Supplement No. 29

King Jamshed, the Brilliant, the Founder of Jamshedi Naoroze. His so-called 'Pride', a Great Self-Sacrifice.

The Avestan name of (King) Jamshed is Yima Khshaeta, meaning Yima, the Brilliant. "Yim is Jam in Pahlavi and pazand. The name Jamshed is formed by suffixing the title Shid, (AV. Khshaeta) to the original Persian Jam. He is stated to be the son of (King) Tehmurasp. Some writers mention him as the latter's nephew; in Bundehesh he is stated to be his, younger brother. But in all places in Avesta he is mentioned as the son of Vivanghat, and the epithet Hvanthva, (lit., watching over the subjects) is applied to him. In Yasna; 9, 4-5 it is stilted that when Vivanghat performed the holy ceremony of Hom he was rewarded with Jamshed as his son, who possessed the brightest Glory, having the appearance of the sun (Hvare dareso), and a great protector of his subjects. According to Shahnama he ruled for 700 years, according to Bundesesh 616, and according to Avesta 1000 years.

It is stated that to commemorate the history of Iran, he laid foundation of the gigantic monument on the mountain, which is known as 'Takht-e-Jamshid'. (Learned Kutar Bros. 'Guj. Trln. of Firdausi's Shahnama).

 

Three Forms of Yima (Jamshed)

The name Yima is of three categories, viz., 1, Yima Khshae- , ta the Yazadic (angelic) potentiality referred to in Vandidad; 2,22 seq.; 2, Yima Khshaeta, occurring in different Yashts, is the King Jamshed; and 3, Yima, the potentiality which will function with Soshyos towards the next World Deluge.

 

Jamshedi Naoroze.

About Jamshedi Naoroze it is stated in "Shahnama of Firdausi" (English translation by the learned Warner and Warner) as under:

".......Jamshid ambitioned
Rang loftier still, and by his royal Grace
Made him a throne, with what a wealth of gems
Inlaid;
which when he willed the- divs (demons) took up
And bore from earth to heaven. There the Shah,
Whose word was law, sat sunlike in mid air.
The world assembled round his throne in wonder
At his resplendent fortune, while on him
The people scattered jewels, and bestowed
Upon the day the name of New Year's Day,
The first of Farvardin and of the year,
When limbs repose from labour, hearts from strife.
The noble chieftains held a festival,
Called for the goblet, wine, and minstrelsy
And since that time that glorious day
Remaineth the memorial of that Shah."

Since King Jamshed lived over 11,000 years ago, so the above Naoroze has also been of the same antiquity

King Jamshed Supplicating for Boons.

In the Avesta we find King Jamshed, Yima Khshaeta, the good shepherd, supplicating to different divine Intelligences such as of Avan-Ardvi-Sura, Dravaspa (Gosh Yasht), Ashi Vanguhi, Vayu (Ram Yt.), for various boons, which were all granted. Thus he prays: "that I may become the sovereign lord of all countries, of the Daevas (demons), sorcerers, witches, oppressors and the wicked who having eyes see not, and having ears hear not; that I may bring immortality down to the world created by Mazda; that I may take away hunger and thirst, take away both old age and death; take away both hot and cold wind for a thousand years; may become the most glorious of the men born, to behold the Sun (or, having appearance as of the Sun - 'Hvare dareso' Kangaji Footnote Yt. 15,16); may make animals and men undying in my reign, may make waters and plants undrying, and the aliments for creatures never failing." "In the reign of Yima there was neither old age nor death, nor envy made by the Daevas." (Abridged from S B E Vol. XXIII Tr. by Prof. Darmesteter). Thus the world passed through the Golden Age for three centuries.

Fall of Jamshed, His so-called 'Pride', a Great Self Sacrifice.

After describing the glorious side of the reign of King Jamshed, Zamyad Yasht states:

34 "But when he began to find delight in words of falsehood and untruth (of 'Pride' - Kangaji) the Glory was seen to flee away from him in the shape of a bird. When his Glory had disappeared, then the great Yima Khshaeta, the good shepherd, trembled, and was in sorrow before he was confounded and laid him down on the ground.

35 The first time when his Glory departed from the bright Yima, the Glory went from Yima, the son of Vivanghat, in the shape of a Varaghna bird." (The Glory departed same way twice again).

It is shown above that animals and men were made undying, which means that sorcery, lust, selfishness and other Satanic activities had stopped. However, this does not mean that the Satan was rendered totally extinct, but his devilry was only contracted to embryonic state, i.e., rendered latent for a time. Besides this, when King Tehmurasp (Jamshed's predecessor) had subdued the demons, they saved their life by teaching the arts of writing on mountains by rendering the stone soft and writing by means of stone. Thus alphabets came into existence in the form of hieroglyphics and, other methods of writing and reading. But these arts were not all blissful or of innocent type, for in the knowledge gained from the demons there were Agha-Manthra, evil spells, which engendered sorcery, dissensions, etc. Thus these evil arts became current in the world. In this way the state of immortality and blissfulness created by King Jamshed could last no longer, and selfishness, lust, death, etc., reappeared, which is allegorically expressed as the downfall of Jamshed.

This falling Jamshed is not called Yime-Vivanghat, but Yime- Vivanghusht about which (Vivanghush) there is reference in Gatha (Yasna; 32,8). Now Jamshed assumes the role of wickedness. Certain part of Yima Khshaeta potentiality called simply Yim was severed ('sawed') from Vivangha, and became an ally of Ganamin, and went in the service of Satan who wants to destroy the material world. Ganamin though an angelic potentiality leads or guides and instigates the Satan. In Gatha (Ysn. 53,7) we are exhorted to extirpate the internal lust or avarice and the Evil spirit - the 'beast in man'. There is no teaching of forgiveness for sins in Zoroastrianism. This internal Evil Spirit entices the person to step up the vice which he or she is subject to, i.e., the vice is made to overflow, so that it may meet with retributive punishment, whereby the Evil is transmuted into Good. Yima though a potentiality becomes the charioteer of Ahriman, the Satan.

The goal of both Ganamin and Yima is to develop and intensify wickedness by guiles and wiles, so that when wickedness goes to its extreme, it is smitten, and Evil transmuted into Good in the end. Thus the work of Frasho-kereti, spiritual Renovation is made quicker. In this way, Ganamin and Yima give great self-sacrifice, and display their devotion to Ahura Mazda by the mode of opposition (Jooz). Thus the great service rendered in Nature is enigmatically expressed as 'King Jamshed’s pride.' (Condensed from learned Dr. F. S. Chiniwalla's book '.'Khshnoom Nikize Vehdin" in Guj. Vol. I. p. 45-ka seq.)