The Hymns of Zoroaster: A New Translation of the Most Ancient Sacred Texts of Iran

by M.L. West (Translation)

A new translation of the foundation texts of the Zoroastrian religion, the Gathas (songs) composed by Zoraster himself, together with the Liturgy in seven chapters composed shortly after his death some 2600 years ago. After a substantial introduction to Zoroaster's religious thought, West presents the translations with facing page explanations of the meaning of each verse.

Genres: Religion, Philosophy, Nonfiction, History, Poetry, Mythology, Iran

200 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Martin Litchfield West was an Emeritus Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. His many publications include Ancient Greek Music (OUP, 1992), The East Face of Helicon (OUP, 1997), and Indo-European Poetry and Myth (OUP, 2007).

Reviews

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this could have used notes which talked at more length about specific concepts, given how old the language is and how many terms in Old Persian are not well defined.
Having said that, the literal notes and the verse were really well done on the Kindle, and allowed for an understanding of both tone and to some extent, literal meaning.
West is clearly an admirer of Zoroaster, but for all his lead-up, it was hard to see the depth of theology that West saw in much of this verse. I was surprised by how much emphasis there was on distinguishing between good people and bad people, and treating them accordingly (as opposed to, say, treating all people in a particular way). Also, like everyone else, on the emphasis on cows (but again, there are translation debates here around cattle and souls and the meaning of particular words). It certainly seems to hint towards a vegetarian society, or one more closely connected to Hindu tradition than I expected.
Really glad I read it, wish I had the language skills to engage with the original.

[Mary Overton]

from Introduction:
“Most people have come across the name of Zoroaster, and there may be many who think of him as some sort of ancient oriental sage or guru, of dubious repute as a fount of secret wisdom or knowledge. This is the image in which he has often been presented in Western literature, from the ancient Greeks to Nietzsche. But if one strips away the legends and falsifications and goes back to the genuine evidence, a different picture emerges. Zoroaster stands out in his true colours as one of the greatest and most radical religious reformers in the history of the world. The noble religion that he founded in Iran over 2,500 years ago is still practised to this day. The number of its adherents is small, perhaps about 130,000, most of them in western India (Gujarat and Mumbai), with some smaller communities in Iran and in other countries around the world. But if Zoroastrianism can no longer count as one of the world’s major faiths, it has the distinction of being one of the most ancient, much older than Christianity or Islam, older than Buddhism, older than anything one can properly call Judaism; only Hinduism can claim a greater antiquity. For more than a thousand years it was the official religion of a great empire.” Kindle location 92

From “The Liturgy in Seven Chapters”, Yasna 35: 2-3, 6, 8
2: We are they who approve of good thoughts, good words, good deeds, here and elsewhere, present and past: we are not revilers of what is good.
3: This we have chosen, Mindful Lord [the supreme deity], with Right [his companion deity] the comely, to think and speak and do those things that may be the best actions in the world, for both existences [the material and spiritual].
6: As anyone, man or woman, knows a truth, so, it being good, let him then both put it into effect for himself and communicate it to those who will put it into effect just as it is.
8: It is in union with Right, in the community of Right, that I declare the best aspiration to lie for anyone in the world, for both existences.
Kindle location 2097

[Aung Sett Kyaw Min · Rating 2 out of 5]

Moral of the Story: Don't mess with a man's cows

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting in the history of religion and to learn about a fairly untaught religion.

[Joseph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting look into perhaps the oldest monotheistic religion. I knew some basics of Zoroastrianism before reading this, but didn't know how it evolved over time, or how Zarathustra's movement began (and I had no idea at all how much he venerated cows). On the whole the Gathas are interesting, but for someone as ignorant as I am, they felt very repetitive. The small hints of history that begin to seep in during praise were tantalizing, and made me want to know more about his culture and local history. I'll try to revisit these once I have better context.

[Luís Branco · Rating 2 out of 5]

I must confess that I had a different expectations about the Gathas. I supposed that would be more like The Songs of Kabir. I value those who liked, but I didn't.

[Renée · Rating 3 out of 5]

One has to admit, the man loves his cows. But seriously, this is a tough one but impressive considering its age