From the Ushtavaiti Gatha of the Avesta
Yasna 45 is the third hymn of the Ushtavaiti Gatha (Yasna 43–46), the second of the five Gāthā collections attributed to the prophet Zarathustra (Zoroaster). Known traditionally as Zarathustra's Proclamation, it opens with the commanding refrain at fravaxshyâ — "Now I shall speak" — and marks a dramatic shift in the Gāthā's movement. Where Yasna 43 declared the prophet's identity and Yasna 44 posed twenty unanswered questions to Ahura Mazdā, Yasna 45 is the moment Zarathustra turns outward and speaks with certainty. The hymn begins as an address to all who have gathered "from near and far" and proceeds through eleven verses that encompass the cosmological origins of the twin spirits (asha and druj, truth and falsehood), the supreme truth revealed by Ahura Mazdā, and the promise of haurvâtâ and ameretâtâ — perfection and immortality — for those who hear and obey.
The structure is distinctive among the Gāthās. The first six verses each open with at fravaxshyâ, creating a sixfold proclamation that moves from warning (verse 1), through the primordial division of the spirits (verse 2), to the disclosure of the highest truth (verses 3–4), the revelation of the divine word (verse 5), and the praise of Ahura Mazdā as greatest of all (verse 6). The final five verses shift to devotional address — seeking redemption, offering praise through inner sight, petitioning the Lord for strength, and distinguishing those who oppose the daēvas from those who despise the Almighty. The hymn is at once sermon, creed, and liturgy.
This translation is by Mobed Firouz Azargoshasb, published by the Council of Iranian Mobeds of North America (1988). The Avestan source text in romanised transliteration follows the English for reference and study.
Verse 1
All Ye, who have come from near and far, to learn, I shall now speak to you, give ears to me and listen to these clear truths which I teach. Remember well and bear in mind lest the evil teacher destroy the people's life once again and the followers of untruth lead them astray with wrong teachings.
Verse 2
I shall now speak about the twin spirits which have existed since the creation's dawn. Of the two spirits thus did the Holy one speak to his twin, the evil one; between us two, neither thoughts, nor teachings, neither will, nor beliefs, neither words, nor inner selves accord, and they are quite separate from each other.
Verse 3
And now I will disclose the highest truth of the life, as I have learnt from the All Wise Ahura. Those who do not follow the holy words of Mazda as taught by me, for them the end of life shall be woe.
Verse 4
I shall now explain the supreme goal of life, the truth which I have realized through Asha. The laws of life have been ordained by Mazda, the wise and unique, the Lord which is the source of good and active mind, and whose kind daughters are faith and love. The Lord of Life, the Omnipotent who is aware of everything cannot be deceived.
Verse 5
And now I shall speak of the words which have been revealed to me by His Lord, the words which are the best to be heard and obeyed by the mortals. Those who obey these teachings truly in their hearts, shall enjoy the gifts of perfection and immortality. Good mind shall lead them on to proper and loving deeds, and they shall ultimately see Ahura Mazda and reach the real light.
Verse 6
I shall now speak of the one who is the greatest of all. I shall praise the wise Lord and His Rays through truth and purity, and hope that Ahura may, through his Holy Spirit hear our prayers. May we reach Him through pure mind, love and faith. May the Lord through His Wisdom guide me onwards to the highest, or the Real Light.
Verse 7
All are seeking redemption from Him, whether those who are alive, or those who are dead, and those who shall be born in future. The righteous soul shall triumph and shall gain life everlasting, but the follower of untruth and the sinner shall suffer pain ever renewed. This law has been laid down by Mazda Ahura through His own power.
Verse 8
As I have seen Ahura Mazda with my inner sight, I shall strive to draw His attention towards myself with songs of praise; and since I have realized through good thought, word and deed; and through honesty and integrity as well, that Ahura Mazda is Lord of Life and Wisdom, and sole Creator of the World, I shall, therefore, offer Him my sincere praise with full devotion.
Verse 9
I seek favor of my Lord and Vohuman, the good mind, since by His Plan and Will both weal and woe are created for us. May the Wise Lord of Life grant us through His Might the strength to serve, enabling us to advance the people towards truth through the deep wisdom of a loving mind.
Verse 10
Through devotion and pure faith we should exalt him, the one who through His graciousness is known as Lord of Wisdom and Life and Creator of both the worlds. The Creator who, through His Eternal Law, Perfect Mind and Sovereignty, has promised perfection and eternity to the people of the world and has made them hopeful of enjoying strength of body and continuity of soul.
Verse 11
Those who oppose the Daevas and their followers; and also those who use the name of His Lord respectfully and pay reverence to wise Saoshyants, the true helpers of the religion, Mazda Ahura shall treat with them as sincere friends and kind brothers and fathers. Their path is quite separate from those who despise the Almighty Ahura and call him with disgust.
Colophon
Yasna 45 is the third hymn of the Ushtavaiti Gatha (Yasna 43–46), the second of the five Gāthā collections attributed to Zarathustra. Known as the Proclamation, its eleven verses mark the dramatic turn from questioning to declaration — the prophet who asked God twenty questions in Yasna 44 now opens his mouth to the assembled and speaks with the authority of one who has received the answer. The sixfold at fravaxshyâ refrain ("Now I shall speak") establishes a sermonic structure unlike anything else in the Gāthās, moving from the primordial division of the twin spirits through the disclosure of the highest truth to the promise of haurvâtâ (perfection) and ameretâtâ (immortality). The hymn's central theological claim — that the laws of life have been ordained by Mazdā, whose "kind daughters are faith and love" — places devotion and ethical action at the heart of the Zoroastrian vision. With this hymn, the third of the four Ushtavaiti hymns enters the library.
