u 
 
 ar. 
 
 38496 
 
CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
Cornell University Library 
 arW38496 
 
 The Parsee religion / 
 
 3 1924 031 767 779 
 olin.anx 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of tliis book is in 
 tlie Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924031767779 
 
JE PAKSEE KELIGION, 
 
 ' -''^ ?^ LL\^?Y DADABHAI NAOROJI, Esq. 
 
 J f I ifPratesBp): of Giqarati in the University of Loudon.) 
 
 t'obb the llvbbfool litesaky and philosophical society, 
 Makch 18th, 1861. 
 
 Like a soldier suddenly called to perform his movements before 
 a body of veteran officers, after having given up his military 
 habits for several years, I feel embarrassed and awkward on 
 being required to read a paper before a learned society such as 
 this, after having been, for the past six years, unused to the habits 
 of thought^ reading, and composition, necessary for such a task. 
 I have endeavoured, however, to do what I could, under the 
 circumstances, and as far as my limited leisure permitted. 
 
 I will first give some account of the present state of the 
 knowledge of the Parsees about their religion. The priests are 
 a separate caste^ and the priesthood is thus hereditary. As a 
 body, the priests are not only ignorant of the duties and objects 
 of their own profession, bat are entirely uneducated, except that 
 they are able to read and write, and that, also, often very imper- 
 fectly. To read and write they must learn, as they have to 
 prepare by rote a large number of prayers and recitations, which, 
 in the performance of their usual avocations, they are required 
 to recite. Their work chiefly consists of reciting certain pre- 
 scribed prayers on various religious occasions ; to go to the fire- 
 temple or sea-shore, and say a prayer for anybody that chooses 
 to give a halfpenny ; and to depend upon charities distributed 
 on various joyous or mournful occasions. They do not under- 
 stand a single word of these prayers or recitations, which are all 
 in the old Zend language. 
 
 From the state of their education and knowledge, they are 
 quite unfit for the pulpit ; nor do they aspire to it, or seem to 
 
have any notion of the necessity of such teaching. The Parsees 
 have, therefore, no pulpit at present. Far from being the 
 teachers of the true doctrines and duties of their religion, the 
 priests are generally the most bigoted and superstitious, and 
 exercise much injurious influence over the women especially, 
 who, until lately, received no education at all. 
 
 The priests have, however, now begun to feel their degraded 
 position. Many of them, if they can do so, bring up their sons 
 in any other profession but their own. There are, perhaps, a 
 dozen, among the whole body of professional priests, who lay 
 claim to a knowledge of the Zend Avestd, the religious books 
 of the Parsees; but the only respect in which they are superior 
 to their brethren is, that they have learnt the meanings of 
 words of the books as they are taught, without knowing the 
 language, either philologically or grammatically. They have 
 been taught certain meanings for certain words, and they stick 
 to them as a matter of course. I doubt much whether any 
 one of them has a clear notion of what grammar is, and as to 
 a liberal education, they never had it, and do not, in conse- 
 quence, understand the necessity of it. 
 
 Such being the state of knowledge of the religious guides 
 and teachers among the Parsees, it may be easily conceived 
 what could be expected from a layman. The whole religious 
 education of a Parsee's child consists in preparing by rote a 
 certain number of prayers in Zend, without understanding a 
 word of them ; the knowledge of the doctrines of their religion 
 being left to be picked up from casual conversation. Under 
 these circumstances, a Parsee has not much opportunity of 
 knowing what his creed really is; the translation, besides, of 
 the Zend books, in the present vernacular of the Parsees, being 
 of very recent date. But, unfortunately, this translation is 
 a constant subject of dispute among the dozen would-be 
 learned priests alluded to before. This shameful want of the 
 means of religious education, and its slight extent among the 
 Parsee children, have of late attracted the attention of the com- 
 munity, and efforts are being made to supply the deficiency. 
 
3 
 
 In my ignorance of the Zend language, I cannot do more 
 than depend upon this translation, though considered to be 
 somewhat imperfect. But, for the purposes of a paper like this, 
 the object of which is to give a general outline of the doctrines 
 of the Parsee religion, I think these materials will suffice. 
 
 The traditional number of the books of the Zend Avesta is 
 twenty-one, of which there are only three extant, and parts of 
 two more, viz., the Yazashne, the Vandidad, and the Khordeh 
 Avesta, and a part of the Visparad, and Vistasp Nusk. 
 
 There is a dialogue, in the vernacular, appended to the 
 Khordeh Avesta (small Avestd), which, I think, gives a suffi- 
 ciently accurate outline of the present belief of nearly the whole 
 of the orthodox body. I do not know of a certainty who its 
 author is. It has been composed more than a quarter of a 
 century ago, when English ideas and education had not made 
 much progress ; and is, therefore, I think, the more valuable, 
 as a faithful representation of the belief of the general mass. 
 
 The Khordeh Avesta is a collection of prayers addressed to 
 God and several angels, and it is some of these prayers, the 
 preparation of which by rote, forms the staple of the religious 
 education of the Parsee child. At the end of this book is 
 appended the dialogue, in the vernacular; and intelligent 
 priests, masters, and parents, that could read, welcomed this 
 aid, imperfect though it is, and a little irrelevant. 
 
 The subject of the dialogue is thus described : — 
 " A few questions and answers to acquaint the children of the 
 
 holy Zarthosti community with the subject of the Mazdi- 
 
 ashna religion {i. e., of the worship of God). Dialogue 
 
 between a Zarthosti master and pupil : — 
 
 Ques. Whom do we, of the Zarthosti community, believe in ? 
 
 Ans. We believe in only one God, and do not believe in 
 any besides him. 
 
 Ques, Who is that one God ? 
 
 Ans. The God who created the heavens, the earth, the 
 angels, the stars, the sun, the moon, the fire, the water, or all 
 the four elements, and all things of the two worlds ; that God 
 
we believe in— Him we worship. Him we invoke, and Him we 
 adore. 
 
 Ques. Do we not believe in any other God ? 
 Ans. Whoever believes in any other God but this is an 
 infidel, and shall suiFer the punishment of hell. 
 
 Ques. What is the form of our God ? 
 
 Ans. Our God has neither face nor form, colour nor shape, 
 nor fixed place. There is no other like Him ; he is Himself 
 singly such a glory that we cannot praise or describe Him ; nor 
 our mind comprehend Him. . 
 
 Ques. Is there any such thing that God even cannot create ? 
 
 Ans. Yes ; there is one thing which God himself even 
 cannot create. 
 
 Qwes. What that thing is, must be explained to me. 
 
 Ans. God is the creator of all things, but if he wish to 
 create another like Himself, he cannot do it. God cannot 
 create another like Himself. 
 
 Ques. How many names are there for God? 
 
 Ans. It is said there are one thousand and one names ; 
 but of these one hundred and one are extant. 
 
 Ques. Why are there so many names of God ? 
 
 Ans, God's names, expressive of his nature, are two, 
 "Yazdan" (omnipotence), and "Pauk" (holy). He is also 
 named " Hormuzd " (the highest of spirits), "Daddr (the dis- 
 tributor of justice), " Purvurdegar " (provider), "Purvurtar" 
 (protector), by which names we praise him. There are many 
 other names, also, descriptive of his good doings. 
 
 Ques. What is our religion ? 
 
 Ans, Our religion is, " Worship of God." 
 
 Ques. Whence did we receive our religion ? 
 
 Ans. God's true prophet — the true Zurthost [Zoroaster] 
 Asphantamdn Anoshirwan — brought the religion for us from 
 God. 
 
 Ques. ^ Where should I turn my face when worshipping the 
 holy Hormuzd ? 
 
 Ans. ' We should worship the holy, just Hormuzd with our 
 
face towards some of his creations of light, and glory, and 
 brightness. 
 
 Ques. Which are those things ? 
 
 Ans. Such as the sun, the moon, the stars, the fire, water, 
 and other such things of glory. To such things we turn 
 our face, and consider them our " kibleh " (literally, the thing 
 opposite), because God has bestowed upon them a small spark 
 of his pure glory, and they are, therefore, more exalted in the 
 creation, and fit to be our " kibleh " (representing this power and 
 glory). 
 
