Vayu-Vata

Origins and Development

Although both Vāta and Vāyu were associated with wind, the latter was a more complex and powerful being, in whose case the natural phenomenon underlying the concept had faded much further into the background. A comparable distinction existed in the Vedic tradition, where the conception of Vāta was similar to the Iranian one, while Vāyu occupied a more complex position. The fact that the natural phenomenon had receded into the background in both traditions suggests that Vāyu was an ancient god. Nevertheless, although this is true in both countries, there is not much else closely in common between the Indian and Iranian deities. Both names also appear in other contexts within the Avesta. Bahram takes vāta as one of his forms, while vayu is one of the four horses that draw Anahita's chariot. In Yašt 15, Vāyu himself is depicted as a powerful martial deity, whose nature can be understood largely through his various epithets. His standing epithet is uparō.kairya-, meaning "having superior skill", and he is described as strong (uγra-), swift (aurwa-), and fleet (taxma-). The hymn portrays him as capable of protecting the creation of Spənta Mainyu, although elsewhere in the Avesta he also appears as a feared god of death.

In the Avesta, Vāyu is presented as superior not only to Spənta Mainyu, the Beneficent Spirit, and Ahriman, the Evil Spirit, but also to Ohrmazd himself, who must entreat Vāyu for aid. His dominion over both creations suggests that, in some circles, Vāyu enjoyed a universality that overshadowed both Ohrmazd and Ahriman. This position led H. S. Nyberg to propose that Vāyu was the supreme deity of a particular community, just as Ohrmazd and Mithra may have been supreme within their own respective communities. The idea of rival sectarian communities in pre-Zoroastrian Iran has, however, generally been ignored by scholars. As Philip G. Kreyenbroek has shown, ancient Iranians, like their Vedic counterparts, entertained a variety of conceptions regarding creation and the formation of the cosmos.

Within this broader cosmological framework, the Avestan Vāyu is distinguished by his two aspects. In one, he is described as "harmful" (zinaka), while in his hymn, Yašt 15, worship is offered only to "that Vayu which belongs to the Bounteous Spirit". In the later Zoroastrian tradition, a clear distinction is made between the Good Vāyu (Wāy-ī weh) and the Bad Vāyu (Wāy-ī wattar), the latter being little more than a demon of death. The distinction between the two is particularly apparent in their respective roles concerning the souls of the dead. In one Pahlavi commentary, it is stated that the Good Vāyu bears the souls, apparently to distinguish him from the Bad Vāyu, who leads the soul away, whereas the Good Vāyu carries the righteous soul to heaven. The Bundahišn (27.43–44) similarly identifies the Bad Vāyu with Astōwidād (Astwihād), the demon of death, who takes the breath-soul. His touch is said to cause lethargy, his shadow to bring fever, and his gaze to destroy the breath-soul, thereby causing death. The duality of Vāyu has also been examined in relation to the two Spirits of Zoroastrianism. In Zoroaster's vision, Ohrmazd appears as the creator of the two Spirits as Twins (yə̄mā), understood as an adaptation of the Indo-European cosmogonic myth of primordial twins. Georges Dumézil interpreted Zoroasters two mainyu-s as a sublimation of the two Vāyus of the inherited pantheon, an interpretation developed within the framework of his tripartite theory. Martin Schwartz (forthcoming), however, has argued that the duality of the two Spirits follows from the basic meaning of Indo-Iranian manyu-, which encompasses intense mental activity capable of manifesting either as violence and destruction or as benign creativity. He therefore suggested that the division of the two Spirits should be regarded as parallel to the splitting of Vāyu, rather than as a direct transformation of the two Vāyus.

Identification with Raman

In later Zoroastrian tradition, Vāyu was also associated with, and sometimes identified with, Rāman Khvāštra. Although Vāyu appears in unusual isolation in his own hymn, his association with Rāman became sufficiently close that the hymn came to be known as the Rām Yašt. Rāman was probably a concept of Zoroastrian times and was also associated with Mithra. The reason for his connection with Vāyu, however, remains uncertain. Darmesteter suggested that the association arose from Vāyu's possession of "good pastures" as god of the air. These were understood as the great expanses of the sky inhabited by clouds, conceived as celestial "cows" whose milk was the rain. Another explanation, preserved in a Pahlavi text, relates the association to Vāyu's role in guiding the souls of the righteous to Paradise. According to this interpretation, the "good Vay" is called Rām, a word that can signify both joy and peace, because he brings joy to the souls he guides. Vāyu's association with Rāman is also reflected in the Zoroastrian liturgical calendar. In the order of the days of the month, Rām immediately precedes Vāyu. The Sīh Rōzag contains two litanies dedicated to the deities of the thirty days, in which the invocation of a particular day's deity is often accompanied by invocations of other divinities without their own name days. Although Rāman is invoked alongside Mithra on the sixteenth day, he also has his own day, the twenty-first, under which Vāyu, Θβāṣ̌a, Infinite Time (zrwan- akarana-), and Time of Long-dominion (zrwan- darəγō.xwaδāta-) are invoked. Notably, Vāyu appears under Rāman's day rather than the twenty-second day, which is dedicated to Vāta.

