The Conundrum of Evil
Meheryar N. Rivetna
Of the many spirited discussions within certain Zoroastrian groups, the one most disputed is the question of evil. There are some who aver that evil does not exist and some avow that evil exists.
Dastur Maneckji N. Dhalla in his book History of Zoroastrianism expresses these thoughts: Evil is a stubborn fact of life. While it is not good to dwell upon the wrongs of this world, real or imaginary, it is equally wrong to dismiss or deny the existence of evil for it is too potent a factor in human life to permit us to turn a blind eye to it. It is too real to be ignored and sophistically explained away. (1)
What is the definition of evil? Evil is defined as an immoral or wicked act committed by one human being against another as well as acts detrimental to all created elements in nature. Shrouding the word "evil" with euphemisms does not nullify the concept. Sugar-coating poison does not make the poison less so. Call it by any other name, dip it in honey, it is still a poison.
The Gathas are replete with directives to "fight, dispel, overcome...evil."
If we start with Ha 29.1, Zarathustra poses two very important questions:
1. Giving his voice to the soul of the universe (humankind), he asks: "Wherefore was I created?"
Meaning, "what is the reason" for humankind's creation. The answer is in Ha 30, as we shall see below.
2. The second point he makes (through the voice of the universe) is that humans are subjected to wrath, oppression, feuds, fury, insolence (all kinds of "evil" acts committed by some individuals against other human beings.)
Zarathustra announces, as he walks us through the eleven stanzas of Ha 29, that he is the one to show humankind the laws of Ahura Mazda and help humanity thwart the distress wrought by evil- doers.
This brings us to Ha 30. Before entering into a discussion of this Ha, let us look at what the University of Oxford Gatha scholar Lawrence Mills has to say about Ha 30 in his book Zarathustrian Gathas In Metre and Rhythm. He says: "It is one of the most important pieces in the Avesta, and indeed one of the most important of its kind in ancient literature; for it has formed the centre of one of the greatest theologies which the world had ever seen." (2)
Now, in Ha 30.3, Zarathustra introduces us to the existence of two spirits at the dawn of creation. The Prophet calls these forces "primal spirits" meaning the very first (primal) before anything else existed. A few writers erroneously label this concept as dualism meaning two godheads. Zarathustra very clearly asserts in Ha 30.3 and Ha 30.4 the fundamental premise that good and evil are opposing forces in all aspects and NOT "two gods." There is polarity in nature. Good has no meaning without evil; rich is meaningless without poor...and so on. If there is no evil then everything is good and we live in a perfect world. But that is not the case. We live in a world where there is deceit, enmity, malice, greed...and a host of iniquities (Ha 29.1 encompasses this state of the world.) We also live in a world where there is honesty, charity, courage, service to fellow humans, justice, wisdom, love...and many more such virtues.
From Ha 30.3, Ha 30.4 and Ha 30.5 we learn that the good spirit (Spenta Mainyu) is creative; its opposing spirit (Angra Mainyu) is destructive. This is often referred to as cosmic dualism: life and death, good and evil, famine and surfeit. Moral dualism is the opposition of good and evil in human mind. If evil is a state of the mind, as is believed, then good is also a state of the mind. One can morally (mentally) choose to be honest or dishonest, one can choose charity over avarice, one can choose justice or inequity and so on. Every virtue has an opposing vice (evil) from which we must refrain. Zarathustra enjoins human beings to choose what the good spirit embodies (virtue) and abjure the machinations of the evil spirit using one's free will. Choice is a fundamental premise in Zarathustra's doctrines. One cannot choose what does not exist.
Regarding an understanding of the prevalence of evil as shown by Zarathustra in Ha 30 Lawrence Mills, in the book mentioned above, says: "The point and interior meaning of the entire doctrine [Ha 30] is that a good god cannot be responsible for permanent evil, that imperfection and suffering are original and inherent in the nature of things..."
Thus, evil is "original and inherent" in nature as clearly enunciated by Zarathustra in the stanzas of Ha 30. Evil is not some "god", but a natural force counter to the force of virtue. This is what is meant by dualism—two opposing forces per the laws of nature and NOT two gods.
We call the good spirit "Ahura Mazda" and, so yes, there is only one God that we must venerate.
And so the Gathas are explicit about the existence of evil in this world and how human beings can overcome evil by making right choices in the affairs of life.
Let us put the Gathas aside for a moment and look at our kusti prayer: Ahura Mazda Khoday.