 Ques. Who was this true prophet, the true Zurthost ? 
 
 Ans. The son of Porosasp6, who was the son of Peteraspe, 
 was the excellent Zurthost Ashphantaman Anoshirwane — chief 
 of the wise, and the king of the learned — the worshipper of 
 God. Him did God exalt over all mankind, admitted to his 
 own presence; and by him did God send us his good Mazdiashni 
 religion. He has been our prophet. 
 
 Ques. Have we had any other prophet after Zurthost ? 
 
 Ans, No; we should remain attached with sincere faith to 
 the religion brought by him. 
 
 Ques. Among the creation of Hormuzd in this world, which 
 is the most exalted, and which the lowest ? 
 
 / Ans. The great prophet is the most exalted, and that 
 prophet is the excellent Zurthost — none is higher than he ; the 
 height of dignity culminates in him, because he is the most 
 beloved and honoured of God. The servant of all is iron. 
 
 Ques. What religion has our prophet brought us from God ? 
 
 Ans. The disciples of our prophet have recorded in several 
 books that religion. Many of these books were destroyed 
 during the Alexandrian conquest, the remainder of the books 
 were preserved with great care and respect by the Sassanian 
 Kings. Of these again the greater portion were destroyed at the 
 Mahommedan conquest by Khalif Omar, so that we have now 
 very few books remaining, viz., the Vandidad, the Yazashne, 
 the Visparad, the Khordeh Avesta, the Vistasp Nusk, and a few 
 Pehlvi books. Resting our faith upon these few books, we now 
 
remaia devoted to our good Mazdiashna religion. We consider 
 these books as heavenly books, because God sent the tidings of 
 these books to us through the holy Zurthost. 
 
 Ques. What other books had we during the times of our 
 kings ? 
 
 Ans. Innumerable on all subjects of learning, but the 
 enemies of our religion and sovereignty translated them in their 
 own languages, and thus, after usurping our wisdom, destroyed 
 our ancient Persian and Pehlvi works. 
 
 Ques. In what king's time did our prophet live ? 
 
 Ans. When a just and God-worshipping king, by name 
 GushtJishp [Hystaspes] the son of Lohorosp reigned. When 
 Jamasp was the sage, and Kustam the great warrior, did our 
 prophet bring the Mazdiashna religion from God. He performed 
 many miracles, and refuted the sages of Greece and India by such 
 miracles; then the King Gushtashp, the sage Jd^masp, and the 
 sages of Greece and India, believed in the religion brought by 
 Zurthost and accepted it. 
 
 Ques. Are our prophet's miracles recorded any where ? 
 
 Ans. Long accounts were recorded in our ancient books, of 
 which we have some portions extant. The wise and learned 
 Greeks of the time had also recorded the miracles and wisdom 
 and truth of our prophet, but their ignorant successors have, 
 from envy, altered and misrepresented those records. Not- 
 withstanding this, there are still some evidences in the old 
 Greek books. 
 
 Ques. What religion prevailed in Persia before the time of 
 Zurthost ? 
 
 Ans, The kings and the people were worshippers of God, 
 but they had, like the Hindoos, images of the planets and 
 idols in their temples. This religion is now designated the 
 Poriodakesi, which appears to be a mistake, for it seems the 
 religion of the Persians before Zurthost, was called Farsandaji 
 K&s, and its followers Farsandaji Kisan, while it is those that 
 adopted Zurthost's religion, were called the Poriodekesians. 
 
 Ques. Whose descendants are we? 
 
Ans. Of Gayomars. By his progeny was Persia populated. 
 
 Ques. "Was Gayomars the first man ? 
 
 Ans. According to our religion he was so, but the wise men 
 of our community, of the Chinese, the Hindoos, and several 
 other nations, dispute the assertion, and say that there was 
 human population on the earth before Gayomars. 
 
 Ques. What commands has God sent us through his 
 prophet, the exalted Zurthost? 
 
 Ans. Many are those commands, but I give you the 
 principal, which must always be remembered, and by which we 
 must guide ourselves : — 
 
 To know God as one; to know the prophet, the exalted 
 Zurthost, as his true prophet ; to believe the religion and the 
 Avesta brought by him, as true beyond all manner of doubt ; 
 to believe in the goodness of God ; not to disobey any of the 
 commands of the Mazdiashna religion; to avoid evil deeds; 
 to exert for good deeds ; to pray five times in the day ; to 
 believe in the reckoning and justice on the fourth morning 
 after death ; to hope for heaven and to fear hell ; to consider 
 doubtless the day of general destruction and resurrection ; to 
 remember always that God has done what he willed, and shall 
 do what he wills ; to face some luminous object while worship- 
 ping God. 
 
 Qwes. If we commit any sin, will our prophet save us ? 
 
 Ans. Never commit any sin under that faith, because our 
 prophet, our guide to the right path, has distinctly commanded 
 "you shall receive according to what you do." Your deeds 
 will determine your return in the other world. If you do 
 virtuous and pious actions, your reward shall be heaven. If 
 you sin and do wicked things, you shall be punished in hell. 
 There is none save God that could save you from the con- 
 sequences of your sins. If any one commit a sin under the 
 belief that he shall be saved by somebody, both the deceiver 
 as well as the deceived shall be damned to the day of " Rasta 
 Khez," (the day of the end of this world). * * * 
 
8 
 
 Qaes. Have any persons endeavoured to deceive the people 
 by oflFering to intercede for them and to save them ? 
 
 Ans. Some deceivers, with a view of acquiring exaltation in 
 this world, have set themselves up as prophets, and going among 
 the labouring and ignorant people, have persuaded them that, " if 
 you commit sin, I shall intercede for you, I shall plead for you, 
 I shall save you ; " and thus deceive them, but the wise among 
 those people know the deceit. They do not, however, dare to 
 speak their mind for fear of the deluded multitude. Our 
 prophet needed no exaltation here, he was exalted before God, 
 and he told us the true command, " you shall receive accord- 
 ing to your deeds." There is no saviour. In the other world 
 ^ou shall receive the return according to your actions. 
 * * * Your saviour is your deeds, and God 
 
 himself. He is " Bakhsh^ande," (the pardoner), and " Bakh- 
 shdyazgar," (the giver). If you repent your sins and reform, 
 and if the great judge consider you worthy of pardon, or would 
 be mercifal to you. He alone can and will save you. 
 
 Ques. Why are God and his prophet addressed in the rude 
 singular "thou," instead of the polite plural "you?" 
 
 Ans. Because God is only one, and there is none like Him, 
 and there is only one prophet. 
 
 Ques. What are those things by which man is blessed and 
 benefitted ? 
 
 Ans. To do virtuous deeds, to give in charity, to be kind, 
 to be humble, to speak sweet words, to wish good to others, 
 to have a clear heart, to acquire learning, to speak the truth, 
 to suppress anger, to be patient and contented, to be friendly, 
 to feel shame, to pay due respect to the old and young, to be 
 pious, to respect our parents and teachers. All these are the 
 friends of the good men and enemies of the bad men. 
 
 Ques. What are those things by which man is lost and 
 degraded ? 
 
 Ans. To tell untruths, to steal, to gamble, to look with 
 wicked eye upon a woman, to commit treachery, to abuse, to be 
 
9 
 
 angry, to wish ill to another, to be proud, to mock, to be idle, 
 to slander, to be avaricious, to be disrespectful, to be shameless, 
 to be hot-tempered, to take what is another's property, to be 
 revengeful, unclean, obstinate, envious, to do harm to any 
 man, to be superstitious, and do any other wicked and iniquitous 
 action. These are all the friends of the wicked, and the enemies 
 of the virtuous. 
 
 Such is the religious knowledge which the Parsees of more 
 than a quarter of a century ago endeavoured to communicate 
 to their children, or at least wished them to be taught, but 
 I do not think that even this dialogue had been, till very lately, 
 made a necessary part of the child's religious education. 
 From one question quoted, not quite bearing upon the Parsee 
 religion, but evidently meant for a reason against Christianity, 
 it may have' struck the reader that this dialogue was perhaps 
 written under the pressure of the efforts of Christian mission- 
 aries to convert Parsee youths. 
 
