Ilm-e-Khshnoom - Traditional Zoroastrianism: Tenets of the Religion

due to the working of the carnal senses of the human body called Druj obliterate the attainment of the occult
heart powers and the spiritual unfoldment of Keherp benumbing the powers of faith and accelerating the
doubting capacities of brain and reason. As long as Druj is triumphant in our body Khud- Parasti, self-worth,
self recognition, self-appraisement, considering own's reason competent enough to believe or disbelieve
religious concepts of his birth are prevalent in it with success, utterly forgetting with bleached out faith the all
importance of Ahu-Parasti i.e. the Recognition of the One without a Second as the only Goal of the whole
Universe,- being opposite of self-worship and utterly forgetting the real recognition of the utter frailness of self.
Going on the prescribed patha-tariket provides the only railroad of easy access to conquer the Druj and attain
at the real recognition of self disabilities and faults. The prescribed Patha - Tarikat is arranged on the rail of
Asha, which is quite singular and unique, inasmuch as it shortens the length of the journey. Hence the
aphorism runs in the Avesta: Aevo Pathao yo Ashahe i.e. the path Tariket of Ashoi is quite unique and
singular, the only one of its kind-Vispe Anyesham Apantam, meaning all the rest having no rail of Asha are
not efficient of ready service.
About the ingrained faults of flesh and the feat of protection against the same; care taken in the hayday of
Zoroastrian suzerainty for the practice of the feat; The understanding of infection and contagion of the
physical, mental bodies and the cure for the same:
The human body consists of complete frailties of flesh, described in the Ardisehesht Yesht, as Yeska-
Tbaesha etc., ever active to pounce on the human mind and devour it. The body is thus a field of war, a place
of insecurities. Thus a votary has to go about with the mailcoat of arms known as Zarinamant Sara- the
golden protection or shield, the talismanic armours of Sudra, Kusti, Pevand etc. In all thoughts, words and
deeds these Tabesha frailties of the body the Druj activities are active, which are to be guarded against by
going on the 'Pathao yo Ashahe' meaning 'druj-parhej tariket,' the prescribed path. By going on this path, the
mind is kept serene and the Urvan who in the living body is naturally under band-darosh i.e. infolded -
unconscious is kept conscious of the great work that he has ventured on. It is thus that the frailties of the
flesh-the Tbaesha and Druj of the body, the different mental, moral, physical, psychical diseases of the body,
the mortal bond; are conquered, and the body becomes Khathravaitish Tanvo, full of attraction towards the
everlasting light of eternal consciousness, the mind becomes Shato Manao, all happy and rejoincing and
content and satisfied as it has conquered the evil, and the soul becomes Vahishto Urvano, i.e. the best of his
kind i.e. fully conscious of the eternal universal consciousness; that is, finds that the greatest hazard that he
had undertaken is at last successfully brought about and the knowledge that he and the world have one day
to return to the Almighty i.e. Frashokereti is to come, the everlasting kingdom of immortality is to be
established, the Vahishto Angheush, the everlasting life of goodness to be aspired after is to be attained and
shall be attained -becomes a reality in him i.e. he sees mentally fructifying before him.
So anxious was the authenticated Zoroastrian priesthood about this, that is to say about the observance
of the 'Pathao yo Ashahe', the tariket, that they solicited and urged the emperors to legalise them, which were
obeyed by the Zoroastrian world whole heartedly uptil the close of the Zoroastrian suzerainty except that fifty
years before the downfall the one fourth part of its (Tarikat) basis namely the basis of Hamkheshi ba akhlakh
i.e. the basis of sterling fraternity and amity was disturbed. (It is to be noted that the Tarikat as such was not
set aside by the Persian and the other affiliated races centuries after the downfall of the empire though they
had become Mohomedans, thus separating themselves from the whole Mohomedans mass.)
(Parsi Pukar Apr.-May.-Jun. 2003 - Vol. 8; No. 4)
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