Ashavan


Ashavan is a Zoroastrian theological term. It literally means "possessing/mastering aša" and has been interpreted as "possessing/mastering truth" or "possessing/mastering righteousness", but has further implications:
  • It is an epithet of Ahura Mazda. The term may then be applied to anything within the domain of Ahura Mazda and/or Aša, and excludes only that which is drə''gvant "possessing lie".
  • With respect to mortals and in an eschatological and sotereological context, ašavan is also a quality that can be acquired in life. Then, having acquired the qualities of an ašavan, one becomes an ašavan after death.. This soteriological meaning of ašavan is also evident in Xerxes' daiva inscription, an Old Persian text. This next-world meaning of ašavan is preserved in Middle Iranian languages as Pahlavi ahlav.Ašavan may be used to denote any follower of the "Good Religion." This is the most common use of ašavan, applicable to any who walk the "path of truth". In this context, Ašavan is frequently translated as "righteous person" or "blessed person." This general meaning of ašavan is preserved in Middle Iranian languages as Pahlavi ardav.
The linguistic cognate of Avestan ašavan is Vedic ऋतावन् ṛtā́van, which, however, has some functional differences vis-à-vis the Zoroastrian term:
That the souls of the dead dwell in the radiant quarters of Asha has a Vedic parallel in which the seat of truth is located in the other world.