nd"--for
the Zoroastrians, like Plato, regarded good and evil as identical with
reality and unreality. Ako-mano's special sphere is the mind of man,
where he suggests evil thoughts and prompts to bad words and wicked
deeds. He holds the first place in the infernal council, as Vohu-mano
does in the heavenly one.

Indra, who holds the second place in the infernal council, is evidently
the Vedic god whom the Zoroastrians regarded as a powerful demon, and
therefore made one of Angro-mainyus's chief councillors. He probably
retained his character as the god of the storm and of war, the destroyer
of crops and cities, the inspirer of armies and the wielder of
the thunder-bolt. The Zoroastrians, however, ascribed to him only
destructive actions; while the more logical Hindoos, observing that the
same storm which hurt the crops and struck down trees and buildings was
also the means of fertilizing the lands and purifying the air, viewed
him under a double aspect, as at once terrible in his wrath and the
bestower of numerous blessings.

Qaurva, who stands next to Indra, is thought to be the Hindoo Shiva, who
has the epithet qarva in one of the Vedas. But the late appearance of
Shiva in the Hindoo system makes this highly uncertain.

Naonhaitya, the fourth member of the infernal council, corresponds
apparently to the Vedic Nasatyas, a collective name given to the two
Aswins, the Dioscuri of Indian mythology. These were favorite gods of
the early Hindoos, to whose protection they very mainly ascribed their
prosperity. It was natural that the Iranians, in their aversion to
their Indian brethren, should give the Aswins a seat at Angro-mainyus's
council-table; but it is curious that they should represent the twin
deities by only a single councillor.

Taric and Zaric, "Darkness" and "Poison," the occupants of the fifth and
sixth places, are evidently personifications made for the occasion, to
complete the infernal council to its full complement of six members.

As the two Principles of Good and Evil have their respective councils,
so have they likewise their armies. The Good Spirit has created
thousands of angelic beings, who everywhere perform his will and fight
on his side against the Evil One; and the Evil One has equally on
his part called into being thousands of malignant spirits who are his
emissaries in the world, doing his work continually, and fighting
his battles. These are the Devas or Dives, so famous in Persian fairy