Zoroastrianism is the ancient Persian monotheistic religion that originated in Iran and is known to be one of the oldest religions still in existence. This religion was created by an Iranian religious reformer, teacher, and priest named Zarathustra in the sixth century. Zarathustra is believed to have spread his belief in Zoroastrianism after he received a vision from Ahura Mazda, the creator of heaven and earth of the material and spiritual world. Ahura is supposed to have gave Zarathustra a vision telling him to teach others about the basis of religion, economic, and social values. These values being the belief in one god, good and evil, goods deeds, and the afterlife of heaven and hell. Other than that, there isn't a lot of information behind Zarathustra other than he lived in a polytheistic tribe that might've influenced his decision to branch off into making a monotheistic religion. Zoroastrianism as a whole is the religion that believes in people having free will to choose between good and evil, treating things with love and respect with everything God created, and the belief in the afterlife in heaven and hell is based on the amount of good and bad deeds we do in life. Zoroastrianism's god, Ahura Mazda, is the god of knowledge, power, place, creator of life, and source of goodness and happiness. There have been several historical periods that have had an impact on the religion, one being the Sasanian period where Sasanians supported Zoroastrians and united together to create the Zoroastrian Sasanian Empire. However, this spurred a conflict and lead to the persecution of Zoroastrianism in Iran and led to Zoroastrians migrating to India in 900 C.E. However, the Muslim Conquest of Persia had the greatest impact on Zoroastrianism as the fall of the Sassanian Persia Empire caused Arab invaders to charge Zoroastrians extra taxes for practicing their religion and eventually forced a lot of Iranian Zoroastrians to convert to Islam. In this paper, I will be discussing Zoroastrian's decline in practice, the religious stories of Sadda Mama and Zoroaster, the many holidays and festivals for earth elements and gods, symbols of the Faravahar and fire, the religious specialists Dastur, Mobed, Ervad, and Herebad, the marriage social stratification, and Zoroastrians' impact on other religions.
Although Zoroastrianism is one of the oldest monotheistic religions, it's practice has dwindled over the past century and is on its way to extinction according to the Guinness World of Records as they list Zoroastrianism as one of the major religions approaching extinction. The most prominent cultural groups that practice Zoroastrianism today would be people of India, Iran, U.S., Afghanistan, and Canada. However, the numbers associated with these countries are fairly small as the approximate range of people that practice Zoroastrianism in the world is around 137,400 people. The most concentrated areas that still practice this religion would be Iran and India. The Parsi of India is one group that still has a great tie with Zoroastrianism. The Parsi are a group of Zoroastrians in India that were developed during the Arab conquest when the Iranian Zoroastrians of Persia escaped religious persecution. In fact, the legendary singer of Queen, Freddie Mercury, practiced Zoroastrianism. The lead singer of Queen was Parsi and practiced Zoroastrianism throughout his life and his funeral was even conducted by a Dastur, a Zoroastrian priest. Geographically, the Parsis have been speculated to have settled in the western part of India, Gujarat, between 785 and 936 A.D. (American Journal of Human Genetics) and are one of the remaining concentrated areas that still practice Zoroastrianism. Overall, the population of Zoroastrians has been continuing to decline as most people have disregarded or outgrown certain family values Zoroastrians follow. This leads to the religious stories of Zoroastrianism that play a role on its practice.
The Zoroastrian religious story of the Sadda Mama is one of the well-known hero stories that tells the tale of a Parsi's perseverant chameleon that helps a group of Zoroastrian refugees escape the Muslims ready to attack them. This story takes place in Iran when the Arabs first defeated Yazdegerd III. At the time of this event, Yazedegard's soldiers were stranded all throughout the dry, sandy, and dusty desert. As their mouths watered, the tired Zoroastrians were desperately searching for a water well as they traveled along the dry desert. They had soon discovered a water well in the distance that was hiding a large group of Arabs. These Arabs that were hiding were all dressed in colorful clothes that the Zoroastrians couldn't really see. It wasn't until a small yet brave chameleon had noticed the potential massacre that was about to happen between the Zoroastrians and Arabs. Sadda Mama thought fast and darted onto one of the soldier's clothes and turned a bright red color, a distinct color that would stand out on the soldier's clothing, aiding to warn the Zoroastrians that the Arabs were approaching. The Sadda Mama would further jump onto other soldiers, confusing the soldiers and causing a commotion for the Zoroastrians to notice. The most significant move he would present is shaking his head from right to left to warn to Zoroastrians to not come into his direction. This brave chameleon named Sadda Mama's hero story is significant to Zoroastrians as this little chameleon, as small as he was, was able to make a difference to help protect them and became a message of truth. He became a message of truth as his little move of shaking his head presented them with a signal of warning. The Sadda Mama to this day is used as a guide for help for Zoroastrians when they're in doubt. By shaking his head up and down, he gives his blessings to those he agrees with. In fact, his name "Sadda Mama" actually presents this meaning as the word mama means "mother's brother" represents the protective and most dependent person in a family. In all, this story represents one of the many Zoroastrian's aids that they use for guidance and protection throughout their lives.
