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Monday, November 19, 2012

Masculine Deities in Ancient Central Asia (600 BC)

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"Although the word deity was originally a synonym for god, experience has shown that some practices such as those performed by Buddhists consist of a type of address in which the intent is rather different from the usual ancient one. That is, the general intention is not to flatter, placate or enter into contracts.....There is another important difference between Buddhist deities and mythological gods or goddesses. The latter are, or were once, considered real -- described as motivated by jealousy, power and other appetites and not very different from physical creatures such as people. The deities of Buddhism are ultimately regarded as manifestations of Emptiness. In fact for some practitioners, deity devotion is eventually abandoned as a technique or method for attaining an enlightened state when it has outlived its utility.".....http://www.abuddhistlibrary.com

Stone carved Faravahar in Persepolis..... the symbol is influenced by the "winged sun" hieroglyph appearing on Bronze Age royal seals (Luwian SOL SUUS, symbolizing royal power...... In Neo-Assyrian times, a human bust is added to the disk, the "feather-robed archer" interpreted as symbolizing Ashur.....thought to represent the 'Divine Royal Glory' (Khvarenah), or the Fravashi of the king."

FRAVASHIS......"A class of higher intelligence that are ancient Persian guardian warrior spirits. The 19th day of every month is consecrated to them. King Phraortes' (647 BC) Persian name is derived from the term."(Dhalla:1963..pg 235)..... "Hence Finite Time and Finite Space control man's destiny from the cradle to the grave. Yet the whole of the macrocosm is kept in being by the Fravashis (Dralas ??), the spiritual powers that are indissolubly linked with each human being and with humanity as a whole. Finite time-space, then, is not a kenoma, an empty nothingness, but a pleroma, a 'full' and vital organism...."...(Zaehner..1961..pg 150)...

"Ölmo Lungring or Shambhala, this imperishable sacred land, which is the spiritual center of the world, existed on earth from the very beginning of the human race. It was the place where the celestial gods of the Clear Light (`od gsal lha) descended from heaven to earth in order to take up incarnation as human beings and ensoul the physical bodies which had been prepared for them.".....http://bonchildren.tonkoblako-9.net/en/jewel2/03.tan

Shenlha Okar | Kunzang Akor....Tibetan: Kunzang Akor (kun bzang a bskor)......The Bon deity Kunzang Akor is the meditational form of Shenlha Okar. He is generally recognized by the Tibetan letter 'A' placed on the chest at the level of the heart. The two hands are generally placed in the lap and hold the stems of two flower blossoms supporting a yungdrung (svastika) on the right and a vase on the left. There are numerous traditions of ritual cycles and meditation practices for Kunzang Akor. It is also common to have a sculpture of Kunzang Akor created as a death memorial. In Tibetan Buddhism it is more common to have a painting created in memorium however in the Bon Religion creating a sculpture is more common and considered best.".....http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=683

"...when you contact the wisdom of the cosmic mirror, you are meeting the ultimate dralas, the Rigden kings of Shambhala. Once having made a connection to ultimate drala, it is possible for the primordial wisdom and vision of the Rigden kings to be passed down to the level of human perception. The vastness of perception can be captured in simplicity, a single perception, on the spot. When we allow vastness to enter our perception, then it becomes drala; it becomes brilliant and luminous—magical. When we have this experience, then we are meeting what are called the inner dralas. The inner dralas are empowered by the wisdom of the cosmic mirror, the Rigdens, to manifest brilliance and elegance in this phenomenal world."..From Shambhala: The Sacred Path of the Warrior, by Chögyam Trungpa; © 1984

Sangpo Bumtri (sangspo bum 'khri) is the creator god of Tibetan Buddhism. He has "neither eyes to see, nor hands to hold, nor ears to hear, or nose to smell, he has only his spirit" (Andreas Grutschke: Tibetan Myths and Legends). He possesses a silver body.

Xwarenah (Avestisch; Pahlavi: Xwarrah, Neupersisch: Farr)

Khvarenah or khwarenah (xᵛarənah) is an Avestan language word for a Zoroastrian concept literally denoting "glory" or "splendour" but understood as a divine mystical force or power projected upon and aiding the appointed. The neuter noun thus also connotes "(divine) royal glory," reflecting the perceived divine empowerment of kings. The term also carries a secondary meaning of "(good) fortune"; those who possess it are able to complete their mission or function.

AVESTA....The worship 'Ancestors' (the Pitris) was another very marked feature of the ancient Aryan Faith, which both the branches inherited in common. The ritual pertaining to this worship consists of the 'cake-offering' (the darun among the Parsis and the Purodasha among the Hindus) and the libation of 'a product of the cow', which latter was milk in Iran and ghi (clarified butter) in India. But in Iran ancestor-worship developed into the deeper and the more philosophical idea of the Fravashi, which is lacking in the Indian branch. The Fravashi is the Eternal principle in man which persists through all time and seemingly progresses throughout the ages. As a writer (himself a Zoroastrian) has well put it: 'The Fravashis of men are archetypal souls clothed in ethereal forms, after whose model each human being is formed on earth....The body of each man with its peculiar physical, mental, moral and spiritual capacities, is shaped and formed after the model which each particular Fravashi presents'. Each being, right up to Ahura Himself, possesses a Fravashi which exists through all eternity.