Translation by Mobed Firouz Azargoshasb, published by the Council of Iranian Mobeds of North America (March 1988). Electronic version authorised by Mobed Mehraban Zarthoshty of Vancouver, Canada (August 1997). Three digitisation errors in the electronic text have been silently corrected where the intended reading was unambiguous: "spoke" for "speak" (verse 2, auxiliary "did" requires base form), "strives" for "strive" (verse 8, infinitive after "shall"), and "exalted" for "exalt" (verse 10, infinitive after "should"). Reproduced for scholarly and archival purposes with attribution, per the translator's stated permissions.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Avestan Source Text (Romanised Transliteration)
Old Avestan source text from avesta.org, based on the edition of Karl Friedrich Geldner (Avesta: The Sacred Books of the Parsis, Stuttgart, 1896). Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.
Verse 1
at fravaxshyâ nû gûshôdûm nû sraotâ ýaêcâ asnât ýaêcâ dûrât ishathâ nû îm vîspâ cithrê zî mazdånghô-dûm nôit daibitîm dush-sastish ahûm merãshyât akâ varanâ dregvå hizvå âveretô.
Verse 2
at fravaxshyâ anghêush mainyû pouruyê ýayå spanyå ûitî mravat ýêm añgrem, nôit nâ manå nôit sêñghâ nôit xratavô naêdâ varanâ nôit uxdhâ naêdâ shyaothanâ nôit daênå nôit urvãnô hacaiñtê.
Verse 3
at fravaxshyâ anghêush ahyâ pourvîm ýãm môi vîdvå mazdå vaocat ahurô ýôi îm vê nôit ithâ mãthrem varesheñtî ýathâ îm mênâicâ vaocacâ aêibyô anghêush avôi anghat apêmem.
Verse 4
at fravaxshyâ anghêush ahyâ vahishtem ashât hacâ mazdâ vaêdâ ýê îm dât patarêm vanghêush varezayañtô mananghô at hôi dugedâ hushyaothanâ ârmaitish nôit diwzhaidyâi vîspâ-hishas ahurô.
Verse 5
at fravaxshyâ hyat môi mraot speñtôtemô vacê srûidyâi hyat maretaêibyô vahishtem ýôi môi ahmâi seraoshem dãn cayascâ upâ-jimen haurvâtâ ameretâtâ vanghêush manyêush shyaothanâish mazdå ahurô.
Verse 6
at fravaxshyâ vîspanãm mazishtem stavas ashâ ýê hudå ýôi heñtî speñtâ mainyû sraotû mazdå ahurô ýehyâ vahmê vohû frashî mananghâ ahyâ xratû frô-mâ sâstû vahishtâ.
Verse 7
ýehyâ savâ ishåñtî râdanghô ýôi-zî jvâ ångharecâ bvañticâ ameretâitî ashâunô urvâ aêshô utayûtâ ýâ nerãsh sâdrâ dregvatô tâcâ xshathrâ mazdå dãmish ahurô.
Verse 8
têm nê staotâish nemanghô â vîvareshô nû-zît cashmainî vyâdaresem vanghêush manyêush shyaothanahyâ uxdhah'yâcâ vîdush ashâ ýêm mazdãm ahurem at hôi vahmêñg demânê garô nidâmâ.
Verse 9
têm nê vohû mat mananghâ cixshnushô ýê-nê usên côret spêncâ aspêncâ mazdå xshathrâ verezênyå dyât ahurô pasûsh vîrêñg ahmâkêñg fradathâi â vanghêush ashâ haozãthwât â mananghô.
Verse 10
têm nê ýasnâish ârmatôish mimakhzhô ýê ãnmênî mazdå srâvî ahurô hyat hôi ashâ vohucâ côisht mananghâ xshathrôi hôi haurvâtâ ameretâtâ ahmâi stôi dãn tevîshî utayûitî.
Verse 11
ýastâ daêvêñg aparô mashyãscâ tarê-mãstâ ýôi îm tarê-manyañtâ anyêñg ahmât ýê hôi arêm manyâtâ saoshyañtô dêñg patôish speñtâ daênâ urvathô barâtâ patâ vâ mazdâ ahurâ!
Source Colophon
Avestan text in romanised transliteration from avesta.org, the Joseph H. Peterson Encyclopaedia on Iran, based on the critical edition by Karl Friedrich Geldner (Avesta: The Sacred Books of the Parsis, 3 vols., Stuttgart, 1886–1896). The transliteration follows the avesta.org convention, consistent with the Yasna 28 through Yasna 44 source texts in this archive. Liturgical performance directions (zôt u râspî) and repetition markers have been omitted for clarity, following the convention established for the Ahunavaiti and Ushtavaiti Gatha source texts in this archive. A stray page marker ("dà") at the end of verse 7 has been removed. The Gāthās survive in manuscripts no older than the fourteenth century CE, but linguistic analysis places their composition in the second millennium BCE, contemporary with the Rigvedic hymns.
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