Maharashtra SSC Avesta L2/L3 (MSBSHSE) flashcards

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Avestan script direction

Avestan is written right-to-left. Words are joined, and letters take different forms at word end, so the same phoneme can appear in distinct shapes depending on position.

Transliteration of 𐬁

The letter 𐬁 represents long ā and is transliterated with a macron as ā. Length is phonemic in Avestan, so ā and a are distinct sounds and must be distinguished in transliteration.

Letter 𐬚 value

The Avestan letter 𐬚 transliterates as θ, a voiceless dental fricative, as in θβa 'you'. It is distinct from t and from s and must be kept separate in transliteration.

Nasalised vowels ą ą̄

Avestan has four nasalised vowels: ą, ą̄, ą̇, ą̄̇. They are transliterated with ogonek and, where relevant, a dot above, and they contrast with the corresponding oral vowels.

uu and ii transliteration

The letters 𐬬 and 𐬫 transliterate as uu and ii when functioning as glides, and as u/i when vowels. Editors choose uu/ii to signal a consonantal value in the manuscript tradition.

Manuscript dot punctuation

Avestan manuscripts use a small dot or circle to separate words and phrases, and a triangle of dots or a dot above the line to mark sentence ends. These marks guide liturgical recitation.

Avestan case inventory

Avestan nouns inflect for eight cases: nominative, vocative, accusative, instrumental, dative, ablative, genitive, locative. Each has singular, dual, and plural forms, giving 24 slots per stem.

a-stem masculine endings

Thematic masculine nouns take nominative singular -ō, accusative singular -əm, genitive singular -ahiiā, dative singular -āi, instrumental singular -ā, and nominative plural -ā.

ā-stem feminine endings

Feminine ā-stems take nominative singular -ā, accusative singular -ąm, genitive singular -ā̊, dative singular -āi, instrumental singular -ā, and nominative-accusative plural -ā̊.

Primary active endings

Present active primary endings are -mi, -hi, -ti in the singular and -mahī, -θā, -nti in the plural. These mark the present indicative and carry person and number.

Middle voice endings

Middle primary endings are -e, -he, -te in the singular and -maide, -θβe, -nte in the plural. The middle typically marks action for the subject or reflexive interest.

Injunctive and augment

The augment a- marks past indicative (imperfect) forms. The injunctive is the same stem without the augment, used in prohibitions after mā and in narrative without past reference.

Core religious vocabulary

Key terms: aša 'truth/order', druj 'lie', vohu 'good', mainiiu 'spirit', xšaθra 'dominion', daēuua 'demon', ahura 'lord', mazdā 'wise'. These recur throughout the Gāthās.

Enclitic pronouns

Enclitic pronouns mē, tē, šē, nō, vō attach after the first word of a clause (Wackernagel position). They mark genitive or dative relations without independent stress.

Preposition-case pairing

hača 'from' governs the ablative; paiti 'toward, against' governs the accusative; aipi 'on' governs the locative; haca 'in accordance with' governs the instrumental. Case choice is lexically fixed.

Yasna structure

The Yasna is the principal liturgical text, 72 chapters recited by a zaotar with a rāspī assisting. It contains the Gāthās, the Ahuna Vairiia, Ashem Vohu, and the yasna haptanghaiti.

Gāthā groups

The 17 Gāthās fall into five groups: Ahunavaiti, Ushtavaiti, Spentā Mainiiu, Vohu Xšaθra, Vahištōišti. Their archaic dialect differs from the Younger Avestan of the Yashts and Vendidad.

Ahuna Vairiia

The Ahuna Vairiia (Yasna 27.13) is the central Zoroastrian prayer in three lines. It opens with the formula 'as it is the will of the Lord' and is analysed as a statement of choice.

Ashem Vohu

The Ashem Vohu (Yasna 27.14) is a three-line prayer praising aša and the reward of those who act rightly. It is recited frequently in daily devotion and in the Yasna liturgy.

Mihr Yasht

Yasht 10, the Mihr Yasht, is a long hymn to Mithra as guardian of contracts and the sun. It is a key source for the role of covenant and oath in Zoroastrian ethics.

Vendidad content

The Vendidad (Vīdēvdād) is a legal and purity text. Chapter 1 lists the sixteen lands created by Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainiu's counter-creations; chapters 3–4 concern purity law and the soul.

Translation order heuristic

Identify the verb first (person, number, tense), then its subject by case agreement, then objects and prepositional phrases. Gathic word order is free and often chiastic, so case endings decide.

Formulaic phrases

Recurring phrases such as ašəm vohū 'good truth', vohu mainiiu 'good spirit', and xšaθrəm mazdā 'dominion, O Wise One' recur across texts. Recognising them speeds comprehension of dense Gathic lines.

Farvardin Yasht

Yasht 13, the Farvardin Yasht, invokes the fravashis of the righteous. It is associated with the festival of Farvardigan and with the honouring of the departed.

Zarathushtra

Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) is the prophet of the Zoroastrian tradition. The Gāthās are traditionally attributed to him, while the Younger Avestan texts are priestly elaborations composed later.

Amesha Spentas

The Amesha Spentas are Vohu Manah, Aša Vahišta, Xšaθra Vairiia, Spentā Ārmaiti, Hauruuatāt, and Amərətāt, with Ahura Mazda at their head. They embody divine attributes rather than independent gods.

aša and druj

aša 'truth, order' and druj 'lie' form the central ethical opposition in the Gāthās. Human choice between them determines the moral quality of a life.

Angra Mainiu

Angra Mainiu is the adversary of Ahura Mazda, leader of the daēuuas. The dualism is ethical rather than equal: aša will triumph at the Frashokereti.

Fire in worship

Fire (ātar) and water are central purity symbols. Fire temples (ātašgāh) maintain a consecrated fire, and the Yasna liturgy is performed in its presence.

Oral transmission of Avesta

The Avesta was transmitted orally for centuries before being written down. The extant text is roughly a quarter of what Pahlavi sources describe, preserved by priests in India and Iran.

Purification rites

Vendidad purity law distinguishes categories of pollution and prescribes purification: the nine-night barashnum, the sacred bull's urine (gōmēz), and water. These rites restore ritual purity.

Frashokereti

The Frashokereti is the 'making wonderful', the final restoration when the dead are raised and aša triumphs. It shapes the ethical urgency of Avestan texts.