The Agathoi and Kakoi

Agathoi    Kakoi    Auramazda Chrestus-Aristus Spentaman Eunoia Eusebia Arta Eunomia Eutopia Harvatas Amortas Eudemonia    Chrestoprosopa    Azidus

Agathoi

The Agathoi are the 'good beings' and are the children of Vaius and Agatha. The Agathoi are more abstract than the Asa Yazata or demigods and more consistently good than some of them. There are 12 Agathoi given pride of place. NB Their order is not fixed:

1. Auramazda

Auramazda is the Wise Lord. Auramazda is the righteous lord or right-regulating power who produces right-order or Arta. Mazda is the Wise One who is sensitive to the truth of what exists and has knowledge as to the interconnection of things.

2. Chrestus-Aristus is the Useful One and the Best. Chrestus-Aristus is the ideal human son of Auramazda.

3. Spentaman - the 'Life-increasing Spirit' is the being that changes minds, by bringing wisdom, changing values, developing the abilities of the mind and enlivening the life-loving energies of the soul.

4. Eunoia - the Good Mind or Good Consciousness

Eunoia is the mind of Good Purpose, a mind which wants to do the right thing. Its opposite is Kakonoia (or Akonoia) or the Bad kind of Mind.

Metanoia is a transformation of the state of mind (the 'Hexis' of the mind) from one state to another.

Daena is Moral Vision, Conscience, Religion. Eudaena is Good Moral Vision.

5. Eusebia - good reverence and devotion, piety. This is the mental attention to the productive powers of life and the practical devotion to them.

6. Eukratia - Good Power, Good Rule . This is the good exercise of power and strength to regulate the activities of the world. Where there is perfect Eukratia, there is the Kingdom of Mithras.

7. Arta or Artista - Best Order or Rightness . Artista in our minds is perfect understanding of reality. Artista in our words is truth-telling. Artista in our actions is righteous action. Artista in society is a situation of perfect connection, where the needs of each are met by the actions of others.

Arta Thalica is the 'Flourishing Order'.
Related is Thalia - (Collective) Flourishing, Synthalia - Flourishing Together, Conviviality and Pantothalia - Common flourishing

8. Eunomia - Good Law, Good Custom, Good Habit

9. Eutopia - Good Place, Good shape of environment, Good kind of response to action

10. Harvatas - Health, Wholeness, Integrity. Where all the parts of ourselves work in balance in happy harmony.

11. Amortas - Non-dyingness, long-livedness, Where we continue to live without injury or disease for there is nothing to cause us damage.

12. Eudemonia 'Good Spirit' is roughly similar to Ushta which can be translated as Joy or Radiant Happiness and is (at a minimum) the passive presence of the Agatha.


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Kakoi

The Kakoi are the 'bad ones' and are the evil counterparts of the Agathoi.

1. Opposed to Auramazda is Dregor the Deviator.

2. Opposed to Chrestus is Azidus the lustful cold-hearted one.

3. Opposed to Spentaman is Angraman the deceitful one.

4. Opposed to Eunoia is Akonoia the Bad Mind or Bad Thinking

5. Opposed to Eusebia is Akosebia the Wrong Devotion

6. Opposed to Eukratia is Akokratia the Bad Rule or bad use of strength

7. Opposed to Arta is Dreg the Deviation from what is right and true.

8. Opposed to Eunomia is Akonomia the bad customs, laws and distributions.

9. Opposed to Eutopia is Akotopia the Bad Place or the bad kind of situation.

10. Opposed to Harvatas is Aegrotas which is Illness or Disharmony.

11. Opposed to Amortas is Mortas which is Death.

12. Opposed to Eudemonia is Akodemonia which is the Bad Spirit or feeling, unhappiness or pain.

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Aura-Mazda

Aura is the righteous lord or right-regulating power who produces right-order or Arta.

Mazda is the wise one who is sensitive to the truth of what exists and has knowledge as to the interconnection of things. Aura and Mazda work closely together as the combined power Aura-Mazda.

