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The Avestan Hymn to Mithra, written in the fifth century BC, is the one extensive, ancient literary record of the attributes, companions and cult of the Iranian god whose worship spread, five or six centuries later, as far as Britain. Dr Gershevitch here reproduces Geldners text and critical apparatus of the Hymn, adding his own introduction, translation and commentary. The introduction offers an orientation on the main problems concerning Mithra: how the god came to be included in the Zoroastrian religious system, his relation to Zarathustras god Ahura Mazdah, his functions, his development from the stage at which the Indian Mitra is found in the Rig Veda, and the extent to which the Western Mithras has preserved the characteristics of the Avestan Mithra. Other matters discussed in the introduction includes the relationship between Ahura Mazdah and Varuna, the attitude of the Magi towards Zarthustras doctrine, the religious beliefs of the Achaemenids, and the date and authorship of the Hymn. The text is faced by the English translation, and is followed by Dr Gershevitchs exhaustive commentary. ISBN - 9780521058568
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Pages : 376
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