Mithra ( ae, ''Miθra'', peo, 𐎷𐎰𐎼 ''Miça'') commonly known as Mehr, is the Iranian deity of covenant, light, oath, justice and the sun. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of Truth, and the guardian of cattle, the harvest, and of

the Waters ''The Waters'' (stylized as ''The Water ') is the fourth mixtape by American rapper Mick Jenkins. It was released on August 12, 2014, by Cinematic Music Group. Background ''The Waters'' is a concept mixtape. Jenkins' lyrics are immersed in the s ...

. The Romans attributed their Mithraic mysteries to Zoroastrian Persian sources relating to Mithra. Since the early 1970s, the dominant scholarship has noted dissimilarities between the Persian and Roman traditions, making it, at most, the result of Roman ''perceptions'' of Zoroastrian ideas.

Etymology

Together with the Vedic common noun ''

mitra ''Mitra'' ( Proto-Indo-Iranian: ''*mitrás'') is the name of an Indo-Iranian divinity from which the names and some characteristics of Rigvedic Mitrá and Avestan Mithra derive. The names (and occasionally also some characteristics) of these t ...

'', the Avestan common noun ''miθra'' derives from

Proto-Indo-Iranian Proto-Indo-Iranian, also Proto-Indo-Iranic is the reconstructed proto-language of the Indo-Iranian/Indo-Iranic branch of Indo-European. Its speakers, the hypothetical Proto-Indo-Iranians, are assumed to have lived in the late 3rd millennium B ...

'' *mitrám'' (Mitra), from the root ''*mi-'' "to bind", with the "tool suffix" ''-tra-'' "causing to". Thus, etymologically ''mitra''/''miθra'' means "that which causes binding", preserved in the Avestan word for "Covenant, Contract, Oath". In Middle Iranian languages ( Middle Persian,

Parthian Parthian may be: Historical * A demonym "of Parthia", a region of north-eastern of Greater Iran * Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD) * Parthian language, a now-extinct Middle Iranian language * Parthian shot, an archery skill famously employed by ...

etc.), ''miθra'' became ''mihr'', from which New Persian ''mehr'' and Armenian ''mihr''/''mehr'' ultimately derive.

In scripture

Like most other Divinities, Mithra is not mentioned by name in the

Gathas The Gathas ()"Gatha"
''

Zoroaster himself, or by name in the '' Yasna Haptanghaiti'', a seven-verse section of the Yasna liturgy that is linguistically as old as the Gathas. As a member of the Iranian ahuric triad, along with

Ahura Mazda Ahura Mazda (; ae, , translit=Ahura Mazdā; ), also known as Oromasdes, Ohrmazd, Ahuramazda, Hoormazd, Hormazd, Hormaz and Hurmuz, is the creator deity in Zoroastrianism. He is the first and most frequently invoked spirit in the ''Yasna''. ...

and Ahura Berezaiti ( Apam Napat), Mithra is an exalted figure. Together with

Rashnu Rashnu ( ae, 𐬭𐬀𐬴𐬢𐬏) is the Avestan language name of the Zoroastrian ''yazata'' of justice. Together with Mithra and Sraosha, Rashnu is one of the three judges who pass judgment on the souls of people after death. Rashnu's standard ...

"Justice" and

Sraosha Sraosha ( ae, 𐬯𐬭𐬀𐬊𐬴𐬀 or ) is the Avestan name of the Zoroastrian ''yazata'' of "Conscience" and "Observance", which is also the literal meaning of his name. In the Middle Persian commentaries of the 9th-12th centuries, the div ...

"Obedience", Mithra is one of the three judges at the Chinvat Bridge, the "Bridge of Separation" that all souls must cross. Unlike Sraosha, Mithra is not, however, a psychopomp, a guide of souls to the place of the dead. Should the Good Thoughts, Words, and Deeds outweigh the Bad, Sraosha alone conveys the Soul across the Bridge. As the Divinity of Contract, Mithra is undeceivable, infallible, eternally watchful, and never-resting. Mithra is additionally the protector of cattle, and his stock epithet is "of Wide Pastures." He is Guardian of

the waters ''The Waters'' (stylized as ''The Water ') is the fourth mixtape by American rapper Mick Jenkins. It was released on August 12, 2014, by Cinematic Music Group. Background ''The Waters'' is a concept mixtape. Jenkins' lyrics are immersed in the s ...

and ensures that those pastures receive enough of it. The lack of Mithra's presence in the texts was once a cause of some consternation amongst Iranians. An often-repeated speculation of the first half of the 20th century was that the lack of any mention (i.e., Zoroaster's silence) of Mithra in these texts implied that Zoroaster had rejected Mithra. This ''

ex silentio ''Ex Silentio'' is the Greek early music ensemble, that has a wide repertoire from medieval music up to baroque music, baroque. ''Ex Silentio'' appears regularly in festivals and venues in many European countries and focuses on music from Southe ...

