This message, as well as wearing a certain piece of cloth or reciting the daily prayers, all constitute what Charles Long defined as "pervasive beliefs, rituals and values of a society, a kind of civil religion of the public", in the "Popular Religion" entry of the Encyclopedia of Religion (p.445). Dadrawala justly notes that if one asks an average Zoroastrian in the street what it means to be a Zoroastrian, he or she will probably hear the cliché words " Good thoughts, good words and Good Deeds ”. Talking about the present, the common understanding of Zoroastrianism comes with the realization of the fact that we deal with “Varieties” of the religion and a distinction must be made between "Official" and "Popular" religions or the two-tier system of "Religion as practiced" and "Religion as lived". Тhe world is plunged in a permanent battle between the good and evil forces and the core idea is that only the human beings are capable of tipping the scales in favor of the good by following the principles of the faith. Ahura Mazdā’s adversary is the Evil Spirit, Angra Manyu or Ahriman, who is in control of the horde of the malevolent gods, demons, and other evil entities. Zoroastrianism, named after its prophet Zarathustra or Zoroaster, is alternatively called Mazdeism, which comes from Ahura Mazdā’s name and literally means “sacrificing to Mazdā”. The good principle is represented by the chief god Ahura Mazdā, who is also the maintainer of order and peace. The idea is that the world and everything that embraces our entire existence has been created by the good and evil spirits of equal divine might (in the Zoroastrian liturgy they are mentioned as being twins). In order to get the picture of Zoroastrianism as a distinct religious system, one has to take into consideration that this religious movement emerged from a rebellious idea bucking the ideological foundations of the time. The roots of this religion go back to prehistoric Central Asia of the second millennium when the Iranian people, also called Indo-Iranians, separated from their relatives, the Indo-Aryan fellow tribesmen, and started continuously inhabiting the Iranian plateau.
Zoroastrianism is one of the oldest religions in the history of mankind. Zoroastrianism Definition What is Zoroastrianism?
In this paper, we will try to touch briefly on a variety of topics and aspects that the concept of “Zoroastrianism” can encompass.
There is a great deal to be said about Zoroastrianism as a religious system since it has gone a long historical way and has changed its appearance time after time. The contribution of Zoroastrianism to world history, culture, and philosophy could hardly be overestimated, suffice it to recall one of the most outstanding musicians of all times, Freddy Mercury, who was born and raised in Zoroastrian environment.
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