DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.14696#0084
Zoroastres
35
statement in a somewhat earlier form. Mesraim (Mizraim), son of
Cham (Ham), was the first to study magic. He gave much attention
to the stars and, wishing to be thought a god, pretended to produce
sparks from them, till at length he was burnt by the demon, whom
he had too often invoked. His contemporaries regarded him as a
friend of God, carried up to heaven on a thunderbolt. They there-
fore built him a tomb, changed his name to Zoroaster, the'Living
Star,' and worshipped him as such. Hence many persons still
honour victims of lightning with tombs and respect them as being
friends of God. Rufinus' account is followed in the sixth century
by Saint Gregory of Tours1. The Chronicon Paschale'1 of the
seventh century, together with the Byzantine historians Kedre'nos3
(c. 1100A.D.) and Glykas4 (c. 1120 A.D.), states that Zoroastres the
famous Persian astronomer, when about to die, prayed to Orion that
he might be destroyed by the fire of heaven, and told the Persians
to take up his burnt bones and preserve them, as the retention
in maius eum extollunt. exstructo enim sepulcro ad honorem eius tanquam amicum Dei
ac fulminis ad coelum vehiculo sublevatum adorare ausi sunt et quasi vivens astrum colere.
hinc enim et nomen post mortem eius Zoroaster, hoc est vivum sidus, appellatum est ab
his qui post unam generationem Graecae linguae loquela fuerant repleti. hoc denique
exemplo etiam nunc multi eos qui fulmine obierint sepulcris honoratos tanquam amicos
Dei colunt.
J. B. Coteler ad loc. cites from Fest. p. 245 a 23 ff. Miiller, p. 285, 3 ff. Lindsay the
statement that Q. Fabius Eburnus was called pullus Iovis because his hinder parts were
struck by lightning (cp. Arnob. adv. not. 4. 26 and De Vit Onomasticoii iii. 8 s.v. ' xiv.
Fabius').
1 Gregorius Turonensis hist. Franc. 1. 5 (lxxi. 164 f. Migne) primogenitus vero Cham,
Chus. hie fuit totius artis magicae, imbuente diabolo, et primus idololatriae adinventor.
hie primus statuunculam adorandam diaboli instigatione constituit: qui et Stellas, et ignem
de coelo cadere, falsa virtute, hominibus ostendebat. hie ad Persas transiit. nunc Persae
vocitavere Zoroastrem, id est viventem stellam. ab hoc etiam ignem adorare consueti
ipsum divinitus igne consumptum ut deum colunt.
2 Chron. Paschale i. 67 Dindorf e£ avrov ovv rod yevovs eyevvf)6y] /ecu 6 Tiwpbaarpos (so
cod. V. for ZopodfTTprjs ed. Paris.) 6 darpovbpos Ilepawv 6 irepLj36riTos, outls fiiWup reXevrdv
TjvxeTO inrb irvpbs dvaXudijvaL ovpaviov, eiirtov reus Uepaais ore eav Kavay p.e to trvp, eK ruiv
Kaio/j.evwv p.ov dorew eirdpare Kai (pv\d^are, Kai ovk eKXeixf/ei to fiaaiXeiov eK rr)s vpwv %u>pas
baov xpovov (pvXdrrere ra ep.d oarea. Kai ev^dp.evos tov 'flpiwva avb rrvpbs depiov avr/XLoOr].
Kai eiroiriaav oi Wepaai Kadibs eTirev avrols' Kai i\ov(TL (pvXdrrovres to Xei\j/avov avrov re0poj-
dev ecos vvv.
3 Kedren. hist. comp. 16 B—C (i. 29 f. Bekker) e/c tov yevovs ovv avrov Kai Zwpodarpris
0 TrepifioriTos dcrrpovop-os ev Ilepuais yevbp.evos rjv^aro vtto Trvpbs depiov KepavvwdijvaL Kai
dvaXwdfjvat, evreiXdp.evos rols Ylepaais rd bard avrov pera rr\v Kavcriv dvaXafielv Kai
<pv\drreiv avTovs (I. Bekker cj. aura) Kai ripav Kai ecus oil, <p7]o~t, awaeade ravra, to
j3ao~iXet.ov tt)s vp.u>v ^cipas ovk eKXei\pei. oiirus ovv tovtov irvpi ovpaviip reeppudevros rd
Xei^ava avrov 5id Ttp.rjs eixov 01 Itepcrai, ews tovtov KaTa(ppovr)o~avres Kai rr)s (jacnXeias
e^eireaov. Infra § 3 (c) i (x).
4 Michael Glykas ann. 1 129C—-D (p. 243 f. Bekker) e£ ov yevovs eytvero Kai Zwpo-
aarpos 6 Tvepifibr^Tos HepaCov darpovbp.os, 8s elire rots Ilepo'cus, "eav Katiffy p.e rb ovpaviov
Trvp," tovto yap Kai rjvxero, " Xct/3ere eK rwv oarewv pov Kai (pvXdaaeTe els ffvaracriv rrjs
fiaaiXeias vpQiv." 8 brj Kai yiyovev.
