DAIVAS. The Iranian term daiva originally signified "god," as is shown in several occurrences of the word in the Avesta (Av., daēva; OPers., daiva; MPers., Pahl., dēw). Like the Vedic deva or the Latin deus, daiva may be related to the Indo-European root meaning "shine, be bright." In Zoroastrian Iran, however, daiva had a negative sense. Other terms were used to refer to divine beings, such as baga ("one who distributes"), ahura ("lord"), and yazata ("one worthy of worship"), while daiva was used to designate malefic or demonic powers. For that reason one speaks of a "demonization" of the daiva as a phenomenon characteristic of Zoroastrianism.

In all probability daiva acquired a negative value in the Iranian world because of the condemnation by Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) of traditional religion. The prophet of Ahura Mazdā propounded a faith and a doctrine of monotheistic inspiration, and the gods of...