Zoroastrianism or Magusism is the world’s oldest monotheistic religion that emerged in Iran 3500 years ago. Zoroastrianism, which is thought to have first emerged in Azerbaijan, was spread in Iran by Zoroaster, who was accepted as the Prophet. In this religion, it is believed that he will be resurrected after death and appear before Ahura Mazda. In Zoroastrianism, there is a belief in two forces in which good and evil are constantly at war. The only god who creates all the good in the world is Ahura Mazda, and the destructive spirit that creates evil is Ahriman. In the religion where fire is considered sacred, there has been a struggle for centuries not to extinguish it. People who follow this religion are called Magi.
Zoroastrianism has a much older history than the religion of Islam and Abrahamic religions. Zoroaster, the Prophet of Iran; He is regarded as the religious leader who teaches the belief in the untouchable, unheard and invisible being. Ahura Mazda, who is accepted as the god, is symbolized as the lord of the mind, while Ahriman is the representative of evil forces. The fight between Ahura Mazda and Ahrimen, who sees and knows the future and is aware of everything, will continue until the last day of reckoning. On that day, the war will end with Ahura Mazda’s victory. The duty of people is to stand on the side of Ahura Mazda, that is, to fight against evil forces. When he acts like this, he will attain immortality in the next world.
Historical Development of Zoroastrian Religion
Zoroastrianism, considered the oldest religion in the world, was the religion of the 3 great Persian Empires from the 6th century BC to the 7th century AD. It continued to expand until the spread of Islam in Iran. After the Muslims took over the Persian lands, the conversion to Islam started and very few Zoroastrians were left behind. But in Iran, Zoroastrianism is accepted as ancestral religions and there is a mass trend towards Zoroastrianism. For this reason, in Zoroastrian ceremonies held in Iran, precautions are taken by the Iranian police in order to prevent Muslims from watching and being affected by these ceremonies.
It is not known exactly where the emergence of the religion’s founder, Zoroaster, as a prophet began. It is emphasized that he may have started the first communiqués in the territory of today’s Azerbaijan. According to their holy book Avesta; Zarathustra became a prophet at the age of 30, and for the first 10 years there were no believers except for a few. He was ostracized by the people and therefore had to migrate from the lands he lived in. He migrated from Azerbaijan and came to Iran, where he began to spread his faith. In the following periods, it was adopted by the Sassanid Empire and became the official religion of the state.
One of the elements supporting the idea that it first appeared in Azerbaijan is the existence of fires that have risen from the ground for thousands of years, called volcanoes in the region. It is thought that thousands of years ago, people could not explain this image and attributed holiness. The same places are still considered sacred and worshiped by Zoroastrians. World-famous Zoroastrian temples continue to exist in the territory of Azerbaijan. Today, the place where the Zoroastrian belief is most intense is India. After the spread of the Islamic faith in Iran, Zoroastrians had to migrate to India and spread there.
Characteristics of the Zoroastrian Faith
In the Zoroastrian belief system, the world consists of four phases. Good and evil emerged in the first stage, and the world was plunged into darkness, disaster and evil in the second stage. In the third stage, good and evil were in struggle and goodness won. When the fourth stage takes place, all kinds of evil and darkness will disappear, and peace and brotherhood will prevail in the world. In the first period, the creation period of humanity is discussed, while in the second period, the flood and the disasters suffered by human beings are explained. In the third period, Zoroastrianism and the civilizations that developed afterwards are emphasized. In the fourth stage, the hopes of humanity for the future and dreams of freedom are envisioned.
On the basis of religion, there are 4 elements that are considered sacred, fire, water, air and earth. The most sacred of these elements is fire. Because soil, air and water can be polluted, but fire neither pollutes nor pollutes. For this reason, the sanctity attributed to fire is so great that efforts have been made not to extinguish the fire for millennia. Because of the belief in fire, Zoroastrianism was seen as a satanic belief. Zoroastrians do not cremate their dead because they consider fire sacred. They do not bury the dead with the thought that the soil, air and water may be polluted. For this reason, Zoroastrians say that they leave the dead and wait for them to be eaten by the vultures. Towers of Silence is found.
Zoroastrian belief; It has aspects that are surprisingly similar to other religions such as Islam and Christianity. In Zoroastrianism; As in other religions, there are beliefs such as Heaven, Hell, Angel, Satan, Sirat Bridge. Even in the holy books, the passage from the Sirat Bridge is described with details. Those who have equal good and bad deeds will go to Heaven with the forgiveness of Ahura Mazda after they wait for a while in a place called “Purgatory”. There are some miracles that Zoroaster performed. Some of those; He walked on the river, ascended to heaven through an angel, met God, and saw Heaven and Hell. At the same time, Zoroastrians routinely pray 5 times a day.
