Teachings of Zoroaster - Extracts Pages 84-102

[Anne Terri]

THE TEACHINGS OF ZOROASTER,

AND


THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE PARSI RELIGION

EXTRACTS 84 - 102

ON LOAN *
Page 84

He who does not restore (a thing lent) when it is asked for back again, steals the thing; he robs the man. So he does every day, every night, as long as he keeps in his house his neighbour's property, as though it were his own."

ON WASTE †

"Ahura-Mazda, indeed, does not allow us to waste anything of value that we may have, not even so much as an Asperena's weight of thread, not even so much as a maid lets fall in spinning."

TEMPERANCE ‡

"Regarding wine, it is evident that it is possible for good and bad temper to come to manifestation through wine.

. . . . .

"It is not requisite for investigation, because he who is a good-tempered man, when he drinks wine, is such-like as a gold or silver cup which, however much more they burn it, becomes purer and brighter. It also keeps his thoughts,

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words, and deeds more virtuous; and he becomes gentler and pleasanter unto wife and child, companions and friends, and is more diligent in every duty and good work.

"And he who is a bad-tempered man, when he drinks wine, thinks and considers himself more than ordinary: He carries on a quarrel with companions, displays insolence, makes ridicule and mockery, and acts arrogantly to a good person. He distresses his own wife and child, slave and servant; and dissipates the joy of the good, carries off peace, and brings in discord.

"But every one must be cautious as to the moderate drinking of wine. Because, from the moderate drinking of wine, thus much benefit happens to him: since it digests the food, kindles the vital fire, increases the understanding and intellect, and blood, removes vexation, and inflames the complexion.

It causes recollection of things forgotten, and goodness takes a place in the mind. It likewise increases the sight of the eye, the hearing of the ear, and the speaking of the tongue; and work, which it is necessary to do and expedite, becomes more progressive. He also sleeps pleasantly and rises light.

"And in him who drinks wine more than moderately, . . . himself, wife, and child, friend and kindred, are distressed and unhappy, and

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the superintendent of troubles and the enemy are glad. The sacred beings, also, are not pleased with him; and infamy comes to his body, and even wickedness to his soul.

"And even he who gives wine authorizedly unto any one, and he is thereby intoxicated by it, is equally guilty of every sin which that drunkard commits owing to that drunkenness." *

SOULS’ VISIT TO THE EARTH †
Page 86 Continued

We worship the good, strong, beneficent Fravashis ‡ of the faithful, who come and go through the borough at the time of the Hamaspathmaêdha §; they go along there for ten nights, asking thus:

"Who will praise us? Who will offer us a sacrifice? Who will meditate upon us? Who will bless us? Who will receive us with meat and clothes in his hand and with a prayer worthy of bliss? Of which of us will the name be taken for invocation? Of which of you will the soul be worshipped by you with a sacrifice? To whom will the gift of ours be given, that he may have never-failing food for ever and ever?" And the man who offers them up a sacrifice, with meat and clothes in his hand, with a prayer worthy of bliss, the awful ¦¦ Fravashis of the faithful, satisfied, unharmed, and unoffended, bless thus:

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"May there be in this house flocks of animals and men! May there be a swift horse and a solid chariot! May there be a man who knows how to praise God and rule in an assembly, who will offer us sacrifices with meat and clothes in his hand, and with a prayer worthy of bliss!"

THE MAZDAYASNIAN CONFESSION *
Page 87 Continued

"I drive the Daêvas hence; I confess as a Mazda-worshipper of the order of Zarathustra, estranged from the Daêvas, devoted to the lore of the Lord, a praiser of the Bountiful Immortals; and to Ahura-Mazda, the good and endowed with good possessions, I attribute all things good, to the Holy One, the resplendent, to the glorious, whose are all things whatsoever which are good; whose is the Kine, whose is Asha (the righteous order pervading all things pure), whose are the stars, in whose lights the glorious beings and objects are clothed.

"And I choose Piety, the bounteous and the good, mine may she be! And therefore I loudly deprecate all robbery and violence against the (Sacred) Kine, and all drought to the wasting of the Mazdayasnian villages.

. . . . .

"Never may I stand as a source of wasting, never as a source of withering to the Mazdayasnian villages, not for the love of body or of life.