Another significant religious story of Zoroastrianism would be the story of Zoroaster. He is an important religious figure and his story reflects upon his lessons that he learned that dictates the values of the Zoroastrian religion. Zoroaster was a priest and diviner as he communicated and received visions from the Gods. He believed in ancestor veneration and how animals, the sun, and the earth are all connected in one system. His most insightful belief is everyone's right to free will. Violatti of the Ancient History states, "Zoroaster emphasized the moral responsibility of the individual. Every decision people make is an opportunity to provide support either to Ahura Mazda or Angra Mainyu, a choice between good and evil" (Ancient History Encyclopedia). Zoroaster believed and worshipped the god Ahura Mazda and told the tales of the conflict between him and Angra Mainyu and how it's our choice to choose between good and evil as we have our own free will. He further said that our freedom of choice is what sets us apart from animals and helps us align ourselves with our life paths. Violatti further says, "Zoroaster initiated the tradition of devotional monotheistic and doctrinally dualistic religion. By claiming that every person was an active ‘soldier' in the cosmic struggle and was free to choose sides, he imbued human life with a higher dimension and meaning than it had in earlier religious systems" (Ancient History Encyclopedia). Zoroasters' story as a whole with his life lessons became some of the core values Zoroastrians implemented in their religion and continue to live by. I believe that Zoroaster's story is one of the most significant stories of the Zoroastrian religion as his story is what created these values for Zoroastrians during a time where they were hindered by Muslims. As they were shunned out of their own country and were forced to move to other countries due to their practice of a religion they believed in, this idea of free will allowed them to escape the horrors they were facing as they had the choice to escape for a better life elsewhere. These values are also represented in their holidays of worship to gods and earth elements.
Zoroastrians have a large variety of holidays and festivals throughout the year according to the seasons of the Gods that were created and monthly festivals in honor of divine entities. The Gahambar holidays they have every year for their gods include Maidyozarem, Maidyoi-shema, Paitishahema, Ayathrem, Maidyarem, and Hamaspathmaidyem. These six Gahambar festivals are to honor Gods that created the earth, water, animals, plants, and humans. Each festival is about five days long and during the first four days, Zoroastrians come together to rehearse verses from scriptures. The fifth day is saved for them as a little feast of celebration. Their monthly festivals are the Jashan days of Asha Vahista, Hauravata, Ameretat, Kshastra Vairya, Vohu Manah, and Aramati. Each of these festivals are dedicated to the earth's elements fire, water, plants, metals, minerals, animal creation, and earth itself. The Asha Vahishta is the celebration of fire, Haurvata is the celebration of the waters, Ameretat is the day of the plants, Kshastra Vairya is for metals and minerals, Vohu Manah is for animals, and Aramaiti is for the earth itself. There are also name day festivals to the Gods that control these earth elements such as the festivals Farwardigan (guardian angels), Tiregan (rains), Abanagan (waters), Adagan(fire), and Mehregan (human order). The most famous holidays of Zoroastrianism would be Nouruz, Khordad Sal, and Zartosht No Deeso. Nouruz is the most important festival of the Parsis as it's the celebration for the creation of God, the birth of the spiritual and material world, earth's elements, and animals all in one day on March 21st. This day is symbolic to Zoroastrians as this day represents life and light just like their representation of God. The holidays Khordad Sal and Zartosht are two holidays in respect to Zoroaster's birth and death. These holidays are usually celebrated with special prayers and visits to fire temples to pray. These holidays and festivals also tie in with Zoroastrianism's greatest symbols, the Faravahar and fire.
Faravahar and fire are two symbols that are common amongst Zoroastrians and are found in a lot of artwork of Zoroastrianism. The Faravahar is the most represented symbol of Zoroastrianism and is said to be symbolic of the way Zoroastrians should live through the small symbols in this emblem. The Faravahar symbol depicts an elder with a tail sitting on three layers of feathers with two rings beside him as he reaches his hand out. The elderly person himself is said to represent the experience and wisdom we should strive for. The three layers of feathers and the man's tail are represented as polar opposites as the layers of feathers represent our good spiritual side of good thoughts, good words, and good deeds, while the tail represents the bad spiritual side of us of our bad thoughts and actions. The middle loop of the Faravahar symbol represents our spirit in its entirety as it's a never-ending loop showcase how our spirit is immoral and unaffected by time (Zorostudies). Aside from the Faravahar, fire has been a prominent symbol in Zoroastrianism as it's one of their most beloved earth elements. Fire even has its own day of celebration with the holiday Jashan Asha Vahista. There are also many temples dedicated to the element of fire. Fire symbolizes the god Ahura Mazda as his fire provides us with warmth and light. The light the fire brings is said to give us our ability to see, and with light, it gives us the vision to gain wisdom and knowledge. From this gain of wisdom and knowledge, we are able to distinguish good from evil. This ties in back with Zoroaster's story about using our knowledge to make our own decisions between good and evil with our free will. To sum up, fire is one of Zoroastrianism's most powerful symbols as it symbolizes this act of free will with an earth element that is so strong by its movement and power.
