Zaotar

Zoroastrian priest from Yazd , photographed by Ernst Hoeltzer , 1873

Zaotar ( Avestisch , Pahlavi Zot , Neupersisch Zut ) denotes a Zoroastrian priest of the highest rank. The Zaotar stands in the priestly hierarchy above the seven other priestly titles existing in the religion of Zoroaster.

Zarathustra himself is referred to several times in the Avesta and especially in the Yashts as Zaotar. Zarathustra is also known as Zaotar in the Gathas . The term is etymologically related to the Vedic Hotar. The word goes back to the Avestan tribe "Zao" in the sense of the terms "pray, recite or perform prayer".

After the fall of the Sassanid Empire and the Zoroastrian clergy in Iran, the hierarchy was simplified, which is expressed in the religious ceremonial of Yasna in the execution by two priests, the above Zaotar and a Raspi .

literature

1. Pahlavi Dictionary. MacKenzie.