Mazdaism

“ The ultimate triumph of the good spirit is an ethical demand of the religious consciousness and the quintessence of Zoroaster's religion.
The evil spirit with his wicked hosts appears in the Gāthās much less endowed with the attributes of personality and individuality than does Ahura Mazda. Within the world of the good Ormazd is Lord and God alone. In this sense Zoroastrianism is often referred to as the faith of Ormazd or as Mazdaism. Ormazd in his exalted majesty is the ideal figure of an Oriental king. ”

“ He was an eye-witness of this struggle, and gives a good account of the contemporary Mazdaism which the Persians tried to force on the Armenians. *Lazar of Pharp wrote a history embracing the events of the 5th century up to the year 485, as a continuation of the work of Faustus.
*A history of St Gregory and of the conversion of Armenia by Agathangelus is preserved in Greek, Armenian and Arabic. The Arabic edited by Professor Marr of St Petersburg seems to be the oldest form of text. The Greek is a rendering of the Armenian. ”

“ While the single elements of Mazdeism do not differ essentially from those of the Vedic and the Indo-European mythology generally, still the grouping of these elements in a new order presents them in a new form. Thus we find that in Mazdeism everything is referred either to Ahūra Mazda or to Angra Mainyu as its source, and hence the world is divided into two parts, in each of which a strong unity prevails, representing the dualism of this system. Ahūra is all light, truth, goodness and knowledge, while Angra Mainyu, or Ahriman, is all darkness, falsehood, wickedness and ignorance. ”

“ The Mazdayasnian religion gives all good things of life. [51] She gives purification to him who cleanses his self with good thoughts, good words, and good deeds. [52] The place where the faithful pray and sacrifice according to religion is happy. [53] Hard work and industry are prime Zoroastrian virtues. Agriculture is the staple industry of the people and the texts say that sowing corn again and again feeds the Mazda-worshipping religion, it makes her walk with a hundred men's feet and suckles her with a thousand women's breasts. ”

“ When the law of Wickedness is thus annihilated, the divine law of Righteousness will pervade the entire world. Even the wicked souls who had revolted from Mazda in the corporeal world and gone over to the Evil Spirit will after the retribution come over to Mazda and acknowledge his sovereignty. As the great shepherd, Ahura Mazda will bring back into the fold of righteousness all those persons who, led astray by the rach-tempter, had left his flock. ”

“ The gifts of Vohu-manô to the deeds done in this world for Mazda. He who relieves the poor makes Ahura king. What protector hast thou given unto me, O Mazda! while the hate of the wicked encompasses me? Whom but thy Âtar and Vohu-manô, through whose work I keep on the world of righteousness? Reveal therefore to me thy Religion as thy rule! Who is the victorious who will protect thy teaching? Make it clear that I am the guide for both worlds. May Sraosha come with Vohu-manô and help whomsoever thou pleasest, O Mazda! Keep us from our hater, O Mazda and Spenta Ârmaiti! ”

“ If he wants to live so that he can yet hope to work as the prophet of Mazda and found his excellent religion, he should leave his homeland. He asks Mazda to point him the land to which he should flee. [61] When all hopes seem to be blighted, he bids farewell with heavy heart to the place of his birth. He does not know to what land he should turn and he turns to wherever Mazda may take him. He walks and walking thinks, dreams, falls into a reverie, stops, wakes up, hastens his steps. ”

“ The fire of Mazda, likewise, solicits devotional offerings from those persons for whom he cooks the evening and the morning meal, he looks at the hands of all passers-by, to see if they bring some present for him or not, even as a friend for a friend. When the faithful bring to him fuel, dry and exposed to the light, he is propitiated, and in the fulfilment of his wish blesses the votary with a flock of cattle and a multitude of men, an active mind and an active spirit, and a joyous life. ”

“ The Evil Spirit has taught them to mislead men through evil thought, evil word, and evil deed. [15] The Daevas instigate the enemies of settled life to give the cattle to violence. [16] Mazda best remembers the misdeeds of these recreants and he judges accordingly. [17] When the two primal spirits of good and evil came together at the beginning of creation the demons chose evil and rushed with one accord to bring destruction to mankind. [18] The wicked are the beloved of the demons, for they are the ones that renounce the Good Mind and revolt from the wisdom of Ahura Mazda and Righteousness. ”

