Excerpt of The Great Transformation by Karen Armstrong
(Page 4 of 4)
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Violence escalated on the steppes as never before. Even the
more traditional tribes, who simply wanted to be left alone,
had to learn the new military techniques in order to defend
themselves. A heroic age had be-gun. Might was right;
chieftains sought gain and glory; and bards celebrated
aggression, reckless courage, and military prowess. The old
Aryan religion had preached reciprocity, self-sacrifice, and
kindness to animals. This was no longer appealing to the
cattle rustlers, whose hero was the dynamic Indra, the
dragon slayer, who rode in a chariot upon the clouds of
heaven. Indra was now the divine model to whom the raiders
aspired. "Heroes with noble horses, fain for battle,
selected warriors call on me in combat," he cried. "I,
bountiful Indra, excite the conflict, I stir the dust, Lord
of surpassing vigour!" When they fought, killed, and robbed,
the Aryan cowboys felt themselves one with Indra and the
aggressive devas who had established the world order
by force of arms.
But the more traditional, Avestan-speaking Aryans were
appalled by Indra's naked aggression, and began to have
doubts about the daevas. Were they all violent and
immoral? Events on earth always reflected cosmic events in
heaven, so, they reasoned, these terrifying raids must have
a divine prototype. The cattle rustlers, who fought under
the banner of Indra, must be his earthly counterparts. But
who were the daevas attacking in heaven? The most
important gods—such as Varuna, Mazda, and Mithra, the
guardians of order were given the honorific title "Lord" (ahura).
Perhaps the peaceful ahuras, who stood for justice, truth,
and respect for life and property, were themselves under
attack by Indra and the more aggressive daevas? This, at any
rate, was the view of a visionary priest, who in about 1200
claimed that Ahura Mazda had commissioned him to restore
order to the steppes. His name was Zoroaster.
When he received his divine vocation, the new prophet was
about thirty years old and strongly rooted in the Aryan
faith. He had probably studied for the priesthood since he
was seven years old, and was so steeped in tradition that he
could improvise sacred chants to the gods during the
sacrifice. But Zoroaster was deeply disturbed by the cattle
raids, and after completing his education, he had spent some
time in consultation with other priests, and had meditated
on the rituals to find a solution to the problem. One
morning, while he was celebrating the spring festival,
Zoroaster had risen at dawn and walked down to the river to
collect water for the daily sacrifice. Wading in, he
immersed himself in the pure element, and when he emerged,
saw a shining being standing on the riverbank, who told
Zoroaster that his name was Vohu Manah ("Good Purpose").
Once he had been assured of Zoroaster's own good intentions,
he led him into the presence of the greatest of the ahuras:
Mazda, lord of wisdom and justice, who was surrounded by his
retinue of seven radiant gods. He told Zoroaster to mobilize
his people in a holy war against terror and violence. The
story is bright with the promise of a new beginning. A fresh
era had dawned: everybody had to make a decision, gods and
humans alike. Were they on the side of order or evil?
Excerpted from The Great Transformation by Karen
Armstrong Copyright © 2006 by Karen Armstrong. Excerpted
by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be
reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing
from the publisher.
