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ANAHITA - LADY OF PERSIA
By Payam Nabarz
Iranian.com
http://www.iranian.com/main/no de/79101
Sept 2 2009
The following is based on the Anahita chapter from 'The Mysteries of
Mithras: The Pagan Belief That Shaped the Christian World'. By Payam
Nabarz, Inner Traditions, 2005. http://astore.amazon.co.uk/pan05-21
Mighty Anahita with splendor will shine, Incarnated as a youthful
divine.Full of charm her beauty she will display,Her hip with charming
belt she will array.Straight-figured, she is as noble bride,Freeborn,
herself in puckered dress will hide.Her cloak is all decorated with
gold,With precious dress Anahita we shall behold.-Original poem based
on Kashani's Persian folk songs, from an Avestan invocation to Anahita.
Dusk of Shabe Yalda (Yule) 777 B.C. somewhere on a beach by the
Caspian sea. A young Magi (who later was to be known as the prophet
Zoroaster) has been keeping a night vigil. His solitary fire is the
only light for miles around and his recitation of Aban Yasht the hymn
to angel-goddess Anahita the only sound to be heard apart from the
waves gently crashing onto the beach.
"Angel-Goddess of all the waters upon the earth and the source of the
cosmic ocean; she who drives a chariot pulled by four horses: wind,
rain, cloud, and sleet; your symbol is the eight-rayed star. You
are the source of life, purifying the seed of all males and the
wombs of all females, also cleansing the milk in the breasts of
all mothers. Your connection with life, means warriors in battle
prayed to you for survival and victory.A maid, fair of body, most
strong, tall-formed, high-girded, pure, . . . wearing a mantle fully
embroidered with gold; ever holding the baresma [sacred plant]
in your hand, . . . you wear square golden earrings on your ears
. . . a golden necklace around your beautiful neck, . . . Upon your
head . . . a golden crown, with a hundred stars, with eight rays
. . . with fillets streaming down." 1
The Magi's prayer is answered by the sea in the form of a vision;
as midnight approaches and time slows, the sea parts. A large silver
throne appears; on either side of it sits a lion with eyes of blue
flame. On the throne sits a Lady in silver and gold garments, proud
and tall, an awe-inspiring warrior-woman, as terrifying as she is
beautiful. Tall and statuesque, she sits, her noble origins evident
in her appearance, her haughty authority made clear and commanding
through a pair of flashing eyes. A dove flies above her and a peacock
walks before her. A crown of shining gold rings her royal temples;
bejeweled with eight sunrays and one hundred stars, it holds her
lustrous hair back from her beautiful face. Her marble like white arms
reflect moonlight, and glisten with moisture. She is clothed with a
garment made of thirty beavers, and it shines with the full sheen of
silver and gold. The planet Venus shines brightly in the sky. 2
Time passes.....history takes place....
Circa 400B.C. Achaemenian king Artaxerxes II Mnemon (404â~@~Q359
B.C.) inscribes in Ecbatana in his palace:
"Artaxerxes, the great king, the king of kings, the king of all
nations, the king of this world, the son of king Darius [II Nothus],
Darius the son of king Artaxerxes [I Makrocheir], Artaxerxes the
son of king Xerxes, Xerxes the son of king Darius, Darius the son of
Hystaspes, the Achaemenid, says: this hall [apadana] I built, by the
grace of Ahuramazda, Anahita, and Mithra. May Ahuramazda, Anahita,
and Mithra protect me against evil, and may they never destroy nor
damage what I have built".3 Artaxerxes II like other Achaemenian
kings was initiated by priests at a sanctuary of Anahita in Pasargadai
during his coronation. Artaxerxes II built the temple of Anahita at
Kangavar near Kermanshah as well as many others. The Kangavar was
a magnificent huge temple a four-fifths of a mile in circumference,
built using cedar or cypress trees. All columns were covered by gold
or silver, even the floor tiles and bricks had a covering of gold or
silver. It was perhaps one of the most breathtaking buildings ever
made in the Middle East. Anahita's role as the goddess for water, rain,
abundance, blessing, fertility, marriage, love, motherhood, birth, and
victory becomes well established. This goddess was the manifestation
of women's perfection. Ancient kings were crowned by their queens in
Anahita's temple in order to gain her protection and support. Anahita's
blessing would bring fertility and abundance to the country. 4
Time passes.....history takes place.... the Achaemenian empires falls
to 'Alexander the Accursed'.....