“ For if all titles of worldly things are vested in God, they are destined for the common use of all human kind.
Mazdak's three cardinal fallacies were more attractive, indeed, to the people than Christianity. And they were excellent vehicles for a counter-movement. Mazdak moved and many others moved with him. In spite of his initial success, however, he knew that, without royal sanction and support, the new Temple—the Temple of Fire and Freedom and Common Ownership—would not long endure. But with a king and a prophet at its head, the new cult would spread, would prosper, would triumph. ”

“ The Religion of Mazda indeed, O Spitama Zarathustra! takes away from him who makes confession of it the bonds of his sin; it takes away the sin of breach of trust; it takes away the sin of murdering one of the faithful; it takes away the sin of burying a corpse; it takes away the sin of deeds for which there is no atonement; it takes away the worst sin of usury; it takes away any sin that may be sinned. In the same way the Religion of Mazda, O Spitama Zarathustra! cleanses the faithful from every evil thought, word, and deed, as a swift-rushing mighty wind cleanses the plain. ”

“ The Amesha Spentas are the ever-living and the ever-helping ones; [11] they are the wise ones, and good rulers. [12] It is they that are the shining ones, of efficacious eyes, exalted, mighty, valiant, imperishable, and righteous. [13] They are the makers, rulers, fashioners, guardians, protectors, and preservers of the creation of Mazda, [14] and Mazda has given them beautiful forms. [15]
Their work. The archangels hold their celestial councils on the heights of the heavens. ”

“ Their creed was simple enough. Ahura Mazda—Ormuzd, as he has been called since—was the one eternal Creator, the source of all light and life and good. He spake his word, and it accomplished the creation of heaven, before the water, before the earth, before the cow, before the tree, before the fire, before man the truthful, before the Devas and beasts of prey, before the whole existing universe; before every good thing created by Ahura Mazda and springing from Truth. ”

“ The ideal of his life will be that he will endeavour to be like Ahura Mazda and Zarathushtra and Frashaoshtra and Jamaspa and all those that have proved themselves to be the righteous and true benefactors of mankind and even like the good waters and trees and cattle. [33] He undertakes to protect the Mazdayasnian settlements from harm and drought, [34] and neither for the love of his body nor his life will he ever be a source of harm to them. [35] By his thoughts, words, and deeds, does he abjure and hate the chieftainship of the daevas, sorcerers, and those addicted to sorcery. ”

“ And when he has grown to the age of a Hana, or of a Zaurura, or of a Pairista-khshudra, then the worshippers of Mazda shall order a man strong, vigorous, and skilful, to cut the head off his neck, in his enclosure on the top of the mountain: and they shall deliver his corpse unto the greediest of the corpse-eating creatures made by the beneficent Spirit, unto the vultures, with these words: 'The man here has repented of all his evil thoughts, words, and deeds. ”

“ Who is the third that rejoices the Earth with greatest joy? Ahura Mazda answered: "It is he who fills up most burrows of the creatures of Angra Mainyu." O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Who is the fourth that rejoices the Earth with greatest joy? Ahura Mazda answered: "It is he who sows most corn, grass, and fruit, O Spitama Zarathustra! who waters ground that is dry, or drains ground that is too wet. Unhappy is the land that has long lain unsown with the seed of the sower and wants a good husbandman, like a well-shapen maiden who has long gone childless and wants a good husband. ”

“ Now cease I to be a Daeva worshipper and make profession of the religion of Ahura-Mazda, proclaimed by Zarathustra. I ascribe all good things everywhere to Ahura-Mazda, the true, shining and holy one. I will never more molest Mazdaists. I will forsake the Daevas, the false and wicked originators of all the mischief in the universe. I forsake also all Daeva like beings, witches, wizards, and the like. I belong to the Mazdaist religion, and will support it to my dying day. There is no joy of virtue but has come from Ahura-Mazda. ”