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"Away do I abjure the shelter and headship of the Daêvas, evil as they are; aye, utterly bereft of good, and void of virtue, deceitful in their wickedness, of all beings those most like the Demon-of-the-Lie, the most loathsome of existing things, and the ones the most of all bereft of good.

"Off, off, do I abjure the Daêvas and all possessed by them, the sorcerers and all that hold to their devices, and every existing being of the sort; their thoughts do I abjure, their words and actions, and their seed that propagate their sin; away do I abjure their shelter and their headship.

"Thus and so in every deed might Ahura-Mazda have indicated to Zarathustra in every question which Zarathustra asked, and in all the consultations in the which they two conversed together. Thus and so might Zarathustra have abjured the shelter and the headship of the Daêvas in all the questions and in all the consultations with which they two conversed together, Zarathustra and the Lord.

"And so I myself, in whatsoever circumstances I may be placed, as a worshipper of Mazda, and of Zarathustra's order, would so abjure the Daêvas and their shelter, as he who was the holy Zarathustra abjured them.

"To that religious sanctity to which the waters appertain, do I belong, to that sanctity to which

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the plants, to that sanctity to which the Kine of blessed gift, to that religious sanctity to which Ahura-Mazda, who made both Kine and holy men, belongs, to that sanctity do I.

"A Mazda-worshipper I am, of Zarathustra's order; so do I confess, as a praiser and confessor, and I therefore praise aloud the well-thought thought, the word well spoken, and the deed well done.

"Yea, I praise at once the Faith of Mazda, the Faith which has no faltering utterance, the Faith that wields the felling halbert, the holy (Creed), which is the most imposing, best, and most beautiful of all religions which exist, and of all that shall in future come to knowledge, Ahura's Faith, the Zarathustrian creed. Yea, to Ahura-Mazda do I ascribe all good, and such shall be the worship of the Mazdayasnian belief!"

PATET ERANI *
Prayer for Repentance
Page 89 Continued

"I am wholly without doubt in the existence of the good Mazdayasnian faith, in the coming of the resurrection and the later body, in the stepping over the bridge Chinvat, in an invariable recompense of good deeds and their reward,

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and of bad deeds and their punishment, as well as in the continuance of Paradise, in the annihilation of Hell and Ahriman * and the Daêvas, that [God] Ahura-Mazda will at last be victorious and Ahriman will perish together with the Daêvas and the off-shoots of darkness.

. . . . .

"All that I ought to have thought and have not thought, all that I ought 'to have said and have not said, all that I ought to have done and have not done, all that I ought to have ordered and have not ordered, all that I ought not to have thought and yet have thought, all that I ought not to have spoken and yet have spoken, all that I ought not to have done and yet have done, all that I ought not to have ordered and yet have ordered; for thoughts, words, and works, bodily and spiritual, earthy and heavenly, pray I for forgiveness, and repent of it with Patet. †

. . . . .

"This heavenly Patet shall be a fast brazen wall . . . that it may keep the gate of Hell fast in bonds, and the way to Paradise open, the way to that best place:—to the shining Garothman which possesses all majesty, that our soul and the souls of the pure at the Bridge Chinvat, the great, may step over freed from trouble and

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easily, and may the pure Srosh, * the victorious, friend, protector, overseer, be the protector and the watcher of my soul. . . ."

MARRIAGE SERVICE †
Page 91 Continued

"Do you both accept the contract for life with honourable mind, that pleasure may increase to ye twain?
Admonitions

"In the name and friendship of Ahura-Mazda. Be ever shining . . . Be increasing! Be victorious! Learn purity! Be worthy of good praise! May the mind think good thoughts, the words speak good, the works do good! . . . Be a Mazdayasnian, accomplish works according to thy mind . . . speak truth . . . and be obedient. Be modest with friends, clever, and well-wishing. Be not cruel. Be not wrathful-minded. Commit no sin through shame. Be not covetous. Torment not. Cherish not wicked envy, be not haughty, treat no one despitefully, cherish no lust. Rob not the property of others, keep thyself from the wives of others. Do good works with good activity. . . . Enter into no strife with a revengeful man. Be no companion

p. 92

to a covetous one. Go not on the same way with a cruel one. Enter into no agreement with one of ill-fame. . . . Combat the adversaries with right. . . . Enter into no strife with those of evil repute. Before an assembly speak only pure words. Before kings speak with moderation. In no wise displease thy mother. Keep thine own body pure in justice.