Circa 200 BC sees the dedication of a Seleucid temple in western Iran
to "Anahita, as the Immaculate Virgin Mother of the Lord Mithra".5
The blend of Greek and Persian cultures manifest themselves in the
Seleucid dynasty.
Time passes..... history takes place....
The Parthian Empire (circa 247BC-226AD) replaces the Seleucid, the
Parthians expand the Anahita temple at Kangavar.
Figure 1.2.: Bronze head of a goddess Anahita, Hellenistic Greek,
1st century BC found at the ancient city of Satala, modern Sadak,
north-eastern Turkey, now in The British Museum.
Time passes.... history takes place...
Mark Anthony marches in to Armenia (circa 37BC-34BC), and in one of
the latter campaigns reached Anahita temple at Erez. "The temple
of Erez was the wealthiest and the noblest in Armenia, according
to Plutarch. During the expedition of Mark Antony in Armenia, the
statue was broken to pieces by the Roman soldiers. Pliny the Elder
gives us the following story about it: The Emperor Augustus, being
invited to dinner by one of his generals, asked him if it were true
that the wreckers of Anahit's statue had been punished by the wrathful
goddess. No! answered the general, on the contrary, I have toâ~@~Qday
the good fortune of treating you with one part of the hip of that gold
statue. The Armenians erected a new golden statue of Anahit in Erez,
which was worshiped before the time of St. Gregory Illuminator."6
Time passes.... history takes place...
The Sassanian Empire is formed. Circa 226 C.E. The Temple of Anahita in
Bishapur was built during the Sassanian era (241â~@~Q635 C.E.). The
temple is believed to have been built by some of the estimated
seventy thousand Roman soldiers and engineers who were captured by
the Persian King Shapur (241â~@~Q272 C.E.), who also captured three
Roman emperors: Gordian III, Phillip, and Valerian. The design of the
temple is very interesting: water from the river Shapur is channeled
into an underground canal to the temple and actually goes under and
all around the temple, giving the impression of an island. The fire
altar would have been in the middle of the temple, with the water
going underground all around it. One might interpret this as a union
of water--Anahita--with fire--Mithra.7
Time passes....history takes place...
The Sassanian Empires fades and Islam arrives in Iran.
900 C.E. Moslem pilgrims make their way to the 1100-year-old shrine
of Bibi Shahr Banoo, the Islamic female saint, near the old town of
Rey (South of Tehran). Town of Rey is thought to be 5000 years old,
the site of this shrine with its waterfall is believed by some to
have been an Anahita shrine at one time. It is also close to the
Cheshmeh Ali Hill (the spring of Ali Hill), which is dated to 5000
years ago. Perhaps this is an echo of Mithra-Anahita shrines being
close to each other and then becoming linked to later Islamic saints,
a process seen frequently in Christianized Europe too; for example,
sites sacred to the Celtic goddess Brigit became sites dedicated to
Saint Brigit.
Furthermore, according to Susan Gaviri in Anahita in Iranian Mythology
(1993): ". . . it must not be forgotten that many of the famous fire
temples in Iran were, in the beginning, Anahita temples. Examples
of these fire temples are seen in some parts of Iran, especially
in Yazad, where we find that after the Muslim victory these were
converted to Mosques."8
Time passes.... history takes place....
