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October 26 th marks the festival of waters. The hymn or Yašt to waters is among the longest and most beautiful in the sacred Avestan literature. In Zoroastrian worship both fire and water play a crucial role. The month of waters "ábán" is the 8 th and the month dedicated to fires is the 9 th month in the seasonal Zoroastrian calendar. Yasna is the main and most sacred Zoroastrian Liturgy. Yasna literally means "yearning, intense desire, hallowing." The pouring, libation of holy water is the culminating rite of Yasna ceremony. The consecration of water is done by pounding in a mortar the dried twigs of the most sacred haômá/ höm plant with the sap of fresh pomegranate leaves together with milk/ cream. The preparation and pouring of holy water stands at the center of the second part of the Yasna ritual. The holy water is called áb-zür (Literally "the invoked water" from Avestan züt, to invoke.) The Old Avestan züt "invocation" has later been connected by word play to zür "strength, power." The belief is that by "invocation of god powers/beings" through sacred Avestan charms and prayers, the vital element of water is made stronger, purer, and more invigorating.
Traditional systems of water preservation assume significance in a world facing acute water shortage. When Zoroastrians fled from religious persecution in Persia to live in India (8th - 9th century A.D.), they carried their ancient wisdom of conservation of water. The Parsi cisterns (tanka-s) of Bharuch are testament to the fact that they adapted their ancient badgirs to local circumstances. This paper examines the traditional tanka system used in Parsi houses of Gujarat in perspective to historical Zoroastrian water harvesting systems from Central Asia. It takes the water management system used in Parsi houses of Bharuch as a case study which proves capability, today, of answering urgent water issues. Studying the tanka could offer a solution to rejuvenate this “Dying Wisdom”.
This essay proposes to analyse water as a sacred symbol and material agent within Orthodox Christianity. This is done in order to better understand its nuanced usage throughout Orthodox liturgical practices, its appearance in Orthodox art, and its significance within Orthodox belief. It attempts to show that water primarily designates and is understood as the realm inhabited by the Spirit of God and lesser angelic beings so as to effectively manifest spiritual power and creative activity in a material way. Within an Orthodox context the activity of the Holy Spirit is understood as the recreation and renewal of the entire created cosmos and the defeat of the powers of darkness in and through Christ. The paper engages these topics by briefly outlining religious perceptions of water among various ancient cultures and religions so as to contextually transition from these into water as a religious element and agent in Old Testament Judaism. Water is then examined in terms of its deeper spiritual and theological efficacy through consideration of the miracles of Christ, biblical teachings, Orthodox iconography of the Baptism of Christ together with the significance of water in baptism more generally. The final section of the paper focuses on water as an element used among Orthodox liturgical expressions in order to better grasp its practical significance within Orthodox Christianity.
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
Ritual and ritual text in the Zoroastrian tradition: The extent of Yasna 412021 •
This article examines the extent of the concluding section (Y 41) of the Yasna Haptaŋhāiti in light of the manuscript evidence and the section's divergent reception in a Middle Persian text known as the “Supplementary Texts to the Šāyest nē Šāyest” (Suppl.ŠnŠ). This investigation will entertain the possibility of an alternative ritual being described in the Suppl.ŠnŠ. Moreover, it argues that the manuscripts transmit the ritual text along with certain variations and repetitions while the descriptions of the extent of each section preserve the necessary boundaries of the text as a textual composition or unit.
In this work, the researcher desired to enter into the Old Testament and the Ancient Near Eastern time in order to gather data on ritual use of water. The researcher gathers data from specialists who have diligently study the literature and the culture of the people both in the Old Testament and the Ancient Near Eastern on the ritual use of water. The ritual use of water has been observed in the Old Testament as a prominent idea. The Israelites ideology as seen from the Old Testament reveals a kind of an understanding of ritual washing in the ancient world. This question remains; are there any interconnections, similarities or differences? It is in view of this observation that the researcher attempted to investigate the theology of ritual use of water in the Old Testament and its contemporary time, especially the ancient Near Eastern milieu with specific references to its religious practice.
