To yek irooni and 7525: "Woman in the Gathas..."

From: Aryan Shah
Date: 26 Mar 2001
Time: 03:09:45
Remote Name: 202.41.85.80

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http://www.zoroastrian.org/english/articles/Woman%20in%20the%20Gathas%20and%20the%20Later%20Avesta.htm

......It is with the advent of Zarathushtra that the position of woman in society emerged clear. The Gathas and supplementary texts in the Gathic dialect are explicit on the subject. The famous stanza of the "choice of religion" gives equal rights to both: "Hear the best with your ears and ponder with a bright mind. Then each MAN and WOMAN, for HIS or HER self, select either of the two (the better and bad mentalities). Awaken to this Doctrine of ours before the Great Event (of Choice) ushers in (Gathas Song 3 = Yasna 30, stanza 2). To those who make the right choice and join the Good Religion, he says: "Wise God, whoever, MAN or WOMAN, shall give me what You know to be best in life -- rewards for righteousness, power through good mind -- I shall accompany HIM and HER in glorifying such as You are, and shall, with them all, cross over the sorting bridge." (Gathas Song 11 = Yasna 46, stanza 10). Yet in another stanza he lauds: "The Wise God knows best any person of mine for HIS or HER veneration done in according with righteousness. I shall, on my part, venerate such persons, passed away or living, by their names, and shall lovingly encircle them." (S 16 = Y, st 22). It is this stanza which is later paraphrased in the famous Yenghe Hatam formula, also in a late Gathic dialect: "The Wise God knows better every MAN and WOMAN among the living for his or her veneration done in accordance with righteousness. We, on our part, venerate such MEN and WOMEN."

Furthermore, the Gathas present an inspiring message for the wedding couple. Of his three sons and three daughters, Zarathushtra selected his youngest daughter Pouruchista to give his advice and blessing. He wanted her to have a person "who is steadfast in good mind, and united with righteousness and with the Wise One" and advised HER to "consult HIM with your wisdom," and be progressively serene and munificent. SHE assured HER father that would "emulate and choose" HIM in such a way that HER act would be an honor for the father, the husband, the settlers, and the family. "As a righteous WOMAN among the righteous people," SHE committed HERself to wisely serve the Good Religion more than ever. Pouruchista moved HER father to leave an ever-fresh word for all the wedding couples. "These words I speak to the charming BRIDES and to you, BRIDEGROOMS. Do bear them in mind. Comprehend them with your conscience. Master the life which belongs to good mind. May you EACH win the other through righteousness." Zarathushtra tells them to remain UNITED and to strengthen and promote the universal fellowship of the Good Religion. (S 17 = Y 53, sts 3-7)

The last blessing given by Zarathushtra near the end of his successful mission of 47 years put the finishing touches to his divine task: "May the desired Fellowship come for the support of the MEN and WOMEN of Zarathushtra, for the support of good mind, so that the conscience of every person earns the choice reward -- the reward of righteousness -- a wish regarded by the Wise God. (Y 54.1)

The Haptanghaiti of seven short "yasnas" and next in importance to the Gathas further clarifies the position held by WOMAN in the Gathic society. Advocating learning, practicing, and preaching, it says: "The more a MAN or WOMAN knows the truth, the better. HE or SHE should zealously practice it and preach it to others so that they practice it accordingly." (H 1 = Y 35, st 6). It venerates the "WOMENfolk, ... who belong to You, God, on account of their righteousness. (H 4 = Y 38, st 1). Indeed it venerates the helpful law-abiding righteous, "born in whatever land, both MEN and WOMEN, whose good consciences are growing, have grown, or shall grow ... good MEN and WOMEN (who are) incremental, eternal, ever-gaining, ever-growing, ... who live a life of good mind." (H 5 - Y 39, st 2-3).

Zarathushtra prayed : "May good rulers, not bad rulers, rules over us with actions of good understanding and serenity (S 13 - Y 48, st 5)," and his immediate successors rightly added : "May a good ruler, MAN or WOMAN, rule over us in both the (mental and physical) existences." (H 7 - Y 41, st 2).

