"people. The term ""Avesta"" is from the 9th/10th-century works of Zoroastrian tradition in which the word appears as Zoroastrian Middle Persian ""abestāg"", Book Pahlavi ""ʾp(y)stʾkʼ"". In that context, ""abestāg"" texts are portrayed as received knowledge, and are distinguished from the exegetical commentaries (the ""zand"") thereof. The literal meaning of the word ""abestāg"" is uncertain; it is generally acknowledged to be a learned borrowing from Avestan, but none of the suggested etymologies have been universally accepted. The widely repeated derivation from *""upa-stavaka"" is from Christian Bartholomae (""Altiranisches Wörterbuch"", 1904), who interpreted ""abestāg"" as a contraction of a hypothetical reconstructed Old Iranian"
"strengthens this scenario. The religious practices depicted in the ""Rigveda"" and those depicted in the ""Avesta"", the central religious text of Zoroastrianism—the ancient Iranian faith founded by the prophet Zoroaster—have in common the deity Mitra, priests called ""hotṛ"" in the ""Rigveda"" and ""zaotar"" in the ""Avesta"", and the use of a ritual substance that the ""Rigveda"" calls ""soma"" and the ""Avesta"" ""haoma"". However, the Indo-Aryan ""deva"" 'god' is cognate with the Iranian ""daēva"" 'demon'. Similarly, the Indo-Aryan ""asura"" 'name of a particular group of gods' (later on, 'demon') is cognate with the Iranian ""ahura"" 'lord, god,' which 19th and early"
"""Avesta"" that are attributed to the prophet Zoroaster. Historically, Iranian epic poems such as this one were composed and sung by travelling minstrels, who in pre-Islamic times were a fixture of Iranian society. Although heroic tales such as the ""Memorial of Zarer"" were collected by Zoroastrian priests for the now-lost Sassanid-era ""Book of Kings"", (the ""Khwaday-Namag"", a 5th/6th-century collection of heroic legends), other minstrel compositions were either never written down (and have thus been lost), or are only known of from later translations into Islamic-era languages such as Arabic or Persian. While the Sassanid-era ""Book of Kings"" has also been"
"good and evil, every soul’s walk through a river of fire ordeal for burning of their dross and together they receive a post resurrection paradise. The Zoroastrian holy book, called the ""Avesta"", was written in the Avestan language, which is closely related to Vedic Sanskrit. The ""Qissa-i Sanjan"" is a tale of the journey of the Parsis to India from Iran. It says they fled for reasons of religious freedom and they were allowed to settle in India thanks to the goodwill of a local prince. However, the Parsi community had to abide by three rules: they had to speak"
"Vendidad The Vendidad or Videvdat Avestan: ""𐬬𐬍𐬛𐬀𐬉𐬬𐬋𐬛𐬁𐬙𐬀"" is a collection of texts within the greater compendium of the Avesta. However, unlike the other texts of the Avesta, the ""Vendidad"" is an ecclesiastical code, not a liturgical manual. The name of the texts is a contraction of the Avestan language ""Vî-Daêvô-Dāta"", ""Given Against the ""Daeva""s (Demons)"", and as the name suggests, the ""Vendidad"" is an enumeration of various manifestations of evil spirits, and ways to confound them. According to the divisions of the Avesta as described in the Denkard, a 9th-century text, the ""Vendidad"" includes all of the 19th ""nask"", which"
"Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes (; Greek: Ἐκκλησιαστής, ""Ekklēsiastēs"", , ""qōheleṯ"") is one of 24 books of the Tanakh or Hebrew Bible, where it is classified as one of the ""Ketuvim"" (or ""Writings""). Originally written c. 450–200 BCE, it is also among the canonical Wisdom Books in the Old Testament of most denominations of Christianity. The title ""Ecclesiastes"" is a Latin transliteration of the Greek translation of the Hebrew Kohelet, the pseudonym used by the author of the book. In traditional Jewish texts, King Solomon is named as the author, although modern scholars reject this. Textually, the book is the musings of a"
"(religious sages) while engaging in prayers in their temples held a mace in their hands, not unlike the British bishops who hung swords on their belts... Avesta, the sacred book of the ancient religions of Iran glorifies the champions and sportsmen as much, if not more than saints and men of God. The older generation made arrangements for the ancient narratives and epics to be read to the young either from books or from those who had learned them from their elders. This tradition has survived until today and outlived the rest of ages. Thus, even today, it can be"
"Internet Sacred Text Archive The Internet Sacred Text Archive (ISTA) is a Santa Cruz, California based website dedicated to the preservation of electronic public domain texts, specifically those with significant cultural value. Works which fall into this category range from religious texts such as the Bible, the Qur'an, the Avestas, the I Ching, or the Vedas, to the classical literature of Virgil, Plato, or Sophocles, and on to the more contemporary works of Shakespeare, or the Brothers Grimm. In addition, ISTA compiles texts of Native American religion, mythology and folklore, and lists historical texts and ethnographic accounts by culture group."