 It. remains, however, to be seen how far the doctrines and 
 injunctions taught in this dialogue are authorised by the 
 Zend Avestd, and what other doctrines are taught in them. 
 The best thing I can do, I think, is to give here a series of 
 extracts from the translation of one of these Zend books, 
 sufficient to give a faithful general notion of the doctrines and 
 morality of the Zoroastrian religion. 
 
 I have given extracts from only one of the books, as I have 
 not had time enough at my disposal to study and extract from 
 the others. This book, the Yazashne, is divided into seventy- 
 two chapters called "Ha." Of the first "Ha," I give an 
 abstract of almost the whole, as from it will be at once obtained 
 some idea of the peculiarities of this religion : — 
 
 " The great judge, Hormuzd, full of glory and brightness, 
 I invoke. The highest, the all-virtuous, the greatest, the 
 strictest, the all-wise, of the purest nature, the holiest, lover of 
 gladness, the invisible among the invisible, the increaser. He 
 
10 
 
 created our soul — He moulded our body — He gave us existence. 
 Him I invoke, and complete this Yazasline. Good conscience, 
 high piety, love of excellence, high and perfect thought, 
 Khordad and Amardad, the sheep and their souls, the fire of 
 God, all other angels that reach us, the time of day, which is 
 exalted by holiness, the early dawn — all these I remember or 
 invoke in this Yazashne. The morning angels * Sawang ' and 
 ' Vis ' that are exalted by holiness, the angel ' Meher,' the lord 
 and guardian of the forest of thousand ears and ten thousand 
 eyes, gladness and comfort, the noon time of day and its angels, 
 ' Furadadare ' (Fase) and ' Jand.' The afternoon time of day 
 and its angels, ' Furadadare Vir,' and ' Deh,' exalted by holi- 
 ness. The angel ' Burzo/ of the source of water, and the waters 
 created by God. The night time of day and its angels, Fura- 
 dadare Visp,' ' Hujivas,' and Zurthosturotum,' the holy souls of 
 men and women, the year that is spent in virtue and excellence, 
 and the great and brave, created by God, beautiful and 
 victorious. [I know not who is meant here — the translator 
 puts in the angel ' Behram.'] The time after midnight and 
 its angels, ' Berej,' and ' Numan,' exalted by holiness, the 
 angel ' Surosh/ the prayerful and victorious, and the promoter 
 of things in the world, the just 'Rashne,' and 'Astad,' the 
 bestdwer of freshness to creation — all these I invoke or remem- 
 ber, and complete this Yazashne. The months that are exalted 
 by holiness, the six Ghumbars (the feasts of the seasons, which 
 are all named) . The year, exalted by holiness, the chiefs that 
 are great by holiness, the three and thirty that surround the 
 ' Howanim,' that are shown by Hormuzd and communicated by 
 Zurthost. [I cannot tell what these are; the translators apply 
 this description to the thirty-three implements of the cere- 
 monial.] The holy, high, and immortal angel ' Meher,' the 
 king of cities, the stars, the bright star ' Tester,' the moon, and 
 the glorious sun, rider of the fleet horse, created by God, and 
 the ocean of light — all these I invoke or remember, and com- 
 plete this Yazashne." All the angels of the thirty days of the 
 
11 
 
 month, of the twelve months, of the five " Gathas " (the inter- 
 calary days), are each then invoked by their respective names, 
 in their order. 
 
 " The glorious fire, created by^God, the water that is created 
 by God, all the vegetable creation of God, the holy and high 
 angel * Marespund,' whose justice is not of the wicked ' dews ' 
 (the evil spirits) ; such is also the justice of Zurthost — the long- 
 enduring ways of the good Mazdiashna religion (religion of the 
 worship of the almighty) — these I remember or invoke, and 
 complete this Yazashne. 
 
 " The holy mountain ' Hoshdostar,' created by God, all 
 mountains created by God, the glory of the ' Kayanian ' kings 
 of Persia, created by God, the glory of the holy priests, created 
 by God, the good angel ' Arsesung,' of great intelligence and 
 wisdom, glorious, and bestower of benefits, created by God, the 
 virtuous, the good, prayerful, and holy men, and the angel 
 'Daham,' of high thought — all these I invoke or remember, and 
 complete this Yazashne. 
 
 " This place, and cities, and forests, and places of comfort, 
 and water, and land, and trees, this whole earth, the sky, the 
 holy wind, the stars, the moon, the sun, the God-created 
 immeasurable light, all the 'holy angels, and all pure creation 
 that is exalted by holiness, I remember or invoke, and complete 
 this Yazashne. 
 
 " The highest Lord, who is all purity, the Lord of the days, 
 of the months, of the year, of the Ghumbars, Him I invoke at 
 this early dawn, and complete this Yazashne. 
 
 " The holy and powerful departed soul of the ' Poriodakesi,' 
 my own soul, all the angels of both worlds, created by God, who 
 are exalted by their holiness, the five times of prayer of the day 
 and their angels — all I invoke or remember." 
 
 This first " Ha" ends with the following prayer : — 
 
 "If I have by thought, word, or deed, intentionally or 
 unintentionally, not kept thy commands, and thereby saddened 
 thee, I invoke thee in this invocation, I pray to thee, and praise ' 
 thee, and beseech thee for thy pardon." 
 
12 
 
 A somewhat similar prayer is made to all the angels, and 
 then follows : — I learn the Zurthosti religion, the worship of 
 God, which is different from that of the dews (the evil spirits), 
 and is like the justice of God. 
 
 In the above extracts, I have not repeated the words " I 
 invoke," and " remember," as often as they do actually occur 
 in the original, and I have said " 1 invoke or remember," by 
 which I mean that all spiritual objects are invoked, and all 
 material ones remembered. 
 
 The next five chapters are almost in the same strain and 
 style, with several additions among the objects of invocation 
 and remembrance, such as " light proceeding out of God himself, 
 the soul of the prophet made an ' Tzad ' (angel) by God : God, 
 the creator of all things, of light, the eternal, the omnipotent." 
 
 In the course of these six chapters, as also in many others, 
 God and the angels, and the various objects of creation, are 
 addressed in various ways, such as " I love," " I honor," 
 " I praise," " 1 remember," " Consider holy," " I gladden," 
 " I invoke." 
 
 " Ha 7- — I accept, and am glad to do deeds of virtue. May,I 
 receive the reward for piety through your bounty, O great 
 and wise Lord, the reward that is due to the religious, may I 
 and mine receive ; that reward may thou give from thy stores 
 of bounty in such a way, in this and the spiritual world, that 
 I may be exalted ; and may I live for ever and ever under thy 
 all-holy leadership and all-virtuous protection. I understand 
 'honwar' exalted, and truth-telling exalted. I praise the 
 virtuous, the good, and the prayerful." 
 
 "Ha 8. — O God, in thy creation, those that are virtuous and 
 follow thy commands, to them give thou water and fruit, and 
 over all good things of this world, such as they desire, give 
 them command. May the aspirations of the holy be fulfilled. 
 May the wicked and the evil-doers be disappointed, and be 
 swept away from the creation of the holy creator. 
 
 " I, that is Zurthost, of the Hormuzdi and Zurthosti religion, 
 I rise up before all the others, of the streets, and of the towns. 
 
13 
 
 and of the citiesj and with highly good thoughts, highly good 
 words, and highly good deeds, pray for freedom and ease to the 
 community of holy men — to the wicked I pray for hardship and 
 destruction." 
 
