Ancient Iran PDF

NUTRITION
WERE ANCIENT ZOROASTRIANS & ARYANS VEGETARIAN?

K. E. Eduljee
First Aryan jashn, feast,

in legend. King Hushang
& the Feast of Sadeh
celebrating the discovery
of fire.
Attributed to Artist Sultan Muhammad, Iran, Tabriz c. 1530 CE

Image: In Shah Tahmasp manuscript of Ferdowsi's Shahnameh.
(Metropolitan Museum of Art).

NUTRITION
WERE ANCIENT ZOROASTRIANS & ARYANS
VEGETARIAN?
(ABRIDGED)
K. E. Eduljee
Zoroastrian Heritage Monographs

First edition published, September 2014.
This second edition published, March 2015
by K. E. Eduljee
West Vancouver, BC, Canada
This monograph is dedicated to the memory of my mother Katayun Eduljee

née Katayun Kaikhoshro Irani.
Her brother, Darius Kaikhoshro Irani’s exemplary life-style choices inspired its
writing.
The monograph has been published in two versions:

1. Complete version with notations and source texts,
2. Abridged version without notations and source texts.
For further enquiries and pdf or printed copies:

eduljee@heritageinstitute.com
www.zoroastrianheritage.com
This pdf copy in full form may be distributed freely.
© K. E. Eduljee
No part of this book may be reproduced in any other form
without permission from the author,
except for the quotation of brief passages in citation.
Zoroastrian Heritage Monographs

CONTENTS
GLOSSARY .................................................................................................................................... vi
IS THE TERM ‘ZOROASTRIAN’ ZOROASTRIAN? .................................................................... 1
THE MAGI ....................................................................................................................................... 2
PART I RESEARCH & DISCUSSION........................................................................................ 3
1. WAS ZARATHUSHTRA A VEGETARIAN? ...................................................................................... 3
A. Zarathushtra’s Diet of Cheese ............................................................................................. 3
(i) Cheese, No Meat, Moderation, Self-Control & Shunning Gluttony ........................................ 3
B. Zarem Raoghna – Soul Food ............................................................................................... 4
C. Mid-Spring Milk, Clarified Butter & Cheese....................................................................... 4
D. Cheese & Herbs – an Ancient Tradition Survives ............................................................... 5
(i) Unleavened Bread from Barley ............................................................................................... 6
E. Sustenance in Winter ........................................................................................................... 6
(i) Gahanbars & Jashns – Mutual Help and Caring ...................................................................... 7
F. Zarathushtra’s Gathas ......................................................................................................... 9
(i) King Jamsheed as the Originator of the Sin of Meat Eating .................................................... 9
(ii) Lament of Geush Urvan & Animals ....................................................................................... 9
(iii) Tradition of Aryan/Iranian Poets & Gathic Poetry .............................................................. 10
(iv) Allegory in the Geush Urvan Gatha..................................................................................... 10
(v) Geush & Gospand................................................................................................................. 11
(vi) Soul of Animals................................................................................................................... 11
2. ANCIENT ARYANS WERE GATHERERS. BUT WERE THEY HUNTERS?.........................................12
A. Legends Preserved in Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh....................................................................12
(i) Aryan Stone Age – Age of Gaya Maretan & Gathering Foods.............................................. 12
(ii) Aryan Metal Age – Age of Hushang & Agriculture ............................................................. 12
(iii) Seduction of Zahhak by Ahriman’s Cooking ...................................................................... 14
3. INTRODUCTION OF MEAT EATING AFTER THE ARAB CONQUEST .................................................16
4. STAGES OF CONSUMPTION AT THE BEGINNING & END OF HUMAN HISTORY ...............................17
5. ACHAEMENID ERA PRACTICES OF THE MAGI .............................................................................17
A. Different Norms for Different Orders of the Magi ..............................................................17
B. Changing Mores .................................................................................................................18
6. CALL TO BE VEGETARIANS IN SASANIAN ERA MEDIEVAL ZOROASTRIAN TEXTS ........................18
A. Sasanian Head Priest Adarbad Mahraspandan..................................................................18
B. Hudinan Peshobay Head Priest Adarbad Emedan .............................................................19
(i) Beneficent Vegetarian Animals & Nature’s Bounty.............................................................. 19
7. MODERN NORMS .......................................................................................................................19
A. Shift in Norms .....................................................................................................................20
8. PRINCIPLE OF MODERATION ......................................................................................................20
9. PRINCIPLES OF CIRCUMSPECTION, RIGHTNESS & BENEFICENCE .................................................20
PART II REFERENCES ..............................................................................................................21
1. ZOROASTRIAN SCRIPTURES & TEXTS .........................................................................................21
2. OTHER SCRIPTURES & RELIGIOUS TEXTS ..................................................................................21
3. CLASSICAL & MEDIEVAL TEXTS................................................................................................22
4. SCHOLARLY TEXTS ...................................................................................................................22
5. HEALTH & COOKING REFERENCES ............................................................................................24
6. ZOROASTRIAN HERITAGE WEBPAGE REFERENCES .....................................................................25
A. General Pages ....................................................................................................................25
B. Health & Healing Pages.....................................................................................................25
PART III APPENDICES..............................................................................................................26
1. PANEER & ROGHAN IN ARYANA’S HISTORY & TRADITIONS.......................................................26
A. Saka & Butter .....................................................................................................................26
B. Traditional Iranian & Afghan Milk Processing ..................................................................27
C. Clarified Butter as Payment in Medieval Iran....................................................................27
D. Milk Products in Kafiristan ................................................................................................27
E. Ghee in Hindu Tradition.....................................................................................................29
(i) Ghee in the Panchamritha Foods of Immortality .................................................................. 29
(ii) Ghee in the Homa Ceremony ............................................................................................... 29
(iii) Ghee in Ayurvedic Healing ................................................................................................. 29
2. MILK’S COMPOSITION ...............................................................................................................30
A. Milk – a Food Designed by Nature .....................................................................................30
B. Milk Vitamins......................................................................................................................30
C. Milk Minerals .....................................................................................................................30
D. Milk Proteins ......................................................................................................................31
(i) Make-up of Proteins. Amino Acids ....................................................................................... 31
(ii) Essential Amino Acids. Milk has all Nine............................................................................ 31
(iii) Digestion of Proteins ........................................................................................................... 31
(iv) Solubility of Proteins ........................................................................................................... 32
(v) Classification of Milk Proteins ............................................................................................. 32
(a) Caseins...........................................................................................................................................32
(b) Whey proteins ...............................................................................................................................32
(c) Enzymes ........................................................................................................................................32
E. Milk Fats.............................................................................................................................33
(i) Composition of Milk Fats...................................................................................................... 33
(ii) Fat Digestion ........................................................................................................................ 33
iii) Fats’ Ability or Inability to Mix with Water ......................................................................... 34
3. CREAM, CHEESE & CLARIFIED BUTTER .....................................................................................35
A. Cream .................................................................................................................................35
B. Cheese – Paneer/Panir .......................................................................................................35
(i) Making Paneer. Curds........................................................................................................... 35
(ii) Rennet/Rennin...................................................................................................................... 35
(iii) Whey ................................................................................................................................... 36
(iv) Using Cream, Yogurt, Whole or Skimmed Milk ................................................................. 36
(v) Straining ............................................................................................................................... 36
(vi) Squeezing out the Water...................................................................................................... 37
(vii) Topli nu Paneer .................................................................................................................. 37
(viii) Lactose in Cheese.............................................................................................................. 37
(ix) Salt in Cheese ...................................................................................................................... 37
(x) Plain Paneer ......................................................................................................................... 38
C. Butter & Buttermilk ............................................................................................................38
D. Clarified Butter – Roghan ..................................................................................................38
(i) Healing Properties of Clarified Butter ................................................................................... 39
E. Clarified Butter – Ghee.......................................................................................................39
4. HEALTH RISKS & BENEFITS .......................................................................................................40
A. Milk Fats. Fact & Myth. Risks & Benefits ..........................................................................40
(i) Fat Facts ................................................................................................................................ 40
(ii) Harvard & National Inst. for Health. Study on Fats’ Risks .................................................. 40
(iii) Benefits of Fats with Butyric Acid Residues....................................................................... 41
B. Cheese/Paneer. Risks & Benefits ........................................................................................42
(i) Risks...................................................................................................................................... 42
(ii) Benefits ................................................................................................................................ 43
(a) Study: No Rise in LDL .................................................................................................................43
(b) Nutrient Content & Benefits .........................................................................................................43
(c) Dental Health.................................................................................................................................44
(d) Appetite Suppression. Help to Avoid Overeating? ......................................................................44
(e) Cheese Improves Sleep & Reduces Stress....................................................................................44
C. Mediterranean Diet & Cheese ............................................................................................44
()
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Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans iv K. E. Eduljee

Vegetarian? July 2011-March 2015
ABOUT THIS MONOGRAPH
This monograph is part of a set of works by this author on nutrition,
health and healing as described in ancient and medieval Zoroastrian texts. It
is based on his blog posted in 2011. Links to his other nutrition, health and
healing pages are provided in Part II of this monograph.
()
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans v K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
GLOSSARY
Achaemenian - See Achaemenid.
Achaemenid - The dynasty of Persian kings who became the king-

of-kings, the overlords, of Aryana and then
established the largest empire the world had known
until then, the Persian Empire. The Achaemenids
ruled Persia from sometime in the 7th century BCE to
the 4th century BCE when they were defeated and
overthrown by Alexander. The dynasty is named after
its founder Achaemenes – a Greek-based westernized
version of his actual name Hakhamanishiya. The
dynasty is more authentically called Hakhmanish.
Ahriman - The devil incarnate (for the purposes of these texts).

Otherwise, the devil or an evil person.
Ahura Mazda - God in the language of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the

Avesta. The two words are used together or
individually. Over the centuries, the name evolved to
Ahurmazd, Hormozd and eventually Ormozd. Also
see Khoda.
Aryana - Ancient Iran. Also spelt Airyana or Ariana.
Aryan - Person/people from Aryana. Person claiming Aryan

descent. Also spelt Arian.
atash - Fire.
Avesta - Zoroastrian scriptures. At one time, the Avesta

consisted of 21 nasks or books dealing with
philosophy, theology, rituals, prayers, hygiene,
medicine and the medicinal properties of a thousand
plants and herbs, history, astronomy, geography and
other forms of knowledge. Today only five books and
some fragments survive.
Avestan - Language of the Avesta, the Zoroastrian scriptures.

The language consists of dialects, the oldest being the
language of the Gathas, the hymns of Zarathushtra.
Also the script used in the Avesta.
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans vi K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
Bundahishn - A Middle Persian (Pahlavi) Zoroastrian text based on

older works that discusses creation, geography,
history, astrology and mythology. It is also called the
Zand-Akash meaning knowledge of the Zand (see
below). The surviving Bundahishn texts are frequently
referred as the Greater Bundahishn (based on the older
16th century compilation) and the Lesser Bundahishn
(based on a later 18th century compilation).
Denkard/Dinkart/Dinkard - A 9th century CE text written by Zoroastrian priests

after the Arab invasion of Aryana. The name means
‘Acts of Religion’.
div/deev/dev - Evil incarnations, individuals and demons. Devils.
Farsi - The Arabic version of Parsi (see below).
Ferdowsi - 10th-11th century Persian poet who wrote a shah-

nameh (chronicle of kings, the popular history of
Aryana) today called the Shahnameh.
gav - Bovine, beast of burden. Also life (cf. jiv/jun in

modern Hindi/Persian).
gaya - Life. Related to jaya/gav/jivya, modern jiv meaning

life.
Gaya Maretan - Mortal life (gaya = life, mare-tan = mortal/body which

can die).
geush - Kine/bovine, earthly life, creation.
Geush Urvan - Soul of the kine/bovine, earthly life, creation.
gospand - (Called gosfand in Farsi). Beneficent animals. This

author proposes that Middle Persian ‘gospand’ is
derived from the Avestan ‘gao-spenta’ – ‘gao’
meaning ‘cow’, and ‘spenta’ meaning ‘beneficent’ in
this context. While in New Persian ‘gosfand’ means
‘sheep’, in the Middle Persian context of our
references, ‘gospand’ appears to mean all
useful/beneficent animals that could be domesticated
as livestock – those that provided food as milk and
cheese, fiber, transportation, labour as beasts of
burden and for tilling, threshing and other such
tasks. The category may have included fowl as well.
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans vii K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
[*The New Persian replacement of ‘p’ with an ‘f’ in

‘gospand’ is likely part of the Arabization of the
Persian language as in the transformation of ‘Parsi’ to
‘Farsi’.]
Greater Bundahishn - See Bundahishn.
haoma - Avestan word for the chief of the medicinal plants in

Zoroastrian-Aryan healing practice. The ephedra and
ephedra-like family of plants (Also see hom).
Hapta-Hindu - The land of the seven Indus rivers in the Avesta, i.e.
today’s Northern Pakistan and Punjab (from Panj-ab,
meaning the five rivers – the five eastern Indus
tributaries).
Haurvatat - An Amesha Spenta and Avestan word (later Khordad)

meaning wholeness, holist and healthy living,
excellence.
Hind/Hindu - Ancient India in Zoroastrian-Aryan texts. More

precisely, the Indus River and the lands surrounding
the Indus River, namely present-day Pakistan and
Punjab. The name ‘India’ is derived from Hind i.e.
Ind. Ironically, today’s Pakistan has better claim to
the modern name India than does India. The Vedic
equivalents of Hind and Hindu are Sindh and Sindhu
respectively.
hom - Modern word derived from haoma and currently used

to mean the ephedra and ephedra-like family of
plants.
Hormozd - Evolved version of Ahura Mazda (see Ahura Mazda).
Iran - Modern nation and name derived from Airan and

