht. However, the Bundahishns only assign the rivers Daraja and Daitya to
ancient Iran-Vej (Airyana Vaeja). Regardless, we still see these lands the
rivers flow through as part of greater Aryan nation, Iran-Shahr:
LB 13. The Daitya river is the river which comes out from Eranvej, and goes out
through the hill-country; of all rivers the noxious creatures in it are most,
as it says, that the Daitya river is full of noxious creatures. [Our note: it
is significant that the Daitya is noted as "going through hill
country".] GB 11.A.7 states "The river Daitya comes out of Eranvej
and proceeds to Dutistan." We have yet to identify Dutistan.
The other rivers implied by the Meher Yasht are described by the Bundahishns as
follows:
Harirud
The Bundahishns make no reference to the Harirud originating in Airyana Vaeja as implied by the Meher Yasht. GB 11.A.11 "The Hari-rud flows from the Hapursen range." LB 20.16: "The Haro river flows out from the Aparsen range (Gk. Paropamisus). The source of the Harirud is just across the Hissar range from the source of the Balkh River." The Zend River "passing through the mountains of Panjistan" is a tributary of the Harirud.
Rivers of Sughdhem/Sugd
GB 11.A.15: "The river Khvajand
goes through the middle of Samarkand and Ferghana. They call it the river
Khshart/Ashart/Ashard (Jaxartes/Syr Darya)." LB 20.20: "The Khvejand
river goes on through the midst of Samarkand and Pargana, and they call it also
the river Ashard." Khujand (cf. Khvajand) is currently a Tajik city beside
the upper reaches of the Syr Darya (Jaxartes).
GB 11.A.14:"The river Zeshmund, on the side of Soghd (Sugd, Sogdiana),
pours back into the river Khvajand." LB 20.19: "The Zishmand river,
in the direction of Soghd, flows away towards (from?) the Khvejand river."
These two statements are somewhat contradictory and a more critical
translations of the originals is required. The river sounds like the Zerafshan.
If this is so, the statement should read that the river flows away from the
Khvajand (Jaxartes/Syr Darya) and into the Veh, the Amu Darya or Oxus. If not,
it denotes another river, perhaps a tributary of the Khvajand.
Curiously, the LB at 20.30 states, "The Kasak river comes out through a
ravine (kaf) in the province of Tus (the birthplace of Ferdowsi in Khorasan?),
and they call it there the Kasp river; more- over, the river, which is there
the Veh, they call the Kasak; even in Sind they call it the Kasak."
Translator E. W. West feels "Sind" here is a corruption or misprint
of the intended name "Seni" leading the the line reading, "even
in Seni they call it the Kasak." Seni is a name mention in the Lesser
Bundahishn at 15.29: "the country of Seni, that which is
Kinistan/Chinistan". E. W. West further postulates that in this context
"Kinistan" may refer to Samarkand the principal city of Sugd. He goes
on the identify Seni as the Saini of the Farvardin
Yasht at 13.143,144, one of the five lands praised in the Yasht having holy
followers. There is today the River Kashka that flows from Sugd today.
Murgab. River of Marv
LB 20.21. "The Marv river, a glorious river in the east, flows out from the Aparsen range (Gk. Paropamisus)." "GB 11.A.16: "The Marv-rud, the river 'Full of glory,' in Khvarasan (Khorasan?), flows from the Hapursen range." The source of the Murgab is in the vicinity of the sources of the Balkh and Harirud rivers - the eastern extremity of the Hindu Kush Mountains. The mention of the Marv-rud i.e. the Murgab being a river of Khvarasan (Khorasan?) is noteworthy.
Amu Darya (Oxus), Balkh and Termez Rivers
As we have stated earlier, the Lesser
Bundahishn at 20.22 states that "the Balkh river comes out from the
Aparsen (Gk. Paropamisus; interestingly also called the Alborz on some maps
today) at the eastern end of the Hindu Kush] mountain of Bamikan (likely
Bamian/Bamiyan), and flows on to the Veh river." Today, the Balkh river
rises in the eastern Hindu Kush in Bamiyan province and flows north into Balkh
province. Before irrigation reduced its flow, it was a tributary of the Amu
Darya]. GB 11.A.17 states: "The river Balkh enters the mountain Bamian
[from] the Hapursen and pours into the river Veh."
The Lesser Bundahishn at 20.22 also states that "The Teremet river flows
away to the Veh river." Teremet is identified by West as Tajikistan's
Termez today across the Amu Darya/Oxus from Balkh province. Termez would have
been the gateway to the northern valley of Bakhdhi/Balkh, a valley that leads
to Dushanbe, Tajikistan's present capital.
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Mosaic of a snake swallowing an object
from Central Asia |
Noxious Creatures in Airyana Vaeja's Rivers
The Vendidad
at 1.2 (translation by James Darmesteter, SBE, 1898) states: "The
first of the good lands and countries which I, Ahura Mazda, created, was the
Airyana Vaeja, by the Vanguhi Daitya. Thereupon came Angra Mainyu, who is all
death, and he counter-created the serpent in the river and winter, a work of
the Daevas."
The Greater Bundahishn translated by B. T. Anklesaria at Chapter 11.A.7 & 8 states
"The river Daitya comes out of Eranvej and proceeds to Dutistan. Of all
the rivers, the noxious creatures abound the most in it. As one says, 'The
river Daitya is full of noxious creatures'."
The Indus on its part was known to have alligators which could perhaps have
been identified as a form of snake. Captain John Wood in his A Journey to
the Source of the River Oxus, (London) 1872, p. 10-11 describes his
encounter with a herd of alligators while travelling up the lower Insus.
Mountains - Hara Berezaiti, the Hara Mountains
The Mehr Yasht
at 10.13 and 14 states that the Aryan abode (airyo-shayanem) was "where
the high mountains (garayo berezanto), rich in pastures and waters, yield
plenty to the cattle", and that when the Sun rises above the taro (peaks -
see further
discussion below) of the Hara, it casts its golden rays down on the abode
of the Aryans.
