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see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroaster see also http://www.duke.edu/~jds17/zoroast.html
Zarathustra From ..http://www.livius.org/za-zn/zarathustra/zarathustra.htm
Modern portrait of Zarathustra, inspired by Ahuramazda's dress on a relief of
Taq-e Bostan Zarathustra (Greek Zoroaster): legendary religious teacher from
Bactria, founder of Zoroastrianism.
Hardly anything is known about Zarathustra's life. For example, it is uncertain
when he lived. The ancient Greeks speculated that he lived six thousand years
before the philosopher Plato and several scholars have argued for a date at the
beginning of the sixth century BCE. Other scholars accept that Zarathustra is
the author of the Gâthâ's (a part of the holy book of the Zoroastrians, the
Avesta), which they date, on linguistic grounds, in the fourteenth or thirteenth
century BCE.
It is also unclear where Zarathustra was born and where he spent the first half
of his life. Every tribe that converted to Zoroastrianism made up legends about
the prophet's life, and nearly all of them claimed that the great teacher was
"one of them". On linguistic grounds, we may argue that author of the Gâthâ's
belonged to a tribe that lived in the eastern part of Iran, in Afghanistan or
Turkmenistan. This fits neatly with a tradition that connects Zarathustra with
the ancient country named Bactria and a cypress at Kâshmar (below), but it
hardly proves Zarathustra's Bactrian origins.
The Gâthâ's are not a great help either. They contain some personal information,
but are hardly the stuff that biographies are made of. The Denkard, a late
Avestic text, contains a summary of an older biography. It contains many legends
and the reliability seems not very great. The following reconstruction of
Zarathustra's life is, therefore, not to be taken as the very truth.
Zarathustra was born in Bactria (or Aria) as the son of a not very powerful
nobleman named Purushaspa and a woman named Dughdhova. Zarathustra was the third
of five brothers. He became a priest and seems to have showed a remarkable care
for humans and cattle. The family is often called Spitama, which is a honorary
title meaning 'most beneficient', but was later taken for a family name.
Zarathustra's life changed when the god Ahuramazda granted him a vision. A
spirit named Good Thought appeared and ordered Zarathustra to oppose the bloody
sacrifices of the traditional Iranian cults and to give aid to the poor. In one
of his own compositions, Zarathustra says:
Thee I conceived as holy, O Ahuramazda, when thy Good Thought appeared to me and
asked me: 'Who art thou? And whose is thine allegiance?' [...]
Then I answered: 'Zarathustra am I; to the false believers a forthright enemy,
but to the righteous a mighty help and joy. [...]
Thee I conceived as holy, O Ahuramazda, when thy Good Thought appeared to me.
[...] A difficult thing it seemed to me, to spread thy faith among men, to do
that which Thou didst say was best.
[Yasna 43.4]
Zarathustra started to preach that there was a supreme god, the "wise lord"
Ahuramazda, who had created the world, mankind and all good things in it through
his holy spirit, Spenta Mainyu. The rest of the universe was created by six
other spirits, the Amesha Spentas ('holy immortals'). However, the order of this
sevenfold creation was threatened by The Lie; good and evil spirits were
fighting and mankind had to support the good spirits in order to speed up the
inevitable victory of the good.
A remarkable aspect of Zarathustra's teaching is that he employs special words
to describe the demons. Their names are remarkably similar to words from the
Indian Rigveda. Now it is reasonably certain that the language of the Rigveda
was spoken in eastern Iran at some stage in the history of the second millennium
BCE. We may assume that Zarathustra opposed the old religion, which was to
flourish in the Punjab.
It was the duty of the believer to side with Ahuramazda, which was possible by
avoiding lies, supporting the poor, several kinds of sacrifices, the cult of
fire, et cetera. Zarathustra warned the people that there would be a Last
Judgment, where the friends of The Lie were to be condemned to Hell and the
pious allowed to enter Heaven (text).
This new teaching caused a conflict between Zarathustra and the priests of the
god Mithra.
The Enemy has ever fought with me [...] he is most powerful. [...] O Ahuramazda,
aid me; obtain for me with thy Good Thoughts his defeat.
[Yasna 39]
There seem to have been some fights, and Zarathustra was forced to leave his
country. Not even his family wanted to assist him.
To what land to turn? Whither shall I go? Kinsman and friend turn from me; none
is found, to conciliate, to give to me; still less the false-believing chiefs of
the land. This I know, Ahuramazda, why I am powerless: because my flocks are
diminished and my followers are few. Therefore I cry to Thee: Lord, look upon
it.
[Yasna 46.1-2]
Finally, Zarathustra obtained asylum from a king named Hystaspes; he may have
ruled in Chorasmia or Aria. At his court, the prophet debated with the priests
of Mithra; on an official gathering, they discussed thirty three questions, and
Zarathustra's opinions prevailed. According to legend, the cypress at Kâshmar
(in northeast Iran) commemorates this event (or another important event). The
Denkard tells more about this event (text).
Many noblemen followed the example of Hystaspes to convert to Zarathustra's new
religion. From now on, Zarathustra lived at the court of Hystaspes, until he was
killed at the age of seventy-seven by invading nomads. Some locate his death at
Bactra (Balkh, near modern Mazâr-e Sharîf) in Afghanistan.
Zarathustra's teachings are strongly dualistic. The believer has to make a
choice between good and evil. Zoroastrianism was one of first world religions to
make ethical demands on the believers.
Zarathustra was not the inventor of monotheism, although several European
scholars have thought so. More information can be found here.
Literature
Mary Boyce, Textual sources for the study of Zoroastrianism (1984 Manchester).
Peter Clark, Zoroastrianism. An Introduction to an Ancient Faith (1998 Brighton)
Gherardo Gnoli, Zoroaster in History (2000 New York)
A. de Jong, Traditions of the Magi (1997 Leiden).
M. Schwartz, 'The Religion of Achaemenian Iran' in: Ilya Gershevitch (ed.): The
Cambridge History of Iran, vol. II: The Median and Achaemenian Periods (1985
Cambridge) pages 664-667