"Kitabu'l-Asmá' The Kitabu'l-Asmá' or Book of Divine Names (also known as the ""Chahar Sha`n"" (""The [Book of the] Four Grades"")) is a book written by the Báb, the founder of Bábi religion, in Arabic during his imprisonment in Máh-Kú and Chihriq in Iran (1847-1850). With a total volume of more than 3,000 pages, it is the largest revealed scripture in religious history. At least twenty-six manuscripts exist, and much of the text has not yet been located. Some extracts are available in English in the volume ""Selections from the Writings of the Báb"". The text is divided in nineteen unities"
"2 Esdras 2 Esdras (also called 4 Esdras, Latin Esdras, or Latin Ezra) is the name of an apocalyptic book in many English versions of the Bible (see ""Naming conventions"" below). Its authorship is ascribed to Ezra, a scribe and priest of the , although modern scholarship places its composition between 70 and . It is reckoned among the apocrypha by Roman Catholics, Protestants, and most Eastern Orthodox Christians. Although Second Esdras was preserved in Latin as an appendix to the Vulgate and passed down as a unified book, it is generally considered to be a tripartite work. As with"
"which once served as the basis for a speculation that only one quarter of the texts had survived. In the 20th century it was determined that the Denkard's divisions also took Sassanid-era translations and commentaries into account; these were however not considered to be a part of the Avesta. Book 8 also includes several, today mostly discredited, legends related to the ""history"" of the texts. Book 9 is a commentary on the gathic prayers of ""Yasna"" 27 and ""Yasna"" 54. Together, these make up Zoroastrianism's four most sacred invocations: the ""ahuna vairya"" (Y 27.13), the ""Ashem Vohu"" (Y 27.14), the"
"called,[20] at least one other group is said to have come overland from Sari, Iran.[21] This religion founded by Zarathustra Spitma (better known as ""Zoroaster"") resembles Hinduism in many ways (although differing as a strict monotheism too.) For example, in this religion, the cow is very sacred. In the 9th chapter of the ""Vendidad"" of the ""Avesta"", the purificatory power of cow urine is dilated upon. It is declared to be a panacea for all bodily and moral evils. It is drunk as well as applied externally as is done by Hindus also. Urine of the bull, called ""nirang"" is"
"trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. Mazda is not immanent in the world, and His creation is represented by the Amesha Spentas and the host of other Yazatas, through whom the works of God are evident to humanity, and through whom worship of Mazda is ultimately directed. The most important texts of the religion are those of the Avesta, of which a significant portion has been lost, and mostly only the liturgies of which have survived. The lost portions are known of only through references and brief quotations in the later works"
"remain today are the Gathas, Yasna, Visperad and the Vendidad. Along with these texts is the communal household prayer book called the Khordeh Avesta, which contains the Yashts and the Siroza. The rest of the materials from the Avesta are called ""Avestan fragments"". Middle Persian and Pahlavi works created in the 9th and 10th century contain many religious Zoroastrian books, as most of the writers and copyists were part of the Zoroastrian clergy. The most significant and important books of this era include the Denkard, Bundahishn, Menog-i Khrad, Selections of Zadspram, Jamasp Namag, Epistles of Manucher, Rivayats, Dadestan-i-Denig, and Arda"
"learned, that book seems to me the noblest, the wisest, and the most powerful expression of man's life upon this earth—and also the highest flower of poetry, eloquence, and truth. I am not given to dogmatic judgments in the matter of literary creation, but if I had to make one I could say that Ecclesiastes is the greatest single piece of writing I have ever known, and the wisdom expressed in it the most lasting and profound."" Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes (; Greek: Ἐκκλησιαστής, ""Ekklēsiastēs"", , ""qōheleṯ"") is one of 24 books of the Tanakh or Hebrew Bible, where it is classified"