Reading the Zamyad Yasht at (19.1) we are given the impression that the Hara was one of
two concentric rings of mountains, or at least ones that "lie all
around". Many authors add "encircling the earth" or words to
that effect to their translations, but there are no such words in the verse.
The Yasht also states two thousand, two hundred and forty four peaks rose from
these mountains and names several.
The Aban Yasht at 5.21 states that (King) Hushang paid homage at the "upa
upabde" (sometime translated as "base" or "enclosure".
Upa means "near". We read "near the environs") of the Hara.
In Mehr Yasht 10.118, we are introduced to the term "Hara Berezaiti".
The modern word Alburz is said to be derived from Hara Berezaiti. Hara
Berezaiti it is said in the literature became Hara-Barez (in Yashts 5.21 and
17.24) then Har-borz and eventually Al-borz. The word "hara" is said
to mean "watch, guard, defence" and is derived from from the Old
Iranian prefix har- meaning "to pay attention, watch over, protect".
The implication is that the Hara Mountains got their name since they served as
a defensive wall against invaders or plunderers. Indeed, the Greater Bundahishn
at 24.24 notes that every three years, people of non-Arian nations would gather
on the Alburz (Hara) mountains in order to cause harm - perhaps sweeping down
into the Aryan lands from ridges and passes. The word "berezaiti" is
said to stem from "berez" meaning "height",
"exalted" or even "towering". It is also said to have
evolved into the New Persian words "boland" meaning "tall"
or "high" and "bozorg" meaning "big" or
"great". With "berezaiti" as an adjective we are left with
the impression that the Hara was a high protective barrier. The one mountain
range that fits this description very well is the Hindu Kush. Hindu means
resident of the (upper) Indus region and Kush is said to be the same as
"kusht" meaning "kill". The Hindu Kush is a natural barrier
between the Indus and Kabul valleys (to the south) and Wakhan valley (to the
north), and by extension the Badakshan/Pamir region.
Nowadays, Alburz/Alborz/Elburz is the name of the mountains in northern Iran. Wikipedia also reports, "As
recently as the 19th century, a peak in the northernmost range in the Hindu
Kush system, just south of Balkh, was recorded as Mount Elburz in British army
maps (i.e. the western arm of the Hindu Kush)." The same mountains are
also called the Aparsen (likely Gk. Paropamisus) in the Bundahishn. We are also
given to understand that the highest peak of the Caucasus is also called
"Elbrus". The poet Ferdowsi's references to the Alburz in his epic,
the Shahnameh, lead us to the environs of Hind, perhaps meaning the
mountains of the Upper Indus, the Hindu Kush, Pamirs, Karakorum and Himalayas -
the Alburz or Hara Berezaiti of old. Strabo would call the Hara Berezaiti the Taurus
Mountains, a string of mountains that ran from Turkey to the boundaries of
China.
The two Bundahishns, the Middle Persian or Pahlavi Zoroastrian texts, see the
Alburz (Hara Berezaiti) in two ways (see Lesser Bundahishn 20.1): one the
mythical mountains that encircled the earth - the primal mountain range from
which all other mountain ranges arose - and two, a specific group of mountain
ranges in which two rivers at east and west of the Aryan lands had their source
(and according to Zadsparam at 6.21, the source of an additional
"great" eighteen rivers). We see these two aspects reflected
elsewhere. The Zamyad Yasht reads in a factual manner while some other passages
tend to add more fantastic elements. From the Zamyad Yasht we do get the sense
that other mountain ranges rise from (perhaps radiate?) from the Hara and that
it could conceivably lend its name to connected mountain chains. By the time
the Middle Persian Bundahishns and other texts were written, the description is
almost entirely mythological as are parallel descriptions in Hindu and Buddhist
texts we describe below. In mythology, the Alburz encircled the earth - a band
like the Milky Way of the heavens.
As the mythical mountains that surrounded the earth, the Alburz mountains are
similar to the Lokaloka of the Hindu scriptures. [Lokaloka means
"world-no world" and is in Vedic Hindu mythology, a magnificent belt
of mountains girdling the outermost of the seven lands (Phl. keshvar / Vedic
dvipa) and seas and one which separates the visible world from the region of
darkness beyond. The Lokaloka is said to be ten thousand yojanas in breadth and
height. The modern equivalent of a yojana is disputed and is thought to be 6 to
Tera
The Mehr Yasht at 10.118 talks about the
Sun riding rising above the peaks (tara) of the Hara Berezaiti. Tara (also
spelt Tera, Terak or Taera) is sometime taken to mean a specific mountain in
the Hara. E. W. West translates the Lesser Bundahishn (LB) at 12.2 as
"Terak of Alburz" i.e. Tera of the Hara Berezaiti. When West
translates 12.4 as "The Terak of Alburz is that through which the stars,
moon and sun pass in, and through it they come back", but when B. T.
Anklesaria translates 9.6 of the Greater Bundahishn (GB) as "The Tera of
Alburz is that through which the Stars, Moon and Sun revolve and through which they
come back", it makes more sense to read Tera(k) as the peaks or the space
between peaks through which the stars, moon and sun rise and set. Indeed, at LB
5.4. we have "As it is said that it is the Terak of Alburz from behind
which my sun and moon and stars return again" and at LB 5.5, "For
there are a hundred and eighty apertures (rojin) in the east, and a hundred and
eighty in the west, through Alburz; and the sun, every day, comes in through an
aperture, and goes out through an aperture...."
