Avesta (Gathas) · 1 of 3 · tr. L.H. Mills
Ushtavaiti Gatha, Yasna XLIII, Section 1a
1.
Salvation to this man 1 , salvation to him whosoever (he may be 2 )!
Let the absolutely ruling Great Creator grant (us, He) the living Lord, the two eternal powers.
Yea, verily 3 , I ask it of Thee (O Ahura) for the maintaining 4 Righteousness.
And may’st Thou also give it to me, (O inspiring) Piety!
splendour 5 (as it is), holy blessings, the Good Mind's life 6 .
2.
Yea, to this one 7 may the man endowed with p.
99 glory 1 give that best of all things, the (spiritual) glory.
And do Thou likewise (Thyself) reveal 2 Thine own 3 (gifts) through Thy most bountiful spirit, O Mazda!
(And do Thou teach us) Thy wonderful thoughts of wisdom 4 , those of Thy Good Mind, which Thou hast revealed (to us) by Thy Righteousness (within us) with the happy increase of (our joy 5 ), and on a long life's every day 6 .
3.
And may that (holy man) approach toward that which is the better than the good 7 , he who will show to us the straight paths of (spiritual) profit, (the blessings) of this corporeal life, and of that the mental 8 , in those veritably real (eternal 9 ) worlds, where dwells Ahura; (that holy man) an offerer of Thine 10 , O Mazda!
a faithful citizen 11 , and bountiful of (mind).
p.
100 4.
Yea, I will 1 regard Thee as mighty and likewise bountiful, O Ahura Mazda!
when (I behold) those aids of grace (approach me), aids which Thou dost guard and nurture 2 as (Thy) just awards to the wicked (to hold him far from us), as well as to the righteous (for our help), Thy Fire's flame therewith so strong through the Holy Order 3 , and when to me the Good Mind's power comes 4 + 5 5.
(For) so I conceived of Thee as bountiful, O Great Giver, Mazda!
when I beheld Thee as supreme 6 in the generation of life, when, as rewarding 7 deeds and words, Thou didst establish evil for the evil, and happy blessings for the good, by Thy (great) virtue 8 (to be adjudged to each) in the creation's final change.
6.
In which (last) changing Thou shalt come, and with Thy bounteous spirit, and Thy sovereign power, p.
101 [paragraph continues] O Ahura Mazda!
by deeds of whom the settlements are furthered through the Righteous Order.
And saving regulations 1 likewise unto these shall Âramaiti utter, (she, our Piety within us), yea, (laws) of Thine understanding which no man may deceive 2 .
7.
Yea, I conceived of Thee as bountiful, O Great Giver Mazda!
when he (Thy messenger, Obedience) drew near me, and asked me thus: Who 3 art thou?
And whose is thine allegiance?
And how to-day shall I show the signs that give the light on this (our) question, (signs) as to the lands (from whence thou camest) and in thyself?
8.
Then to him I, Zarathu s tra, as my first answer, said: To the wicked (would that I could be) in very truth a strong 4 tormentor and avenger, but to the p.
§ Ask Guru about this passage →Themes
Ahura Mazda Principlecosmology
The divine ordering principle of truth and light.
The passage is a direct invocation of Ahura Mazda as the Great Creator and Living Lord, central to the text's theology.
All passages →Asha Cosmic Ordercosmology
Truth as the fundamental structure of reality.
Righteousness (Asha) and Holy Order are repeatedly invoked as the foundation of reality and divine law.
All passages →Cosmic Dualismtheology
Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality.
The passage contrasts the wicked and the righteous, evil and good, reflecting the fundamental dualistic structure of Zoroastrian thought.
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.
Verse 5 describes rewarding deeds and words, establishing evil for the evil and blessings for the good in the final change.
All passages →Frashokereticosmology
The final restoration/renovation of the cosmos.
The text explicitly mentions the 'creation's final change' and the coming of Ahura Mazda in the last changing.
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 references the Good Mind (thought) and explicitly mentions rewarding deeds and words as criteria for judgment.
All passages →Living Godtheology
The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.
Ahura Mazda is addressed as the 'Living Lord' who actively grants, reveals, and guards.
All passages →Prayerpraxis
Direct address to the divine, whether petitionary, contemplative, or liturgical; speech and silence offered upward.
The entire text is structured as a petitionary address to the divine, asking for salvation and wisdom.
All passages →Ritual Firepraxis
Fire as medium of divine presence.
The 'Fire's flame' is mentioned as strong through the Holy Order, indicating fire as a medium of divine presence.
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