The Sanskrit flavours in Avestan?
For those who identify as Parsi or Zoroastrian, the Ahuna Vairya prayer, also known as Yatha Ahu Vairyo, holds significant spiritual value. Did you know that this prayer written in Avestan has Sanskrit connection too? Certain words in Ahuna Vairya exhibit striking similarities with their Sanskrit counterparts. The reason could be that old Avestan has considerable overlaps with Vedic Sanskrit. Does it mean that people from the Indian subcontinent and ancient Iran had strong interaction between them? Must have been difficult for both given how Indian subcontinent is protected from the north by the mountains and from the south by the sea.
Ahuna Vairya
Yatha ahu vairyo
atha ratush ashat chit hacha,
Vangheush dazda manangho
shyaothananam angheush Mazdai
xshathremcha Ahurai a
yim drigubyo dadat vastarem.
Sanskrit Connection
Reciting the prayer resembles the process of yagna. Yagna in Sanskrit means “to worship”. The word is a cognate of yasne in Avestan also meaning “worship”. Check out the recitation of Yatha Ahu Vairyo here. In this video, I specifically love the sound of fire in the background which relates to the environment of a yagna/yasne. Soothing version here.
This brings me to the difference betwee Yagna / Yasne and the Sanskrit word Havan. As per Yogapedia Havan is “Havan, also known as homa or homam, is a Sanskrit word that refers to any ritual wherein offerings are made into a consecrated fire.” Coincidently, the Sanskrit Havan is similar to Hawan in Avestan. In Avestan, Hawan is “to worship” which is similar to Havan in Sanskrit meaning “to worship through sacred fire”.
Next, while watching this video, I heard the this “…they are not demons, they are asuras…” which takes us to the word ahura in Zoroastrianism and word asura in Hinduism. While asura in ancient Iran meant a class of divinities in ancient India it meant a class of demons (loosely translation). Notice in the table below that in many Avestan words, the ‘s’ is replaced by ‘h’ and vice versa.
Sanskrit Connection: Avesta Khorda
In this article, I’ll list common words found in both Avestan and Sanskrit, discovered within the pages of the Avesta (Khorda Avesta) or the book of common prayer.
The book of common prayer has prayers for five times of the day.
★ The sunrise to midday prayer is called as Hawan Gah
★ The midday to mid-afternoon prayer is Rapithwin Gah
★ The mid-afternoon to subset prayer is Uzerin Gah
★ The sunset to midnight prayer is Aiwisruthrem Gah
★ The midnight to dawn prayer is Ushahin Gah
Look at the dawn prayer called as Ushahin? Rings a bell for the Indians? The word Usha specifically in vedic Sanskrit (uṣás) represent the goddess of dawn. (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ushas)
The first verse in the revered Avesta (Hawan Gah) employs the term “mazdayasnô,” meaning “Mazda-worshipper,” while designating “yasna” as “to worship.” Additionally, it highlights that those identifying as Mazda worshippers are in opposition to the daevas — vîdaêvô (vî = against, daêvô = devas).
Is the Persian word “Behest” related to vedic Sanskrit word “Vasishtha” via Avestan?
If the word Sanskrit word “Vasishtha” or “Vāsiṣṭha” (meaning Best) is a cognate to the Avestan word “ Vahisht” (meaning Best) as per the screenshot above, then this word turned into “Vahišta” in younger Avestan. Its descendent in middle Persian was “Wahist” or “Wahisht”. The word metamorphosed into “Behesht” from “Wahisht”.
This is an evolving article, so look out for the updates. Hope you loved reading it.
Ah! Don’t you love how languages could unite people? 🤗
References
- Yatha Ahu Vairyo. Zarathushtra. Accessed on Nov 22, 2023 (source).
- Ahuna Vairya. Wikipedia. Accessed on Nov 21, 2023 (source).
- AVESTA: KHORDA AVESTA (Book of Common Prayer). Avesta Zoroastrian archives. Accessed on Nov 22, 2023 (source).
- What is Havan? Yogapedia. Accessed on Nov 22 (source).
- Masih, Yakub. A comparative study of religions. Vol. 8. Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 2000.
#ancient #history #iran #avestan #india #sanskrit #language #persia #avesta #vedic #ritual
