Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism is one of the oldest world religions—it arose in ancient Persia (present-day Iran) around 3,500 years ago. At that time the prophet Zarathustra—Zoroaster, as the Greeks called him—began preaching his message. Zarathustra, thought to be a priest of the existing Iranian religion of his time, was a highly original thinker and a bold reformer. His teachings may seem straightforward today, but in his time they were truly revolutionary.

Zarathustra rejected many of the beliefs and practices of the existing religion. In a time of many gods he preached about one great and supreme God, Ahura Mazda. In a time when most people believed that worship consisted mainly of elaborate rituals to satisfy angry deities, he preached a religion of personal ethics in which people’s actions in life were more important than ritual and sacrifice. Zarathustra’s preaching formed the basis of one of the most influential and long-lasting religions the world has ever known. His message is preserved in the Avesta, the Zoroastrian scripture...