Zoroastrianism

Indeed, several scholars see its influence as the genesis of many Western religious and philosophical ideas. In some respects, it acts as a bridge between Eastern and Western thought. The prophet Mani (also known as Manes) combined elements of ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more with Christianity to form Manicheism, a gnostic religion that influenced religious and philosophical debate during the early Christian era. The cult of a Zoroastrian deity of light and covenant, Mithra, was adopted by Roman legions who helped spread it throughout the Roman Empire(27 B.C.) After a period of unrest and competing generals jockeying for power, Octavian, the adopted son of Julius Caesar, becomes the first official Emperor of Rome, being known as Augustus. Octavian’s rule initiated an approximately 200 year period of... more, paving the way for similar Christian beliefs to follow. Because of its dramatic influence on philosophical and religious ideas, we would be amiss to not include it in our analysis of major worldviews.

ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more and early forms of Hinduism share their roots in the Indo-European peoples living in northwestern India, modern-day Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Some scholars claim ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more had a pantheistic origin with Hinduism because ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more believes in a self-creating universe emanating from the consciousness of its divine source which permeates all of creation. However, ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more has no concept of reabsorption into this divine essencethe English word generally used for the Greek term ousia, that is also translated as “being” or “substance” and refers to that which makes something what it is such as human nature is the essence of a human being. This... more or reincarnation, as taught in Hinduism. Instead, ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more maintains a strong belief in individualism, free will, and personal accountability. Indeed, one of Zoroastrianism’s defining characteristics is its dualistic cosmology of good and evil, which has always existed.1

The Wise Lord and Life Force

Zorastrians believe in an unseen, eternal, uncreatedThis is a technical theological term originating in Greek philosophy that is used to determine what is eternal and divine and what was created by the divine. The premise is that everything is either created by God or is God... more, transcendent, all-good, supreme creator deity called Ahura Mazda, which means Wise Lord or more literally, “Lord Wisdom.” However, an opposing dark, destructive force of ignorance, personified as Angra Mainyu, also always co-existed with the Wise Lord. These independent competing forces reflect Zoroastrian’s dualistic view of eternity as a cosmic struggle between order, light, truth, and righteousness on the one hand and chaos, darkness, deceit and evil on the other hand. Each individual human plays an active role in this conflict and is not only responsible for the salvation of their own soul but also shares in the responsibility for the ultimate fate of all creation.

All good, creation and life emanate from this Wise Lord, who works in both the visible physical realm and the invisible mental and spiritual realm through a spiritual life force called Asha that originates from him. Asha is similar to Heraclitus’ concept of the Logos. Asha is both an all-encompassing concept of good and also a nuanced term for truth, reality and order. Asha is the creative and sustaining force of the universe which permeates and governs all of existence. It is the cosmic order and proper working of the universe and incorporates the motion of celestial bodies, the sprouting and development of plants and the positive daily choices of individuals. It is truth because it corresponds to the reality of the created material universe. It is imbued with morality by reflecting actions that conform with this ordered existence. Asha is the cosmic principle that incorporates all of these aspects.

This positive life force is opposed by Druj, which is deceit, falsehood, and nothingness propagated by Angra Mainyu, the evil one. Druj is the antithesis of Asha so it decays and destroys instead of creates; it fosters confusion and chaos instead of truth and order. Druj incorporates any action or thought that violates the Creator’s orderly master plan for existence, which is an offence to the Wise Lord.2

Free Will

The central practical application of ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more is the emphasis on free will and each individual’s moral duty to fulfill the purpose of their creation by making wise choices to bring happiness into the world, which strengthens the force of Asha. Shirking that duty facilitates the destructive influence of Druj in the cosmic battle of good and evil. Free will is a paramount doctrineis derived from the Latin word for teaching, doctrina, and is an important aspect of Christianity more so than other world religions because Christianity focuses on the teachings and nature of Christ. more of ZoroastrianismActed as a bridge between eastern and western thought. more. Even their god and angels have the freedom to make bad choices. Consequently, the Wise Lord is omniscient but not omnipotent. Consequently, each personDerived from the Latin term persona and the Greek term prosopon. It is a technical term in Christian theology for the concept that the Trinity consist of three separate persons united as one essence with one of the persons (the... more is responsible for his or her choices in life, and no divine being can intervene with the natural outcome determined by those choices.

The sum total of our choices determines our daena (one’s attributes and spiritual conscienceDerived from Latin and literally means “shared knowledge” such as an accomplice to a crime. Modern usage of this term developed out of the practice of private confession in Catholicism in the late Middle Ages. The concept of conscience was... more), which governs our destiny at death. One can improve their daena through choices that align one’s life with Asha. This is accomplished by 1) pursuing the threefold path of good thoughts, good words and good actions; 2) spreading happiness through charitycomes from the Latin word “caritus” that was a translation of the Greek term “agape.”, which refers to a pure love of god and neighbor. It should not be confused with the modern usage of this term which is equivalent... more; 3) doing good with no thought of receiving a reward; 4) being honest, defending truth and living in reality; 5) participating in the creative process as opposed to destructive influences; 6) worshiping through ritual prayers and purification ceremonies; and, 7) respecting the spiritual equality of men and women. Unlike many other religions, monasticism and extreme asceticism do not play a role in Zoroastian worship.