It was this ordinary love and respect shown by Asho Zarathushtra to his MEN and WOMEN that created the tradition of commemorating outstanding MEN and WOMEN on the Memorial Day, the Farvardegân or Muktâd, at the end of the year. The Farvardin Yasht, a post-Gathic Avesta text, venerates the names of 261 persons, sixteen of whom are married WOMEN and eleven are MAIDENS. This gives us a much higher proportion of WOMEN in the front lines of a religious order than in any other religion in its early stage, or even today. Keeping in mind the universality of the Zarathushtrian message in view, the Yasht then turns to human beings of every land and states in separate paragraphs: "We venerate the righteous MEN ... we venerate the righteous WOMEN of Aryan countries, ... Turanian countries, --- Sairimyan countries, ... Saini countries, ... Dahi countries, ... and of all countries, ... the righteous MEN and WOMEN, who (were) foremost in accepting the divine doctrine and first to listen to the divine teachings, who won for the cause of righteousness, who have been successful in establishing homes, districts, settlements, countries, who have been successful in learning the thought-provoking message, who have been successful in improving their souls, and who have been successful in obtaining all that is good." (Yasht 13.143-151)

Aerpatistan is a book for the priestly class. It has not reached us in full but fortunately has the part dealing with WOMAN officiants at rituals. It belongs to a time when every person was engaged in HIS or HER livelihood profession, generally agriculture. One could only leave the job if another person was available to take over without a possible loss in property. MAN and WOMAN both officiated, whenever invited as priests in a ritual. If invited to officiate at a ceremony, HUSBAND and WIFE had to consider who was needed more to attend the profession so that the other was spared to proceed to the ritual scene. WOMEN were at liberty to go to officiate at a ritual without the prior permission of their HUSBANDS. The officiant, more needed to attend to HIS or HER daily profession, could only be absent for a total of six nights in traveling and officiating at the ceremony. It may be noted that those willing to become priests had to undergo a three-year rigorous course of learning, memorizing, comprehending, expounding the Gathas and the Haptanghaiti, till then the only guiding "principles of life" and the only prayers used in rituals. All non-Gathic texts now used in rituals are later, some very late, additions. The Avesta does not speak of the Yasna or the Vendidad ceremonies performed in present times in India. (see "Aerpatastan and Nirangastan" by Sohrab J. Bulsara, Bombay, 1915, and "Erbedestan, an Avestan-Pahlavi text" by Helmut Humbach and Josef Elfenbein, Munich., 1990)

The Vispered is a booklet devoted to the seasonal festivals of Gahanbars. It shows that eight officials, each responsible for a specific function, took part in the ritual. In addition to the eight priests surrounding the holy fire, there were representatives of all the religious and social units of the locality to stand "prepared" to participate in the ritual, a procedure now out of question in present-day rituals performed by the priestly class while the laity lie low and silent. The Zaotar (literally "invoker"), the chief officiant, summons each of HIS or HER seven colleagues as well as the representatives of the priestly, warrior and prospering professions, and the representatives of the house, district, settlement, the youth devoted to further the religion, the teaching priest in the district, the roving preacher outside the district, and the house mistress. It is then that WOMAN and MAN of extraordinary talents, given in the stanzas quoted at the beginning of this essay are summoned to participate. We may note that a WOMAN is called hush-hâm-sâsta (literally well-instructed in religious lore) and ratu-khshathra (rite-authority). The latter title is used for Ahura Mazda as the supreme authority (Vispered 11.1) and the Gathas as the foremost authority of all scriptures used at ratu, rightful rituals. (Y 54.2, 55.1, 71.11, Vispered 11.1, Afarin-e Gatha 2.3, Vendidad 19.38). It may be pointed that due to a wrong rendering in Pahlavi, some have translated the above ratu-khshathra as "obedient to husband" without taking into view the other instances quoted above, particularly the one in which Ahura Mazda is ratu-khshathra!

As a participant, the Gathas are addressed as prayers to God and as guidance to mankind. Yet, as we have observed, the Gathic texts go a little further to mention both MEN and WOMEN so that it is fully understood that both the sexes enjoy equal rights in every spiritual (Gathic mental) and physical phase of human life. No priority or supremacy is given to any of the TWO. The TWO are free to emulate EACH other in union to win EACH other in righteous service. .......

http://www.zoroastrian.org/english/articles/Woman%20in%20the%20Gathas%20and%20the%20Later%20Avesta.htm

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