The Zend Avesta, Part II (SBE23), James Darmesteter, tr. [1882], at sacred-texts.com

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XV. RÂM YAST.

This Yast bears the name of Râma Hvâstra, the Genius who presides over the 21st day of the month (Sîrôzah, § 21), and is devoted to his Hamkâr, Vayu.

This Yast can be divided into two parts. The first part (§§ 1-140) contains an enumeration of worshippers who sacrificed to Vayu: Ahura Mazda (§ 2), Haoshyangha (§ 7), Takhma Urupa (§ 11), Yima (§ 15), Azi Dahâka (§ 19), Thraêtaona (§ 23), Keresâspa (§ 27), Aurvasâra (§ 31), Hutaosa (§ 35), and Iranian maids (§ 39). The second part (§§ 42-58) contains a special enumeration and glorification of the many names of Vayu (§§ 42-50).

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0. May Ahura Mazda be rejoiced! . . . .

For sacrifice, prayer, propitiation, and glorification unto [Hâvani], the holy and master of holiness . . . .

Unto Râma Hvâstra, unto Vayu who works highly and is more powerful to afflict than all other creatures 1,

Be propitiation from me, for sacrifice, prayer, propitiation, and glorification.

Yathâ ahû vairyô: The will of the Lord is the law of holiness . . . .

I.

1. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them 2. I will sacrifice to Peace, whose breath is friendly, and to Weal, both of them.

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To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke, for this house, for the master of this house, and for the man here who is offering libations and giving gifts. To this excellent God do we sacrifice, that he may accept our meat and our prayers, and grant us in return to crush our enemies at one stroke.

2 1. To him did the Maker, Ahura Mazda, offer up a sacrifice in the Airyana Vaêgah 1, on a golden throne, under golden beams 2 and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk] 3.

3. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly 4, that I may smite the creation of Angra Mainyu, and that nobody may smite this creation of the Good Spirit!'

4. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

5. We sacrifice to the holy Vayu: we sacrifice to Vayu, who works highly.

To this part of thee do we sacrifice, O Vayu! that belongs to Spenta Mainyu 5.

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard, namely, unto the awful Vayu, who works highly. We offer up a sacrifice unto the awful Vayu, who works highly, with the libations, with the Haoma and meat, with the baresma, with the wisdom of the tongue, with the

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holy spells, the words, the deeds, the libations, and the well-spoken words.

Yênhê hâtãm: All those beings of whom Ahura Mazda . . . .

II.

6. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . . 1

7. To him did Haoshyangha, the Paradhâta, offer up a sacrifice on the Taêra of the Hara, bound with iron 2, on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offering of full-boiling [milk].

8. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may smite two-thirds of the Daêvas of Mâzana and of the fiends of Varena 3.'

9. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda 4, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

III.

10. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

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11. To him did Takhma Urupa 1, the well-armed 2, offer up a sacrifice on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk].

12. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may conquer all Daêvas and men, all the Yâtus and Pairikas, and that I may ride Angra Mainyu, turned into the shape of a horse, all around the earth from one end to the other, for thirty years.'

13. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon 3, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

IV.

14. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

15. Unto him did the bright Yima, the good shepherd,

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sacrifice from the height Hukairya, the all-shining and golden, on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk].

16. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may become the most glorious of the men born to behold the sun: that I may make in my reign both animals and men undying, waters and plants undrying, and the food for eating creatures never-failing 1.'

In the reign of the valiant Yima there was neither cold wind nor hot wind, neither old age nor death, nor envy made by the Daêvas 2.

17. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

V.

18. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

19. Unto him did the three-mouthed Azi Dahâka offer up a sacrifice in his accursed palace of Kvirinta 3,

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on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk].

20. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may make all the seven Karshvares of the earth empty of men 1.'

21. In vain did he sacrifice, in vain did he beg, in vain did he invoke, in vain did he give gifts, in vain did he bring libations; Vayu did not grant him that boon.

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

VI.

22. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

23. Unto him did Thraêtaona, the heir of the valiant Âthwya clan, offer up a sacrifice in the four-cornered Varena, on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk].

24. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may overcome Azi Dahâka, the three-mouthed, the three-headed, the six-eyed, who has a thousand senses, that most powerful, fiendish Drug, that

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demon baleful to the world, the strongest Drum that Angra Mainyu created against the material world, to destroy the world of the good principle; and that I may deliver his two wives, Savanghavâk and Erenavâk, who are the fairest of body amongst women, and the most wonderful creatures in the world 1.'

25. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

VII.

26. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

27. To him did the manly-hearted Keresâspa 2 offer up a sacrifice by the Gudha 3, a channel of the Rangha, made by Mazda, upon a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk].

28. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may succeed in avenging my brother Urvâkhshaya 4, that I may smite Hitâspa and yoke him to my chariot.'

The Gandarewa, who lives beneath the waters,

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is the son of Ahura in the deep, he is the only master of the deep 1.

29. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

VIII.

30. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

31. To him did Aurvasâra 2, the lord of the country, offer up a sacrifice, towards the White Forest 3, by the White Forest, on the border of the White Forest, on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of full-boiling [milk].

32. He begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that the gallant Husravah, he who unites the Aryan nations into one kingdom 4, may not smite us; that I may flee from king Husravah 5; . . . .

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'That king Husravah and all the Aryans in the Forest may smite him 1.'

33. Vayu, who works highly, granted him that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

IX.

34. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

35. To him did Hutaosa, she of the many brothers 2, of the Naotara house 3, offer up a sacrifice, on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of boiling milk.

36. She begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that I may be dear and loved and well-received in the house of king Vîstâspa.'

37. Vayu, who works highly, granted her that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

X.

38. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

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To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

39. To him did 1 the maids, whom no man had known, offer up a sacrifice on a golden throne, under golden beams and a golden canopy, with bundles of baresma and offerings of boiling milk.

40. They begged of him a boon, saying: 'Grant us this, O Vayu! who dost work highly, that we may find a husband, young and beautiful of body, who will treat us well, all life long, and give us offspring; a wise, learned, ready-tongued husband.'

41. Vayu, who works highly, granted them that boon, as the Maker, Ahura Mazda, did pursue it.

We sacrifice to the holy Vayu . . . .

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard . . . .

XI.

42. I will sacrifice to the Waters and to Him who divides them . . . .

To this Vayu do we sacrifice, this Vayu do we invoke . . . .

We sacrifice to that Vayu that belongs to the Good Spirit 2, the bright and glorious Vayu.

43. My name is Vayu, O holy Zarathustra! My name is Vayu, because I go through (vyêmi) the two worlds 3, the one which the Good Spirit has

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made and the one which the Evil Spirit has made.

My name is the Overtaker (apaêta), O holy Zarathustra! My name is the Overtaker, because I can overtake the creatures of both worlds, the one that the Good Spirit has made and the one that the Evil Spirit has made.

44. My name is the All-smiting, O holy Zarathustra! My name is the All-smiting, because I can smite the creatures of both worlds, the one that the Good Spirit has made and the one that the Evil Spirit has made.

My name is the Worker of Good, O holy Zarathustra! My name is the Worker of Good, because I work the good of the Maker, Ahura Mazda, and of the Amesha-Spentas 1.

45. My name is He that goes forwards.

My name is He that goes backwards.

My name is He that bends backwards.

My name is He that hurls away.

My name is He that hurls down.

My name is He that destroys.

My name is He that takes away.

My name is He that finds out.

My name is He that finds out the Glory (Hvarenô).

46. My name is the Valiant; my name is the Most Valiant.

My name is the Strong; my name is the Strongest.

My name is the Firm; my name is the Firmest.

My name is the Stout; my name is the Stoutest.

My name is He that crosses over easily.

My name is He that goes along hurling away.

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My name is He that crushes at one stroke.

My name is . . . . 1

My name is He that works against the Daêvas.

My name is . . . . 2

47. My name is He that prevails over malice; my name is He that destroys malice.

My name is He that unites; my name is He that re-unites; my name is He that separates.

My name is the Burning; my name is the Quick of intelligence 3.

My name is Deliverance; my name is Welfare 4.

My name is the Burrows; my name is He who destroys the burrows 5; my name is He who spits upon the burrows 6.

48. My name is Sharpness of spear; my name is He of the sharp spear.

My name is Length of spear; my name is He of the long spear.