Shuddhodana (Skt. Śuddhodana; Wyl. rgyal po zas gtang ma) — King of the Shakyas and father of Prince Siddhartha, the future Buddha Shakyamuni....Siddhārtha Gautama as one belonging to the Shākya clan, a lineage in the solar dynasty whose members include figures from Indic legend.....http://www.universitypressscholarship.com

In the Rigveda, the Ādityas are the seven celestial deities, sons of Āditi, headed by Varuna, followed by Mitra (Vedic personification of Surya) :
Varuna... god of the sky, of water and of the celestial ocean.
Mitra (Surya)...some relation with the Zoroastrian divinity Mithra (Miθra)
Aryaman...creator of day and night, controls the movement of time.
Bhaga...god of wealth and marriage
Anśa or Aṃśa
Dhatri...god of health and domestic tranquility
Indra...god of rain and thunderstorms

"wind-horse" (Mong. hiimori, Tib. lung-ta) - I had a hypothesis that the Huns have had a similar word only reversed - "horse-wind" - representing the royal charismatic power (like Iranian farr and Turkic qut). In Turkic languages "horse" is at and "wind" - yel or yil (in Hunnic initial y becomes d) - and thus I suggested that the name of Attila was actually a title, not personal name, meaning "His Horse-wind" (*at-dil-ä with Dative possessive affix) in the sense of "His Majesty".....Ardavarz Saudar

WINDHORSE...(T:lungta...Sk: prana...Ch: ch'i): Mipham (1846-1912): "to write klung-rta (river horse) is not beautiful. It should be written rlung-rta (windhorse)". (Karmay 1993)...LUNG means wind and TA means horse. Invoking secret drala is the experience of raising windhorse, raising a wind of delight and power and riding on, or conquering, that energy...a feeling of being completely and powerfully in the present...connect yourself to the inconceivable vision and wisdom of the cosmic mirror on the spot." (Trungpa: 1984..Pg 114)...The Tibetan text: "Cult of the Deities of the Lungta" A Buddhist text from the 14th century. Includes an invocation to the deities of the four directions. (Norbu:1995, pg70)....klung: river, stream....klung rta: luck, fortune....rlung: wind, breath, vital energy, prana, energy currents of the body, element wind...rlungta: the wind horse...."The klungta is a protective energy tied to a person's bla and phywa and is based on the function of the five elements." (Norbu:1995..pg 249)...."klun-rta (rlun-rta) is regularly written as sruns-rta." (Snellgrove: 1967...pg 9)

XRATU....."The power of 'xratu/rising' is an energy closely connected with visionary insight, indeed it is the cause of it. The moment of dawning when Mithra and his retinue are manifested." (Piras: 1996...pg 15)..."The relationship between daena (the medium of sight) and xratu (a mental sphere). Possession of daena/vision is manifested with the action of an eye enhanced with the energy of xratu, displaying the features of 'rising. Vision derives from the possession of the 'asna xratu', which is itself the faculty of vision of 'Jan', whence the eye is ordered." (Piras: 1996...pg 14)...

XVARENAH....(Xvarnah, Xwarrarh, farrah, khurrah,See Khvarenah)

Avestan khvarenah is probably derived from Proto-Avestan *hvar "to shine"

KAWIS...."Glory" (Median: farnah) (Khotanese:pharra)..."In the Avesta, the xwarenah is called 'kawyan', that is belonging to the Kawis. The Kawis were a partially legendary dynasty of eastern Iranian rulers. Xwarenah can be a creative power used by the gods or it can be a religious power. But generally it embodies the concept of good fortune. As a kind of fiery radiance it would relate to the word for sun (xwar) (Old Iranian: Suvar) (hwar: to shine)(xwar: to grasp)." (Malandra: 1983...pg 88)

In the Iranian languages of the middle period, the word is also attested as Bactrian far(r)o, Khotanese pharra, Parthian farh, Sogdian f(a)rn, and Ossetic farnae and farn, though in these languages the word does not necessarily signify "glory" or "fortune": In Buddhism, Sogdian farn and Khotanese pharra signified a "position of a Buddha," that is, with "dignity" or "high position." This meaning subsequently passed into Tocharian. In Manicheanism, Sogdian frn signified "luck" and was a designator of the "first luminary". Manichean Parthian farh again signifies "glory." In Scytho-Sarmatian and Alan culture, Digoron Ossetic farnae and Iron Ossetic farn signified "peace, happiness, abundance, fortune."

