The Khordeh Avesta, or "The Little Avesta," is the sacred book of the Zoroastrians. However, Zarathushtra was a poet-prophet. He composed sacred hymns known as the "Gathas", and his teachings were handed down orally through the priesthood. It is believed that Alexandar destroyed a lot of the written teachings and massacred Zoroastrian priests during the seige of Persepolis. All that remains is the Khordeh Avesta.
But here's something that may not be found in any holy book. It's what my aunt told me years ago, and the simplicity of the image has stayed with me to this day:
Our prayers travel upwards in the form of rays of light. If the prayer is genuine, it is intercepted by an angel who is specially trained to answer prayers. The strength of the beam of light depends entirely on the sincerity and selflessness of the prayer.
I love the idea of angels roaming the heavens, watching over Earth, responding to light that, for a change, comes from us.
About Me
- Anosh Irani
- Anosh Irani was born and brought up in Bombay, India and moved to Vancouver in 1998. He is the author of the acclaimed novels THE CRIPPLE AND HIS TALISMANS and THE SONG OF KAHUNSHA, which was a finalist for CBC Radio's Canada Reads and the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, was published in thirteen countries, and was a bestseller in Canada and Italy. His play BOMBAY BLACK was a Dora Award winner for Outstanding New Play. Irani was nominated for the Governor General’s Award for Drama for his anthology The Bombay Plays: THE MATKA KING & BOMBAY BLACK. His novel DAHANU ROAD was longlisted for the 2010 Man Asian Literary Prize.