Airyana (Aryana).
Khoda, Khodai - Common Aryan word for God (see Ahura Mazda)
derived from an attribute of God, Khvada/khvadai (cf.
khvadata, self-governed, sovereign or lord). The word
has been used in the past to also mean a temporal
lord. Sasanian King Shapur I’s (who reigned from 241
to 272 CE) inscription at Naqsh-e Rustam states in
Parthian, “Aryan-khshatra khvatwy khvyem,” in
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans viii K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
reconstructed Sasanian, “Iran-shahr khvadai ahem”

and in Greek, “tou Aryanon-ethnous despotes eimi”
meaning “I am lord of the nation of the Aryans.”
Khwaday-nameh - See Khodai-nameh below.
Khodai-nameh - New Persian version of the Middle Persian name

Khwaday-nameh. Khoda (New Persian) or Khwada
(Middle Persian) means lord either divine or
temporal. Some authors feel the name Khwaday-
nameh is synonymous with Shah-nameh, both
meaning book of lords or kings.
Lesser Bundahishn - See Bundahishn.
Magus/Magi - Magi, and its singular Magus, are Greek-based

Western terms for Aryan-Zoroastrian priests, the
maga, more recently known as the mobeds.
Mazda - Zoroastrian word for God. See Ahura Mazda and

Khoda.
Media - First Aryan nation to enter Western history. Its native

name was Mada. Its kings were overlords of Aryana
from around the eight(?) to the 6th century BCE when
they were displaced by the Persians led by Cyrus the
Great.
Middle Persian - The Persian-Aryan language as it emerged after the

end of Macedonian rule in the 2nd century BCE, first
as Parthian and then from the third to the seventh
centuries CE, as Sasanian. There are therefore three
versions of Middle Persian: Parthian, early Sasanian
and late Sasanian. While some authors make
distinctions between the three versions, others use
this terms Middle Persian and Pahlavi to include all
three. Evolving Eastern Aryan dialects such as
Sogdian, Khwarezmian and Saka/Khotanese were also
current during this time. Arabic writers used the
names Farisiya (Farsi/Arabic for Persian) and
Fahlawiya (Pahlavi) to mean all the Middle Persian
dialects. Since Middle Persian was commonly written
using the Parthian or Pahlavi script, it is also called
Pahlavi (see below).
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans ix K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
Mithra - Friend, friendship, bond, loyalty. Also in

Zoroastrianism, the guardian angel of these qualities
and related virtues, and a pre-Zoroastrian Aryan deity
or god Mitra as found in the Hindu scriptures, the Rig
Veda. Also a woman’s name in Iran.
Mobed - Zoroastrian hereditary priest called maga in the more

ancient language of the Avesta. They were called
magoi by the Greek. Magus (singular) and Magi
(plural) are Latin derivatives.
nameh - Persian word meaning account, chronicles, letters,

book. Derived from the Middle Persian (also called
Pahlavi) word namak or namag. Also spelt nama.
New Persian - Modern Persian language as revived by the poet

Ferdowsi, properly called Parsi though currently
called Farsi, the Arabic version of the name. Also see
Persian.
Old Persian - Language of the Achaemenid Persia era (700-300

BCE). A member of the Indo-Iranian language family.
Ormozd - Evolved version of Ahura Mazda (see Ahura Mazda).
Pahlavi - From Pahlav earlier known as Parthav (see below),

one of the Aryan nations (as was Persia/Pars/Parsa).
The name is also loosely used to mean the Middle
Persian languages written in the Pahlavi/Parthian
script – languages which range from the older
language of Parthian times (Arsacid Pahlavi) to the
language of Sasanian times (Sasanian Pahlavi also
called Parsik). Some authors advocate that the term
‘Pahlavi’ should only be used for the script and not
the language. In Iran, the Pahlavi script was displaced
by the Arabic script after the Arab invasion in the 7th
century CE, while the spoken Middle Persian
language evolved into New Persian.
Pars - An Aryan kingdom in the southwest of Greater

Aryana, today called the province of Fars in Iran. Fars
is the Arabic version of Pars.
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans x K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
Parsi - Persian. Belonging to, of, or from Pars. The

Zoroastrians who fled from Arab rule to India in the
8th and 9th centuries CE called themselves Parsees
(Parsis). Farsi is the Arabic version of Parsi and is
commonly used as the name of the modern Persian-
Aryan language, New Persian, otherwise the language
of Iran. Parsi is the more authentic name (than Farsi)
of the Persian language.
Parthia - The Aryan kingdom whose native name is Parthav

and which lay in and around the mountains called
the Kopet Dag (bordering Iran and Turkmenistan)
today.
Parthian - Belonging to Parthia, the westernized version of the

native name Parthava.
Parthav, Parthava - See Parthia, Parthian, Pahlavan.
Persia - Western/English version of Pars (see above). A name

given by the classical Greeks writers to Aryana since
Pars was at one time the dominant kingdom of
Aryana. Pars was earlier known as ‘Parsa’ and
Arabized to ‘Fars’ since Arabic does not have the letter
‘p’.
Persian - Persian mean ‘from Persia’ such as its people and

language. However, ‘Persian’ is commonly used to
mean ‘belonging to all of Aryana’. Persian was known
locally as ‘Parsi’ and Arabized as ‘Farsi’ since Arabic
does not have the letter ‘p’.
Rig Veda - Oldest Veda (see below) written in a language similar

to the language of the Avesta.
Rivayet - A collection of epistles (formal instructive letters or

dispatches) documenting correspondence about a
wide variety of topics related to orthodox Zoroastrian
customs and practice. Changa Asa (1450 to 1512 CE),
a community leader of the Parsi-Zoroastrians of
Navsari, Gujarat, India, organized the sending of a
representative to the Zoroastrian High Priest in Yazd,
Iran with a set of questions on orthodox religious
practice. The first representative was Nariman
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans xi K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
Hoshang who returned to India with answers to the

community’s questions in 1478 CE. A series of
missions followed for the next two hundred years,
and the answers brought have been collected and
named the Rivayats. Some of the representatives who
travelled to Iran were Kama Bohra (1528 CE), Shapur
Bharuchi (1570 CE), Kaus Kama (1594 CE), and
Kamdin Shapur (?). Persecution of Zoroastrians forced
a pause in the visits until the mid 1700s when Mulla
Kaus made the last such visit to Yazd and Kerman,
only to be trapped in Kerman by the Qajars.
Sasanian, Sasanid - The Persian dynasty that displaced the Parthian

Arsacids as the king-of-kings, the overlords, of Aryana
in the 3rd century CE. They were named after the
eponymous founder of the dynastic line, Sasan.
Author Tabari claims they were descendants of the
Achaemenids. The Sasanians were the last Zoroastrian
kings of Aryana and were deposed when Aryana was
conquered by the Islamic Arabs in the mid-7th century
CE. The last Sasanian king was Yezdegird III. Also
spelt Sasanian.
shah-nameh - General meaning in Persian: ‘chronicle of kings’.

Specifically: the 10th-11th century CE Persian poet
Ferdowsi’s work in verse titled the Shahnameh. The
poet Daqiqi’s shah-nameh is one of many that
preceded Ferdowsi’s work. Most of the earlier shah-
nameh were in prose.
Vedas - Hindu scriptures of which the Rig Veda, the oldest, is

written in a language similar to the language of the
Avesta.
Vendidad - A book of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta. The

name Vendidad is a later form of Videvdat, which is in
turn a contraction of Vi-Daevo-Data, the law against
devas or evil. The Vendidad’s verses are used by priests
in purification ceremonies. The Vendidad is also a
store of Zoroastrian history. It contains the list of the
nations of Old Aryana as well as an account of the
deeds of King Jamsheed including his expansion of
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans xii K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
Aryan lands.
Yasht - A book of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta. It is

said to contain pre-Zoroastrian-information. Each
Yasht (commonly translated as worship) is a hymn
dedicated to Zoroastrian-ideals together with the
related angel (such as the ideals of friendship, the
word as bond, and kindness, and the guardian of
these ideals – the angel Mithra). Originally, there
were thirty Yashts, one dedicated to each named day
of the month. Today only twenty-one survive.
Yasna - A book of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta,

which contains the liturgy for the preparation of the
ab-zohr/haoma extract, as well as the Gathas or
hymns of Zarathushtra. Yasna (also spelt izeshne in
later texts) means service, prayers and dedications –
i.e. words of worship (cf. Sanskrit yajna and yana).
Priests recite the Yasna as part of the liturgy when
performing their priestly duties and functions.
Zand - Classical (primarily Middle Persian) translations,

explanations, interpretations and commentaries of
the scriptures, the Avesta, are called the Zand or Zend.
The Avesta accompanied by the Zand is called the
Zand-Avesta. For our purposes, we use the term Zand
to include all the Middle Persian religious texts that
seek to complement the Avesta in its full extent of 21
books. Well-known works of the Zand are the
Bundahishn and Denkard.
Zartosht - Middle Persian version of Zarathushtra.
Zartoshti - Middle Persian version of Zarathushtrian.
Zarathushtra - Founder of the Zoroastrian/Zarathushtrian

creed/faith/religion and its core philosophy.
Zarathushtra is the English transliteration of the
original name in the Avestan language and is also
spelt Zarathustra.
Zarathushtri - Name for a Zoroastrian, that some feel is more

authentic since it is based on the original Avesta
name Zarathushtra and not on the Greek-based
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans xiii K. E. Eduljee

Glossary
corruption Zoroaster.
Zarathushtrian - See Zarathushtri.
Zoroaster - Western version of the name Zarathushtra.
Zoroastrianism - Western name for the religion, faith and philosophy

based on the teachings of Zoroaster/Zarathushtra.
Authentically called Mazdayasni (Worship of God)
and Behdin (Good-Religion).
()
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans xiv K. E. Eduljee

IS THE TERM ‘ZOROASTRIAN’ ZOROASTRIAN?
‘Zoroastrian’ & ‘Zoroastrianism’ are modern English terms used
in English language communications such as this monograph.
These terms are not found in ancient ‘Zoroastrian’ texts. If not,
then by what name was the religion known previously?
The internal name: the Avesta calls the religion ‘Mazdayasna’ and
‘Mazdayasna Zarathushtrish’. Some modern writers use ‘Mazdean’.
The external name: classical European writers called

Zoroastrianism the Religion of the Magi – ‘Magiæ’ or ‘Magian’ if
you will. To this day Arabs call Zoroastrians ‘Majus’ (i.e. Magian).
Islamic writers called Zoroastrian lands ‘Mughistan’ (from
‘Mugh/Magha’).
In Alcibiades I, Greek philosopher, Plato cites the Magism (or

Magianism) of Zoroaster (his original name being Zarathushtra). In
his Lives of Eminent Philosophers, Diogenes Laertius calls Zoroaster
the first Magian. Similarly, Agathias in his Histories calls Zoroaster
the founder of the Magian religion, i.e., the founder of the Magi’s
doctrine. The terms ‘Religion of the Magi’, ‘Magian Religion’ and
‘Magism’ are therefore synonymous with ‘Zoroastrianism’.
Classical authors Herodotus and Strabo knew of only one Persian

religion. Albert de Jong in Traditions of the Magi: Zoroastrianism in
Greek and Latin Literature states, “There is no trace of a plurality
among the Iranians. On the contrary, in the (Greek and Latin)
classical texts, only one religion is recognized: the religion of the
Persians. This religion is often connected with the name Zoroaster,
who enjoyed a wide reputation in the ancient world as the founder
of the order of the Magi, and by extension as the founder of the
wisdom and religion of the Persians.”
‘Persia’ was the name classical Greco-Roman authors used for

ancient Iran, Aryana, because Persia was then the dominant Aryan
nation. Persia was to Aryana what England is to Britain today. At its
start, Zoroastrianism was not a ‘Persian’ religion since the kingdom
of ‘Persia’ had not been formed when Zoroaster/Zarathushtra lived.
It was then an Aryan or Iranian religion with Kayanian Balkh (in
Afghanistan today), the dominant Aryan nation, as its center. After
the formation of Persia and the Persian Empire, Persia became the
center of Zoroastrianism until the Arab invasion around 645 CE.
Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans 1 K. E. Eduljee

THE MAGI & HEALTHY LIVING
The disciples and successors of Zoroaster, the Magi, are an order
of seers who are dedicated to the service of the Divine. They are
found among the Persians, Medes, Chaldeans, Parthians,
(H)areians, Bactrians, Chorasmians, and the Saka.
Since their profession as the Magi makes it incumbent on them

to observe strict rules of life, the Magi have strong constitutions
and live to a great age.
Lucian of Samosata (2nd century CE)

I Research & Discussion
PART I
RESEARCH & DISCUSSION
1. Was Zarathushtra a Vegetarian?