My name is Piercingness of spear; my name is He of the piercing spear.

My name is the Glorious; my name is the Over-glorious.

496. Invoke these names of mine, O holy Zarathustra! in the midst of the havocking hordes, in the midst of the columns moving forwards, in the strife of the conflicting nations.

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50. Invoke these names of mine, O holy Zarathustra! when the all-powerful tyrant of a country falls upon thee, rushes upon thee, deals wounds upon thee, or hurls his chariot against thee, to rob thee 1 of thy wealth, to rob thee of thy health.

51. Invoke these names of mine, O holy Zarathustra! when the unholy Ashemaogha falls upon thee, rushes upon thee, deals wounds upon thee, or hurls his chariot against thee, to rob thee of thy strength, to rob thee of thy wealth, to rob thee of thy health.

52. Invoke these names of mine, O holy Zarathustra! when a man stands in bonds, when a man is being thrown into bonds, or when a man is being dragged in bonds: thus the prisoners flee from the hands of those who carry them, they flee away out of the prison 2.

53. O thou Vayu! who strikest fear upon all men and horses, who in all creatures workest against the Daêvas, both into the lowest places and into those a thousand times deep dost thou enter with equal power 3.

54. 'With what manner of sacrifice shall I worship thee? With what manner of sacrifice shall I forward and worship thee? With what manner of sacrifice will be achieved thy adoration, O great Vayu! thou who art high-up girded, firm, swift-moving, high-footed, wide-breasted, wide-thighed, with untrembling eyes, as powerful in sovereignty as any absolute sovereign in the world?'

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55. 'Take thou a baresma, O holy Zarathustra! turn it upwards or downwards, according as it is full day or dawning; upwards during the day, downwards at the dawn 1.

56. 'If thou makest me worshipped with a sacrifice, then I shall say unto thee with my own voice things of health, made by Mazda and full of glory, so that Angra Mainyu may never do harm unto thee, nor the Yâtus, nor those addicted to the works of the Yâtu, whether Daêvas or men.'

57. We sacrifice unto thee, O great Vayu! we sacrifice unto thee, O strong Vayu!

We sacrifice unto Vayu, the greatest of the great;

we sacrifice unto Vayu, the strongest of the strong.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden helm.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden crown.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden necklace.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden chariot.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden wheel.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden weapons.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden garment.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden shoe.

We sacrifice unto Vayu, of the golden girdle.

We sacrifice unto the holy Vayu; we sacrifice unto Vayu, who works highly.

To this part of thee do we sacrifice, O Vayu! that belongs to the Good Spirit.

For his brightness and glory, I will offer unto him a sacrifice worth being heard, namely, unto the awful Vayu, who works highly . . . .

58. Yathâ ahû vairyô: The will of the Lord is the law of holiness . . . .

I bless the sacrifice and invocation unto, and the

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strength and vigour of Râma Hvâstra, and Vayu, who works highly, more powerful to afflict than all the other creatures: this part of thee that belongs to the Good Spirit.

Ashem Vohû: Holiness is the best of all good . . . .

[Give] unto that man brightness and glory, . . . . give him the bright, all-happy, blissful abode of the holy Ones.

Footnotes

249:1 Cf. Sîrôzah I, 22.

249:2 Apãm Napât (Yt. VIII, 34) or Tistrya (Yt. VIII, 1).

250:1 Cf. Yt. V, 17.

250:2 Fraspât, Persian .

250:3 Cf. p. 169, note 5.

250:4 See p. 10, note 4.

250:5 As Vayu, the atmosphere, is the place in which the conflict of the two principles takes place, one part of him belongs to the Evil Spirit (see Vend. Introd. IV, 17).

251:1 The rest as in clause 1.

251:2 Cf. Yt. V, 21, p. 58, note 2.

251:3 Cf. Yt. V, 21-23.

251:4 Introduced from § 4 into this and all similar clauses, except the one relating to Azi Dahâka (§ 21).