Bisyllabic khvarenah is only attested once in the Gathas, the oldest hymns of Zoroastrianism and considered to have been composed by the prophet himself. The one instance of Gathic khvarenah occurs in Yasna 51.18, where the word appears to mean royal glory. The primary source of information on khvarenah comes from the Yashts, the younger Avesta's collection of 21 hymns dedicated to individual divinities....Two distinct forms of khvarenah are discernible in Yasht 19: kavam khvarenah (kauuaēm xᵛarənah), the fortune of the kavis, the Kayanian kings.......akhvaretem khvarenah (axᵛarətəm xᵛarənah), glory that both divinities and mortals should strive for.

Khvarenah is however also glory held by divinities: Ahura Mazda has it (19.9-13), the Amesha Spentas have it (19.14-20), the other yazatas as well (19.21-24). Yima loses it thrice, in turn to Mithra, Thraetaona and Keresaspa. Khvarenah assumes the shape of a bird when leaving Yima. (19.35-36, 19.82)......According to Yasht 13.14, the waters flow, the plants spring forth, and the winds blow through the khvarenah of the Fravashis.

"In Bon, the colour of one's own rlung rta is in accordnce with the element in one's horoscope so that the rlung rta of each person is one of the five element colours.....(The Arrow and the Spindle...Pg 152)

"The Zijid explains that when someone is afflicted by poverty it is necessary to increase the cha and the yang." Rituals are described to summon the cha and yang present in the universe. (Norbu: 1995..pg 72)....

"In many Tibetan houses, a white dgra lha mask is always hung to insure good luck and prosperity for the family. A thangka showing the nine dgra lha is also hung." (Nebesky: 1956..pg 335)...

Vayu (the Wind, a name which is identically the same in both the languages) is another of the ancient Aryan deities. Haug says that 'he is the only Vedic Deity who is mentioned by name in the Gathas', a rare distinction indeed, if Haug's interpretation be true; but modern scholars like Bartholomae have cast a doubt upon Haug's rendering of that passage.

In Zoroastrian tradition, life is a temporary state in which a mortal is expected to actively participate in the continuing battle between truth and falsehood. Prior to being born, the urvan (soul) of an individual is still united with its fravashi (guardian spirit), and which have existed since Mazda created the universe. During life, the fravashi acts as a guardian and protector. On the fourth day after death, the soul is reunited with its fravashi, in which the experiences of life in the material world are collected for the continuing battle in the spiritual world. For the most part, Zoroastrianism does not have a notion of reincarnation, at least not until the final renovation of the world. Followers of Ilm-e-Kshnoom in India believe in reincarnation and practice vegetarianism, two principles unknown to Orthodox Zoroastrianism.[8]

"The Bundahishn is the concise view of the Zoroastrianism's creation myth, and of the first battles of the forces of Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu for the hegemony of the world. According to the text, in the first 3,000 years of the cosmic year, Ahura Mazda created the Fravashis and conceived the idea of his would-be creation. He used the insensible and motionless Void as a weapon against Angra Mainyu, and at the end of that period, Angra Mainyu was forced to submission and fell into a stupor for the next 3,000 years. Taking advantage of Angra Mainyu's absence, Ahura Mazda created the Amesha Spentas (Bounteous Immortals), representing the primordial elements of the material world, and permeated his kingdom with Ard (Asha), "Truth" in order to prevent Angra Mainyu from destroying it. The Bundahishn finally recounts the creation of the primordial bovine, Ewagdad (Avestan Gavaevodata), and Gayomard (Avestan Gayomaretan), the primordial human......http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundahishn

The Eight Legions are a curious grouping of Buddhist protectors, demons, and spirits. Among the eight groups, only the Ten (Skt. Deva) and Ryū (Skt. Naga; serpent-like creatures, including Dragons) appear with great frequency in Japanese sculpture and artwork, while the other six are represented much less so. As a group, the Hachi Bushu are not objects of Buddhist worship, although some individual Ten (Deva) are given independent status as objects of devotion (e.g., Bishamonten, Benzaiten, Daikokuten).
Ten (Skt: Deva). Celestial beings, 6th level of existence
Ryū (Ryu, Ryuu) (Skt: Naga). Serpent-like creatures, including dragons. Attendants to Kōmokuten (Shitennō)
Yasha (Skt: Yaksa). Warriors of Fierce Stance, Nature Spirits.
Protect Yakushi Nyorai, commanded by Tamonten (Shitennō)
Kendatsuba (Skt: Gandharva). Gods of music, medicine, children. Commanded by Jikokuten (Shitennō); one of their kings is Sendan Kendatsuba
Ashura (Skt: Asura). Demigod, 4th level of existence
Karura (Skt: Garuda) Bird-man, enemy of dragons
Kinnara (Skt: Kimnara). Celestial musicians & dancers; human form with horse’s head; commanded by Tamonten (Shitennō)
Magoraka (Skt: Mahoraga). Serpentine musicians
http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/hachi-bushu.shtml

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

John Hopkins.....Northern New Mexico….November 2012

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