We start the prayer thus:
Ahura Mazda Khoday ahreman(1) awadshan(2) duravaz(3) dashtar, zad(4) shekashte(5) bad; ahreman, devan, darujan, jaduan(6), darvandan(7), kikan, karafan, sastaran(8), gunehgaran(9), ashmogan(10), darvandan, dushmana(11), friyan(12) zad shekashte bad...
What does this mean? First, let us look at certain words and their meaning to get a full appreciation of the prayer.
(i) duravaz means distance. dur is also a word in some Indian languages (Hindi and Gujarati, being two) meaning distance.
(ii) devan and darujan as we well know means daeva and druj, meaning evil people we encounter in the Gathas.
(iii) jaduan means one who is deceitful. This word also should be familiar to Indologists. jadu in these languages means magic. Magic is deceit and that is the context over here.
(iv) kikan and karafan are the Kiks and Karapans, the evil clergy, we encounter in the Gathas.
(v) gunehgaran is one who is sinful or criminal. The word guneh is also in the Indian languages meaning sin or crime.
(vi) dushman means enemy. Another word that is found in Indian languages meaning enemy. Here it means one who is harmful to and an enemy of the religion.
The prayer then translates as: O Ahura Mazda keep at a distance(3) the evil(1) and powerless(2). May evil (Ahreman) be smitten(4) and defeated(5). May Ahreman, the daevs, drujs, sorcerers(6) (magicians or deceitful), the wicked(7), the Kiks and Karapans, tyrants(8), the sinful(9), the destroyer of purity (or righteousness)(10), the wicked and enemies (of the religion)(11), the witches(12), may they all be smitten and defeated...
This prayer is in Pazand and hence has many non-Avestan words. But the importance of abstaining from evil and defeating it cannot be more clear in this daily prayer.
The Zoroastrian supplicant, in the Kem-na-Mazda prayer, in no uncertain times, prays for evil to be hewed and entreats that evil, in all its forms, must perish.
How can we say there is no evil when most of us say these prayers, religiously, every day? We ask for the defeat and destruction of evil in our fundamental prayers. We cannot ask for the destruction of something that does not exist.
Now, why is there no "evil" in the animal or the plant world? If evil exists then animals and vegetation must also be subject to evil. Well, no. Human beings are the only created species endowed with Free Will. Animals do not have free will. They act on natural instinct. Animals kill, for example, for two reasons: (i) food, and (ii) if they instinctively perceive a threat to their environment. Even herbivorous animals kill to protect their kin and natural habitat. This is also based on their natural instinct. Plants are subject to natural order. In the spring, plants and flowers bloom, shedding their leaves in the fall, and being bare during the winter. The cycle continues per natural order. There is no "will" a plant has to shed its leaves or not. Evergreen plants are so due to natural order and not by the "will" of such vegetation. The sunflower is yellow. It cannot "will" or choose to change its color to blue. It functions under the control of nature.
Human beings, on the other hand, have the capacity and the ability to make choices pursuant to the "free will" nature has bestowed upon them. (Ha 31.11-12.) Human beings do not operate on instinct in the conduct of life. Human beings may, at times, claim instinctively to act, but for the most part the guiding principle in the affairs of life is choice or the use of free will. Humans, using their wisdom (Vohu Manah), must exercise their free will and tread the path of righteousness rejecting depravity (all that is in opposition to righteousness.)
And so, in Ha 30, Zarathustra instructs humans to choose between good and evil. The individual will reap rewards if the choice is made per the dictates of the one God or good force (spirit) we call Ahura Mazda. Or bear the consequences if the choices made are those espoused by its polar opposing force—the evil spirit.
To quote Dastur Dhalla one more time from his aforementioned book: "Evil is equally the enemy of Ahura Mazda and man, and man is created a comrade in arms to resist it in all its manifestations. It is his birthright to fight evil."
Humans are created with the gift of free will (unlike other created species) to fight and vanquish evil and to help Ahura Mazda bring the world to perfection--frashokereti. In Ha 30.9, Zarathustra wants human beings to be "helpers and supporters of Ahura Mazda to make the world perfect (expressed in Ha 30.9 as frashem kerenāun—Avestan for frashokereti) with righteousness." Herein lies the answer to the question: "Wherefore was I created" that is posed in Ha 29.1. Why would Zarathustra want us to strive towards perfecting the world if there is no imperfection?
Evil exists. Denying that basic fact, because the word for some reason is repulsive, is not being a soldier committed to Ahura Mazda's army. Let us practice our great Zoroastrian religion as given to us by Zarathustra and not by what appeals to our emotions.
Evil exists. Let us call it by what it is and fight it.