'' speculation is no longer followed. Building on that speculation was another series of speculations, which postulated that the reason why Zoroaster did not mention Mithra was that the latter was the supreme God of a bloodthirsty group of '' daeva''-worshipers that Zoroaster condemned. However, "no satisfactory evidence has yet been adduced to show that, before Zoroaster, the concept of a supreme god existed among the Iranians, or that among them Mithra – or any other divinity – ever enjoyed a separate cult of his or her own outside either their ancient or their Zoroastrian pantheons.". Kanishka I with Miiro

The Avestan Hymn to Mithra (''Yasht'' 10) is the longest, and one of the best-preserved, of the '' Yasht''s. Mithra is described in the Zoroastrian Avesta scriptures as "Mithra of Wide Pastures, of the Thousand Ears, and of the Myriad Eyes," (Yasna 1:3), "the Lofty, and the Everlasting... the Province Ruler,"(Yasna 1:11), "the

Yazad Yazata ( ae, 𐬫𐬀𐬰𐬀𐬙𐬀) is the Avestan word for a Zoroastrian concept with a wide range of meanings but generally signifying (or used as an epithet of) a divinity. The term literally means "worthy of worship or veneration",.. and ...

(Divinity) of the Spoken Name" (Yasna 3:5), and "the Holy," (Yasna 3:13). The

Khorda Avesta Khordeh Avesta, meaning 'little, or lesser, or small Avesta', is the name given to two different collections of Zoroastrian religious texts. One of the two collections includes the other and takes its name from it. * In a narrow sense, the term ...

(Book of Common Prayer) also refer to Mithra in the Litany to the Sun, "Homage to Mithra of Wide Cattle Pastures," ( Khwarshed Niyayesh 5), "Whose Word is True, who is of the Assembly, Who has a Thousand Ears, the Well-Shaped One, Who has Ten Thousand Eyes, the Exalted One, Who has Wide Knowledge, the Helpful One, Who Sleeps Not, the Ever Wakeful. We sacrifice to Mithra, The Lord of all countries, Whom Ahura Mazda created the most glorious, Of the Supernatural Yazads. So may there come to us for Aid, Both Mithra and Ahura, the Two Exalted Ones,"( Khwarshed Niyayesh 6-7), "I shall sacrifice to his mace, well-aimed against the Skulls of the Daevas" ( Khwarshed Niyayesh 15). Some recent theories have claimed Mithra represents the Sun itself, but the Khorda Avesta refers to the Sun as a separate entity – as it does with the Moon, with which the Sun has "the Best of Friendships," ( Khwarshed Niyayesh 15).

In inscriptions

Although there is no known Mithraic iconography in the Achaemenid period, the deity is invoked in several royal Achaemenid inscriptions: In Artaxerxes II's (r. 404 – 358 B.C.) trilingual (Old Persian, Elamite, and Babylonian) inscription at Susa (A²Sa) and Hamadan (A²Hc), which have the same text, the emperor appeals to "Ahuramazda, Anahita, and Mithra protect me against all evil," and in which he beseeches them to protect what he has built. Although the Behistun inscription of

Darius I Darius I ( peo, 𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁 ; grc-gre, Δαρεῖος ; – 486 BCE), commonly known as Darius the Great, was a Persian ruler who served as the third King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 522 BCE until his ...

(r. 522 – 486 B.C.) invokes Ahuramazda and "the Other Gods who are", this inscription of Artaxerxes II is remarkable as no Achaemenid king before him had invoked any but Ahura Mazda alone by name. Boyce suggests that the reason for this was that Artaxerxes had chosen Anahita and Mithra as his patron/protector Divinities. Mithra has invoked again in the single known inscription of Artaxerxes III, A³Pa, found at Persepolis. In that inscription, that emperor to appeals to "Ahuramazda and the God Mithra preserve me, my country, and what has been built by me."

In tradition

In the Zoroastrian calendar, the sixteenth day of the month and the seventh month of the year are dedicated to and are under the protection of Mithra. The Iranian civil calendar of 1925 adopted Zoroastrian month-names, and as such also has the seventh month of the year named "Mihr". The position of the sixteenth day and seventh month reflects Mithra's rank in the hierarchy of the Divinities; the sixteenth day and seventh month are respectively the first day of the second half of the month and the first month of the second half of the year. The day on which the day-name and month-name dedications intersect is (like all other such intersections) dedicated to the divinity of that day/month, and is celebrated with a ''Jashan'' (from Avestan ''Yasna'', "Worship") in honor of that Divinity. In the case of Mithra, this was ''Jashan-e Mehregan'', or just Mehregan for short. In Zoroastrian scripture, Mithra is distinct from the divinity of the Sun,

Hvare-khshaeta Hvare-khshaeta (', ') is the Avestan language name of the Zoroastrian ''yazata'' (divinity) of the "Radiant Sun." Avestan ''Hvarə-xšaēta'' is a compound in which ''hvar'' "sun" has ''xšaēta'' "radiant" as a stock epithet. Avestan ''hvar'' de ...

