Review of the Similarities of the Sprite and the Sorceress in the Post-Shahnama Epics

The sprite and the sorceress are among the mythological beings in Persian mythology and epic literature who sometimes are beside the epic hero and sometimes stand against him. In Post-shahnama epics, these two characters have found prominent places as they tend to appear with their duties on a good side as the goddesses of fertility and reproduction in the form of the archetype anima - the feminine part of the psyche –acting effectively in furthering the hero’s aims. Contrarily, they appear in a devilish form as the sorceress with destructive roles preventing the hero reaching his grand goals, which, indeed, characterizes the negative anima. In the present study, after a brief description of the nature of the sprite and the sorceress, it is attempted to explain that the sprite is the same sorceress who changes into a diabolical entity representing evil duties influenced by Zoroastrian thought..