2021 •
The manuscripts of the Iranian Pahlavi Yasna contain two consecutive colophons, the second of which relates the story of how their common ancestor manuscript, which combines the Avestan text of the Yasna with its Pahlavi version, was created. It is argued that Rōstahm Dād-Ohrmazd produced the first Pahlavi Yasna manuscript by taking the Avestan text from one manuscript and the Pahlavi text of a manuscript by Farrbay Srōšayār. Furthermore, it is argued that Rōstahm Dād-Ohrmazd wrote this manuscript both for himself and for Mahayār Farroxzād, who was from the province of Bīšāpuhr. The manuscript of Rōstahm Dād-Ohrmazd was then copied by Māhwindād Narmāhān, who composed the second colophon. This article also discusses the first colophon as it appears in the Iranian Pahlavi Yasna manuscript T54, which differs from other manuscripts of this group as it includes a passage written by a scribe called Kāyūs. It is argued that T54 was produced by Kāyūs, who added this passage to its first colophon. Furthermore, variant readings of these two colophons in two manuscripts of the Iranian Pahlavi Yasna, which also include Kāyūs's passage, are discussed. Unlike T54, Kāyūs's passage forms a separate colophon in these two manuscripts. It is suggested the two colophons are corrected according to the mindset of their respective scribes.
Indo-Iranian Journal
Fire, the Greatest God (ātarš … mazišta yazata). The Cult of the "Eternal" Fire in the Rituals in Avestan2019 •
The lack of evidence for the existence of fire temples in ancient Iran has been used as an argument for the absence of the concept of the "eternal fire" in the Avestan texts. However, a new analysis of the final section of the Long Liturgy shows that the fire was usually removed from the sacrificial area before the recitation of Yasna 62.7 and transported back to the "house of men" from which it had been taken. As such, the Long Liturgy partly appears as a functional equivalent of the bōy dādan ceremonies performed for the feeding of the fire at the fire temples in later times. This new reading of the final section of the liturgy is the result of a re-evaluation of the manuscripts, highlighting the shortcomings of previous editions of the Long Liturgy. Furthermore, the new interpretation approaches the Long Liturgy from a non Yasna-centric perspective , taking into account the Yasna as well as the Visperad (and other variants).
Journal of Siberian Federal University. Humanities & Social Sciences
The Image of the Water Element in the Yakut People’s Minds: Cultural Experience2018 •
Art and Architectural Traditions of India and Iran
Myth and Mythology Related to Water in Indian and Iranian Culture2021 •
The water being a basic element of life has been celebrated with special ceremonies and festivities in most civilisations. There are some distinctive characteristics illustrating the symbolic meaning of the water: as a primeval source of the Universe; as a way to distinguish between the upper (linked to light and life) and the lower world (linked to death and darkness); as a highly purification medium in religious and pagan rituals linked to spiritual and physical regeneration. It is one of the four elements of ancient Greek philosophy, honoured as a source of life and symbol of nature's birth and rebirth. In ancient Greek mythology 2 , water separates the world of the dead and the world of the living (along River Styx) but it also largely contributed to the regeneration of the earth after the Flood with which Zeus punished the impious. Mythical creatures (dragons) were believed to dominate the places that contained water and prevent people from using it. Good spirits, the nymphs, either in the rivers and lakes (Naiads, Kriniides, Potamides, Limnades) or in the sea (Nereids), also dominated water and were helpful to people. In the Modern Greek popular tradition Naiads have been replaced by the Fairies, Neraides, who prefer places close to water springs, fountains and rivers. It was believed that usually they appear after midnight and enjoy teasing people, who must avoid them, especially men, who might lose their voice if they speak to them.
2014 •
Journal of vascular and interventional radiology : JVIR
Predicting Treatment Response to Intra-arterial Therapies for Hepatocellular Carcinoma with the Use of Supervised Machine Learning-An Artificial Intelligence Concept2018 •
2008 •
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Ciguatera Incidence in the US Virgin Islands Has Not Increased over a 30-Year Time Period Despite Rising Seawater Temperatures2013 •
2015 •
2021 •
SUBSISTENCE STRATEGIES IN THE STONE AGE, DIRECT AND INDIRECT EVIDENCE OF FISHING AND GATHERING
Bone and antler inventory of Kola Peninsula: typology, technology and use-wear analysis2018 •
2010 •
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
Neural bases of moderation of cortisol stress responses by psychosocial resources2008 •
Indiana Supreme Court
PETITION TO REINSTATE INDIANA LAW LICENSE OF ANDREW U. D. STRAW2024 •
arXiv (Cornell University)
Boundary rigidity, and non-rigidity, of projective structures2023 •
Journal of Equine Veterinary Science
Serological Prevalence of Brucellosis among Donkeys (Equus asinus) in Some Local Government Areas of Yobe State, Nigeria2013 •