Vishtaspa

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Vishtaspa (Vištaspa) is the Avestan language name of Zoroaster's first patron, as primarily described in the Gathas, the oldest hymns of Zoroastrianism and believed to have been composed by the prophet Zoroaster himself.

The monarch is not epigraphically attested, and later legend and tradition are based on the Gathic account. Both scripture and tradition speak of Vishtaspa as having been a kavi or kay, that is, a member of the semi-mythological Kayanian dynasty.

The region that Vishtaspa ruled is uncertain, but as for Zoroaster's homeland also, generally believed to lie somewhere in Central Asia or in the eastern regions of Greater Iran (see Zoroaster for details).

Sanskrit texts such as the Purānas and the Jain šāstrass refer to one Kalpasūtra, who is occasionally and speculatively identified with Vishtaspa.

[edit] References

• Hartz, P: "Zoroastrianism", page 30. Facts on File, 1999