Anahita was the most important goddess of pre-Islamic Iran. From her roots as an ancient Indo-European water deity her status was unrivalled by any other Iranian goddess throughout the course of three
Anahita was the most important goddess of pre-Islamic Iran. From her roots as an ancient Indo-European water deity her status was unrivalled by any other Iranian goddess throughout the course of three
Zoroastrianism has always commanded interest way beyond the circles of its actual adherents. Its unbroken history and distinctive beliefs span three millennia, making it one of the world's most venera
Addressing the question of the origins of the Zoroastrian religion, this book argues that the intransigent opposition to the cult of the daevas, the ancient Indo-Iranian gods, is the root of the devel
Presents the comprehensive English-language survey of Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest living religions. This book presents Zoroastrianism as a cluster of dynamic historical and contextualized phenom
The Pahlavi Widewdad (Videvdad), The Law (Serving to Keep) Demons Away, a fifth-century Middle Persian commentary on the Avestan Videvdad, describes regulations to prevent pollution in the perennial s
This fascinating volume consists of articles by world-renowned scholars of Zoroastrian, Iranian, Parsi, and Jewish studies. The topics covered range from the prophet Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) and the a
Early Iranians believed evil had to have a source outside of God, which led to the concept of an entity as powerful and utterly evil as God is potent and good. These two forces, good and evil, which h
Patricia Crone's book is about the Iranian response to the Muslim penetration of the Iranian countryside, the revolts subsequently triggered there and the religious communities that these revolts revealed. The book also describes a complex of religious ideas that, however varied in space and unstable over time, has demonstrated a remarkable persistence in Iran across a period of two millennia. The central thesis is that this complex of ideas has been endemic to the mountain population of Iran and occasionally become epidemic with major consequences for the country, most strikingly in the revolts examined here and in the rise of the Safavids who imposed Shi'ism on Iran. This learned and engaging book by one of the most influential scholars of early Islamic history casts entirely new light on the nature of religion in pre-Islamic Iran and on the persistence of Iranian religious beliefs both outside and inside Islam after the Arab conquest.
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
A facsimile reprint of D.M. Madan's Complete Text of the Pahlavi Dinkard: Volume I, Books III - V. Kassock has photographed and edited the Pahlavi Dinkard into a legible copy for the Zoroastrian and s
Ringer (history and Asian languages and civilizations, Amherst College) explores how Western definitions of modernity and modern religion were variously interpreted, accepted, rejected, and modified b
The significance of the Zoroastrian religion in the development of the history of thought is often only mentioned in passing, or is completely overlooked. Zoroastrianism has developed over a span of a
The significance of the Zoroastrian religion in the development of the history of thought is often only mentioned in passing, or is completely overlooked. Zoroastrianism has developed over a span of a
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
This book gives a concise and acurate description, and spiritual insight into the ancient Parsi religion, by Dr. Kapadia, a member of the Indian Zoroastrian community.
