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Avesta: Khorda Avesta

5. ABAN YASHT ("Hymn to the Waters").

This digital edition copyright © 1995 by Joseph H. Peterson. All rights reserved.

Translated by James Darmesteter. (From Sacred Books of the East, American Edition, 1898.)


0. May Ahura Mazda be rejoiced!....
Ashem Vohu: Holiness is the best of all good....
I confess myself a worshipper of Mazda, a follower of Zarathushtra, one who hates the Daevas and obeys the laws of Ahura;
For sacrifice, prayer, propitiation, and glorification unto [Hawan], the holy and master of holiness....
Unto the good Waters, made by Mazda; unto the holy water-spring ARDVI ANAHITA; unto all waters, made by Mazda; unto all plants, made by Mazda,
Be propitiation, with sacrifice, prayer, propitiation, and glorification.
Yatha ahu vairyo: The will of the Lord is the law of holiness....
NOTES:

I.

1. Ahura Mazda spake unto Spitama Zarathushtra, saying: 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita, the wide-expanding and health-giving, who hates the Daevas and obeys the laws of Ahura, who is worthy of sacrifice in the material world, worthy of prayer in the material world; the life-increasing and holy, the herd-increasing and holy, the fold-increasing and holy, the wealth-increasing and holy, the country-increasing and holy;
2. 'Who makes the seed of all males pure, who makes the womb of all females pure for bringing forth, who makes all females bring forth in safety, who puts milk into the breasts of all females in the right measure and the right quality;
3. 'The large river, known afar, that is as large as the whole of the waters that run along the earth; that runs powerfully from the height Hukairya down to the sea Vouru-Kasha.
4. 'All the shores of the sea Vouru-Kasha are boiling over, all the middle of it is boiling over, when she runs down there, when she streams down there, she, Ardvi Sura Anahita, who has a thousand cells and a thousand channels: the extent of each of those cells, of each of those channels is as much as a man can ride in forty days, riding on a good horse.
5. 'From this river of mine alone flow all the waters that spread all over the seven Karshvares; this river of mine alone goes on bringing waters, both in summer and in winter. This river of mine purifies the seed in males, the womb in females the milk in females' breasts.
6. 'I, Ahura Mazda, brought it down with mighty vigor, for the increase of the house, of the borough of the town, of the country, to keep them, to maintain them, to look over them, to keep and maintain them close.
7. 'Then Ardvi Sura Anahita, O Spitama Zarathushtra! proceeded forth from the Maker Mazda. Beautiful were her white arms, thick as a horse's shoulder or still thicker; beautiful was her ...., and thus came she, strong, with thick arms, thinking thus in her heart:
8. '"Who will praise me? Who will offer me a sacrifice, with libations cleanly prepared and well-strained, together with the Haoma and meat? To whom shall I cleave, who cleaves unto me, and thinks with me, and bestows gifts upon me, and is of good will unto me?"
9. 'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice worth being heard; I will offer up unto the holy Ardvi Sura Anahita a good sacrifice with an offering of libations;- thus mayest thou advise us when thou art appealed to! Mayest thou be most fully worshipped, O Ardvi Sura Anahita! with the Haoma and meat, with the baresma, with the wisdom of the tongue, with the holy spells, with the words with the deeds, with the libations, and with the rightly-spoken words.
'Yenhe hatam: All those beings of whom Ahura Mazda....

II.

10. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita, the wide-expanding and health-giving, who hates the Daevas and obeys the laws of Ahura, who is worthy of sacrifice in the material world, worthy of prayer in the material world; the life-increasing and holy, the herd-increasing and holy, the fold-increasing and holy, the wealth-increasing and holy, the country-increasing and holy;
11. 'Who drives forwards on her chariot, holding the reins of the chariot. She goes, driving, on this chariot, longing for men and thinking thus in her heart: "Who will praise me? Who will offer me a sacrifice, with libations cleanly prepared and well-strained, together with the Haoma and meat? To whom shall I cleave, who cleaves unto me, and thinks with me, and bestows gifts unto me, and is of good will unto me?"
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice, worth being heard....

III.

12. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
13. 'Whom four horses carry, all white, of one and the same color, of the same blood, tall, crushing down the hates of all haters, of the Daevas and men, of the Yatus and Pairikas, of the oppressors, of the blind and of the deaf.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice ....

IV.

14. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
15. 'Strong and bright, tall and beautiful of form, who sends down by day and by night a flow of motherly waters as large as the whole of the waters that run along the earth, and who runs powerfully.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

V.

16. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
17. 'To her did the Maker Ahura Mazda offer up a sacrifice to the Airyana Vaejah, by the good river Daitya; with the Haoma and meat, with the baresma, with the wisdom of the tongue, with the holy spells, with the words, with the deeds, with the libations, and with the rightly-spoken words.
18. He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may bring the son of Pourushaspa, the holy Zarathushtra, to think after my law, to speak after my law, to do after my law!"
19. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and begging that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

VI.

20. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
21. 'To her did Haoshyangha, the Paradhata, offer up a sacrifice on the enclosure of the Hara, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, and ten thousand lambs.
22. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita, that I may become the sovereign lord of all countries, of the Daevas and men, of the Yatus and Pairikas, of the oppressors, the blind and the deaf; and that I may smite down two thirds of the Daevas of Mazana and of the fiends of Varena."
23. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

VII.

24. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
25. 'To her did Yima Khshaeta, the good shepherd, offer up a sacrifice from the height Hukairya, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
26. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may become the sovereign lord of all countries, of the Daevas and men, of the Yatus and Pairikas, of the oppressors, the blind and the deaf; and that I may take from the Daevas both riches and welfare, both fatness and flocks, both weal and Glory."
27. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

VIII.

28. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
29. 'To her did Azi Dahaka, the three-mouthed, offer up a sacrifice in the land of Bawri, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, and ten thousand lambs.
30. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this boon, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may make all the seven Karshvares of the earth empty of men."
31. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita did not grant him that boon, although he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating her that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

IX.

32. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto Ardvi Sura Anahita....
33. 'To her did Thraetaona, the heir of the valiant Athwya clan, offer up a sacrifice in the four-cornered Varena, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
34. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may overcome Azi Dahaka, the three-mouthed, the three-headed, the six-eyed, who has a thousand senses, that most powerful, fiendish Druj, that demon, baleful to the world, the strongest Druj that Angra Mainyu created against the material world, to destroy the world of the good principle; and that I may deliver his two wives, Savanghavach and Erenavach, who are the fairest of body amongst women, and the most wonderful creatures in the world."
35. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

X.

36. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto Ardvi Sura Anahita....
37. 'To her did Keresaspa, the manly-hearted, offer up a sacrifice behind the Vairi Pisanah, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
38. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may overcome the golden-heeled Gandarewa, though all the shores of the sea Vouru-Kasha are boiling over; and that I may run up to the stronghold of the fiend on the wide, round earth, whose ends lie afar."
39. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XI.

40. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sara Anahita....
41. 'To her did the Turanian murderer, Frangrasyan, offer up a sacrifice in his cave under the earth, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
42. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may seize hold of that Glory, that is waving in the middle of the sea Vouru-Kasha and that belongs to the Aryan people, to those born and to those not yet born, and to the holy Zarathushtra."
43. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita did not grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XII.

44. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
45. 'To her did the great, most wise Kavi Usa offer up a sacrifice from Mount Erezifya, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
46. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me, this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may become the sovereign lord of all countries, of the Daevas and men, of the Yatus and Pairikas, of the oppressors, the blind and the deaf."
47. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XIII.

48. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
49. 'To her did the gallant Husravah, he who united the Aryan nations into one kingdom, offer up a sacrifice behind the Chaechasta lake, the deep lake, of salt waters, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
50. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may become the sovereign lord of all countries, of Daevas and men, of the Yatus and Pairikas, of the oppressors, the blind and the deaf; and that I may have the lead in front of all the teams and that he may not pass through the forest , he, the murderer, who now is fiercely striving against me on horseback."
51. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XIV.

52. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
53. 'To her did the valiant warrior Tusa11 offer worship on the back of his horse, begging swiftness for his teams, health for his own body, and that he might watch with full success those who hated him, smite down his foes, and destroy at one stroke his adversaries, his enemies, and those who hated him. 11. Tusa, in the Shah Nameh Tus; one of the most celebrated Pahlavans of Kay Khosaw; he was the son of king Naotara (Nodar).
54. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may overcome the gallant sons of Vaesaka, by the castle Khshathro-saoka, that stands high up on the lofty, holy Kangha; that I may smite of the Turanian people their fifties and their hundreds, their hundreds and their thousands, their thousands and their tens of thousands, their tens of thousands and their myriads of myriads."
55. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XV.

56. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
57. 'To her did the gallant sons of Vaesaka offer up a sacrifice in the castle Khshathro-saoka, that stands high up on the lofty, holy Kangha, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
58. 'They begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant us this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that we may overcome the valiant warrior Tusa, and that we may smite of the Aryan people their fifties and their hundreds, their hundreds and their thousands, their thousands and their tens of thousands, their tens of thousands and their myriads of myriads."
59. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita did not grant them that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XVI.

60. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
61. 'The old Vafra Navaza worshipped her when the strong fiend-smiter, Thraetaona, flung him up in the air in the shape of a bird, of a vulture.
62. 'He went on flying, for three days and three nights, towards his own house; but he could not, he could not turn down. At the end of the third night, when the beneficent dawn came dawning up, then he prayed unto Ardvi Sura Anahita, saying:
63. '"Ardvi Sura Anahita! do thou quickly hasten helpfully and bring me assistance at once. I will offer thee a thousand libations, cleanly prepared and well strained, along with Haomas and meat, by the brink of the river Rangha, if I reach alive the earth made by Ahura and my own house."
64. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita hastened unto him in the shape of a maid, fair of body, most strong, tall-formed, high-girdled, pure, nobly born of a glorious race, wearing shoes up to the ankle wearing a golden...., and radiant.
65. 'She seized him by the arm: quickly was it done, nor was it long till, speeding, he arrived at the earth made by Mazda and at his own house, safe, unhurt, unwounded, just as he was before.
[66. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, entreating that she would grant him that boon.]
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XVII.

67. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
68. 'To her did Jamaspa offer up a sacrifice, with a hundred horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs, when he saw the army of the wicked, of the worshippers of the Daevas, coming from afar in battle array.
69. 'He asked of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may be as constantly victorious as any one of all the Aryans."
70. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XVIII.

71. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
72. 'To her did Ashavazdah, the son of Pouru-dhakhshti, and Ashavazdah and Thrita, the sons of Sayuzhdri, offer up a sacrifice, with a hundred horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs, by Apam Napat, the tall lord, the lord of the females, the bright and swift-horsed.
73. 'They begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant us this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that we may overcome the assemblers of the Turanian Danus, Kara Asabana, and Vara Asabana, and the most mighty Duraekaeta, in the battles of this world.
74. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted them that boon, as they were offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant them that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, l will offer her a sacrifice....

XIX.

75. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
76. 'Vistauru, the son of Naotara, worshipped her by the brink of the river Vitanghuhaiti, with well-spoken words, speaking thus:
77. '"This is true, this is truly spoken, that I have smitten as many of the worshippers of the Daevas as the hairs I bear on my head. Do thou then, O Ardvi Sura Anahita! leave me a dry passage, to pass over the good Vitanghuhaiti."
78. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita hastened unto him in the shape of a maid, fair of body, most strong, tall-formed, high-girded, pure, nobly born of a glorious race, wearing shoes up to the ankle, with all sorts of ornaments and radiant. A part of the waters she made stand still, a part of the waters she made flow forward, and she left him a dry passage to pass over the good Vitanghuhaiti.
[79. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.]
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XX.

80. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
81. 'To her did Yoishta, one of the Fryanas, offer up a sacrifice with a hundred horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs on the Pedvaepa of the Rangha.
82. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may overcome the evil-doing Akhtya, the offspring of darkness, and that I may answer the ninety-nine hard riddles that he asks me maliciously, the evil-doing Akhtya, the offspring of darkness."
83. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXI.

84. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
85. 'Whom Ahura Mazda the merciful ordered thus, saying: "Come, O Ardvi Sura Anahita, come from those stars down to the earth made by Ahura, that the great lords may worship thee, the masters of the countries, and their sons.
86. '"The men of strength will beg of thee swift horses and supremacy of Glory.
'"The Athravans who read and the pupils of the Athravans will beg of thee knowledge and prosperity, the Victory made by Ahura, and the crushing Ascendant.
87. '"The maids of barren womb, longing for a lord, will beg of thee a strong husband;
'"Women, on the point of bringing forth, will beg of thee a good delivery.
'"All this wilt thou grant unto them, as it lies in thy power, O Ardvi Sura Anahita!"
88. 'Then Ardvi Sura Anahita came forth, O Zarathushtra! down from those stars to the earth made by Mazda; and Ardvi Sura Anahita spake thus:
89. '"O pure, holy Zarathushtra! Ahura Mazda has established thee as the master of the material world: Ahura Mazda has established me to keep the whole of the holy creation.
'"Through my brightness and glory flocks and herds and two-legged men go on, upon the earth: I, forsooth, keep all good things, made by Mazda, the offspring of the holy principle, just as a shepherd keeps his flock."
90. 'Zarathushtra asked Ardvi Sura Anahita: "O Ardvi Sura Anahita! With what manner of sacrifice shall I worship thee? With what manner of sacrifice shall I worship and forward thee? So that Mazda may make thee run down (to the earth), that he may not make thee run up into the heavens, above the sun; and that the Serpent may not injure thee with...., with...., with...., and.... poisons."
91. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita answered: "O pure, holy Spitama! this is the sacrifice wherewith thou shalt worship me, this is the sacrifice wherewith thou shalt worship and forward me, from the time when the sun is rising to the time when the sun is setting.
'"Of this libation of mine thou shalt drink, thou who art an Athravan, who hast asked and learnt the revealed law, who art wise, clever, and the Word incarnate.
92. '"Of this libation of mine let no foe drink, no man fever-sick, no liar, no coward, no jealous one, no woman, no faithful one who does not sing the Gathas, no leper to be confined.
93. '"I do not accept those libations that are drunk in my honor by the blind, by the deaf, by the wicked, by the destroyers, by the niggards, by the...., nor any of those stamped with those characters which have no strength for the holy Word.
'"Let no one drink of these my libations who is hump-backed or bulged forward; no fiend with decayed teeth."
94. 'Then Zarathushtra asked Ardvi Sura Anahita: "O Ardvi Sura Anahita! What becomes of those libations which the wicked worshippers of the Daevas bring unto thee after the sun has set?"
95. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita answered: "O pure, holy Spitama Zarathushtra! howling, clapping, hopping, and shouting, six hundred and a thousand Daevas, who ought not to receive that sacrifice, receive those libations that men bring unto me after [the sun has set]."
96. 'I will worship the height Hukairya, of the deep precipices, made of gold, wherefrom this mine Ardvi Sura Anahita leaps, from a hundred times the height of a man, while she is possessed of as much Glory as the whole of the waters that run along the earth, and she runs powerfully.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXII.

97. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
98. 'Before whom the worshippers of Mazda stand with baresma in their hands: the Hvovas did worship her, the Naotaras did worship her; the Hvovas asked for riches, the Naotaras asked for swift horses. Quickly was Hvova blessed with riches an full prosperity; quickly became Vishtaspa, the Naotaride, the lord of the swiftest horses in these countries.
99. ['Ardvi Sura Anahita granted them that boon, as they were offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant them that boon.]
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXIII.

100. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
101. 'Who has a thousand cells and a thousand channels: the extent of each of those cells, of each of those channels, is as much as a man can ride in forty days, riding on a good horse. In each channel there stands a palace, well-founded, shining with a hundred windows, with a thousand columns, well-built, with ten thousand balconies, and mighty.
102. 'In each of those palaces there lies a well-laid, well-scented bed, covered with pillows, and Ardvi Sura Anahita, O Zarathushtra! runs down there from a thousand times the height of a man, and she is possessed of as much Glory as the whole of the waters that run along the earth, and she runs powerfully.

XXIV.

103. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
104. 'Unto her did the holy Zarathushtra offer up a sacrifice in the Airyana Vaejah, by the good river Daitya; with the Haoma and meat, with the baresma, with the wisdom of the tongue, with the holy spells, with the speech, with the deeds, with the libations, and with the rightly-spoken words.
105. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may bring the son of Aurvat-aspa, the valiant Kavi Vistaspa, to think according to the law, to speak according to the law, to do according to the law."
106. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXV.

107. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
108. 'Unto her did the tall Kavi Vishtaspa offer up a sacrifice behind Lake Frazdanava, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
109. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may overcome Tathravant, of the bad law, and Peshana, the worshipper of the Daevas and the wicked Arejat-aspa, in the battles of this world!"
110. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXVI.

111. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
112. 'Unto her did Zairi-vairi, who fought on horseback, offer up a sacrifice behind the river Daitya, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
113. 'He begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant me this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that I may overcome Pesho-Changha the corpse-burier, Humayaka the worshipper of the Daevas, and the wicked Arejat-aspa, in the battles of this world.
114. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita granted him that boon, as he was offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she would grant him that boon.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXVII.

115. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
116. 'Unto her did Arejat-aspa and Vandaremaini offer up a sacrifice by the sea Vouru-Kasha, with a hundred male horses, a thousand oxen, ten thousand lambs.
117. 'They begged of her a boon, saying: "Grant us this, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! that we may conquer the valiant Kavi Vishtaspa and Zairivairi who fights on horseback, and that we may smite of the Aryan people their fifties and their hundreds, their hundreds and their thousands, their thousands and their tens of thousands, their tens of thousands and their myriads of myriads."
118. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita did not grant them that favor, though they were offering up libations, giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that she should grant them that favor.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXVIII.

119. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
120. 'For whom Ahura Mazda has made four horses -- the wind, the rain, the cloud, and the sleet -- and thus ever a upon the earth it is raining, snowing, hailing, and sleeting; and whose armies are so many and numbered by nine-hundreds and thousands.
121. 'I will worship the height Hukairya, of the deep precipices, made of gold, wherefrom this mine Ardvi Sura Anahita leaps, from a hundred times the height of a man, while she is possessed of as much Glory as the whole of the waters that run along the earth, and she runs powerfully.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXIX.

122. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
123. 'She stands, the good Ardvi Sura Anahita, wearing a golden mantle, waiting for a man who shall offer her libations and prayers, and thinking thus in her heart:
124. "'Who will praise me? Who will offer me a sacrifice, with libations cleanly prepared and well-strained, together with the Haoma and meat? To whom shall I cleave, who cleaves unto me, and thinks with me, and bestows gifts upon, me, and is of good will unto me?"
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....

XXX.

125. 'Offer up a sacrifice, O Spitama Zarathushtra! unto this spring of mine, Ardvi Sura Anahita....
126. 'Ardvi Sura Anahita, who stands carried forth in the shape of a maid, fair of body, most strong, tall-formed, high-girded, pure, nobly born of a glorious race, wearing along her.... a mantle fully embroidered with gold;
127. 'Ever holding the baresma in her hand, according to the rules, she wears square golden earrings on her ears bored, and a golden necklace around her beautiful neck, she, the nobly born Ardvi Sura Anahita; and she girded her waist tightly, so that her breasts may be well-shaped, that they may be tightly pressed.
128. 'Upon her head Ardvi Sura Anahita bound a golden crown, with a hundred stars, with eight rays, a fine ...., a well-made crown, in the shape of a ...., with fillets streaming down.
129. 'She is clothed with garments of beaver, Ardvi Sura Anahita; with the skin of thirty beavers of those that bear four young ones, that are the finest kind of beavers; for the skin of the beaver that lives in water is the finest-colored of all skins, and when worked at the right time it shines to the eye with full sheen of silver and gold.
130. 'Here, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! I beg of thee this favor: that I, fully blessed, may conquer large kingdoms, rich in horses, with high tributes, with snorting horses, sounding chariots, flashing swords, rich in aliments, with stores of food, with well-scented beds; that I may have at my wish the fullness of the good things of life and whatever makes a kingdom thrive.
131. 'Here, O good, most beneficent Ardvi Sura Anahita! I beg of thee two gallant companions, one two-legged and one four-legged: one two-legged, who is swift, quickly rushing, and clever in turning a chariot round in battle; and one four-legged, who can quickly turn towards either wing of the host with a wide front, towards the right wing or the left, towards the left wing or the right.
132. 'Through the strength of this sacrifice, of this invocation, O Ardvi Sura Anahita! come down from those stars, towards the earth made by Ahura, towards the sacrificing priest, towards the full boiling [milk]; come to help him who is offering up libations giving gifts, sacrificing, and entreating that thou wouldst grant him thy favors; that all those gallant warriors may be strong, like king Vishtaspa.
'For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice....
133. 'Yatha ahu vairya: The will of the Lord is the law of holiness....
'I bless the sacrifice and prayer, and the strength and vigor of the holy water-spring Anahita.
'Ashem Vohu: Holiness is the best of all good....
'[Give] unto that man brightness and glory, .... give him the bright, all-happy, blissful abode of the holy Ones!'


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