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This Fargard is nothing more than an appendix to the last clauses in the preceding Fargard (§ 50 seq.) How the murder of a water dog may be atoned for is described in it at full length. As the water dog is the holiest of all dogs[3], and, as it were, a link between the dog and God, the process of atonement must be one of an extraordinary character. It is this chapter, more than any other, which may make it doubtful whether the legislation of the Vendîdâd has ever existed as real and living law. See, however, Introduction V, 20.
1. Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda: 'O Ahura Mazda, most beneficent Spirit, Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! He who smites one of those water dogs that are born one from a thousand dogs and a thousand she-dogs[4], so that he gives up the ghost and the soul parts from the body, what is the penalty that he shall pay?'
2 (4). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He shall pay ten thousand stripes with the Aspahę-astra, ten thousand stripes with the Sraoshô-karana[6].
[1. The zanda ravân, the same sacrifice as is offered up for three days and three nights after the death of a man for the salvation of his soul. Cf. p. 132, n. 4.
2. Cf. Farg. IX, 53-57.
3. See preceding page; cf. Introd. IV, 35, and Orm. Ahr. § 230.
4. See preceding Fargard, § 51.
5. He shall pay 50 tanâfűhrs (= 15000 istîrs = 60000 dirhems; {footnote p. 166} see Introd. V, 2 1). 'If he can afford it, he will alone in the manner stated in the Avesta; if he cannot afford it, it will be sufficient to perform a complete Izasnę (sacrifice),' (Comm.)]
{p. 166}
'He shall godly and piously bring unto the fire of Ahura Mazda[1] ten thousand loads of hard, well dried, well examined[2] wood, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).
3 (6). 'He shall godly and piously bring unto the fire of Ahura Mazda ten thousand loads of soft wood, of Urvâsna, Vohu-gaona, Vohu-kereti, Hadhâ-naępata[3], or any sweet-scented plant, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).
4 (7). 'He shall godly and piously tie and consecrate ten thousand bundles of baresma; he shall offer up to the good waters ten thousand Zaothra libations with the Haoma and the sacred meat[4], cleanly prepared and well strained, cleanly prepared and well strained by a pious man[5], as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).
5 (9). 'He shall kill ten thousand snakes of those that go upon the belly; he shall kill ten thousand
[1. To the altar of the Bahrâm fire.
2. It is forbidden to take any ill-smelling thing to the fire and to kindle it on it; it is forbidden to kindle green wood, and even though the wood were hard and dry, one must examine it three times, lest there may be any hair or any unclean matter upon it' (Gr. Rav.) Although the pious Ardâ Virâf had always taken the utmost care never to put on the fire any wood but such as was seven years old, yet, when he entered paradise, Atar, the genius of fire, shewed him reproachfully a large tank full of the water which that wood had exuded (see Ardâ Virâf X).
3. See above, p. 94, n. 1.
4. Possibly milk.
5. A Mobed called sardâr, 'chief,' who prepares, cleanses, and disposes everything for the performance of the Yasna (Comm. and Anquetil, Brouillons ad Farg. XVIII, 72).]
{p. 167}
snakes of those that have the shape of a dog[1]; he shall kill ten thousand tortoises; he shall kill ten thousand land frogs[2]; he shall kill ten thousand water frogs; he shall kill ten thousand corn-carrying ants[3]; he shall kill ten thousand ants of those that bite and dig holes and work mischief[4].
6 (16). 'He shall kill ten thousand earth worms; he shall kill ten thousand horrid flies[5].
'He shall fill up ten thousand holes for the unclean[6].
[1. 'Mâr bânak snakes: they are dog-like, because they sit on their hindparts' (Comm.) The cat seems to be the animal intended by this name. In a paraphrase of this passage in a Parsi Ravaet, the cat is numbered amongst the Khrafstras which it is enjoined to kill to redeem a sin (India Office Library, VIII, 13); cf. G. du Chinon, p. 462: 'Les animaux que les Gaures ont en horreur sont les serpents, les couleuvres, les lezars, et autres de cette espece, les crapaux, les grenouďlles, les écrevisses, les rats et souris, et sur tout le chat.'
2. 'Those that can go out of water and live on the dry ground' (Comm.) 'Pour les grenouďlles et crapaux, ils disent que ce sont ceux (eux?) qui sont cause de ce que les hommes meurent, gâtans les eaus oů ils habitent continuellement, et que d'autant plus qu'il y en a dans le paďs, d'autant plus les eaus causent-elles des maladies et enfin la mort,' G. du Chinon, p. 465.
3. 'Un jour que j'étois surpris de la guerre qu'ils font aux fourmis, ils me dirent que ces animaux ne faisaient que voler par des amas des grains plus qu'il n'étoit nécessaire pour leur nourriture,' G. du Chinon, p. 464. Firdusi protested against the proscription: 'Do no harm to the corn-carrying ant; a living thing it is, and its life is dear to it.' The celebrated high-priest of the Parsis, the late Moola Firooz, entered those lines into his Pand Nâmah, which may be token better days for this wise and careful creature.
4. Doubtful. The Commentary has, 'that is, dârak ants (wood ants; termites?).'
5. Corpse flies.
6. 'The holes at which the unclean are washed' (Comm.; cf. IX, 6 seq.)]
{p. 168}
'He shall godly and piously give to godly men twice seven sets of implements for the fire, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog), namely:
7 (20). 'Two (loads of the) proper materials for fire[1]; a broom[2]; a pair of tongs; a pair of round bellows[3] extended at the bottom, contracted at the top; an adze with a sharp edge and a sharp-pointed handle[4], a saw with sharp teeth and a sharp-pointed handle, by means of which the worshippers of Mazda procure wood for the fire of Ahura Mazda.
8 (26). 'He shall godly and piously give to godly men a set of the priestly instruments of which the priests make use, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog), namely: The Astra[5], the meat-vessel[6], the Paitidâna[7], the Khrafstraghna[8], the
[1. Doubtful: the intended materials would be two loads of wood, and two loads of incense to burn upon the wood (Asp.)
2. To cleanse the Atash-dân or fire-vessel (Yasna IX, 1).
3. Or, a fan.
4. Asp.; literally, 'sharp-kneed.'
5. The Aspahę-astra; see Introd. V, 19.
6. Possibly, the milk-vessel.
7. As everything that goes out of man is unclean, his breath defiles all that it touches; priests, therefore, while on duty, and even laymen, while praying or eating, must wear a mouth-veil, the Paitidâna (Parsi Penôm), consisting 'of two pieces of white cotton cloth, hanging loosely from the bridge of the nose to, at least, two inches below the mouth, and tied with two strings at the back of the head' (Haug, Essays, 2nd ed. p. 243, n. 1; cf. Comm. ad Farg. XVIII, 1, and Anquetil II, 530). This principle appears not to have been peculiar to the Zoroastrian Aryans, for the Slavonian priest in Arkona was enjoined to go out of the temple, whenever he wanted to draw breath, 'lest the presence of the god should be defiled by contact with mortal breath' (ne dei presentia mortalis spiritus contagio pollueretur, Saxo Grammaticus, ap. Klek, Einleitung in die Slavische Literatur, p. 105). Cf. Introd. V, 8.