A rare reference to Zarathushtra’s (Zoroaster’s) diet is contained in
classical Roman author Pliny’s Natural History. We also have comments
related to diet in Zarathushtra’s hymns, the Gathas, as well as in the Gathas’
Middle Persian (Pahlavi) Zand translations. Given that Zarathushtra
composed the Gathas, we may reasonably surmize that any allusion to diet
or the killing of animals in the Gathas reflects Zarathushtra’s own principles.
A. Zarathushtra’s Diet of Cheese

Pliny the Elder (23 – 79 CE) in his Natural History noted:
“It is reported that Zoroaster lived in the deserts (wilds) on

cheese so temperately (moderately/frugally) for twenty years that
he did not feel the effects of old age.” (KEE – all translations in this
monograph are by K. E. Eduljee unless otherwise stated.)
J. Bostock translates the last words in the passage as, “…that he was
insensible to the advances of old age.”
(i) Cheese, No Meat, Moderation, Self-Control & Shunning

Gluttony
[It would be unreasonable to expect that Zarathushtra
subsisted for twenty years on cheese alone. More likely,
cheese consumed frugally was central to his diet as it was
with the Magi’s diet that comprised, as we will read later,
of cheese, vegetables and bread.]
The short statement by Pliny above contains a

number of values, qualities of character, guiding
principles and life-style choices that lie at the heart of the
Zarathushtrian ethos. A life-style choice and diet such as
this would not be possible without a firm ethic, will
power and exemplary self-control.
Pliny’s passage further states that Zarathushtra

consumed cheese, a simple food, in a temperate or
moderate manner, implying first that he consumed
cheese in small amounts, and second that he did not
engage in gluttony or the eating of rich foods. We can A portrait of Zarathushtra
infer that he ate what his body needed to function in an - an artist's impression.

optimal manner – not more and not less.
A further implication reiterated in Zoroastrian texts is that rich, indulgent

foods are harmful to health, longevity and the soul as well. Other classical
Greco-Roman and Zoroastrian texts amplify Pliny’s statement.
B. Zarem Raoghna – Soul Food

There is a diary product closely related to cheese that bears mention here.
Called zarem raoghna in the Avesta and roghan in later texts, it is extolled in
Zoroastrian texts as the “best food”. ‘Zarem’ means ‘spring’ (season). The
Avestan ‘raoghna’ evolved to ‘roghan’ in Middle Persian, which in turn
translates as ‘oil’ or ‘butter’ in English.
The Avestan Hadhokht Nask, which is concerned with the fate of the soul
after a person’s passing away, states, “Their food is the exalted zaremyehe
raoghnahe; for them who from youth are of good thoughts, of good words, of
good deeds, of good faith – (it is like) the food of the after life….” (KEE). The
Middle Persian text Dadistan-i Denig, which we cite further below, also notes
that zarem raoghna is the earthly representative of the soul’s heavenly food.
This author proposes that in Zoroastrian texts ‘raoghna’/‘roghan’ means

‘clarified butter’1 – similar to the Vedic ‘ghart’ meaning ‘ghee’2. [In old Iran,
clarified butter was a valued commodity used to make payments.3] Therefore,
we can translate zaremyehe raoghnahe (zarem raoghna for short) as ‘spring
clarified butter’.
Cheese (paneer in Middle and New Persian) and clarified butter are made
from milk. All three play a significant role in Zoroastrian-Aryan tradition –
milk in health-giving and healing haoma extracts and cheese in diet. In turn,
zarem raoghna – clarified butter made in spring – is extolled as the best food
in the world, the earthly representative of soul food.
C. Mid-Spring Milk, Clarified Butter & Cheese

The Middle Persian Dadistan-i Denig (Religious Decisions) further develops
the concept of zarem raoghna by calling it maidyo-zarem roghan in the Middle
Persian language. Since ‘maidyo’ means ‘mid’, we can translate ‘maidyo-zarem
roghan’ as ‘mid-spring clarified butter’.
The Dadistan adds that the most efficacious of all dairy products is
maidyo-zarem roghan made from milk drawn in the second month
(Ardwahisht/Ardibehesht) of the year, i.e., when Mihr (the Sun) was in the
constellation Tora (Taurus) – a month scripturally designated as part of
1
See Appendix III.1.
2
See Appendix III.1.E.
3
See Appendix III.1.C.

spring (zarem), i.e., April-May in today’s Gregorian calendar or mid-spring.
[Since the Sun appears to ‘move’ through twelve constellations in its

celestial ‘path’, the Zoroastrian-Aryan method of specifying a month by the
Sun’s position in a constellation is dynamic and the description holds true
for a specific era only – in this case the Age of Varak (varak meaning
lamb/ram) i.e. the Age of Aries. The Sun would have resided for the entire
second month of spring within the star constellation Tora (Taurus)
sometime between 2,100 and 1,700 BCE. This may be an indication of when
the Dadistan’s original ancient source text was composed.]
The Middle Persian Menog-i Kharad reiterates that maidyo-zarem roghan

(mid-spring clarified butter) is the
most beneficent of foods and the
Avestan Visperad’s Pahlavi
commentary confirms that spring
milk is “the best”.
It stands to reason that cheese

(paneer) made from spring milk
should also be the best among
cheeses made throughout the year.
One reason for the remarkable

health-giving efficacy of clarified
Simple paneer. Image credit: Wikipedia.
butter or cheese made from mid-
spring milk could be that cows feeding on fresh spring grasses ate (and pre-
digested for us) wild herbs growing amidst the grass.
D. Cheese & Herbs – an Ancient Tradition Survives

Today, if mid-spring cheese made from free-ranging cows’ milk is not
available, the next best alternative is to eat herbs and
vegetables with the cheese.
Diogenes Laertius, a 3rd century CE Greek biographer

from Alexandria, Egypt, citing 2nd century BCE
biographer Sotion of Alexandria, states that the diet of
the Magi of his time was “cheese (tyros), vegetables and
coarse bread” and that the Magi ate cheese by piercing
bits of it with a stick they carried with them.
It would be reasonable to expect that the Magi

followed the example of Zarathushtra in their diet.
Diogenes Laertius

During this author’s stay in Iran,

he was introduced to the popular
tradition of dining on a simple meal
of cheese (paneer), flatbread (naan) and
herbs or vegetables that can be eaten
raw (sabzi khordan) – herbs and
vegetables such as tarragon, basil,
mint and parsley together with, say,
onions, radish, and even walnuts.
The amount of cheese consumed in

this manner is moderate and in
keeping with the Zarathushtrian
principle of moderation. A morsel of paneer, walnuts and sabzi khordan
(here mint, spring onion, basil and radish) wrapped in naan.
It would seem that unbeknownst to Image credit: Nazderavian.
most, an ancient Zarathushtrian
dietary tradition survives to this day in
the guise of daily fare.
(i) Unleavened Bread from Barley

Unleavened flat bread made from
ground whole grain barley may be
closer to the original
Zarathushtrian/Magian diet than
today’s leavened bread made from
refined flour.
2nd century CE Syrian author Lucian A sabzi khordan selection – tarragon, mint, radish and spring
of Samosata4 stated, “The Chaldean onions. Image credit: Nazderavian.
(Magi) are said to live to above a
hundred years in age. This is attributed in part to their custom of feeding on
barley bread, which they say sharpens the sight. By this kind of diet their
senses in general are said to be quicker and stronger than those of other
people.”
E. Sustenance in Winter
In those climate zones that did not permit year-round agriculture, plant
foodstuffs that lent themselves to drying and storing would have provided a
year-round source of food – plant foods such as dried grains, rice, beans,
lentils, herbs, fruits and nuts. When fresh herbs and vegetables were
unavailable to eat with barley bread and cheese, nuts such as walnuts may
have been eaten as substitutes.
4
Samosata stood on the east bank of the River Euphrates in what a region that is part
of modern-day Turkey.

The Iranian tradition of storing dried herbs, fruits and nuts is associated
with yet another noble tradition – that of sharing and ensuring those
unfortunate enough not to have a store of foods would not go hungry.
(i) Gahanbars & Jashns – Mutual Help and Caring

Instituted by scripture, gahanbars are six seasonal festivals or high feasts
when Zoroastrians assemble to eat and share food communally. Partaking in
the feasts with their attendant rituals brings enjoyment and comfort to
mind, body and soul. Traditionally, each feast lasted for five days.
A jashn (called jashn in Iran and jashan in India) celebrates a joyous

occasion such as a thanksgiving, some other important event or a significant
day of the calendar. Jashns can include gahanbar-like feasts and the very first
jashn recorded in legend is Jashn Sadeh (see frontispiece), instituted to
celebrate the discovery of fire by King Hushang, the first formal king of the
Aryans in the Avesta.5
For the people engaged in the procurement, preparation and distribution

of food at gahanbar and jashn feasts, their efforts stand as a service to the
community. In addition to sustaining its members, the preparation of the
food and its communal sharing helps in building and maintaining the
health and spirit of the community.
A hot vegetarian soup called aush/aash is often served at a traditional

Iranian Zoroastrian jashn. Dried fruits and nuts called khushk baar/meevayh6
(known commonly as ajil or lork/lorg) are also distributed.
One common variety of

aush is aush-e reshte, a stew-
like soup made with whey
(kashk), finely chopped herbs
and previously soaked dried
legumes and lentils. Persian
noodles (reshte) complement
the soup. Besides providing
balanced nutrition, the soup
is said to have healing powers
that help restore those who
Aush-e Reshte. Image credit: Wikipedia. are ill to good health.
5
The poet Ferdowsi in his Shahnameh names Hushang’s grandfather Gaya
Maretan/Gayomard as the first king.
6
‘Baar’ means ‘fruit’ or ‘meevayh’, ‘produce’, ‘load’ and ‘tree output’.

Khushk baar/meevayh (ajil/lork), nuts and dried fruits mixture.

Image credit: Nazanin Niknam at vcn.
Khushk baar/meevayh (ajil/lork) is a mixture of seven (seven being an

auspicious number for Zoroastrians) dried nuts and fruits: pistachios, roasted
chic peas, almonds, hazelnuts, figs, apricots, and raisins (pasteh, nakhudsheek,
baudom, fandook, anjeer, zardauloo and keshmesh respectively). Some
substitutions are made according to locale, availability, taste (salty or sweet)
and family preferences. Roasted squash seeds, roasted melon seeds, walnuts,
cashews, and dried mulberries (tokhmeh kadoo, tokhmeh hendooneh, gardoo,
kaushu and tut
respectively) are possible
substitutes.
This author noticed

that towards the close of
community gatherings in
Iran, the hosts invariably
distributed dried fruits
and nuts (often blessed by
a prayer) to all the guests
as a take-away. Everyone,
regardless of their station,
accepted the offering with
thanks.
Praying the Afrinameh over Gahanbar foods. Yazd, Iran.
Image credit: Nazanin Niknam at vcn.
Beneficence – mutual
helpfulness and caring – has always been the central pillar on which
Zoroastrian communities have been built over the centuries.

F. Zarathushtra’s Gathas
(i) King Jamsheed as the Originator of the Sin of Meat Eating
Verse 32.8 of the Gathas, the hymns of Zarathushtra, starts with a
condemnation of legendary King Jamsheed – a great and noble king turned
sinner. Modern authors translate the remaining lines differently.
The verse’s Middle Persian Pahlavi translation – as well as the Sanskrit

translation by 12th or 13th century CE Parsi scholar Neriosangh Dhaval –
support the following English translation:
“Among the sinners we hear of Yima Vivanghat (King

Jamsheed’s ancient Avestan name), who taught humans the
enjoyment (craving) of our (beneficent) animals eaten in portions
(butchered?). From all such, may I (Zarathushtra) stand apart in
Your ultimate discernment O Mazda.” (KEE)
The once great Aryan King

Jamsheed on his throne
being elevated by divs. There
are several implications
conveyed by this mythical
scenario: first, the divs
supported Jamsheed’s
kingship and elevated him to
the status to a demi-god. The
divs themselves are portrayed
as being demonic, the
antithesis of a righteous
person.
Image details and credit: This

image is part of a Timurid
(Ebrahim Soltan) Shahnameh
manuscript created in Shiraz
and dated to c.1435–1440
CE. The manuscript folios are
presently at the Fitzwilliam
Museum, University of
Cambridge, UK.
To be fair, we have found one reference in a Pahlavi Rivayet that seems to

imply that Jamsheed tried to prevent the sin of meat eating, a practice
initiated by the divs. Regardless to whom legends assign the blame, since
eating meat is consistently associated with the killing of beneficent animals,
the practice of meat eating is uniformly decried by implication.
(ii) Lament of Geush Urvan & Animals

The Gathas’ second chapter opens with the lament of Geush Urvan
seeking a protector from violence, death and evil. ‘Urvan’ means soul in the

Avestan languages. ‘Geush’ has two primary meanings: the ‘kine’ (cattle) and
‘creation’ or ‘life’.
In his Essays on the Sacred Language, Writings, and Religion of the Parsis 19th
century Sanskrit scholar Martin Haug noted, “Geush Urva means the
universal soul of the earth, the cause of all life and growth. The literal
meaning of the term, ‘soul of the cow’ implies a simile; for the earth is
compared to a cow.” Gaus, notes Haug, conveys two meanings in Sanskrit,
‘cow’ and ‘earth’.
(iii) Tradition of Aryan/Iranian Poets & Gathic Poetry

Zarathushtra stands first amongst a long line of illustrious ancient Iranian
poets who developed the tradition of composing verses that conveyed
several meanings in layers. They perfected the art of using allegory,
metaphor and the simile.
(iv) Allegory in the Geush Urvan Gatha

It is, therefore, quite possible that Zarathushtra intended both meanings
of ‘geush’ – kine and earthly life – to apply in the Geush Urvan Gatha as
primary meanings that produce observable truths: the indiscriminate killing
of animals and an abuse of nature. He may have intended secondary
meanings as well. The flock of Geush Urvan could be a metaphor for
Zarathushtra’s community of followers who were being harassed and
murdered for their beliefs. Yet another meaning could be the utter depravity
that existed in Zarathushtra’s homeland prior to his ministry.
The master poet will ensure that the discovery of less apparent meanings
do not invalidate primary meaning(s). All meanings remain valid.
If the Gathas do indeed take a multiple meaning approach for even the
primary or apparent meaning(s), the Middle Persian Pahlavi translations of
this Gathic chapter explicitly decry the killing of beneficent animals as the
primary meaning. One Pahlavi translation of the chapter has Geush Urvan
saying, “The indiscriminate slaughter makes my life in all things hateful”.
The statement is followed by a plea for safe pastures for the gospand7,
beneficent animals.
7
This author proposes that Middle Persian ‘gospand’ is derived from the Avestan ‘gao-
spenta’ – ‘gao’ meaning ‘cow’, and ‘spenta’ meaning ‘beneficent’ in this context.
While in New Persian ‘gosfand’ means ‘sheep’, in the Middle Persian context of our
references, ‘gospand’ appears to mean all useful/beneficent animals that could be
domesticated as livestock – those that provided food as milk and cheese, fibre,
transportation, labour as beasts of burden and for tilling, threshing and other such
tasks. The category may have included fowl as well. [*The New Persian replacement
of ‘p’ with an ‘f’ in ‘gospand’ is likely part of the Arabization of the Persian language
as in the transformation of ‘Parsi’ to ‘Farsi’.]

