In Zoroastrianism a person is rewarded and punished according to their thoughts, words and deeds, with rewards and punishments made to fit the crime. In medieval times, the Book of Arda Viraf (Righteous Viraf) told the story of a priest, who had visions of heaven and hell. The text gives an idea of what are seen as virtues and vices. For example, an agriculturalist occupies a high place in heaven for he helps the Good Creation to grow. In contrast, a wicked king who killed and tortured people is himself flogged.

While Zoroastrians believe perpetrators of crimes will be punished in the afterlife, they also accept that in a law abiding society punishment may be necessary for the overall benefit of the community.

Zoroastrians consider euthanasia and abortion to be wrong as they involve the taking of life, and by implication, the destruction of Ahuru Mazda’s creation.

Zoroastrians believe that good health is the state which Ahura Mazda wishes for everyone and is the natural condition in which the first human was created. All suffering is therefore an affliction of the force of evil Angra Mainyu (Middle Persian, Ahriman). Since the world is the Good Creation of Ahura Mazda (Middle Persian, Ohrmazd) humans have a duty to care for it and expand it through having children, caring for animals and by agriculture. In modern times this attitude has been applied to industry also.

War is destructive of the Good Creation, so is seen as undesirable, although may be necessary to ensure a peaceful existence. With this in mind, a number of Zoroastrian people have held important positions in the army, navy and air force of their home country.

As Zoroastrians in India and in the Iranian homeland have for over a thousand years been a minority, war has never been a realistic option. However, when Muslims invaded the Gujarat in the 13th century Parsi fought alongside the Hindus to repel the invader.

In the days of the ancient Zoroastrian Persian Empire (6th century BCE to the 7th century CE) the kings went to battle and took priests (magi) with them to lead prayers before going into battle. Rock reliefs dating from the Sasanian era (3rd to 7th centuries) show the king triumphantly trampling his enemies underfoot just as Ohrmazd will one day trample Ahriman. It appears that the Iranian monarchs saw themselves as expanding order (Asha) throughout the world to overthrow the evil chaos wrought by enemies, such as when Cyrus the Great conquered the Babylonians and set the Jews free from their exile.

Citizenship is a more complicated, and perhaps a more western concept. In ancient Iran there was a strong sense of being Iranian and, apart from the royal harem, marriage between Iranians was expected to reinforce the sense of being a distinct people, all of whom were members of a nation created by Ahura Mazda. In the modern Diaspora, be that in India, Pakistan or the West, there is a clear expectation of loyalty to the country of residence. For example, in the Indo-Pakistan war there were Parsi generals on both sides.

There is therefore no sense of there being any conflict between being Zoroastrian and being British. As Zoroaster lived around 1500 and 1200 BCE, terms such as human rights, social justice and citizenship were unknown. Zoroaster converted the local monarch resulting in Zoroastrianism becoming became the religion of the kingdom.

Citizenship would therefore not have been conflicted with Zoroaster’s example or his teaching on individual responsibility and gender equality, and modern Zoroastrian teachers explicitly support such concepts. Being a Zoroastrian involves resolving to fight evil in all its forms as well caring for the Good Creation and practising good thoughts, words and deeds.

In a world where poverty and wealth co-exist wealth is viewed as honourable providing it has been gained honestly and is shared through charitable giving. However, there is little to demonstrate much discussion of this as an issue in Zoroastrianism as sharing ones wealth is an expectation rather than an option.

Zoroastrians believe Ahura Mazda created the world so people, therefore, have a duty to care for it. This, they claim, makes them the first environmentalists. Although creation (Bundahishn) is assaulted by the forces of evil causing suffering, decay and death, it nevertheless remains ‘the Good Creation’ and people have a duty to enjoy it.

Traditionally Zoroastrians have eaten meat, although some Parsi have at least avoided beef and others become vegetarians as a mark of respect to the Hindu culture in which they lived. However, this is a recent development as it was believed that Ohrmazd created everything for a purpose, with the purpose of cattle being to feed humans.

http://www.avesta.org/avesta.html

http://www.religioustolerance.org/zoroastr.htm

http://www3.sympatico.ca/zoroastrian

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Boyce, M., 1997. ‘Zoroastrianism’. In Hinnells, J.R. (ed.). New Penguin Handbook of Living Religions. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.

Boyce, M., 1977. A Persian Stronghold of Zoroastrianism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Boyce, M., 2000. Zoroastrians: their religious beliefs and practices, 2ed. London: Routledge.

Hinnells, J.R., 1985. Persian Mythology. London: Newnes Books.

Hinnells, J.R., 1996. Zoroastrians in Britain. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Hinnells, J.R., 2000. Zoroastrian and Parsi Studies: Selected works of John R. Hinnells. Aldershot: Ashgate. On Zoroastrian influence on the Bible.

Hinnells, J.R., 2001. Penguin Dictionary of Religions. London: Penguin.

Hinnells, J.R., 2005. The Zoroastrian Diaspora. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

SHAP (Shap Working Party), 1998. Festivals in World Religions. s.l.: s.n.

Zaehner, R.C., 1961. The Dawn and Twilight of Zoroastrianism. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.

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The contemporary leaders of the community are the high priests (Dasturs) in Iran and India whose directives are followed by most in the global Zoroastrian Diaspora. There have been some mystic occult figures who command a following in India and to some extent in the Diaspora, but they are seen as interpreters of Zoroaster’s message, not as replicating him.

A popular modern leader is Behramshah N. Shroff (1858-1927). When he was 18 he had a row with his mother and left home. He moved north from Gujarat and met a group of Zoroastrians who travelled secretly and led him to an unknown paradise deep in the sacred mountain in Iran called Demavand. Once there, he was instructed into the occult mysteries of the religion and in Ayurvedic medicine. He began teaching in 1907 and moved to Bombay in 1909 where he started his group known as Ilm-i Khshnoom, ‘Path of Knowledge’. His teaching can be described as a Zoroastrian version of Theosophy and includes vegetarianism, a belief in reincarnation, the importance of occult powers and praying in the ancient sacred language of Avestan. He and his followers continued to use the existing temples and religious calendar, and his teaching continues to be popular today.

A very different inspirational modern Zoroastrian teacher is Dastur (meaning ‘Very Reverend’) Maneckji N. Dhalla (1875-1956). He was brought up in poverty in Karachi before working as a journalist, expressing strong orthodox views. Some religious leaders took him to Bombay and paid for him to study ancient Zoroastrian languages and texts. He met Prof A.V.W. Jackson from Columbia University, New York who was so impressed he took him to study in America in 1905 first for an M.A. then a Ph.D. He described himself as “arriving as an orthodox but departing America in 1909 as a reformist”. On his return, he became High Priest in Karachi. He wrote several books on the history of Zoroastrianism, and a book of devotions, both of which are widely used to. Personally, he was a quiet and devout man, and by all accounts, popular with those who met him. However, he was rejected by the orthodox with followers of Shroff accusing him of teaching a Protestant Christian version of Zoroastrianism. In America and Pakistan he continues to be revered for his life and teaching.