8. The 'Khrafstra-killer;' an instrument for killing snakes, &c.]
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Sraoshô-karana[1], the cup for the Myazda[2], the cups for the juice[3], the mortar made according to the rules, the Haoma cups[4], and the baresma.
9 (32). 'He shall godly and piously give to godly men a set of all the war implements of which the warriors make use[5], as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog); the first being a javelin[6], the second a knife[7], the third a club, the fourth a bow[8], the fifth a quiver[9] with shoulder-belt and thirty brass-headed arrows[10], the sixth a sling with arm-string and with thirty sling stones, the seventh a cuirass[11], the eighth a hauberk[12], the ninth a tunic[13], the tenth a helmet, the eleventh a girdle, the twelfth a pair of greaves[14].
[1. See Introd. V; 19.
2. Doubtful.
3. The cup in which the juice of the hom and of the urvarân (the twigs of hadhâ-naępata which are pounded together with the hom) is received from the mortar (Comm.)
4. The cup on which twigs of Haoma are laid before being pounded, the so-called tashtah (Anquetil II, 533); 'some say, the hom-strainer' [a saucer with nine holes], Comm.
5. The armament detailed in the text agrees partly with that of the Persians and Medians described by Herodotos (VII, 61, 62). It would be desirable for archaeologists to ascertain to what time and, if possible, to what province this description refers, as such information might throw some light upon the age of this part of the Avesta at least.
6. {Greek Ai?xmu`s de` Braxe'as ei^xon.}
7. {Greek E?gxeiri'dia para` to`n deksio`n mhro`n paraiwpeu'mena e?k th^s zw'nhs.}
8. {Greek To'ksa de` mega'la.}
9. Doubtful.
10. {Greek O?ďstou`s de` kalami'nous.}
11. {Greek Lepi'dos sidhre'hs o?'psin i?xđuoeide'os.}
12. 'Going from the helm to the cuirass' (Comm.)
13. 'Under the cuirass' (Comm.);{Greek peri` de` to` sw^ma kiđw^nas xeiri dwtou`s poiki'lous}.
14. {Greek Peri` de` ta` ske'lea a?naksuri'das.}]
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10 (41). 'He shall godly and piously give to godly men a set of all the implements of which the husbandmen make use, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog), namely: A plough with share and yoke[1], an ox whip[2], a mortar of stone, a hand-mill for grinding corn,
11 (48). 'A spade for digging and tilling; one measure of silver and one measure of gold.'
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! How much silver?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'The price of a stallion:'
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! How much gold?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'The price of a camel.
12 (54). 'He shall godly and piously procure a rill of running water for godly husbandmen, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).'
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! How large is the rill?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'The depth of a dog, and the breadth of a dog[3].
13 (57). 'He shall godly and piously give a piece of arable land to godly men, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).'
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! How large is the piece of land?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'As much as can be watered with such a rill on both sides[4].
14 (60). 'He shall godly and piously procure for godly men a house with ox-stalls, with nine
[1. Doubtful.
2. Doubtful.
3. Which is estimated 'a foot deep, a foot broad,' (Comm.)
4. Doubtful.]
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hâthras and nine nematas[1], as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog)[2].'
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One I How large is the house?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'Twelve Vîtâras[3] in the largest part of the house, nine Vîtâras in the middle part, six Vîtâras in the smallest part.
'He shall godly and piously give to godly men godly beds with cushions, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog),
15 (64). 'He shall godly and piously give to a godly man a virgin maid, whom no man has known, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).'
O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! What maid?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'A sister or a daughter of his, at the age of puberty, with ear-rings in her ears, and past her fifteenth year.
16 (67). 'He shall godly and piously give to holy men twice seven head of small cattle, as an atonement unto the soul (of the water dog).
He shall bring up twice seven whelps.
He shall throw twice seven bridges over canals.
17 (70). 'He shall put into repair twice nine stables that are out of repair.
'He shall cleanse twice nine dogs from skin humours, hair wax, vermin[4], and all the diseases that are produced on the body of a dog.
[1. Meaning unknown.
2. He shall build a caravansary, which is considered a pious work (Mainyô-i-khard IV, 6; XXXVII, 36).
3. A word of unknown meaning; probably a measure, but possibly 'a passage or alley.'
4. Those three words are doubtful.]
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'He shall treat twice nine godly men to their fill of meat, bread, strong, drink, and wine.
18 (73). 'This is the atonement, this is the penalty that he shall undergo to atone for the deed that he has done.
'If he shall undergo it, he shall enter the world of the holy ones: if he shall not undergo it, he shall fall down into the world of the wicked, into that dark world, made of darkness, the offspring of darkness[1].'
I (1-8). On five sins the commission of which makes the sinner a Peshôtanu.
II (9-19). On unlawful unions and attempts to procure miscarriage.
III (20-45). On the treatment of a bitch big with young.
IV (46-51). On the breeding of dogs.
1. How many are the sins that men commit and that, being committed and not confessed, nor atoned for, make their committer a Peshôtanu[2]?
2 (4). Ahura Mazda answered: 'There are five such sins, O holy Zarathustra! It is the first of these sins that men commit when a man teaches one of the faithful a foreign, wrong creed[3], a foreign wrong law, and he does so with a full knowledge and conscience of the sin: this is a sin that makes him a Peshôtanu.
[1. Cf. Farg. V, 62.
2 See Introd. V, 19.
3 Literally, 'another wrong creed;' the Commentary has, that is, a creed that is not ours.' See Introd. III, 10.]'
{p. 173}
3 (9). 'It is the second of these sins that men commit when a man gives too hard bones or too hot food to a shepherd's dog or to a house dog;
4 (11). 'If the bones stick in the dog's. teeth or stop in his throat, or if the hot food burn his mouth or his tongue, so that mischief follows therefrom, and the dog dies, this is a sin that makes the man a Peshôtanu[1].
5 (16). "It is the third of these sins that men commit when a man smites a bitch big with young or affrights her by running after her, with shouting or with clapping of hands[2];
6 (18). 'If the bitch fall into a hole, or a well, or a precipice, or a river, or a canal, so that mischief follows therefrom, and she dies, this is a sin that makes the man a Peshôtanu 3.
7 (22). 'It is the fourth of these sins that men commit when a man has intercourse with a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period: this is a sin that makes him a Peshôtanu[4].
8 (25). 'It is the fifth of these sins that men commit when a man has intercourse with a woman quick with child[5], whether the milk has already
[1. He who gives too hot food to a dog, so as to burn his throat is margarzân (guilty of death); he who gives bones to a dog so as to tear his throat is margarzân (Gr. Rav. 639).
2. Or, 'with stamping on the ground' (? Saddar 31).
3. If a bitch is big with young and a man shouts or throws stones at her, so that the whelps come to mischief and die, he is margarzân (Gr. Rav. 639).
