Ahurani is the

Avestan Avestan ( ) is the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism. It belongs to the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family and was First language, originally spoken during the Avestan period, Old ...

language name of a

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster ( ). Among the wo ...

(class of) divinity associated with "the waters" ( ''āpō''). In scripture, the expression ''ahurani'' appears both in the singular and in the plural, and may - subject to context - either denote a specific divinity named Ahurani, or a class of divinities that are ''ahurani''s. The

feminine suffix ''-ani'' denotes "companion, wife, mate", hence ''ahurani'' means "partner of ''ahura''." The ''ahura'' of the name may or may not be a reference to

Ahura Mazda Ahura Mazda (; ; or , ),The former is the New Persian rendering of the Avestan form, while the latter derives from Middle Persian. also known as Horomazes (),, is the only creator deity and Sky deity, god of the sky in the ancient Iranian ...

or to the other

Ahura Ahura (Avestan: 𐬀𐬵𐬎𐬭𐬀) is an Avestan language designation of a type of deity inherited by Zoroastrianism from the prehistoric Indo-Iranian religion, and denotes a particular class of Zoroastrian divinities. The term is assumed to b ...

s. Following recent scholarship (see

for details), it is now generally supposed that there was once been a divinity whose proper name was *Ahura, and from whom the various ''ahura''s of the

Avesta The Avesta (, Book Pahlavi: (), Persian language, Persian: ()) is the text corpus of Zoroastrian literature, religious literature of Zoroastrianism. All its texts are composed in the Avestan language and written in the Avestan alphabet. Mod ...

receive this epithet.

In scripture

In the ''Yasna Haptanghaiti''

In the ''

Yasna Haptanghaiti The ''Yasna Haptanghaiti'' () (YH), Avestan for "Worship in Seven Chapters," is a set of seven hymns within the greater '' Yasna'' collection, the primary liturgical texts of the Zoroastrian Avesta. It is generally believed that the YH spans ''Yas ...

'', the ''ahurani''s are invoked in the plural, as "companions of the ''

ahura Ahura (Avestan: 𐬀𐬵𐬎𐬭𐬀) is an Avestan language designation of a type of deity inherited by Zoroastrianism from the prehistoric Indo-Iranian religion, and denotes a particular class of Zoroastrian divinities. The term is assumed to b ...

''." In these verses of great antiquity and linguistically as old as the

Gathas The Gathas () are 17 hymns in the Avestan language from the Zoroastrian oral tradition of the Avesta. The oldest surviving text fragment dates from 1323 CE, but they are believed by scholars to have been composed before 1000 BCE and passed dow ...

, they are also said to be "created by

" (''Yasna'' 38.4).

In the Younger Avesta

In the Younger Avesta, the expression appears in the singular: Ahurani bears gifts of health, prosperity, renown, and for the well-being of the soul (''Yasna'' 68.3-4). In ''Yasna'' 68.11, the devotee asks Ahurani for a long life and a welcome in the radiant abode of the righteous (i.e. paradise, cf. ''

ashavan Ashavan (Avestan: 𐬀𐬴𐬀𐬬𐬀𐬥 ''ašavan'') is a Zoroastrian theological term. It literally means "possessing/mastering '' aša''" and has been interpreted as "possessing/mastering truth" or "possessing/mastering righteousness", but ha ...

''). In ''Yasna'' 68, which is a "hidden" (since not explicitly dedicated to them) ''

Yasht A Yasht (, ) is a hymn of praise composed in the Young Avestan language and dedicated to specific Zoroastrian divinities. The term commonly applies to the collection of 21 Yashts, although it may also refer to other texts within the wider Avest ...

'', the "''ahuric'' one of (the) Ahura," appears to represent water in all its variations: rivers, wells, lakes, seas, snow and rain (''Yasna'' 68.6). As such, the single divinity appears to be synonymous with the ''*apas'', the group of Indo-Iranian divinities of the waters. In other verses, the waters are themselves revered as the ''ahurani''s (''Yasna'' 38.3). The ''ahurani''s enlighten thought, speech and actions (''Yasna'' 68.4). This is in line with the Indo-Iranian tradition of identifying water with wisdom (Avestan: ''

mazda is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima (town), Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hiroshima, Japan. The company was founded on January 30, 1920, as Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd. ...

''). The ''ahurani''s as described as bringers of fertility and peace. In ''Yasna'' 68.1-2 (cf.

Ab-Zohr The Ab-Zohr (; ; ) is the culminating rite of the greater '' Yasna'' service, the principal Zoroastrian act of worship that accompanies the recitation of the ''Yasna'' liturgy. As described in the liturgy that accompanies the procedure, the rite ...

, "offering to water"), the celebrant priest offers the ''ahurani''s a libation of milk and butter (representing animal creation).

In tradition

Ahurani(s) are not included in any list of

yazatas Yazata () 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 is thus, in this more general ...

, nor do they/does she have a day-name dedication in the

Zoroastrian calendar Adherents of Zoroastrianism use three distinct versions of traditional calendars for Zoroastrian festivals, liturgical purposes. Those all derive from Middle Ages, medieval Iranian calendars and ultimately are based on the Babylonian calendar a ...

. This may be because in later Zoroastrianism

Aredvi Sura Anahita Anahita is the Old Persian form of the name of an Iranian goddess and appears in complete and earlier form as ('), the Avestan name of an Indo-Iranian cosmological figure venerated as the divinity of "the Waters" ( Aban) and hence associat ...

dominates as divinity of the waters, and it is to her that the hymn to the waters (the ''Aban Yasht'') is dedicated. There appear to be historic parallels between the Avestan ''ahurani''s and the

RigVedic The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' (, , from ऋच्, "praise" and वेद, "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the ...

''varunani''s, the "wives of

Varuna Varuna (; , ) is a Hindu god. He is one of the earliest deities in pantheon, whose role underwent a significant transformation from the Vedic to the Puranic periods. In the early Vedic era, Varuna is seen as the god-sovereign, ruling the sky ...

." These parallels are one of the points of comparison for the theory that Ahura Mazda and Varuna both descend from a common predecessor (see

for details).

Bibliography

* p. 51. * p. 58. * pp. 230–231. * * p. 688. {{refend Zoroastrianism Persian words and phrases Water goddesses Ancient Iranian goddesses