"(only a fraction of the size of the complete work): Kitabu'l-Asmá' The Kitabu'l-Asmá' or Book of Divine Names (also known as the ""Chahar Sha`n"" (""The [Book of the] Four Grades"")) is a book written by the Báb, the founder of Bábi religion, in Arabic during his imprisonment in Máh-Kú and Chihriq in Iran (1847-1850). With a total volume of more than 3,000 pages, it is the largest revealed scripture in religious history. At least twenty-six manuscripts exist, and much of the text has not yet been located. Some extracts are available in English in the volume ""Selections from the Writings"
"Ginza Rba The Ginza Rba or Ginza Rabba (Mandaean script-Mandaean '; literally ""The Great Treasury"") or Siddra Rabba, ""The Great Book"" (""""rabba"""", meaning great), and formerly, the Codex Nazaraeus, is the longest of the many holy scriptures of the Mandaean religion. It is also occasionally referred to as The Book of Adam. The language used is classical Mandaic, a dialect of Eastern Aramaic written in Mandaic script (Parthian chancellory script), similar to Syriac script. The authorship is unknown, and dating is a matter of debate. Some scholars place it in the 2nd-3rd centuries AD, while others such as S. F."
"and mythologies of the peoples of the Greater Iran, not least because Zoroastrianism was a dominant influence on the people of the cultural continent for a thousand years. Even after the rise of Islam and the loss of direct influence, Zoroastrianism remained part of the cultural heritage of the Iranian language-speaking world, in part as festivals and customs, but also because Ferdowsi incorporated a number of the figures and stories from the Avesta in his epic ""Shāhnāme"", which in turn is pivotal to Iranian identity. The Avesta is the religious book of Zoroastrians that contains a collection of sacred texts."
"Pazend Pazend or Pazand Middle Persian: 𐭯𐭠𐭰𐭭𐭣 Avestan: ""𐬞𐬀𐬌𐬙𐬌 𐬰𐬀𐬌𐬥𐬙𐬌‎"" is one of the writing systems used for the Middle Persian language. It was based on the Avestan alphabet, a phonetic alphabet originally used to write Avestan, the language of the Avesta, the primary sacred texts of Zoroastrianism. Pazend's principal use was for writing the commentaries (""Zend"") on and/or translations of the Avesta. The word ""Pazend"" ultimately derives from the Avestan words ""paiti zainti"", which can be translated as either ""for commentary purposes"" or ""according to understanding"" (phonetically). Pazend had the following characteristics, both of which are to be contrasted"
"in Iraqi Kurdistan. Besides the Zoroastrian diaspora, the older Mithraic faith Yazdânism is still practised amongst Kurds. The most important texts of the religion are those of the ""Avesta"", which includes the writings of Zoroaster known as the Gathas, enigmatic poems that define the religion's precepts, and the Yasna, the scripture. The full name by which Zoroaster addressed the deity is: Ahura, The Lord Creator, and Mazda, Supremely Wise. The religious philosophy of Zoroaster divided the early Iranian gods of Proto-Indo-Iranian tradition, but focused on responsibility, and did not create a devil per se. Zoroaster proclaimed that there is only"
"a genre of middle Persian literature, refers to the ""Zend"" (literally: 'commentary'/'translation') texts that offer explanation and close reading of the Avesta, the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism. The scriptural commentaries of the Talmud offer a commonly cited early predecessor to close reading. In Islamic studies, the close reading of the Quran has flourished and produced an immense corpus. But the closest religious analogy to contemporary literary close reading, and the principal historical connection with its birth, is the rise of the higher criticism, and the evolution of textual criticism of the Bible in Germany in the late eighteenth century. In"
