Faranak in the Shahnameh; the Woman with Three Faces”, Iran Nameh, 29:3-4 (Fall/Winter 2014-2015), 4-23

Shokoufeh Taghi, “Faranak in the Shahnameh; the Woman with Three Faces”, Iran Nameh, 29:3-4 (Fall/Winter 2014-2015), 4-23. Faranak in the Shahnameh; the Woman with Three Faces Shokoufeh Taghi Introduction In the religions of the ancient world, especially those of Mesopotamian origin, gods of both genders worked in a familial way together to create a balanced and harmonious world.1 What was seen in the house of gods reflected what was going on in the society. The rules of religion could mirror the rules of the agricultural states of Sumer, where the weather was not hostile, the soil and the animals were fertile, food was accessible, and people did not need to kill each other in order to survive. In the ancient Iranian religion Zruvānism, reflecting the rules of a pastoral society, women were not considered important in terms of creation.2 Zruvān,3 the God of infinite time was regarded as a neutral God who alone conceived 1One of the most notable goddesses was the 2 During the second half of the second millennium Sumerian love deity Inanna, who was later BCE, two groups of culturally and linguistically equated with the Akkadian Ishtar who was the related peoples who called themselves arya (“no- basis for the Aramean and Phoenician Asta. bles”) migrated from the steppes down into the ISSN 0892-4147-print/ISSN 2159-421X online/2014-2015/29.3-4/4-23 4 Iran Nameh, Volume 29, Numbers 3-4, Fall/Winter 2014-2015 aša or arta),5 and Angra اشه) two opposites: AhurāMazdā,4 the God of truth druj).7 The cosmological dichotomy of (دروگ Mainyu,6 the lord of chaos chaos and order figured in both Iranian mythology and worldview. Unlike the Sumerian gods and goddesses, who were human and acted like men and women, only more powerfully, Zruvān had a fierce appearance resembling a man-beast and could conceive children with his mind, without any female interaction. In the Avesta,8 the holy book of Zoroastrians, AhurāMazdā too, is the sole creator of the world. Nevertheless Anāhitā,9 the greatest goddess of Middle East, the Iranian plateau, and the north- religion who was proclaimed as the uncreated western part of the Indian subcontinent. One God by Zoroaster, the founder of Zoroastrian- group settled in Anatolia and India. The other ism. Ahura Mazda is described as the highest settled in greater Iran. These people were origi- deity of worship in Zoroastrianism, as well as nally semi-nomadic pastoralists whose chief being the first and most frequently invoked dei- economic base was cattle primarily, but also ty in the Yasna. The literal meaning of the word sheep and goats. They bred horses, which they Ahura is “light” and Mazda means “wisdom.” used for riding and pulling chariots in warfare 5Aša “truth” in Avestan, from Indo-Iranian and sport. It is not at all clear how rigidly their *ṛtá-, a neuter noun having the same meaning; society was originally segmented. There were the word is attested in Old Persian as ạrta and specialists in religious matters, and men who in Old Indian as ṛtá-. could afford horses and chariots were reckoned 6Angra Mainyu (also: AŋraMainiiu) is the as warriors and leaders. By the Achaemenian pe- Avestan-language name of Zoroastrianism’s hy- riod there developed a more rigid division of postasis of the “destructive spirit.” The Middle society into four basic classes: priests, nobles, Persian equivalent is Ahīiman. farmers/herdsmen, and artisans. Society gener- 7Druj, meaning lie, in Avesta is the opposite of ally was patriarchal, and male dominance was aša or truth. strongly reflected in the religion. Like the an- 8Avesta is the name the Mazdean (Mazdayas- cient Israelites, as the Iranians occupied the nian) religious tradition gives to the collection land, they became increasingly dependent on of its sacred texts. agriculture and settled in villages and towns. 9Aredvi Sura Anahita is principally addressed 3Zurvān is also the god of destiny, light, and in Yasht 5 (Yasna 65), also known as the Aban darkness. Zurvan is a normalized rendition of Yasht, a hymn to the waters in Avestan and one the word, which in Middle Persian appears as of the longer and better preserved of the devo- Zurvān, Zruvān, or, Zarvān. The Middle Per- tional hymns. Yasna 65 is the third of the hymns sian name derives from Avestan zruvan-, “time” recited at the Ab-Zohr, the “offering to the wa- or “old age.” ters” that accompanies the culminating rites of 4Ahura Mazda (/əhˌʊrəmˈæzdə/), also known the Yasna service. Verses from Yasht 5 also form as Ohrmazd, Ahuramazda, Hourmazd, Hor- the greater part of the Aban Nyashes, the litur- mazd, and Hurmuz; Sanskrit: असुर मेधा (Asu- gy to the waters that are a part of the Khordeh ra-Medhā), Lord, or