Pilgrims continue to visit the Pre-Islamic Zoroastrian shrine of
Pir e Sabz, or Chek Chek ("drip drip," the sound of water dripping),
in the mountains of Yazd. This is still a functional temple and the
holiest site for present-day Zoroastrians living in Iran, who take
their annual pilgrimage to Pir e Sabz Banu, "the old woman in the
mountain," also called Pir e Sabz, "the green saint," at the beginning
of summer. Pir means "elder," and it can also mean "fire." The title
of Pir also connotes a Sufi master. Sabz means green.9
Pilgrims also continue to visit Pir e Banoo Pars (Elder Lady of Persia)
and Pir e Naraki are located near Yazd. (The dates are unclear.) The
Pir Banoo temple is in an area that has a number of valleys; the name
of the place is Hapt Ador, which means Seven Fires.10
Time passes.... history takes place...
Figure 1.4.: Commemorative gold coin with image of Anahita, 1997.
The Central Bank of Armenia in 1997, issues a commemorative gold coin
with an image of Anahita on it. The bank states: "This commemorative
coin issued by the Central Bank of Armenia is devoted to Goddess
Anahit. Anahit has been considered the Mother Goddess of Armenians,
the sacred embodiment and patron for the crop, fruitfulness and
fertility. In 34 BC, the Romans have plundered the country town Yeriza
of the Yekeghiats Province in the Higher Hayk, where the huge golden
statue to Anahit was situated. They smashed the statue to pieces and
shared among the soldiers as pillage. On the turn of the 19th century,
the head part of bronze statue referred to Anahit was found in Satagh
(Yerznka region), which is presently kept in British Museum." 11
Time passes.... history takes place...
The higher social status of women in Iranian society compared to its
Arab neighbors has been suggested by some to be due its long respect
for Lady Anahita. Indeed, the first woman Muslim to win a Noble Peace
Prize (2003) was from Iran.
Time passes.... history take place..... yet she is still remembered....
"Tomorrow (21.8.03), I (Jalil Nozari) will take part in a ceremony
to commemorate a very poor, old woman, a relative of mine, who
died recently. Her name was Kaneez. The name in modern Farsi has
negative connotations, meaning a "female servant." But, in Pahlavi,
the language spoken in central Iran before the coming of Islam,
it meant "a maiden," a virgin, unmarried girl. Indeed, it has
both meanings of the English "maid." Anahita, too, means virgin,
literally not defiled. But this is not the end of story. When I was
a child, there was a place in Ramhormoz, my hometown, that now is
under a city road. In it, there was a small, single-room building
with a small drain pipe hanging from it. Women in their ninth month
and close to delivery time stood under this pipe and someone poured
water through it. There was the belief that getting wet under the
drain would assure a safe delivery of the baby. The building was
devoted to Khezer (the green one).* Yet, the cult is very old and
clearly one of Anahita's. The role of water and safe child delivery
are both parts of the Anahita cult. My deceased aunt, our Kaneez,
was a servant of this building. The building was demolished years
ago to build a road, and Kaneez is no more. I wonder how will we
reconstruct those eras, so close to us in time yet so far from our
present conditions. It is also of interest that there exist remains
of a castle, or better to say a fort, in Ramhormoz, that is called
"Mother and Daughter." It belongs to the Sasanides era. "Daughter,"
signifying virginity, directs the mind toward Anahita. There are other
shrines named after sacred women, mostly located beside springs of
water. These all make the grounds for believing that Ramhormoz was
one of the oldest places for Anahita worshippers."12
(*There is a folk tradition about Saint Khezer or Khidar (the green
one): if one washes (pours water) on one's front door at dawn for
forty days, he will appear. Khider is described as being a friend of
the Sufis, and is said to stand at the boundary of sea and land. He
is also said to have drunk from the fountain of immortality.)
Time passes.....
2004 C.E. Another seeker meditating by a sea makes an observation
on relationships Mehr and Aban (modern Persian names for Mithra
and Anahita.) The autumn equinox marks the beginning of the Persian
month of Mehr, and the start of the festival of Mehregan. The month
of the sun god Mithra is followed by the month of the sea goddess
Anahita (according to ancient sources both the partner and mother
of Mithra). The month of the sun thus leads into the month of the
sea. The sun sets into the ocean. The sunset over the ocean is one of
the most beautiful sights there is; as the sun unites with the ocean,
the light is reflected upon the water.
