Rashnu ( Avest . Rašnu , pehl. Rašn , lit. “direct, honest”) - spirit or deity ( yazat ) of justice in ancient Iranian mythology and Zoroastrianism , its attribute is golden scales. [one]
Rashnu is the son of Ahura Mazda and Armaiti , brother of Asha, Mitra and Sraoshi [2] . Rashnu, along with Mithra and Sraosha, is the judge of the souls of the dead on the Chinvat Bridge. When the gods pronounce their judgment, the souls of true believers will cross the bridge, the souls of the deceased will be cast down into hell , and the rest will go to the purgatory of Hamestagan. This action takes three days. If a person passes the test safely, a beautiful woman accompanies him or her to Heaven. If the test fails, the person passes the bridge anyway, however, he is shuddered by horror as the bridge gradually narrows. At the end of the journey, the razor-sharp metal of the bridge cuts a person into small pieces, and he falls into hell . Rashnu has scales for weighing good and evil deeds. Rashnu is a constant companion of Mitra, he is omnipresent and omniscient, often mentioned in connection with the world river Ranha as his habitat, on top of the world mountain [3] .
In Bundakhishna, Rashnu is considered an assistant to Ameretat (“Immortality”) - one of Amesh Spent [4] . Elsewhere, Rashnu is described as the essence of truth (Asha), preventing the destruction of material creation by the Devas [5] . The eighteenth day of each month of the Zoroastrian calendar is dedicated to Rashn.
Researchers Georges Dumézil and Manfred Mayrhofer believe that the word "Rashnu" goes back to the Indo-Iranian * višnu , whose Indo-Aryan counterpart is the Vedic Vishnu [6] [7] .
Notes
- ↑ Avesta in Russian translations (1861-1996). - 1997. - S. 14. - 480 p. - ISBN 5-88812-039-1 .
- ↑ Yasht , XVII.16
- ↑ Yasht, XII.25
- ↑ Great Bundahishn, XXVI.115
- ↑ Great Bundahishn, XXVI.116-117
- ↑ Georges Dumézil. Visnu et les Maruts á travers la réforme zoroastrienne. - JA, 241 (1953): 1-25
- ↑ Indo-Aryan etymological dictionary, 1996, II.566f.
Links
- Rashnu // Mythological Dictionary / Ch. ed. E. M. Meletinsky . - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia , 1990 .-- 672 p.