Reviews Of Different Books

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REVIEWS 275 They bear a marked impress of gnosticism and testify to the continuity of autochthonous ideas as well as to the presence of notions that impart a syncretistic colouring. Therefore, the explanatory notes added to the translation of the text are far from superfluous; they elucidate much that otherwise would have remained an unsolved puzzle to the uninitiated reader. The plan of Dr. Mokri's book is as follows. After an introductory chapter dealing with the manuscript and the text he provides us in the second chapter with copious data concerning the net or lasso; the hunter; the ever returning phrase nayna tananis, "in that place he spread it (his net)"; the following of the trail; the royal eagle and the myth of the King-Eagle, and other symbolic birds in Iranian folklore and literature. One will find here many things made known previously in papers read by the author at the International Congresses of Orientalists in Munchen (1959) and Moskou (1963). In a third chapter the author finally deals with cyclic time and the different modalities of time to wit the exoteric aspect of history and its epochs, and the esoteric aspect of the timeless Reality vaulting it. The annotated translation of the text is followed by linguistic and grammatical notes; a glossary of substantives and one of proper names; a list of the places mentioned in the text; a detailed index, and finally a bibliography of works consulted, comprising no less than 60 titles, among which several manuscripts. The author's own publications in this field are mentioned separately on p. 2 of the Introduction. The work concludes with a short introduction in Persian and the Gurani text of the Dawra-y Damyari, printed in Arabic character. The author may be complimented with this important contribution to our knowledge of the religious ideas, the folklore and the sacred language of the Ahl-i Haqq. He has supplied valuable new materials, and added a good deal of information to what was already known from other sources as, for instance, the publications of De Gobineau, Minorsky and Ivanow. Noordwijk G. W. J. Drewes J.-P. de Menasce, Feux et Fondations pieuses dans le droit sassanide. Paris, Klincksieck, 1964, in-8deg, 62 p. L'unique ouvrage de droit existant en pehlevi. le Matigan i hazar Datistan "Livre des mille Jugements", n'a pas encore ete edite; il doit l'etre prochainement, en U.R.S.S., par Anahit Perikhanian. Le droit sassanide ne peut se comprendre a partir du droit romain, mais seulement du droit hellenistique. Le P. de Menasce a extrait de ce texte difficile tout ce qui regarde les feux, en donnant une transcription et une traduction impeccables de tous les passages. Il y a ajoute la traduction d'extraits du Datistan i denik et de la Rivayat d'Emet concernant les notions de sardarih familiale et de sturih. Il procede ensuite, sur la base de ces documents, a l'etude de cinq questions: la nomenclature des feux, le personnel des feux, la sardarih des feux, la sturih des feux et les fondations pour l'ame. Il y a peu de fautes d'impression: p. 49, milieu, lire Maguan Andarzpat; p. 51, ligne 10 du bas, aux trois quarts; p. 52, ligne 29, on conclura; p. 62, ligne 14, un secours; note 33, ligne 4 du bas, ruvanakan. Liege J. Duchesne-Guillemin