4. See Farg. XVI, 14 seq.
5. When she has been pregnant for four months and ten days, as it is then that the child is formed and a soul is added to its body (Anquetil 11, 563).]
{p. 174}
come to her breasts or has not yet come: if mischief follow therefrom, and she die, this is a sin that makes the man a Peshôtanu[1].
9 (30). 'If a man come near unto a damsel, either dependent on the chief of the family or not dependent, either delivered unto a husband or not delivered[2] , and she conceives by him, let her not, from dread of the people, produce in herself the menses, against the course of nature, by means of water and plants[3].
10 (34). 'And if the damsel, from dread of the people, shall produce in herself the menses against the course of nature, by means of water and plants, there is a sin upon her head[4].
11 (36). 'If a man come near unto a damsel, either dependent on the chief of the family or not dependent, either delivered unto a husband or not delivered, and she conceives by him, let her not,
[1. Or better, 'if the child die.' 'If a man come to his wife [during her pregnancy] so that she is injured and bring forth a still-born child, he is margarzân' (Old Rav. 115 b).
2. Whether she has a husband in the house of her own parents or has none; whether she has entered from the house of her own parents into the house of a husband [depending on another chief of family] or has not' (Comm.)
3. By means of drugs.
4. 'It is a tanâfűhr sin for her: it is sin on sin' (the first sin being to have allowed herself to be seduced), Comm. 'If there has been no sin in her (if she has been forced), and if a man, knowing her shame, wants to take it off her; he shall call together her father, mother, sisters, brothers, husband, the servants, the menials, and the master and the mistress of the house, and he shall say, "This woman is with child by me, and I rejoice in it;" and they shall answer, "We know it, and we are glad that her shame is taken off her;" and he shall support her as a husband does' (Comm.)]
{p. 175}
from dread of the people, destroy the fruit in her womb.
12 (38). 'And if the damsel, from dread of the people, shall destroy the fruit in her womb, the sin is on both the father and herself, the murder is on both the father and herself; both the father and herself shall pay the penalty for wilful murder[1].
13 (40). 'If a man come near unto a damsel, either dependent on the chief of the family or not dependent, either delivered unto a husband or not delivered, and she conceives by him, and she says, "I have conceived by thee;" and he replies, "Go then to the old woman[2] and apply to her that she may procure thee miscarriage;"
14 (43). 'And the damsel goes to the old woman and applies to her that she may procure her miscarriage; and the old woman brings her some Banga, or Shaęta, or Ghnâna, or Fraspâta[3], or some other of the drugs that produce miscarriage and [the man says], "Cause thy fruit to perish!" and she causes her fruit to perish; the sin is on the head of all three, the man, the damsel, and the old woman.
15 (49). 'If a man come near unto a damsel, either dependent on the chief of the family or not dependent, either delivered unto. a husband or not
[1. For baodhô-varsta; see above, p. 84, § 38, and n. 1.
2. The nurse (Asp.)
3. Banga is bang or mang, a narcotic made from hempseed; shaęta means literally gold, and must have been some yellow plant or liquor; ghnâna is 'that which kills [the fruit in the womb];' fraspâta is 'that which expels [the fruit] so that it perishes' (Comm.)]
{p. 176 }
delivered, and she conceives by him, so long shall he support her, until the child is born.
16 (54). 'If he shall not support her, so that the child comes to mischief[1], for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
17 (54). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If she be near her time and be lying on the high road, which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
18 (56). Ahura Mazda answered: 'It a man come near unto a damsel, either dependent on the chief of the family or not dependent, either delivered unto a husband or not delivered, and she conceives by him, so long shall he support her, until the child is born[2].
19 (58). 'If he shall not support her[3] . . . .
'It lies with the faithful to look in the same way after every pregnant female, either two-footed or four-footed, either woman or bitch.'
20 (61). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If (a bitch[4]) be near her time and be lying on the high road, which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
21 (63). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He whose house stands-nearest, the care of supporting her is
[1. And dies.
2. § 18 = § 15.
3. The sentence is left unfinished: Aspendiârji fills it with the words in § 16, 'so that the child,' &c. It seems as if §§ 17, 18 were no part of the original text, and as if § 17 were a mere repetition of § 20, which being wrongly interpreted as referring to a woman would have brought about the repetition of § 15 as an answer. See § 20.
4. The subject is wanting in the text: it is supplied from the Commentary as the sense requires it.]
{p. 177}
his[1]; so long shall he support her until the whelps are born.
22 (65). 'If he shall not support her, so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
23 (68). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying in a camel-stall, which is the worshipper of Mazda. that shall support her?
24 (70) Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who built the camel-stall or who holds it[2], the care of supporting her is his; so long shall he support her, until the whelps are born.
25 (76). 'If he shall not support her, so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
26 (77). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying in a horse-stall, which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
27 (78). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who built the horse-stall or who holds it, the care of supporting her is his; so long shall he support her, until the whelps are born.
28 (81). 'If he shall not support her, so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
29 (84). O Maker of the material world, thou
[1. The bitch is lying on the high road: the man whose house has its door nearest shall take care of her. If she dies, be shall carry her off [to dispose of the body according to the law]. One must support her for at least three nights: if one cannot support her any longer, one intrusts her to a richer man'(Comm. and Asp.)
2. 'In pledge or for rent' (Asp.; cf. Comm. ad § 42).]
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Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying in an ox-stall, which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
30 (86). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who built the ox-stall or who holds it, the care of supporting her is his; so long shall he support her, until the whelps are born.
31 (89). 'If he shall not support her, so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
32 (92). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying in a sheep-fold, which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
33 (94). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who built the sheep-fold or who holds it, the care of supporting her is his; so long shall he support her, until the whelps are born.
34 (97). 'If he shall not support her so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
35 (100). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying on the earth-wall[1], which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
36 (102). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who erected the wall or who holds it, the care of supporting her is his; so long shall he support her, until the whelps are born.
37 (105). 'If he shall not support her, so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
[1. The wall around the house.]
{p. 179}
38 (108). O Maker of the Material world, thou Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying in the moat[1], which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
39 (110). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who dug the moat or who holds it, the care of supporting her is his; so long shall he support her, until the whelps are born.
40 (112). 'If he shall not support her, so that the whelps come to mischief, for want of proper support, he shall pay the penalty for wilful murder.'
41 (113). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If a bitch be near her time and be lying in the middle of a pasture-field, which is the worshipper of Mazda that shall support her?
42 (115). Ahura Mazda answered: 'He who sowed the pasture-field or who holds it, the care of supporting her is his.
413 (117). 'He shall with kind charity[2] take her to rest upon a litter of any foliage fit for a litter; so long shall he support her, until the young dogs are capable of self-defence and self-subsistence.'
44 (122). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! When are the dogs capable of self-defence and self-subsistence?
45 (123). Ahura Mazda answered: 'When they are able to run about in a circuit of twice seven houses around[3]. Then they may be let loose, whether it be winter or summer.
