The Zoroastrian Flame

The Zoroastrian Flame PDF Author: Sarah Stewart
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0857728156
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 409

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Book Description
For many centuries, from the birth of the religion late in the second millennium BC to its influence on the Achaemenids and later adoption in the third century AD as the state religion of the Sasanian Empire, it enjoyed imperial patronage and profoundly shaped the culture of antiquity. The Magi of the New Testament most probably were Zoroastrian priests from the Iranian world, while the enigmatic figure of Zarathushtra (or Zoroaster) himself has exerted continual fascination in the West, influencing creative artists as diverse as Voltaire, Nietzsche, Mozart and Yeats. This authoritative volume brings together internationally recognised scholars to explore Zoroastrianism in all its rich complexity. Examining key themes such as history and modernity, tradition and scripture, art and architecture and minority status and religious identity, it places the modern Zoroastrians of Iran, and the Parsis of India, in their proper contexts. The book extends and complements the coverage of its companion volume, The Everlasting Flame.

The Zoroastrian Flame

The Zoroastrian Flame PDF Author: Sarah Stewart
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0857728156
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 409

Get Book Here

Book Description
For many centuries, from the birth of the religion late in the second millennium BC to its influence on the Achaemenids and later adoption in the third century AD as the state religion of the Sasanian Empire, it enjoyed imperial patronage and profoundly shaped the culture of antiquity. The Magi of the New Testament most probably were Zoroastrian priests from the Iranian world, while the enigmatic figure of Zarathushtra (or Zoroaster) himself has exerted continual fascination in the West, influencing creative artists as diverse as Voltaire, Nietzsche, Mozart and Yeats. This authoritative volume brings together internationally recognised scholars to explore Zoroastrianism in all its rich complexity. Examining key themes such as history and modernity, tradition and scripture, art and architecture and minority status and religious identity, it places the modern Zoroastrians of Iran, and the Parsis of India, in their proper contexts. The book extends and complements the coverage of its companion volume, The Everlasting Flame.

The Everlasting Flame

The Everlasting Flame PDF Author: Sarah Stewart
Publisher: I.B. Tauris
ISBN: 9781780768090
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Book Description
With such ancient beginnings, Zoroastrianism is as remarkably enduring as it is venerable. The principle religion of Iran until the Advent of Islam, it has also been influential beyond its own followers, interacting with other, younger faiths and shaping their views on the nature of evil, the coming of a saviour and the last days. The resonant message of Zarathustra (or Zoroaster), the founder of the religion, is encapsulated in its most sacred scripture, the Gathas, whose poetic power can still be appreciated today. This richly illustrated book explores many important themes of Zoroastrianism: its rise during the second millennium BCE, its doctrines, rituals and teachings, its growth into the foremost faith of the Achaemenid and Parthian empires, its consolidation under the Sasanians, its expansion east to China, and its impact on Judaism, Christianity and Islam. From Iran to the west coast of India, the story continues with the maritime exodus of the Zoroastrians and their settlement as an immigrant community (now called 'Parsis') under British colonial rule. With chapters by world-leading authorities, this is a vital record of the art, literature and culture of one of the world's most fascinating religious traditions.

The Zoroastrian Flame

The Zoroastrian Flame PDF Author: Sarah Stewart
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0857728865
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 643

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Book Description
For many centuries, from the birth of the religion late in the second millennium BC to its influence on the Achaemenids and later adoption in the third century AD as the state religion of the Sasanian Empire, it enjoyed imperial patronage and profoundly shaped the culture of antiquity. The Magi of the New Testament most probably were Zoroastrian priests from the Iranian world, while the enigmatic figure of Zarathushtra (or Zoroaster) himself has exerted continual fascination in the West, influencing creative artists as diverse as Voltaire, Nietzsche, Mozart and Yeats. This authoritative volume brings together internationally recognised scholars to explore Zoroastrianism in all its rich complexity. Examining key themes such as history and modernity, tradition and scripture, art and architecture and minority status and religious identity, it places the modern Zoroastrians of Iran, and the Parsis of India, in their proper contexts. The book extends and complements the coverage of its companion volume, The Everlasting Flame.

Encyclopedia Iranica

Encyclopedia Iranica PDF Author: Ehsan Yarshater
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780710090904
Category : Iran
Languages : en
Pages : 112

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Book Description


The Spirit of Zoroastrianism

The Spirit of Zoroastrianism PDF Author: Prods Oktor Skjærvø
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300170351
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 283

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Book Description
Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest religions, though it is not among the best understood. Originating with Iranian tribes living in Central Asia in the second millennium BCE, Zoroastrianism was the official religion of the Iranian empires until Islam superseded it in the seventh century AD. Centered on the worship of Ahura Mazda, the All-knowing Ruler, Zoroastrianism follows the practices and rituals set out by the prophet Zarathustra, according to the indigenous tradition. As one of the world's great religions, Zoroastrianism has a heritage rich in texts and cultic practices. The texts are often markedly difficult to translate, but in this volume, Prods Oktor Skjærvø, professor of ancient Iranian languages and culture at Harvard, provides modern and accurate translations of Zoroastrian texts that have been selected to provide an overview of Zoroastrian beliefs and practices. In a comprehensive introduction to these sacred texts, Skjærvø outlines the history and essence of Zoroastrianism and discusses the major themes of this the first fully representative selection of Zoroastrian texts to be made available in English for over a century.

