haoma
haoma — noun
1. a sacred liquid prepared from the juice of a particular vine, drunk during Zoroa
a sacred liquid prepared from the juice of a particular vine, drunk during Zoroastrian religious ceremonies; also the vine itself, which grows in parts of Asia and whose juice was used as an offering in ancient Persian worship.
During the Yasna ceremony, the priest prepared haoma by crushing the plant's stems with water.
prepared by crushing stems — shows how haoma was made
The ancient Persians offered haoma to their gods as a symbol of health and immortality.
offered + as a symbol of — shows ritual purpose
Zarathustra described haoma as a sacred gift that brought strength to those who drank it.
Darius asked the Magi to bring haoma for the coronation ceremony at his palace.
In ancient Zoroastrian temples, haoma was kept in special metal vessels for sacred rituals.
- soma
the equivalent ritual drink in Vedic Hinduism; haoma is the Zoroastrian version of the same ancient Indo-Iranian concept
用法筆記
This noun is uncountable — it has no plural form. Context determines whether haoma refers to the drink itself or the plant it comes from. In modern Zoroastrian practice, alternative plants are sometimes substituted because the original species is no longer certain.