Note 483 — Chapter I · (continued 2)

Anquetil du Perron says (Zend-Avesta, t. II. p. 601): “Of all the religions known, that of the Parsís is perhaps the only one in which fasting be neither meritorious nor even permitted. The Parsí, on the contrary, believes to honor Ormuzd by nourishing himself well: because the body, fresh and vigorous, renders the soul stronger against the bad genii; because the man, feeling less want, reads the word with more attention, and feels more courage for performing good works; consequently several celestial spirits are especially charged with watching over the welfare of man: Rameshné, Kharom, Khordád, and Amerdád give abundance and pleasures to him, and it is the last of the Izeds mentioned who produces in the fruits the taste and flavor which lead men to apply them to that use for which Ormuzd has created them.”—A. T.