Mehr, coming together with Aban, gives rise to a third word: mehraban,
which translates as "kindness," or "one who is kind." Thus, this
metaphorical child of light that comes out of the marriage between
Sun and Sea is kindness. The child of light is the Inner Light, which
is in everyone. The Sun (light of God) and the Sea (divine ocean),
united within each person, creates perhaps the most important spiritual
quality--that of human kindness.
Time passes...
2777 C.E. Somewhere on a beach by the Caspian Sea. A young Magi has
been keeping a night vigil. His solitary fire is the only light for
miles around and his recitation of Aban Yasht the hymn to angel-goddess
Anahita the only sound to be heard apart from the waves gently crashing
onto the beach......she is remembered.
Further reading: 'The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan Belief That
Shaped the Christian World' By Payam Nabarz, (with a Foreword by
Caitlín Matthews), Inner Traditions, 2005.
References
1. From verses 126-128 of the Aban Yasht 5.
2. This description of Anahita is based on her description in Tony
Allan, Charles Phillips, and Michael Kerrigan, Myth and Mankind series:
Wise Lord of the Sky: Persian Myth (London: Time Life Books, 1999), 32.
3. See: http://www.livius.org/aa-ac/achaemenians/A2Ha.html
4. Official entry on Anahita by the Embassy of the Islamic
Republic of Iran in Ottawa, Canada on their Web site:
http://www.salamiran.org/Women/General/Women _And_Mythical_Deities.html
5. First Iranian Goddess of productivity and values
by Manouchehr Saadat Noury - Persian Journal, Jul 21,
2005. http://www.iranian.ws/iran_news/publish/printer_83 78.shtml
6. A History of Armenia By Vahan M. Kurkjian,
Bakuran. IndoEuropeanPublishing.com, 2008.
7. For the Temple of Anahita at Bishapur, see
http://www.vohuman.org/SlideShow/Anahita%20Bis hapur/AnahitaBishapur00.htm
8. This book is in Persian--translation here by Nabarz.
9. For the temple at Pir-e-Sabz, see
http://www.vohuman.org/SlideShow/Pir-e-Sabz/Pi r-e-Sabz-1.htm
10. For the temples of Pir e Banoo Pars and Pir e Naraki, see
http://www.sacredsites.com/middle_east/iran/zo roastrian.htm
11. http://www.cba.am/CBA_SITE/currency/aanahit.html?_ _locale=en
12. Personal communication from Jalil Nozari , August 20, 2003.
Author Biography:
Payam Nabarz is author of 'The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan
Belief That Shaped the Christian World' (Inner Traditions, 2005),
'The Persian Mar Nameh: The Zoroastrian Book of the Snake Omens
& Calendar' (Twin Serpents, 2006), and Divine Comedy of Neophyte
Corax and Goddess Morrigan (Web of Wyrd, 2008). He is also editor of
Mithras Reader An academic and religious journal of Greek, Roman, and
Persian Studies. Volume 1(2006), Volume 2 (2008) and Stellar Magic: a
Practical Guide to Rites of the Moon, Planets, Stars and Constellations
(Avalonia, 2009) For further info visit: www.stellarmagic.co.uk
Further reading: The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan Belief That
Shaped the Christian World, by Payam Nabarz. Inner Traditions, 2005.
Wise Lord of the Sky: Persian Myth, by Tony Allan, Charles Phillips,
and Michael Kerrigan. Myth and Mankind series. Time Life Books, 1999.
.Anahita in Iranian Mythology, (Anahita dar usturah ha-yi Irani),
by Susan Gaviri. Tehran, Intisharat-i Jamal al Haqq, (year 1372), 1993.
First Iranian Goddess of productivity and values, by Manouchehr Saadat
Noury in the Persian Journal, Iranian.ws, Jul 21, 2005.
The Avestan Hymn to Mithra trans. Ilya Gershevitch. Cambridge
University Press, 2008.The Heritage of Persia, by Richard
N. Frye. Mazda, 1993.Textual sources for the study of Zoroastrianism
by Mary Boyce. University of Chicago Press, 1990.