In a Pahlavi rendition of the Geush Urvan Gatha, Geush

Urvan is identified as the gospands’ (beneficent animals’)
ruban (soul). ‘Gospand’s’ modern rendition means ‘sheep’.
The ‘vasta’, the protector of the herd or flock, in Gatha Y.
29.1’s “noit moi vasta Khshmat Anyo” can thereby be read as
“there is no shepherd/pastor other than You (Mazda/God)”.
The last line “moi sansta vohu vastrya” can read as “lead me to
good (and safe) pastures.”
Compare these lines with the Judeo-Christian Psalm 23 (of
David) “the Lord is my shepherd” “He leads me to green (and
safe) pastures” “He restores my soul”.
Scholars of comparative religion inform us that Zoroastrian
concepts influenced Jewish (and thereby later Christian)
theology especially during the exile of Jews to Babylon and
immediately after their liberation by King Cyrus the Great.
(v) Geush & Gospand

The Middle Persian Zoroastrian translations and texts equate ‘geush’ with
‘gospand’, the latter meaning ‘beneficent herd or livestock animals’ in
context.
Neriosangh Dhaval also translates ‘geush urvan’ as the ‘soul of the herds’ –
herds of all beneficent animals.
(vi) Soul of Animals

The concepts in the Gathic chapter that contains the lament of Geush
Urvan are further amplified in verse 39.1 of the Yasna, which states:
“(Know) this that we revere Geush Urvan and all our forms as
well as the souls of animals who are living as we are. They are to us
as we are to them.” (KEE)
The passage states that ‘we’, i.e. Zoroastrians, revere the souls of animals
in the same manner as we revere the souls of humans. These sentiments lead
us to the distinction between life forms that have a soul (perhaps sentient),
and organisms such as plants that are organic and living, but which do not
have a soul.
The further implication is that eating plants that do not have a soul is
acceptable while killing/eating beneficent animals that have a soul is
unacceptable to the tenants of the faith.


2. Ancient Aryans Were Gatherers.

But Were They Hunters?
A. Legends Preserved in Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh
Legends preserved in the poet Ferdowsi’s epic, the Shahnameh, offer
us a possible answer to the question: Prior to the advent of
Zoroastrianism, were ancient Aryans vegetarian? Ferdowsi’s principal
source of information and legend was the Middle Persian (Pahlavi)
Zoroastrian work, the Khvatay-Namak, later known as the Khodai-nameh.8
(i) Aryan Stone Age – Age of Gaya Maretan & Gathering Foods
The Shahnameh informs us that during the Aryan Stone Age – the Age
of Gaya Maretan (Gayomard, Kaiumars) – people sustained themselves
by gathering fruits and other plant foods. Later in the Stone Age, people
began to domesticate animals and the concept of domesticated livestock
– herds of beneficent animals – developed. Ferdowsi
(ii) Aryan Metal Age – Age of Hushang & Agriculture

The Shahnameh’s legends then say that during the Age of King Hushang –
the Aryan Metal Age – the planting
Archaeological finds at the base of the Kopet and harvesting of crops began.
Dag Mountains’ (bordering today’s Iran and
The legends do not mention
Turkmenistan and which in ancient times were
hunting until later in history. What
in Parthava/Parthia) northern slopes, have
we read is that before the advent of
provided evidence of what might be some of
farming, Aryans were gatherers of
the oldest settled agrarian communities known
plant foods. Nevertheless, do these
to humankind. Early Aryans also developed an
legends say anything about the
underground system of water irrigation called
advent of eating animal flesh? The
kareez. The system prevented evaporation and
lines in the next section translated
pollution of water as it travelled from the rain
from Ferdowsi's Shahnameh give us a
catchment area of the foothills to the plains.
possible answer.
[The information supplied by Ferdowsi is consistent with the sentiments

regarding meat eating in surviving Zoroastrian texts – with one difference.
While Zoroastrian texts see pre-Zarathushtra King Jamsheed as the monarch
who introduced meat eating, Ferdowsi transfers that blame to King
Jamsheed’s antagonist, the ‘foreign’ King Zahhak who overran ancient Iran.]
8
Ferdowsi wrote the verses of the Shahnameh in New Persian when the language had
just evolved from Middle Persian – and was fast becoming contaminated with Arabic
words. Ferdowsi expunged as many Arabic words as possible in the New Persian
lexicon he employed.

Gaya Maretan (Gayomard, Kaiumars) with the people and

animals of ancient Iran living in harmony.
Image: In Shah Tahmasp manuscript of Ferdowsi's Shahnameh.

Attributed to Artist Sultan Muhammad, Iran, Tabriz c. 1530 CE
(Metropolitan Museum of Art).

(iii) Seduction of Zahhak by Ahriman’s Cooking

In one of the earlier legends of the Shahnameh, King Zahhak (perhaps
Assyrian but who Ferdowsi ‘Arabized’) overthrew Aryan King Jamsheed and
conquered ancient Iran, Aryana. In this legend, Ahriman9, the devil
incarnate and leader of the evil divs who plagued the life of the good Aryans,
brings Zahhak under his control by becoming his cook and then seducing
him with a taste and fondness for meat. What follow are the overthrow of
King Jamsheed by Zahhak and the completion of the first great Aryan tragic
cycle – Aryan lands that had risen to great glory during the reigns of King
Hushang, Tahmuras and Jamsheed’s early reign, now fell on evil times.
The following is this author’s rendition of the Arthur and Edmond

Warners’ translation of Zahhak’s seduction by Ahriman in the Shahnameh:
Ahriman plotted. “Let me,” he mused,

“Present myself as a famed and noted cook,
And with my cooking, find favour with the king.”
Foods then were few, yet people did not kill to eat
But lived on the earth’s produce of vegetal.
Scheming the evil-doing Ahriman designed
To slaughter and serve both bird and beast.
Zahhak would thus by his appetite be seduced
And when possessed by a carnal lust for blood and flesh,
Would as a slave obey and do all Ahriman’s bidding yet.
In youth form well-spoken, clean, and clever,

With fawning words of praise and promise,
Ahriman presented himself to Zahhak
Who commanded his faithful minister
To give the div the royal kitchen’s keys.
Ahriman prepared first a meal of yolk,

Whose flavour the monarch relished so
That he praised the wily Ahriman, who replied thus,
“Illustrious monarch! Forever live!
Tomorrow I will serve yet more and please you well.”
All night the evil div pondered,

What strange repast to proffer on the morrow.
When the azure vault brought back the golden orb

Ahriman presented the monarch a lavish meal
Of partridges and silver pheasants as never seen.
9
Iblis, the Islamic word for the devil, is used in place of Ahriman in some Shahnameh
manuscripts.

The Arab monarch gorged himself, and lost

His diminutive wits in awe and admiration.
On the third day, Ahriman served lamb and fowl,

And on the fourth a saffron flavoured joint of veal
With rosewater, musk and rare old wine.
The evil one then counselled the king,
‘Tis blood that gives muscle and strength
And will make the monarch lion-fierce.
When Zahhak had feasted on blood and flesh,

In wonder of his cook’s ability said,
“Worthy friend! Ask now your recompense.”
His scheme fulfilled, the Darkness answered,
“Live, O king! In wealth and power.
My heart does throe with your favour of my soul’s food.
Yet if could I ask one boon above my station
‘Tis leave to kiss and lay my eyes upon your shoulders.”
Surprised Zahhak replied, “I grant it; it may do you grace.”
Permission thus received, Ahriman kissed
The monarch’s shoulders and swiftly vanished.
A marvel followed,
For from the monarch’s shoulders
Sprouted two demonic black snakes.
Distraught, Zahhak sought a cure.

Finding none, he excised them,
But lo! They grew back again!
Like strange branches from a tree.
The ablest leechers summoned gave advice in turn
And used their curious arts, though all in vain.
Then in leech form Ahriman himself appeared
“This was your destiny,” said he.
“Cut not the snakes but let them live.
Give them men’s brains and gorge them till they sleep.
Such food may kill them.
It is the only means.”
The purpose of the foul div pray shrewdly scan;

Had he conceived perchance a secret plan
To rid the world of all trace of man?
The words above are fairly clear. Before Zahhak’s seduction by Ahriman,
people did not eat meat. In other words, they were vegetarian. The legend
does not end with that answer. When Ferdowsi’s legend made Ahriman the
initiator of eating slaughtered animal flesh, he could not have made his

point about the ethics of eating animal flesh for food more emphatically.
Since the practice of meat eating requires killing life, it is not hard to see
why he placed the practice under the domain of Ahriman, the lord of death,
the lord of not-life.
Further, once gripped by the taste of meat and blood, Zahhak became a
slave to Ahriman. Perhaps Ferdowsi was trying to say that meat eating is an
addiction to which people become enslaved.
The philosophical underpinnings of this symbolic mythology are

profound. They establish the place and role of human beings in the scheme
of creation. They also make respect and reverence of animal life an ethical
imperative – the antithesis of which is deemed evil. The implication that
killing, tasting blood and eating meat are addictive, harkens to an implied
subversion of free will and objectivity – that once enslaved by addiction, the
human mind becomes a victim to base desires and ambitions represented
mythically by Ahriman and Zahhak’s relationship. By extension,
overcoming carnal temptations for dead flesh is a triumph of right-
mindedness over base desire – a lesson for any form of addiction.
When read in conjunction with other references to nutrition and health

found elsewhere in Zoroastrian texts, what we gather is that the type of food
we consume is directly manifest in our health holistically – not just in the
health, vitality and longevity of our mortal frames, but in that of our minds
and spirit as well. The ancient Avestan wisdom contained in the Zahhak-
Ahriman legend as retold and preserved by Ferdowsi in his Shahnameh,
profiles meat eating as being one of the principal negative influences on the
human body, mind and spirit. 
3. Introduction of Meat Eating after the Arab

Conquest
Author E. W. West informs us that in Chapter 39 of a Bundahishn
manuscript belonging to Tehmuras Dinshawji Anklesaria of Bombay, he
found a notation stating, “The Arabs rushed into the country of Iran in great
multitude... and their own irreligious law was propagated by them and many
ancestral customs were destroyed, and eating of dead matter was put into
practice. ...From the original creation until this day, evil more grievous than
this has not happened....”
Perhaps the poet Ferdowsi had a purpose in the Arabization of Zahhak.

4. Stages of Consumption at the Beginning & End

of Human History
The stages in which humankind began consuming water and foodstuffs
(together with the prediction that the stages will be reversed at the close of
human history) are outlined in the Middle Persian Bundahishns. They tell us
that at the outset of history, humans first consumed water, then vegetables,
then milk, and lastly meat. Close to the end of human history, the stages
will be reversed. People will desist first from eating meat, then vegetables
and then milk – finally existing on water alone until the end of the present
existential phase and the beginning of everlasting peace.
This event will occur when a coming saviour will lead the world to an
ideal existence and death will be no more. It stands to reason that this
includes the death or killing of animals – possibly the Bundahishns’ answer to
the lament of Geush Urvan beseeching God for a saviour and safe pastures.

