Zoroastrianism : an introduction / Jenny Rose.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rose, Jenny, 1956- author.

Series:

I.B. Tauris introductions to religion.

Introductions to religion

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Zoroastrianism--History.

Zoroastrianism.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (329 pages)

Place of Publication:

London : I. B. Tauris, 2011.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

"Zoroastrianism is one of the world's great ancient religions. In present-day Iran significant communities of Zoroastrians (who take their name from the founder of the faith, the remarkable religious reformer Zoroaster, or--in the old Avestan language--Zarathustra) still practise the rituals and teach the moral precepts that once undergirded the officially state-sanctioned faith of the mighty Sasanian empire. Beyond Iran, the Zoroastrian diaspora is significant especially in India, where the Gujurati-speaking community of exiles from post-Sasanian Iran call themselves 'Parsis'. But there are also significant Zoroastrian communities to be found elsewhere, such as in the USA, Britain and Canada, where western cultural contexts have shaped the religion in intriguing ways and directions. This new, thorough and wide-ranging introduction will appeal to anyone interested in discovering more about the faith that bequeathed the contrasting words 'Mary' and 'magic', and whose adherents still live according to the code of Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds. The central Zoroastrian concept that human beings are continually faced with a choice between the path of 'good' and 'evil', represented by the contrasting figures of Ahura Mazda and Ahriman, inspired thinkers as diverse as Voltaire, Mozart and Nietzsche. Jenny Rose shows why Zoroastrianism remains one of the world's most inspiring and perennially fascinating systems of ethics and belief."--Publisher description, p. [4] of cover.

Contents:

Cover; Contents; Acknowledgements; List of Abbreviations; Maps; Zoroastrianism: An Introduction; I. Zoroastrians Present and Past; II. The Ancient Persians: Truth-Tellers and Paradise-Builders; III. A Zoroastrian Presence from Seleucia to Sistan: The Parthian Period; IV. Eranshahr: The Sasanian Center of the World; V. The Zoroastrians of Central Asia; VI. Gabr-Mahalle: Zoroastrians in Islamic Iran; VII. Parsipanu: Zoroastrianism in India; VIII. Zoroastrians Present: Revisited; IX. Zarathushtra Present and Past; Appendix 1 - Textual Timeline; Appendix 2 - The Five Gathas

Appendix 3 - Outline of the YasnaAppendix 4 - A Selective Historical Timeline; Glossary of Names and Terms; Illustration, Map and Picture Credits; Notes; Select Resources; Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [287]-290) and index.

ISBN:

9786613169075

9780755625291

0755625293

9781785398513

1785398512

9781283169073

128316907X

9780857719713

0857719718

OCLC:

742333547