Pe nanmé Iezdann: Pavan fchaméh dadar Anhouma: freftoié fetéôném setéômé eschem vôhou fé fréoûérâné mezdéïefnô Zeréthofchtrefch vidéeoûo Ehoré dekéefcho dâtâé hǝdé dâtâé vîdéoûâé Zeréthoschtrâé eschéoné eschéhé rethvé iefnâétché vehmaétché khefchnéothrâétché frefefteïéetché rethvanm éïérenanmtché afnïenanmtché mâhïénanmtché iaerïenanmtché ferédénanmtché i. v. kh. f. djé khofchnoumen betha hoêté parié Sreofchéhé efchïéhé tokméhé tenomanthréhé drefchîdrefch.

In nomine Dei. In nomine justi judicis Ormuzd. effusè precor animam, effusè precor. puro abundantia 3 ire facio + Ormusd cultor Zoroaftrianus cui adverfatur Dew T armufd refponfum, dato huic dad vendi Zoroaftri puro fancto magno izeschné (ago) néaesch (ago) placere cupio, vota facio. temporibus diebus, Tois gahan, menfibus, Tois gahanbar, annis i. n. p. v. quodcumque khofchnoumen fedens fit, lege. T Serofch puro valido corpori obedienti gloria (T8 Ormusd fulgenti). Zend Avesta Vol. I. part ii, P. 77.

P. 16. The Perfian, in point of regularity, is perhaps not to be excelled by any language in the world. As one general rule, the third person of the present tense ends in

d; the only exceptions, which I can at prefent recollect, being left and d heft, He is. In the Zend, on the contrary, the terminations of this perfon are irregular to the laft degree. I fhall mention a few examples. Afchti, enghem, eoûed, heeté, beouad, il eft. Eenetôed, eenetôesch apeoueteeé, il connoit. Djemad, gueteen, il vient. Djemeeté il arrive. Djeto, ghnad, il frappe. Snes il frappe; il brule. Veiozofchtao il fait. Efchto il s'applique. Refo il arrange. Guethad il faute. Moftemefcho il meurt. In which few words, exclufive of the want of fimilarity in the penults

and antepenults, there are no less than eight variations in the final letters. Were it of confequence, many more could be brought.

P. 17. Ormuzd (Omnipotence) and Zoroafter are introduced in dialogue. The lawgiver wishes to know how a man fhould get rid of a demon called Daroudj Nefofch, supposing him, in the shape of a fly, to have taken poffeffion of the crown of his head; Ormuzd directs him to wash the part, which would drive the fiend between the eyebrows; from thence he is to be forced, by another ablution, to the back of the head; from that to the ear, then to the nose, the mouth, the chin: till at length, fighting every inch of ground, the poor devil is fucceffively driven over every part of the body, till we find him ftationed on the left foot; when Zoroafter thus proceeds in his catechifm; (what is between hooks being M. Anquetil's explanatory interpolations, and not in the original).

"Lorsque l'eau a atteint le deffus du pied gauche où se "retire le Daroudj Nefofch? Ormuzd refpondit: (le Da"roudj Nefosch) fous la forme d'une mouche se place def"fous le pied; il faut le lever, laiffant les doigts poser à 66 terre, et laver ainfi le deffous du pied droit. Lorsque "l'on a lavé le deffous du pied droit, le Daroudj Nefofch "fe retire sous le pied gauche. Lorfque l'on a lavé le def"fous du pied gauche le Daroudj Nefofch fous la forme "d'une mouche, se place deffous les doigts, Laiffant donc (pofer à terre) le deffous du pied, on leve les doigts, ét "on lave ceux (du pied) droit. Lorfque l'on a lavé les

doigts du pied droit, le Daroudj Nefosch fe retire fous "ceux (du pied) gauche; et lorfqu'on a lavé les doigts "du pied gauche, le Daroudj Nefosch eft reverfé (viancu "et s'en retourne) du côté du Nord, lui qui, fous la

"forme d'une mouche, fe place fur (l'homme impur) et "le frappe comme le Djodge (chicn) des deferts, detruit "les productions des Dews et leurs demeurs," &c.