5. Achaemenid Era Practices of the Magi

A. Different Norms for Different Orders of the Magi
According to 3rd century CE Phoenician-Tyrian philosopher &
vegetarian advocate Porphyry in his work De Abstinentia, “The first and
most learned order of the Magi neither eat nor slay any thing animated,
but adhere to the ancient abstinence from animals. The second order (of
the Magi) uses some animals indeed (for food) but do not slay any that
are tame*. Nor do those of the third order, similarly with other men, lay
their hands on all (tame) animals.” (Adapted by this author from the
translation by T. Taylor.)
[*Likely the gospand of Middle Persian texts.]
We note here that it was only the highest order of the Achaemenid
Porphyry
era Magi (say, the dasturs of today) who adhered to the ancient practice
of abstinence from killing animals or meat eating. Porphyry notes that while
the lower orders of the Magi hierarchy did eat meat they did not kill “tame”
animals, which we presume included domesticated, livestock or herd
animals i.e. the gospand. One scenario is that the higher orders of the Magi
maintained Zarathushtra’s exemplary lifestyle and dietary choices as part of
their strict code even when large segments of the population had become
meat eaters.

B. Changing Mores
Perhaps unaware of the finer distinctions that Porphyry would
note, 5th century BCE Greek author Herodotus generalized by stating
in his Histories that the Magi were required to pray over the cooked
flesh of an animal slaughtered by a member of the Persian laity.
In reading the various Greco-Roman reports collectively, what we

gather is that by the time the Persian Achaemenids ruled Aryan lands
– from, say, the 7th century BCE onwards or perhaps even following
Median rule from, say, the 9th century BCE onwards – ‘Persians’
(Zoroastrians) no longer uniformly adhered to the “ancient
abstinence from (eating) animals”.
Herodotus
The desire to restore the ancient practice of a vegetarian diet
amongst Zoroastrians nevertheless continued to persist as late as the
Sasanian era (3rd to 7th century CE). That desire is evidenced by the explicit
admonitions of Sasanian era high priests we cite next – admonitions that are
today either forgotten or ignored.

6. Call to be Vegetarians in Sasanian Era Medieval

Zoroastrian Texts
A. Sasanian Head Priest Adarbad Mahraspandan
Perhaps the most explicit call for Zoroastrians to be vegetarian is found in
the Sayings of Adarbad Mahraspandan10, which states:
“Abstain rigorously from eating the flesh of kine and all

beneficent animals (gospandan) least you be made to face a strict
reckoning in this world and the next; for by eating the flesh of the
kine and other domestic animals, you involve your hand in sin,
and (thereby) think, speak, and do what is sinful; for though you
may eat but a mouthful, you involve your hand in sin, and though
a camel be slain by (another) person in another place, it is as if you
(who eat its flesh) had slain it with your own hand.”(Translation by
R. C. Zaehner and adapted slightly for consistency.)11
10
Zoroastrian high priest (mobed-i mobedan/mobed of mobeds) and prime minister
during the reign of Sasanian King Shapur II (309-379 CE), Adarbad Mahraspandan is
said to have ‘purified’ the Avesta and fixed its number at 21 nasks (books), 21 being
the number of words in the Ahunavar prayer. Highly regarded and considered a saint,
he is likely the Adarbad Mehersafand mentioned in the Qissa-e Sanjan.
11
We are grateful to Zaneta Garratt for bringing this passage to our attention.

B. Hudinan Peshobay Head Priest Adarbad Emedan

In addition, Hudinan Peshobay12 High Priest Atrupat-e Emetan (Adarbad,
son of Emedan) who officiated after the Arab invasion states in Book 6 of the
9-11th century CE Middle Persian (Pahlavi) Denkard:
“Be plant-eaters (urwar khwarishn i.e. vegetarian), O you people,

so that you may live long. And stay away from the body of
beneficent animals (gospand). As well, deeply consider that
Ohrmazd the Lord has for the benefit of useful animals (and
humans) created many plants.” (KEE)
(i) Beneficent Vegetarian Animals & Nature’s Bounty

High Priest Adarbad’s admonition to deeply consider the scheme of God,
Ahura Mazda’s creation, leads us to ponder if the definition of gospand,
beneficent animals, includes animals that are themselves vegetarian. The
digestive systems of these animals allow them to efficiently digest plant
foods that humans would not normally ingest. In doing so, these animals
convert coarse vegetable matter into another food, milk, intended for less
developed digestive systems such as their young. Milk thus contains plant
materials converted to protein and other concentrated nutrients formulated
by nature to foster nutrition and growth.
In contemplating the scheme of life, we need include to the earlier

example of Zarathushtra’s frugal consumption of a milk product, cheese. The
scheme of nature and our resultant dietary norms can be upset when the
beneficent animals are fed unnaturally or if their milk and its derivatives are
consumed excessively, immoderately and without due measure.

7. Modern Norms
Today, other than individuals or a group such as the Parsee Vegetarian &
Temperance Society, we have no consistent practice of community-wide
Zoroastrian vegetarianism. The Indian-Zoroastrian bastions of Irani-Parsi
food, the Irani cafés, are noticeably non-vegetarian. Nonetheless, this author
has heard Iranians state that according to tradition, consuming an excess of
red meat and fats results in evil thoughts and makes a person selfish.
12
The Hudinan Peshobay (meaning ‘leaders of the people of Good Religion’) were
th
leaders of the Zoroastrian community who from the 9 century CE were required by
the ruling Arabs to act as representatives for the entire (shrinking) Zoroastrian
community.

A. Shift in Norms
The records we have just
Where Aryan Vegetarianism
examined indicate that over the
millennia, there has been a
Survives
dramatic shift in Zoroastrian norms Aryan vegetarianism survives in some forms
on the issues of slaughtering of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. Buddhism
animals, cooking meat over an originated in the eastern Gangetic state of
open fire as in barbequing, and Magadha. Some scholars postulate that the
eating (dead) flesh. Magi, the Magha, established Magadha. Their
kings used the title ‘Arya’. The Indian Aryans as
Hopefully, one Zoroastrian well as the Bon who spread their faith from the
guiding principle that still survives Pamirs into Western Tibet, use the swastika
in practice (if at times neglected) is symbol – though that is another story.
the principle of moderation.

8. Principle of Moderation
The Zoroastrian guiding principle for many life-style choices (not moral
or ethical choices) is moderation between the extremes of too much and too
little. This guiding principle applies to food and drink as part of one’s life-
style choices.

9. Principles of Circumspection, Rightness &

Beneficence
The principle of moderation does not preclude the need to apply the tests
of rightness, goodness and beneficence to every choice – to check if
something or an act is helpful or harmful – and then to desist from that
which is harmful.
The ethical imperative for Zoroastrians is to engage in acts of beneficence

– acts of goodness and helpfulness.
()

II References
PART II
REFERENCES
1. Zoroastrian Scriptures & Texts
Avesta – Transliterations to the Roman script by this author based on
transliterations by I. J. S. Taraporewala (citing Christian Bartholomae), T. R.
Sethna, K. F. Geldner, H. Humbach, P. Ichaporia, M. C. Monna.
Transliterations to the Devanagari script by J. M. Chatterji13. Translations to
English by I. J. S. Taraporewala, T. R. Sethna, F. Rustamji, M. F. Kanga, J. M.
Chatterji, J. Darmesteter, C. Bartholomae, L. H. Mills, A. Jafarey, H.
Humbach, J. H. Moulton, M. C. Monna, K. E. Eduljee.
Bundahishn – Translations to English by B. T. Anklesaria14, E. W. West15, R.

C. Zaehner, S. H. Nasr, M. Aminrezavi.
Dadistan-i Denig – Translation to English by E. W. West in Sacred Books of

the East Vol. 18 (Oxford, 1882).
Denkard – Translations to English by R. E. Kohiyar, B. Sanjana, D. M.

Madon, E. W. West, S. Shaked.
Menog-i Kharad – Translation to English by E. W. West in Sacred Books of

the East Vol. 18 (Oxford, 1885).
Sayings of Adarbad Mahraspandan – Translation to English by R. C.

Zaehner in The Teachings of the Magi (London, 1956) pp. 110 ff.

2. Other Scriptures & Religious Texts

Hebrew Bible – The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text. Hebrew
text and translation to English. Jewish Publication Society (Philadelphia,
1917).
Manu Smriti (Laws of Manu) – Translation to English by W. Jones

(Calcutta, 1796).

13
J. M. Chatterji’s The Hymns of Atharvan Zarathushtra (Calcutta, 1967).
14
Zand-Akasih – Iranian or Greater Bundahishn (Bombay, 1956).
15
Pahlavi Texts in Sacred Books of the East, Vol. V, F. Max Müller ed., (Oxford, 1880).

II References
3. Classical & Medieval Texts

De Abstinentia/Abstinence (from Animal Foods) – Porphyry. Translated to
English by T. Taylor in Selected Works of Porphyry (London, 1823).
Histories – Herodotus. Translation to English by George Rawlinson (New

York, 1875); George Macaulay (London, New York, 1890), Henry Cary
(Oxford, 1847) & Alfred Godley (Cambridge, 1920).
Library of History – Diodorus Siculus. Translation to English by C. H.

Oldfather (Vols. 1-6); C. L. Sherman (Vol. 7), C. Bradford Welles (Vol. 8), R.
M. Geer (Vols. 9 &10), F. R. Walton (Vol. 11), (Boston, 1933).
Lives of Eminent Philosophers – Diogenes Laertius. Translation to English by

R. D. Hicks (London, 1925).
Lucian of Samosata – (1) W. Tooke from the German translation by C. M.

Wieland (London, 1820), Vol. 2. (2) The Works of Lucian from the Greek
translation to English by T. Francklin (London, 1780) in three volumes. (3)
Works of Lucian of Samosata translated to English by H. W. and F. G. Fowler
(Oxford,1905).
Naturalis Historia (Natural History) – Pliny the Elder. Translations to

English by (1) J. Bostock & H. Riley (London, 1855), (2) H. Rackham, W.
Jones & D. Eichholz (London, 1949-54).
Shahnameh – Ferdowsi. Translation by Arthur and Edmond Warner, The

Shahnama of Firdausi, 9 vols. (London, 1905-1925) & selected verse
translations to English by K. E. Eduljee .

4. Scholarly Texts
Boyce, M. – A History of Zoroastrianism: Under the Achaemenians Vol. 2
(Leiden, 1982).
Boyce, M. – Zoroastrians (London, 1979).
Brunnhofer, H. – Urgeschichte der Arier in Vorder- und Centralasien

(Prehistory of the Aryans in West- and Central-Asia) Vol. 1 (Leipzig, 1893).
Buckingham, J. S. – Travels in Assyria, Media and Persia Vol. II (London,

1830).
Eduljee, K. E. – Immortal Cypress Companion (West Vancouver, 2012-13).
Elphinstone, M. – An Account of the Kingdom of Caubul and Its Dependencies

in Persia Vol. II (London, 1839).

II References
Geiger, W. – Civilization of the Eastern Iranians in Ancient Times Vols. 1 & 2

tr. Dastur Peshotan-Sanjana, (London/Bombay, 1886).
Hall, M. E. – ‘Towards an Absolute Chronology for the Iron Age of Inner

Asia’ at Antiquity Vol. 71 (1997, pub. online 2015).
Harmatta, J. – History of Civilization of Central Asia Vol. 2 (New Delhi,

1999).
Harris, D. R. – Origins of Agriculture in Western Central Asia: An

Environmental-Archaeological Study (Pennsylvania, 2011).
Haug, M. – Essays on the Sacred Language, Writings, and Religion of the Parsis
(London, 1878).
Humbach H. – Jamshid King of Paradise (Mainz, 2005).
Jamaspji, H. – An Old Zand-Pahlavi Glossary (Stuttgart, 1867).
Kanga, N. M. – The Pahlavi Vendidad (Bombay, 1900).
Lambton, A. – Landlord and Peasant in Persia (New York, 1991).
Lambton, A. – ‘Land Tenure and Revenue Administration’ at The

Cambridge History of Iran Vol. 7 (Cambridge, 1991).
Malandra, W. – ‘Geush Tashan’ at Iranica (online, 2001).
Mills, L. H. – A Study of the Five Zarathushtrian (Zoroastrian) Gathas

(Oxford, 1892).
Moulton, J. – Early Zoroastrianism (London, 1926).
Pumpelly, R. – Explorations in Turkestan - Expedition of 1903 (Washington,

1905).
Pumpelly, R. – Explorations in Turkestan - Expedition of 1904 Vols. 1 & 2

(Washington, 1908).
Schmid, W. – ‘Die Kuh auf die Weide’ at Indogermanische Forschungen

(Stassburg,1958).
Taraporewala, I. J. S. – The Religion of Zarathushtra (Madras, 1926).
Tucci, G. – The Religions of Tibet tr. G. Samuel (Los Angeles, 1980).


II References
5. Health & Cooking References

Brown, A. – Understanding Food: Principles and Preparation (Manao, 2010).
Donohoe, Garge, Zhang, Sun, O’Connell, Thomas, Bunger, Bultman,

Scott – ‘The Microbiome and Butyrate Regulate Energy Metabolism and
Autophagy in the Mammalian Colon’ at the US National Library of
Medicine, National Institutes of Health (online, 2011).
Ichaporia, N. King – My Bombay Kitchen: Traditional and Modern Parsi

Home Cooking (California, 2007).
Månsson, H. – ‘Fatty Acids in Bovine Milk Fat’ at the US National Library

of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (online, 2008).
Parker-Pope, T. – ‘Confusion about Mediterranean Food’ (New York

Times, 2009).
Various – ‘Low-Fat Dietary Pattern and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease’,

‘Low-Fat Dietary Pattern and Risk of Colorectal Cancer’ and ‘Low-Fat Dietary
Pattern and Risk of Invasive Breast Cancer’ at Journal of the American
Medical Assn. (online, 2006).
Various – ‘Low-Fat Diet Not a Cure-All’ and ‘Fats and Cholesterol: Out
with the Bad, In with the Good’ at Harvard School of Public Health (online,
c. 2012).
Zhang, Poplawski, Yen, Cheng, Bloss, Zhu, Patel, Mobbs – ‘Role of CBP
and SATB-1 in Aging, Dietary Restriction, and Insulin-Like Signalling’ at the
US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (online,
2009).