“ The abstractions of the Mazdean system have been referred to above. They seem to have been resorted to from a feeling of profound disgust at the worship of some class of people. Unfortunately we have not the historical data that might make the situation clear. In the Gathas the people of Ahura Mazda are suffering from the incursions of predatory tribes, and the greater part of the appeals to the deity are for protection for the herds against their enemies. ”

“ Each age has its ideals, religious and social; and they vary in accordance with the high or low grades of civilization of its peoples. The establishment of the Kingdom of Righteousness is the one universal ideal, which knows no change. Ahura Mazda will bring about the renovation of the world in accordance with his divine will. [15] The whole universe moves towards the realization of this state of perfection, and humanity evolves towards this ideal. ”

“ In opposition to the faithful who are called Mazdayasnians, or the worshippers of Mazda, all unbelievers and wicked persons are styled the Daevayasnians, that is, as being worshippers of the demons. The two worlds of the righteous and the wicked are rent asunder. ”

“ Ahura Mazda is the highest object of worship. Ahura Mazda still holds sovereign sway over both the worlds; his authority in the world of righteousness is undisputed, and his imperial right is unchallenged. He is the greatest and the very best of the angels. ”

“ The transcendental immanence of Ahura Mazda. Ahura Mazda has his celestial mansions in the highest heavens, upon the vast expanse of the earth and in the hearts of the righteous persons. He is transcendent in as much as he is infinitely more sublime and greater than his creatures. Yet he is not so remote and ineffable as not to be approached and addressed and greeted by his ardent worshippers. He is immanent in the sense that man can enter into close and loving relations with him, and own him as his father and brother and friend. ”

“ Especially are death and a dead body unclean. A corpse may not defile earth, fire nor water. So, as everyone knows, Mazdæans put dead bodies on their Towers of Silence, to be eaten by vultures. Burial, and still more cremation, are horrible to them. They have also a great aversion to any kind of asceticism. Life and pleasure are gifts of Ahura Mazda; not to enjoy them is positively sinful: it is perhaps the only religion which considers fasting actually wicked. They hate celibacy. ”

“ Paul carried the dissensions through Armenia to Persia, thus weakening the newly acquired faith, which had but a slight hold upon the people. It certainly had little or no influence upon King Kobad. As for Mazdak, he must have found his original inspiration in St. Paul. "The law worketh wrath; where no law is, there is no transgression." This he announced as a divine revelation to the people and proceeded to draw his own conclusions and enlarge upon them. His second revelation was that all men are born equal and have a right to maintain this equality through life. ”

“ All human souls will be subjected to a collective judgment before the ultimate renovation of the world. The souls will have to undergo the great ordeal by fire and molten metal, to which reference has already been made. [8] At the time of the final Dispensation Ahura Mazda will judge the souls of the righteous and the wicked by the test of his blazing fire. ”

“ But, it was the ethical part of his doctrine which at first caused a great revolution, and at last the destruction of the teacher and his numerous disciples, Mazdak bade all men to be partners in riches and women, just as they are of fire, water, and grass; private property was not to exist; each man to enjoy or to endure, in his turn, the good and bad lots of this world. ”

“ Great is the chief whom you serve; great is Mazimba on the hunting-path; great was he in the battle; all the Undi could not kill him, and his brother the lion (Jeremy) , and his servant the jackal (Mazooku) , who hid in a hole and then bit those who digged. O yes, Mazimba is great, and his breast is full of valour; you have seen him strike the Undi down; and his mind is full of the white man's knowledge and discretion; you have seen him form the ring that spat out fire so fast that his servants the horsemen were buried under the corpses of the Undi. ”

“ Ahura Mazda is the Being par excellence. Ahura Mazda sits at the apex among the celestial beings of Garonmana. He is not begotten, nor is there one like unto him. Beyond him, apart from him, and without him nothing exists. He is the supreme being through whom everything exists. He is brighter than the brightest of creation, higher than the highest heavens, older than the oldest in the universe. He is the best one. [2] He knows no elder, he has no equal. ”