. . . . .
Blessings

"May Ahura-Mazda (God) send you gifts, Bahman, * thinking with the soul; Ardibihist good speech; Sharevar, good working; Çependarmat, wisdom; Khordat, sweetness and prosperity; Amertat, fruitfulness!

"May that come to you which is better than the good, may that not come to you which is worse than the evil. . . ."

THE VISION OF ARDÂ-VIRÂF †
Page 92 Continued

They say that, once upon a time, the pious Zaratûtsht (Zoroaster) made the religion which he had received current in the world; and till the

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completion of three hundred years the religion was in purity, and men were without doubts.

. . . . .

And this religion, namely all the Avesta and Zend, written upon prepared cow-skins and with gold ink, was deposited in the archives in Stâkhar Pâpâkân; and the hostility of the evil-destined, wicked Ashemôk, the evil-doer, brought onward Alexander, the Rûman who was dwelling in Egypt, and he burnt them up.

. . . . .

And after that there was confusion and contention among the people of the country of Iran, one with the other.

. . . . .

And afterwards there were other magi and Desturs * of the religion, and some of their number were loyal and apprehensive. And an assembly of them was summoned in the residence of the victorious Frôbâg fire; and there were speeches and good ideas of many kinds on this subject: that "it is necessary for us to seek a means so that some of us may go and bring intelligence from the spirits; that the people who exist in this age shall know whether these Yazashni and Drôn and Afrînagân ceremonies, and Nîran prayers, and ablutions and purifications which we bring into operation attain unto God or unto

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the demons, and come to the relief of our souls or not.

. . . . .

And from the seven, three were selected, and from the three, one only, named Vîrâf, and some called him the Nîshâpûrian. Then that Vîrâf, as he heard that decision, stood upon his feet, joined his hands on his breast, and spake thus, "If it please you, then give me not the undesired narcotic till you cast lots for the Mazdayasnians and me; and if the lot come to me, I shall go willingly to that place of the pious and the wicked, and carry this message correctly, and bring an answer truly.

. . . . .

"After I had drunk the consecrated wine, and I had reposed my body to rest, and given my mind up to the adoration of God, methought my soul took its flight towards the holy regions, where Serosh Izad * appeared unto me, and beckoned me towards him, when, after giving and receiving the customary salutations, Serosh Izad said to me, 'You have made a long journey in the faith. I am happy to see you in these blessed regions, and your escape from the world of wickedness gives one great pleasure; but, Ardâ-Vîrâf, you have come before your time. What is the occasion?' Ardâ-Vîrâf replied in accents of

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complacency, 'I have been sent, O Serosh Izad! by the king, by the priests, and by the voice of the nation in general, on this embassy, to know of heaven and hell, in order that heresy and schism be banished from the earth, and that the worship of the true God be restored to its wonted purity.'

. . . . .

". . . On saying this, Serosh Izad took hold of me by the arm, and led me forward across the bridge, when the throne of Mehr Izad, * came in view, with Roshni Izad † standing by him, holding in his hands the scales of justice, made of pure gold, and having on his right hand and on his left five thousand angels, and whose different petitions he can hear at once, and if written can see at one glance. Having saluted, and having my salutation returned, the attending angels surrounded me, and thus addressed me, 'O Ardâ-Virâf! your time has not yet come. How and by what means have you come thus far?' I answered, 'I have come thus far by the assistance of God, at the request of my king, Ardeshir Babegan, of the priests, and of the people, to collect and report the wonders of heaven and hell; that I may see that the truth may by these means be again restored to the earth, and heresy and wickedness banished for ever.'

". . . Afterwards arose Vohûmano, ‡ the archangel,

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from a throne made of gold, and he took hold of my hand. With the words 'good thought' and 'good word' and 'good deed,' he brought me into the midst of Aûharmazd * and the archangels and other holy ones, and the guardian angels of Zaratûsht Spitâma, Kaî-Vishtâsp, Jâmâsp, Isâdvâstar, the son of Zaratûsht, and other upholders and leaders of the religion, than whom I have never seen any one more brilliant and excellent.