 Ha 9 contains a dialogue between Zurthost and the angel 
 Hom. I do not know what the duties of this angel are. 
 He is described by Zurthost, in his* personal interview with 
 him, as the destroyer of death, and created holy. In reply to 
 Zurthost's inquiries he names four persons who prayed to him, 
 and obtained the desire of their prayers, in having sons born 
 to them of glorious names and deeds. The four persons are, 
 Ist. Vingham, the father of the great Jamshed, during whose 
 reign there was no death. 2nd. Athwian, the father of the 
 great Paredoon, the vanquisher of Zohac, the tyrant and scourge 
 of mankind. The 3rd, the warrior Sam, the father of the great 
 hero, Kershasp, who destroyed the dragon, Sarronny, full of 
 poison and destruction, and of the holy and pious Ornakhsh ; 
 and the 4th, Porosusp, the father of you holy and just 
 Zurthost. Zurthost, then, praises him as exalted in the 
 presence of the great God, by his virtuous and holy deeds, and 
 prays to him to assist him in destroying all that is evil and 
 wicked, and to bestow on him the power of doing good. 
 " The first request I make, O Hom, the destroyer of death, is, 
 may I attain the abode that is full of rest and glory, reserved 
 for those that are holy. The second request I make of jow, 
 
 Hom, the destroyer of death, is, may my present body 
 enjoy good health. The third request I make, O Hom, the 
 destroyer of death, is, may I live a long life. The fourth 
 virtue I ask from you, O Hom, the destroyer of death, is, may 
 
 1 do like those, who. with courage and gladness, pursue, in this 
 world, the path of righteousness, and destroy whatever is evil. 
 The fifth virtue I ask, O Hom, the destroyer of death, is, may 
 I do as those brave men, who, in battle, fight gloriously to 
 destroy oppression and wickedness. The sixth virtue I ask 
 from you, O Hom, the destroyer of death, is, may I know, 
 beforehand, the intrigues of the enemies, the attack of the 
 
14 
 
 thieves and the wolves ; teach rae to thwart the evil designs of 
 the wicked, the impious, and the deceiver." 
 
 Horn is then described as the inspirer of courage and strength 
 in the warrior and his steed ; the bestower of children and good 
 husbands, the inspirer of wisdom to the student of learning, 
 the disappointer of those rulers who wish destruction to the 
 worshippers of God, the«just, the distinguisher of good from 
 evil, &c. " The king and the ' durwesh' of good conscience are 
 equal before your eyes." 
 
 The 10th and 1 1th Ha are also in praise and description of 
 the power and duties of Horn. In one place, the person 
 praying, or Horn, I cannot tell which, says — "I am among 
 those of virtuous thoughts, and not among those of wicked 
 thoughts. I am among those of virtuous words, and not 
 among those of wicked words. I am among those of virtuous 
 deeds, and not among those of wicked deeds. I am among 
 the obedient performers of God's commands, and not among the 
 disobedient. I am among the holy men, and not among the 
 sinful. 
 
 1 2th Ha, in which, as in several other places, is enjoined to 
 protect and take care of the helpless sheep ; and after a general 
 prayer for the good and against the wicked, ends thus — "I 
 (the person praying) am of the religion (rf " the worship of 
 God. I praise that religion, and declare it before the wicked, 
 and praise it with good conscience, virtuous words, and 
 virtuous deeds," &c. 
 
 From the 12th to the 18th Ha, are invocations and acknow- 
 ledgements of the power and goodness of God, the greater and 
 smaller angels, all things spiritual and material in creation, 
 the thirty angels of the days of the month, &c., &c., as in the 
 first seven Has. 
 
 Prom the 19th Ha, I give more extracts : Zurthost asks 
 God — " Tell me, O great invisible God, the creator and pro- 
 moter of all creation, what were thy words before the existence 
 of the heavens, before the waters, the world, the harmless sheep 
 and other animals, before the trees, before the glorious fire. 
 
15 
 
 created by thee, O Hormuzd, before the holy , man, before the 
 ■wicked spirits of dull reason, before all thy creations in the world, 
 and before all the good and holy things created by thee — 
 what were thy words ? " God replies thus — " O supentaman 
 Zurthost, those words were the parts of ' Honwar ' — those that 
 I have told you; these were my words before the heavens, 
 before the waters," &c., &c. [The parts of the " Honwar " 
 are explained by the translator to mean the twenty-one books 
 or parts of the religion of God, promulgated by Zoroaster.] 
 " O supentaman^ whoever shall learn or repeat, without weary- 
 ing, these parts of 'Honwar,' shall attain a hundred times 
 greater superiority than by learning or repeating any other 
 holy words. Him shall I pass over the ' Chinwad Pul ' (the 
 bridge in heaven over which the souls pass on the fourth 
 morning after death), and admit him to the paradise of the 
 holy that is fall of glory. Whoever shall forget these holy 
 words shall have his soul kept at a distance from the glorious 
 paradise, at the same distance at which his soul shall be from 
 his body, at a distance of the whole length of the world. 
 Before I created the heavens, before the waters, &c., I created 
 Khurshed (the sun) to give light to the universe. The great 
 body of the holy men that have been, that are, and that will 
 be, is so holy on account of obeying the commands of God, 
 and having done other good deeds. Whoever shall study 
 and meditate much upon the words of the ' Honwar,' and 
 recollect them, and act according to them, after death shall 
 attain to everlasting exaltation. All the days of the holy man 
 are with thoughts of truth, words of truth, and deeds of truth. 
 The high priest is he who is learned in the religion, and whose 
 whole life is devoted to the promotion of righteousness in the 
 world. 
 
 Hi 20 — Whoever tastes the pleasure of righteousness which 
 is above all other pleasures, and walks in righteousness, shall be 
 perfectly holy ; he is virtuous, who walks in virtue among the 
 holy men, and is true to them. 
 
 Ha 24 — The righteous are immortal. 
 
16 
 
 Ha 30 — He who knows God through His works reaches him. 
 
 Ha 31.— Zurthost asks — 'What is the reward to the holy 
 and good from your bounty, and what is to become of the 
 heathen and the wicked ?' Hormuzd replied — ' On the day of 
 reckoning the wicked shall be destroyed (I am not quite sure of 
 the word which I have translated destroyed); those that are 
 hostile to the virtuous — to the harmless animals, and men — those 
 that tell untruths and do wicked actions, shall not receive the 
 reward of life from Hormuzd. He only shall receive the reward, 
 at the time of reckoning, who in his heart believes in God, and 
 does not injure the promoters of holiness. To speak true words 
 is true excellence. He who leads the holy man astray, there is 
 bewailing and moaning for his soul after death, and for a long 
 time, his soul has to live in the abode of darkness, to suffer 
 great hardships — that dark abode which is for the wicked; 
 your evil deeds shall draw you to it.' 
 
 Ha 33 — Zurthost says — ' The wicked are punished according 
 to their thoughts, and words, and deeds. Better it is that they 
 be introduced to a taste of learning. O Hormuzd ! give them 
 a desire for wisdom, that they may become the promoters of 
 holiness. Give me, O Hormuzd, the two desires, to see and to 
 self- question.' 
 
 Ha 34 — ' O Hormuzd, I worship thee, and in the heavens, 
 also, I shall worship thee much. What, O Hormuzd, is thy 
 will, what thy worship, and what is thy invocation?' God. 
 replies — 'See and adorn holiness — learn my ways of holiness 
 with a good conscience.' ' Tell me, O Hormuzd, the ways of 
 good conscience.' ' To be glad with the religion of the good, 
 with virtuous deeds, aad with holiness.' 
 
 'For holiness and purity, I ask the aid of Ardibeshest (angel 
 of fire) ; for pure thoughts, I ask the aid of Bahaman, and I 
 ask Sharever's aid. I worship thee, O Hormuzd, above all 
 others — I invoke thee above all others. All virtuous thoughts, 
 all virtuous words, and all virtuous works flow from thee. O 
 Hormuzd, I invoke thy pure nature, above all others.' 
 