'Young dogs ought to be supported for six months, children for seven years.
[1. The moat before the earth-wall.
2. Doubtful.
3. Probably the distance of one yugyęsti; cf. Farg. XIII, 17.]
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'Âtar[1], the son of Ahura Mazda, watches as well (over a pregnant bitch) as he does over a woman.'
46 (127). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If worshippers of Mazda want to have a bitch so covered that the offspring shall be one of a strong nature, what shall they do?
47 (129). Ahura Mazda answered: 'They shall dig a hole in the earth, in the middle of the fold, half a foot deep if the earth be hard, half the height of a man if the earth be soft.
48 (131). 'They shall first tie up the bitch there, far from children and from the Fire, the son of Ahura Mazda[2], and they shall watch by her until a dog comes there from anywhere. They shall afterwards let another dog come near her, and then a third besides[3], each being kept apart from the former, lest they should assail one another.
49 (134)[4]. 'The bitch being thus covered by three dogs, grows big with young, and the milk comes to her teats and she brings forth a young one that is born from (three) dogs.'
50 (135). He who smites a bitch who has been covered by three dogs, and who has already milk, and who shall bring forth a young one born from (three) dogs, what is the penalty that he shall pay?
[1. The fire: when a woman is in labour, one lights up a great fire in order to protect her and her child from the fiends (Introd.. V, 13).
2. 'From children, lest she shall bite them; from the fire, lest it shall hurt her' (Comm.)
3. Cf. Justinus III, 4: maturiorem fiaturam conceptionern rati, si earn singulae per plures viros experirentur.
4. The text of this and the following clause is corrupt, and the meaning doubtful.]
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51 (137). Ahura Mazda answered: 'Seven hundred stripes with the Aspahę-astra, seven hundred stripes with the Sraoshô-karana.'
I (1-11). On the uncleanness of women during their sickness.
II (11-12). How it can be removed.
III (13-18). Sundry laws relating to the same matter. See Introd. V, 12.
1. O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If there be in the house of a worshipper of Mazda a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period, what shall the worshippers of Mazda do?
2 (3). Ahura Mazda answered: 'They shall clear the way[1] of the wood there, both in growing trees and in logs[2]; they shall strew dry dust on the ground[3]; and they shall erect a building there[4], higher than the house by a half, or a third, or a fourth, or a fifth part, lest her look should fall upon the fire[5].'
3 (9). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! How far from the fire? How far from the water? How far from the consecrated bundles of baresma? How far from the faithful?
4 (10). Ahura Mazda answered: 'Fifteen paces from the fire, fifteen paces from the water, fifteen
[1. The way to the Dashtânistân (see Introd. V, 12).
2. Lest the wood shall be touched and defiled by the woman on her way to the Dashtânistân.
3. Lest the earth shall be touched and defiled by her. Cf. Farg. IX, 11, and Introd. V, 10.
4. The Dashtânistân.
5. See Introd. V, 12.]
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paces from the consecrated bundles of baresma, three paces from the faithful.'
5 (11). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! How far from her shall he stay, who brings food to a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period?
6 (12). Ahura Mazda answered: 'Three paces[1] from her shall he stay, who brings food to a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period.'
In what kind of vessels shall he bring the food? In what kind of vessels shall he bring the bread?
'In vessels of brass, or of lead, or of any common metal[2].'
7 (15). How much food shall he bring to her? How much bread shall he bring?
'(Only) two danares[3] of long bread, and one danare of milk pap, lest she should gather strength[4].
'If a child has just touched her, they shall first wash his hands and then his body[5].
8 (21). 'If she still see blood after three nights
[1. The food is held out to her from a distance in a metal spoon.
2. Earthen vessels, when defiled, cannot be made clean; but metal vessels can (see Farg. VII, 73 seq.)
3. A danare is, according to Anquetil, as much as four tolas, a tola is from 105 to 175 grains.
4. 'Sôshyôs says: For three nights cooked meat is not allowed to her, lest the issue shall grow stronger.' As the fiend is in her, any strength she may gain accrues to Ahriman.
5. A child whom she suckles. The meaning is, Even a child, if he has touched her, must undergo the rites of cleansing. The general rule is given in the Commentary: 'Whoever has touched a Dashtân woman must wash his body and his clothes with gômęz and water.' The ceremony in question is the simple Ghosel, not the Barashnűm, since the woman herself performs the former only (vide infra, § 11 seq.; cf. Introd. V, 16).]
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have passed, she shall it in the place of infirmity until four nights have passed.
If she still see blood after four nights have passed, she shall sit in the place of infirmity until five nights, have passed.
9. 'If she still see blood after five nights have passed, she shall sit in the place of infirmity until six nights have passed.
'If she still see blood after six nights have passed, she shall sit in the place of infirmity until seven nights have passed.
10. 'If she still see blood after seven nights have passed, she shall sit in the place of infirmity until eight nights have passed.
'If she still see, blood after, eight nights have passed, she shall sit in the place of infirmity until nine nights have passed.
11. 'If she still see blood after nine nights have passed, this is a work of the Daęvas which they have performed for the worship and glorification of the Daęvas[1].'
'The worshippers of Mazda shall clear the way[2] of the wood there, both in growing trees and in logs;
12 (26). 'They shall dig three holes in the earth, and they shall wash the woman with gômęz by two of those holes and with water by the third.
'They shall kill Khrafstras, to wit: two hundred corn-carrying ants, if it be summer; two hundred of
[1. See Introd. V, 12.
2. The way to , the Barashnűm-gâh, where the cleansing takes place.]
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any other sort of the Khrafstras made by Angra Mainyu, if it be winter[1].'
13 (30). If a worshipper of Mazda shall suppress the issue of a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period, what is the penalty that he shall pay?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'He is a Peshôtanu: two hundred stripes with the Aspahę-astra, two hundred stripes with the Sraoshô-karana.'
14 (33). O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! If a man shall again and again wilfully touch the body of a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period, so that the ordinary issue turns to the dye of the unusual one, or the unusual issue to the dye of the ordinary one, what is the penalty that he shall pay?
15 (36). Ahura Mazda answered: 'For the first time he comes near unto her, for the first time he lies by her, thirty stripes with the Aspahę-astra, thirty stripes with the Sraoshô-karana; for the second time he comes near unto her, for the second time he lies by her, fifty stripes with the Aspahę-astra, fifty stripes with the Sraoshô-karana; for the third time he comes near unto her, for the third time he lies by her, seventy stripes with the Aspahę-astra, seventy stripes with the Sraoshô-karana.'
16. For the fourth time he comes near unto her, for the fourth time he lies by her, if he shall press the body under her clothes, if he shall press the
[1. See Introd. IV, 35.]
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unclean thigh, but without sexual intercourse) what is the penalty that he shall pay?
Ahura Mazda answered: 'Ninety stripes with the Aspahę-astra, ninety stripes with the Sraoshô-karana.