Solivictoria is the Victory of the Sun i.e. the energy of the cosmic sun manifesting in the world and bringing life
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Homo Chrestus Aristus

Chrestaristus is the Useful One and the Best. Chrestus-Aristus is the ideal human son of Auramazda.

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Spentaman

Spentaman - the Holy Spirit.
Spentaman is the spirit of love of life, the spirit-being that transforms us for the Good.
Spentamania - the 'Life-increasing Spirit' is the power that changes minds, by bringing wisdom, changing values, developing the abilities of the mind and enlivening the life-loving energies of the soul.
A Mania is a mental-spirit - a kind of spirit or movement that affects the mind. A Mania can possess a mind so that it affects its operation. A Mania in one mind can also impact other minds in communication with it, and transfer over to it.

From Zoroastrian tradition we recognise two manias in particular. These are Spentamania which is a life-enhancing spirit and Angramania which is a life-decreasing spirit.




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Eunoia

Eunoia - the Good Mind

Eunoia is the mind of Good Purpose, a mind which wants to do the right thing. Its opposite is Kakonoia or the Bad kind of Mind. Eunoia is regarded as a characteristic possession of Mithras.

Metanoia is a transformation of the state of mind (the 'Hexis' of the mind) from one state to another.
N.B. Eunoia can also be spelled as Vohumanah or Humanah
Noia is a person's state of consciousness. It is how the world appears to them. From their Noia a person decides what is the best way to act. Thus it is a crucial importance whether someone has Good Noia (Eunoia) so that they will naturally do what they should be doing for their own best interests and the interests of the wider world. If they have Bad Noia (Kakonoia) then even when they think they are doing the right thing their actions will actually work against their best interests and the common interest of all.

Metanoia is the process of changing one's Noia, especially from a bad to a better one. It is the origin of the idea of repentance in the Christian tradition. However in Mithraism a person is not necessarily held responsible for their bad Noia. Often they will just not be aware that there understanding of life is so bad, and they may not have the right conditions to change. It is up to others to step in and try to help them.
A Daena (or Dena) is a way of looking at the world. It can be translated as a 'world-view', a 'moral-system', 'beliefs and values', an ideology, a religion.

Each person can have their own private Dena, but we often talk of shared Dena's. Denas can more or less good or bad to the extent they help a person act righteously or not. An important part of our collective human life is in constructing Denas and sharing them with other people. To a major extent the happy flourishing of human life depends on enough people subscribing to good Denas.

The concepts of Daena and Noia are quite close, and if someone is introduced to a new Dena and comes to identify with it then this will inevitably change their Noia.

Daena has often been translated as 'a religion' however this is misleading. Firstly there are many kinds of world-view that are not considered religious as such but still affect how people act and so are still Daenas. Also the word religion includes religious practices, acts of worship etc which are not part of the meaning of Daena.

A Daena can be quite a complicated affair as it gives us an understanding and value judgement on lots of different aspects of life. A religious or secular wisdom tradition can thus have a large corpus of work to explain its Dena. The Iranomazdeans or traditional Zoroastrians first had the Avesta as their religious scripture to explain their Dena. They called it the Hu-Daena or Good Daena. In later times the Daena was set out in a book known as the Den-kard. The Denkard is an encyclopedia of Zoroastrian wisdom, and useful for modern Mazdeans to study.

The Chrestodaena is a name we can give to the world-view and value-system of modern Chrestomazdeans. We have made a start at explaining it on these pages.
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Eusebia

Eusebia - good reverence and devotion, piety. This is the mental attention to the productive powers of life and the practical devotion to them.
Sebia is devotion. It is what a person is devoted to. It is what they attend to, what they give their time and energy for. It can have both a religious and practical sense, but these are tied together. If we are devoted to good religious practice then this ought to have a positive impact on us so that we come to appreciate what is of ultimate importance. This should then lead us to devote ourselves to those practical things that matter most in life and can make the biggest positive difference.

