Page 518 - Lokmanya Tilak Samagra (khand 2)

Tim A VESTIC EVIDENCE 299

for the preconceived notion that the original home of the
Iranians cannot be placed in the far north, I think no scholar
would have cared to put forward such guesses. There are
express passages in the A vesta, which describe in unmistakable
terms the climatic characteristics of the Airyana Va~jo, and so
far as I am aware, no valid reason has yet been assigned why we
should treat this description as mythical and have recourse to
guess-work for determining the position of the primeval home.
Thus at the beginning of the first Fargard, we are told that the
Airyana Va~jo was the first good and happy creation of Ahura
Mazda, but Angra Mainyu converted it into a land of ten
months' winter and two months' summer, evidently meaning that
at the time when the Fargard was composed it was an icebound
land. The winter of ten months' duration, therefore, naturally
points to a position in the far north, at a great distance beyond
the Jaxarter; and it would be unreasonable to ignore this descrip-
tion which is characteristic only of the Arctic regions, and,
relying on doubtful guesses, hold that the Airyana Vaejo was the
easternmost boundary of the ancient Iran. As the passage, where
the ten months' winter is described as the present principal
climatic characteristic of the Airyana Vaejo, is very important
for our purpose, I give below the translations of the same by
Darmesteter, Spiegel and Haug :-
VENDIDAD, F ARGARD 1
Dasmesteter Spiegel Haug and Bunsen

3· The first of the s. The first and 3. As the first best of
good lands and coun- best of regions and regions and countries I,
tries, which I, Ahura places have I creat- who am Ahura Ma2da,
Mazda, created, was ed, I who am Ahura created A1ryana Vaej o of
the Airyana Vaejo, Mazda; good capability; there-
by the good river 6. The Airyana upon in opposition, to
D4itya. Vaejo of the good him Angra Mainyus, the
Thereupon came creation. death-dealing, created a
Angra Mainyu, who 7. Then Angra Mai- mighty serpent and
is all death, and he nyus, who is full of snow, the work of the
countercreated by death, created an op- Daevas.
his witch craft the position to the same;
serpent in the river 8. A great serpent
and winter, a work and Winter, which