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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Non-Christian religions > Zoroastrianism
This book traces the continuous history of the faith from the time it was preached by Zoroaster down to the present day - a span of about 3,500 years. First taught among nomads on the Asian steppes, Zoroastrianism became the state religion of the three great Iranian empires and had a remarkable influence on other world faiths: to the east on northern Buddhism, to the west on Judaism, Christianity and Islam. With the conquest of Iran by the Muslim Arabs, Zoroastrianism lost its secular power but continued to survive as a minority faith. Despite its antiquity, it remains a living religion.
This text describes the realities of modern Parsi religion through
30 interviews in which urban Parsis belonging to different social
milieus and religious schools of thought discuss various aspects of
their religious lives. Zoroastrianism, the faith founded by the
Iranian prophet Zarathustra, originated around 1000BCE and is
widely regarded as the world's first revealed religion. Although
the number of its followers declined dramatically in the centuries
after the 7th century Islamic conquest of Iran, Zoroastrians
survive in Iran to the present day. The other major Zoroastrian
community are the Parsis of India, descendants of Zoroastrians who
fled Muslim dominion.
The Bundahisn, meaning primal or foundational creation, is the
central Zoroastrian account of creation, cosmology, and
eschatology. Compiled sometime in the ninth century CE, it is one
of the most important surviving testaments to Zoroastrian
literature in the Middle Persian language and to pre-Islamic
Iranian culture. Despite having been composed some two millennia
after the Prophet Zoroaster's revelation, it is nonetheless a
concise compendium of ancient Zoroastrian knowledge that draws on
and reshapes earlier layers of the tradition. Well known in the
field of Iranian Studies as an essential primary source for
scholars of ancient Iran's history, religions, literatures, and
languages, the Bundahisn is also a great work of literature in and
of itself, ranking alongside the creation myths of other ancient
traditions. The book's thirty-six diverse chapters, which touch on
astronomy, eschatology, zoology, medicine, and more, are composed
in a variety of styles, registers, and genres, from spare lists and
concise commentaries to philosophical discourses and poetic
eschatological visions. This new translation, the first in English
in nearly a century, highlights the aesthetic quality, literary
style, and complexity and raises the profile of pre-Islamic
Zoroastrian literature.
The book deals with some major aspects of Zoroastrianism in Iran
during the Sasanian period, including the important distinctions
between the spritual and the material modes of existence, the idea
that Ahreman, the Evil Spirit, does not belong in the material
world, and the widely current myth of Zurvan. The volume also deals
with the impact of some Zoroastrian themes on Islam, such as the
twin relationship between state and religion, throwing light on
both the Iranian themes and their borrowing into Islamic
literature.
Covers the major religions of Indic origin - Hinduism, Buddhism,
Sikhism and Jainism - as well as Taoism and the often-neglected
Zoroastrianism, looking at theological and philosophical aspects.
The varieties of Buddhism as they evolved in various cultures and
societies beyond India are addressed.
This book traces the continuous history of the faith from the time it was preached by Zoroaster down to the present day - a span of about 3,500 years. First taught among nomads on the Asian steppes, Zoroastrianism became the state religion of the three great Iranian empires and had a remarkable influence on other world faiths: to the east on northern Buddhism, to the west on Judaism, Christianity and Islam. With the conquest of Iran by the Muslim Arabs, Zoroastrianism lost its secular power but continued to survive as a minority faith. Despite its antiquity, it remains a living religion.
Published between 1880 and 1897 as part of Max Muller's Sacred
Books of the East series, this five-volume translation of Pahlavi
texts was the work of Edward William West (1824 1905). Largely
self-taught, West developed his knowledge of ancient oriental
languages in India, where he worked as a civil engineer. After
returning to Europe, West focused on the study of sacred
Zoroastrian texts and prepared these translations of Pahlavi
manuscripts, cementing his reputation for pioneering scholarship.