 ' By my deeds may I (says Zurthost) exalt and honour thy 
 
17 
 
 name. Under the protection of thy great wisdom have I 
 acquired wisdom ; may I reach thee ; may I. always be firm in 
 thy friendship, and in holy deeds.' " 
 
 Ha 44 contains a series of questions from Zurthost to God, 
 among which occur the following, and in which the interroga- 
 tion implies the reply — " If not thou : " — 
 
 "O wise Hormnzd, I ask of thee, what is the greatest 
 exaltation in this world ? How can any, who wishes benefit to 
 himself, be holy, promote virtue, be the beloved of Hormuzd 
 among the creations. O wise Hormuzd, I ask, who is the 
 creator and promoter of holiness ? How have the revolutions 
 of the sun and moon been created ? How does the moon wax 
 and wane ? O Hormuzd, give me the knowledge of these ? 
 O Hormuzd, I ask, who has made the earth stand unsupported? 
 Who has created the waters and the trees ? Who has created 
 the air which flows of itself with such force ? Who has 
 created Bahaman? Who has created the receiving of light 
 and of darkness ? Who has created the times of the day, and 
 the time of reckoning and judgment? Who has created the 
 desire to be exalted through virtuous thoughts? Who has 
 created the affection that the child receives from the father ? 
 O Hormuzd, I hope more from thee than from all others. 
 Thou art the promoter of all goodness — the holy Hormuzd — 
 Thou art the creator of all creation. 
 
 " Say to me — How may my soul attain to the gladness of 
 both worlds ? How may I impart purity to this religion that 
 the virtuous and wise may learn greatness, and Bahaman 
 (good conscience), and Ardebehest (high virtue), enter their 
 hearts and abide there ; and, in the treasures of religion, exalt 
 truth above all ? 
 
 " What is the high religion ? The reply — That which 
 promotes my holiness and truth with good thought, word, and 
 deed. 
 
 " O Hormuzd, give me thy wisdom and treasure that I may 
 rejoice. O wise Hormuzd, whoever is holy questions himself; 
 whoever is wicked rejects this my religion that benefits. How 
 
 c 
 
18 
 
 do the e\^l-disposed suffer annihilation, who do not subject 
 themselves to self-reflection through Bahaman (good con- 
 science) ? When is the time of resurrection and final judgment? 
 How can one deserve the reward of ten young horses and 
 camels ? Thou gavest to Khordad and Amardad this reward — 
 this reward thou givest to the truth-speaker. Who are those 
 sinners whose end is destruction ? O Hormuzd, why may not 
 these sinners become virtuous ? Who will destroy them? The 
 reward of the unholy, of the deceivers, of the outragers of 
 justice, and the destroyers of the harmless animals, shall not be 
 like that of the holy and virtuous. 
 
 Ha 45. — To those that are conscientiously religious, and are 
 promoters of religion, God is friend, brother, and father. 
 
 Ha 46. — May all men and women of the world become my 
 followers, and become acquainted with thy exalted religion, that 
 I may rise in thy praise and in thy religion with prayer ; and 
 pray with a pure conscience. 
 
 Whoever accepts Zurthost's religion, praises it, and medi- 
 tates on it, and studies it much, to him God gives a place in the 
 other world, and in this world Bahaman (good conscience) gives 
 him exaltation. Sinners of wicked thoughts, wicked words, 
 and wicked deeds, of wicked doctrines, have to their souls 
 presented bitter and detestable food in that well-known and 
 permanent house of the wicked spirits. 
 
 H£ 51. — I bless all good men and women that have been, 
 that are, and that shall be. May they enjoy for ever and ever 
 the invisible treasure, according to their desire. May water, 
 and sheep, and vegetation, aiford all comfort to them. May the 
 inflictions of evil spirits and evil men never approach them. 
 
 Ha 55. — O Mazdiashnans ! desire to invoke the pure 
 Surosh." 
 
 This Surosh is described to be the guardian and protecting 
 angel of this world. He protects men from the evil spirits of 
 hell, and of M^zandaran, from all that is evil, anger, and 
 injustice, &c. 
 
 " Ha 56. — ^I invoke the benefit and success of prayer : to 
 
19 
 
 arrive at prayer is to arrive at a perfect conscience : the good 
 seed of prayer is virtuous conscience^ virtuous words^ and 
 virtuous deeds. May our prayers be eflScacious in thwarting 
 the inflictions of wicked spirits and wicked men. May I love 
 prayer to Hormuzd, for that prayer is joy to me. I resort to 
 prayerj I invoke prayer. Prayer to thee, O Hormuzd, is the 
 giver of excellence, holiness, success, and high exaltation — it 
 is the act of virtue. May the fold (of sheep) of the people of 
 this street not diminish — may virtue not diminish — may the 
 strength of the holy men not diminish — may not Hormuzd's 
 justice diminish — may the good and exalted holy souls arrive 
 here — may the virtue of the virtuous endure, and may wicked- 
 ness vanish. In this house — may obedience prevail over dis- 
 obedience, peace over quarrels, charity over hard-heartedness, 
 good thoughts over bad thoughts, words of truth over words of 
 lie, piety over sin. 
 
 Ha 59. — I enjoin on earth, and in heaven to study the 
 'Honwar.' I enjoin holiness on earth and in heaven j that 
 to pray much to Hormuzd is good, I enjoin in heaven and 
 on earth. I enjoin the holy and the virtuous, and the prayerful, 
 on earth and in heaven, to punish the evil spirit and his works, 
 which are wicked and full of death — to punish the thief and 
 the tyrant — punish the magicians of cruel intentions — punish 
 the breakers of promise, and those that induce others to break 
 their promise — to punish the harassers of good and holy men — 
 to punish the evil thoughts, words, and deeds of the sinful." 
 
 Has 62 to 64. — The angels of fire and water, and other 
 angels are prayed to for several sorts of benefits and blessings ; 
 among others, a son who would help and protect him, and be 
 a worthy man —who would not wish ill to anybody — who would 
 not hurt anybody with any arms — who would not seek revenge, 
 nor do harm. 
 
 I now arrange some of these extracts under different heads, 
 as inferences derived from them. To avoid repetition, I shall 
 not, under each head, give all the texts corroborative of it. 
 
 The Parsees believe in only one God, the creator of all. 
 
20 
 
 " 1st Ha. — The great judge, Hormuzd, of glory and bright- 
 ness, the highest, the all-virtuous, the greatest, strictest, the 
 all-wise, of the purest nature, the holiest, lover of gladness 
 — invisible to the invisible, the increaser — He created our 
 soul — He moulded our body — He gave us existence. Ha 84. 
 — I worship thee, O Hormuzd, above all others, I invoke thee 
 above all others, all virtuous thoughts, all virtuous words, and 
 all virtuous works, flow from thee. O Hormuzd, I invoke thy 
 pure nature above all others. By my deeds may I exalt a,nd 
 honour thy name. Under the protection of thy great wisdom 
 have I acquired wisdom. May I reach thee. May I always be 
 firm in thy friendship and in holy deeds." 
 
 In Ha 44 several extracts relate to this subject, especially 
 God as the creator of all, ending in " Thou art the Creator of 
 all Creation." 
 
 In a prayer to Hormuzd (Hormuzd Yasht) occurs this^-^ 
 " My name is the Creator of all." 
 
 Zurthost worships God not only in this world, but in the 
 heavens also — Ha 34, " O Hormuzd, I worship thee, and in the 
 heavens, also, shall I worship thee much." 
 
 The Parsees believe in the existence of angels, created by 
 God, with powers to aid and benefit mankind in various ways, 
 and to be the superintending spirits of the various parts of 
 creation. The chief among these are the angels of good con- 
 science (Bahaman), and of high piety (Ardebehsht) ; the former 
 is also the protecting angel of the harmless animals, and the 
 latter the angel of fire. 
 
 " 1st Ha. — I invoke good conscience, high piety, love of 
 excellence, high and perfect thought, Khordad and Amardad ; 
 all other angels that reach us ; the angel ' Meher,' the lord 
 and guardian of. the forest, of thousand ears and ten thousand 
 eyes of gladness and of comfort." Many other extracts can 
 be made to deduce the above inference. 
 
 The various parts of creation are praised, or remembered, 
 or considered holy, &c. 
 
 The first seven Has contain many texts illustrative of this. 
 
21 
 
 " The fire created by God, the time of day, the early dawn, 
 the waters created by God, the year that is spent in holiness, 
 the moon and the glorious sun, the ocean of light, the stars, 
 the immeasurable light, the mountains and the trees, the forest, 
 the sheep, and the harmless animals ; " in short, nature, in her 
 various parts and phenomena, is sometimes praised, sometimes 
 remembered, sometimes described as holy. 
 
