The History of Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism has a very unique and curious history as it is the world's first and oldest monotheistic religion.
It was the pre-Islamic religion of Persia, which is current-day Iran. It survives in some communities in Iran, but it is actually more common in India, where it is also called Parism.
The founder of this religion has many names, and you might see them in other places. The most common ones you'll see are Zarathustra (the Old Iranian name for him) and Zarthosht (his Persian Name), but on this website we will call him by his most common name, Zoroaster, the Greek and most widely used version of his name. Zoroaster was a prophet who lived in Ancient Persia some time around 1700 and 600 BCE (scholars still cannot come to an agreement on the timeline). This his story:
It was the pre-Islamic religion of Persia, which is current-day Iran. It survives in some communities in Iran, but it is actually more common in India, where it is also called Parism.
The founder of this religion has many names, and you might see them in other places. The most common ones you'll see are Zarathustra (the Old Iranian name for him) and Zarthosht (his Persian Name), but on this website we will call him by his most common name, Zoroaster, the Greek and most widely used version of his name. Zoroaster was a prophet who lived in Ancient Persia some time around 1700 and 600 BCE (scholars still cannot come to an agreement on the timeline). This his story:
Zoroaster
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The life of Zoroaster, a prophet born in the 6th BCE is often thought to be a legend because there are not very good records of his life. It is said that he was born to a young woman (who was a virgin), and when he was born he laughed instead of crying. His birth had been predicted and there were many attempts by evil to kill him in his childhood. There are many stories of Zoroaster taming wild beasts, warding off evil, performing miracle such as healing, and debating with wise men in his youth. From a young age, Zoroaster showed how he was different from others and that he had divine potential. |
The Great Prophet
Zoroaster, was born in Ancient Persia in a time when everyone believed in many gods, this is called "polytheism." He realized that believing in so many gods was not helping his people, and wanted to know why. He decided to go and meditate on the question until he could arrive at an answer, and finally he did! He realized that the many gods that the Persians believed in did not control the spirit world, but instead it was one God. This God's name is Ahura Mazda and he stands for all things good and convinced Zoroaster to convince the people that by doing good deeds they are choosing good. However, Ahura Mazda has a rival named Angra Mainyu who stands for all things bad and evil, and by being selfish or "evil" acts you are choosing evil. As a prophet, Zoroaster was enlisted by Ahura Mazda to tell everyone that our choices have consequences and that since we have "free will" (the ability to choose our actions and destiny) we have the responsibility to make good choices and actions instead of bad ones.