His writings and editions are still referenced today in
Indo-Iranian studies. Volume 1 includes the Bundahis (Zoroastrian
traditions about the creation of the world), the Bahman Yast (a
prophetic text detailing thousands of years of history, including
the downfall and rebirth of Zoroastrianism) and the Shayast
La-Shayast (detailing ritual impurity and sin, and purification
rituals, such as those used for dead bodies). In his introduction,
West compares these texts to the biblical books of Genesis,
Revelation, and Leviticus.
Published between 1880 and 1897 as part of Max Muller's Sacred
Books of the East series, this five-volume translation of Pahlavi
texts was the work of Edward William West (1824 1905). Largely
self-taught, West developed his knowledge of ancient oriental
languages in India, where he worked as a civil engineer. After
returning to Europe, West focused on the study of sacred
Zoroastrian texts and prepared these translations of Pahlavi
manuscripts. His writings and editions are still referenced today
in Indo-Iranian studies. Volume 2 contains the ninth-century
Dadistan-i Dinik and Epistles of Manuskihar. The former are
religious judgments or decisions given by Manuskihar, a high priest
of Iran, in answer to ninety-two queries put to him by fellow
Zoroastrians. Along with the Epistles, relating to complaints made
to Manuskihar about his brother Zad-sparam, these texts give the
reader an insight into the Zoroastrianism of the period, its
tenets, and its relationship with the developing Islamic faith.
Published between 1880 and 1897 as part of Max Muller's Sacred
Books of the East series, this five-volume translation of Pahlavi
texts was the work of Edward William West (1824-1905). Largely
self-taught, West developed his knowledge of ancient oriental
languages in India, where he worked as a civil engineer. After
returning to Europe, West focused on the study of sacred
Zoroastrian texts and prepared these translations of Pahlavi
manuscripts. His writings and editions are still referenced today
in Indo-Iranian studies. Volume 3 contains the Dina-i Mainog-i
Khirad ('Opinions of the Spirit of Wisdom' - a series of enquiries
and answers relating to the worship of Ahura Mazda); the
Sikand-gumanik Vigar ('Doubt-dispelling Exposition' - a
controversial ninth-century Zoroastrian apologetic, designed to
prove the correctness of the fundamental doctrine of
Mazda-worship); and the Sad Dar, a Persian rather than Pahlavi
text, offering valuable discussion of 'a hundred subjects'
connected to Zoroastrianism.
Published between 1880 and 1897 as part of Max Muller's Sacred
Books of the East series, this five-volume translation of Pahlavi
texts was the work of Edward William West (1824 1905). Largely
self-taught, West developed his knowledge of ancient oriental
languages in India, where he worked as a civil engineer. After
returning to Europe, West focused on the study of sacred
Zoroastrian texts and prepared these translations of Pahlavi
manuscripts. His writings and editions are still referenced today
in Indo-Iranian studies. The Nasks are the focus of Volume 4,
wherein West collects, translates and analyses fragments such as
names, summaries, digests and stray quotes from other books in
order to present all that is known of the twenty-one original
treatises containing Sassanid Zoroastrian literature. The treatises
were themselves records of what was legendarily lost after
Alexander the Great's conquest of Persia in the fourth century BCE.
Published between 1880 and 1897 as part of Max Muller's Sacred
Books of the East series, this five-volume translation of Pahlavi
texts was the work of Edward William West (1824 1905). Largely
self-taught, West developed his knowledge of ancient oriental
languages in India, where he worked as a civil engineer. After
returning to Europe, West focused on the study of sacred
Zoroastrian texts and prepared these translations of Pahlavi
manuscripts. His writings and editions are still referenced today
in Indo-Iranian studies. Volume 5 contains translations of the
Dinkard (books 7 and 5) and Selections of Zad-sparam. Some parts of
these texts are prophetic, and West's introductory analysis
provides an insight into the chronology of Zoroastrianism, which
suggests that Zoroaster was born in 660 BCE and that the world will
come to an end in 2398 CE.