Eusebia is good devotion. The word is often translated as Piety. The word piety has lost some of its original meaning in modern English, but the ancients considered piety of great importance. In the major Roman epic story of the Aeneid, the hero Aeneas is known as Pious Aeneas as highest praise.

Connection has also been made between Eusebia and the Indian concept of Dharma. Eusebia is perhaps exactly about performing one's own correct Dharma, the actions someone in your position or condition of life should best take to support the good functioning of the world. Often means helping those who are closest to you. However Eusebia is not only about selfless action. You should also devote sufficient attention to your own needs.




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Eukratia

Eukratia - Good Power, Good Rule . This is the good exercise of power and strength to regulate the activities of the world. Where there is perfect Eukratia, there is the Kingdom of Mithras.
Kratia is the use of force to impact the wider world. This can be done in a good or bad way - Eukratia or Akokratia. Kratia includes the concept of 'ruling', and Eukratia is commonly translated as 'Good Rule'. However it would be wrong to think that only people at the top of society are involved in Kratia. We all potentially have some power and can use it to influence others. However whether we should do so or not depends on our Noia, our awareness of the world. If we have bad Noia, because we don't really understand how the world works for instance, then our actions may make things worse and we might have been better doing nothing.
Arkeia (or Archeia) meaning 'influence' is the use people make of the influence they can have over others. Arkeia and Kratia often go hand-in-hand, but the two terms have different connotations. With Arkeia the emphasis is on people's will and how they get others to go along with what they want. This may be through use of Kratia or force, but also more subtle methods maybe used.

When looking at society as a whole then we can see there are particular patterns of Arkeia. Some people are major sources of Arkeia which spread out to others. They make decisions which have a major impact on the wider society. Other people may be much more on the receiving end and live their lives within the constraints that have been set. There can also be a more equal exchange of Arkeia where one person may be a source of Arkeia in some ways, and a receiver in others.

For the happy flourishing of life in a society it is crucial that the overall patterns of Arkeia are good ones. Generally this means that those who have most influence over society should have Eunoia and Spentamania - a right understanding of life combined with the desire to make life flourish. This may not happen automatically and it requires continual effort by good people to keep society in good order. Otherwise those who are clever but cold-hearted and ruthless can get into a position of power and use it for their own narrow benefit at the expense of everyone else.
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Artista

Artista (or Asha) - Best Order or Rightness . Artista in our minds is perfect understanding of reality. Artista in our words is truth-telling. Artista in our actions is righteous action. Artista in society is a situation of perfect connection, where the needs of each are met by the actions of others.
Arta is a process where actions meet needs so that life is sustained.
Artista is the best kind of Arta, a situation where each person's actions is exactly of the right kind to support a situation where everyone receives the best possible, or their maximum flourishing and happiness.
Asha is an alternative spelling for either Arta or Artista.

Anarta is the absence of Arta.

Dreg is deviation from the right path. It can refer to wrong thoughts, wrong words or wrong actions. These are all deviations that hinder the continuation of Arta and hence harm the flourishing of life. NB Something can be Dreg (deviant/wrong) regardless of motivation. Dreg can be translated as 'Lie' , 'Error' or 'Unrighteousness'.

(Dregor (or Dreggor) is a being that causes Dreg. It is our recommended name for 'the Great Devil', which has also been called Ahriman in Zoroastrian tradition.)



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Eunomia

Eunomia - Good Law, Good Custom, Good Habit
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Eutopia

Eutopia is the Good Place.

Eutopia - Good Place, Good shape of environment, Good kind of response to action
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Harvatas

Harvatas - Health, Wholeness, Integrity. Where all the parts of ourselves work in balance in happy harmony.

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Amortas

Amortas - Non-dyingness, long-livedness, Where we continue to live without injury or disease for there is nothing to cause us damage.

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Eudemonia

Coming with the presence of the Agathon

Eudemonia ('Good Spirit') is individual flourishing

Ushta is Joy or Radiant Happiness.

