Fire, the Greatest God (ātarš mazišta yazata): The Cult of the "Eternal" Fire in the Rituals in Avestan
The lack of evidence for the existence of fire temples in ancient Iran has been used as an argument for the absence of the concept of the "eternal fire" in the Avestan texts. However, a new analysis of the final section of the Long Liturgy shows that the fire was usually removed from the s...
| Published in: | Indo-Iranian journal |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
[2019]
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| In: |
Indo-Iranian journal
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Avesta
/ Supreme Being
/ Fire worship
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| RelBib Classification: | BC Ancient Orient; religion NBC Doctrine of God |
| Further subjects: | B
Avestan rituals
B Iranian religion B Achaemenids B fire cult B Zoroastrianism |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Resolving-System) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | The lack of evidence for the existence of fire temples in ancient Iran has been used as an argument for the absence of the concept of the "eternal fire" in the Avestan texts. However, a new analysis of the final section of the Long Liturgy shows that the fire was usually removed from the sacrificial area before the recitation of Yasna 62.7 and transported back to the "house of men" from which it had been taken. As such, the Long Liturgy partly appears as a functional equivalent of the boy dādan ceremonies performed for the feeding of the fire at the fire temples in later times. This new reading of the final section of the liturgy is the result of a re-evaluation of the manuscripts, highlighting the shortcomings of previous editions of the Long Liturgy. Furthermore, the new interpretation approaches the Long Liturgy from a non Yasna-centric perspective, taking into account the Yasna as well as the Visperad (and other variants). |
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| ISSN: | 1572-8536 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Indo-Iranian journal
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15728536-06201004 |