#zoroastrianism

Lizard

A lunar creature; the humid principle; believed to be tongueless and subsist on dew, the lizard was a symbol of silence.

In Egyptian and Greek symbolism, it represented divine wisdom and good fortune and was an attribute of Serapis and Hermes; in Zoroastrianism it was a symbol of Ahriman and evil.

In Christianity it is also evil and the Devil. The lizard is an attribute of Sabazios and usually appears on the hand of Sabazios.

In Roman mythology it was supposed to sleep through the winter and so symbolized death and resurrection. The lizard Tarrotarro is an aboriginal Australian culture hero.

[Source: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols by J.C. Cooper]

erikfreer:

Fravashi(fravaši,/frəˈvɑːʃi/) is the Avestan language term for the Zoroastrian concept of a personal spirit of an individual, whether dead, living, and yet-unborn.

historical-nonfiction:

The ruined city of Arg-e-Bam is made entirely of mud bricks, clay, straw and the trunks of palm trees. The Iranian city was originally founded during the Sassanian period (224-637 CE) and while some of the surviving structures date from before the 1100s, most of what remains was built during the Safavid period (1502-1722).

Bam prospered because of pilgrims visiting its Zoroastrian fire temple, which had been built early in the Sassanian period, and because Bam was a trading hub along the Silk Road. It was later the site of Jame Mosque, built during the Saffarian period (866-903 CE). Next to the mosque is the tomb of Mirza Naiim, a mystic and astronomer.

The city was largely abandoned since a series of invasions in the early 1800s. In 1953, work began to intensively restore Arg-e-Bam. Restoration work continued until December 26, 2003, when a massive earthquake hit the area – an estimated 6.6 on the Richter Scale. Almost everything in Bam was destroyed. After that, restoration was given up, and today Arg-e-Bam is at the mercy of the elements.

forgot to post this comic! scripted last christmas, drawn last week

[patre o n]

vintagegeekculture:

There is one especially interesting “alternative” and speculative historical theory to come out of Japan: the idea that, during the Asuka period of Japanese history (6th-7th Century), that Zoroastrian fire-worship practitioners from Iran came to live in Japan. Further, many elements of Japanese culture are in fact inspired by Iranian Zoroastrianism, and adherents of this theory point to many early period Japanese artifacts that resemble Zoroastrianism, and many fire-based rituals. 

They point to the Persian cultural influence of the Asuka stone structures of Nara, which always seem to turn up and factor into weird Japanese crankery somehow, in much the same way that Western alt-history people are into Stonehenge and the Mayans for some reason. 

Another piece of evidence is that the Oushiko Stone Shrine (called one of the “Three Strange Things in Japan”) is arranged like a Zoroastrian Fire Temple. 

The popularizer of this theory is detective novelist Matsumoto Seicho, the father of the Japanese detective novel, who wrote “Fire Road” and “From Persepolis to Asuka.”  

As for why this theory is popular, a good guess is that Japanese extreme nationalists have always been offended that Japan is an outpost of Chinese culture and civilization. As a consequence, there are many attempts by cranks to establish an alternate cultural genealogy, to places viewed as more “noble,” like Iran/Persia. This is far from the only example of this in action. After all, in much the same way that most Midwestern Americans all claim to be 1/8 Cherokee, many Japanese say there was a Russian ancestor or other in the family tree (while many in fact, do have Russian ancestry, it simply cannot be true of everyone that claims it). 

On the other hand…hey, maybe it’s alltrue. There’s a 1,300 year old fire temple in Xi’An, and the timing is about right for the high point of Zoroastrianism on the Silk Road into the Far East. Crazier things have happened, you know. 

Oh, I forgot to mention: the Japanese obsession in the 70s-80s with Zoroastrianism and Ancient Iran pops up in very strange and surprising places. For example: 

Zoroastrianism is the inspiration for many elements of Sonic the Hedgehog. 

Compare the Sonic logo to the Zoroastrian Faravahar, the symbol of the religion, which represents the human soul: 

Note that he figure in the Faravahar is carrying a gold ring. 

This is because in Zoroastrianism, gold rings are held as a symbol of an unbreakable oath, covenant, or promise. This is a deeply ancient belief with Indo-European origins, and survives in the Western world as gold wedding rings, which physically represent an oath or bond. Gold rings originally represented all such oaths or bonds, not just marriage. 

Oh, and…oh boy, people are going to think I am making this up…because this is just too good, but it is very true: hedgehogs are held as a holy animal in Zoroastrianism, that Mazdayasna are forbidden to kill or harm. Nearly all Zoroastrian households, even today in Iran, have a house hedgehog that they have to keep the home holy and to eat bugs and parasites. 

This is a hedgehog from 4,000 BC Iran: 

Which is the good creature among the creatures of the Spenta Mainyu that from midnight till the sun is up goes and kills thousands of the creatures of the Angra Mainyu?

Ahura Mazda answered: ‘The dog with the prickly back, with the long and thin muzzle, the dog Vanghapara, which evil-speaking people call the Duzaka; this is the good creature among the creatures of the Spenta Mainyu that from midnight till the sun is up goes and kills thousands of the creatures of the Evil Spirit.

'And whosoever, O Zarathushtra! shall kill the dog with the prickly back, with the long and thin muzzle, the dog Vanghapara, which evil-speaking people call the Duzaka, kills his own soul for nine generations, nor shall he find a way over the Chinwad bridge, unless he has, while alive, atoned for his sin

Incidentally, dogs are sacred to Zoroastrianism. Dogs are considered uniquely noble creatures and Zoroastrians insist the bridge to the afterlife is protected by two four-eyed dogs (which is also in Norse mythology, indicating the shared origin). In order to go to the next world, a dog has to see a dead person, which is why their version of Last Rites involves bringing a dog to see a dying person.

Here’s an adventure module from the 3.5 days that was overlooked: the Golden Palace of Zahadran, by Greg Oppedisano. It was a lost city in the desert that was clearly based on the pre-Islamic Persian fire religion of Zoroastrianism, including Azhi Dahaka, a three headed dragon, who in the Zoroastrian final judgment, on being set loose, will kill one third of the population of humankind.