17 (39). 'Whosoever shall lie in sexual inter course with a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period, does no better deed than if he should burn the corpse of his own son, born of his own body and dead of naęza[1], and drop its fat into the fire[2].
18 (41). All such sinners, embodiments of the Drug, are scorners of the law: all scorners of the law are rebels against the Lord; all rebels against the Lord are ungodly men; and any ungodly man shall pay for it with his life[3].'
Anything that has been separated from the body of man is considered dead matter (Introd. V, 12), and is accordingly supposed to fall into the possession of the demon and to become the abode of death and uncleanness. Therefore, hair and nails, as soon as cut off, are at once the property of Ahriman, and the demon has to be driven away from them by spells, in the same way as he is from the bodies of the dead. They are withdrawn from his power by
[1. A disease (Farg. VII, 58). There is another word naęza, 'a spear,' so that one may translate also 'killed by the spear' (Asp.)
2. 'Not that the two deeds are equal, but neither is good' (Comm.) The sin in question is a simple tanâfűhr (Farg. XV, 7), and therefore can be atoned for by punishment and repentance, whereas the burning of a corpse is a crime for which there is no atonement (Farg. I, 17; VIII, 73 seq.; Introd. V, 8).
3. Literally, 'is a Peshôtanu;' 'he is a tanâfűhr sinner, that is to say, margarzân (worthy of death),' Comm.]
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the recital of certain prayers, and by being deposited in the earth inside consecrated circles, which are drawn around them as an intrenchment against the fiend (see above, p. 122, n. 1).
This chapter, which has given full scope to the ironical humour of many, is an invaluable document in the eyes of the mythologist, as he finds in it, if not the origin and explanation, at least the oldest record of world-wide superstitions. Not only in Bombay, but all over the world, people are found who believe that hair and nails are weapons in the hands of the evil one. The Esthonians, on the shores of the Baltic, take the utmost care not to drop the parings of their nails on the ground, lest the devil should pick them up, to make a visor to his cap, which will give him full power to injure men, unless the sign of the cross has been made over them[1]. The Gauchos in the Chilian pampas fear to throw their hair to the winds, but deposit it in holes dug in a wall[2]. In Liége good people are advised not to throw away their hair, nor to leave it in the teeth of the comb, lest a witch take hold of it and cast a spell over them[3].
1. Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda: 'O Ahura Mazda, most beneficent Spirit, Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the most deadly deed whereby a man increases most the baleful strength of the Daęvas, as he would do by offering them a sacrifice?'
2 (3). Ahura Mazda answered: 'It is when a man here below combing his hair or shaving it off, or paring off his nails drops them[4] in a hole or in a crack[5].
[1. Cf. infra, 'Thou shalt chant the Ahuna-Vairya,' &c., §§ 6, 8, 9.
2. Cf. infra, §§ 5, 7.
3. Mélusine, Recueil de Mythologie populaire, publié par H. Gaidoz et E. Rolland, Paris, 1878; pp. 79, 549, 583. To the same train of ideas seems to belong the Eddic myth of Naglfar, the fatal ship wrought out of the nails of the dead, which is to take the crew of the demon to the shore of the earth when the last day of the world is come (Gylfaginning, 51).
4. Without performing the requisite ceremonies.
5. Doubtful.]
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3 (6). 'Then for want of the lawful rites being observed, Daęvas are produced in the earth; for want of the lawful rites being observed, those Khrafstras are produced in the earth which men call lice, and which eat up the corn in the corn-field and the clothes in the wardrobe.
4 (10). 'Therefore, O Zarathustra! whenever here below thou shalt comb thy hair or shave it off, or pare off thy nails, thou shalt take them away ten paces from the faithful, twenty paces from the fire, thirty paces from the water, fifty paces from the consecrated bundles of baresma.
5 (13). 'Then thou shalt dig a hole, a disti[1] deep if the earth be hard, a vîtasti deep if it be soft; thou shalt take the hair down there and thou shalt say aloud these fiend-smiting words: "Out of him by his piety Mazda made the plants grow up[2]."
6 (17). 'Thereupon thou shalt draw three furrows with a knife of metal around the hole, or six furrows or nine, and thou shall chant the Ahuna-Vairya three times, or six, or nine.
7 (19). 'For the nails, thou shalt dig a hole, out
[1. A disti = ten fingers. A vîtasti = twelve fingers.
2. See above, X1, 6; the choice of this line was determined by the presence of the word plants in it: man was considered a microcosm, and every element in him was supposed to come from a similar element in nature, to which it was to return after death, and whence it was to come back again at the time of the resurrection: his bones from the earth, his blood from the water, his hair from the trees, his life from the fire (Bundahis XXXI, Ulamâi Islâm); an old Aryan theory, traces of which are also to be found in India (Rig-veda XL, 16, 3), in Greece (Ilias VII. 99; Empedocles, fr. 3 7 8; cf. Epicharmus ap. Plut. Consol. ad Apoll. 15), and in Scandinavia (Edda, Grimnismal 40).]
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of the house, as deep as the top joint of the little finger; thou shalt take the nails down there and thou shalt say aloud these fiend-smiting words: "The words that are heard from the pious in holiness and good thought[1]."
8 (24). 'Then thou shalt draw three furrows with a knife of metal around the hole, or six furrows or nine, and thou shalt chant the Ahuna-Vairya three times, or six, or nine.
9 (26). 'And then: "Look here, O Ashô-zusta bird[2]! here are the nails for thee: look at the nails here! May they be for thee so many spears, knives, bows, falcon-winged arrows, and sling-stones against the Mâzainya Daęvas[3]!"
10 (29). 'If those nails have not been dedicated (to the bird), they shall be in the hands of the Mâzainya Daęva so many spears, knives, bows, falcon-winged arrows, and sling stones (against the Mâzainya Daęvas)[4].
[1. Yasna XXXIII, 7. There is here only a play upon the word sruyę, 'is heard,' which chances to be homonymous with the dual of srva, 'nails of both hands.'
2. 'The owl,' according to modern tradition. The word literally means 'friend of holiness.' 'For the bird Ashôzusta they recite the Avesta formula; if they recite it, the fiends tremble and do not take up the nails; but if the nails have had no spell uttered over them, the fiends and wizards use them as arrows against the bird Ashôzusta and kill him. Therefore, when the nails have had a spell uttered over them, the bird takes and eats them up, that the fiends may not do any harm by their means' (Bundahis XIX).
3. See above, p. 137, n. 1. The nails are cut in two and the fragments are put in the hole with the point directed towards the north, that is to say, against the breasts of the Dęvs (see above, p. 75, n. 2). See Anquetil, Zend-Avesta II, 117; India Office Library, VIII, 80.
4. Repeated by mistake from § 10.]
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11 (30). 'All such sinners, embodiments of the Drug, are scorners of the law: all scorners of the law are rebels against the Lord: all rebels against the Lord are ungodly men; and any ungodly man shall pay for it with his life[1].'
I (1-13). On the unworthy priest and enticers to heresy.
II (14-29). The holiness of the cock.