By Payam Nabarz
Iranian.com
http://www.iranian.com/main/no de/79101
Sept 2 2009
The following is based on the Anahita chapter from 'The Mysteries of
Mithras: The Pagan Belief That Shaped the Christian World'. By Payam
Nabarz, Inner Traditions, 2005. http://astore.amazon.co.uk/pan05-21
Mighty Anahita with splendor will shine, Incarnated as a youthful
divine.Full of charm her beauty she will display,Her hip with charming
belt she will array.Straight-figured, she is as noble bride,Freeborn,
herself in puckered dress will hide.Her cloak is all decorated with
gold,With precious dress Anahita we shall behold.-Original poem based
on Kashani's Persian folk songs, from an Avestan invocation to Anahita.
Dusk of Shabe Yalda (Yule) 777 B.C. somewhere on a beach by the
Caspian sea. A young Magi (who later was to be known as the prophet
Zoroaster) has been keeping a night vigil. His solitary fire is the
only light for miles around and his recitation of Aban Yasht the hymn
to angel-goddess Anahita the only sound to be heard apart from the
waves gently crashing onto the beach.
"Angel-Goddess of all the waters upon the earth and the source of the
cosmic ocean; she who drives a chariot pulled by four horses: wind,
rain, cloud, and sleet; your symbol is the eight-rayed star. You
are the source of life, purifying the seed of all males and the
wombs of all females, also cleansing the milk in the breasts of
all mothers. Your connection with life, means warriors in battle
prayed to you for survival and victory.A maid, fair of body, most
strong, tall-formed, high-girded, pure, . . . wearing a mantle fully
embroidered with gold; ever holding the baresma [sacred plant]
in your hand, . . . you wear square golden earrings on your ears
. . . a golden necklace around your beautiful neck, . . . Upon your
head . . . a golden crown, with a hundred stars, with eight rays
. . . with fillets streaming down." 1
The Magi's prayer is answered by the sea in the form of a vision;
as midnight approaches and time slows, the sea parts. A large silver
throne appears; on either side of it sits a lion with eyes of blue
flame. On the throne sits a Lady in silver and gold garments, proud
and tall, an awe-inspiring warrior-woman, as terrifying as she is
beautiful. Tall and statuesque, she sits, her noble origins evident
in her appearance, her haughty authority made clear and commanding
through a pair of flashing eyes. A dove flies above her and a peacock
walks before her. A crown of shining gold rings her royal temples;
bejeweled with eight sunrays and one hundred stars, it holds her
lustrous hair back from her beautiful face. Her marble like white arms
reflect moonlight, and glisten with moisture. She is clothed with a
garment made of thirty beavers, and it shines with the full sheen of
silver and gold. The planet Venus shines brightly in the sky. 2
Time passes.....history takes place....
Circa 400B.C. Achaemenian king Artaxerxes II Mnemon (404â~@~Q359
B.C.) inscribes in Ecbatana in his palace:
"Artaxerxes, the great king, the king of kings, the king of all
nations, the king of this world, the son of king Darius [II Nothus],
Darius the son of king Artaxerxes [I Makrocheir], Artaxerxes the
son of king Xerxes, Xerxes the son of king Darius, Darius the son of
Hystaspes, the Achaemenid, says: this hall [apadana] I built, by the
grace of Ahuramazda, Anahita, and Mithra. May Ahuramazda, Anahita,
and Mithra protect me against evil, and may they never destroy nor
damage what I have built".3 Artaxerxes II like other Achaemenian
kings was initiated by priests at a sanctuary of Anahita in Pasargadai
during his coronation. Artaxerxes II built the temple of Anahita at
Kangavar near Kermanshah as well as many others. The Kangavar was
a magnificent huge temple a four-fifths of a mile in circumference,
built using cedar or cypress trees. All columns were covered by gold
or silver, even the floor tiles and bricks had a covering of gold or
silver. It was perhaps one of the most breathtaking buildings ever
made in the Middle East. Anahita's role as the goddess for water, rain,
abundance, blessing, fertility, marriage, love, motherhood, birth, and
victory becomes well established. This goddess was the manifestation
of women's perfection. Ancient kings were crowned by their queens in
Anahita's temple in order to gain her protection and support. Anahita's
blessing would bring fertility and abundance to the country. 4
Time passes.....history takes place.... the Achaemenian empires falls
to 'Alexander the Accursed'.....
