"He shall. The dry mingles not with the dry. Should the dry mingle with
the dry, how soon all this material world of mine would be only one
Peshôtanu, bent on the destruction of righteousness, and whose soul will
cry and wail! so numberless are the beings that die upon the face of the
earth."
[Footnote 13: A dog with two spots above the eyes.]
CLEANSING THE UNCLEAN
Zarathustra asked Ahura Mazda:--
O most beneficent Spirit, Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! To
whom shall they apply here below, who want to cleanse their body defiled
by the dead?
Ahura Mazda answered:--
"To a pious man, O Spitama Zarathustra! who knows how to speak, who
speaks truth, who has learned the Holy Word, who is pious, and knows
best the rites of cleansing according to the law of Mazda. That man
shall fell the trees off the surface of the ground on a space of nine
Vibâzus square; in that part of the ground where there is least water
and where there are fewest trees, the part which is the cleanest and
driest, and the least passed through by sheep and oxen, and by the fire
of Ahura Mazda, by the consecrated bundles of Baresma, and by the
faithful."
How far from the fire? How far from the water? How far from the
consecrated bundles of Baresma? How far from the faithful?
Ahura Mazda answered:--
"Thirty paces from the fire, thirty paces from the water, thirty paces
from the consecrated bundles of Baresma, three paces from the faithful.
Then thou shalt dig a hole, two fingers deep if the summer has come,
four fingers deep if the winter and ice have come." How far from one
another? "One pace." How much is the pace? "As much as three feet. Then
thou shalt dig three holes more, two fingers deep if the summer has
come, four fingers deep if the winter and ice have come." How far from
the former six? "Three paces." What sort of paces? "Such as are taken in
walking." How much are those three paces? "As much as nine feet. Then
thou shalt draw a furrow all around with a metal knife. Then thou shalt
draw twelve furrows; three of which thou shalt draw to surround and
divide from the rest the first three holes; three thou shalt draw to
surround and divide the first six holes; three thou shalt draw to
surround and divide the nine holes; three thou shalt draw around the
three inferior holes, outside the six other holes. At each of the three
times nine feet, thou shalt place stones as steps to the holes; or
potsherds, or stumps, or clods, or any hard matter. Then the man defiled
shall walk to the holes; thou, O Zarathustra! shalt stand outside by the
furrow, and thou shalt recite, 'Nemaskâ yâ ârmaitis izâkâ'; and the man
defiled shall repeat, 'Nemaskâ yâ ârmaitis izâkâ.' The Drug becomes
weaker and weaker at every one of those words which are a weapon to
smite the fiend Angra Mainyu, to smite Aeshma of the murderous spear, to
smite the Mâzainya fiends, to smite all the fiends. Then thou shalt take
for the gômêz a spoon of brass or of lead. When thou takest a stick with
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account