Ichaporia and Humbach as well as Sethna do not translate "taera" as
the name of a mountain but rather as "peak". However, it does make
more sense in the contexts above to read it as several or a set of peaks rather
than a single peak. But that sense of a single peak rising into the heavens is
now embedded in Hindu and Buddhist mythology as well. In the Zamyad Yasht,
there is no mythology in the description of the mountains. They are listed
quite matter-of-factly and the word "taera" appears buried in the
middle of verse
Mary Boyce informs us that when the Khotanese Saka became Buddhists, they
referred to Mt. Sumeru of Buddhist legends as Ttaira Haraysa, the peak
of Hara. Mt. Sumeru in Buddhist mythology lies at the centre of the earth and
according to Anklesaria's translation of GB 5B.1, "Mount Tera is in the
middle of the earth."
Principal Hara Peaks - Mount Hukaria and Daitik
The Greater Bundahishn translated by B.
T. Anklesaria (at 17.18) describes the Hukar (Huk-airya in the Avesta) as being
the 'chief' of the summits. Huk-airya means the 'good Arya' or the 'good and
beneficent Arya' - the environs of which, Airyana Vaeja, was a paradise with
ideal conditions: no inclement weather, natural beauty and where the people
enjoyed good health. The GB at 9.3 also states that, "As the other
mountains have grown out of Alburz, in number, two thousand two hundred and
forty-four mountains, that are the lofty Hugar/Hukar (Huk-airya), the Tera of
Alburz, the Daitih peak...." We note that the Hugar/Hukar (Huk-airya) is
described at both the chief of the mountains as well as lofty (tall - towering
above others. At GB 9.7, "The lofty Hugar/Hukar (Huk-airya) is that from
which the water of Aredvisur descends from the height of a thousand men." At
9.9, "The Daitih (Chakad-i-Daitik in the Lesser Bundahishn) peak is that which
is in the middle of the world, of the height of a hundred men, whereon is the
Chinvad bridge; they judge the soul at that place." Much attention is
given to "Tera" being the name of a pivotal mountain at the centre of
the earth, but in the Daitih we have another contender for this description.
The height of a hundred men does not make it a very tall mountain and one
suitable perhaps for a significant temple or sanctury (see the thangka painting
below). We could have two versions of the myth, one with a very tall central
mountain and the other with a shorter mountain crowned by a temple or sanctuary
as depicted by the thangka painting below. Both versions appear to exist currently
either explicitly or implicitly, and the shorter version appears to make more
sense with reality.
The combined manner in which the Hukar, Tera and Daitik are described in the
Bundahishn has resonance with the manner in which Mount Meru, Sumeru, is described
in Hindu and Buddhist texts.
Mount Meru / Sumeru
The Hindu scriptures, the Vedas, refer
to the Mount Hara as Mount Meru or Sumeru
(the Great Meru), and describe the Himalayas as stemming from Mount Meru which
itself stands at the centre of the known world. The Vedas also refer to Arya
Varta as Paradesha, the original country. In the Vedas, Bharatavarsha, Ancient
India, lay to the south of the Himalayas.
The Wikipedia
article on Jambudvipa, the environs in which Mount Meru stands, identifies
Jambudvipa with the Pamir region. In the Vedas, each of the four sides of Meru
are made of four different precious substances: the south of lapis-lazuli, the
west of ruby, the north of gold and the east of silver (or crystal). The
Pamir-Badakhshan region was noted for precisely these precious substances and
home to the only known lapis mines in antiquity. Further, the lapis
mines were in the south of the Pamir region.
Airyana Vaeja as Paradise. Shambhala / Shangri-La
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Buddhist thangka showing Shambhala
with Mount Meru & a temple in the centre |
As we have noted above, Zoroastrian
texts describe Airyana Vaeja as being mountainous with fertile meadows and
valleys. In addition, the opening words of the Avestan Vendidad's chapter
listing the sixteen nations, states that if God had not made other countries beautiful
in some manner, all the world would have swarmed into Airyana Vaeja on account
of its great beauty and - as mentioned elsewhere in the Avesta (see next
paragraph) - because of its wise king and good government, law and order, noble
people and serenity. Airyana Vaeja was a paradise on earth - a land of peace
and serenity, the best place to live and raise a family.
The heavenly nature of Airyana Vaeja during the Jamshidi era (see Weather
Change below) reached mythic proportions in Yasht
19.33, the Zamyad Yasht. Then, the weather was neither cold nor hot, there
was no untruth and envy, people were undying, water and plants never drying.
All because King Jamshid ruled wisely and the people lived honestly. However,
when the king lost his grace and the people lost their noble ways, Airyana
Vaeja became a paradise lost.
Tibetan Buddhism's book of Kala-Chakra, the Time-Cycle, and Tibetan Buddhism's
predecessor religion, Bon, built on and popularized this concept of a
lost and hidden paradise on earth, now known to the world as Shangri-La.
[The founding of the Bon religion is ascribed to Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche who was
born - by some estimates 18,000 years ago - in the land of Tagzig Olmo Lung
Ring. Tagzig, is believed to be a form of the name Tajik. (The name
Shenrab sounds Iranian as well.) The doctrine taught by Tonpa Shenrab was spread
by his disciples and their student-translators to adjacent countries such as
Zhang-Zhung (also Zhangzhung, Shang Shung or Xang Xung - a land north of the
Himalayas, which contained Mount Kailash in today's Western Tibet), India
(northern Indus valley), Kashmir, China and eventually Greater Tibet. Tonpa
Shenrab is reputed to have visited present-day western Tibet once. On that
visit he found the people unprepared to receive the entire body of his
teachings, but he prophesied that his teachings would flourish in Tibet in the
coming ages. The students of his disciples continued his mission and Tibetan
Bon scriptures were translated from texts in the language of Zhang-Zhung.
[Bon claims to have spread south to the Indian subcontinent and to have
influenced the development of Vedic Hinduism. Perhaps pre-Tibetan Bon was a
form of the primordial Aryan religion before Zoroastrianism and Vedic Hinduism.
Buddhism in turn evolved out of Vedic Hinduism (c. 400 BCE). Completing a full
circle, today's Bon is so heavily influenced by Buddhism that it sounds like a
Buddhist sect. Perhaps some scholars may take it upon themselves to try and
isolate the precepts of the pre-Buddhism Bon.