Circa 200 BC sees the dedication of a Seleucid temple in western Iran
to "Anahita, as the Immaculate Virgin Mother of the Lord Mithra".5
The blend of Greek and Persian cultures manifest themselves in the
Seleucid dynasty.
Time passes..... history takes place....
The Parthian Empire (circa 247BC-226AD) replaces the Seleucid, the
Parthians expand the Anahita temple at Kangavar.
Figure 1.2.: Bronze head of a goddess Anahita, Hellenistic Greek,
1st century BC found at the ancient city of Satala, modern Sadak,
north-eastern Turkey, now in The British Museum.
Time passes.... history takes place...
Mark Anthony marches in to Armenia (circa 37BC-34BC), and in one of
the latter campaigns reached Anahita temple at Erez. "The temple
of Erez was the wealthiest and the noblest in Armenia, according
to Plutarch. During the expedition of Mark Antony in Armenia, the
statue was broken to pieces by the Roman soldiers. Pliny the Elder
gives us the following story about it: The Emperor Augustus, being
invited to dinner by one of his generals, asked him if it were true
that the wreckers of Anahit's statue had been punished by the wrathful
goddess. No! answered the general, on the contrary, I have toâ~@~Qday
the good fortune of treating you with one part of the hip of that gold
statue. The Armenians erected a new golden statue of Anahit in Erez,
which was worshiped before the time of St. Gregory Illuminator."6
Time passes.... history takes place...
The Sassanian Empire is formed. Circa 226 C.E. The Temple of Anahita in
Bishapur was built during the Sassanian era (241â~@~Q635 C.E.). The
temple is believed to have been built by some of the estimated
seventy thousand Roman soldiers and engineers who were captured by
the Persian King Shapur (241â~@~Q272 C.E.), who also captured three
Roman emperors: Gordian III, Phillip, and Valerian. The design of the
temple is very interesting: water from the river Shapur is channeled
into an underground canal to the temple and actually goes under and
all around the temple, giving the impression of an island. The fire
altar would have been in the middle of the temple, with the water
going underground all around it. One might interpret this as a union
of water--Anahita--with fire--Mithra.7
Time passes....history takes place...
The Sassanian Empires fades and Islam arrives in Iran.
900 C.E. Moslem pilgrims make their way to the 1100-year-old shrine
of Bibi Shahr Banoo, the Islamic female saint, near the old town of
Rey (South of Tehran). Town of Rey is thought to be 5000 years old,
the site of this shrine with its waterfall is believed by some to
have been an Anahita shrine at one time. It is also close to the
Cheshmeh Ali Hill (the spring of Ali Hill), which is dated to 5000
years ago. Perhaps this is an echo of Mithra-Anahita shrines being
close to each other and then becoming linked to later Islamic saints,
a process seen frequently in Christianized Europe too; for example,
sites sacred to the Celtic goddess Brigit became sites dedicated to
Saint Brigit.
Furthermore, according to Susan Gaviri in Anahita in Iranian Mythology
(1993): ". . . it must not be forgotten that many of the famous fire
temples in Iran were, in the beginning, Anahita temples. Examples
of these fire temples are seen in some parts of Iran, especially
in Yazad, where we find that after the Muslim victory these were
converted to Mosques."8
Time passes.... history takes place....