 As far as I have seen, there is no text in which any lifeless 
 material object without intelligence or spirituality is invoked 
 for assistance or benefit. Such prayers are always directed to 
 intelligent spirits br angels, and to God above all, and as the 
 Creator and Lord of all. 
 
 The Parsee believes in the immortality of the soul, and in 
 rewards and punishments after death. 
 
 " Ha 7- — O great and wise Lord, the reward that is due to 
 the religious, may I and mine receive ; that reward mayst thou 
 give from thy stores of bounty in such a way, in this and the 
 spiritual world, that I may be exalted, and may I live for ever 
 and ever under thy alUholy leadership, and all-virtuous pro- 
 tection. 
 
 " Ha 8. — May the aspirations of the holy be fulfilled, may 
 the wicked and evil-doers be disappointed, and be swept away 
 from the creation of the holy creator. The righteous are 
 immortal." 
 
 Extracts from Ha 31 bear on this point. 
 
 Notwithstanding the abhorrence of evil and evil-doers, the 
 Parsee is made to wish that the wicked may be converted to 
 virtue. 
 
 " Ha 33.-^The wicked are punished according to their 
 thoughts, and words, and deeds. Better it be that they be 
 introduced to a taste of learning. O Hormuzd, give them a 
 desire for wisdom, that they may become promoters of holiness. 
 
 " Ha 44. — O Hormuzd, why may not these sinners become 
 virtuous ? " 
 
 The Parsee rests his pardon on the mercy of God, and his 
 reward on the bounty of God. 
 
22 
 
 "Ha 1. — If I have by thought, word, or deed, intentionally 
 or unintentionallyj not kept thy commands, and thereby sad- 
 dened thee, I invoke thee in this invocation, I pray to thee and 
 praise thee, and beseech thee for thy pardon. 
 
 " Ha 7. — May I receive the reward for piety through your 
 bounty." 
 
 The morality of this religion is comprised in the three words, 
 pure-thought, pure-word, and pure-deed ; and holiness, virtue, 
 prayers, &c., are praised and exalted, and inculcated in many 
 places. 
 
 " Ha /• — I praise the virtuous, the good, and the prayerful. 
 
 Ha 19. — The high priest is he who is learned in the religion, 
 and whose whole life is devoted to the promotion of righteous- 
 ness in the world. 
 
 Ha 20. — Whoever tastes the pleasure of righteousness, 
 which is above all other pleasures, and walks in righteousness, 
 shall be perfectly holy. He is virtuous who walks in virtue 
 among holy men, and is true to them. 
 
 Ha 34. — What, O Hormuzd, is thy will, what thy worship, 
 and what thy invocation? God replies — See and adorn holiness 
 — learn my ways of holiness with a good conscience. — Tell me, 
 O Hormuzd, the ways of good conscience. — To be glad with 
 the religion of the good, with virtuous deeds, and with holiness. 
 
 Ha 66. — May the virtue of the virtuous endure, and may 
 wickedness vanish. In this house, may obedience prevail over 
 disobedience, peace over quarrel, charity over hard-heartedness, 
 good thoughts over bad thoughts, truth over words of lie, and 
 piety over sin. 
 
 Ha 59. — I enjoin on earth and in heaven to study the 
 ' Honwar.' I enjoin holiness on earth and in heaven. That to 
 pray much to Hormuzd is good, I enjoin in heaven and on 
 earth. I enjoin the holy, and the virtuous, and the prayerful, 
 on earth and in heaven, to punish the evil spirit and his works, 
 which are wicked and full of death — to punish the thief and the 
 tyrant — punish the magicians of cruel intentions — to punish the 
 breakers of promise, and those that induce others to break their 
 
23 
 
 promise — to punish the harassers of good and holy men — to 
 punish the evil thoughts, words, and deeds of the sinful." 
 
 Truth is particularly inculcated. 
 
 " Ha 7. — I understand truth-telling exalted, 
 
 H^ 19. — All the days of the holy man are with thoughts of 
 truth, words of truth, and deeds of truth. 
 
 Ha 31. — To speak true words is true excellence." 
 
 The Parsee believes in the necessity and efficacy of prayer. 
 
 " Hd 56. — ^I invoke the benefit and success of prayer. To 
 arrive at prayer is to arrive at a perfect conscience j the good 
 seed of prayer is virtuous conscience, virtuous words, and 
 virtuous deeds. May our prayers be efficacious in thwarting the 
 inflictions of the wicked spirits and wicked men. May I love 
 prayer, O Hormuzd, for prayer is joy to me. I resort to prayer, 
 and I invoke prayer. Prayer to thee, O Hormuzd, is the giver 
 of excellence, holiness, success, and high exaltation ; it is the 
 act of virtue. 
 
 Ha 59. — To pray much to Hormuzd is good, I enjoin in 
 heaven and on earth." 
 
 The study of the religion is considered most meritorious j 
 and the holy word (the Zend Avestd) is said to have been created 
 by God before all creation. Extracts from Ha 19 all refer to 
 this subject. 
 
 " Ha 44. — What is the high religion ? That which promotes 
 holiness and truth with good thought, word, and deed." 
 
 H£ 19 declares " Honwar " (the word of God) to have been 
 created before the heavens, before the waters, before all creation ; 
 and that whoever studies them without wearying shall attain to 
 the paradise of the holy, which is full of glory. 
 
 " Ha 59. — I enjoin on earth and in heaven to study the 
 Honwar." 
 
 The Parsee religion is for all, and not for any particular 
 nation or people. 
 
 " Ha 46i — May all men and women of the world become 
 my followers, and become acquainted with thy exalted religion. 
 Whoever accepts Zurthost's religion, praises it, and meditates 
 
24 
 
 on it, and studies it much, to him G-od gives a place in the 
 other world; and in this world Bahaman (geod conscience) 
 gives him exaltation." 
 
 The Parsee religion contains no propitiating of the devil. 
 There is not a single reference to the thoughts, or words, or 
 deeds of evil spirits, without wishing destruction or reformation 
 to them. 
 
 " Ha ] . — I learn the Zurthosti religion, the worship of God, 
 which is different to that of the Dews (the evil spirits), and is 
 like the justice of God. 
 
 Ha 8.— May the wicked and the evil-doers be disappointed, 
 and be swept away from the creation of the holy Creator. 
 
 Ha 12. — I am of the religion of the worship of God, I 
 praise that religion and declare it before the wicked, and 
 praise it with good conscience, and virtuous words, and virtuous 
 deeds. 
 
 Ha 44. — O Hormuzd, why may not these sinners become 
 virtuous ? 
 
 Ha 33. — The wicked are punished according to their 
 thoughts, words, and deeds. Better it be that they be intro- 
 duced to a taste of learning. O Hormuzd, give them a desire 
 for wisdom, that they may become promoters of holiness." 
 
 The Parsees are called by others, " Fire Worshippers," and 
 they defend themselves by saying that they do not worship the 
 fire, but regard it and other great natural phenomena and 
 objects as emblems of the divine power. To me it appears 
 that the imputation, on the one hand, is wrong, and the 
 defence, on the other hand, a little overshot. Though the 
 Parsee '' remembers, praises, loves, or regards holy," whatever 
 is beautiful, or wonderful, or harmless, or^ useful in nature, he 
 never asks from an unintelligent material object, asdstauce or 
 benefit j he is, therefore, no idolater, or worshipper of matter. 
 On the other hand, when the Parsee addresses his prayers to 
 Hormuzd, or God, he never thinks it at all necessary that he 
 should turn his face to any particular object. He would say, 
 and does say, his "Hormuzd yasht" (prayer to Hormuzd) 
 
25 
 
 anywhere whatever without the slightest misgiving. Again, 
 when he addresses the angel of water, or any other but that of 
 fire, he does not stand before the fire. It is only when he 
 addresses the angel of fire that he turns his face to the fire. 
 In short, in addressing any particular angel, he turns his face 
 to the object «of that angel's guardianship as his emblem. But, 
 in his prayers to Hormuzd, he recognises, or uses, or turns his 
 face to no emblems whatever. Since fire only could be brought 
 within the limits of a temple — any of the grand objects of 
 nature (as the sea, the sun, &c.) being unavailable for this pur- 
 pose — the temples naturally became the sanctuaries of fire alone, 
 and hence has arisen the mistake of the Parsees being regarded 
 as " Fire Worshippers." 
 
