TheXwarshed Yasht, also known asKhurshed Yasht[2] orKhorshed Yasht,[3] is the sixthYasht of the Yasht collection.[4] It is dedicated toHvare-khshaeta, the ZoroastrianYazata representing theSun.[5]
Xwarshed (Middle Persian:𐭧𐭥𐭫(𐭧)𐭱𐭩𐭲,xwar(x)šēd) is theMiddle Persian term for the Sun or sunlight.[6] It continuesAvestan:𐬵𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬭𐬆-𐬑𐬱𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀 (huuarə-xšaēta), the name of theZoroastrianYazata of theRadiant Sun. It is also the origin ofModern Persianخورشید (xwaršēd), with the meaning sun or sunlight, as well as the Persian given nameKhorshid. Xwarshed is a compound term consisting ofxwar, the general Middle Persian word for the Sun,[7] andshet, Middle Persian forradiant orshining.[8]
Within the Yasht collection of 21 Yashts, the Xwarshed Yasht is the sixth hymn. Like most other Yashts in the collection, it is considered to have been part of theBagan yasht, where it may have formed the second chapter.[9] LikeYasht 7 (Moon),Yasht 8 (Sirius),Yasht 15 (Wind) andYasht 21 (Vanant), it is devoted to a personified natural phenomen.[10] With only 6 stanzas, it is one of the shorter Yashts in the collection and it is counted among the so calledMinor Yashts.[11] The Yasht is performed regularly on the 10th day of the Zoroastrian calendar, dedicated to the Sun, but also on the days dedicated toKshatra Vairya,Mithra,Asman and Anaghra raokau.[12]
The Xwarshed Yasht has a close connection to theXwarshed Niyayishn. Like theMah Yasht, its text is completely contained in the corresponding Niyayishn.[13] The seven stanzas of the Xwarshed Yasht, plus its introdutory formula, form stanzas 10-17 of the Xwarshed Niyayishn.[14] There is no scholary consensus on the dependency between these two texts. Panaino has, however, provided a number of rationales, which support the conclusion that the Niyayishns are derived from the respective Yashts.[15]
None of the manuscripts containing the Xwarshed Yasht do provide a translation of the text.[16] However, the manuscripts of theXwarshed Nyayishn, which contains the full text of the Xwarshed Yasht, do come with translations intoMiddle Persian,Sanskrit,Gujarati andModern Persian.[17] The oldest translation is into Middle Persian, which may have been created already during theSasanian period, while the others were created at a later time.[18]
In 1908, Dhalla provided a translation of the Avestan, Middle Persian, Sankskit and Gujarati version of Xwarshed Nyaishn into English.[19] Most modern translations are, however, based on the edition of the Xwarshed Yasht byGeldner.[20]Darmesteter provided an English translation of the Yasht in 1883[21] and a French translation in 1892.[22] In 1927, Lommel provided a translation into German as part of his translation of the Yasht collection.[23] A critical edition of the Xwarshed Yasht andMah Yasht including a translation into Italian was published by Panaino.[24]
^Hintze 2009, p. 46: "Several hymns are devoted to natural phenomena, such as the sun (Xwarsed, Yt 6), the moon (Mah, Yt 7), the wind (Vayu, Yt 15 = Ram Yah) and the stars Tistrya (Yt 8) and Vanant (Yt 21)".
^Hintze 2014, "'Minor' or 'apotropaic' Yašts [...] 6 (Xwaršēd)".
^Darmesteter 1883, p. 85:"This Yast is recited at any time, but particularly on the days consecrated to the sun and to Khshathra-Vairya (Shahrivar), Mithra (Mihir), Asman (Asmin), and Anaghra raokau (Anirin'):".
^Panaino 2012, p. 263: "In fact, in this very case, the two Avestan hymns are found to be entirely embedded in the corresponding Niyāyišns".
^Panaino 2012, p. 269: "The large number of translations, originally in Pahlavi, later in Sanskrit, afterwards also in Persian and Gujarati, shows the never-ending importance attributed to them.".
^Panaino 2012, p. 273: "The translations of the Niyāyišns in Pahlavi should have been prepared already in the Sasanian period, followed by a Sanskrit version (ca. 1200), then, a Persian (1600–1800) and a Gujarati one (1800)".
Panaino, Antonio (2012). "The Niyāyišns Corpus and Its Relationships with the Yašts: The Case of Yašts 6 and 7".Iranian Studies.45 (2):261–273.doi:10.1080/00210862.2011.617161.
Panaino, Antonio (1990).Xwaršēd e Māh Yašt: Gli inni avestici al Sole e alla Luna. Testo critico con traduzione e commentario storico‐religioso. Istituto Universitario, Orientale di Napoli.