[It may be of interest to those studying the weather change in Airyana Vaeja,
that pollen and tree ring analysis indicates the Chang Tang plateau in Northern
Tibet had a far more liveable environment than it has today - one that
supported a primordial civilization - until the climate become colder and drier
starting around 1500 BCE, a climate change that caused the population to
migrate out of the northern plateau. This authors also feels that the ancient
Aryan and Zoroastrian link to western Tibet is further exemplified by the
common tradition of exposing the dead to birds. Also see our blog, Iranian-Aryan
Connections with Western Tibet.]
At the centre of the land of Tagzig (called Shambhala in the Kalachakra) was
Olmo Lungring which had at its centre, Yungdrung Gutsek, a four-sided mountain
similar to Mount Meru / Sumeru (see
above). The mountain is surrounded by temples, cities and parks. To the
mountain's south is the Barpo Sogye palace, where Tonpa Shenrab was born. The
complex of palaces, rivers and parks with Mount Yungdrung Gutseg in the centre
constitutes the inner region (Nang-gling) of Olmo Lungring. The intermediate
region (Bar-gling) consists of twelve cities, four of which lie in the four
cardinal directions. The third region includes the outer land (mTha'-gling).
These three regions are encircled by snow-capped mountains and an ocean.
The mountain Yungdrung Gutsek has nine Yungdrungs (swastikas) ascending like a
staircase. It is not without significance that the swastika plays an important
symbolic role in both the Bon and Vedic Hindu religions. In Bon, The nine
swastikas represent the Nine Ways. The swastika (Yungdrung) itself is a symbol
of permanence and indestructibility of the mind-stream, the wisdom of Bon. The
full name of Bon is Yungdrung Bon meaning Everlasting Truth.
The four sides of the mountain faced the four cardinal directions. From the
four corners, each of which represent four archetypal thought forms, flow four
rivers:
- From the thought form of a snow lion flows the river Narazara to the east,
- From the thought form of a horse flows the river Pakshi to the north,
- From the thought form of a peacock flows the river Gyim Shang to the west,
and
- From the thought form of an elephant flows the river Sindhu (In Persian:
Hindu which later became Indus) to the south.
A few concepts emerge from the description of Tagzig's terrain within which
lies the four-sided mountain, Yungdrung Gutsek. First, while our translation
states the singular, a four-sided mountain, a mountain in all the related
ancient Avestan, Vedic, and Bon texts frequently refers to a group or range of
mountains with several peaks. For instance Hara Berezaiti contained two
thousand, two hundred and forty four mountains peaks (see above). Next, from
the four-sided Yungdrung Gutsek mountain(s) arose several rivers flowing in all
the cardinal directions. In addition, this region was north of the northern
Indus region. (Also see our section on the four-sided topography of the Pamirs. It is unreasonable to expect the
geographic descriptions in the ancient texts to align perfectly on a modern
map. The ancients used approximations formulated from the accounts of
travellers over several generations and good examples of this contention are
the maps drawn by classical Western authors such as Ptolemy.)
Tibetan Buddhism's Kalachakra uses the Hindu Vedic legend of Mount Meru
(Avestan Hara
Berezaiti) and surrounds Mount Meru with the mythic kingdom of Shambhala,
a Sanskrit word meaning the land of peace. Shambhala, also spelt Shambala or
Shamballa, is said to be the land of the Living Fire and Gyanganj, the
home of immortal wisdom and the omniscient wise god of time (descriptions some
use for Ahura Mazda, God, in Zoroastrianism). The concept, description and
qualities of Shambala coincide with those for Arya Varta / Airyana Vaeja, the
Aryan homeland, and help provide us with added information on its possible
location.
According to the Buddhist Kalachakra, Shambhala,
presently hidden to the rest of the world, is a paradise of peace, tranquility,
honesty and wisdom. It is home of the primordial and highest spiritual
teachings, a tantra of the cycle of time now hidden from us but one that will
eventually save the world from evil. Before it adopted Buddhism, the people
were followers of the Mlechha, a Yavana or western, religion, some of whom
worshiped the sun. Emulating the time periods in Zoroastrian eschatology which
uses a cycle of time, as well as emulating the Zoroastrian concept of a final
struggle between good against evil, the Buddhist legend states that as time
progresses, the world around Shambala will succumb to evil. However, three
millennia after ancient Shambhala king first travelled to India and adopted
Buddhism, the Shambhalians will emerge to save the world. There will be a epic
battle between the righteous Shambhalians and the surrounding evil forces - a
battle in which the righteous Shambhalians will prevail and defeat evil
forever. As we have noted, this legend closely parallels Zoroastrian legends
that presage a final struggle between the forces of good and evil in which the
good, the ashavan, will prevail, transforming the world to a paradise, a
heaven, on earth - the vahishtem anghuim - the transformative event being frasho-kereti.
Shambhala has both an outer temporal and an inner spiritual meaning. In the
outer meaning, Shambhala is a land that is only accessible to the pure in
heart. Those with impure motives will lose their way in the intervening deserts
and mountains, blinded by storms. Representing the inner meaning, some thangka
paintings of Shambhala depict the kingdom surrounding Mount Meru as an eight-petal
lotus - a symbol for the heart chakra and an indication that Shambhala is to be
found in a person's heart.
This author therefore proposes that since Shambhala, the land surrounding Mount
Meru, is identified as the Vedic Arya Varta, and since the Vedic Arya Varta in
turn corresponds to the Avestan Airyana Vaeja (which contains Mount Hara), that
the land surrounding Shambhala, Mount Meru and Airyana Vaeja are intimately
linked if not the same land. If this author's association is correct, what all
four traditions, Zoroastrian, Hindu, Bon and Buddhist, have preserved, is the
topography of ancient Airyana Vaeja - a land of fertile valleys and alpine
meadows ringed by high snow-capped high mountains.