Parsism

Parsism PDF Author: Sven S Hartman
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 900466677X
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 92

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Book Description


The Inner Fire

The Inner Fire PDF Author: Rohinton F. Nariman
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 9385827243
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
Zoroastrianism might be a fast-declining religion in today’s world, but what is remarkable is its eternal enigma. It is hard to believe that the hymns of the faith have travelled down to us in accurate form and poetic metre, purely through the memory of generations of priests. Zarathustra, the founder of the faith, belonged to a period of Persian history which antedated the Achaemenid dynasty (from 550 BC to 330 BC). He followed the old Rigvedic religion until he was the first to receive a revelation from Almighty God. The Gathas—the most sacred text of the Zoroastrian faith—were first composed and sung by Prophet Zarathustra. Along with the complete comprehension of the Gathas, consisting 238 verses in the same language as the Rigveda, this book is for anyone who wants to gain a deeper understanding of the purpose of life on earth and what happens to mankind after death. The Gathas are extremely relevant in modern times for the fundamental reason that they are timeless. They do not emanate from Prophet Zarathustra’s mind, but are revelations from Almighty God, making them universal in their approach. This book is an attempt to help the reader fully comprehend these and choose the path of leading a righteous life.

The Ritual Landscape at Persepolis

The Ritual Landscape at Persepolis PDF Author: Mark B. Garrison
Publisher: Oriental Institute Press
ISBN: 9781614910343
Category : Fire
Languages : en
Pages : 448

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Book Description
There are, perhaps, no more contentious issues within the study of Achaemenid Persia than those surrounding its religion(s) and religious iconography. Owing to the role that fire plays in Zoroastrian beliefs in later periods in Iran, almost any discussion of the subject of Achaemenid religion will eventually turn to the identification of sacred fire, fire temples, fire worship, and fire altars in the archaeological, epigraphic, and literary records. The focus of this book is a corpus of glyptic imagery preserved as impressions on two large archives of administrative tablets from Persepolis, the Persepolis Fortification archive (509-493 BC) and the Persepolis Treasury archive (492-457 BC). The glyptic imagery here published concerns representations of what have been traditionally termed "fire altars" and/or "fire temples." Most of this glyptic evidence has never been published; many of the structures and the scenes in which they occur are strikingly original. The goals of this study are to introduce a new corpus of visual imagery concerning religious ritual in the Achaemenid period and to explore the significance of this visual language for our understanding of ritual traditions emerging within the heart of the empire at its most critical formative period, the reign of Darius I. This study seeks also to use the Persepolitan glyptic evidence as a springboard to re-visit the most famous "fire altar" depicted in Achaemenid art, that on the tomb relief of Darius I at Naqs-e Rostam. This study is an initial step in the development of a religious topography for the zone encompassing Persepolis and Naqs-e Rostam, both a topography on the imaginary level (through images) and a topography on the physical level (through the built space). The glyptic images assembled in this study are the most numerous, the most visually complex, and the best dated and contextualized evidence that currently exists for the study of fire in ritual, and religious ritual more broadly, in early Achaemenid Iran.

The Iranian Talmud

The Iranian Talmud PDF Author: Shai Secunda / Yitz Landes
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
ISBN: 0812209044
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
Although the Babylonian Talmud, or Bavli, has been a text central and vital to the Jewish canon since the Middle Ages, the context in which it was produced has been poorly understood. Delving deep into Sasanian material culture and literary remains, Shai Secunda pieces together the dynamic world of late antique Iran, providing an unprecedented and accessible overview of the world that shaped the Bavli. Secunda unites the fields of Talmudic scholarship with Old Iranian studies to enable a fresh look at the heterogeneous religious and ethnic communities of pre-Islamic Iran. He analyzes the intercultural dynamics between the Jews and their Persian Zoroastrian neighbors, exploring the complex processes and modes of discourse through which these groups came into contact and considering the ways in which rabbis and Zoroastrian priests perceived one another. Placing the Bavli and examples of Middle Persian literature side by side, the Zoroastrian traces in the former and the discursive and Talmudic qualities of the latter become evident. The Iranian Talmud introduces a substantial and essential shift in the field, setting the stage for further Irano-Talmudic research.

The Bundahi%sn

The Bundahi%sn PDF Author:
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019087905X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 265

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Book Description
The Bundahisn, meaning primal or foundational creation, is the central Zoroastrian account of creation, cosmology, and eschatology. Compiled sometime in the ninth century CE, it is one of the most important surviving testaments to Zoroastrian literature in the Middle Persian language and to pre-Islamic Iranian culture. Despite having been composed some two millennia after the Prophet Zoroaster's revelation, it is nonetheless a concise compendium of ancient Zoroastrian knowledge that draws on and reshapes earlier layers of the tradition. Well known in the field of Iranian Studies as an essential primary source for scholars of ancient Iran's history, religions, literatures, and languages, the Bundahisn is also a great work of literature in and of itself, ranking alongside the creation myths of other ancient traditions. The book's thirty-six diverse chapters, which touch on astronomy, eschatology, zoology, medicine, and more, are composed in a variety of styles, registers, and genres, from spare lists and concise commentaries to philosophical discourses and poetic eschatological visions. This new translation, the first in English in nearly a century, highlights the aesthetic quality, literary style, and complexity and raises the profile of pre-Islamic Zoroastrian literature.