The close association between space and time is already foreshadowed in the Avesta, where Vāyu shares the epithet darəγō.xwāδata- (Pahl. dagrand-xwadāy) with Zruwan. In the Sīh Rōzag, Vāyu and Θβāṣ̌a (Space; = Pahl. Spihr) are invoked together with Infinite Time (zrwan- akarana-) and Time of Long-dominion (zrwan- darəγō.xwaδāta-). On the basis of the much later Pahlavi sources, one can identify a conception of the primordial cosmos characterized by infinite Space (Vāyu) and infinite Time (Zruwan), from which the dualities of finite space and finite time developed as necessary conditions for the creation of the world. The cosmological priority of Time subsequently became the central doctrine of Zurwanite theology during the Parthian and Sassanid periods. In the Bundahišn account of creation (1.4), Vāyu is identified with the primordial Void that existed between Ohrmazd and Ahreman. Vāyu's dwelling in the empty air presumably contributed to his association with Zurvān ("Time") and Thwāša ("Firmament") in later Zoroastrian speculation. There is, however, nothing in Vāyu's Yašt to suggest that these speculations already formed part of Iranian paganism.

Vāyu may also have been associated with the bull, as suggested by references in the Rām Yašt. Wikander proposed that the bull may have constituted an important element of Vāyu worship and noted the deity's close relationship with herds of domesticated animals. In Zoroastrianism, the bull is also associated with fertility, which depends upon an adequate supply of water, including the rain brought by Vāyu.

Transformation under the Kushans

The ancient Iranian deity Vāyu continued to be worshipped in Bactria during the Kushan period under the name Oesho (ΟΗÞΟ), retaining the aggressive and warlike characteristics associated with the earlier Iranian god. Vāyu and Vāta also underwent a gradual divergence during this period, with their formerly overlapping functions developing along separate lines as closely associated wind deities.

In the Kushan pantheon, Vāyu emerged as one of the most prominent deities and was probably regarded as the consort of Nana. Vāyu was among the four principal or most frequently attested deities on Kushan coins, alongside Mithra, Mah, and Nana. These deities were represented in pairs, with Mah associated with Mithra and Vāyu with Nana. In the former pairing, the moon deity appeared on the left and the covenant deity on the right. Vāyu also became closely associated with Shiva, who is generally identified with the Bactrian Vāyu (Wesh, Middle Persian Way). This association was reflected in the deity's increasingly Shivite appearance during the Kushan period.

The development of Vāyu's worship in Bactria was accompanied by a clearer distinction between the functions of Vāyu and Vāta. Although both deities originated from closely related concepts of wind, their attributes became increasingly differentiated in eastern Iranian traditions. Vāta, represented in Bactrian as ΟΑΔΟ (Oado), retained the characteristics of the wind god in the narrow sense, as the personification of the physical wind, while Vāyu retained the martial and aggressive aspects of the original Iranian deity. By Kushan times, Oado had taken over the domain of Vāta (Middle Persian Wād), "wind", which had still been associated with Vāyu (Middle Persian Way), "atmosphere, celestial space", in the Avesta. Despite their common Proto-Iranian origins, Vāta and Vāyu had thus become fully separated. While Oado represented the anthropomorphic wind deity, neither textual nor iconographic sources indicate that Oesho was particularly associated with the physical wind. Oado is depicted on Kushan coins and was probably incorporated into the theophoric name τιροαδο, linking the deities Tīr and Vāta, but is otherwise unattested in written Bactrian sources. This differentiation may also explain the development of Vāyu's association with Shiva. The theological development of the two divinities, together with the increasing resemblance of Vāyu to Shiva during the Kushan period, may not have resulted solely from Indian religious influence, but may also have occurred in parallel with developments in India. Rudra, who was later associated with Shiva, had likewise originated as a wind and storm god, whereas wind was no longer a principal characteristic of the later Shiva.

