| From Yasht 17, Hymn to Ashi we read: 2. The daughter of Ahura Mazda, the sister of the Amesha-Spentas, who endows all the Saoshyants with the enlivening intelligence; she also brings heavenly wisdom at her wish, and comes to help him who invokes her from near and him who invokes her from afar, and worships her with offerings of libations. IV-28. To her did Yima Khshaeta, the good shepherd, offer up a sacrifice from the height Hukairya. 29. He begged of her a boon, saying: 'Grant me this, O great Ashi Vanguhi! that I may bring fatness and flocks down to the world created by Mazda; that I may bring immortality down to the world created by Mazda” (17) We see here at Yima begged Ashi for permission to bring immortality to man, similar to Tantalus and Prometheus. According to Wiki: “Avestan ‘ashi’ is a feminine abstract noun, deriving from the root ar-, ‘to allot,’ with a substantivizing -ta suffix, hence aši/arti ‘that which is granted’.” Her name appears under the form Ardoksho on coins of the Indo-Scythian Kings Kanishka and Huvishka (2nd century AD), where she is represented as bearing a cornucopia” (20c, g). (18) Asha (Asa/Arta), Ashi’s male counterpart or spouse, is a conceptual deity of the Amesha Spenta (divine deities of the immortal holy) representing “genius of truth” or “righteousness” more commonly termed Asha Vahishta or “best truth.” Here, in the following quote from the Avesta, we find Asha as a cow, who delivers “light,” “…I ascribe all good to Ahura Mazda, ‘and all the best,’ Asha-endowed, splendid, xwarena-endowed, whose is the cow, whose is Asha, whose is the light, ‘may whose blissful areas be filled with light’.” - The Zoroastrian Creed (Yasna 12:1) And following that we read: “Who is that faithful friend, O Mazda, who would help Spitama Zarathushtra? He is the one who is enamored of love and is in search of Asha. He is with faith and an adherent of the Assembly of Brotherhood, devoted to Vohuman. He dedicates his life to the progress of the Assembly of Magians.” (Yasna 51.11) When we hear references to these “magians” we may think of the people who used the mushroom, who learned the ways and powers of the mind. In Rig Veda 5, 85, 2, it reads that Varuna has “Set intellect in hearts, fire in the waters, Siurya in heaven and Soma on the mountain.” Similarly, in Yashte 17, 2, it is said of Ashi Vanuhi: “and she places natural understanding in their hearts” (i.e., of the Saoshyants). (19) The Messiah and “Saoshyant,” which means “one who brings benefit,” first appears as a proper name in the Younger Avesta.” (20) Ashi is the one who endows the Saoshyant described. And Ashi is described as “healing” and “bringing heavenly wisdom.” |
In another section we read a prayer to Ashi: (1) We sacrifice to Ashi Vanuhi, who is shining, high, tall-formed, well worthy of sacrifice, with a loud-sounding chariot, strong, welfare-giving, healing, with fullness of intellect, and powerful; (2) The daughter of Ahura Mazda, the sister of the Amesha-Spentas, who endows all the Saoshyants (6) with the enlivening intelligence; she also brings heavenly wisdom at her wish, and comes to help him who invokes her from near and him who invokes her from afar, and worships her with offerings of libations. (37) For her brightness and glory, I will offer her a sacrifice worth being heard; I will offer up unto Ashi Vanguhi a good sacrifice with an offering of libations. We sacrifice unto Ashi Vanguhi with the libations, with the Haoma and meat, with the baresma, with the wisdom of the tongue, with the holy spells, with the words, with the deeds, with the libations, and with the rightly-spoken words.” Following this we read about her intimate connection to the Haoma drink: (5) Homage unto Haoma, and unto the Mathra (8), and unto the holy Zarathushtra! Homage unto Haoma, because all other drinks are attended with Aeshma (9), the fiend of the wounding spear: but the drinking of Haoma is attended with Asha and with Ashi Vanguhi herself.” And next she is described as “radiant with joy” and “far piercing with rays” and how she “gives good Glory”: (6) Ashi is fair; Ashi is radiant with joy; she is far-piercing with her rays. Ashi gives good Glory unto those men whom thou dost follow, O Ashi! Full of perfumes is the house in which the good, powerful Ashi Vanguhi puts her .... (11) feet, for long friendship. (Avesta: Khorda Avesta 17 Ashi Yasht ("Hymn to Ashi"), I:1-3, II:5-6) Based on what we have just read, it would appear that Ashi is the mushroom goddess who bestows upon the world, the messiah (mushroom), who will return after the resurrection from death aka, his re-birth. She holds in her hand a mushroom, which was later replaced by the “Horn of Plenty” or Cornucopia. Another interesting tidbit concerning Kushan era coins, is the “wizard” and his wizard’s hat, on the obverse of the coin. The ruling dynastic king is depicted as the “Grand Wizard” (20g). This same imagery is used to depict the North American Jalisco and Central American Mayan Shamans on ancient figurines, which we review in an upcoming chapter. (80g; 83d, g). (17) 17. ASHI YASHT ("Hymn to Ashi"), II, 4 (18) Healing Gods, p. 190-91; M.A. Stein, “Zoroastrian Deities on Indo-Scythian Coins,” in BOR, 1887, p. 165 (19) Avesta, Pahlavi, and Ancient Persian Studies, 1904, p. 200 (20) Dhalla, Maneckji Nusservanji (1938), History of Zoroastrianism, New York: OUP |