more mæzdi tomfoolery

one of the long-standing questions of archaeology, particulary indo-european and indo-iranian studies, is where indo-iranian culture fermented before rampaging into what is modern afghanistan, iran, pakistan, and northern india. a remarkable series of discoveries in türkmeniston has shed light on a lot of fun things, including what appears to be a proto-iranian fire temple and the recipe for that most infamous of drugs, "soma" (IIr. *sauma, Indic sôma, Avestan Iranian haoma, Farsi hum).

A short walk over fine dry dirt - scattered with thousands of potsherds - took us to Gonur South, where excavations were completed a few years before. This was the temenos, as Sarianidi names it, a great religious complex that may have served the entire region in the later Bronze Age.

In it are spaces that housed the sacred fires, storage areas for the pure white ash removed from the hearths, and several large rooms for sacred ritual, perhaps for the seating of the gods. Filling most of the area within the eight-foot thick walls of the complex are many small rooms for the servitors of the temple. These servitors' rooms are like ordinary dwelling spaces except for an unusual architectural element; a large mud brick shelf, covered in white plaster and often holding a large clay vessel.

The vessels appear to contain the remnants of an ancient narcotic drink. Chemical analysis has shown that they held a potent mix of hemp, poppy and ephedra, a heady cocktail that Sarianidi thinks may be the precursor to the [haoma] of the Avesta (and of Aldous Huxley). It is the discovery of fire temples in close conjunction with the ritual use of a hallucinogenic drink, which Sarianidi finds so exciting. This joining prefigures elements of the texts of the Avesta, and according to Sarianidi, may be the first appearance of rites associated with later Zoroastrian tradition. In this religious edifice, and in what Sarianidi calls "ritual contexts" in other sites, he has found miniature columns made of various marble-like stones.

Their exact function is not yet clear, but Sarianidi believes that there is a connection between these objects and the cult libation of the hallucinogenic beverage produced in the temenos.

now iranian religion, which remains as mæzdi or zoroastrianism (link above) amongst the parsis of west india and the few remaining iranian zaloshti indigenes in barren yazd and kerman provinces, split from their indic colleagues' ages ago: many of the ancient gods of india, the dêvas, are named as demons (avestan daevas, farsi divan); in return, the indic works speak of the demonic asuras, which appears in the zoroastrian name for god, avestan ahura mazdâ "the ahura [named] Wisdom" (farsi ohrmæzd).

the discovery of a fire temple is fascinating; both traditions speak of holy fire (sanskrit agni, "[god named] Fire") but zoroastrianism is aniconic and these temenoi seem to have room for statues.

i'll be hunting down more on this as best i can; it's fascinating.

thanks, anahita gallery (which bears my name!)