 This much is clear in Ha 30 — " He who knows God through 
 his works reaches him ; " but I do not recollect meeting with 
 any text enjoining a Parsee to turn his face to any particular 
 object as an emblem of &od ; though he is directed, as in the 
 above text, to rise from Nature to Nature's God. 
 
 I do not recollect meeting with a text, that " the Evil Spirit 
 is coeval with God." In one place Ha 19, all wicked spirits 
 are spoken of as having come into existence after a certain 
 event — "Tell me, O great invisible God, the creator and pro- 
 moter of all creation, what were thy words before the existence 
 of the heavens, before the waters, * * before the wicked 
 spirits of dull reason, before all creation," &c. Whether these 
 wicked spirits include or not the well-known Harimkn among 
 them, I cannot tell. It is generally supposed that Hormuzd 
 and HarimS,n are good and evil principles. I do not think that 
 I have met with any text that supports this theory, as far as 
 Hormuzd is concerned, or in which the good principle is 
 personified. Hormuzd is distinctly "The intelligent living 
 Creator," as far as I can gather, and not a mere personification 
 of the principle of good — a Creator distinct from his creation, 
 either material, moral, intellectual, or spiritual. 
 
 In the Yazashne, scarcely once even is Hariman mentioned. 
 Harim&,n, not by this very name, but by the name of Angare 
 
26 
 
 Meniiis is mentioned in the Vandidad as having, to thwart 
 Hormuzd's good works, produced several evils. This Angare 
 Meniiis is rendered in the Gujarati translation, Gana Mino, 
 which, I think, means the " sinning angel," though I am not 
 quite sure of it. I am not at present able to say more about 
 the age, or nature, or meaning of Harim^n ; but one thing is 
 clear, that evil will have an end. 
 
 " Ha 31. — On the day of reckoning all the wicked shall be 
 annihilated." 
 
 At the end of the Yazashne is given a list of God's one 
 hundred and one names. Whether all have their authority in 
 the Avesta I cannot say. Among them occur the following — 
 The Almighty, Omniscient, Omnipresent, the Lord of the 
 Universe ; without beginning and without end : the beginning 
 of all — the end of all; the greatest without a like, without 
 rival, &c. 
 
 The language of these one hundred and one names, as far 
 as I can judge, from my limited knowledge of the modern 
 Persian, is not Zend. 
 
 These extracts are, I think, sufficient to give a general idea 
 of the character and doctrines of the Parsee religion j but it 
 must be remembered that I am not well qualified to speak with 
 any authority on the subject. I have received at third hand 
 the extracts I have given. The original Zend is translated into 
 Pehlvi, from the Gujarati translation of which I have given in 
 English. This Gujarati translation is considered rather imper- 
 fect, and in several places it is so confused that 1 have omitted 
 giving some more extracts, simply because they are ambiguous 
 or unintelligible. 
 
 I have avoided giving any opinion on, or discussing any of 
 the doctrines. I give the extracts as faithfully as my hurried 
 reading has permitted, leaving it to the reader to draw his 
 own conclusions. 
 
 Besides the Yazashne, from which the preceding extracts 
 are given, there are only three or four other books considered 
 by the Parsees as a portion of their original religious books. 
 
27 
 
 But priestcraft acting upon ignorance has not failed to do 
 its usual work, and has left a legacy of a few books which 
 the Parsee has no reason to he thankful for. Many ceremonies 
 and notions have thus been introducedj and the reformers of the 
 day contend that all those ceremonies and notions that have 
 no authority in the original Zend Avesta ought to be abolished 
 and disavowed. Of course the old orthodox Parsees and the 
 Priests do not like this at all. 
 
 When I read the Old Testament many years ago, I was very 
 much struck with parts here and there that almost described 
 the present belief and practices of the Parsees. I have not had 
 time at present to go over the whole book again, but I just 
 turned over its pages to select some of these passages. 
 
 I do not know whether the offering of sacrifices is an insti- 
 tution in the Parsee religion— it is not the present practice. 
 Chapter XI of Leviticus concerning what beasts may, and what 
 beasts may not be eaten, what fishes, what fowls, and what 
 creeping things are unclean ; the command to wash the clothes 
 in touching the dead carcases of unclean animals, to break the 
 earthen vessel, and consider everything touched as defiled, &c., 
 may be taken as a fair description of what the orthodox Parsees 
 at present believe and observe. This belief being now rather 
 traditional, I do not know whether it goes into the details of 
 the unclean and clean animals, as in verses 13 to 22. 
 
 Chapter 12 on the purification of women after child-birth, 
 with the exception of the circumcision, of the three-score and 
 six days for the purification of blood on the birth of a daughter, 
 (which is also 40 days among the Parsees,) and the offerings, is 
 almost all applicable to the Parsees. 
 
 Chapter XV on the uncleanliness of men and women in 
 their issues, and cleansing them, with the exception of being 
 unclean until the even, and the offerings, is applicable to the 
 Parsees, and is of present observance among them. 
 
 Chapter XVIII on unlawful marriages and lusts is observed 
 by the Parsees; marriage among cousins is recommended, and 
 the Parsees are entirely monogamists. I have an impression 
 
28 
 
 that among the Parsees there is an ordinance by which a man 
 of blemish is not allowed to become a ministering priest. 
 
 In the Book of Psalms there are passages which strike as 
 similar to the extracts given before from the Yazashne. 
 
 At the commencement I gave some account of the present 
 imperfect knowledge of the Parsees about their own religion, 
 I do not however mean to blame them much for it. A handful 
 of persecuted exiles living in a foreign land, surrounded for 
 1200 years by idolatry, and persecuted at times by religious 
 fanaticism, it is rather a matter of surprise, as with the Jews, that 
 the Parsees have preserved their national type and character, 
 and their original worship. Though they have not altogether 
 escaped contamination, and have adopted many superstitious 
 ceremonies and notions of the Hindoos, they have always 
 recoiled from degenerating to the worship of idols, and have 
 tenaciously clung to the idea that they were worshippers of the 
 invisible Hormuzd. Believing in the existence of Angels and 
 their delegated power to assist and benefit man, the Parsee 
 centres his prayers and his hopes above all, on Hormuzd, the 
 Lord of the Spirits ; his whole morality is comprised in three 
 words — pure thought, pure words, and pure deeds ; his reward 
 depends upon his fulfilment of these injunctions, and his pardon 
 on the will and mercy of God. 
 
 Mr. Dadabhai said that no member need feel any delicacy in putting 
 any questions to him on the subject of the paper, for he would be very happy 
 to answer them. 
 
 Dr. Ihne said he had brought with him a French work, by M. Menant, 
 containing an excellent digest of the Parsee Creed, which, according to it, was 
 briefly as follows : — " There is one God, He is eternal, there was nothing 
 before Him, and all things are by Him. The universe was truly created by 
 Him, and is not an emanation from Him, but, since the creation, has been 
 distinct from the Creator. Creation is composed of spirits and matter. 
 Matter is inert, but spirits are capable of morality. The world of spirits is 
 double. Hormuzd is chief of the spirits of good, for eternity. Ahrim&n is 
 chief of the spirits of evil, only for time which passes. Both were created 
 by the Eternal, and will endure for the eternity which follows. Souls are 
 all sisters from the beginning, deprived of the body at death, to find it again 
 at the hour of resurrection, then never to be separated from it again — they 
 
29 
 
 were eternally pre-existent. The guilty will be punished, the just rewarded 
 — ^both by God. Punishment will only last as long as the principle of evil 
 (Ahrimdn) endures. The Zend authority is from God, and dogmatic. 
 Hormuzd established religion for all mankind, and not for some only. It 
 will be one day preferred by all mankind, and thus be universal both as to 
 time and space." This creed, it is to be observed, is derived from the sacred 
 books, and not from the present belief of the Parsees. 
 