"the proper name of the divinity Asha, the Amesha Spenta that is the hypostasis or ""genius"" of ""Truth"" or ""Righteousness"". In the Younger Avesta, this figure is more commonly referred to as Asha Vahishta (""Aša Vahišta"", ""Arta Vahišta""), ""Best Truth"". The Middle Persian descendant is ""Ashawahist"" or ""Ardwahisht""; New Persian ""Ardibehesht"" or ""Ordibehesht"". In the Gathas, the oldest texts of Zoroastrianism and thought to have been composed by the prophet himself, it is seldom possible to distinguish between moral principle and the divinity. Later texts consistently use the 'Best' epithet when speaking of the Amesha Spenta, only once in the"
"been dated by linguists to approximately 2300 BCE. According to Gherardo Gnoli, the ""Avesta"" contains the names of various tribes who lived in proximity to each other: ""the Airyas [Aryans], Tuiryas [Turanians], Sairimas [Sarmatians], Sainus [Ashkuns] and Dahis [Dahae]"". In the hymns of the ""Avesta"", the adjective ""Tūrya"" is attached to various enemies of Zoroastrism like Fraŋrasyan (Shahnameh: Afrāsīāb). The word occurs only once in the ""Gathas"", but 20 times in the later parts of the ""Avesta"". The Tuiryas as they were called in Avesta play a more important role in the ""Avesta"" than the Sairimas, Sainus and Dahis. Zoroaster"
"texts have been subjected to editings and redactions throughout their development. It is now the only extant fragment of what remained in the 9th century of the Avesta compiled in the Sasanian Empire by Khosrow I. Summaries of its content reveal that it was a huge collection containing texts not only in Avestan, but also in Pahlavi, which was the language of Zoroastrianism in the Sasanian Empire. Though the existing Avesta is dated quite recently, it contains information that is considerably older. The Gathas (""Songs"") of the Prophet Zoroaster and much of the Yashts are considered among the oldest. The"
"Book of Esther The Book of Esther, also known in Hebrew as ""the Scroll"" (""Megillah""), is a book in the third section (""Ketuvim"", ""Writings"") of the Jewish ""Tanakh"" (the Hebrew Bible) and in the Christian Old Testament. It is one of the five Scrolls (""Megillot"") in the Hebrew Bible. It relates the story of a Hebrew woman in Persia, born as Hadassah but known as Esther, who becomes queen of Persia and thwarts a genocide of her people. The story forms the core of the Jewish festival of Purim, during which it is read aloud twice: once in the evening"
"Vendidad as a valued and fundamental cultural and ethical moral guide, viewing their teachings as essential to Zoroastrian tradition and see it as part of Zoroastrianism original perspectives about the truth of spiritual existence. They argue that it has origins on early oral tradition, being only later written. The emergent reformist Zoroastrian movement reject the later writings in the Avesta as being corruptions of Zarathustra's original teachings and thus do not consider the Vendidad as an original Zoroastrian scripture. They argue that it was written nearly 700 years after the death of Zarathustra and interpret the writing as different from"
"Avestan alphabet The Avestan alphabet is a writing system developed during Iran's Sassanid era (226–651 CE) to render the Avestan language. As a side effect of its development, the script was also used for Pazend, a method of writing Middle Persian that was used primarily for the ""Zend"" commentaries on the texts of the Avesta. In the texts of Zoroastrian tradition, the alphabet is referred to as ""din dabireh"" or ""din dabiri"", Middle Persian for ""the religion's script"". The development of the Avestan alphabet was initiated by the need to represent recited Avestan language texts correctly. The various text collections"
