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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Non-Christian religions > Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is the religion of ancient Iran, dating back over a
thousand years before the time of Christ. It is also the religion
of Britain's oldest South Asian minority, with a history going back
to 1724. From the contribution of the Zoroastrian MPs Naoroji and
Bhownagree in the nineteenth century to the transmission of their
heritage and concerns today, this is the first complete study of
the community right up to the 1990s. With the largest Zoroastrian
population outside the 'old countries' living in London, the
British community has played an important part in the modern
history of Zoroastrianism. They furnish a unique opportunity to
trace the history and experience of an Asian community in the West
for well over a hundred years, with a wide variety of members from
rural and urban India, Pakistan, East Africa, as well as the
original homeland, Iran, and a substantial proportion of
Zoroastrians who are British-born. The book is based on extensive
study of archival sources, a large survey questionnaire, a
programme of structured interviews, and over twenty years of the
author's personal contact with the community. The book includes
discussion of many important contemporary issues, such as racial
prejudice, gender issues, generational differences, attitudes both
to British society and to the 'old country' - and argues that
religion is an increasingly important concern among British South
Asian minorities.
Zoroastrianism is a religion much commented upon by a few
enthusiastic Oriental scholars, and less understood by the general
public. Out of the millions of believers of this faith in the by
gone ages, there now remains a handful of devout followers, known
as the Parsis. I have, therefore, ventured to put before my readers
a brief sketch of the teachings of this divine prophet. I hope,
that the strangers to the faith may find in it food for philosophic
enlightenment, and the Zoroastrians themselves a subject for deeper
and wider researches in the untold wealth of sublime theology and
philosophy, now locked up in the monumental tomes of the ancient
Avesta writings...
1925. Besant, Founder/President of the Theosophical Society on the
differences that are continually arising between occult knowledge
and the oriental science on the question of the age of the great
religions. See other works by this author available from Kessinger
Publishing. Due to the age and scarcity of the original we
reproduced, some pages may be spotty, faded or difficult to read.
Christian communities flourished during late antiquity in a
Zoroastrian political system, known as the Iranian Empire, that
integrated culturally and geographically disparate territories from
Arabia to Afghanistan into its institutions and networks. Whereas
previous studies have regarded Christians as marginal, insular, and
often persecuted participants in this empire, Richard Payne
demonstrates their integration into elite networks, adoption of
Iranian political practices and imaginaries, and participation in
imperial institutions. The rise of Christianity in Iran depended on
the Zoroastrian theory and practice of hierarchical, differentiated
inclusion, according to which Christians, Jews, and others occupied
legitimate places in Iranian political culture in positions
subordinate to the imperial religion. Christians, for their part,
positioned themselves in a political culture not of their own
making, with recourse to their own ideological and institutional
resources, ranging from the writing of saints' lives to the
judicial arbitration of bishops. In placing the social history of
East Syrian Christians at the center of the Iranian imperial story,
A State of Mixture helps explain the endurance of a culturally
diverse empire across four centuries.
Long before the first Hebrew temple, before the birth of Christ or
the mission of Muhammad, there lived in Persia a prophet to whom we
owe the ideas of a single god, the cosmic struggle between good and
evil, and the Apocalypse. His name was Zarathustra, and his
teachings eventually held sway from the Indus to the Nile and
spread as far as Britain.
Following Zarathustra' s elusive trail back through time and across
the Islamic, Christian, and Jewish worlds, Paul Kriwaczek uncovers
his legacy at a wedding ceremony in present-day Central Asia, in
the Cathar heresy of medieval France, and among the mystery cults
of the Roman empire. He explores pre-Muslim Iran and Central Asia,
ultimately bringing us face to face with the prophet himself, a
teacher whose radical humility shocked and challenged his age, and
whose teachings have had an enduring effect on Western thought. The
result is a tour de force of travel and historical inquiry by an
adventurer in the classic tradition.
Hakon Naasen Tandberg explores how, when, and why humans relate to
the non-human world. Based on two ethnographic fieldworks among the
Parsis in Mumbai, the research focuses on the role of temple fires
in the lives of present-day Parsi Zoroastrians in India as an
empirical case. Through four ethnographic portraits, the reader
will get a deeper look into the lives of four Parsi individuals,
and how their individual biographies, personalities, and interhuman
relationships, along with religious identities and roles, shape --
and to a certain extent are shaped by -- their personal
relationships with non-human entities. The book combines affordance
theory, exchange theory, and social support to analyse such
relationships, and offers suggestive evidence that relationships
with non-human entities -- in this case the Zoroastrian temple
fires -- can be experienced as no less real, important, or
meaningful than those with other human beings. The book also
provides evidence not only that non-human entities such as the
temple fires must be considered relational entities analogous to
humans, but also that the kind of support provided by the fires and
their availability in providing it is experienced as comparable --
and in some cases, superior -- to support received from human
peers. The findings demonstrate that future approaches to religion
as a social phenomenon will benefit from moving beyond mere
interaction to exploring how and when engagement with religious
entities can lead to long-term and emotionally satisfying personal
relationships, thus paving the way for a more nuanced and relevant
theory of religion as something interwoven into people's everyday
lives.
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.
An introduction to the ideas and writings of Zoroastrianism,
expertly translated, introduced, and edited by one of the world's
foremost authorities on this religion Zoroastrianism is one of the
world's oldest religions, though it is not among the best
understood. Originating with Iranian tribes living in Central Asia
in the second millennium BCE, Zoroastrianism was the official
religion of the Iranian empires until Islam superseded it in the
seventh century AD. Centered on the worship of Ahura Mazda, the
All-knowing Ruler, Zoroastrianism follows the practices and rituals
set out by the prophet Zarathustra, according to the indigenous
tradition. As one of the world's great religions, Zoroastrianism
has a heritage rich in texts and cultic practices. The texts are
often markedly difficult to translate, but in this volume, Prods
Oktor Skjaervo, professor of ancient Iranian languages and culture
at Harvard, provides modern and accurate translations of
Zoroastrian texts that have been selected to provide an overview of
Zoroastrian beliefs and practices. In a comprehensive introduction
to these sacred texts, Skjaervo outlines the history and essence of
Zoroastrianism and discusses the major themes of this the first
fully representative selection of Zoroastrian texts to be made
available in English for over a century.
Paths to the Divine: An Introduction to World Religions expertly
combines original writing and engaging primary source texts to
familiarize students with the basic tenets of a variety of world
religions. Beyond presenting foundational knowledge on religious
traditions, the volume demonstrates how belief systems can shape
both an individual's and a society's culture, worldviews, and sense
of belonging. The book features distinct emphasis on the religious
traditions of Asia, presenting readers with information on beliefs
and practices that may be unfamiliar or new to them, expanding
their understanding and appreciation of others' traditions. The
book begins by introducing students to the basics of religion,
including key concepts and features of religion, representations of
the divine, and the connection between nature and religion in early
traditions. Additional chapters provide students with valuable
insight and enlightening readings on Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism,
Chinese religion, Shinto, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity,
and Islam. Throughout, key terms, contextual introductions,
discussion questions, and suggestions for further reading are
provided. Written to expand students' knowledge and understanding
of global traditions, Paths of the Divine is an ideal text for
introductory courses in humanities, theology, and world religions.
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