This separation of functions was not permanent, however, as Oado (Vāta) was subsequently replaced in his function as an atmospheric god by Oesho (Wesh, i.e., Vāyu). Vāyu thus came to assume the atmospheric function that had earlier been associated with Vāta. He was also known as Vāyu the Good (Vây i vēh). This function may also be reflected in his trident, an attribute of Poseidon associated with storms at sea. The replacement of Heracles' club with Poseidon's trident has been interpreted as indicating a reduction in the deity's martial character and a greater emphasis on his role as a fertility deity and bringer of rain.

Vāyu-Vāta was also identified with the name Muždooano (Mužduwan), which has been interpreted as an epithet of the deity and as a Bactrian translation of the Indian name Shiva. Mužduwan appears on Kushan coins and in the Rabatak inscription, where the name is rendered μοζδοοανο. Its precise origin and significance have nevertheless been subject to different interpretations. The name probably derives from miždwāh, meaning "gracious", accounting for the presence of ž rather than z (Old Iranian ž, "Mužduwan"). Another interpretation associates Mužduwan with a pre-Kushan or early Kushan deity of the steppes, partly because of his association with the horse and because the name is unattested outside Bactria. On Kushan coins, Mužduwan holds a trident reminiscent of Shiva. A further possibility, also originating outside Zoroastrianism, connects Mužduwan with the Rig Vedic deity Rudra, who was subsequently merged with Shiva. These interpretations have been discussed in connection with Vāyu-Vāta's absence from the Rabatak inscription under his familiar name, despite his prominence throughout Bactrian religious history.

Vāyu-Vāta retained his importance under the Kushano-Sasanian rulers of Bactria, although his representation and titles underwent further changes. In this period, he was no longer identified by his familiar Kushan name Oesho, but instead received the title borzoando iazado or bago borzando in Bactrian, and burzāwand yazad in Middle Persian, meaning "the exalted god". His prominence is also reflected in the official divine imagery of the Kushano-Sasanian rulers, which exhibits a degree of symmetry with that of the Sasanian dynasty when both coins and rock reliefs are considered. Both traditions represented a triad of deities that included Anahita and Mithra. However, whereas Ohrmazd occupied the third position in Sasanian Iran, Oesho (Vāyu-Vāta) occupied the corresponding position in Bactria. It is possible that the new Sasanian rulers of Bactria regarded Oesho as the local equivalent of Ohrmazd.

Continuation in Sogdiana

The worship of Vāyu-Vāta continued from Bactria into Sogdiana, where the deity was known as Weshparkar (Wyšprkr) and associated with Shiva Mahādeva of the Hindu tradition. Weshparkar has been described as the direct continuation of the Oesho in Bactria. The name Weshparkar has been interpreted as reflecting the full Avestan formula Vāyuš uparō.kairiiō, meaning "Vāyu who acts in the superior region". E. Benveniste proposed an alternative identification with Viśvakarman, the all-creating god associated with Hephaistos in Indian mythology. This identification has been challenged on the grounds that representations of Viśvakarman in Gandharan, medieval Indian, and Japanese art differ considerably from those of Weshparkar. H. Humbach's interpretation of the name as Vayuš uparō kairyo, or "Vayu working on high", has consequently been regarded as more reasonable. According to this interpretation, Vāyu developed into Veš or Weš by the seventh and eighth centuries, while the deity was probably known as Vesh(u) or Vesh(a) during the Kushan period.

The relationship between Vāyu-Vāta and Shiva has nevertheless been interpreted in different ways. One interpretation rejects the traditional identification of Oesho (OHÞO) on Kushan coins as Shiva, maintaining instead that the deity represented Vāyu, one of the two Zoroastrian wind gods. According to this view, although Weshparkar was subsequently syncretized with Shiva, this does not establish that Oesho was already Shiva during the Kushan period. Rather, the syncretism has been attributed to the influence of Hindu iconography on Sogdian art during the seventh and eighth centuries.

In Sogdian religion, Weshparkar was one of the three principal deities. His identification with Vāyu-Vāta is reflected in his associations with Wesh (Oesho) in Bactria and Vāyuu in Zoroastrianism. Numerous images of Weshparkar survive from Sogdiana. One such painting, from a private house and explicitly labelled Weshparkar, shows one of the deity's three heads blowing a horn. Although the horn is not a customary attribute of Shiva, it is appropriate to the Iranian Vāyu-Vāta in his capacity as god of the atmosphere. This emphasis on natural elements is further reflected in the figure seated before Weshparkar, identified as Apam Napāt, the Indian and Iranian deity of the fire that burns within water. He is depicted with a fiery halo surrounded by fish and tritons.