Zoroastrianism Religion History
Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy that is based upon the beliefs and teachings of Zoroaster. Zoroastrianism is interchangeable with Mazdaism, or the worship of Ahura Mazda. It was Ahura Mazda that Zoroaster claimed to be the universal and supreme authority of divine origins. Zoroastrianism is an important religion because it has a powerful influence, forming connective links to both Western and Eastern religious traditions. It is, in fact, one of the oldest creedal religions, and is said to have had the greatest universal influence on most religions that are popular today.
The origins of Zoroastrianism begin in classical antiquity. Zoroaster began in the first millennium BCE, but doesn’t enter recorded history until roughly the 5th century BCE with Herodotus’ The Histories. In this work, the Greater Iranian society is described to be Zoroastrian in nature. One of the practices of this culture that would lead religious historian to this conclusion is the exposure of the dead.
The most universal beliefs of Zoroastrianism include the universal belief in one God known as Ahura Mazda, known as the Uncreated Creator. All worship is directed towards this God, and this worship foreshadows the later monotheistic religions that would rule the world. In a time where multiple Gods and deities were being worshipped, Zoroastrianism had the unique feature, and guiding principle, that there was one God Almighty to be worshipped, and that this God could not be seen, but was responsible for creating the universe.
In Zoroastrianism, Ahura Mazda’s creation was said to be the opposite of chaos and disorder in the universe. In fact, it was this creation that was the primary order in the universe. It is taught in Zoroastrianism that each human’s participation in life must be based upon good thoughts, words, deeds, and actions to support the order of life and ensure happiness. In this sense, humans play a large part in keeping the disorder of the world at bay, by keeping their actions in line with the order of Ahura Mazda.
Zoroaster believed in and taught free will. If Ahura Mazda created order in the universe of chaos, then it was believed that once Ahura prevailed in the struggle for ultimate order, then the battle of the universe would end and so would time. When a soul dies and is banished to darkness it is reunited with the creator. With the final purgation of evil from the earth, it will have completed its transformation to goodness and order.
If a lot of these concepts sound familiar, it’s because Zoroastrianism is believed to be a precursor to most modern, monotheistic religions.