III (30-60). The four paramours of the Drug.
IV (61-71). On unlawful lusts. The text and the Pahlavi commentary of this Fargard are translated in Haug's Essays, pp. 243 seq., 364 seq.
1. There is many a one, O holy Zarathustra!' said Ahura Mazda, 'who wears a Paitidâna[2] but who has not girded his loins with the law[3]; when such a man says, "I am an Âthravan," he lies; do not call him an Âthravan, O holy Zarathustra!' thus said Ahura Mazda.
2 He holds a Khrafstraghna in his hand, but he has not girded his loins with the law; when he says, "I am an Âthravan," he lies; do not call him an Âthravan, O holy Zarathustra!' thus said Ahura Mazda.
[1. See preceding Fargard, § 18.
2. See above, p. 168, n. 7.
3. The word translated girded is the word used of the Kôstî, the sacred girdle which the Parsi must never part with (see § 54); the full meaning, therefore, is, 'girded with the law as with a Kôstî' (cf. Yasna IX, 26 [81]), that is to say, 'never forsaking the law,' or, as the Commentary expresses it, 'one whose thought is all on the law' (cf. § 5).
4. See above, p. 168, n. 8.]
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3 (7). 'He holds a twig[1] in his hand, but he has not girded his loins with the law; when he says, "I am an Âthravan," he lies; do not call him an Âthravan, O holy Zarathustra!' thus said Ahura Mazda.
4 (9). 'He wields the Astra mairya[2], but he has not girded his loins with the law; when he says, "I am an Âthravan," he lies; do not call him an Âthravan, O holy Zarathustra!' thus said Ahura Mazda.
5 (11). 'He who sleeps {on--? jbh} throughout the night, who does not perform the Yasna nor chant the hymns, who does not worship by word or by deed, who does neither learn nor teach, with a longing for (everlasting) life, he lies when he says, "I am an Âthravan," do not call him an Âthravan, O holy Zarathustra!' thus said Ahura Mazda.
6 (14). 'Him thou shalt call an Âthravan, O holy Zarathustra! who throughout the night sits up and demands of the holy Wisdom[3], which makes man free from anxiety, with dilated heart, and cheerful at the head of the Kinvat bridge[4], and which makes him reach that world, that holy world. that excellent world, the world of paradise.
7 (18). '(Therefore) demand of me, thou upright one! of me, who am the Maker, the best of all beings, the most knowing, the most pleased in answering what is asked of me; demand of me, that
[1. The bundles of baresma or the urvarân (see p. 22, n. 2; p. 169, n. 3).
2. The Aspahę-astra; see Introd. V, 19.
3. That is to say, studies the law and learns from those who know it (cf. Introd. V, 2).
4. See Farg. XIX, 30. 'It gives him a stout heart, when standing before the Kinvat bridge' (Comm.)]
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thou mayst be the better, that thou mayst be the happier[1].'
8 (21). Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda: 'O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! What is it that makes the unseen power of Death increase?'
9 (22). Ahura Mazda answered: 'It is the man that teaches a wrong law[2]; it is the man who continues for three years[3] without wearing the sacred girdle[4], without chanting the Gâthas, without worshipping the good waters.
10 (25). 'And he who should set that man at
[1. See Introd. V, 2.
2. 'The deceiver Ashemaogha' (Comm.); the heretic. Cf. Farg. XV, 2, and Introd. III, 10.
3. Doubtful.
4. The Kôstî, which must be worn by every Parsi, man or woman, from their fifteenth year of age (see below, § 54 seq.); it is the badge of the faithful, the girdle by which he is united both with Ormazd and with his fellow believers. He who does not wear it must be refused water and bread by the members of the community; he who wears it becomes a participator in the merit of all the good deeds performed all over the Zarathustrian world (Saddar 10 and 46; Hyde 10 and 50). The Kôstî consists 'of seventy-two interwoven filaments, and should three times circumvent the waist. . . . Each of the threads is equal in value to one of the seventy-two Hâhs of the Izashnę; each of the twelve threads in the six lesser cords is equal in value to the dawâzdih hamâist . . .; each of the lesser cords is equal in value to one of the six Gahanbârs; each of the three circumventions of the loins is equal in value to humat, good thought, hukhat, good speech, huaresta, good work; the binding of each of the four knots upon it confers pleasure on each of the four elements, fire, air, water, and the earth' (Edal Daru, apud Wilson, The Parsi Religion Unfolded, p. 163). In the Brahmanical system also the faithful are bound to their god by means of a sacred girdle, the Mekhalâ.
Another piece of clothing which every Parsi is enjoined to wear is the Sadarah, or sacred shirt, a muslin shirt with short sleeves, that does not reach lower than the hips, with a small pocket at the opening in front of the shirt (see § 54 seq.)]
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liberty, when bound in prison[1], does no better deed than if he should flay a man alive and cut off his head[2].
11 (2 7). 'The blessing uttered on a wicked, ungodly Ashemaogha does not go past the mouth (of the blesser); the blessing for two Ashemaoghas does not go past his tongue; the blessing for three is no word at all; the blessing for four is a curse against himself.
12 (29). 'Whosoever should give some Haoma juice to a wicked, ungodly Ashemaogha, or some Myazda consecrated with blessings, does no better deed than if he should lead a thousand horse against the cities of the worshippers of Mazda, and should slaughter the men thereof, and drive off the cattle as plunder.
13 (32). 'Demand of me, thou upright one! of me, who am the Maker, the best of all beings, the most knowing, the most pleased in answering what is asked of me; demand of me, that thou mayst be the better, that thou mayst be the happier.'
14 (33). Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda: 'Who is the Sraosha-varez[3] of Sraosha? the holy, strong Sraosha, who is the incarnate Word, a mighty-speared and lordly god.'
[1. See Introd. III, 10. Cf. § 12.
2. Doubtful. The Commentary seems to understand the sentence as follows: 'He who should free him from hell would thus perform no less a feat than if he should cut off the head of a man and then make him alive again.'
3. 'Who is he who sets the world in motion?'(Comm.) See above, p. 56, n. 2.
4. See Introd. IV, 31.]
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15 (34). Ahura Mazda answered: 'It is the bird named Parôdars[1], which. ill-speaking people call Kahrkatâs[2], O holy Zarathustra! the bird that lifts up his voice against the mighty dawn:
16 (37). '"Arise, O men! recite the Ashem yad vahistem that smites down the Daęvas[3]. Lo! here is Bűshyăsta, the long-handed[4], coming upon you, who lulls to sleep again the whole living world, as soon as it has awoke: 'Sleep!' she says, 'sleep on, O man! the time[5] is not yet come.'"
17 (41). 'For the three excellent things be never slack, namely, good thoughts, good words, and good deeds; for the three abominable things be ever slack, namely, bad thoughts, bad words, and bad deeds."
18 (43). 'In the first part of the night, Fire, the son of Ahura Mazda, calls the master of the house for help, saying:
19 (43). '"Up! arise, thou master of the house! put on thy girdle on thy clothes, wash thy hands, take wood, bring it unto me, and let me burn bright
[1. 'He who foresees' the coming dawn; the cock.
