Bundahishn

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Bundahishn

Bundahishn, meaning "Primal Creation", is the name traditionally given to an encyclopædiaic collections of Zoroastrian

Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings ascribed to the prophet Zoroaster, after whom the religion is named. The term Zoroastrianism is in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism, i.e., the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority....
cosmogony and cosmology written in Book Pahlavi. The original name of the work is not known.

Although the Bundahishn draws on the Avesta

Avesta

The Avesta is the primary collection of sacred texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language....
and develops ideas alluded to in those texts, it is not itself scripture. The content reflects Zoroastrian scripture, which in turn reflects both ancient Zoroastrian and pre-Zoroastrian beliefs.

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Encyclopedia

Bundahishn, meaning "Primal Creation", is the name traditionally given to an encyclopædiaic collections of Zoroastrian

Zoroastrianism

Avesta

Islam in Iran

The Islamic conquest of Persia led to the end of the Sassanid Empire and the eventual decline of the Zoroastrianism religion in Persian Empire. However, the achievements of the previous Persian civilizations were not lost, but were to a great extent absorbed by the new Islamic polity....
, and yet in other cases (e.g. in the idea that the moon is further away than the stars) reiterates scripture even though science had by then determined otherwise.

Structure

The traditionally given name seems to be an adoption of the sixth word from the first sentence of the younger of the two recensions. The older of the two recensions has a different first line, and the first translation of that version adopted the name Zand-Akasih, meaning "Zand-knowing", from the first two words of its first sentence.

Most of the chapters of the compendium date to the 8th and 9th centuries, roughly contemporary with the oldest portions of the Denkard
Denkard

The Denkard or Denkart is a 10th century compendium of the Zoroastrianism beliefs and customs. The Denkard is to a great extent an "Encyclopedia of Mazdaism" and is a most valuable source of information on the religion....
, which is another significant text of the "Pahlavi" (i.e. Zoroastrian Middle Persian

Middle Persian

Middle Persian is the Iranian languages language/ethnolect of Southwestern Iran that during Sassanid times became a prestige dialect and so came to be spoken in other regions as well....
) collection. The later chapters are several centuries younger than the oldest ones. The oldest existing copy dates to the mid-16th century.

The Bundahishn survives in two recensions. A shorter was found in India, and is thus known as the Lesser-, or Indian Bundahishn. A copy of this version was brought to Europe by Abraham Anquetil-Duperron

Abraham Hyacinthe Anquetil-Duperron

Abraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil Du Perron , France orientalist, brother of Louis-Pierre Anquetil, the historian, was born in Paris. He stayed in India for seven years , where Parsi people priests taught him Persian language, and translated the Avesta for him ....
in 1762. A longer version was brought to India from Iran by T.D. Anklesaria around 1870, and is thus known as the Greater- or Iranian Bundahishn or just Bundahishn. The greater recension (the name of which is abbreviated GBd or just Bd) is about twice as long as the lesser (abbreviated IBd).

The two recensions derive from different manuscript traditions, and in the portions available in both sources, vary (slightly) in content. The greater recension is also the older of the two, and was dated by West to around 1540. The lesser recension dates from about 1734.

Traditionally, chapter-verse pointers are in Arabic numerals for the lesser recension, and Roman numerals for the greater recension. The two series' are not synchronous since the lesser recension was analyzed (by Duperrron in 1771) before the extent of the greater recension was known. The chapter order is also different.

Content

The Bundahishn is the concise view of the Zoroastrianism's creation myth, and of the first battles of the forces of Ahura Mazda

Ahura Mazda

Ahura Mazda is the Avestan language name for a divinity exalted by Zoroaster as the one uncreated Creator, hence God.The Zoroastrianism is described by its adherents as Mazdayasna, the worship of Mazda....
and Angra Mainyu

Angra Mainyu

Angra Mainyu is the Avestan language name of Zoroastrianism's Hypostasis of the "destructive spirit". The Middle Persian equivalent is Ahriman....
for the hegemony of the world. According to the text, in the first 3,000 years of the cosmic year, Ahura Mazda created the Fravashi

Fravashi

In Zoroastrianism doctrine a fravashi is the guardian spirit of an individual, who sends out the urvan into the material world to fight the battle of good versus evil....
s and conceived the idea of his would-be creation. He used the insensible and motionless Void as a weapon against Angra Mainyu, and at the end of that period, Angra Mainyu was forced to submission and fell into a stupor for the next 3,000 years. Taking advantage of Angra Mainyu's absence, Ahura Mazda created the Amesha Spentas (Bounteous Immortals), representing the primordial elements of the material world, and permeated his kingdom with Ard (Asha

Asha

Asha or arta is the Avestan language term for a concept of cardinal importance to Zoroastrianism theology and doctrine. In the moral sphere, a?a/arta represents what has been called "the decisive confessional concept of Zoroastrianism." . The opposite of Avestan a?a is druj, "lie."...
), "Truth" in order to prevent Angra Mainyu from destroying it. The Bundahishn finally recounts the creation of the primordial bovine, Ewagdad (Avestan Gavaevodata

Gavaevodata

Gavaevodata is the Avestan language name of the primordial bovine of Zoroastrianism cosmogony and cosmology, one of Ahura Mazda's six primordial material creations and the mythological progenitor of all beneficent animal life....
), and Gayomard (Avestan Gayomaretan), the primordial human.

