Insights from mythology.
It is now well-recognized that the Vedic religion, called Hinduism, is closely
related to the Avestan religion known as Zorastrianism. The Avestan language has
been known to be closer to Sanskrit than any Indian language including Hindi.
The word ‘Hindu’ is itself of Persian origin, being the name of the river
Sindhu in that language. Similarly the name of their region, Iran, is derived
from the Sanskrit Hiranya meaning Golden. To be sure the relationship was
antagonistic and there was a lot of acrimony between the two peoples though both
prided themselves in their Aryan origins. The Zorastrians looked down upon the
Vedic peoples as the Devayaani or worshippers of the Devas. (It means demons in
Persian) The Hindu mythologists repaid the compliment naming several of their
demonic characters, Hiranya. Hiranyaaksha (Golden eyed) was a demon killed by
Vishnu and his brother Hiranya Kashipu (Golden son of Kashyapa) also met with a
similar fate. The latter is perhaps to be identified the Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu.
(In Greek he was known as Cheops the builder of the great pyramid.
The Zorastrians were also known as Mazda yaasni. Yaasni is to be identified with
the Sanskrit Yajak the performer of a sacrifice or simply as a worshipper, a
Yaaji. Islamic Haji is perhaps derived from Yaaji.
Etymologically, Zoraster would be related to the Hindu Manu Swaarochishta of a
previous yuga or epoch. The Manu of the present yuga is Swaayambhu or
self-created. He is also the son of Vivaswan or the Sun-God to be identified
with the Zorastrian Vivanghavant. The former begot the Hindu God of dharma
Yama(also considered the God of death) Some scholars identify Zoraster with the
Hindu Bhrigu mainly on the strength of the latter’s antagonism to the Hindu
Gods, the Adityas.
The Puranas throw interesting light on the origin of the religions in India,
West Asia and Egypt. Atri was the son of the creator Brahma and was considered
as one of the nine patriarchs of humanity. He was the younger sibling of the
patriarch Daksha and is remembered by the Brahmins in their daily prayers as the
first of the seven rishis or sapta rishis who are assigned a constellation in
the sky. (Atri, Bhrigu, Kutsa, Vasishta, Gautama, Kahyapa and Angirasa)
Soma was Atri’s son. Soma is to be thought of as the founder of ancient Sumer
with the capital at Ur. Soma is also the moon god. Soma eloped with Tara the
wife of Brihasparti who was the preceptor or priest of Hindu Gods, the devas.
Soma was assisted by the priest of asuras (anti-gods) Usanas.
Shaken by the fierceness of the ensuing war to retrieve Tara, Mother Earth
petitioned Brahma for restoration of peace. He ordered the cessation of
hostilities and restoration of Tara to Brihaspati. Tara was pregnant with
Soma’s child Budha who got his name from his brilliance at birth. The latter
begot Pururavas by Ila, the eighth child of Manu descended from Daksha thus
uniting the two branches of the family that got separated earlier. Ila’s
brother was Ikshvaku the founder of the Suryavamshi line of the Indian kings
Rama was a scion of this line).
By implication the West Asians and Iranians became Somavamshi or descended from
Soma or the moon. The crescent was to become the symbol even of Islam.
Pururuvas is central to the interpretation of prehistory. He is to be identified
with Pourushaaspa the father of Zoraster according to the Iranian mythology.
Pururavas was seduced by Urvashi who was a resident (Vaashi) of Ur, capital of
Sumer. She came to live with her lover in Aryaavarta bringing two pet rams with
her. Her people, the Gandharvas did not approve of her act and got her back by a
stratagem that involved the theft of her rams. She was allowed to visit
Pururavas once a year and presented him with a number of children.
Pururavas pined for her permanent company. To satisfy the demands of the
Gandharvas he divided the Hindu Fire, known as Agni, into three parts that are
now known as Gaarhaspatya, Dakshinaayana, and Aahavaniya or house holder’s,
priestly, and sacramental fires respectively.
These fires were transported across the mountains on the backs of Urvashi’s
rams and became the fires of the Parsees. The ram became the mount for the fire
God, Agni.
The Indo-Aryans (Hindus) did not appreciate the action of Pururavas. They
considered it an act of perfidy and cursed him even as he was acclaimed and
given the status of divinity by the Persians.
Significantly, the Parsees also believed in three holy fires: the Farnbaug Fire
of Kabul for the priestly class, the Gushnasp Fire at Shiz for the warrior class
and the Burzen Mihir Fire for the working class.
(Added 26 June 10) The Parsee fire temples are known as Agiari. The closeness to
Agni is clear.
