Hello Dean, I don't know of any Middle Persian sources that would support Nabarz's view. It's quite inaccurate, and goes against what we, or I, know about Zoroastrianism. I have had a brief look at some of the other descriptions of Zoroastrianism in Nabarz (2005) and would say that most are outdated by now, if they had not already been then.
A couple of the Middle Persian texts associate Zarathustra's mother with the Endless Light, but none seem to suggest any virgin birth. That's why I said yesterday that the process is complex involving a number of steps. Zarathustra is certainly not conceived like other people, and divine/supernatural beings go to various lengths to make his birth possible. In Dēnkard 7 that I mentioned yesterday, his parents have intercourse three times with the idea to conceive a child. If you read Persian, I can warmly recommend this book which is a collection of sources: Amoozgar, J. & A. Tafazzoli. 1997. Zoroaster's mythical life. Tehran. Best wishes, Arash On Sun, 26 Dec 2021, 05:23 Dean Michael Anderson via INDOLOGY, < [email protected]> wrote: > Thanks. I was hoping to find the primary source. > > Best, > > Dean > > On Sunday, December 26, 2021, 10:39:34 AM GMT+5:30, Alex Watson via > INDOLOGY <[email protected]> wrote: > > > On Saturday, December 25, 2021, 10:57:41 PM GMT+5:30, Arash Zeini via > INDOLOGY <[email protected]> wrote: > > Hello Dean, > What's reference for the text you quote, or is that what you are asking? > > On Sun, Dec 26, 2021 at 3:39 AM Dean Michael Anderson via INDOLOGY < > [email protected]> wrote: > > Yes, I was trying to find the source of that quote. > > > The sentence is contained in: > Payam Nabarz (2005), *The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan Belief That > Shaped the Christian World*. Simon and Schuster. > -- > Alex Watson > Professor of Indian Philosophy > Ashoka University > *https://ashokauniversity.academia.edu/AlexWatson > <https://ashokauniversity.academia.edu/AlexWatson>* > > > > On Saturday, December 25, 2021, 10:57:41 PM GMT+5:30, Arash Zeini via > INDOLOGY <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Hello Dean, > > What's reference for the text you quote, or is that what you are asking? > > As you know the sources for Zarathustra's birth stories are the Middle > Persian accounts, and among those Book 7 of the Dēnkard stands out. The > birth story is complex and Ohrmazd and his helpers put many elements in > motion so that Zarathustra can be conceived. One of these, is sexual > intercourse between the parents, something the the daemons try to > discourage. > > Best, > Arash > > > On Sat, 25 Dec 2021, 11:04 Dean Michael Anderson via INDOLOGY, < > [email protected]> wrote: > > Sorry for once again spilling over the South Asian borders but I can't > seem to find a reliable reference for this claim: > > "Zoroaster is said to have had a miraculous birth: his mother, Dughdova, > was a virgin who conceived him after being visited by a shaft of light. > > Perhaps some of our Indo-Iranians might know. > > Best, > > Dean > > > _______________________________________________ > INDOLOGY mailing list > [email protected] > https://list.indology.info/mailman/listinfo/indology > > _______________________________________________ > INDOLOGY mailing list > [email protected] > https://list.indology.info/mailman/listinfo/indology >
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