2 'When he is not called so, he is powerful' (Comm.) Cf. XIII, 2, 6.
3. The cock is called 'the drum of the world.' As crowing in the dawn that dazzles away the fiends, he shared with it the honour of the victory, and was believed to crow away the demons: 'The cock was created to fight against the fiends and wizards; ... he is with the dog an ally of Srôsh against demons' (Bundahis XIX) 'No demon can enter a house in which there is a cock: and, above all, should this bird come to the residence of a demon, and move his tongue to chaunt the praise's of the glorious and exalted Creator, that instant the evil spirit takes to flight' (Mirkhond, History of the Early Kings of Persia, translated by Shea, p. 57; cf. Saddar 32, Hyde 35, and J. Ovington, A Voyage to Suratt, 1696, p. 371).
4. See Introd. IV, 24.
5. 'To perform thy religious duties' (Comm.)]
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with the clean wood, carried by thy well-washed hands[1]. Here comes Âzi[2], made by the Daęvas, who is about to strive against me, and wants to put out my life."
20 (46). 'In the second part of the night, Fire, the son of Ahura Mazda, calls the husbandman for help, saying:
21 (46). '"Up! arise, thou husbandman! Put on thy girdle on thy clothes, wash thy hands, take wood, bring it unto me, and let me burn bright with the clean wood, carried by thy well-washed hands. Here comes Âzi, made by the Daęvas, who is about to strive against me, and wants to put out my life."
22 (48). 'In the third part of the night, Fire, the son of Ahura Mazda, calls the holy Sraosha for help, saying: "Come thou, holy, tall-formed Sraosha, [then he brings unto me some clean wood with his well-washed hands][3]: here comes Âzi, made by the Daęvas, who is about to strive against me, and wants to put out my life."
23 (50). 'And then the holy Sraosha wakes up the bird named Parôdars, which ill-speaking people call Kahrkatâs, and the bird lifts up his voice against the mighty dawn:
24 (52). '"Arise, O men! recite the Ashem yad vahistem that smites down the Daęvas. Lo! here is Bűshyăsta, the long-handed, coming upon you, who lulls to sleep again the whole living world as
[1. The Parsi, as soon as he has risen, must put on the Kôstî, wash his hands, and put wood on the fire.
2 See Introd. IV, 19.
3. The text seems to be corrupt: it must probably be emendated into I bring into me . . .']
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soon as it has awoke: 'Sleep!' she says, 'sleep on, O man! the time is not yet come."'
25 (52). '"For the three excellent things be never slack, namely, good thoughts, good words, and good deeds; for the three abominable things be ever slack, namely, bad thoughts, bad words, and bad deeds."
26 (53). 'And then bed-fellows address one another: "Rise up, here is the cock calling me up." Whichever of the two first gets up shall first enter paradise: whichever of the two shall first, with well-washed hands, bring clean wood unto the Fire, the son of Ahura Mazda, the Fire, well pleased with him and not angry, and fed as it required, will thus bless him:
27 (58). '"May herds of oxen grow for thee, and increase of sons: may thy mind be master of its vow, may thy soul be master of its vow, and mayst thou live on in the joy of the soul all the nights of thy life."
'This is the blessing which the Fire speaks unto him who brings him dry wood, well examined by the light of the day, well cleansed with godly intent.
28 (64). 'And whosoever will kindly and piously present one of the faithful with a pair of these my Parôdars birds, a male and a female, it is as though he had given[1] a house with a hundred columns, a thousand beams, ten thousand large windows, ten thousand small windows.
29 (67). 'And whosoever shall give to my Parôdars bird his fill of meat, I, Ahura Mazda, need not
[1. 'In the day of recompense' (Comm.); he shall be rewarded as though he had given a house, &c. . . . he shall receive such a house in paradise.]
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interrogate him any longer; he shall directly go to paradise.'
30 (70). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! Thou then, alone in the material world, dost bear offspring without any male coming unto thee?'
31 (74). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! It is not so, nor do I, alone in the material world, bear offspring without any male coming unto me.
32 (77). 'There are four males who are mine.
'And they make me conceive progeny as other males make their females.'
33 (78). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! Who is the first of those males of thine?'
34 (79). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! He is the first of my males who, being entreated by one of the faithful, does not give him anything, be it ever so little, of the riches he has treasured up'.
35 (82). 'That man makes me conceive progeny as other males make their females.'
36 (83). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! What is the thing that can counteract that?'
37 (84). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! This is
[1. Cf. Farg. III, 34.]
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the thing that counteracts it, namely, when a man unasked, kindly and piously, gives to one of the faithful something, be it ever so little, of the riches he has treasured up.
38 (87). 'He does thereby as thoroughly destroy the fruit of my womb as a four-footed wolf does, who tears the child out of a mother's womb.'
39 (88). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! Who is the second of those males of thine?'
40 (89). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! He is the second of my males who, making water, lets it fall along the upper forepart of his foot.
41 (92). 'That man makes me conceive progeny as other males make their females.'
42 (93). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! What is the thing that can counteract that?'
43 (94). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! This is the thing that counteracts it, namely, when the man rising up[1] and stepping three steps further off, shall say three Ahuna-Vairya, two humatanăm, three hukhshathrôtemăm, and then chant the Ahuna-Vairya and offer up one Yęnhę hâtăm.
[1. 'Nec stando mingens . . . facile visitur Persa' (Amm. Marc. XXIII, 6); Ardâ Virâf XXIV; Mainyô-i-khard II, 39; Saddar 56, Hyde 60. Cf. Manu IV, 47 seq., and Polack, Persien I, 67: 'Von einem in Paris weilenden Perser hinterbrachte man dem König, um seine Emancipation und Abtrünnigkeit vom Gesetz zu beweisen. dass er Schweinefleisch esse und stehend die Function verrichte.']
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44 (98). 'He does thereby as thoroughly destroy the fruit of my womb as a four-footed wolf does, who tears the child out of a mother's womb.'
45 (99). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! Who is the third of those males of thine?'
46 (100). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! He is the third of my males who during his sleep emits seed.
47 (102). 'That man makes me conceive progeny as other males make their females.'
48 (103). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! What is the thing that can counteract that?'
49 (104). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! this is the thing that counteracts it, namely, if the man, when he has risen from sleep, shall say three Ahuna-Vairya, two humatanăm, three hukhshathrôtemăm, and then chant the Ahuna-Vairya and offer up one Yęnhę hâtăm.
50 (107). 'He does thereby as thoroughly destroy the fruit of my womb as a four-footed wolf does who tears the child out of a mother's womb.'
51 (108). Then he shall speak unto Spenta Ârmaiti[1], saying: 'O Spenta Ârmaiti, this man do I deliver unto thee; this man deliver thou back unto me, against the mighty day of resurrection; deliver him back as one who knows the Gâthas, who
[1. The genius of the earth (cf. Farg. II, 10).]
