Vendidad
The Vendidad (Avestan: Vi-daeva-data, “the law given against the demons”) is the Zoroastrian code of purity laws, consisting of 22 fargards (chapters). It was recited during the night ritual of the same name.
Key Fargards
| # | Subject | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sixteen Perfect Lands | Geographical Iran; creation vs plague |
| 2 | Yima’s Vara | Golden age, dire winter, underground enclosure — flood narrative parallel |
| 13 | Sacred Dog | Dog as holy; dog kills Nasa death-demon |
| 18 | Ahriman attacks | Evil assault repelled by holy word |
| 19 | Ahriman tempts Zoroaster | Three temptations; Zoroaster victorious with Ahuna Vairya |
Fargard 2 — Yima and the Vara
Fargard 2 contains the Zoroastrian parallel to the flood narrative:
- Yima’s golden reign: neither cold nor hunger, neither death nor disease
- A dire winter (not a flood) will destroy all living creatures
- Ahura Mazda commands Yima to build a Vara — an underground enclosure
- Yima preserves seeds of every living creature, who live in perfect happiness
Darmesteter notes: “It is difficult not to acknowledge in the latter legend a Zoroastrian adaptation of the deluge.”
Translated by James Darmesteter (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 4, 1880). Public domain.