Other Natural Religions

[Husky]

[quote name='Husky' date='15 May 2010 - 06:44 PM' timestamp='1273928802' post='106378']

1. > In fact you had earlier posted a link to the derafsh-kaviyani site which is a modern monotheist influenced interpretation of Zoroastrianism as HH pointed out, no different than any neopagan site trying to rediscover some of their heritage.



Yes, I was wrong. (Though I thought Mazda Yasna has a single supreme God. Whether that always implies monotheist I don't know. The Amesha Spentas weren't Gods but Good Spirits I thought. IIRC, overseas/expatriat Indian Parsee sites say they have 1 God and Parsees aren't neopagan...)[/quote]



Here. Zoroastrians of Australia (non-converting type, i.e. from memory ZAWA is specifically Parsee):

http://www.zawa.asn.au/religion.shtml

THE BEGINNING:



Under orders from God AHURA MAZDA Zarathushtra made his way towards the court of King Vistaspa of Bactria. In his inaugural sermon, Zarathushtra tried to induce his countrymen to forsake the worship of multiple [color="#FF0000"]g[/color]ods and bow only before Ahura Mazda. At Vistaspa's court, he had to fight for a foothold and contend with the intrigues and plotting of the so called "wise men" and courtiers around the king. In the end Zarathushtra came out victorious and Vistaspa was the first person to embrace the Zoroastrian religion.

http://www.zawa.asn.au/nutshell.shtml





[color="#0000FF"]ADDED:[/color]

http://www.zawa.asn.au/history2.shtml

However, it is important to note that in Zoroastrianism, there is no eternal Hell. Hell is only a temporary abode for the wicked soul. At the time of the Final Judgement, all souls will pass through a river of molten metal and become cleansed and purified.

[color="#800080"](^ Where christianism stole stuff from without understanding)[/color]



Even a cursory look at Zoroastrian theology would not be complete without a mention of the 7 Amesha Spentas or the Bounteous Immortals. These are the attributes of Ahura Mazda, aspects of His nature. At the physical level, the Amesha Spentas are represented as protectors of God's creations, e.g., the Amesha Spenta Asha Vahishta looks after Fire and the Amesha Spenta Spenta Armaiti looks after the Earth. However, at the abstract or metaphysical level, the Amesha Spentas form the "ethical infrastructure" whereby man can attain immortality.

Bad move:

In the 6th century A.C., the Sasanian monarch, Hormazd IV decreed that Christians and other groups should not be persecuted. He is believed to have said, "Even as our royal throne cannot stand upon its two front legs without the back ones, so also our government cannot stand and be secure, if we incense the Christians and the adherents of other religions who are not of our faith." (Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices" by Dr. Mary Boyce, London, 1979)

That christians were bothering them is known. But I didn't know Zoroastrian rule "incensed" people of other religions, esp. at that date? But from the translation above, it seems almost the sort of generalisation that is added to make things sound less specific: like "...must not antagonise christians (or people of other religions for that matter)..."