Cox, George - Aryan Mythology Vol 2.pdf

ormuzd. 355
Verethragna, transparent in its meaning to the worshippers oil \i'
of Indra, so thoroughly lost its original sense that it came x -
to denote mere strength or power l and as from a metaphysical
point of view the power opposed to the righteous God
must be a moral one, a series of synonyms were employed
which imparted to the representative of Yritra more and
more of a spiritual character. The Devas of the Veda are
the bright gods who fight on the side of Indra ; in the Avesta
the word has come to mean an evil spirit, and the Zoroastrian
was bound to declare that he ceased to be a worshipper of
the daevas. 2 Thus Yerethra and all kindred deities were
placed in this class of malignant beings, and branded with the
epithet Drukhs, deceitful. 3 But the special distinction of
the being known to us under the familiar name of Ahriman,
was the title of Angro-Mainyus, or spirit of darkness. 4
This name was simply an offset to that of his righteous ad-
versary, Spento-Mainyus, or the spirit of light. But Spento-
Mainyus was only another name for the Supreme Being,
whose name Ahuro-mazdao we repeat in the shortened form
of Ormuzd. 5 In this Being the devout Zoroastrian trusted
1 As such, M. Breal remarks that it mauvais, l'idee d'une divinite adversaire
became an adjective, and is sometimes constante d'Ormuzd et de Mithra.'—
used in the superlative degree, a hymn Croyances et Legendesde VAntiquite, 61.
being spoken of as Verethrazanctema. The degradation of Aryaman involved
Hercide et Cams, 129. the exaltation of Mithra. ' Une fois
2 Max Mill ler, Chips, i. 25. devenu la personnifieation de la peril e
3 The word is probably found in the et de la bonne foi. Mithra recut le
Greek d-TpeK-rjs, not deceitful = trust- caractere de mediatcm* outre Dieu et
worthy, sure. l'honime, ^ectTTjs, comme Fappelle
4 M. Maury, regarding the name l'auteur du Traite sur Isis et Osiris,' ih.
Ahriman as identical with the Vedic 164.
Aryaman, sees in the Iranian demon a 5 Like Thraetana and Verethragna,
degradation of the Hindu sun-god, an the name Ormuzd is Sanskrit. Plato
inverse change to that which invested speaks of Zoroaster as a son of Orothe
Trojan Paris with the attributes of mazes, which is clearly only another
a un autre paredre form of the name of this deity. In the
' solar heroes.
que Varouna,
Mitra
e'est Aryaman .... inscriptions at Behistun it appears in
Cette divinite nous offre a l'origine une the form Auramazda ; but in Persian
nouvelle personnifieation du soieil dans the word conveys no meaning In the
son action fortirlaiite et salutaire: a ce Zendavesta it is found both as Ahurotitre
il est souvent associe a Bhaya, mazdao and as Mazdao Ahuro; and
l'Aditya qui dispense des bient'aits et qui
benit les homines .... Mais, plustard,
Aryaman devint l'Aditya de la
these forms lead us at on