(1) Dhalla, M. N., History of Zoroastrianism; Oxford University Press, New York; 1938
(2) Mills, Lawrence; Zarathustrian Gathas In Metre and Rhythm; The Open Court Publishing Company;
Chicago; 1903
Dastur Maneckji N. Dhalla in his book History of Zoroastrianism expresses these thoughts: Evil is a stubborn fact of life. While it is not good to dwell upon the wrongs of this world, real or imaginary, it is equally wrong to dismiss or deny the existence of evil for it is too potent a factor in human life to permit us to turn a blind eye to it. It is too real to be ignored and sophistically explained away. (1)
What is the definition of evil? Evil is defined as an immoral or wicked act committed by one human being against another as well as acts detrimental to all created elements in nature. Shrouding the word "evil" with euphemisms does not nullify the concept. Sugar-coating poison does not make the poison less so. Call it by any other name, dip it in honey, it is still a poison.
The Gathas are replete with directives to "fight, dispel, overcome...evil."
If we start with Ha 29.1, Zarathustra poses two very important questions:
1. Giving his voice to the soul of the universe (humankind), he asks: "Wherefore was I created?"
Meaning, "what is the reason" for humankind's creation. The answer is in Ha 30, as we shall see below.
2. The second point he makes (through the voice of the universe) is that humans are subjected to wrath, oppression, feuds, fury, insolence (all kinds of "evil" acts committed by some individuals against other human beings.)
Zarathustra announces, as he walks us through the eleven stanzas of Ha 29, that he is the one to show humankind the laws of Ahura Mazda and help humanity thwart the distress wrought by evil- doers.
This brings us to Ha 30. Before entering into a discussion of this Ha, let us look at what the University of Oxford Gatha scholar Lawrence Mills has to say about Ha 30 in his book Zarathustrian Gathas In Metre and Rhythm. He says: "It is one of the most important pieces in the Avesta, and indeed one of the most important of its kind in ancient literature; for it has formed the centre of one of the greatest theologies which the world had ever seen." (2)
Now, in Ha 30.3, Zarathustra introduces us to the existence of two spirits at the dawn of creation. The Prophet calls these forces "primal spirits" meaning the very first (primal) before anything else existed. A few writers erroneously label this concept as dualism meaning two godheads. Zarathustra very clearly asserts in Ha 30.3 and Ha 30.4 the fundamental premise that good and evil are opposing forces in all aspects and NOT "two gods." There is polarity in nature. Good has no meaning without evil; rich is meaningless without poor...and so on. If there is no evil then everything is good and we live in a perfect world. But that is not the case. We live in a world where there is deceit, enmity, malice, greed...and a host of iniquities (Ha 29.1 encompasses this state of the world.) We also live in a world where there is honesty, charity, courage, service to fellow humans, justice, wisdom, love...and many more such virtues.
From Ha 30.3, Ha 30.4 and Ha 30.5 we learn that the good spirit (Spenta Mainyu) is creative; its opposing spirit (Angra Mainyu) is destructive. This is often referred to as cosmic dualism: life and death, good and evil, famine and surfeit. Moral dualism is the opposition of good and evil in human mind. If evil is a state of the mind, as is believed, then good is also a state of the mind. One can morally (mentally) choose to be honest or dishonest, one can choose charity over avarice, one can choose justice or inequity and so on. Every virtue has an opposing vice (evil) from which we must refrain. Zarathustra enjoins human beings to choose what the good spirit embodies (virtue) and abjure the machinations of the evil spirit using one's free will. Choice is a fundamental premise in Zarathustra's doctrines. One cannot choose what does not exist.
Regarding an understanding of the prevalence of evil as shown by Zarathustra in Ha 30 Lawrence Mills, in the book mentioned above, says: "The point and interior meaning of the entire doctrine [Ha 30] is that a good god cannot be responsible for permanent evil, that imperfection and suffering are original and inherent in the nature of things..."
Thus, evil is "original and inherent" in nature as clearly enunciated by Zarathustra in the stanzas of Ha 30. Evil is not some "god", but a natural force counter to the force of virtue. This is what is meant by dualism—two opposing forces per the laws of nature and NOT two gods.
We call the good spirit "Ahura Mazda" and, so yes, there is only one God that we must venerate.
And so the Gathas are explicit about the existence of evil in this world and how human beings can overcome evil by making right choices in the affairs of life.
Let us put the Gathas aside for a moment and look at our kusti prayer: Ahura Mazda Khoday.
We start the prayer thus:
Ahura Mazda Khoday ahreman(1) awadshan(2) duravaz(3) dashtar, zad(4) shekashte(5) bad; ahreman, devan, darujan, jaduan(6), darvandan(7), kikan, karafan, sastaran(8), gunehgaran(9), ashmogan(10), darvandan, dushmana(11), friyan(12) zad shekashte bad...
