Readers' Forum
“The path of truth”
I fully concur with Kobad Ghandy ("The path of truth,” Parsiana, April 21, 2018) that Justice Rohinton Nariman’s book, The Inner Fire, is relevant to our times. The Gathas form the very foundation of our religion. Whenever their precepts are followed, it results in both physical and spiritual well-being as both are so intricately intertwined. I have read every translation of the Gathas by learned western scholars (Stanley Insler often warmly welcoming me as his favorite follower), and I find that scholarly translations of the Gathas are mostly for scholarly debates. I agree with Ghandy that Nariman’s book is "indeed a valuable treatise,” specifically given his judicial responsibilities in the Supreme Court.
Appalled by the current generation’s apathy to studying religion, much less the difficult Avestan language, I was overjoyed that one of the busiest and youngest jurists of our times has found it worth his while to translate the Gathas, which are even older than the other Avesta we know. As is known in this field, no translation of the Gathas is universally acknowledged and accepted. It is therefore meaningless to compare Nariman’s work with the work of western savants who spend their entire life studying the Avesta. I personally like and follow Insler who has attained mastery over the Rigvedic Sanskrit and then over the Gathic Avesta, but as the late Prof Mary Boyce pointed out, his original work is hampered by the fact that his expertise was not in the study of Zoroastrianism and its concepts, which, however, he is trying to catch up on now.
Professional reviewers are obligated to review philological works in a scholarly vein and my very dear late, lamented friend and ardent supporter, Farrokh Vajifdar remained true to his calling in critically reviewing Nariman’s work ("Reverence to truth,” Books, Parsiana, August 7, 2017). Unfortunately he found it wanting, which of course was a foregone conclusion in the circumstances. Had Nariman devoted his entire career to being a religious scholar, I have no doubt that he would surpass other scholars, being both an ordained priest and self-taught linguist. Not that Nariman’s work is free of faults which seem inherent in such endeavors. This proves that it is difficult to be knowledgeable about everything. It makes it all the more necessary for enthusiasts like Nariman to venture into studying our ancient works and, as Ghandy puts it, "try and put the lessons into practice in our daily life,” which unfortunately is not the concern of academic scholars. I heartily join Ghandy in hoping that "we can all emulate him (Nariman) and give life to what is fast becoming a dead religion.”
Appalled by the current generation’s apathy to studying religion, much less the difficult Avestan language, I was overjoyed that one of the busiest and youngest jurists of our times has found it worth his while to translate the Gathas, which are even older than the other Avesta we know. As is known in this field, no translation of the Gathas is universally acknowledged and accepted. It is therefore meaningless to compare Nariman’s work with the work of western savants who spend their entire life studying the Avesta. I personally like and follow Insler who has attained mastery over the Rigvedic Sanskrit and then over the Gathic Avesta, but as the late Prof Mary Boyce pointed out, his original work is hampered by the fact that his expertise was not in the study of Zoroastrianism and its concepts, which, however, he is trying to catch up on now.
Professional reviewers are obligated to review philological works in a scholarly vein and my very dear late, lamented friend and ardent supporter, Farrokh Vajifdar remained true to his calling in critically reviewing Nariman’s work ("Reverence to truth,” Books, Parsiana, August 7, 2017). Unfortunately he found it wanting, which of course was a foregone conclusion in the circumstances. Had Nariman devoted his entire career to being a religious scholar, I have no doubt that he would surpass other scholars, being both an ordained priest and self-taught linguist. Not that Nariman’s work is free of faults which seem inherent in such endeavors. This proves that it is difficult to be knowledgeable about everything. It makes it all the more necessary for enthusiasts like Nariman to venture into studying our ancient works and, as Ghandy puts it, "try and put the lessons into practice in our daily life,” which unfortunately is not the concern of academic scholars. I heartily join Ghandy in hoping that "we can all emulate him (Nariman) and give life to what is fast becoming a dead religion.”
Rohinton Nariman (l) and Kobad Ghandy
I am about to complete a book on the profound influence of Zoroastrianism which will never become dead to others but unfortunately only to us Zoroastrians. My recital of the Gathas in its original meters is available on the Internet. What Asho Zarathushtra said at least 3,200 years ago is as true today as it was at that time.
From what I read about Ghandy in Parsiana, I cannot but heartily note how well he has emulated Gathic precepts in his own life against all odds, reminding me of Yasna 46.42 in which Asho Zarathushtra laments: "To what land can I flee? Where shall I go to flee? They exclude (me) from my family and my clan. The community (or country) with which I have associated has not satisfied me, nor those who are the deceitful rulers of the land. How, then, shall I satisfy Thee, O Ahura Mazda?
"I know the reason why I am powerless, oh Mazda: by my condition of having few resources and no assistance from men. I lament to Thee. Take notice of it, Ahura! offering the support a friend should grant to a friend!”
Ghandy apparently seems to have emulated the Gathic insistence on fighting evil well before he actually read the Gathas. However, as I have often stated, the Gathic message had become a part of the subconscious mind and culture or what Carl Jung would call the unconscious collective memories of our race. Otherwise, it would be hard to explain how the 19th century Parsis followed Gathic maxims so well even before the Gatha texts were translated. May the Gathas bring Ghandy all the succor and guidance he needs as also inspire jurists and others to help him obtain justice, as not doing so would be a sin in itself. Yasna 46.6 adds that this is the primary principle of religion. Dr KERSEY ANTIA
Illinois, USA
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