This obscure and ancient religion is receiving more and more
attention in modern times due to its claimed influence by scholars
upon Christianity. This particular author, however, focuses upon
the relationship between Zoroastrianism and Judaism, as he sets out
to prove that Christianity did in fact receive influence from
Zoroastrianism, but that it was transmitted through Judaism. This
route of transmission allows the author to clearly show how Judaism
itself was directly affected by Zoroastrainism during the Exilic
Period, a time when these two faiths were existing in close
proximity to one another. Chapters include Zoroaster Himself, The
Mission and Ministry of the Prophet, The Scriptures of
Zoroastrianism, Doctrine of God, Doctrine of Man, and Developments
and Contacts.
Addressing the question of the origins of the Zoroastrian religion,
this book argues that the intransigent opposition to the cult of
the daevas, the ancient Indo-Iranian gods, is the root of the
development of the two central doctrines of Zoroastrianism: cosmic
dualism and eschatology (fate of the soul after death and its
passage to the other world). The daeva cult as it appears in the
Gathas, the oldest part of the Zoroastrian sacred text, the Avesta,
had eschatological pretentions. The poet of the Gathas condemns
these as deception. The book critically examines various theories
put forward since the 19th century to account for the condemnation
of the daevas. It then turns to the relevant Gathic passages and
analyzes them in detail in order to give a picture of the cult and
the reasons for its repudiation. Finally, it examines materials
from other sources, especially the Greek accounts of Iranian ritual
lore (mainly) in the context of the mystery cults. Classical Greek
writers consistently associate the nocturnal ceremony of the magi
with the mysteries as belonging to the same religious-cultural
category. This shows that Iranian religious lore included a
nocturnal rite that aimed at ensuring the soul's journey to the
beyond and a desirable afterlife. Challenging the prevalent
scholarship of the Greek interpretation of Iranian religious lore
and proposing a new analysis of the formation of the Hellenistic
concept of 'magic,' this book is an important resource for students
and scholars of History, Religion and Iranian Studies.
The Avestan Hymn to Mithra, written in the fifth century BC, is the
one extensive, ancient literary record of the attributes,
companions and cult of the Iranian god whose worship spread, five
or six centuries later, as far as Britain. Dr Gershevitch here
reproduces Geldner's text and critical apparatus of the Hymn,
adding his own introduction, translation and commentary. The
introduction offers an orientation on the main problems concerning
Mithra: how the god came to be included in the Zoroastrian
religious system, his relation to Zarathustra's god Ahura Mazdah,
his functions, his development from the stage at which the Indian
Mitra is found in the Rig Veda, and the extent to which the Western
Mithras has preserved the characteristics of the Avestan Mithra.
The text is faced by the English translation, and is followed by Dr
Gershevitch's exhaustive commentary.
Zarathushtra's Gathas & the Old Avestan canon are the central
texts of Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest continuously practiced
religions in the world that has had a vast influence on the
development of many other religions, philosophies, global ethics
and more. Composed more than 3000 years ago, they remain
surprisingly evergreen in their relevance. With this new and
innovative translation, Pablo Vazquez, a Zoroastrian scholar and
convert, sheds new light on these sacred texts of eternal wisdom in
a way that makes them accessible to a modern audience.
Focusing on the Avestan and Pahlavi versions of the Sih-rozag, a
text worshipping Zoroastrian divine entities, this book explores
the spiritual principles and physical realities associated with
them. Introducing the book is an overview of the structural,
linguistic and historico-religious elements of the Avestan
Sih-rozag. This overview, as well as reconstructing its approximate
chronology, helps in understanding the original ritual function of
the text and its relationship to the other Avestan texts.The book
then studies the translation of the text in the Middle Persian
language, Pahlavi, which was produced several centuries after its
initial composition, when Avestan was no longer understood by the
majority of the Zoroastrian community. Addressing the lacuna in
literature examining an erstwhile neglected Zoroastrian text, The
Sih-Rozag in Zoroastrianism includes a detailed commentary and an
English translation of both the Avestan and Pahlavi version of the
Sih-rozag and will be of interest to researchers and scholars of
Iranian Studies, Religion, and History.