"And Vohûman said thus, 'This is Aûharmazd.' And I wished to offer worship before him.

"And he said to me thus, 'Salutation to thee, Ardâ-Vîrâf, thou art welcome; from that perishable world thou hast come to this pure bright place.' And he ordered Srôsh the pious, and Atarô † the angel, thus, 'Take Ardâ-Vîrâf, and show him the place and reward of the pious, and also the punishment of the wicked.'

. . . . .

"And I saw the darkest hell, which is pernicious, dreadful, terrible, very painful, mischievous, and evil-smelling. And after further observation it appeared to me as a pit, at the bottom of which a thousand cubits would not reach; and though all the wood which is in the world were put on to the fire in this most stinking and gloomy hell, it would never emit a smell; and again also, as

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close as the ear to the eye, and as many as the hairs on the mane of a horse, so close and many in number the souls of the wicked stand—but they see not and hear no sound one from the other; every one thinks thus, 'I am alone!' And for them are the gloom of darkness and the stench and fearfulness of the torment and punishment of hell of various kinds; so that whoever is only a day in hell cries out thus, 'Are not those nine thousand years yet completed when they should release us from this hell?'

. . . . .

"'Without trouble nothing can be attained,' said Serosh Izad; 'the poor day-labourer is worthy of his hire, and those who perform good works will have their reward in eternal life, according to their several merits.' He continued, 'The life of man is of short duration, and many troubles and anxieties fall to his lot; and a man, after fifty years of prosperity and happiness, may be, by some unforeseen accident, reduced to sickness and poverty. Many are tried by this criterion, and but few are found worthy. To suffer a day of pain, after fifty years of pleasure, is too much for them, and they complain in bitterness of spirit to the Creator of all good of His injustice and cruelty, without remembering the good they have so long enjoyed or calling to mind the eternity of punishment in reserve for the

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wicked. Therefore, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! walk yourself in the ways of righteousness, and teach others also to do so. Recollect that your body will return to dust, but your soul, if rich in good works, will mount to immortality, and partake of the happiness you have already witnessed. Take less care of your body and more of your soul; the pains and aches of the body are easily cured, but who can minister to the diseases of the soul? When you set out on a journey in the lower world, you provide yourselves, and take with you money, clothes, provisions, and are prepared against all the exigencies of the road, but what do you provide yourselves with for your last journey of the soul from the lower to the upper world, and whose friendship have you to assist you on the way? Hear, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! and I will describe to you the provisions requisite for the voyage to eternal life.

"'In the first place the friend who will assist you is God; but to attain His friendship you must walk in His ways and place in Him the firmest reliance. The provisions must be faith and hope and the remembrance of your good works. The body, O Aida-Viral! may be likened unto a horse, and the soul to its rider, and the provisions requisite for the support of both are good actions; but as with a feeble rider the horse is ill-managed, so with a feeble horse the rider is but ill accommodated. Care ought to be taken that both are

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kept in order; so, in a spiritual sense, the soul and body must be kept in order by a succession of good actions. Even in the world the multitude would sneer at a man who took more care of his horse than of himself; for this reason a man ought to take more care of his soul than of his body. God, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! requires only two things of the sons of men: the first, that they should not sin; the next, that they should be grateful of the many blessings He is continually bestowing upon them.

"'Let the world, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! be taught not to set their hearts on the pleasures and vanities of life, as nothing can be carried away with them. You have already seen the rewards given to the good and deserving—how they have been repaid for all their trouble; the poor and the rich, the king and the peasant, here receive honours and distinctions according to their good works. The herdsman and shepherd, you have seen their condition.

"'In youth and in the prime of manhood, when blessed with health and vigour, you suppose that your strength will never fail; that your riches, your lands, your houses, and your honours will remain for ever; that your gardens will be always green and your vineyards fruitful. But, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! teach them not to think so teach them the danger of such a way of thinking: all, all will pass away as a dream!

"'The flowers fade, and give lessons unto man

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that he is unwilling to profit by. Yea, the world itself will pass away, and nothing will remain but God!

