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GOD IN THE GATHAS
In the Gathas, it is Zarathushtra who gives us his search,
research, observation, experience, meditation, intuition, inspiration, and the
final realization of Truth -- God, the creation, the Primal Principles of Life,
and the high responsible position of us humans in the world we live. Here
is a summary of how he conceived and comprehended God, and communed with
him.
He sings:
"I shall seek to exalt Him for us with
venerations of serenity,
Who, by a new name, is known as Mazda
Ahura, the Wise God.
He grants, through righteousness and good mind,
wholeness and immortality in His dominion.
May He grant us stead fast strength and endurance."
(Song 10.10)
It may be worth noting that the two
words chosen by Zarathushtra to describe best God belong to opposite
genders. Ahura, meaning "The Being" with a secondary meaning
"lord" is masculine, and mazda, "supreme wisdom,
super-intellect" with a secondary meaning of "The Wise" is
feminine. A beautiful combination, indeed! However, Zarathushtra has followed
the grammatical rules of his age that when a masculine and feminine nouns
combine, pronouns follow the masculine rule, yet he frequently uses the neuter
gender, particular the emphatic HVA, in his Sublime Songs. We too, bound by the
present Judeo-Christian usage of God taken as a masculine in English, use the
masculine pronoun without assigning any particular gender to God for God is
above such an imagination. May be a day will come when we will have a better
conception of God and use the simple pronoun of IT.
Here is a gist of how Zarathushtra describes his Mazda (164 times) and Ahura (131 times) of which Mazda Ahura is mentioned for 50 times and Ahura Mazda for only eight times together or with one words in between! And yet, prompted by the later Avesta, we have become accustomed to say Ahura Mazda.
Before we proceed further, let it be pointed out here with emphasis that the term ahura (Sanskrit asura) for god is a pre-Zarathushtrian Indo-Iranian term. But mazdā was added first by Zarathushtra alone to describe God as "Super-Intellect". And this makes a great difference. Gods and goddesses were know for their power. Zarathushtra laid stress on God's wisdom. Strength follows super-intellect.
God is wise. He is the wisest. He is knowing, the most
knowing. He knows best. He knows best the past, present, and future. He
remembers all that exists. He knows the secrets of life. He is wide-viewing and
all-watching. He watches every move, open or hidden. He is, above all, MAZDA,
super-intellect, supreme-wisdom.
God is supreme. He is the first and the latest-literally
the foremost and the youngest. In other simple words: God is above age and
time.
God "dwells in progress." He is progressive, the
most progressive. He is the continuous creator, maintainer, and promoter of the
universe and all that is in it-the sky, stars, sun, moon, earth, everything. It
means that He is not a static god who has finished with his creation and is only
maintaining or guiding it to a given destiny. He regulates the universe through
"asha," the law of precision. His "spenta mainyu,"
progressive mentality, continues to create and promote his creation. He
possesses "vohu manah," good mind, the wisdom that
maintains it. He establishes "khshathra," the divine dominion,
in which all is well and everything is good and every creature enjoys "āramaiti,"
serenity. He grants "haurvatāt," wholeness, and "ameretāt,"
immortality, to the creation. He is in continuous contact with those who want to
listen to His voice, "seraosha," the inner-voice. For us, God
has created the joy-bringing world. He has created the living world and bestowed
it with free will. He has created body, conscience, and intelligence, and he has
infused life into the physical frame. He has then granted it freedom of thought,
speech, and action so that one is free to choose one's convictions. The freedom
is for all, the righteous and the wrongful, wise or unwise.
God is of one-accord with asha. He does not violate the very laws he has so wisely ordained. His laws entertain no exceptions. It means no unexplained freaks, no never-understood miracles.
God is the judge. He upholds prime laws. He is the lord of life. It is God who has ordained that good deeds produce good rewards and evil deeds have bad consequences. The Laws is not to be broken, not even by mercy.
God is kind. He is friendly, a good friend, an ally. He is
loving. He is loved.
God is the guide. He is the teacher. To him all ultimately
return.
God is mighty. He is the mightiest. He is the greatest. He is powerful, most powerful. He is ruling-at-will.
In short, God is Mazda Ahura, the supreme Wise Being. It
is, to repeat a point, the name given by Zarathushtra to explain God in two
meaningful words. God is
super-wisdom personified, and God is The Being. Every other conceivable
attribute is but a part of these two wondrous words.
The Gathas do not present God as wrathful, awful, dreadful,
vengeful, resentful, jealous, or, on the contrary, merciful, because these
aspects would render God personal and are also in violation of the very pristine
laws he has ordained. The "awful" theory makes one dread God, and the
"merciful" theme encourages one to commit evil acts and feel sure of
"amnesty." God is just loving and loved friend, and that is
enough.
Mankind on this earth has a high position. He is a
companion of God in mind and action. A progressive person is associated with
God. One who promotes and develops a house, settlement, district or land with
righteousness becomes godlike. In fact, as a progressive teacher, he is
godlike.
PERSONALLY IMPERSONAL
God in the Gathas is the impersonal Supreme Being.
Nevertheless, one comes across poetic expressions such as "for my
enlightenment, teach me to speak the thoughts of Your mind and the words of Your
mouth," He "watches with sharp eyes through asha," and "You
help with Your own hands." Zarathushtra conceives God by beholding him with
his eyes of thoughts, words, and deeds. He
befriends him and falls in love with him. He is in communion with God as any
other person can rise to be. It is the inner-voice, seraosha, that leads to God,
the ultimate goal.
Although these few references to mouth, eyes and hands are clearly allegorical, they bring closer to the human mind an abstract God and make him a personal being, giving one the warm feelings of a relationship, the close, cordial relationship between the created and the Creator. A God so impersonal and yet so personal! Perhaps this a very beautiful side of "God in the Gathas."
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