Following MacKenzie, in the follow chapter list chapter names in quotation marks reflect the original chapter titles. Those without quotation marks are summaries of chapters that have no title. The chapter/section numbering scheme is based on that of B.T. Anklesaria for the greater recension, and that of West for the lesser recension. The chapter numbers for the greater recension are in the first column and in Roman numerals, and the chapter numbers for the lesser recension are in the second column, and are noted in Arabic numerals and in parenthesis.

I.	(1)	The primal creation of Ohrmazd and the onslaught of the Evil Spirit.
I A.	n/a	"On the material creation of the creatures."
II.	(2)	"On the fashioning forth of the lights."
III.	n/a	"On the reason for the creation of the creatures, for doing battle."
IV.	(3)	"On the running of the Adversary against the creatures."
IV A.	(4)	The death of the Sole-created Bovine Gavaevodata Gavaevodata is the Avestan language name of the primordial bovine of Zoroastrianism cosmogony and cosmology, one of Ahura Mazda's six primordial material creations and the mythological progenitor of all beneficent animal life.... .
V.	(5)	"On the opposition of the two Spirits."
V A.	n/a	"On the horoscope of the world, how it happened."
V B.	n/a	The planets.
VI.	n/a	"On the doing battle of the creations of the world against the Evil Spirit."
VI A.	(6)	"The first battle the Spirit of the Sky did with the Evil Spirit."
VI B	(7)	"The second battle the Water did."
VI C.	(8)	"The third battle the Earth did."
VI D.	(9)	"The fourth battle the Plant did."
VI E.	(10)	"The fifth battle the Sole-created Ox did."
VI F.	n/a	"The sixth battle Gayomard did."
VI G.	n/a	"The seventh battle the Fire did."
VI H.	n/a	"The 8th battle the fixed stars did."
VI I.	n/a	"The 9th battle the spiritual gods did with the Evil Spirit."
VI J.	n/a	"The 10th battle the stars unaffected by the Mixing did."
VII.	n/a	"On the form of those creations."
VIII.	(11)	"On the nature of the lands."
IX.	(12)	"On the nature of the mountains."
X.	(13)	"On the nature of the seas."
XI.	(20)	"On the nature of the rivers."
XI A.	(20)	"On particular rivers."
XI B.	(21)	The seventeen kinds of "water" (of liquid).
XI C.	(21)	The dissatisfaction of the Arang, Marv, and Helmand rivers.
XII.	(22)	"On the nature of the lakes."
XIII.	(14)	"On the nature of the 5 kinds of animal."
XIV.	(15)	"On the nature of men."
XIV A.	n/a	"On the nature of women."
XIV B.	(23)	On negroes.
XV.	(16)	"On the nature of births of all kinds."
XV A.	(16)	Other kinds of reproduction.
XVI.	(27)	"On the nature of plants."
XVI A.	(27)	On flowers.
XVII.	(24)	"On the chieftains of men and animals and every single thing."
XVII A.	n/a	On the inequality of beings.
XVIII.	(17)	"On the nature of fire."
XIX.	n/a	"On the nature of sleep."
XIX A.	n/a	The independence of earth, water, and plants from effort and rest.
XX.	n/a	On sounds.
XXI.	n/a	"On the nature of wind, cloud, and rain."
XXII.	n/a	"On the nature of the noxious creatures."
XXIII.	n/a	"On the nature of the species of wolf."
XXIV.	(18-19)	"On various things, in what manner they were created and the opposition which befell them." XXIV. A-C. (18) The Gokarn tree, the Was i Pa?casadwaran (fish), the Tree of many seeds. XXIV. D-U. (19) The three-legged ass, the ox Hadayãš, the bird Camroš, the bird Karšift, the bird Ašozušt, the utility of other beasts and birds, the white falcon, the Kasken bird, the vulture, dogs, the fox, the weasel, the rat, the hedgehog, the beaver, the eagle, the Arab horse, the cock.
XXV.	(25)	"On the religious year."
XXVI.	n/a	"On the great activity of the spiritual gods."
XXVII.	(28)	"On the evil-doing of Ahreman and the demons."
XXVIII.	n/a	"On the body of men as the measure of the world (microcosm)."
XXIX.	(29)	"On the chieftainship of the continents."
XXX.	n/a	"On the Cinwad bridge and the souls of the departed."
XXXI.	n/a	"On particular lands of Eranšahr Etymology of Iran The name of Iran derives immediately from Middle Persian Eran, Pahlavi ʼyrʼn, first attested in the inscription that accompanies the investiture relief of Ardashir I at Naqsh-e Rustam.... , the abode of the Kays."
XXXII.	n/a	"On the abodes which the Kays made with splendor, which are called wonders and marvels."
XXXIII.	n/a	"On the afflictions which befell Eranšahr in each millennium."
XXXIV.	(30)	"On the resurrection of the dead and the Final Body."
XXXV.	(31-32)	"On the stock and the offspring of the Kays."
XXXV A.	(33)	"The family of the Mobads."
XXXVI.	(34)	"On the years of the heroes in the time of 12,000 years."