Pilgrims continue to visit the Pre-Islamic Zoroastrian shrine of
Pir e Sabz, or Chek Chek ("drip drip," the sound of water dripping),
in the mountains of Yazd. This is still a functional temple and the
holiest site for present-day Zoroastrians living in Iran, who take
their annual pilgrimage to Pir e Sabz Banu, "the old woman in the
mountain," also called Pir e Sabz, "the green saint," at the beginning
of summer. Pir means "elder," and it can also mean "fire." The title
of Pir also connotes a Sufi master. Sabz means green.9
Pilgrims also continue to visit Pir e Banoo Pars (Elder Lady of Persia)
and Pir e Naraki are located near Yazd. (The dates are unclear.) The
Pir Banoo temple is in an area that has a number of valleys; the name
of the place is Hapt Ador, which means Seven Fires.10
Time passes.... history takes place...
Figure 1.4.: Commemorative gold coin with image of Anahita, 1997.
The Central Bank of Armenia in 1997, issues a commemorative gold coin
with an image of Anahita on it. The bank states: "This commemorative
coin issued by the Central Bank of Armenia is devoted to Goddess
Anahit. Anahit has been considered the Mother Goddess of Armenians,
the sacred embodiment and patron for the crop, fruitfulness and
fertility. In 34 BC, the Romans have plundered the country town Yeriza
of the Yekeghiats Province in the Higher Hayk, where the huge golden
statue to Anahit was situated. They smashed the statue to pieces and
shared among the soldiers as pillage. On the turn of the 19th century,
the head part of bronze statue referred to Anahit was found in Satagh
(Yerznka region), which is presently kept in British Museum." 11
Time passes.... history takes place...
The higher social status of women in Iranian society compared to its
Arab neighbors has been suggested by some to be due its long respect
for Lady Anahita. Indeed, the first woman Muslim to win a Noble Peace
Prize (2003) was from Iran.
Time passes.... history take place..... yet she is still remembered....
"Tomorrow (21.8.03), I (Jalil Nozari) will take part in a ceremony
to commemorate a very poor, old woman, a relative of mine, who
died recently. Her name was Kaneez. The name in modern Farsi has
negative connotations, meaning a "female servant." But, in Pahlavi,
the language spoken in central Iran before the coming of Islam,
it meant "a maiden," a virgin, unmarried girl. Indeed, it has
both meanings of the English "maid." Anahita, too, means virgin,
literally not defiled. But this is not the end of story. When I was
a child, there was a place in Ramhormoz, my hometown, that now is
under a city road. In it, there was a small, single-room building
with a small drain pipe hanging from it. Women in their ninth month
and close to delivery time stood under this pipe and someone poured
water through it. There was the belief that getting wet under the
drain would assure a safe delivery of the baby. The building was
devoted to Khezer (the green one).* Yet, the cult is very old and
clearly one of Anahita's. The role of water and safe child delivery
are both parts of the Anahita cult. My deceased aunt, our Kaneez,
was a servant of this building. The building was demolished years
ago to build a road, and Kaneez is no more. I wonder how will we
reconstruct those eras, so close to us in time yet so far from our
present conditions. It is also of interest that there exist remains
of a castle, or better to say a fort, in Ramhormoz, that is called
"Mother and Daughter." It belongs to the Sasanides era. "Daughter,"
signifying virginity, directs the mind toward Anahita. There are other
shrines named after sacred women, mostly located beside springs of
water. These all make the grounds for believing that Ramhormoz was
one of the oldest places for Anahita worshippers."12
(*There is a folk tradition about Saint Khezer or Khidar (the green
one): if one washes (pours water) on one's front door at dawn for
forty days, he will appear. Khider is described as being a friend of
the Sufis, and is said to stand at the boundary of sea and land. He
is also said to have drunk from the fountain of immortality.)
Time passes.....
2004 C.E. Another seeker meditating by a sea makes an observation
on relationships Mehr and Aban (modern Persian names for Mithra
and Anahita.) The autumn equinox marks the beginning of the Persian
month of Mehr, and the start of the festival of Mehregan. The month
of the sun god Mithra is followed by the month of the sea goddess
Anahita (according to ancient sources both the partner and mother
of Mithra). The month of the sun thus leads into the month of the
sea. The sun sets into the ocean. The sunset over the ocean is one of
the most beautiful sights there is; as the sun unites with the ocean,
the light is reflected upon the water.