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Weather Change in Airyana Vaeja During Jamshid's Reign
(Note: The name Jamshid is a later version of the name Yima-Srira or
Yima-Khshaeta, meaning Yima the radiant, in the Vendidad. In the Avesta,
Jamshid is called Yima son of Vivanghat, while in the Vedas, he is called Yama
son of Vivasvant.)
According to Zoroastrian texts as well as Ferdowsi's Shahnameh,
legendary king of Airyana Vaeja, King Jamshid, initiated the observance of
Nowruz, New Year's day on the first day of spring. For King Jamshid to take
this step, Airyana Vaeja must have experienced the beginning of spring and the
end of winter around the spring equinox or March 21.
Further, Yasna 9.5 (similarly, Vendidad II.I.6) also states that "in the
reign of Yima, there was neither cold nor heat" - a temperate climate by
definition. Additional references (see * below), state that the weather in
Airyana Vaeja at the outset of the Jamshedi era was equitable. However, the
Vendidad and other texts also inform us that a thousand two hundred years into
the Jamshedi era, Airyana Vaeja experienced severe and long winters (for a
further discussion on the Jamshedi era and the weather change, see our page Aryan Prehistory)
[*References to King Jamshid/Yima: Vendidad II.I.1-20(41) and
II.I.21(42)-43(140); Yasna 9.4-5; Farvardin Yasht 23.130; Aban Yasht 5.25-26;
Ferdowsi's Shahnameh.]
Funerary Practices
Zoroastrians and Tibetans share the practice of exposing the bodies of their deceased to birds or prey, and to our knowledge they are they only two cultural groups in the world to have employed these practices with any consistency and as an intrinsic part of their traditional / religious rites of passage. They actual methods employed were quite different and the are no records of the Tibetans using towers of silence, dakhmas. This might indicate that while the conditions under which the ancient Tibetans and Zoroastrians lived were similar, they could have been neighbours but not compatriots.
Location of Airyana Vaeja, the Aryan Homeland
These observations, together with
observations throughout this web site, point to a location for Airyana Vaeja,
the ancient Aryan homeland, in the general vicinity of Tajikistan, southern Uzbekistan, northern Afghanistan, and south-western Turkmenistan - the approximate area in the map below.
More specifically, the observations point to the strong candidacy of the Pamir-Badakhshan region (the areas neighbouring Balkh to the east and north: the upper Amu Darya basin and
the Wakhan Valley of eastern Tajikistan and northern Afghanistan), the Hindu
Kush to its eastern extremity south of Balkh and bordering the Murgab and
Harirud valleys, the Yagnobi
, Zerafshan
and Fergana valleys, as well as the Alai mountain environs in
Western Kyrgyzstan.
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Central Asia with first Vendidad lands and possible Airyana Vaeja /Aryan homeland locale |
Language Proximity of Central Asia with the Upper Indus Supported by Archaeology
Given
that the Rig Veda is commonly thought to have been written in the Upper Indus
region, we have yet one more reason to look at the area immediately to the
north and north-west of the upper Indus Valley i.e. the Pamir-Badakhshan region as being a strong candidate for the homeland of the ancient
Aryans, the so-called Proto Indo-Iranians.
The language of the Rig Veda and the Old Avesta are so close that they are
commonly thought to be dialects such as that spoken in two neighbouring
provinces and that further, they emerged from a common language philologists
call Proto Indo-Iranian, another name for the language of united ancient
Aryans. [Also see our page on Languages.]
Panini, the author of a grammar on Classical Sanskrit which was derived from
the Vedic language was a resident of Pushkalavati, Gandhara, which is
now part of modern-day Charsadda District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, formerly known
as the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan and which included the Swat
Valley now in northern Pakistan as well.
In the Swat-Chitral region, numerous archaeological sites have yielded
graveyards dating between the second quarter of the second millennium BCE and
the late centuries BCE, and with associated features leading the sites to be
categorized as the Gandhara Grave Culture. The artefacts excavated from the
sites show similarities and links with Central Asian as well as lower Indus
Valley sites. The use of shell, coral and ivory were likely brought in via
trade routes from the lower Indus plains and foothills.
A significant rock shelter site was excavated in the spring of 1967 near the
township of Ghaligai / Ghalegay located on the east bank of the Swat
River, some 12-
In a valley to the west of Ghaligai, archaeological finds at the Balambat
site near Timergara (also spelt Timurgarh/Timargarha) and dated to 1500-600
BCE, show links with artefacts found in the lower Indus Valley site Mehrgarh as
well as in Central Asian sites. [Balambat lies on the west bank of River
Panjkora while Timergara lies across the river on the east bank. The name mean
Timurgarh place of Timur (the Mohgul king). The Wikipedia page states that fire
altars have also been found at Balambat indicating the resident to be
"fire-worshippers" (sic). We are not concerned with the insulting
language used in the Wikipedia page - rather, indications of the close links to
an early Aryan settlement.
Aria
Haroyu - Sixth Vendidad Nation
There is
a country that the classical Greeks and western authors called Aria (also spelt
Arian, Arii) and which they located around present-day Harirud River (Old Ir.
Harayu, Gk. Arios) in north-western Afghanistan's Herat Province. (Note that
the classical authors made a distinction between Aryana, all the Aryan lands, and the state of Aria which was part of
Greater Aryana.) Ptolemy (90-168 CE) 6.17 and Strabo (63/64 BCE - c. 24 CE)
11.10.1 describe Aria and its location in some detail - a location close to the lands we have identified above for Airyana Vaeja. In
addition, the Harirud region or present-day Herat province, are commonly
identified with the sixth Vendidad nation Haroyu as well as the Achaemenian nation of Haraiva (a name
that could have been derived from Arai-va). It is significant that the majority
of inhabitants in Herat city, Herat Province's capital, are ethnic Tajiks,
since the Tajikistan region is a strong candidate for the location of Airyana
Vaeja, the Aryan homeland. (Also see or page on Haroyu / Aria.)