Water and fire play key roles in the religion’s rituals. Water acts as the source of wisdom and fire as the medium through which this wisdom is revealed. Prayers are conducted in the presence of some form of light. Zoroastrian temples are generally referred to as fire temples and also include water in their worship. Both are viewed as life-sustaining agents, with water being the second primordial element created and fire the last.3

Creation

According to Zoroastrian’s theology, the eternal Wise Lord created the spiritual and physical realms by first manifesting himself through seven Amesha Spentas, who are similar to archangels in Christianity. These Amesha Spentas assisted the Wise Lord in creating a league of countless minor divinities, similar to angels, called Yazatas, meaning “worthy of worship.” Each of the of these angels and archangels emanates from the Wise Lord and personifies and protects a particular beneficial aspect of creation and the ideal moral persona. The Wise Lord, with the assistance of these divine entities, then created the spiritual realm which is when each human’s personal higher spirit (fravashi) was created. This form of our individual intelligence participates in maintaining creation and in the cosmic conflict between order and chaos.

Three thousand years later, the Wise Lord created the physical universe in order to capture evil. He created the primordial man and bovine, but Angra Mainyu, the evil co-eternal being, invaded the world through the sky and killed the human and bullComes from the Latin word bulla for "bubble" or "boss" and was used official papal documents that published the pope's decision regarding some issue such as Pope Leo X's condemnation of Martin Luther's teachings as heresy. This word was used... more. But the bull’s seed created all plants and animals, and the first man’s seed led to the creation of the first human couple and parents of humanity. The Evil being created demons, weeds, snakes and creatures to oppose the good creation of the Wise Lord, so evil, death and destruction in the world are the result of this attack on creation by the evil one and is not because of any inherent defect in individuals or other created things.

Our individual soul (urvan) splits off from our higher premortal spirit (fravashi), when we are born, but our fravashi continues to exist, inspires us to make good and wise decisions, and warns us of danger. Four days after we die, our soul reunites with our higher essencethe English word generally used for the Greek term ousia, that is also translated as “being” or “substance” and refers to that which makes something what it is such as human nature is the essence of a human being. This... more to continue our participation in the eternal battle of good and evil while we await the fFour days after we die, our soul reunites with our higher essencethe English word generally used for the Greek term ousia, that is also translated as “being” or “substance” and refers to that which makes something what it is such as human nature is the essence of a human being. This... more to continue our participation in the eternal battle of good and evil while we await the final judgment and resurrectionThe doctrine that Jesus’ spiritual essence was reunited with his physical body and that other humans will likewise live again with their spirit or soul reunited with their material body. This term does not refer to the doctrine of the... more.

Judgment

Zoroastrians believe in a dualistic view of existence, spiritual and material, so humans will pass through two judgments reflecting our dual natures.4 Our first judgment occurs upon death, when good people are greeted by a beautiful maiden who leads them across the bridge of judgment (the Chinvat Bridge) to the pleasant House of Song. Evil persons are met by an ugly old hag who escorts them down an ever-narrowing bridge until they fall off into the House of Lies, where they suffer according to their crimes. The rest, with a mixture of good and bad, go to a purgatoryIs the place in Roman Catholic theology where those who die in a state of grace, but not yet clean from the stain of sin, suffer temporal punishment in a purification process. more realm called Hamistagan, where they are reformed and purified while they await the final judgment when evil will be conquered, and the universe and humans will be restored to exist in perfect unity with the Wise Lord.

Before that day, the evil being’s most demonic creaturerefers to everything except God who is the Creator who created all things. more, Azi Dahaka, ravages the earth in a final assault when the moon is darkened, mankind rejects religion, and family unity deteriorates. A savior of the world (Saoshyant) will be born to a virgin and later will offer a bullComes from the Latin word bulla for "bubble" or "boss" and was used official papal documents that published the pope's decision regarding some issue such as Pope Leo X's condemnation of Martin Luther's teachings as heresy. This word was used... more to the Wise Lord as an infinite sacrifice for eternity, ushering in a renovation of the material universe referred to as Frashokereti and the second and final judgment. The human souls who were banished to suffer in the House of Lies and the purgatoryIs the place in Roman Catholic theology where those who die in a state of grace, but not yet clean from the stain of sin, suffer temporal punishment in a purification process. more realm will electcomes from the Latin word “to choose” and is used to identify those chosen by God. In the Old Testament, the twelve tribes of Israel are the elect people of God; in many Protestant traditions the elect refers to those... more to reunite with the Wise Lord, and all human beings will be resurrected to become immortal beings. The mountains (which were created by the destructive power of the evil one) will be leveled, and the earth will be restored to its pure initial state at the time of the original creation with all of the beautiful additions that followed. The House of Song will descend while the earth rises to meet it on the moon. The Wise Lord will ultimately prevail and contain the evil being but not destroy him because he is co-eternal with the Wise Lord. Time will cease, and there will be a united people with one language and one nation living as immortals in peace and harmony forever.

From a Zoroastrian perspective, the overarching purpose of existence is to unite with the divine to overcome darkness, chaos, and evil to participate in the perpetual exaltation of the Wise Lord’s glory. The Wise Lord is the beginning and end of all things, the creator of the spiritual and material worlds, and the source of all good. The universe was initially created in perfect good order but was corrupted by the evil one. However, good will ultimately prevail and the earth will be renewed to its initial prefect state. Individuals participate in this cosmic struggle between good and evil and will suffer the consequences of their individual choices, which demonstrate the degree to which they supported the Wise Lord and adhered to Asha or were deceived by the Evil One. However, everyone will eventually come to their senses and choose to return to their Lord to exist as immortal beings and participate in his eternal glory.5

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