When the water has reached to the top of the left foot, where does the Daroudj Nefofch retire? Ormufd replied: (The Daroudj Nefofch) under the form of a fly, places himself under the foot; it must be raised, letting the toes reft on the ground, and thus wash the under part of the right foot. When the under part of the right foot is washed, the Daroudj Nefofch retires under the left foot. When the under part of the left foot is washed, the Daroudj Nefofch, in the form of a fly, places himself under the toes. Allowing the fole of the foot (to reft upon the ground) the toes must be raised, and thofe of the right (foot) washed. When the toes of the right foot are washed, the Daroudj Nefofch retires under thofe of the left (foot); and when the toes of the left foot are washed, the Daroudj Nesosch is overthrown (conquered, and returns) towards the north, he who under the shape of a fly places himfelf upon (the impure man) and strikes him like the Djodje (dog) of the defert, deftroys the productions of the Dews and their dwellings, &c. Zend Avesta par M. Anquetil du Perron, Vol. I. part. ii. p. 341.--Can human credulity fuppofe this to be the compofition of Zoroafter, or of any man who had pretenfions to common sense?

P. 18. In the Preface to the Farhang Jehanguiri we are informed, that it was not reckoned elegant in the Deri to ufe fyncopes; the following or fimilar words being never admitted; as, (fpeak thou),,, (go thou), (to increase), &c. they being always written and. The foftness of this language, in the opinion of the Afiatics, may be learnt from a popular faying, re

برو

ported by Ebn Fekreddin Anju, author of the above Dictionary, "That the Deri and the Arabic idioms were the "languages of heaven: God communicating to the an"gels his milder mandates in the delicate accents of the "first; whilft his ftern commands were delivered in the "rapid utterance of the other."

Bahaman or Ardefhir Dirazdeft is generally fuppofed to be Artaxerxes Macrocheir or Longimanus. Ardeshir Dirazdeft implies The ftrong lion with the long hands: an epithet supposed to have been given him on account of the greatness of his power and the extent of his empire. Baharam was contemporary with Theodofius II. emperor of Greece, and is known in Europe by the name of Varanes or Vararanes.

P. 20. & Ardefhir Babegan having entertained fome doubts relative to the national religion, ordered the chief priefts of the Magi to attend, in order to have them explained; when the king, on propofing his doubts, deliver◄ ed himself as follows:

Numayend an bemen ta fhek zegeihan

Kunem dur wa hadirem din yezdan

Hemi khahem ki zan burhan numayend

Hekiket ber heme geihan numayend.

Let them show it to me, that doubt from the world
I may drive far off, and embrace the religion of God.
I wish that by this decifion they would show

The truth; to all the world fhow it.

N. B. in the second line is either an old word, now obsolete, or an error; if the laft, it may be correct

or fome fuch fynony گېرم or پذیرم ed by fubftituting

mous word. See Hyde's Religio Veterum Perfarum, p. 18. It may be proper to obferve, that, in the Old Perfian mode of writing, every vowel has a distinct character: to write in that manner, the above would run as follows;

هامېي خاواهام كي زان بورهان نومایند ها تبقات بارهامه کایهان نومایند

All the other paffages fcattered through the Religio, as Old Perfian, are, like the above, fimply the modern language in ancient characters,

P. 22. It is aftonishing to confider the number of miftakes into which, in the various lines of literature, the best of our European authors are led, by their inattention to the languages and writings of the Eaft. Mariana, the chief hiftorian of Spain, when introducing the Arabian conqueft of that country, with an account of the Mohammedan religion, fays, "Fundador de aquella malvada fu"perfticion fue Mahoma Arabe de nacion: el qual por la "mucha profperidad que tuvo en las guerras, y por def"cuydo del emperador Heraclio, fe llamò y coronò la Sy"ria, &c." Vid. tomo primero, p. 311. "The foun"der of this accurfed fuperftition was Mahomet, an Ara"bian by birth; who, in confequence of his great success "in war, and the negligence of the emperor Heraclius, "declared himself king of his nation, and was crowned in "Damafcus, the most noble city of Syria."- In an event