II References
6. Zoroastrian Heritage Webpage References

A. General Pages
Airyana Vaeja at Zoroastrian Heritage –
http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/aryans/airyanavaeja.htm
Aryans at Zoroastrian Heritage –

http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/ aryans/index.htm
Aryan Connections with Western Tibet at Zoroastrian Heritage blog –

http://zoroastrianheritage.blogspot.ca/2011/07/iranian-aryan-connections-
with-western.html
Bon Theology & Philosophy at Zoroastrian Heritage blog –

http://zoroastrianheritage.blogspot.ca/2011/07/bon-zoroastrianism-
dualism_20.html
Kareez at Zoroastrian Heritage –

http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/kareez/index.htm
Magi at Zoroastrian Heritage –

http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/priests/index.htm
Nisaya/Anau at Zoroastrian Heritage –

http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/nisa/anau.htm
Parthava/Parthia at Zoroastrian Heritage –

http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/parthia/index.htm
B. Health & Healing Pages

Were Ancient Iranians & Zoroastrians Vegetarian? at Zoroastrian Heritage
blog –
http://zoroastrianheritage.blogspot.ca/2011/07/were-ancient-iranians-
zoroastrians.html
Zoroastrian Heritage and Healing at Zoroastrian Heritage blog –

http://zoroastrianheritage.blogspot.ca/2010/07/zoroastrian-heritage-and-
healing.html
Health & Healing at Zoroastrian Heritage –

http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/healing/index.htm
()

III.1 Appendices – Paneer & Roghan in Aryana’s History & Traditions
PART III
APPENDICES
1. Paneer & Roghan in Aryana’s History &
Traditions
A. Saka & Butter
The Saka were an Aryan group of whom the famed legendary heroes, the
pahlavans Rustam and Sohrab, were members and from whom the Parthians
had likely descended. During Achaemenid times, say 700 to 330 BCE, the
Saka lived around the Aral Sea and east of the Syr Darya (Jaxartes) River – the
Saka Para-Sugd meaning the ‘Saka beyond Sogdiana’ or alternatively Saka
Para-Darya meaning the ‘Saka beyond the River’ (Syr/Jaxartes). In the
Mahabharata, the Saka nation is mentioned together with several regional
nations including Chin (China). Saka lands extended up to the borders of
China.
Various Saka archaeological sites dating to between c.1000 BCE and 500
CE have been discovered east of the Caspian Sea up to the Tarim Basin and
Mongolia. One of these sites is located in the region the Saka Tigrakhauda
(who were also called Saka with the pointed hats) inhabited.
The site, which is currently located in south-eastern
Kazakhstan close to the ancient town of Issyk has yielded some
well preserved artifacts that include clothing and gold armour
that may have been worn by a prince or princess – and a very
tall pointed cap. The artifacts date to between the 4th and 3rd
centuries BCE.
Among the artifacts is a silver chalice with an inscription

that archaeologists describe as being related to the Kharoshthi
script. A tentative translation of the inscription includes the
words “cooked fresh butter”, which if correct would mean
clarified butter. In addition, Jeannine Davis-Kimball notes that
“wooden beaters for koumiss (fermented mare’s milk) were
also found in the tomb.” Beating milk leads to the production
of cream and butter. Similar beaters have been found in the
Ukok Plateau in the Altai Mountains dating to the 5th century
Wooden butter churn. Image
BCE. We wonder if the wooden beaters found in the Saka sites credit: Bazin & Bromberger in
were forerunners to the wooden butter churns described by Iranica.
Marcel Bazin and Christian Bromberger as being used in Iran
and Afghanistan. If the identification of butter beaters/churns is correct, we
wonder if the custom had any connection to the Avestan concept of roghan
(clarified butter) being the earthly representation of soul food. Besides the
Avestan and Vedic references to clarified butter (that would have preceded

the site date), the Issyk and Ukok artifacts are among the earliest physical
artifacts found that relate to butter or clarified butter.
B. Traditional Iranian & Afghan Milk Processing

According to Bazin and Bromberger, in Iran and Afghanistan, milk is
rarely consumed in raw form but is processed to make paneer by heating,
pressing, squeezing and drying, curds (NP kashk, Pashto korot), yogurt (NP
maast, Pashto maasti), butter (NP kara, maska, Pashto kuch) from churned
yogurt and buttermilk (NP doogh, Pashto
shlumbi) as a by-product in the making of
butter from yogurt.
Making butter from yogurt by means of

vigorous agitation and churning is very
common amongst Iranian and Afghan
herders. Most of the butter is made into
clarified butter (NP rowgan, Pashto guri)
while most of the buttermilk is consumed
as a beverage; the remainder is transformed
into curds and related products.
While Iranian nomads commonly used

churns made from goatskin bags (NP
mashk/keek, Pashto garchka) suspended
from a tripod, the variety of equipment
used to churn milk testifies to the
importance milk products played in the
Skin bag used to butter churn by shaking.
traditional diet of the Aryans. Image credit: Bazin & Bromberger in Iranica.
C. Clarified Butter as Payment in Medieval Iran

We read that in medieval Iran, clarified butter formed part of the
payment peasants made to their landlords. Ann Lambton writes, “In many
districts the landlord exacted, in addition to a share of the crop, so many
days free labour from the peasants… and dues in clarified butter….” Further,
“…this is an old custom….”
D. Milk Products in Kafiristan

Mountstuart Elphinstone in his book An Account of the Kingdom of Caubul
and Its Dependencies in Persia writes, “The food of the common people is
bread, croot [our note: croûte? Crust as in pastry?], clarified butter, and
occasionally flesh and cheese. The shepherds and the villagers, in spring,
also use a great deal of curds, cheese, milk, cream and butter. They also eat
vegetables, and a great deal of fruit. Those in camps only get melons, but the
settled inhabitants have all our best English fruits.” “Their drink is sherbet,
which is made of various fruits, and some kinds of it are very pleasant.” In a

note Elphinstone adds, “The clarified butter keeps long without spoiling.
The cream is either common cream, or a preparation called kymauk, which is
made from boiled milk, and is something like clouted cream.” He also writes
of butter being used as a balm for sore feet.
When Elphinstone wrote his account just under two hundred years ago,
there was a district in Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush Mountains just south of
Badakhshan – a district known to the Muslims as Kafiristan, the district of
the non-believers. The district is known today as Nuristan having ‘seen the
light’ by succumbing to the pressures of the hordes around them to abandon
their ancient faith. Elphinstone’s account of Kafirs (spelt ‘Caufirs’ by him) is
enlightening.
If time and
opportunity avail
themselves to this
author, Kafiristan is
worthy of a monograph
unto itself. For the time
being we will constrain
ourselves and limit our
observations to those of
Elphinstone’s passages
that relate to clarified
butter: “The houses of
the Caufirs are often of
wood, and they have Celebrating the Chilam Josh May mid-spring festival (cf. the Zoroastrian
generally cellars where Maidyozarem Gahanbar) in Kalash Kafiristan on the Pakistani side of the border.
Image credit: Pakimag.com
they keep their cheeses,
clarified butter, wine, and vinegar.” “Their food is chiefly cheese, butter, and
milk, with bread or a sort of suet pudding: they also eat flesh (which they
like half raw); and the fruits they have, walnuts, grapes, apples, almonds,
and a sort of indifferent apricot that grows wild. They wash their hands
before eating, and generally begin by some kind of grace. They all, of both
sexes, drink wine to great excess: they have three kinds, red, white, and dark-
coloured, besides a sort of the consistence of a jelly, and very strong. They
drink wine, both pure and diluted, out of large silver cups, which are the
most precious of their possessions. They drink during their meals, and are
elevated, but not made quarrelsome, by this indulgence. They are
exceedingly hospitable. The people of a village come out to meet a stranger,
take his baggage from those who are carrying it, and conduct him with
many welcomes into their village.”

E. Ghee in Hindu Tradition

[Ghee is a form of clarified butter (see the next section). In Hindu
scriptures, ghee is called ghart, go-ghart or ghartam. In modern Nepali, a
Hindi dialect, it is called gheeu while in the old Tibeto-Burman aboriginal
Nepali Bhasa it is called ghya cf. Avestan gaya.]
(i) Ghee in the Panchamritha Foods of Immortality

Ghee is one of the five panchamritha (i.e. panch-amritha), the five foods of
immortality. The other four are rock sugar, honey, milk, and yogurt.
(ii) Ghee in the Homa Ceremony

Ghee is also a central part of the homa/havana/havan liturgy devoted to
fire, Agni. In Zoroastrianism, haoma is the chief among the medicinal plants
that can be pounded to extract their juice, a process ritualized in the Yasna
liturgy. The Zoroastrian Yasna has a Hindu counterpart called the Yajna. In
Zoroastrian ritual, havan is the mortar in which the haoma stalks are pound.
(iii) Ghee in Ayurvedic Healing

In Ayurveda, ghee is considered a satvic food – foods that on the one hand
promote positivity, growth and heightened consciousness while on the other
hand reducing negativity, negative emotions and the start or storage of
feelings that sustain a negative state of mind.
Ayurveda holds that ghee is medhya meaning intellect promoting. Ghee

consumption [judiciously, we add] is said to increase dhi, intelligence, refine
buddhi, the intellect, and improve smrti, the memory. Ghee is also rasayana or
vitalizing to the mind and body.


III.2Appendices – Milk’s Composition
2. Milk’s Composition
Milk is a mixture of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals
in water.
Composition of Cow’s Milk

Range Average
Main Ingredients
(%) (%)
Water 85.5 – 89.5 87.0
Solids: 14.5 – 10.5 13.0
- Proteins: 2.9 – 5.0 3.4
- Caseins (76-86%)
- Whey proteins (14-24%)
- Fat (98% triacylglycerols) 2.5 – 6.0 4.0
- Carbohydrate (lactose) 3.6 – 5.5 4.8
- Vitamins & Minerals 0.6 – 0.9 0.8
A. Milk – a Food Designed by Nature

Nature has designed milk as a nutritious, composite and whole food for
the growth of young animals. Zoroastrian tradition sees the milk products
cheese and clarified butter as foods for humans of all ages.
B. Milk Vitamins
The vitamins in milk are of two types: water and oil soluble – all are
natural multivitamins in a natural state. Throw out milk’s watery part (whey)
and you throw out the water-soluble vitamins. Throw out the cream or
butter and you throw out the oil soluble vitamins.
The water-soluble vitamins include B1, B2 and B12 including small

amounts of B3, B5, B6, and C. The fat-soluble vitamins include A, D, E, and
K. We read that mild pasteurization does not degrade the vitamins
appreciably. However, prolonged high heat will degrade some of the water-
soluble vitamins.
C. Milk Minerals
The minerals in milk include calcium, magnesium, phosphorus,
potassium, selenium, and zinc together with small amounts of copper, iron,
manganese, and sodium. About half are bound within the protein casein.
The remaining minerals are dissolved in the milk’s water.

D. Milk Proteins
Proteins are an important part of or muscles, bones, hair and organs.
Most enzymes and many hormones are proteins. Besides water, proteins are
the largest components of human muscles, tissues and cells.
(i) Make-up of Proteins. Amino Acids

The building blocks of proteins are amino acids. Proteins are long chains
of amino acid residues strung together. By themselves, amino acids play
critical roles in the human body as neurotransmitters and in biosynthesis.
(ii) Essential Amino Acids. Milk has all Nine

While the human body can make (synthesize) several amino acids, it
cannot make nine amino acids. These nine essential amino acids must be
obtained from proteins in vegetable or animal food. Milk proteins contain
all nine essential amino acid residues.
(iii) Digestion of Proteins

Food Digestion Time
(Approx. time in stomach
before emptying into the
intestine.)
(Very rough guide for comparative purposes only)
Water When stomach is empty,
leaves immediately and
goes into intestines.
Fruit & vegetable juices, 15 – 20 minutes
vegetable broth
Fruits 20 – 40 minutes
Vegetables, raw salad type 30 – 40 minutes
Vegetables, cooked food 30 – 40 minutes
type
Eggs 30 – 45 minutes
Fish 30 – 60 minutes
Grains, beans, nuts 1.5 – 3.5 hours
Milk & soft cheeses 1.5 – 2 hours
Poultry 1.5 – 2 hours
Red meats 3 – 6 hours
The human body does not use proteins in the original form we consume
them (as food). Most proteins are broken down to their components parts
during digestion. The components are then absorbed through the intestines
and transported to cells where they are used to build (synthesize) new

proteins needed by the human body. The newly made proteins are released
by the cells into the body fluids once the synthesis is complete.
Therefore, it is critical to consume proteins in forms that can be easily

broken down into components during the digestion process. Humans
cannot easily digest all proteins. Further, we suspect the digestion process
will slow down with increase in a person’s age making it incumbent to
consume foods in a manner that aids digestion.
(iv) Solubility of Proteins

Some proteins can mix with water to make a solution while others cannot
mix with water without some help. In the making of paneer, the addition of
lemon juice (an acid) to whole milk causes the casein proteins to separate
from the milk’s water base leaving water-soluble proteins in the whey.
(v) Classification of Milk Proteins

The phenomenon described above enables us to classify milk proteins as
caseins and whey proteins (enzymes are yet another group of milk proteins).
(a) Caseins
Casein together with milk fats separate as solids called curds when an acid
or an enzyme called rennin/rennet is added to whole milk.
(b) Whey proteins

The remaining liquid, called whey contains the water-soluble substances:
salts, sugars and soluble proteins. Like the proteins in eggs, whey proteins
can be coagulated by heat.
(c) Enzymes
Catalysts (change agents) either stimulate or quicken a chemical reaction.
Enzymes are catalysts for metabolism16 – a process by which the body breaks
down or builds up compounds. Most enzymes are proteins and can be
distinguished by the endings of their names.
Lipases are the main enzymes found in milk. They break down fats
(lipids). When milk is agitated, the lipases can come in contact with milk
fats causing them to degrade and making the milk rancid. This is particularly
noticed with homogenized milk where the fat globules have been reduced in
size to prevent them from rising to the top.
Proteases break down proteins. The predominant protease in milk is

plasmin. While on the one hand protein break down caused by protease can
lead to undesirable tastes, on the other hand the break down results in
desirable tastes and textures during the ‘ripening’ of cheese.
16
Metabolic processes range from the digestion of food to the synthesis of DNA.

