Original Magic: The Rituals and Initiations of the Persian Magi - Stephen E. Flowers Ph.D. 2017

The Pre-Zarathustran, or Indo-European, Phase Before 1500 BCE
The History of Iranian Magic

In this chapter we will explore the actual history of Iranian magic as we are able to reconstruct it from internal sources and comparative evidence. Magic, like the closely related traditions of religion, is an evolving thing. Certain principles and features remain as constants while other aspects change their value. Specific practices may become emphasized or de-emphasized over time. Some of these differences are the result of social changes in the culture. For example, when a highly developed priest class is present, rites and rituals tend to become very complex and require great expense to the celebrants to enact them. An overview of the history of Mazdan magic reveals five distinct phases: (1) the pre-Zarathustran, (2) the early Zarathustran, (3) the Sasanian, (4) the post-Muslim, and (5) the modern. Here we are only concerned with high Mazdan magic, not mere sorcery.

In the earliest period of Iranian magic, it would probably have been very similar to the practices of the earliest phase of Vedic magic, for which we have ample evidence from Indian sources. In terms of mythology and theology, the beliefs of the most ancient Iranians would have shared much in common with those of the Vedic Indians, although the evidence that is left to us also reveals some meaningful differences. One reason why it is difficut to determine the exact nature of pre-Zarathustran mythology is because all of our sources stem from the time after Zarathustra, which means that the mythology and understanding of the gods and goddesses had already been reinterpreted in light of the revelation of the First Prophet.

Ancient Indo-European theology and myth was well preserved in archaic Iranian tradition. The theology was dominated by a tripartite structure of three “functions,” as they were called by the great French mythologist Georges Dumézil. Each of these three functions was further divided into two aspects, as shown below.

I

A. Judge-King : B. Poet-Seer

II

A. Chivalric Hero : B. Forceful Hero

III

A. Fertility : B. Wealth

These functions really describe three levels and types of power.

I. Sovereign Power

II. Physical Power

III. (Re-)Productive Power

We do not know what the names were of the actual gods and goddesses who filled these archetypal slots in the most archaic Iranian system, but enough remains that we can get a fairly good idea of it and how it worked. Most of the old Iranian gods and goddesses were eventually supported within the Zoroastrian reform in one way or another. Many were “abstracted” and renamed according to their principal function, while others survived with their names intact. Most conspicuous is the well-known Vedic divine formula Mitra-Varuna, which appears in the Avesta as Mithra-Ahura.

Here we will list some of the primary ancient Iranian deities, indicating their place in the larger tripartite functional scheme.

I: Mithra had an active and dynamic role in the original pantheon. His activities extended to the second and third function. His name means literally “contract” and he ruled over the social order, unified all classes, and represented the asha, “Order.” He was the decider of the outcome of battle (a second-function activity) and the one who dealt out fate, luck, and fertility. He decided the fate of humans after death. Mithra was also the god of the nighttime sky (the stars were his all-seeing eyes) and the daytime sky (where the sun was his visible representative). The Zoroastrian reform saw Mithra reenvisioned in entirely abstract terms, but he never lost his personality in western Iran, and even in the east his personal aspects reasserted themselves over time.

I: Ahura (Mazda) whose name means “Lord (of Wisdom)” was the god of the vault of heaven, which contains all elements within its space. He was called vouru-chashâni, “far-seeing.” The stars were said to be his scouts and the sun his eye. He is the priest (âthravan) of the gods, and he wrapped himself in the cloak of the nighttime sky. Knowledge comes to him through vision and reconnaissance.

II: Vayu is the wind god. He is the ideal warrior. He is also the death god who takes the souls of the dead. There is an inherent polarity in Vayu—there is a good Vayu and a bad Vayu. The wind is the atmosphere set into dynamic movement, the airy space as the driving force of the world. He connects heaven and earth. The wind was seen as the origin of all things; later Vayu was put at the head of the litany of all the gods. Thus, he was a god of beginnings. Vayu is partnered with another wind god, Vâta, whose name shares the same Indo-European root as does the name of the Germanic high god Wōðanaz (Woden, Odin).

II: Verethraghna is the dragon slayer, the overcomer of obstacles. Zoroaster fully demonized Indra but accepted the heroic function of this Indra-like figure.

It should be noted here that in the study of the Indo-Iranian pantheon and heroic literature, it was discovered that there was a definite bifurcation in the second function. One aspect was “chivalric” and a master of the well-considered art of war (Verethraghna) while the other was ecstatic and filled with raging vitality (Vayu).

III: Anâhitâ is the great goddess of the Iranians. She is usually associated with rivers and water. Her name means “the unsullied” (see Yasht 5). She is accompanied by the twins (Nâ haiθyas) called Haurvatât (perfection or health) and Ameretât (immortality). The former rules the waters, and the latter rules the plants.

Finally there is Âtar (“fire”), which is seen as a concluding god and a “son” of Ahura Mazda. Fire is a manifestation of the mind of god.

In general the gods are called ahuras (lords). The Avestan word ahura is cognate to Sanskrit asura, which was later demonized in India. These terms are also related to the Germanic word *ansuz, “a god.” Another old name for an archaic god was daeva, which the Iranians demonized but the Indians retained as a positive term for the divinities (devi).

The awareness of this archaic level of Iranian myth gives depth and richness to our understanding of the philosophical level of the Magian tradition. It also makes it clear that Zarathustra’s reform was more a reinterpretation of the tradition rather than an overthrow of it.