Aria is a candidate for the middle Aryan nation of Airan, the kingdom
that features in the poet Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh, and one that was formed after the Aryan nation had migrated
westward. Were it not for Aria's identification with Haroyu the sixth Vendidad
nation, we would be compelled to consider it as the possible location of the
original Airyana Vaeja. The border between Airan and its eastern neighbour,
Turan / Sugd, was the middle to lower reaches of the Amu Darya (Oxus) river.
The Airan of the Shahnameh had Balkh as its capital and therefore would have
included the kingdom of Bactria / Balkh / Bakhdhi as a principle kingdom. Airan
was bordered by Sistan to the south.
Arrian (c.87-145 CE) in Anabasis 4.6.6 states that in antiquity, Aria
was considered as particularly fertile and rich in wine. This reference by
Arrian to Aria having been particularly fertile in antiquity may refer to the
memory of Aria's predecessor nation, Airyana Vaeja (see above), being very fertile and a paradise on earth (rather than the
present location).
Under the Sassanian dynasty (c.224 - 649 CE), the territory of Airan / Haraiva
was transformed to the eastern quarter of the empire called Khurasan, Khur-a
(from Khursheed meaning sun) and san (cf. stan meaning the land or place).
Together, the name meant land of the (rising) sun. Greater Khorasan extended
east to the Amu Darya (Oxus) River.
The maps below show the nations of the region from a Greek / European
perspective. The borders and location are approximate at best, and often in
error, as they are drawn from the descriptions in the classical texts. They
nevertheless provide us with invaluable information. Note the mention of Aria,
its location and prominence which is even more sticking in the map of the world
according to Ptolemy.
(For a further discussion please see our page on Aria / Airan /
Haroyu, and the section on Aryana in our page on Airyana Vaeja, the Aryan homeland.)
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Reconstruction of Ptolemy's map of Aria and neighbouring states |
Westward Migration of the Aryan Nation
If we are correct in surmising that the
centre of the Aryan homeland moved westward accompanied by a contraction in its
name, then the seat of the Aryan nation would have moved westward as follows:
- The original ancient Aryan homeland Airyana Vaeja in the eastern Central
Asian regions identified above, and more specifically the Pamir-Badakhshan
region
- The early middle Aryan nation Airan, the seat of the Kayanian dynasty, in
Balkh (northern Afghanistan)
- The late middle Aryan nation known to the Greeks as Aria, located in
Harirud-Khorasan area (north-western Afghanistan / north-eastern Iran), and
- The modern (2,500 year-old) Aryan nation Parsa, known to the West as Persia,
which together with Khorasan became the Iran of today.
Evolution of Aryan Worship
In reading the different Zoroastrian and
Hindu texts, we are left with the impression that the three different Aryan
religions as well as the relationship between them, evolved significantly over
time. They could have looked very different at different points in history and
also in different locations. The relationship between them also changed from
one of coexistence to irrevocable separation.
The communities in which the religions were practiced could have been
exclusivist or pluralistic communities. Rulers of exclusivist communities could
be expected to acknowledge a single religion or even a single deity within the
deva or asura pantheon. Rulers of pluralistic communities could be expected to
be more ecumenical.
At times the three religious groups coexisted while at other times they
competed violently.
Coexistence
An example of a pluralistic, ecumenical
accommodation of the asuras and devas by specific communities is a c. 1400 BCE
peace treaty with the Hittites, the rulers of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni
invoked the asuras Varuna and Mitra, as well as the devas Indra and the
Nasatyas. Mitanni was located southwest of Lake Van, in an area that is part of
Southern Turkey and Northern Syria today.
In the Rig Veda, we read that the initial relationship between the asuras and
deva was one of coexistence. This relationship would gradually change to one of
competition. Nevertheless, some asuras such as Agni (fire) are invited
by the deva chief Indra to becomes devas (Rig Veda 10.124) and Agni is
sometimes referred to as a deva. In verse 5, Varuna, a principle asura,
is also invited by Indra to become a deva.
Cooperation between the asuras and devas is not relegated to the earlier Hindu
scriptures, the Rig Veda. Stories of their cooperation can be found in the
later Puranas, such as the story of Mount Mandara. However, their cooperation
is short-lived. In the story, a catastrophic flood befalls the earth submerging
the treasured possessions of the devas and asuras including the elixir of
immortality, Amrita (cf. Avestan Amertat, immortality). The peak of the lofty
Mount Meru rose above the flood and this is where the gods gathered and
caucused on how to retrieve the Amrita. They agreed to a plan proposed by the
deva Vishnu. Together, they uprooted the mountain Mandara and placed it on the
back of Kurma, the tortoise. The gods then coiled the world serpent Vasuki
around the mountain like a rope with the asuras holding one end of the snake
and the devas the other end. By coordinating their actions, they used the snake
coiled around the mountain to rotate the mountain and thereby churn the cosmic
ocean formed by the flood. As the waters churned, the ocean turned to milk and
then to butter, revealing the lost elixir of immortality and other treasures.
The cooperation soon ended. According to the Bhagavata-Purana, as soon as the
Amrita was produced, the devas took possession of it, and broke their promise
to the asuras to give them half. As a consequence, the asuras then tried to
steal it from the devas. A struggle ensued which the asuras lost and the devas
consumed the nectar of immortality all by themselves.
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Devas and Asuras using the world serpent Vasuki and Mount Mandara to churn the cosmic ocean |
The story marks the end of cooperation between the devas and asuras and the start of a deep and irreconcilable schism between them. Their relationship had deteriorated to the point that they were henceforth bent on mutual destruction.
Schism Between Mazda-Asura and Deva Worshippers
The story of the differences between the asuras and devas were of course a reflection of the differences and the violent conflict between the deva and asura worshippers. While, as we have mentioned, the Hindu scriptures do not directly refer to Mazda worshippers, the Zoroastrian and Persian texts talk about the conflict as one between the deva and Mazda worshippers. We will therefore refer to the conflict as between the deva and asura-Mazda worshippers.