"of everything that can and cannot be seen, the Eternal, the Pure and the only Truth. In the Gathas, the most sacred texts of Zoroastrianism thought to have been composed by Zoroaster himself, the prophet acknowledged devotion to no other divinity besides Ahura Mazda. ""Daena"" (""din"" in modern Persian) is the eternal Law, whose order was revealed to humanity through the ""Mathra-Spenta"" (""Holy Words""). ""Daena"" has been used to mean religion, faith, law, and even as a translation for the Hindu and Buddhist term Dharma, to which it is related. The latter is often interpreted as ""duty"" but can also"
"Yasna Yasna (; ) is the Avestan name of Zoroastrianism's principal act of worship. It is also the name of the primary liturgical collection of Avesta texts, recited during that ""yasna"" ceremony. The function of the ""yasna"" ceremony is, very roughly described, to strengthen the orderly spiritual and material creations of Ahura Mazda against the assault of the destructive forces of Angra Mainyu. The ""yasna"" service, that is, the recitation of the Yasna texts, culminates in the ""apæ zaothra"", the ""offering to the waters."" The ceremony may also be extended by recitation of the ""Visperad"" and ""Vendidad"" texts. A normal"
"for writing Avestan developed during the 3rd or 4th century AD. By then the language had been extinct for many centuries, and remained in use only as a liturgical language of the Avesta canon. As is still the case today, the liturgies were memorized by the priesthood and recited by rote. The script devised to render Avestan was natively known as ""Din dabireh"" ""religion writing"". It has 53 distinct characters and is written right-to-left. Among the 53 characters are about 30 letters that are – through the addition of various loops and flourishes – variations of the 13 graphemes of"
"priest. It was later copied by the Latin ""ater"" (black) and possibly a cognate of the Slavic ""vatra"" (fire). In later Zoroastrianism, ""ātar"" (Middle Persian: 𐭠𐭲𐭥𐭥𐭩 ""ādar"" or ""ādur"") is iconographically conflated with fire itself, which in Middle Persian is 𐭠𐭲𐭧𐭱 ""ātaxsh"", one of the primary objects of Zoroastrian symbolism. ""Atar"" is already evident in the Gathas, the oldest texts of the compendium of the Avesta and believed to have been composed by Zoroaster himself. At this juncture, as in the ""Yasna Haptanghaiti"" (the seven-chapter Yasna that structurally interrupts the Gathas and is linguistically as old as the Gathas themselves),"
"The history of the Avesta is found in many Pahlavi texts. According to tradition, Ahura Mazda created the twenty-one nasks which Zoroaster brought to Vishtaspa. Here, two copies were created, one which was put in the house of archives, and the other put in the Imperial treasury. During Alexander's conquest of Persia, the Avesta was burned, and the scientific sections that the Greeks could use were dispersed among themselves. Under the reign of King Valax of the Arsacis Dynasty, an attempt was made to restore the Avesta. During the Sassanid Empire, Ardeshir ordered Tansar, his high priest, to finish the"
"of sacred Zoroastrian texts which later formed the Avesta. The Sassanid court would later adopt Zoroastrianism as the official state religion of the empire. Although Mani (216–276 AD), the founding prophet of Manichaeism, did not proclaim his first religious revelation until 228/229 AD, Bivar asserts that his new faith contained ""elements of Mandaean belief, Iranian cosmogony, and even echoes of Christianity ... [it] may be regarded as a typical reflection of the mixed religious doctrines of the late Arsacid period, which the Zoroastrian orthodoxy of the Sasanians was soon to sweep away."" There is scant archaeological evidence for the spread"