{p. 199}
knows the Yasna, and the revealed law[1], a wise and clever man, who is the Word incarnate.
52 (112). 'Then thou shalt call his name "Fire-creature, Fire-seed, Fire-offspring, Fire-land," or any name wherein is the word Fire[1].'
53 (113). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug! Who is the fourth of those males of thine?'
54 (114). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! This one is my fourth male who, either man or woman, being more than fifteen years of age, walks without wearing the sacred girdle and the sacred shirt[3].
55 (115). 'At the fourth step[4] we Daęvas, at once, wither him even to the tongue and the marrow, and he goes thenceforth with power to destroy the world of the holy spirit, and he destroys it like the Yâtus and the Zandas[5].'
56 (117). The holy Sraosha asked the Drug, with his club uplifted against her: 'O thou wretched and wicked Drug, what is the thing that can counteract that?'
57 (118). Then the Drug demon, the guileful one, answered: 'O holy, tall-formed Sraosha! There is no means of counteracting it;
[1. Literally, 'the answers made to the questions (of Zarathustra).'
2. Cf. Introd. IV, 30, and Orm. Ahr. § 205.
3. The Kôstî and the Sadarah; see above, p. 191, n. 4. It is the sin known as kushâd duvârisnî (Mainyô-i-khard II, 35; Ardâ Vîrâf XXV, 6).
4. 'Going three steps without Kôstî is only a three Sraoshô-karana sin; from the fourth step, it is a tanâfűhr sin' (Comm.)
5. For the Yâtus, see Introd. IV, 20; the zanda is a hobgoblin.]
{p. 200}
58 (120). 'When a man or a woman, being more than fifteen years of age, walks without wearing the sacred girdle or the sacred shirt.
59 (120). 'At the fourth step we Daęvas, at once, wither him even to the tongue and the marrow, and he goes thenceforth with power to destroy the world of the holy spirit, and he destroys it like the Yâtus and the Zandas.'
60 (122). Demand of me, thou upright one! of me who am the Maker, the best of all beings, the most knowing, the most pleased in answering what is asked of me; demand of me that thou mayst be the better, that thou mayst be the happier.
61 (123). Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda: 'Who grieves thee with the sorest grief? Who pains thee with the sorest pain?'
62 (124). Ahura Mazda answered: 'It is the Gahi[1], O Spitama Zarathustra! who goes a-whoring after the faithful and the unfaithful, after the worshippers of Mazda and the worshippers of the Daęvas, after the wicked and the righteous[2].
6 3 (12 5). 'Her look dries up one third of the mighty floods that run from the mountains; her look withers one third of the beautiful, golden hued, growing plants;
64 (12 7). 'Her look withers one third of the grass
[1. The courtezan, as an incarnation of the female demon Gahi (see Introd. IV, 15).
2 '[Whether she gives up her body to the faithful or to the unfaithful], there is no difference; when she has been with three men, she is guilty of death' (Comm.)]
{p. 201}
wherewith Spenta Ârmaiti[1] is clad[2], and her touch withers in the faithful one third of his good thoughts, of his good words, of his good deeds, one third of his strength, of his fiend-killing power, and of his holiness[3].
65 (129). 'Verily I say unto thee, O Spitama Zarathustra! such creatures ought to be killed even more than gliding snakes[4], than howling wolves, than the wild she-wolf that falls upon the fold, or than the she-frog that falls upon the waters with her thousandfold brood.'
66 (133). Demand of me, thou upright one! of me who am the Maker, the best of all beings, the most knowing, the most pleased in answering what is asked of me; demand of me that thou mayst be the better, that thou mayst be the happier.
67-68 (133). Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda: 'If a man shall come unto a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period, and he does so wittingly and knowingly[5], and she allows it wilfully, wittingly, and
[1. The earth.
2. Doubtful. The Pahlavi translation has, 'One third of the strength of Spenta Ârmaiti.'
3. 'If a Gahi (courtezan) look at running waters, they fall; if at trees, they are stunted; if she converse with a pious man, his intelligence and his holiness are withered by it' (Saddar 67; Hyde 74). Cf. Manu IV, 40 seq.
4. It is written in the law (the Avesta): 'O Zartust Isfitamân! with regard to woman, I say to thee that any woman that has given up her body to two men in one day is sooner to be killed than a wolf, a lion, or a snake: any one who kills such a woman will gain as much merit by it as if he had provided with wood a thousand fire-temples, or destroyed the dens of adders, scorpions, lions, wolves, or snakes' (Old Rav. 59 b).
5. 'Knowing her state and knowing that it is a sin' (Comm.)]
{p. 202}
knowingly, what is the atonement for it, what is the penalty that he shall pay to atone for the deed they have done?'
69 (136). Ahura Mazda answered: 'If a man shall come unto a woman who has an issue of blood, either out of the ordinary course or at the usual period, and he does so wittingly and knowingly, and she allows it wilfully, wittingly, and knowingly;
70 (137). 'He shall slay a thousand head of small cattle; he shall godly and piously offer up to the fire[1] the entrails[2] thereof together with Zaothra-libations; he shall bring the shoulder bones to the good waters[3].
71 (140). 'He shall godly and piously bring unto the fire a thousand loads of soft wood, of Urvâsna, Vohu-gaona, Vohu-kereti, Hadhâ-naępata, or of any sweet-scented plant[4].
72 (142). 'He shall tie and consecrate a thousand bundles of baresma; he shall godly and piously offer up to the good waters a thousand Zaothra-libations, together with the Haoma and the meat, cleanly prepared and well strained by a pious man, together with the roots of the tree known as Hadhâ-naępata[5].
73 (144). 'He shall kill a thousand snakes of
[1. To the Bahrain fire.
2. The ômentum (afsman) or epipleon. Strabo, XV, 13: {Greek tou^ e?pi'plou ti mikro`n tiđe'ssi, w!s le'gousi' tines, e?pi` to' pu^r}. 'Ascending six steps they showed me in a Room adjoining to the temple, their Fire which they fed with Wood, and sometimes Burn on it the Fat of the Sheep's Tail.' A Voyage Round the World, Dr. J. F. Gemelli, 1698.
3. The meat is eaten by the faithful (Asp.); cf. Herod. I, 132.
4. Cf. Farg. XIV, 3 seq.
5. See above, p. 94, n. 1.]
{p. 203}
those that go upon the belly, two thousand of the other kind[1]: he shall kill a thousand land frogs and two thousand water frogs; he shall kill a thousand corn-carrying ants and two thousand of the other kind[2].
74 (147). 'He shall throw thirty bridges over canals; he shall undergo a thousand stripes with the Aspahę-astra, a thousand stripes with the Sraoshô-karana[3].
75 (149). 'This is the atonement, this is the penalty that he shall pay to atone for the deed that he has done.
76 (i50). 'If he shall pay it, he shall enter the world of the holy ones; if he shall not pay it, he shall fall down into the world of the wicked, into that dark world, made of darkness, the offspring of darkness[4].'
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