What does this mean? First, let us look at certain words and their meaning to get a full appreciation of the prayer.
(i) duravaz means distance. dur is also a word in some Indian languages (Hindi and Gujarati, being two) meaning distance.
(ii) devan and darujan as we well know means daeva and druj, meaning evil people we encounter in the Gathas.
(iii) jaduan means one who is deceitful. This word also should be familiar to Indologists. jadu in these languages means magic. Magic is deceit and that is the context over here.
(iv) kikan and karafan are the Kiks and Karapans, the evil clergy, we encounter in the Gathas.
(v) gunehgaran is one who is sinful or criminal. The word guneh is also in the Indian languages meaning sin or crime.
(vi) dushman means enemy. Another word that is found in Indian languages meaning enemy. Here it means one who is harmful to and an enemy of the religion.
The prayer then translates as: O Ahura Mazda keep at a distance(3) the evil(1) and powerless(2). May evil (Ahreman) be smitten(4) and defeated(5). May Ahreman, the daevs, drujs, sorcerers(6) (magicians or deceitful), the wicked(7), the Kiks and Karapans, tyrants(8), the sinful(9), the destroyer of purity (or righteousness)(10), the wicked and enemies (of the religion)(11), the witches(12), may they all be smitten and defeated...
This prayer is in Pazand and hence has many non-Avestan words. But the importance of abstaining from evil and defeating it cannot be more clear in this daily prayer.
The Zoroastrian supplicant, in the Kem-na-Mazda prayer, in no uncertain times, prays for evil to be hewed and entreats that evil, in all its forms, must perish.
How can we say there is no evil when most of us say these prayers, religiously, every day? We ask for the defeat and destruction of evil in our fundamental prayers. We cannot ask for the destruction of something that does not exist.
Now, why is there no "evil" in the animal or the plant world? If evil exists then animals and vegetation must also be subject to evil. Well, no. Human beings are the only created species endowed with Free Will. Animals do not have free will. They act on natural instinct. Animals kill, for example, for two reasons: (i) food, and (ii) if they instinctively perceive a threat to their environment. Even herbivorous animals kill to protect their kin and natural habitat. This is also based on their natural instinct. Plants are subject to natural order. In the spring, plants and flowers bloom, shedding their leaves in the fall, and being bare during the winter. The cycle continues per natural order. There is no "will" a plant has to shed its leaves or not. Evergreen plants are so due to natural order and not by the "will" of such vegetation. The sunflower is yellow. It cannot "will" or choose to change its color to blue. It functions under the control of nature.
Human beings, on the other hand, have the capacity and the ability to make choices pursuant to the "free will" nature has bestowed upon them. (Ha 31.11-12.) Human beings do not operate on instinct in the conduct of life. Human beings may, at times, claim instinctively to act, but for the most part the guiding principle in the affairs of life is choice or the use of free will. Humans, using their wisdom (Vohu Manah), must exercise their free will and tread the path of righteousness rejecting depravity (all that is in opposition to righteousness.)
And so, in Ha 30, Zarathustra instructs humans to choose between good and evil. The individual will reap rewards if the choice is made per the dictates of the one God or good force (spirit) we call Ahura Mazda. Or bear the consequences if the choices made are those espoused by its polar opposing force—the evil spirit.
To quote Dastur Dhalla one more time from his aforementioned book: "Evil is equally the enemy of Ahura Mazda and man, and man is created a comrade in arms to resist it in all its manifestations. It is his birthright to fight evil."
Humans are created with the gift of free will (unlike other created species) to fight and vanquish evil and to help Ahura Mazda bring the world to perfection--frashokereti. In Ha 30.9, Zarathustra wants human beings to be "helpers and supporters of Ahura Mazda to make the world perfect (expressed in Ha 30.9 as frashem kerenāun—Avestan for frashokereti) with righteousness." Herein lies the answer to the question: "Wherefore was I created" that is posed in Ha 29.1. Why would Zarathustra want us to strive towards perfecting the world if there is no imperfection?
Evil exists. Denying that basic fact, because the word for some reason is repulsive, is not being a soldier committed to Ahura Mazda's army. Let us practice our great Zoroastrian religion as given to us by Zarathustra and not by what appeals to our emotions.
Evil exists. Let us call it by what it is and fight it.
(1) Dhalla, M. N., History of Zoroastrianism; Oxford University Press, New York; 1938
(2) Mills, Lawrence; Zarathustrian Gathas In Metre and Rhythm; The Open Court Publishing Company;
Chicago; 1903