This is the first ever comprehensive English-language survey of
Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest living religions * Evenly divided
into five thematic sections beginning with an introduction to
Zoroaster/Zarathustra and concluding with the intersections of
Zoroastrianism and other religions * Reflects the global nature of
Zoroastrian studies with contributions from 34 international
authorities from 10 countries * Presents Zoroastrianism as a
cluster of dynamic historical and contextualized phenomena,
reflecting the current trend to move away from textual essentialism
in the study of religion
Yezidis in Syria: Identity Building among a Double Minority traces
the development of Yezidi identity on the margins of Syria's
minority context. This little known group is connected to the
community's main living area in northern Iraq, but evolved as a
separate identity group in the context of Syria's colonial,
national, and revolutionary history. Always on the bottom of the
socio-economic hierarchy, the two sub-groups located in the Kurdagh
and the Jezira experience a period of sociological and theological
renewal in their quest for a recognized and protected status in the
new Syria. In this book, Sebastian Maisel transmits and analyzes
the Yezidi perspective on Syria's policies towards ethnic and
religious minorities.
Key Concepts in Eastern Philosophy provides an extensive glossary of the main terms and concepts used in Eastern philosophy. The book includes definitions of philosophical ideas linked to the national traditions of:
* Persia * India * Islamic world * China * Japan * Tibet
including concepts from:
* Zoroastrianism * Hinduism * Sufism * Islam * Confucianism * Shintoism * Taoism * Buddhism
Each entry includes a guide for further reading and critical analysis, is cross-referenced with associated concepts and is in easy-to-use A-Z format.
Zoroastrianism is one of the world's great ancient religions. In
present-day Iran, significant communities of Zoroastrians (who take
their name from the founder of the faith, the remarkable religious
reformer Zoroaster) still practise the rituals and teach the moral
precepts that once undergirded the officially state-sanctioned
faith of the mighty Sasanian empire. Beyond Iran, the Zoroastrian
disapora is significant especially in India, where the
Gujarati-speaking community of emigrants from post-Sasanian Iran
call themselves 'Parsis'. But there are also significant
Zoroastrian communities to be found elsewhere, such as in the USA,
Britain and Canada, where western cultural contexts have shaped the
religion in intriguing ways and directions. This new, thorough and
wide-ranging introduction will appeal to anyone interested in
discovering more about the faith that bequeathed the contrasting
words 'Magi' and 'magic', and whose adherents still live according
to the code of 'Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds.' The central
Zoroastrian concept that human beings are continually faced with a
choice between the path of 'good' and 'evil', represented by the
contrasting figures of Ahura Mazda and Ahriman, inspired thinkers
as diverse as Voltaire, Mozart and Nietzsche. Jenny Rose shows why
Zoroastrianism remains one of the world's most inspiring and
perennially fascinating systems of ethics and belief.
This book, first published in German in 2005, offers a compact,
concise and accessible survey of Zoroastrianism. This tiny
religious community traces its root to Zarathustra who lived some
2,500-3,500 years ago. Chapters address Zarathustra and the origins
of the religion, religious concepts and narratives, ethics and
gender, priesthoods and rituals, transitions and festivals. A
postscript by Anders Hultgard, one of the leading experts on this
field, discusses the influences of Zoroastrianism on Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam.
The edited volume Cyrus the Great: Life and Lore re-contextualizes
Cyrus's foundational act and epoch in light of recent scholarship,
while examining his later reception in antiquity and beyond. Among
the many themes addressed in the volume are: the complex dossier of
Elamo-Persian acculturation; the Mesopotamian antecedents of
Cyrus's edict and religious policy; Cyrus's Baupolitik at
Pasargadae, and the idiosyncratic genesis of Persian imperial art;
the Babylonian exile, the Bible, and the First Return; Cyrus's
exalted but conflicted image in the later Greco-Roman world; his
reception and programmatic function in genealogical constructs of
the Hellenistic and Arsacid periods; and finally Cyrus's
conspicuous and enigmatic evanescence in the Sasanian and Muslim
traditions. The sum of these wide-ranging contributions assembled
in one volume, as well as a new critical edition and English
translation of the Cyrus Cylinder, allow for a more adequate
evaluation of Cyrus's impact on his own age, as well as his imprint
on posterity.
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