 The Eev. C. D. Ginsbubg said that, having read a German translation 
 of the Zend Avesti, it agreed with the summary Dr. Ihne had read. He 
 remarked that some of their doctrines were also believed by the Jewish 
 sect of Cabbalists. No other people (except the Jews) believed in the 
 resurrection of the body. In the Zend Avest4 it was affirmed that both 
 the principles of good and evil were created by the Great Existence, and 
 were not eternally pre-existent, and that every man has both these principles 
 reflected in him. 
 
 Mr. Dadabhai said that the creed, as given by Menant, is derivable 
 from all the extracts he had read, with the ■ exception of the question of 
 the origin of Hormuzd and Ahriman. That given by M. Menant is the 
 prevalent theory; but, as far as his reading of the Gujarati translation 
 of the original Zend text went, he had not been able to confirm the story 
 of the creation of Hormuzd and Ahrimin by Time without bounds (Zurwan 
 Alcarne), which implied that they were eternal only tov future time ; but he 
 would not speak with confidence on this point. 
 
 Mr. CiiARK observed that in Guizot's edition of OibborHs History, the 
 original principle is called Time Without Bounds, and existed from all 
 eternity. The two created principles were both good at first, but Ahriman 
 became apostate. There were many analogies in the Zend books with the 
 early books of the Bible ; for example an institution is mentioned identical 
 with that of tithes. The ancient Persian religion was one of forms and 
 ceremonies, but that of Zoroaster rather one of morality. 
 
 Dr. CoLLiNGwooD said : We are indebted to the well-known enlighten- 
 ment and liberality which distinguish the Parsees in general, and my friend 
 Mr. Dadabhai in an especial manner for the very interesting exposition we 
 have heard of the received doctrines of their religion ; and we are, moreover, 
 freely invited to discuss the subject. Mr. Dadabhai stands before us not as 
 a Parsee defending his faith, but simply as a member of this society giving 
 an unvarnished account of what he finds in his sacred books, unencumbered 
 by any theory of his own. But the Zend Avesti also contained much more 
 of an apparently fabulous nature, upon which I would wish to make some 
 remarks. There is a remarkable similarity traceable between all the religions 
 existing before the Christian era, which, I believe, arises from the fact that 
 all those religions, excepting the Jewish, were originally of a purely 
 astronomical origin. Man is in all ages religious, and, as I formerly showed 
 at some length before this society, the heavenly bodies received his first and 
 earliest worship ; and the religion of Zaratosht was derived from the 
 prevailing forms of worship. At a very early period the origin of evil, was 
 a question which agitated mankind, Whence good comes, says one, we 
 know — but whence is evil ? It cannot come from heaven — for it is not 
 
30 
 
 possible that the same being, whether good or bad, can be the author of 
 both. Hence arose the necessity of supposing two principles always opposing 
 one another. These principles were early associated with the physical 
 phenomena. Light was good — darkness evil ; summer was the distributor of 
 benefits, which winter was always undoing and destroying. But it was the 
 Son which produced light, and covered the earth with verdure in summer, 
 and his absence which bound it up in winter; and thus this luminary 
 became early personified as the great principle of good, and his struggles 
 and alternate mastery over, and conquest by, the evil principle, were 
 symbolically described in the battles of the gods and giants — of Ouranos 
 and Typhon, of Osiris and Typhon, of Hormuzd and Ahrim&i. The very 
 name of Hormuzd signified, according to the best authorities, the great 
 principle of light; and the astronomical character of the early Persian 
 fables may be illustrated by one incorporatsd in the Zend Avesti. Hormuzd 
 made six deities, which represented virtues ; whereupon, Ahrimin made six 
 of a malevolent nature. Hormuzd raised himself three times higher than 
 his wont, and decorated the heavens with stars, appointing Sirius sentinel 
 over them. Again, Hormuzd created twenty-four gods, which (says the 
 fable) he enclosed in an egg. Ahriman did the same, and these broke the 
 first egg, and thus good and evil became intermixed. Now, all this evidently 
 relates to the constellations — the six good deities were symbolical of the 
 six zodiacal signs, between the vernal and autumnal equinoxes, when the 
 sun was in power. The six evil ones were, of course, the six winter signs. 
 Hormuzd raising himself three times his height above the earth, meant his 
 elevation above the spheres of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, which would bring 
 him to the pure ether — the region of the stars. The twenty-four gods were 
 the twenty-four northern constellations, six zodiacal and eighteen extra- 
 zodiacal ; for, before Hevelius formed constellations from the stellee informes 
 there were but eighteen constellations in either hemisphere. And the 
 twenty-four gods of Ahrim&n were, of course, the remaining twenty-four 
 southern or winter constellations. The equinoxes showed the term of 
 duration of power of these great opposing principles; and whether we 
 regard the Persian statues of the bull (Taurus, the vernal equinox) being 
 destroyed by the scorpion (Scorpio, the autumnal equinox), or the fable of 
 Jupiter (the sun of summer) losing his thunderbolt (power, vigour) in 
 winter, as related in the Dionysiac of Nonnus, the meaning is the same. 
 .The sun, indeed, was personified with difierent attributes, according to his 
 position in the zodiac. Thus, the vernal sun was the beardless, youthful 
 Apollo ; the autumnal, the bearded, aged .ffilsculapius, son of Apollo, with 
 a serpent twisted round his staff, or even round himself. This serpent was 
 the great serpent of the heavens, which stretched its length beside the three 
 autumnal constellations of Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius, and into whose 
 folds the sun appeared to descend in autumn. Hence the explanation of the 
 well-known mythical Hindoo figures of Vishnu, conqiiered (in autumn), 
 enveloped in the folds of the serpent, and triumphant (in spring), with the 
 serpent raised aloft in his arras. And thus we can understand the enigma 
 uttered by the oracle of Apollo at Claros, in Ionia, which said " I am Jupiter 
 Ammon in spring, and black Pluto in winter." 
 
31 
 
 Dr. Ihnb said, the astronomical explanation might be very well applicable 
 to the religion which prevailed before Zoroaster as it was to other ancient 
 religions, but that introduced by him was entirely spiritual and moral — that 
 he may have retained some of the institutions of the old faith, but the 
 peculiar characteristic of the Zoroastrian faith was its spirituality and high 
 morality, as must have been seen from the extracts read. 
 
 Dr. CoLMNGwooD replied that he by no means intended to imply that it 
 was not so, and he was glad that Dr. Ihne had given him an opportunity of 
 making himself better understood. The religion of Zoroaster was singularly 
 refined and purified from the more ancient grossness. 
 
 The Rev. C. D. Ginsbdbg agreed with Dr. Collingwood in the astro- 
 nomical nature of the ancient religions. 
 
 In answer to questions from various members, Mr. Dadabhai said the 
 Parsees were at present, to some extent, fatalists ; but this was one of the 
 corruptions which had crept in through their intercourse with the Hindoos. 
 They were monogamous ; and their sacred books did not degrade woman 
 below man, though it was only lately that their women had been allowed to 
 mix in society. With regard to the worship of fire, which was brought 
 against them, they regarded fire as the purest and best symbol of the Deity, 
 and that one of His works which could be most conveniently isolated and 
 circumscribed ; hence, they had sacred fires in the temples, towards which 
 they turned when addressing their prayers — not to it, but to the god of 
 which it was the symbol. The injunction is to turn their face to anything 
 that is glorious, as the sea, the sun, &c. Such is the explanation often 
 given by the Parsees. I have given, however, in the body of the paper what 
 appears to me to be the true state of the case. They would not abuse 
 fire, nor extinguish it unnecessarily, nor use it in a contemptuous manner. 
 Hence, the Parsees do not smoke. Their estimation of all other natural 
 objects, such as water, trees, &c., being quite equal to that for fire, they 
 would not do anything which they consider as abuse or defilement of them ; 
 also, they would never spit, nor throw any dirty thing upon them. 
 
 The President, in conclusion, said that the interesting paper and dis- 
 cussion they had heard more and more convinced him that God was not without 
 witnesses in all countries and in all ages. He called upon the society to give 
 an unanunous vote of thanks to Mr. Dadabhai, which was carried by 
 acclamation.