Avesta (Gathas) · 2 of 3 · tr. L.H. Mills
Ahunavaiti Gatha, Yasna XXXI, Section 1b
as the one to be adored with the mind in the creation, as the Father of the Good Mind within us, when I beheld Thee 7 with my (enlightened) eyes as the veritable maker of our Righteousness, as the Lord of the actions of life 8 !
9.
Thine, O Ahura!
was Piety; yea, Thine, O Creator of the Kine!
was understanding and the p.
45 [paragraph continues] Spirit 1 , when Thou didst order a path for her (guiding).
From the earth's tiller (aided 2 ) she goeth 3 (in that allotted way), or from him who was never tiller.
(Thy path hath given her choice 4 .) 10.
(But she did not pause in temptation.) Of the two she chose 5 the husbandman, the thrifty toiler in the fields 6 , as a holy master endowed with the Good Mind's wealth 7 .
Never, Mazda!
shall p.
46 the thieving 1 nomad share the good creed 2 .
(For the Kine's choice would bestow it 3 !) 11.
(And this doctrine was the first of rules to regulate our actions.
Yet the opposer speaks beside Thee.) For when first, O Ahura Mazda!
Thou didst create the (holy) settlements, and didst reveal the religious laws 4 ; and when Thou gavest (us) understanding from Thine own mind, and madest our (full) bodily life 5 , and (didst thus determine) actions (by Thy power), and didst moreover deliver to us (nearer) injunctions whereby (as by a rule) the wisher may place his choices 6 , 12.
(There strife at once arose, and still is raging.) There (beside Thy prophet) the truthful or liar, the enlightened or unenlightened, lifts his voice (to utter p.
47 his faith), and with devoted mind and heart 1 .
(But without hindrance from this striving, or pausing with feeble search 2 , our) Piety steadily 3 questions the two spirits 4 (not here on earth) but (there in the spirit-world) where (they dwell as) in their home 5 .
13.
(Yea, my Piety questions searchingly, for Thou, O Maker!
hast Thy view on all; we cannot question lightly.) What questions are asked which are open 6 (permitted to our thoughts), or what questions (are asked) which are furtive 7 (hiding themselves from the light), or (what decision soever we may make, and the man) who for the smallest sin binds on the heaviest penance, on all 8 with Thy glittering eye(s) as a righteous guard Thou art gazing 9 !
p.
48 14.
This then I will ask Thee, O Ahura Mazda!
(as I seek Thy counsel once again 1 ).
What events are coming now, and what events shall come in the future 2 ; and what prayers with debt-confessions 3 are offered with 4 the offerings of the holy?
And what (are the awards) for the wicked?
And how shall they be in the (final) state 5 of completion 6 ?
15.
And I would ask Thee this, O Mazda!
(concerning the coadjutor of the wicked): What is the award 7 for him who prepares the throne 8 for the evil, for the evil-doer 9 , O Ahura!
for him who cannot else reclaim 10 his life, not else save 11 with lawless p.
§ Ask Guru about this passage →Themes
Ahura Mazda Principlecosmology
The divine ordering principle of truth and light.
The passage is a direct address to Ahura Mazda as the Creator, Maker of Righteousness, and Lord of actions, centralizing his divine ordering principle.
All passages →Anthropomorphismtheology
Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery.
Divine attributes such as 'Father,' 'eyes,' and 'mind' are ascribed to Ahura Mazda.
All passages →Asha Cosmic Ordercosmology
Truth as the fundamental structure of reality.
Righteousness (Asha), religious laws, and truth are repeatedly invoked as the fundamental structure of reality and human conduct.
All passages →Cosmic Dualismtheology
Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality.
The text explicitly references the 'two spirits,' the choice between truthful and liar, and the opposition between good and evil.
All passages →Divine Providencetheology
Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity.
The text states that God ordered a path, determined actions, and gave understanding, indicating active divine ordering.
All passages →Eschatological Judgmentsoteriology
Final, collective cosmic judgment as an event in which the wicked are sentenced and the cosmos restored; distinct from psychopomp_journey (individual passage at death) and emphasising verdict where Zoroastrian frashokereti emphasises restoration.
The speaker asks about the awards for the wicked and their state in the final completion, indicating a belief in final judgment.
All passages →Good Thought Word Deedethics
The Zoroastrian triad of right thought, right speech, and right action as the foundation of ethical life; truth-in-living.
The text emphasizes the Good Mind (thought), uttering faith (word), and actions of life (deed) as the core ethical framework.
All passages →Living Godtheology
The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.
Ahura Mazda is depicted as an active, personal deity who creates, orders paths, judges, and listens to prayer.
All passages →Prayerpraxis
Direct address to the divine, whether petitionary, contemplative, or liturgical; speech and silence offered upward.
The entire passage is structured as a direct petition and inquiry to the divine ('This then I will ask Thee').
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