(literally "Radiant Sun", from which the Middle Persian word ''Khorshed'' for the Sun). However, in Zoroastrian tradition, Mithra evolved from being an all-seeing figure (hence vaguely associated with the Sun) into a divinity co-identified with the Sun itself, effectively taking over Hvare-khshaeta's role. It is uncertain how and when and why this occurred, but it is commonly attributed to conflation with the Babylonian sun god

Shamash Utu (dUD "Sun"), also known under the Akkadian name Shamash, ''šmš'', syc, ܫܡܫܐ ''šemša'', he, שֶׁמֶשׁ ''šemeš'', ar, شمس ''šams'', Ashurian Aramaic: 𐣴𐣬𐣴 ''š'meš(ā)'' was the ancient Mesopotamian sun god. ...

and/or the Greek deity Apollo, with whom Mithra shares multiple characteristics such as a judicial function and association with the Sun. This characteristic is part of Mithra's Indo inheritance in that the Indic Rigveda have solar divinities that are not distinct from Mithra/Mitra and Mitra is associated with sunrise in the

Atharvaveda The Atharva Veda (, ' from ' and ''veda'', meaning "knowledge") is the "knowledge storehouse of ''atharvāṇas'', the procedures for everyday life".Laurie Patton (2004), Veda and Upanishad, in ''The Hindu World'' (Editors: Sushil Mittal and G ...

. Sun Salutation is a daily yogic activity worldwide even in current times and is preceded by chanting "OM Mitraya Namaha", where "Mitraya" is one of the 108 Names for Lord Surya/Sun God. Royal names incorporating Mithra's (e.g., "Mithradates") appear in the dynasties of Parthia, Armenia, and in Anatolia, in Pontus and Cappadocia. The youthful Apollonian-type Mithra is found in images from other countries of Iranian culture in the

period, such as Commagene in the Roman-Parthian border and the

Kushan Empire The Kushan Empire ( grc, Βασιλεία Κοσσανῶν; xbc, Κυϸανο, ; sa, कुषाण वंश; Brahmi: , '; BHS: ; xpr, 𐭊𐭅𐭔𐭍 𐭇𐭔𐭕𐭓, ; zh, 貴霜 ) was a syncretic empire, formed by the Yuezhi, i ...

on the Indo-Iranian border.

In Manichaeism

Persian and Parthian-speaking Manichaeans used the name of Mithra current in their time (''Mihryazd'', q.e. Mithra-yazata) for two different Manichaean angels. # The first, called ''Mihryazd'' by the Persians, was the "Living Spirit" (Aramaic ''rūḥā ḥayyā''), a savior-figure who rescues the "First Man" from the demonic Darkness into which he had plunged. # The second, known as ''Mihr'' or ''Mihr Yazd'' among the Parthians, is the "Messenger" (Aramaic ''īzgaddā''), likewise a savior figure, but one concerned with setting up the structures to liberate the Light lost when the First Man had been defeated. The second figure mentioned above, the Third Messenger, was the helper and redeemer of mankind, and identified with another Zoroastrian divinity, ''Narisaf'' (derived from

Pahlavi Pahlavi may refer to: Iranian royalty *Seven Parthian clans, ruling Parthian families during the Sasanian Empire *Pahlavi dynasty, the ruling house of Imperial State of Persia/Iran from 1925 until 1979 **Reza Shah, Reza Shah Pahlavi (1878–1944 ...

''Narsēh'' from

Avestan Avestan (), or historically Zend, is an umbrella term for two Old Iranian languages: Old Avestan (spoken in the 2nd millennium BCE) and Younger Avestan (spoken in the 1st millennium BCE). They are known only from their conjoined use as the scrip ...

''Nairyō.saȵhō'', meaning 'Potent Utterance', the name of a Yazata). Citing Boyce, Sundermann remarks, "It was among the Parthian Manicheans that Mithra as a Sun God surpassed the importance of Narisaf as the common Iranian image of the Third Messenger; among the Parthians the dominance of Mithra was such that his identification with the Third Messenger led to cultic emphasis on the Mithraic traits in the Manichaean God." Unrelated to these ''Mihr''s are Parthian and Sogdian ''Mytr'' or ''Mytrg''. Although sharing linguistic roots with the name Mithra, Werner Sundermann established that those names denote Manicheanism’s equivalent of

Maitreya Maitreya (Sanskrit: ) or Metteyya (Pali: ), also Maitreya Buddha or Metteyya Buddha, is regarded as the future Buddha of this world in Buddhist eschatology. As the 5th and final Buddha of the current kalpa, Maitreya's teachings will be aimed at ...

In literature

According to Boyce, the earliest literary references to the mysteries are by the Latin poet Statius, about 80 CE, and Plutarch (c. 100 CE).

References

Bibliography

* * *. *. * Dumézil, Georges (1948), ''Mitra-Varuna: Essai sur deux représentations indo-européennes de la souveraineté'', 2nd edn. Paris: Gallimard, 1948 (1st edn. 1940); trans. as ''Mitra-Varuna: An Essay on Two Indo-European Representations of Sovereignty'' by Derek Coleman, New York: Zone Books, 1988.

External links

* {{Authority control Yazatas ca:Mitra (mitologia) de:Mithra et:Mithra el:Μίθρας fr:Mitra id:Mithra lt:Mitra (dievas) no:Mithra ro:Mithra ru:Митра (бог) tr:Mithra