The Forbidden History of Europe - The Chronicles and Testament of the Aryan 101 “politically correct” flavour. Nonetheless I am basically in agreement with many of her major reconstructions. So, despite Gimbutas’ clearly “feminist” undertones, which she allowed to intrude into her studies, it is still possible that her conclusions are sound, and this civilisation of “Old Europe” was stomped into the ground by the “patriarchal” Aryan Kurgan invaders, and so came to an abrupt end. For a long time now studies in Indo-European history have concentrated on Vedic analogies when attempting to identify the cultural background and lifestyle of the Indo-Europeans. While there is an amazing and sizeable collection of archaeological data on the Indo-Europeans which shows such Vedic ritualism as the horse sacrifice, it also reveals funerary practices that were considered unacceptable in the Vedic texts, namely defleshing. Therefore, it is possible that the Indo-Europeans were a Magian race who had been influenced by Vedic teachings. We find evidence of such a hybridised Vedic-Avestan religion in the book Dinkard IX. Zoroaster was famous for his tireless, and what would have been for some controversial, preaching against the Aryan Vedic customs and rites which captivated preceding generations of Iranians and Indians. Their ethos held that Daevas were the supreme gods, whereas in Zoroaster’s words, and the words of the luminous Ahura Mazda, these deities were really demons who deceived mankind into following the way of destruction. Zoroaster might have succeeded in convincing the Iranians to pay homage to the Ahuras and renounce the Daevas, but it appears that he was not wholly successful in this venture, and Vedic Aryanism continued to remain popular within Iranian society. It is possible to conclude one of two things. Either Vedic lore maintained a strong presence within Magian society after the death of Zoroaster, thereby melding with Zoroaster’s teachings, and creating a hybridised faith. Alternatively a significant segment of the Iranian population apostasised from Zoroaster’s faith, and formed a quasi-Vedic Magian faith, which allowed for the worship of both Ahuras and Daevas. This latter form of Magianism was termed Zurvanism. “You rush out, astute in evil, to the extremity of that horrible gloom; so you are all from the demon, your race is really from Evil Thought, that is, your race is from there where Evil Thought, as well as Lust the destroyer and also Greed the well accumulating, resides, and where, moreover, Indar (Indra) the fighter is the spirit of the religion of apostasy and further deceives the worldly existence of mankind, as to proper living and immortal progress and first confines their thoughts”.250 From the above passage which is contained in the writings of the Magi (the pagan fire-priests who governed the religious life of Iran) we learn that Indra was the chief god of this break-away Iranian religion, one which adhered to Magian customs, but also espoused key elements of the old Aryan codes, especially their continued worship of the Daevas. One other interpretation is that Vedic Aryanism was younger than Magianism, a body of religious thought which apostasised from an older Aryan Magianism. Though it is possible to conclude that the preceding Magian text contains a Zoroastrian spin, it is also possible that it might contain a fossilised account of people apostasising away from Zoroastrianism, thus creating the original Vedic religion, or the much later demi-Vedic Magianism. This question will need to be looked at far more closely in the future. In light of the Magian-like funeral rites performed by the Kurgan people, I think it noteworthy that Herodotus mentioned that the Medeans (the tribe from which the Magi were drawn) were the original Aryan race.251 Returning to our theme of the Indo-Europeans, we will be exploring the many customs, words, gods and observances which they left behind as a legacy for generation after generation of Europeans. But first it behoves us to examine the history of Russia, that vast, ever-open portal bridging the Asian and European continents. In doing so we come to the swift realisation that eastern Europe was repeatedly subjected to, and saturated by, eastern and western cultural traditions. OWING TO ITS NEAR Nowadays when we look at a map of Russia, we envisage a nation firmly under the control of one people, the PROXIMITY TO ASIA, Russians, and that’s easy to picture. In reality, Russians are only a fusion of many radically different cultures who RUSSIA IS A GIANT came to inhabit the same geographical region. In former times unified control of the lands was definitely not the case. ETHNIC AND LINGUISTIC Prehistoric hunters, Indo-European invaders, Finns, Scythians, Sarmatians, Goths, Taurians, Geloni, Budini, JIGSAW Neurians, Athenians, Huns, Cimmerians, Avars, Antes, Alans, Roxolani, Persians, Jews, Ros, Slavs, Vlakhs, Volokhi, Norsemen, Magyars, Bulgars, Khazars, and Central Asians such as the Pechenegs, Kipchaqs and Mongols have all had their day at controlling