Song 1.2 (Yasna 28.2)
Transliterated Text:
ýê vå mazdâ ahurâ pairî-jasâi vohû mananghâ maibyô dâvôi ahvå astvatascâ hyatcâ mananghô âyaptâ ashât hacâ ýâish rapañtô daidît xvâthrê.
Translated Text:
Wise God, I approach You through good mind. Grant me through righteousness the blessings of both existences, the material and the mental, so that I lead my companions to happiness.
Summary Substance:
A prayer to meditate through good mind to acquire a balanced proportion of a spiritual and material life, only to bring happiness to companions.
Note: Here, Zarathushtra makes the profound philosophical argument that are two fundamental existences in the world, that of the mind and that of matter (astvat literally ‘possessing bones’). This is the first time such an understanding has been put forth, and it wouldn’t be until the Ancient Greeks, over a thousand years later, that this level of philosophical thought would be reached by another tradition. Here, as typical of Zarathushtra’s thought, he emphasizes the ethical nature of existence and the reciprocal relationship with Mazda. When one seeks something of Wisdom/The Wise One (Mazda) by their efforts of the Good Mind, they are rewarded through Asha, the fundamental laws governing existence. In effect, this means that an honest attempt at understanding the world, or improving it, is rewarded through the very laws which dictate existence. Good actions are their own reward as the benefit gained is shared by all creation, including oneself; the greater of an effect one person, or a community, can have, the greater the benefit becomes. – Caleb Goodfellow
Pondering Point:
“Seek wisdom in all your actions, it will be its own reward with happiness for you and your friends.”