Primordial Battles Between Mazda & Deva Worshippers
According to the poet Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh, at the dawn of history the Mazda worshippers and the deva worshippers fought two primordial battles. The battles took place during the reign of the first Aryan king, Gaya Maretan (a name later shortened first to Gayo-Mard and then Kayomars in the Shahnameh). The first battle started when the deva worshippers led by Ahriman, attacked Gaya Maretan's Mazda worshippers. During the battle, Ahriman's son killed Gaya Maretan's son Siyamak, and the first battle resulted in the defeat of Gaya Maretan's army by Ahriman's hordes. However, retribution was to follow. After a bitter period of mourning, Gaya Maretan assembled a large army led by his grandson Hushang. The Mazda worshippers then attacked and defeated the deva worshippers in a second battle, a defeat that resulted in a subjugation of the deva worshippers by the Mazda worshippers.
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Hushang slays a div - a scene from the Shahnameh |
These initial battles were to characterize the relationship between the deva and Mazda worshippers in subsequent millennia. Periodically, one group would win dominance over the other. Nevertheless, until, their separation into the nations of Iran and India, they did coexist, possibly within a community or in adjacent communities.
The War of Religion
If Gaya Maretan and his successors had
asserted the dominance of Mazda worshippers over the deva worshippers, that
state of affairs would change over time, and the deva worshippers would turn
the table and gradually assert their dominance.
This change in dominance is recorded in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh. The Shahnameh's
chapter on King Vishtasp and Zarathushtra opens with the following lines which
we have adapted from James Atkinson's translation of the Shahnameh:
I've said preceding sovereigns worshipped God (Mazda)
By whom their crowns were given
To protect the people from oppressors.
God they served, acknowledging God's goodness -
For to God, the pure, unchangeable, the Holy One!
They owed their greatness and their earthly power.
But after times,
Worship of God gave way to idolatry and pagan faith,
And then Mazda's name was lost
In adoration of created things.
At the time of Zarathushtra's birth, Mazda worship had lost ground to deva
worship, as had the virtues of honesty and not causing harm to others. A young Zarathushtra, disgusted with the dishonesty, violence,
greed and lawlessness that surrounded him, resolved to dedicate his life to
changing this state of affairs. He preached establishing an ethical order based
on the old Mazdayasni faith - one that would come to be known as the Mazdayasni
Ahura-Tkaesha.
The first royal patron of Zarathushtra's religion was King Vishtasp. Ferdowsi's Shahnameh tells us that King Vishtasp was king
of Balkh, which at that time had become a tributary state of Turan (Sugd). For a map that shows the location of these
states, see Aryan Homeland page.
When King Vishtasp adopted the Zoroastrian Mazdayasni faith, he also decided to
stop paying tribute to King Arjasp of Turan, whereupon Arjasp gave Vishtasp an
ultimatum to resume paying tribute and forsake his adopted faith, or face a
devastating invasion (cf. Warner & Atkinson translations of the Shahnameh):
"Abandon your ill course,
Be awed before the God of Paradise,
Put far from you that aging miscreant,
And hold a feast according to our customs... .
"If not, in a month or two,
I will enter your kingdom with fire and sword,
And destroy your authority and you.
I give you good advice:
Do not be influenced by a wicked counsellor,
But return to your former religious practices.
Weigh well, therefore, what I say."
Vishtasp rejected the ultimatum and what followed was the War of Religion (cf. Greater
Bundahishn 9.36 and Lesser
Bundahishn 12.36) in which Vishtasp was apparantly victorious (also see the
last para of this section).
The conflict and Vishtasp's victory could have resulted in the deva worshippers
living in his Central Asian kingdom, leaving or being pushed south through the
Hindu Kush mountain passes into the upper Indus valley (today's Pakistan). It
is possible that the Indus valley had previously been populated by deva
worshippers, and that those from Central Asia migrated to join their
co-religionists. The Hindu Kush (meaning Hindu Killer) would from that point,
have formed a border between the Zoroastrian Mazda worshippers and the deva
worshippers.
The Indus Valley was called Hindu (later Hind or Ind) in the Avesta. The locals
called the region Sindhu and then Sind. Replacing 'h' with 's' is a common way
of transforming many Avestan words to Sanskrit. The Persians eventually called
the people of the region Hindi, a name that would in western parlance become
Indie (India). Indians, however, refer to their country as Bharat. In
addition, the name for the religion of the deva worshippers, Hindu, is also
derived from the Avestan / Iranian / Persian names for the Indus region. Hindu
is not a name for their religion used by the ancient Hindus. Hindus refer to
their religion by various names such as Sanatana Dharma, meaning eternal
law in Sanskrit, or the Vaideeha Dharma.
However, the Greater Bundahishn also records in 9.36, "In the War of
Religion, when defeat was with the Iranians,... ." Such a defeat could
have pushed the Iranian out of their Central Asian homeland westward. The
Lesser Bundahishn in 12.32-33 states, "32. From the same Padashkh-Vargar
mountain unto Mount Kumish, which they call Mount Madofryad ('Come-to-help') --
that in which Vishtasp routed Arjasp -- is Mount Miyan-i-Dast ('mid-plain'),
and was broken off from that mountain there. 33. They say, in the War of the
Religion, when there was confusion among the Iranians it broke off from that
mountain, and slid down into the middle of the plain; the Iranians were saved
by it, and it was called 'Come-to-help' by them."
Asura Deva Conflict in the Hindu Scriptures
The perpetual war between the asuras and
devas form some of the central themes in the later Hindu texts. This might
signify that at the time when these texts were written, the relationship
between the Aryan asura and deva worshippers had deteriorated to such an extent
that they engaged in continuous internecine conflict.
The perpetual conflict between the devas and asura described in the Hindu texts
found its way into Buddhist literature as well. In Pali Theravada Buddhist
literature, the most frequent references to asuras are in connection with the
continual war between asuras and devas. Similarly, in Mahayana Buddhist
literature the asuras, motivated by envy of the devas, are constantly at war
with them. [111: 21-6].
