Creation and Procreation: The Zoroastrian Doctrine of Ontogenesis and the Late Antique Sciences

Création et procréation: la doctrine zoroastrienne de l'ontogenèse et les sciences de l'Antiquité tardive

Samra Azarnouche (1, 2, 3)

1 CeRMI - Centre de recherche sur le monde iranien
2 EPHE - École Pratique des Hautes Études
3 PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres

The Zoroastrian cosmological discourse is characterized by a systematic reference to the natural and life sciences. The Bundahišn, a Middle Persian encylopaedic compendium on the creation of the world, devotes an entire chapter (chapter 15) to human procreation, in which the different phases of ontogeny are described. Read alongside other Middle Persian texts on procreation and the physiology of generation (Bundahišn 1.57; Anthology of Zādspram 29.1-3, 30.17-23, 30.35; Dēnkard III.157.19; Dēnkard VIII.34), it brings to light the framework of a full-fledged Zoroastrian doctrine of embryology. This paper explores the status of procreation within the doctrine of creation by highlighting five major themes in classical ontogeny: pangenesis, embryonic development, gender determination, foetal animation, and the thesis known as the “wind theory.” The comparative approach allows us better to understand the influence of the Greek and Indian medical traditions, the adaptations brought about by Late Antique Iranian authors, and the innovations specific to Zoroastrian thought.

Domaines: Sciences de l'Homme et Société

Samra Azarnouche. Creation and Procreation: The Zoroastrian Doctrine of Ontogenesis and the Late Antique Sciences. Conference at Mahindra Humanities Center, Persian and Persianate Studies/The Aga Khan Fund for Iranian Studies at Harvard, Mahindra Humanities Center, May 2022, Cambridge (Harvard University), United States. ⟨halshs-03962718⟩