the steppes and forests of Russia and the Ukraine. Russia was and is one great genetic and ethnic jigsaw puzzle. To label the Russian people Slavs is correct only from the linguistic viewpoint - in reality 102 The Forbidden History of Europe - The Chronicles and Testament of the Aryan they are an admixture of many, many races united under the Slavic tongues. Some folk, even a good many, were the descendants of races that were former subjects of the Persian Empire. THE ACHAEMENID The Achaemenid Persian Empire Susa, Persepolis, Istakhr, Ecbatana and Pasargadae (aka Parsagada) are places few westerners have even heard PERSIAN ROYAL DYNASTY of nowadays, yet they left an indelible brand mark on world events, not just for centuries, but millennia, sending WAS ARYAN shockwaves even into the 20th Century. All of them have one major thing in common, they were regional capitals of the Persian Empire, a sometimes united, and often times bickering federation of states united under an Aryan Persian king. PERSIA AND MEDEA Who can guess when the Empire’s foremost nations of Persia (Parsua) and Medea (Mada) first arose; so much of their beginnings are obscured by mysterious legends. Compared to the monumental statures of neighbouring Assyria and Babylonia, they must hardly have figured in the overall scheme of things, being little more than tax revenue for their neighbours. Records generated in the reign of Shalmaneser III, lord of the Assyrians, provide a minimum date of 836 BC.252 PERSIAN TRIBES Persian tribal entities of that era included the Panthialaei, Derusiaei, Maraphii, Maspii, Dai, Mardi, Sagartii (from whose name Asagarta is derived), Dropici and the Germanii (who appear to have dwellt at Kerman shah).253 As in India, Persian social structure provides a linguistic correlation between caste and colour and evidence for an Aryan social matrix.254 Persian and Medean folk fell into three distinct racial classifications, namely the Airyaman (an Aryan grouping to which the rulers, warriors and husbandmen belonged) who, one might guess, saw them selves as of higher status than their other non-Aryan compatriots, the Verezena and Kkhvaetu (possibly Semitic tribal MEDEAN TRIBES groupings).254 Besides Persians, the Medes were the other up and coming regional power. Medean tribal names have survived, appearing as Paretaceni, Struchates, Arizanti, Busae and Budii, and last but not least, the Magi.255 Under ECBATANA, CAPITAL CITY Deioces, a revered chieftain newly promoted from high judge to great king of the Medes, Medean tribesmen set OF THE MAGI about constructing the royal city of Ecbatana in a mountainous area roughly 6,000 feet above sea level.256 Ecbatana also appears as Agbatana, and is thought to have arisen from an Aryan term Hagmatan, signifying that it was an assembly point for their tribesmen, perhaps for events of political, military and religious significance. It was no small undertaking, similar in scale to the Athenian city state, with a circular layout encompassed by seven defensive walls in total, each painted a different colour.256 Assyria was very powerful indeed. Fledgling states like Medea and Ecbatana had little chance of beating her ASSYRIA into submission by their own means. If they wanted to pull a military stunt it paid to network with the Elamites and Babylonians; safety in numbers. WARS In the year 651 BC Cyrus provided Persian and Elamite military assistance to the Babylonians (collectively recorded under the term Guti) who were at that time in a state of insurrection against the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal.257 Things went poorly during the rebellion allowing Assyrian forces to overrun Elam and Parsuash, and reinforce their vassalage. At the passing of Ashurbanipal an opportunity to strike reared its head once more. Between 610 and 615 BC the Medes again sought independence by force of arms, forcing the Assyrians into VARIOUS REGIONAL retreat. Their successful uprising sent nearby powers like the Babylonians clamouring to join in. The siege of Assyria KINGS CONSPIRED had resumed, though this time with a combined and reinvigorated force of Medeans and Babylonian-Chaldeans, AGAINST THE ASSYRIANS who waged a series of epic battles against them. The last remaining Assyrian strongholds were bolstered by Egyptian troops sent across to Asia Minor at the eleventh hour, but all was lost. The enemy threw their full might against the final bastions of Nineveh, Assur and Nimrud and cast them down forever. Thus died Assyria. Their new overlords, the Babylonians, never sought to rebuild their towns and cities; few indeed were spared. Meanwhile, sensing further strikes on the Egyptian homelands from this powerful eastern enemy, the Egyptian Pharaoh sent a large body of troops to occupy Syria and vital tracts of the Euphrates. Concerned by these developments, Prince Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was directed by his father to utterly destroy not only the Egyptians, but the Greek forces which were lending aid to them, and thus reopen the route to the Mediterranean Sea.