Mahish-Asura & Durga-Devi
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Durga-devi killing Mahish-asura in the form of a buffalo |
An example of the transformation in
relations between the deva and asura worshippers in Hindu scriptures from a
grudging acknowledgement of the onetime supremacy of the Mazda / asura
worshippers to violent conflict, is the Hindu myth of the battle between female
deva, Durga-devi and the asura, Mahish-asura (see image to the right) in
chapters 81 to
[The Vedic name Mahish-asura may have an Avestan equivalence in mazishta-ahura
i.e. the greatest ahura/asura. Mahish-asura could transform himself into a
buffalo and the scenes of Durga killing Mahish-asura sometimes depicts Durga
killing a buffalo, a scene reminiscent of Mitra killing
the bull in Roman mithraeums. (Curiously, Mithra in Iranian tradition is
the name of a woman.) Durga carries the title Mahish-asura-mardini, mardini
meaning a killer of the feminine gender.]
According to the myth, Mahish-asura was pious and worshipped Brahma, the
supreme deity among the devas and asuras. As a reward, Brahma granted
Mahish-asura supremacy and omnipotence over all deities and humans - no man or
male deity would be able to defeat him or kill him. Mahish-asura used his
omnipotence over males to defeat Indra, the king of the devas, and take control
of Swarga Loka, Indra's realm in the upper mountainous regions, and Prithvi
Loka, the lower regions. In doing so, Mahish-asura drove Indra and all the
other devas (in other words, the deva worshippers and temples housing the
devas) out of Swarga Loka.
This description of Mahish-asura as an omnipotent god, a god who was supreme
over both devas and asuras, is a description shared only by the Rig Vedic asura
Varuna who is designated in the Rig Veda as the asura who is king of everyone,
both gods and mortals (RV II.27.10). "This asura rules over the
gods," is a further statement of omnipotence in Atharva Veda I.10.1. No other
Vedic god is described in this manner. Asura Varuna is often thought to be the
Vedic equivalent of the Avestan Ahura Mazda.
Swarga Loka, is the mountainous kingdom where Mount Meru stands. Mount Meru and its companion mountains
are the hub from which the Himalayas stem (a possible description of the
Pamirs). Bharatavarsha, Ancient India, lay to the south of the Himalayas. The
Vedic description of Mount Meru is similar to the Zoroastrian description of
Airyana Vaeja's Mount Hara (also see Aryan Homeland Location page).
After an eon-long lament by the expelled devas, Brahma created Durga, a female
deity who avenged the devas by killing Mahish-asura whose omnipotence did not
extend to females. The killing of Mahish-asura and the defeat of his armies
enabled the devas to return to Swarga and Prithvi Loka.
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The Deva and Mahish-asura armies meet
in battle |
There are indications in the myth, that
while Mahish-asura was in the beginning allied to other asuras, Mahish-asura
eventually drove these asuras out of Swarga Loka as well. (This could mean that
Mahish-asura was worshipped not just as a supreme God, but as an only God as
well.) When the devas prepared to invade and retake Swarga and Prithvi Loka,
the other asuras assisted Durga by providing her with weapons.
The myth has embedded in it, the common roots and the schism between the Aryan
religious groups: the deva, asura and Mazda worshippers. It may also contain
history. For instance, at the outset there are the common roots, shared history
and co-existence among the groups. Next, there is the rise to dominance of the
Mazda worshippers who drove the deva worshippers out of the upper and lower
regions of the Aryan homeland. Later, the Mazda worshippers drove out the asura
worshippers as well. Eventually, however, the deva worshippers, assisted by the
asura worshippers, assembled a strong army and drove the Mazda worshippers out
of Airyana Vaeja. The war
of religion between the two groups may have therefore taken place in two
stages, the second stage ending in the Mazda worshippers being driven out of
their traditional lands. The Bundahishn
12.33 states that "They say, in the war of the religion, there was
confusion among the Iranians... ."
There is a inexplicable gap in Zoroastrian history this myth might help to
fill. The gap occurs after the closing of the Avestan canon and the start of Median and Persian history (c. 800 BCE). Some reason or
event caused the Zoroastrians to migrate westward out of the upper Aryan lands.
The story is an example of how the schism between the two groups became part of
Hindu scripture. Similarly, an entire book of the Avesta, the Vendidad, derives
its name from Vi-dev-data, the law against the devas, that is, the law against
evil.
Post Separation Relations
Once the two groups of Aryans had
separated, the deva worshippers migrating south across the Hindu Kush mountains
into the upper Indus valley, the relationship between the deva and Mazda
worshippers appears to have oscillated between peaceful neighbourliness and
conflict. However, when conflict did arise, it was more in the nature of kings
and ruling groups seeking power (sometimes perhaps at the behest of religious
advisors) than animosity between between two peoples.
To this day, the two peoples, the Zoroastrians and Hindus, intuitively feel a
certain historic kinship. When the Zoroastrians were driven out of their
Iranian homeland by the Arabs, it is the Hindus of India who gave the
Zoroastrians a home, and the two groups have coexisted peacefully in India for
over a thousand years, each honouring the other's freedom to maintain their
religious beliefs.
Zoroastrians owe a debt of gratitude to their Hindu cousins for having opened
the doors of their land for Zoroastrians to enter not just as guests but as
members of a family. Even the Zoroastrians who remained behind in Iran
benefited from Indian hospitality since the Zoroastrians (the Parsees) who
prospered in India were able to provide support and advocate on behalf of their
Iranian brethren who were discriminated against and persecuted in the land of
their ancestors.
It is on this note: the completion of a full cycle of relations between the
Aryan religious groups, that we end this chapter on Aryan heritage - a heritage
that started and ended in coexistence and cooperation.
Courtesy: http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/aryans/
posted by LifzParadise @ 22:57
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