Zoroastrianism also demonstrates rites of passages through their Navjote ceremony for children between the ages of seven and fifteen. This ceremony represents "a new birth" and is considered to be one of the most important stages of a Zoroastrian's life. The ceremony first starts with the child taking a ritual bath, followed up with a sacramental drink, and ends with prayers with a family priest to cleanse the body and soul. The child is then dressed in a sudreh, a holy white undershirt, and then tied with kusti, the holy cord, three times around their waist. The sudreh is white to symbolize purity and has a small pocket near the heart to represent a bag of righteousness to fill with good deeds. The kusti being wrapped around the waist three times represents the good thoughts, good words, and good deeds from the Faravahar symbol. After the child is dressed with their sudreh and kusti, they are then put on stage to recite the Din no Kalmo, profession of faith, prayer with their priest. This ceremony as whole demonstrates the rites of passages children go through in order to get initiated into the Zoroastrian society and religion and overall connects with their symbol of the Faravahar to achieve these good deeds and thoughts throughout their life.
There are three different types of Zoroastrian priests and they are Dastur, Mobed, Ervad, and Herebad. The Dastur is the highest level of priesthood and they know the entire Avesta and are responsible for conducting all ceremonies. They conduct ceremonies such as Jashan festivals, navjote ritual, weddings, and outer circle ceremonies. They are known as spiritual guides, leaders, and teachers in Zoroastrianism. Aside from Dasturs, we also have Mobeds. Mobeds are the upholders of Zoroastrianism as they conduct liturgies in pavi areas of the fire temples. They don't have a high standing in society like Dasturs, but they are also important as they perform circle ceremonies for daily prayers. Ervads of India and Herbads of Iran are both religious specialists that have completed the first level of training to become the assistants of Mobeds and Dasturs in Jashan ceremonies. Aside from the religious specialists of Zoroastrianism, there is a unique family dynamic with Zoroastrians.
A system of social stratification in Zoroastrianism that we can learn about is the gender roles that play a part on a Zoroastrian family dynamic. In Zoroastrianism, the domestic unit of the household is the father. His role in the family is to provide material needs while also handing financial and social duties. From that, members of the family are expected to respect him in return. The mother of the family is responsible to take care of the children. Aside from their family roles, the actual relationship between the husband and wife is considered to be equal according to Zoroastrianism. Although the husband seems to have all the power in the family, he actually has to uphold his duty as a husband and father to not mistreat his wife and kids. So, in a way Zoroastrianism carries patriarchal values as the man of the household controls everything, but on a social and relationship level, he is not considered to be better or has more power than his wife. I think that this system is quite interesting as most religions believe that the man is the power and controller of everything, and it's nice to see that this religion allows women to have power in the household. In more recent cases, there have been many women that get an education and enter the workforce to help contribute financial security for their family (Countries and their Cultures). Overall, I think that this system is quite intriguing as it's cool to see both counterparts of a marriage contribute and are treated equally in a religious household.
I found it interesting that Zoroastrianism had an impact on other religions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism. In 539 B.C.E., the Persian King Cyprus defeated the Babylonians and made it his goal to free the Jews under the Babylonian control so they were able to return home to rebuild their places of worship they lost from the war (Rose, Jenny). Some Jews also decided to stay in Babylon and formed bonds with Iranians and is one of the reasons why there are strong Jewish communities in Iran. With Christianity, Zoroastrians are believed to have influenced the story of Satan as the concept of Satan was developed through the Zoroastrian's belief of Angra Mainyu, the powerful force of evil. Islamists also share similar customs as they both believe that with good forces, there will be rewards in the end. With Buddhism, Zoroastrians and Buddhists use to share a trade amongst the Silk Route from Central Asia to China. From these trades came with Buddhists using symbols of Zoroastrians in their documents and books like with the symbol Xwarrah (Rose, Jenny). In all, I think that some of these statements might be a little far-fetch, but I do believe that a lot of religions have great similarities amongst themselves as they all share similar values.
In all, I found the religion Zoroastrianism interesting as it's one of the oldest monotheistic religions that's practice has been declining, has interesting and compelling religious stories, has many holidays and festivals for earth elements and gods, insightful symbols with the Faravahar and fire, marriage social stratification, and has had an impact on other religions. In particular, I found it cool that they are a religion that has a strong tie with its natural resources of the earth as they worship fire, water, metals, minerals, and plants. I have a great love for our earth's elements and I think that they are one of the most looked upon things of this earth and I find it compelling that a religion like Zoroastrianism has a strong respect for these resources. I also found their meanings behind their symbols to be very insightful and meaningful as every little piece of the Faravahar had its own meaning and how fire can be interpreted as a source of light that leads us to our wisdom and knowledge. As a whole, I really enjoyed researching this religion and how it ties into concepts we've learned in class through their symbols, religious stories, and religious specialists.