Heat deactivates most milk enzymes. Pasteurization deactivates lipases

and a few other enzymes thereby increasing pasteurized milk’s shelf life. The
deactivation of the enzyme alkaline phosphatase is used as an indicator that
pasteurization of milk is complete.
The products of the enzyme breakdown of milk fats and proteins, though
pre-digested and useful to the body, either smell or taste bad outside the
digestive tract.
E. Milk Fats
(i) Composition of Milk Fats
On an average, 4% of milk consists of fat. Milk fat has one of the most
complex fatty acid compositions of all edible fats. Helena Månsson in her
paper ‘Fatty Acids in Bovine Milk Fat’ at the US National Library of Medicine
notes that while milk fat has over 400 individual fatty acids residues, 15 to
20 of fatty acid residues make up 90% of milk fat.
Månsson also notes that “the composition of fatty acid [residues] in milk
fat changes during a cow’s lactation cycle” and further, “Many factors are
associated with the variations in the amount and fatty acid composition of
bovine milk lipids… they may be feed-related factors, i.e. related to fiber and
energy intake, dietary fats, and seasonal and regional effects.” As such,
spring milk extolled in Zoroastrian literature likely has a different fat and
nutrition content to that of milk drawn at other times of the year. Given the
discovery of a multitude of remarkable health benefits associated with fats
containing butyric acid residues (see next section) this may be significant.
(ii) Fat Digestion

In the digestive tract starting with the stomach, triglycerides (which make
up most milk fats) are digested by the enzyme lipase. The digestion process
breaks up the rather large triglyceride fat molecules into smaller components
that can be absorbed through the intestine’s walls into the body.
Fats are digested more slowly than proteins or carbohydrates. The slower
rate of digestion is nature’s way of maintaining an even amount of energy
availability. Fats are a vital medium to long-term energy source.
Månsson continues to inform us that the digestion of milk fats starts by

the action of enzymes secreted in the mouth (likely in the saliva that would
increase with the chewing of say cheese over drinking milk). It continues in
the stomach, where after the addition of gastric enzymes, 25-40% of the fats
are digested. At this stage, the triglyceride in the milk fat globule core is
partially digested. Digestion continues in first section of small intestine, the
duodenum, where the enzyme lipase and bile acids complete the process
initiated in the stomach. The digestion of large triglycerides is helped by bile
acids that emulsify and expose the fat to the lipases.

Once the fatty acids and monoglycerides pass through the wall of the
intestine, they are used to build a fresh set of triglyceride fats that are
delivered to the body’s cells where they are broken down once again before
being absorbed into the cell.
iii) Fats’ Ability or Inability to Mix with Water

Fats as oils do not normally mix with water. If a mixture of the two is left
standing, the two will quickly separate – unless the fatty oil is helped to stay
mixed in with the water. A mixture of oil or fat and water is called an
emulsion.
Raw milk is an example of an emulsion of fat in water. In raw milk, the

fats (also called lipids) are spread out in the milk’s water in the form of very
tiny spheres or globules. The fat globules are coated with a thin skin of
protein that keeps them apart from one another. If the fat spheres clump
together, they will separate from the rest of the milk.
Raw milk is not a very stable emulsion. If milk is left standing still for
some time, the fat spheres begin to clump together and the fat – being
lighter than water – rises to the top of the milk as cream.
Milk & cream separation in raw milk.

Image credit: PlannedResilience.net.


III.3 Appendices – Cream, Cheese & Clarified Butter
3. Cream, Cheese & Clarified Butter

Zoroastrian tradition sees milk products such as cheese and clarified
butter as foods for humans of all ages – as long as they are consumed frugally
and judiciously. To this caveat we add: and provided a person’s body has not
become intolerant of a particular milk product. In Iranian tradition, other
than the limited use of milk in the making of haoma extracts, raw milk is
seldom consumed.
When milk’s proteins, fats, carbohydrates (also called sugars) and other
substances can no longer stay dispersed in milk’s water base, many milk
components separate as solids. In doing so, they form products like cream,
cheese and butter.
A. Cream
Cream contains fats (and some proteins) that are lighter than water. If
raw milk is left to stand in a refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours, a layer of cream
forms on the surface. The process can be accelerated by first boiling the milk
for 3-5 minutes. When the cream is removed, the remaining milk, called
skimmed milk, usually has only a small amount of fat left suspended in it.
B. Cheese – Paneer/Panir
Cheese consists of solidified milk components (mainly proteins and fats).
(i) Making Paneer. Curds

In a simple process, the addition
of an acid such as lemon juice or
vinegar to warmed milk, breaks down
the ability of milk components such
as proteins and fats to stay dispersed
in water causing them to separate as
solid pieces called curd. The
remaining liquid is called whey. Milk
curdles naturally in the human
stomach because of digestive acids
and enzymes.
(ii) Rennet/Rennin
A stomach enzyme found in some Curds and whey. Image credit: Susan Waughtal.
young animals called rennet or
rennin also curdles milk (rennet can be extracted from plants as well). In the
making of topli nu paneer (Gujarati for basket paneer – see below), the lining
of chicken stomach (dry chicken gizzard) is added to the milk as a source of
rennet. Strict vegetarians may wish to use vegetable rennet.

The advantage of using rennet is that there is less residual taste of lemon
or vinegar in the cheese. We also read that using rennet results in a more
firm cheese.
(iii) Whey
Whey is the liquid that remains
after the curd has coagulated. It
consists of water and a few remaining
water-soluble milk components such
as milk carbohydrates (primarily
lactose) and some proteins. Whey has
its own nutrient value and is popular
with athletes.
(iv) Using Cream, Yogurt,

Whole or Skimmed Milk
If paneer is made from whole milk
or just cream, it has a higher fat
content. If cream is added, the paneer
Strained curds in cheese cloth. Image credit: Jordana Living
becomes ricotta-like. If the paneer is
made from skimmed milk, it has cottage cheese like higher protein content
(since most of the fat was removed as cream).
Niloufer Ichaporia King in her My Bombay Kitchen: Traditional and Modern

Parsi Home Cooking informs us that yogurt and cream can be added at the
start to produce a tart, creamy paneer. Her recipe calls for 4 cups of milk and
a mixture of a cup of yogurt, ½ a cup of heavy cream, and 2 teaspoons of
salt. She first lets the yogurt stand at room temperature for a day to produce
a more acidic paneer. She also brings the milk to a boil four times – removing
the pan from the heat once the boiling milk has risen to the rim of the pot
and then returning the milk to a boil. After the fifth boil, she adds the
yogurt, cream and salt mixture with a vigorous whisk until the curds begin
to separate. Since we did not see any acid or rennet in her recipe, we
presume that the acid in the yogurt17 curdles the milk.
(v) Straining
The curds are stained in a sieve or over folded cheesecloth. The curds left
in the sieve or cheesecloth are essentially cottage cheese. The making of
paneer requires some of the remaining water to be squeezed out leaving a
compact solid mass that can be cut with a knife.
17
Yogurt is made by bacteria fermenting milk lactose to produce lactic acid, which in
turn acts on milk protein to give yogurt its texture and characteristic tang.

(vi) Squeezing out the Water

Water left in the curds can be squeezed
out by twisting the top of the cheesecloth
to make a ball beneath, and then leaving
the twisted cheese cloth standing until the
water stops dripping out. The result is a
cheese ball similar to mozzarella in shape.
The ball can be pressed flat. Alternatively,
the cheesecloth can be placed on a flat sieve
with a weight placed on top to press out the
water and produce a slab of paneer.
(vii) Topli nu Paneer

If the cheesecloth or curds are placed
and drained in a pot shaped basket of
convenient size, the resulting paneer is
called topli nu paneer in Gujarati, a tradition
that was once very popular with Parsi &
Irani Zoroastrians of India. Authentic topli
nu paneer retains the indentations of the
basket weave.
(viii) Lactose in Cheese

Depending on the way a cheese is made,
it may contain little lactose carbohydrate
(which remains dissolved in the whey). We
read that harder, older cheeses have lower
amounts of lactose.
(ix) Salt in Cheese

To increase paneer’s shelf life and taste,
salt can be added to the milk before it is
curdled or the paneer can be stored in brine
making it a type of feta cheese.
Making paneer. Image credit: FXcusine.com

(x) Plain Paneer

Paneer that is intended to be eaten fresh often has no added salt. The
resulting paneer absorbs the flavours of a savoury Making Clarified Butter
dish or it can be sweetened to make a dessert.
C. Butter & Buttermilk

Butter is an accumulation of milk fats. Butter is
made by shaking or churning whole milk, cream or
yogurt until the microscopic fat globules suspended
in them break down and loose their protective
protein coatings. In the process, the water in the
milk, cream or yogurt further separates and is
called buttermilk, a by-product like whey.
If milk was a water-in-oil emulsion, butter is an

oil-in-water emulsion. Water makes up nearly 30% Skimming protein from melted butter.
Image credit: Anna Maria’s Open Kitchen.
of traditional soft butters with the balance
consisting mainly of milk fats.
The amount of protein left in butter is relatively

low – about 1% by weight. If butter is made directly
from milk, the milk’s protein is largely
concentrated in the buttermilk.
The water, carbohydrates and proteins left in

butter can be further removed by converting the
butter to clarified butter.
D. Clarified Butter – Roghan Pouring/decanting the clarified butter.

Clarified butter (roghan) consists of milk fats Image credit: Anna Maria’s Open Kitchen.
separated from milk proteins and carbohydrates

(sugars). It is made by melting butter and
skimming, decanting or otherwise separating the
solids (mainly protein and some remaining sugars)
from the liquid. Any water present in the butter
evaporates during the process. The remaining fat is
called clarified butter that is solid or liquid
depending on the ambient temperature.
Clarified butter has a higher smoke point, about

252 °C, compared to regular butter’s smoke point
of 163 to 190 °C, and a longer shelf life. It can be Refrigerated/hardened clarified butter.
stored at room temperature like other cooking oils. Image credit: macheesmo.com.

(i) Healing Properties of Clarified Butter

James Buckingham in his 1830 book Travels in Assyria, Media and Persia,
writes that when an English ship was captured by Arabs, the Arabs punished
its captain by cutting off his right arm and leaving him to bleed to death.
The captain warmed a tub of clarified butter and dipped the stump of his
arm in the oil thereby saving his life.
E. Clarified Butter – Ghee
Fresh ghee & butter on a banana leaf. Image credit: R. Shivaji Rao.
If during the making of clarified butter, the milk solids (proteins and
sugars?) are heated to the extent that they brown and caramelize before
being separated from the liquid fat, the clarified butter becomes ghee. The
caramelized solids impart a somewhat nutty flavour to the ghee (before they
are removed by straining while the ghee is a liquid).