Mehr, coming together with Aban, gives rise to a third word: mehraban,
which translates as "kindness," or "one who is kind." Thus, this
metaphorical child of light that comes out of the marriage between
Sun and Sea is kindness. The child of light is the Inner Light, which
is in everyone. The Sun (light of God) and the Sea (divine ocean),
united within each person, creates perhaps the most important spiritual
quality--that of human kindness.
Time passes...
2777 C.E. Somewhere on a beach by the Caspian Sea. A young Magi has
been keeping a night vigil. His solitary fire is the only light for
miles around and his recitation of Aban Yasht the hymn to angel-goddess
Anahita the only sound to be heard apart from the waves gently crashing
onto the beach......she is remembered.
Further reading: 'The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan Belief That
Shaped the Christian World' By Payam Nabarz, (with a Foreword by
Caitlín Matthews), Inner Traditions, 2005.
References
1. From verses 126-128 of the Aban Yasht 5.
2. This description of Anahita is based on her description in Tony
Allan, Charles Phillips, and Michael Kerrigan, Myth and Mankind series:
Wise Lord of the Sky: Persian Myth (London: Time Life Books, 1999), 32.
3. See: http://www.livius.org/aa-ac/achaemenians/A2Ha.html
4. Official entry on Anahita by the Embassy of the Islamic
Republic of Iran in Ottawa, Canada on their Web site:
http://www.salamiran.org/Women/General/Women _And_Mythical_Deities.html
5. First Iranian Goddess of productivity and values
by Manouchehr Saadat Noury - Persian Journal, Jul 21,
2005. http://www.iranian.ws/iran_news/publish/printer_83 78.shtml
6. A History of Armenia By Vahan M. Kurkjian,
Bakuran. IndoEuropeanPublishing.com, 2008.
7. For the Temple of Anahita at Bishapur, see
http://www.vohuman.org/SlideShow/Anahita%20Bis hapur/AnahitaBishapur00.htm
8. This book is in Persian--translation here by Nabarz.
9. For the temple at Pir-e-Sabz, see
http://www.vohuman.org/SlideShow/Pir-e-Sabz/Pi r-e-Sabz-1.htm
10. For the temples of Pir e Banoo Pars and Pir e Naraki, see
http://www.sacredsites.com/middle_east/iran/zo roastrian.htm
11. http://www.cba.am/CBA_SITE/currency/aanahit.html?_ _locale=en
12. Personal communication from Jalil Nozari , August 20, 2003.
Author Biography:
Payam Nabarz is author of 'The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan
Belief That Shaped the Christian World' (Inner Traditions, 2005),
'The Persian Mar Nameh: The Zoroastrian Book of the Snake Omens
& Calendar' (Twin Serpents, 2006), and Divine Comedy of Neophyte
Corax and Goddess Morrigan (Web of Wyrd, 2008). He is also editor of
Mithras Reader An academic and religious journal of Greek, Roman, and
Persian Studies. Volume 1(2006), Volume 2 (2008) and Stellar Magic: a
Practical Guide to Rites of the Moon, Planets, Stars and Constellations
(Avalonia, 2009) For further info visit: www.stellarmagic.co.uk
Further reading: The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan Belief That
Shaped the Christian World, by Payam Nabarz. Inner Traditions, 2005.
Wise Lord of the Sky: Persian Myth, by Tony Allan, Charles Phillips,
and Michael Kerrigan. Myth and Mankind series. Time Life Books, 1999.
.Anahita in Iranian Mythology, (Anahita dar usturah ha-yi Irani),
by Susan Gaviri. Tehran, Intisharat-i Jamal al Haqq, (year 1372), 1993.
First Iranian Goddess of productivity and values, by Manouchehr Saadat
Noury in the Persian Journal, Iranian.ws, Jul 21, 2005.
The Avestan Hymn to Mithra trans. Ilya Gershevitch. Cambridge
University Press, 2008.The Heritage of Persia, by Richard
N. Frye. Mazda, 1993.Textual sources for the study of Zoroastrianism
by Mary Boyce. University of Chicago Press, 1990.