This episode supports my deduction that the method of making fire by friction in
the wooden Arani was invented by the Hindu Aryans. (A friend identified the
inventor as Rishi Angirasa. It appears there is a passage in the Vedas to that
effect.) The method is used even today in the ritual Vedic sacrifice called
Yagnya.
The implication of this is that human settlements must have started in
Aaryaavarta. Fire offered protection for the settlements against wild animals.
It is not surprising that the Hindu Aryans worship fire as a purohita or
foremost among well-wishers. (The Rg veda dedicates its first hymn to Agni.
(Agni meelae purohitam.)
(Older version contd.) The rest of the Western peoples were descended from a
scion of the Pururavas clan, Yayaati. Through his first wife Devayaani, Yayaati
got Yadu who was the progenitor of Yehudis or the Jews. The second son of the
pair was Turvasu whose descendants were Yavanas or people of the Ionian region
(Serbs and others) and the Turkic people.
Yayaati’s second wife was Sarmishta, daughter of Vrsha-parva who was a Danava
or a descendant of Danu, another daughter of Daksha. She had two sons. Her first
son Puru inherited Yayaati’s throne. His descendants were Pauravas in Sanskrit
or the Pharaoh’s of Egypt. The second son of Sarmishta was Anu. His
descendants ruled over Mesopotamia and were called mlecchas by the Hindu Aryans.
Abhimelecch is mentioned in the bible. The essential point is that the two
groups of stepchildren of Yayaati were antagonists.
I have dealt with these peoples in the article, “The story of the Jews” .
The Egyptians and the southern Greeks (of Greece and Anatolia) were known in
Sanskrit as Danavas. The Romans also called the Greeks Danao.
Collectively the western peoples were called Asura or anti-gods in Sanskrit.
Ashur could have been a God in the Mesopotamian regions. Ahura Mazda the supreme
deity of the Parsees is derived from Ashur. Further attestation of the view
comes from Biblical citations such as Ashurabanipal. (the pala or protector of
Asuravani or Asura edict).
This interpretation would place the Zorastrian religion as older than all other
religions of the region .
Since Hindu mythology has something or other in common with ancient mythologies
of the region Hinduism should be treated as the elder sibling of all the faiths
of this region of the ancient world.
__._,_.___
It is now well-recognized that the Vedic religion, called Hinduism, is closely
related to the Avestan religion known as Zorastrianism. The Avestan language has
been known to be closer to Sanskrit than any Indian language including Hindi.
The word ‘Hindu’ is itself of Persian origin, being the name of the river
Sindhu in that language. Similarly the name of their region, Iran, is derived
from the Sanskrit Hiranya meaning Golden. To be sure the relationship was
antagonistic and there was a lot of acrimony between the two peoples though both
prided themselves in their Aryan origins. The Zorastrians looked down upon the
Vedic peoples as the Devayaani or worshippers of the Devas. (It means demons in
Persian) The Hindu mythologists repaid the compliment naming several of their
demonic characters, Hiranya. Hiranyaaksha (Golden eyed) was a demon killed by
Vishnu and his brother Hiranya Kashipu (Golden son of Kashyapa) also met with a
similar fate. The latter is perhaps to be identified the Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu.
(In Greek he was known as Cheops the builder of the great pyramid.
The Zorastrians were also known as Mazda yaasni. Yaasni is to be identified with
the Sanskrit Yajak the performer of a sacrifice or simply as a worshipper, a
Yaaji. Islamic Haji is perhaps derived from Yaaji.
Etymologically, Zoraster would be related to the Hindu Manu Swaarochishta of a
previous yuga or epoch. The Manu of the present yuga is Swaayambhu or
self-created. He is also the son of Vivaswan or the Sun-God to be identified
with the Zorastrian Vivanghavant. The former begot the Hindu God of dharma
Yama(also considered the God of death) Some scholars identify Zoraster with the
Hindu Bhrigu mainly on the strength of the latter’s antagonism to the Hindu
Gods, the Adityas.
The Puranas throw interesting light on the origin of the religions in India,
West Asia and Egypt. Atri was the son of the creator Brahma and was considered
as one of the nine patriarchs of humanity. He was the younger sibling of the
patriarch Daksha and is remembered by the Brahmins in their daily prayers as the
first of the seven rishis or sapta rishis who are assigned a constellation in
the sky. (Atri, Bhrigu, Kutsa, Vasishta, Gautama, Kahyapa and Angirasa)
Soma was Atri’s son. Soma is to be thought of as the founder of ancient Sumer
with the capital at Ur. Soma is also the moon god. Soma eloped with Tara the
wife of Brihasparti who was the preceptor or priest of Hindu Gods, the devas.