252:1 Takhma Urupa (in later legend Tahmûrâf) was a brother to Yima. He reigned for thirty years and rode Ahriman, turned into a horse. But at last his wife, deceived by Ahriman, revealed to him the secret of her husband's power, and Tahmûrâf was swallowed up by his horse. But Yima managed to take back his brother's body from the body of Ahriman and recovered thereby the arts and civilisation which had disappeared along with Tahmûrâf (see Minokhired XXVII, 32; Ravâet apud Spiegel, Einleitung in die traditionelle Literatur, pp. 317 seq.; Ormazd et Ahriman, § 137 seq.; cf. above, p. 60, note 1).

252:2 Azinavant or zaênahvant: he kept that epithet in later tradition: Zînavend, 'quod cognomen virum significat armis probe instructum' (Hamza Ispahensis, p. 20, tr. Gottwaldt).

252:3 As told Yt. XIX, 29.

253:1 Cf. Yasna IX, 4-5 (11-20) and Yt. XIX, 31 seq.

253:2 This passage is interpolated from Yasna IX, 5 (17-10.

253:3 Or, 'his accursed palace of the Stork' (upa kvirintem duzitem). 'Azi Dahâka,' says Hamza (p. 32 in the text, p. 22 in the translation), 'used to live in Babylon (cf. Yt. V, 29), where he had built a palace in the form of a stork; he called it Kuleng Dîs ( ), the fortress of the Stork; the inhabitants called it Dis Het ( ).' Kuleng Dîs was in Zend Kvirinta daêza and Dis Het is nothing else than Duzita. One may doubt p. 254 whether Kvirinta is the name of a place or the Zend form of Kuleng, a stork: in any case it was a palace in Bawri (Babylon). In the Shah Nâmah it is called Dizukht (duz-ukhta for duz-ita; see Études Iraniennes, II, 211).

254:1 Cf. Yt. V, 30 seq.

255:1 Yt. V, 34; IX, 14; XVII, 34.

255:2 Cf. Yt. V, 37 seq.

255:3 An unknown affluent of the Rangha (Tigris).

255:4 Sâma had two sons, Keresâspa, a warrior, and Urvâkhshaya, a judge and law-giver (Yasna IX, 10 [29 seq.]). We have no further details about Urvâkhshaya's legend than that he was killed by 'Hitâspa, the golden-crowned' (cf. Yt. XIX, 4I), and avenged by Keresâspa.

256:1 A disconnected allusion to the struggle of Keresâspa with the Gandarewa (Yt. V, 38, text and notes; XIX, 41). On the words 'the son of Ahura . . . .' cf. Ormazd et Ahriman, p. 215, note 1.

256:2 No other mention is made of Aurvasâra in the Avesta, unless he is alluded to in Yt. V, 50. He does not appear to have been. known to Firdausi.

256:3 Spaêtinis razûra is called 'the chief of forests' (Bund. XXIV, 16). According to the Bahman Yast (III, 9), it was the seat of the last and decisive battle between Argâsp and Gûstâsp.

256:4 Cf. Yt. V, 49; IX, 21.

256:5 Cf. Yt. V, 50.

257:1 This line looks as if it should belong to a counter-prayer by Husravah, which was heard by Vayu, as appears from Yt. V, 50.

257:2 See Yt. IX, 26.

257:3 See p. 77, note 1.

258:1 It may be doubted whether the allusion here is to a legend of marriage en masse, following the marriage of Hutaosa with Vîstâspa, or whether the aorist is used with an indicative meaning: 'To him do the maids who have known no man . . . . They beg of him a boon, saying . . . .' Cf. Yt. XVI, 17.

258:2 Cf. § 5, note 5.

258:3 An attempt to an etymological explanation of the name Vayu. Cf. § 53.

259:1 He is their agent and instrument.

260:1 Âiniva (?).

260:2 Keredharisa (?).

260:3 Doubtful; baoka, cf. .

260:4 Reading sudhis.

260:5 Geredha is the burrow of an Ahrimanian creature (see Vend. III, to [33]; VII, 24 [60: Vayu, in that half of him that belongs to the Evil Spirit, is the seat (the burrow) of Ahriman; but with his better half, he struggles against the fiend and destroys him.

260:6 Cf. Yt. I, 11, 16.

261:1 Literally, coveting.

261:2 The translation of this clause is doubtful; the text is corrupt.

261:3 Cf. § 42.

262:1 Études Iraniennes, II, 110.