"Therefore, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! turn your thoughts only towards Him. No pleasure but has its concomitant pain roses have thorns, and honours fall into disgrace. It is pleasant to drink wine, but intoxication brings pain, if not disgrace; if you exceed in eating, this also brings its punishment, and you must have a doctor; even if you drink the purest water to excess, it engenders dropsy; therefore let the avoidance of excess in everything be most particularly inculcated—in wine or women, in eating and drinking: though they bring their own punishment in the world by the diseases they engender, yet they encourage the most deadly sins, and the soul so indulging will most assuredly be cut off from heaven. So you see, O Ardâ-Vîrâf! that the indulgence of our passions brings no pleasure of long duration, or impresses any good sentiment on the heart.

"'If after praying to God for offspring, and He has granted your request, into what sea of trouble and anxiety are you plunged! Your son or daughter may grow up in vicious habits, and embitter your days by their undutiful conduct: the one may become a thief, the other a courtezan, and bring disgrace on your old age. The bee that produces honey has also a sting.

"'The world is composed of lust, avarice, and

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of passions the most ungovernable; if God gives them one thing, even that for which they most desire, they are not satisfied, but are continually craving for more and more, to a hundredfold.

"'Avarice and ambition deprive them of sleep, and prevent them from making a laudable exertion to subdue these dreadful passions, which will plunge them into everlasting misery.

"'A king who has conquered all the surrounding countries sighs because he has no more worlds to subdue. Kai Kâus, after having conquered many countries, aspired to be a king in heaven, and was punished for his presumption by a dreadful fall, which made him sensible of his folly.

'"So you see, O Ardâ-Virâf! that content is the happiest condition of man and the most pleasing to the Creator: and treasure the advice I have given you; and as you return to the lower world, inculcate these precepts, and abide by the laws and walk in the way of truth and holiness, and continue in the worship of the true God.'"

. . . . .

SANCTITY *
Page 101 Continued

"I pray with benedictions for a benefit, and for the good, even for the entire creation of the holy and the clean; I beseech them for the generation which is now alive, for that which is just coming into life, and for that which shall be

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hereafter. And I pray for that sanctity which leads to prosperity, and which has long afforded shelter, which goes on hand in hand with it, which joins it in its walk, and of itself becoming its close companion as it delivers forth its precepts, bearing every form of healing virtue which comes to us in waters, appertains to cattle, or is found in plants, and overwhelming all the harmful malice of the Daêvas, and their servants who might harm this dwelling and its lord, bringing good gifts, and better blessings, given very early, and later gifts, leading to successes, and for a long time giving shelter. And so the greatest, and the best, and most beautiful benefits of sanctity fall likewise to our lot for the sacrifice, homage, propitiation, and the praise of the Bountiful Immortals, for the bringing prosperity to this abode, and for the prosperity of the entire creation of the holy, and the clean, and as for this, so for the opposition of the entire evil creation. . . ."

PRAYER FOR SAFETY *
Page 102 Continued

"Keep us from our hater, O Mazda! . . . Perish, O fiendish Drug! Perish, O brood of the fiend! Perish, O world of the fiend! . . . . Perish away to the regions of the north, never more to give unto death the living world of the holy spirit!"


NOTES

84:* Sacred Books of the East.

84:† Ibid.

84:‡ Dînâ-î Maînôg-î Khirad. Sacred Books of the East. Translated by Dr. West.

86:* Dâdîstân-î-Dînîk

86:† Sacred Books of the East.

86:‡ Souls.

86:§ The last ten days of the year.

86:¦¦ Awe-inspiring.

87:* Sacred Books of the East. Translated by Dr. L. H. Mills.

89:* Spiegel and Bleeck's translation.

90:* The devil.

90:† Penance.

91:* The Guardian Angel.

91:† Spiegel and Bleeck's translation.

92:* See Ameshaspends, page 41.

92:† Dr. Haug and Dr. West's "Ardâ-Virâf"; J. A. Pope's Revelations of Ardâ-Virâf."

93:* Chief priests.

94:* The Guardian Angel of Souls.

95:* Mithra: The Recording Angel.

95:† Angel of Justice.

95:‡ Good Mind.

96:* Good.

96:† God of Fire: The Angel of Life.

101:* Sacred Books of the East. Translated by Dr. L. H. Mills.

102:* Max Müller's "Sacred Books of the East."

The Teachings of Zoroaster by author S. A. Kapadia - 1905
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