simply as God, is the Aves- Avesta. In the Bundahishn, the two halves of tan name for a higher divinity of the Old Iranian Faranak in the Shahnameh 5 fertility and victory, was worshiped even by AhurāMazdā, the greatest God of wisdom and order. Anāhitā, who was not mentioned in the Gathas,10 in the newer parts of the Avesta, especially in Abān Yašt, appeared as the personification of Divine Fortune, whose approval of a Persian king brought victory and sustained Cosmic Order.11 Attested by many scholars and textual and archeological evidences, the powerful presence of Anāhitā in the religion of Iranians was the result of the powerful presence of women at the house of kings, in the society and at homes. Besides, historical evidences show that the Aryan semi-nomads settled in Mede and Persia. Later they founded stable and powerful empires that lasted for almost half a millennium. In the beginning they had the norms of pastoral societies, but gradually their norms married to the norms of agricultural societies (Cf. Frye, R. N., 1983: 143–50; Grishman, R., 1895: 88–96). In this article, which is part of a bigger study, I intend to show that in the Šāhnāmeh the Divine Fortune, symbolized both by a sacred female animal and a sacred woman, represent the female side of AhurāMazdā.12 My emphasis is on the fact that, based on the textual evidence in the Šāhnāmeh, a civilization cannot be built and develop without the contribution of both male and female elements. And the decline of a civilization begins when one gender forces the other into hiding. In this article I present a new reading of the legends of Jamšid, Żahhāk, Farānak, and Ferīdūn.13 the name “Ardwisur Anahid” are occasionally lieved to have been composed by Zarathustra treated independently of one another, that is, with (Zoroaster) himself. They are the most sacred Ardwisur as the representative of waters, and Ana- texts of the Zoroastrian faith. hid identified with the planet Venus: The water of 11Providence as the divine watchful care for the the all lakes and seas have their origin with Ard- benefit of humankind. wisur (10.2, 10.5), and in contrast, in a section 12Hakīm Abul-Qāsim Ferdosī Tūsī (Persian: most commonly ,( حکیم ابوالقاسم فردوسی توسی dealing with the creation of the stars and planets -also spelled as Fir ,(فردوسی) the Bundahishn speaks of “Anahid i Abax- known as Ferdosī ,(5.4) tari,” that is, the planet Venus. In yet other chapters, dausi or Firdusi, 940–1020 CE), was a highly the text equates the two, as in “Ardwisur who is revered Persian poet. He is the author of the Anahid, the father and mother of the Waters” Šāhnāmeh, the national epic of Iran and the Per- (3.17). sian-speaking world. 10The Gathas (Avestan: Gāθās) are 17 hymns be- 13Ferīdūn (arabicized from Afrīdūn; Pahl. and 6 Iran Nameh, Volume 29, Numbers 3-4, Fall/Winter 2014-2015 Jamšīd the Beautiful King and Cosmic Order The Birth of a Civilization In the Avesta, Jamšīd,14“the beautiful” and “the owner of good cattle” was born immortal. In the Šāhnāmeh, Jamšid had Divine Fortune, radiated from him. He had his commanded rules obeyed by not only people but also by demons, birds, and fairies. During his time the wealth and security of the world increased. In the first fifty years he built a strong defense in order to keep the nature from harm. In the following fifty years he dedicated his mind to the making of clothes for the people. Then for another fifty years he ranked people into four classes, as the society shifted from nomadic rules into the regulations of a new civilization. This also happened at the time of Achaemanid. By the Achaemenian period there developed a more rigid division of society into four basic classes: priests, nobles, farmers/herdsmen, and artisans. In the Šāhnāmeh, Jamšid in building his new empire implemented geometry and labor in order to construct buildings; he encouraged artwork and creativity and above all he found cures for illnesses. During his time, traveling across the world was no difficult task and nothing was hidden from his wisdom. The picture given to us from his time is close to the picture historical and archeological evidence give from the time of Ancient Persia, as well as the agricultural Sumerian era. Today we know that the Sumerian civilization was incredibly advanced. As well as inventing writing, the Sumerians invented early forms of mathematics, early wheeled vehicles, astronomy, astrology, written law, organized medicine, advanced agriculture and architecture, as well as the calendar. In this agricultural era the contribution of men and Man. Mid. Pers. Ferīdūn; NPers. Fereydūn or preserving specimens in his var- (fortress); he pos- Farīdūn; Av. Θraētaona), Proto-Iranian *Θrai- sessed the most Fortune (xᵛarənah-, Mid.

Load more