Abstract
This article examines the usage and sense of hātąm ‘of beings’ and the adjective haiθiia- ‘true’, both from the present participle haṇt- ‘being’, in the Old Avestan texts. It argues that the first is a rhetorical figure that enhances the stature of its complement and does not denote any particular kind of being whether divine or mortal. haiθiia- consistently appears in contexts that may be legitimately described as eschatological. Most often it qualifies a certain type of activity that leads to or constitutes a ‘splendid’ state of existence. What truly is, the article concludes, refers to existence beyond mortal life.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 741-755 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |
Volume | 26 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2016 |