Chapters 44-95 - Germanic Mythology

22. And Ahura Mazda spake unto Yima, saying: 'O fair Yima, Upon the
material world the fatal winters are about to fall, that shall bring the fierce, foul frost;
upon the material world the fatal winters are going to fall, that shall make snow-flakes
fall thick, even an aredvi deep on the highest tops of mountains. 26
23. From three places, beasts should be driven to well-enclosed shelters; those
that live in the wilderness, and those that live on the tops of the mountains, and those that
live in the bosom of the dale, under the shelter of stables.
24. Before the winter, this land had meadows. Before that time the water (the
rain) was wont to flow over it, and the snow to melt; and there was found, in the material
world, water-soaked places, in which were visible the footprints of the cattle and their
offspring.
25. Therefore make thee an enclosure, long as a riding-ground on every side of
the square, 27 and thither bring the seeds of sheep and oxen, of men, of dogs, of birds, and
of blazing red fires. Therefore, make thee an enclosure, long as a riding-ground on every
side of the square, to be an abode for man; an enclosure, long as a riding-ground on every
side of the square, for oxen and sheep.
26. There thou shalt make waters flow in a bed a hathra long; there thou shalt
settle birds, on the green that never fades, with food that never fails. There thou shalt
establish dwelling-places, consisting of a house with a balcony, a courtyard, and as
gallery. 28 27. Thither thou shalt bring the seeds of men and women, of the greatest, best,
and finest on this earth; thither thou shalt bring the seeds of every kind of cattle, of the
greatest, best, and finest on this earth.
28. Thither thou shalt bring the seed of every kind of Tree, of the greatest, best,
and most fragrant on this earth. Thither thou shalt bring the seed of every kind of fruit,
the best tasting and the most fragrant on this earth. All those seeds shalt thou bring, two
of every kind, to be kept inexhaustible there, so long as those men shall stay in the
enclosure.
29. There shall be no humpbacked, none bulged forward there; no impotent, no
lunatic; no poverty, no lying; no meanness, no jealousy; no one with decayed tooth, no
leprous to be confined, nor any of the brands wherewith Angra Mainyu stamps the bodies
of mortals.
30. In the largest part of the place thou shalt make nine streets, six in the middle
part, three in the smallest. To the streets of the largest part thou shalt bring a thousand
seeds of men and women; to the streets of the middle part, six hundred; to the streets of
the smallest part, three hundred. That enclosure thou shalt seal up with the golden ring,
and thou shalt make a door, and a window self-shining within.
33. And Yima made an enclosure, long as a riding-ground on every side of the
square. There he brought the seeds of sheep and oxen, of men, of dogs, of birds, and of
red blazing fires. He made an enclosure, long as a riding-ground on every side of the
26 The Zend commentary reads: "Even where it (the snow) is least, it will be one Vitasti, two fingers deep"
(i.e. fourteen fingers deep).
27 The Zend commentary reads: "Two hathras long on every side." (A hathra roughly corresponds to an
English mile).
28 The meaning of this passage is uncertain. Here I have followed Darmesteter. Haug-West reads: "Gather
water there in a canal, the length of one hathra. Place the landmarks there on a gold-colored spot, furnished
with imperishable nourishment. Put up a house there of mats and poles, with roof and walls."