35
statement in a somewhat earlier form. Mesraim (Mizraim), son of
Cham (Ham), was the first to study magic. He gave much attention
to the stars and, wishing to be thought a god, pretended to produce
sparks from them, till at length he was burnt by the demon, whom
he had too often invoked. His contemporaries regarded him as a
friend of God, carried up to heaven on a thunderbolt. They there-
fore built him a tomb, changed his name to Zoroaster, the'Living
Star,' and worshipped him as such. Hence many persons still
honour victims of lightning with tombs and respect them as being
friends of God. Rufinus' account is followed in the sixth century
by Saint Gregory of Tours1. The Chronicon Paschale'1 of the
seventh century, together with the Byzantine historians Kedre'nos3
(c. 1100A.D.) and Glykas4 (c. 1120 A.D.), states that Zoroastres the
famous Persian astronomer, when about to die, prayed to Orion that
he might be destroyed by the fire of heaven, and told the Persians
to take up his burnt bones and preserve them, as the retention
in maius eum extollunt. exstructo enim sepulcro ad honorem eius tanquam amicum Dei
ac fulminis ad coelum vehiculo sublevatum adorare ausi sunt et quasi vivens astrum colere.
hinc enim et nomen post mortem eius Zoroaster, hoc est vivum sidus, appellatum est ab
his qui post unam generationem Graecae linguae loquela fuerant repleti. hoc denique
exemplo etiam nunc multi eos qui fulmine obierint sepulcris honoratos tanquam amicos
Dei colunt.
J. B. Coteler ad loc. cites from Fest. p. 245 a 23 ff. Miiller, p. 285, 3 ff. Lindsay the
statement that Q. Fabius Eburnus was called pullus Iovis because his hinder parts were
struck by lightning (cp. Arnob. adv. not. 4. 26 and De Vit Onomasticoii iii. 8 s.v. ' xiv.
Fabius').
1 Gregorius Turonensis hist. Franc. 1. 5 (lxxi. 164 f. Migne) primogenitus vero Cham,
Chus. hie fuit totius artis magicae, imbuente diabolo, et primus idololatriae adinventor.
hie primus statuunculam adorandam diaboli instigatione constituit: qui et Stellas, et ignem
de coelo cadere, falsa virtute, hominibus ostendebat. hie ad Persas transiit. nunc Persae
vocitavere Zoroastrem, id est viventem stellam. ab hoc etiam ignem adorare consueti
ipsum divinitus igne consumptum ut deum colunt.
2 Chron. Paschale i. 67 Dindorf e£ avrov ovv rod yevovs eyevvf)6y] /ecu 6 Tiwpbaarpos (so
cod. V. for ZopodfTTprjs ed. Paris.) 6 darpovbpos Ilepawv 6 irepLj36riTos, outls fiiWup reXevrdv
TjvxeTO inrb irvpbs dvaXudijvaL ovpaviov, eiirtov reus Uepaais ore eav Kavay p.e to trvp, eK ruiv
Kaio/j.evwv p.ov dorew eirdpare Kai (pv\d^are, Kai ovk eKXeixf/ei to fiaaiXeiov eK rr)s vpwv %u>pas
baov xpovov (pvXdrrere ra ep.d oarea. Kai ev^dp.evos tov 'flpiwva avb rrvpbs depiov avr/XLoOr].
Kai eiroiriaav oi Wepaai Kadibs eTirev avrols' Kai i\ov(TL (pvXdrrovres to Xei\j/avov avrov re0poj-
dev ecos vvv.
3 Kedren. hist. comp. 16 B—C (i. 29 f. Bekker) e/c tov yevovs ovv avrov Kai Zwpodarpris
0 TrepifioriTos dcrrpovop-os ev Ilepuais yevbp.evos rjv^aro vtto Trvpbs depiov KepavvwdijvaL Kai
dvaXwdfjvat, evreiXdp.evos rols Ylepaais rd bard avrov pera rr\v Kavcriv dvaXafielv Kai
<pv\drreiv avTovs (I. Bekker cj. aura) Kai ripav Kai ecus oil, <p7]o~t, awaeade ravra, to
j3ao~iXet.ov tt)s vp.u>v ^cipas ovk eKXei\pei. oiirus ovv tovtov irvpi ovpaviip reeppudevros rd
Xei^ava avrov 5id Ttp.rjs eixov 01 Itepcrai, ews tovtov KaTa(ppovr)o~avres Kai rr)s (jacnXeias
e^eireaov. Infra § 3 (c) i (x).
4 Michael Glykas ann. 1 129C—-D (p. 243 f. Bekker) e£ ov yevovs eytvero Kai Zwpo-
aarpos 6 Tvepifibr^Tos HepaCov darpovbp.os, 8s elire rots Ilepo'cus, "eav Katiffy p.e rb ovpaviov
Trvp," tovto yap Kai rjvxero, " Xct/3ere eK rwv oarewv pov Kai (pvXdaaeTe els ffvaracriv rrjs
fiaaiXeias vpQiv." 8 brj Kai yiyovev.