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Chrestoprosopa ("Faces or Roles of Chrestus")

The Chrestoprosopa are three faces or personalities of Homo Chrestus Aristus. These are: Sarus, Anhita and Mithras.

Sarus

Sarus is the divine Listener. He listens to the nature and needs of individual beings and responds accordingly. He is also called the Obedient, because he obeys the requirements of the situation as he hears it and not any separate personal will.

Sarus is the divine personality that desires to be of service to individual people. He is concerned to uphold the dignity of all, and is willing to sacrifice himself so that others can escape the full consequences of their actions. Sarus pays attention to individuals one at a time and seeks to save them from their sins.

Sarus is a teacher to us. Because of his empathy and knowledge of all beings and desire to help them he is a worthy teacher of morality.

Sarus is like a monk who serves the individuals he comes across.

Sarus the Listener. Sarus is a sensitive character and easily sees himself in the place of others. He feels the experience of each individual soul and desires that the best thing happens to them for their development and happiness. Compared to Mithras we consider that Sarus pays less attention to the holistic situation or overall picture but has greater involvement with the needs of the individuals before him.

Anhita

Anhita is the divine mother personality. She produces the processes that give birth to life and nurture and protect it. We see her acting as 'Mother Nature' and also acting through the human parent.

Anhita has a love of life and seeks to provide conditions for the best growing, protecting and healing of others. She is sometimes called Anhita the Pure as everything that comes from her is perfectly pure and good.

Anhita is like the mother who gives her pure love in care for her children.

Anhita the Mother. Anhita provides what is needed for the incipient and developing life to grow happily into a productive being who can shoulder the tasks of an adult existence. Anhita cares about her nurselings and cares for them. She provides a womb or shelter adapted to the needs of the dependent individual and protected from the harshness of the uncaring world outside. Anhita is known especially as a nurturer and protector and as a guardian of the purity of the conditions in which life grows.

Anhita is motivated by love of life and seeks to nurture, protect and heal.

Mithras

Mithras is the divine personality that desires good order. He is the power that connects people to each other in the right way and produces the good social order.

Mithras takes a holistic view of the world and human society and seeks to bring it into good order. Mithras is regarded as the righteous leader, crown prince or king.

Mithras is like a prince who considers the whole picture and seeks to create the good order that underlies the flourishing of life.

Mithras the Righteous Leader. Mithras has a strong desire for righteous order. He is a leader of society and a governor of the relationships between people. He is trusted to seek the common good of all and to see justice done. He upholds the social bonds that create the productive community and encourages the mutual flourishing.

Mithras is a champion of social order. Sarus attends to the needs of individuals regardless of other considerations. Mithras however is concerned for the whole picture. He is concerned for the good relations between people and that their mutual interaction should produce a happy result.


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Azidus

Azidus is inspired by an unbridled lust for power (and other delights as well). He has an anguinic character lacking usual human emotions and empathy for others. He is obsequious to those above him in the power-chain, but cold-heartedly manipulates those who can be instruments of his success and ruthlessly eliminates his rivals.

Azidus is a angel of desire. He is inspired by an unbridled lust for power (and often other delights as well). He has an anguinic character lacking usual human emotions and empathy for others. He is obsequious to those above him in the power-chain, but cold-heartedly manipulates those who can be instruments of his success and ruthlessly eliminates his rivals. He shares something with Faber who he may employ to help him in his work. He is a spiritual opposite to Sarus and Mithras' main rival for control of the social order. (NB Azidus can be categorized both as Tropoi and Kakoi)

Lucifer is the revealer of knowledge of cause and effect without revealing what is good and bad. Lucifer encourages a dispassionate, cold-hearted view of the world. Lucifer is useful to the technologist and the technocrat, but considered a dangerous being by Christians. Lucifer's cold-heartedness makes him a sympathetic ally of Azidus the cold-hearted lustful one.
Updated December 2022 CE