III.4 Appendices – Health Risks & Benefits
4. Health Risks & Benefits

[The information included below and elsewhere in this monograph, is
provided for informational purposes only. You should independently
conduct research, or seek professional advice, before starting any dietary
program.]
A. Milk Fats. Fact & Myth. Risks & Benefits

Milk and milk products such as cheese (paneer) and clarified butter
(roghan) contain fats (lipids). Are these fats good or bad for humans when
consumed? Should milk fats be consumed or avoided?
(i) Fat Facts

The word ‘fat’ has become prejudicial and we feel compelled to come to
its rescue. Life and good health would not be possible if we did not have
some fat or consume what are called ‘fats’.
In keeping with Zoroastrian philosophy, fats contain and contribute to

the existential duality of nature. They can be beneficial or harmful.
Existential duality compels us to make choices for which we are entirely
responsible.
The fats present in milk have a nutritional purpose. Yet there can be
harm when fats are consumed immoderately. Fats can make us look good or
ugly. They can help us survive or they can be the cause of heart diseases and
cancer leading to death. With a good understanding of the nature of fats, we
can make informed choices.
While we may think of fats as something to avoid in our diet or to get rid
of in our bodies, fats are one of the three main food groups we need to
survive and stay healthy. Humans, animals and plants all use fat as a fuel. In
plants, oils (fats) are mainly found in seeds where they provide energy until
the seedlings are capable of using solar energy. For us humans, fats supply
the energy our bodies need to function and to see us through times when
food supplies are unpredictable – even helping us survive for several weeks
without food, or at least until the next meal. In addition, fat has many other
functions. Milk fats are carriers of certain essential vitamins. When we
consume milk fats, we consume the associated vitamins as well.
Our bodies and brains will stop functioning if we have no fat.
On the negative side, certain kinds of fat or an excess of fat in an obese

body can lead to health problems.
(ii) Harvard & National Inst. for Health. Study on Fats’ Risks
One of the largest and most expense studies on whether normal fat
consumption had negative health consequences was funded by the National

Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institute for Health. A large
part of the research was conducted by Harvard University. The study cost
$415 million, likely over a billion dollars in today’s money.
The randomized, controlled, primary prevention trial was conducted at

40 US clinical centers from 1993 to 2005 on 48,835 postmenopausal women,
aged 50 to 79 years divided between a control group and those placed on a
low-fat diet.
The study concluded that there were no evident health benefits for about
20,000 women (including women from different ethnic groups) on a low-fat
diet. The study also found that these women had “virtually identical” heart,
stroke and cancer (breast and colorectal) disease rates as did the 30,000
women who were not on the diet. After eight years, the women on the low
fat/low calorie diet were also generally of the same weight as those women
who were not on the diet.
However, other studies have shown that there is a relationship between

red meat consumption and breast cancer. Further, the consumption of too
many calories from fats and carbohydrates leading to excessive weight gain
increases the risk of breast cancer, colon cancer, and heart disease.
As such, the study informs us that a moderate consumption of fat does

not increase the risk of breast cancer, colon cancer, and heart disease.
However, we also learn that an excessive intake of calories from fat and
carbohydrate consumption leading to obesity increases the risk.
The Harvard School of Public Health reports, “It’s time to end the low-fat
myth. For decades, a low-fat diet was touted as a way to lose weight and
prevent or control heart disease and other chronic conditions, and food
companies re-engineered products to be reduced-fat or fat-free, often
compensating for differences in flavor and texture by increasing amounts of
salt, sugar, or refined grains. However, as a nation, following a low-fat diet
hasn’t helped us control weight or become healthier.” The myth
nevertheless persists.
The fats in milk are essential foods for human beings when consumed
temperately.
(iii) Benefits of Fats with Butyric Acid Residues

About 3% of milk fats are triglycerides containing butyric acid residues.
The name butyric is related to butter. Esters and salts of butyric acid are
called butyrates. Triglycerides with butyric acid residues are found in milk,
cheese, butter and clarified butter, with clarified butter having the highest
concentration.

Butyric acid is produced by the digestion of milk triglycerides containing

butyric acid residues. Butyric acid is also produced in a healthy human
intestine by beneficial bacteria acting on carbohydrates present in dietary
fiber.
Butyric acid and butyrates have been found to contribute positively to

general health and particularly to the health of the human digestive tract.
The range of benefits is quite amazing and we will list only a few:
 They reduce colonization of the intestines by bad bacterial while

promoting good bacteria. They also help strengthen the intestinal
wall (while butyric acid does not smell particularly pleasant, rumour
has it that its odour is what dogs seek to detect when sniffing other
dogs during their socialization process – perhaps an indication of
general health and a substitute for ‘how are you?’ and ‘I’m fine’ or
otherwise);
 They aid colon health and are food for cells lining the colon without
which the cells can die;
 They help inhibit intestinal inflammation, ulcerative colitis and

colorectal cancer. They are also being investigated as possible
treatments for parasitic and inflammatory diseases;
 Butyrates combat aging. Two butyrates, Sodium butyrate and

trichostatin were found to increase the lifespan of experimental
animals;
 Butyrates have for some time been used in psychiatry and neurology
as mood stabilizers and anti-epileptics;
 Butyric acid inhibits absorption of fats by the small intestine into

circulation.
B. Cheese/Paneer. Risks & Benefits

We have not yet found any studies related to
spring cheese made from the milk of free-range cows
in particular and gospand in general.
(i) Risks
Consuming any food in excess may have health
risks especially when excessive consumption of high
calorie foods leads to obesity. Cheese is high in
calories.
Cheeses. Image credit: BerkeleyWellness.com.
BerkeleyWellness.com (University of California)
states, “…cheese is high in calories (about 100 per ounce, on average) and fat
(6 to 9 grams per ounce, most of which is saturated), and it often contains a

lot of sodium (100 to 300 milligrams an

ounce). Still, small amounts can fit into
most people’s diets.” [Calories, fat
content (4-36%) and salt vary widely
between different types of cheese.]
(ii) Benefits
(a) Study: No Rise in LDL
MensHealth.com: “Cheese is the new
wine.” “Danish scientists found that
when men ate 10 daily 1-ounce servings
of full-fat cheese for 3 weeks, their LDL
Image credit: BerkeleyWellness.com.
(bad) cholesterol didn’t change.”
Wikipedia: “A review of the medical literature published in 2012 noted

that, ‘Based on results from
numerous prospective
observational studies and
meta-analyses, most, but not
all, have shown no association
and in some cases an inverse
relationship between the
intake of milk fat containing
dairy products and the risk of
cardiovascular disease,
coronary heart disease and
stroke. A limited number of
prospective cohort studies
found no significant
association between the
intake of total full-fat dairy
products and the risk of
coronary heart disease or
stroke.... Most clinical studies
Average cheese consumption and rates of mortality due to cardiovascular showed that full-fat natural
disease or diabetes. There is no evident correlation between amount of
cheese consumed and death rates due to heart problems and diabetes. cheese, a highly fermented
Greece has the highest consumption and one of the lowest death rates. product, significantly lowers
France with the next highest consumption and Japan with the lowest
consumption had the lowest death rates. Image credit: Wikipedia.
LDL cholesterol compared
with butter intake of equal
total fat and saturated fat content.’”
(b) Nutrient Content & Benefits

BerkeleyWellness.com: “…cheese provides calcium and protein, as well as
some vitamin A, B12, riboflavin, zinc and phosphorus. It is a source of [small

amounts of] conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a fat that may have anti-cancer,
weight-reducing, and heart-protective effects.”
Mercola.com: “Cheese contains a synergistic blend of… vitamins K2 and

D3 and calcium… powerful for protecting your bones, brain and heart.”
“(According to) Dr. Kate Rheamue-Bleue, a Naturopathic Physician
…Vitamin K2 plays critical roles in protecting your heart, brain, and bones,
as well as giving you some protection from cancer. …K2 helps channel
calcium into the proper areas of your body (bones and teeth) (and) prevents
it from being deposited in areas where it shouldn’t, such as your arteries and
soft tissues.”
(c) Dental Health

BerkeleyWellness.com: “Cheese may help prevent cavities. In a small
study from Turkey in 2008, published in the journal Caries, people who ate
cheese (just 1/3 ounce) after rinsing with a sugar solution had a rapid
decrease in acidity, which lowers the risk of cavities. Older studies have
found a similar protective acid-buffering effect.” The Pharmaceutical Journal,
January 2000, published a similar result.
(d) Appetite Suppression. Help to Avoid Overeating?

MensHealth.com: “‘The combination of protein and fat in regular, full-fat
cheese is very satiating,’ says Alan Aragon, a nutritionist in Westlake Village,
California, and the Men's Health Weight-Loss Coach. ‘As a result, eating full-
fat cheese holds your appetite at bay for hours, and I've found that it cuts
down my clients’ food intake at subsequent meals.’” [Haoma (ephedra) plant
extracts (that are part of the Zoroastrian Yasna ceremony) also reputedly
have appetite suppression properties. The two in combination may
effectively combat a tendency towards overeating or gluttony.]
(e) Cheese Improves Sleep & Reduces Stress

Wikipedia: “The majority of the two hundred people tested over a
fortnight claimed beneficial results from consuming cheeses before going to
bed, the cheese promoting good sleep (Sleep Study, 2005, Britain). Cheese
contains tryptophan, an amino acid that has been found to relieve stress and
induce sleep.”
C. Mediterranean Diet & Cheese

Cheese, butter and yogurt are regularly included in traditional
Mediterranean and Iranian diets – in low to moderate quantities. Tara
Parker-Pope in a February 11, 2009 New York Times article noted that in the
1960s, while the dietary traditions of the Greek island of Crete as well as
those of southern Italy included dairy products, these regions had one of the
lowest rates of chronic disease in the world and some of the highest adult
life expectancy rates as well.

Note daily cheese consumption vs. infrequent meat consumption. Image credit: Kopiaste.
Parker-Pope continues, “The original work (a Mediterranean diet was

good for you) that sparked scientific interest in Mediterranean eating habits
came from researcher Ancel Keyes at the University of Minnesota. His
landmark seven countries study focused on the link between eating habits
along the Mediterranean and better health, despite inferior medical care in
the region. Research on the diet took off in the 1990s, as scientists noted
that people in Mediterranean countries lived longer and had low rates of
serious disease despite high rates of smoking and drinking. Last year, the
British Medical Journal published an extensive review of Mediterranean diet
studies. It found that the eating plan is associated with significant health
benefits, including lower rates of heart disease, cancer, Parkinson’s disease
and Alzheimer’s.”
Our main interest in the Mediterranean diet was to find out whether or
not diary products such as cheese resulted in all the problems speculated
upon in some North America health articles.
What we discovered was that in practice, moderate to low consumption

of cheese and allied diary products positively complemented traditional diets
already low in meat and high in vegetables and fruit consumption.

There is every indication that the Zoroastrian tradition of consuming

moderate amounts of cheese and clarified butter (paneer and roghan) can
contribute to good health.
Image credit: BerkeleyWellness.com.
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NUTRITION

WERE ANCIENT ZOROASTRIANS & ARYANS VEGETARIAN?

First Aryan jashn, feast,

Attributed to Artist Sultan Muhammad, Iran, Tabriz c. 1530 CE

(Metropolitan Museum of Art).

Zoroastrian Heritage Monographs

This monograph is dedicated to the memory of my mother Katayun Eduljee

The monograph has been published in two versions:

For further enquiries and pdf or printed copies:

This pdf copy in full form may be distributed freely.

Zoroastrian Heritage Monographs

Using Full Screen Mode

Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans iv K. E. Eduljee

Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans v K. E. Eduljee

Achaemenid - The dynasty of Persian kings who became the king-

Ahriman - The devil incarnate (for the purposes of these texts).

Ahura Mazda - God in the language of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the

Aryana - Ancient Iran. Also spelt Airyana or Ariana.

Aryan - Person/people from Aryana. Person claiming Aryan

Avesta - Zoroastrian scriptures. At one time, the Avesta

Avestan - Language of the Avesta, the Zoroastrian scriptures.

Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans vi K. E. Eduljee

Bundahishn - A Middle Persian (Pahlavi) Zoroastrian text based on

Denkard/Dinkart/Dinkard - A 9th century CE text written by Zoroastrian priests

div/deev/dev - Evil incarnations, individuals and demons. Devils.

Farsi - The Arabic version of Parsi (see below).

Ferdowsi - 10th-11th century Persian poet who wrote a shah-

gav - Bovine, beast of burden. Also life (cf. jiv/jun in

gaya - Life. Related to jaya/gav/jivya, modern jiv meaning

Gaya Maretan - Mortal life (gaya = life, mare-tan = mortal/body which

geush - Kine/bovine, earthly life, creation.

Geush Urvan - Soul of the kine/bovine, earthly life, creation.

gospand - (Called gosfand in Farsi). Beneficent animals. This

Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans vii K. E. Eduljee

[*The New Persian replacement of ‘p’ with an ‘f’ in

Greater Bundahishn - See Bundahishn.

haoma - Avestan word for the chief of the medicinal plants in

Haurvatat - An Amesha Spenta and Avestan word (later Khordad)

Hind/Hindu - Ancient India in Zoroastrian-Aryan texts. More

hom - Modern word derived from haoma and currently used

Hormozd - Evolved version of Ahura Mazda (see Ahura Mazda).

Iran - Modern nation and name derived from Airan and

Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans viii K. E. Eduljee

reconstructed Sasanian, “Iran-shahr khvadai ahem”

Khwaday-nameh - See Khodai-nameh below.

Khodai-nameh - New Persian version of the Middle Persian name

Lesser Bundahishn - See Bundahishn.

Magus/Magi - Magi, and its singular Magus, are Greek-based

Mazda - Zoroastrian word for God. See Ahura Mazda and

Media - First Aryan nation to enter Western history. Its native

Middle Persian - The Persian-Aryan language as it emerged after the

Were Ancient Zoroastrians & Aryans ix K. E. Eduljee

Mithra - Friend, friendship, bond, loyalty. Also in

Mobed - Zoroastrian hereditary priest called maga in the more

nameh - Persian word meaning account, chronicles, letters,

New Persian - Modern Persian language as revived by the poet

Old Persian - Language of the Achaemenid Persia era (700-300

Ormozd - Evolved version of Ahura Mazda (see Ahura Mazda).

Pahlavi - From Pahlav earlier known as Parthav (see below),