Soma was assisted by the priest of asuras (anti-gods) Usanas.
Shaken by the fierceness of the ensuing war to retrieve Tara, Mother Earth
petitioned Brahma for restoration of peace. He ordered the cessation of
hostilities and restoration of Tara to Brihaspati. Tara was pregnant with
Soma’s child Budha who got his name from his brilliance at birth. The latter
begot Pururavas by Ila, the eighth child of Manu descended from Daksha thus
uniting the two branches of the family that got separated earlier. Ila’s
brother was Ikshvaku the founder of the Suryavamshi line of the Indian kings
Rama was a scion of this line).
By implication the West Asians and Iranians became Somavamshi or descended from
Soma or the moon. The crescent was to become the symbol even of Islam.
Pururuvas is central to the interpretation of prehistory. He is to be identified
with Pourushaaspa the father of Zoraster according to the Iranian mythology.
Pururavas was seduced by Urvashi who was a resident (Vaashi) of Ur, capital of
Sumer. She came to live with her lover in Aryaavarta bringing two pet rams with
her. Her people, the Gandharvas did not approve of her act and got her back by a
stratagem that involved the theft of her rams. She was allowed to visit
Pururavas once a year and presented him with a number of children.
Pururavas pined for her permanent company. To satisfy the demands of the
Gandharvas he divided the Hindu Fire, known as Agni, into three parts that are
now known as Gaarhaspatya, Dakshinaayana, and Aahavaniya or house holder’s,
priestly, and sacramental fires respectively.
These fires were transported across the mountains on the backs of Urvashi’s
rams and became the fires of the Parsees. The ram became the mount for the fire
God, Agni.
The Indo-Aryans (Hindus) did not appreciate the action of Pururavas. They
considered it an act of perfidy and cursed him even as he was acclaimed and
given the status of divinity by the Persians.
Significantly, the Parsees also believed in three holy fires: the Farnbaug Fire
of Kabul for the priestly class, the Gushnasp Fire at Shiz for the warrior class
and the Burzen Mihir Fire for the working class.
(Added 26 June 10) The Parsee fire temples are known as Agiari. The closeness to
Agni is clear.
This episode supports my deduction that the method of making fire by friction in
the wooden Arani was invented by the Hindu Aryans. (A friend identified the
inventor as Rishi Angirasa. It appears there is a passage in the Vedas to that
effect.) The method is used even today in the ritual Vedic sacrifice called
Yagnya.
The implication of this is that human settlements must have started in
Aaryaavarta. Fire offered protection for the settlements against wild animals.
It is not surprising that the Hindu Aryans worship fire as a purohita or
foremost among well-wishers. (The Rg veda dedicates its first hymn to Agni.
(Agni meelae purohitam.)
(Older version contd.) The rest of the Western peoples were descended from a
scion of the Pururavas clan, Yayaati. Through his first wife Devayaani, Yayaati
got Yadu who was the progenitor of Yehudis or the Jews. The second son of the
pair was Turvasu whose descendants were Yavanas or people of the Ionian region
(Serbs and others) and the Turkic people.
Yayaati’s second wife was Sarmishta, daughter of Vrsha-parva who was a Danava
or a descendant of Danu, another daughter of Daksha. She had two sons. Her first
son Puru inherited Yayaati’s throne. His descendants were Pauravas in Sanskrit
or the Pharaoh’s of Egypt. The second son of Sarmishta was Anu. His
descendants ruled over Mesopotamia and were called mlecchas by the Hindu Aryans.
Abhimelecch is mentioned in the bible. The essential point is that the two
groups of stepchildren of Yayaati were antagonists.
I have dealt with these peoples in the article, “The story of the Jews” .
The Egyptians and the southern Greeks (of Greece and Anatolia) were known in
Sanskrit as Danavas. The Romans also called the Greeks Danao.
Collectively the western peoples were called Asura or anti-gods in Sanskrit.
Ashur could have been a God in the Mesopotamian regions. Ahura Mazda the supreme
deity of the Parsees is derived from Ashur. Further attestation of the view
comes from Biblical citations such as Ashurabanipal. (the pala or protector of
Asuravani or Asura edict).
This interpretation would place the Zorastrian religion as older than all other
religions of the region .
Since Hindu mythology has something or other in common with ancient mythologies
of the region Hinduism should be treated as the elder sibling of all the faiths
of this region of the ancient world.
__._,_.___
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