The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism E-Book

Anna Tessmann

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Serie: Blackwell Companions to Religion
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 1718

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

This is the first ever comprehensive English-language survey of Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest living religions * Evenly divided into five thematic sections beginning with an introduction to Zoroaster/Zarathustra and concluding with the intersections of Zoroastrianism and other religions * Reflects the global nature of Zoroastrian studies with contributions from 34 international authorities from 10 countries * Presents Zoroastrianism as a cluster of dynamic historical and contextualized phenomena, reflecting the current trend to move away from textual essentialism in the study of religion

Leseprobe

CONTENTS

Cover

Title page

Notes on Contributors

Acknowledgments

Aims and Scope

A Note on Transcriptions

Avestan

Pahlavi (Zoroastrian Middle Persian)

New Persian (Farsi)

Arabic

Gujarati

Abbreviations

Introduction

A Disintegrated Academic Landscape

Attempts at Mapping Main Approaches

Some Main Figures in the History of Zoroastrian Studies

Contributions of Zoroastrian and Iranian Scholars

The Impact of the Study of Zoroastrianism on Modern Zoroastrianism

Emerging Trends in Recent Scholarship

Part I: Zarathustra Revisited

CHAPTER 1: Zarathustra’s Time and Homeland

Zarathustra’s Time and Homeland: Approximations and Dead Ends

The Location of the Legendary Zarathustra

The Geographical Horizon of the

Young Avesta

Further Reading

CHAPTER 2: Zarathustra’s Time and Homeland

External Evidence for the

Avesta

Linguistic and Literary Relationship between the

Older

and

Younger Avesta

The Provenance of the

Avesta

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 3: Interpretations of Zarathustra and the

Gāthās

CHAPTER 3A: The

Gāthās

CHAPTER 3B: The

Gāthās

, Said to Be of Zarathustra

The

Gāthā

s within the

Avesta

The “Edition” of the

Old Avesta

The Young Avestan Exegesis of the

Old Avesta

Zarathustra

Unity and Homogeneity of the

Gāthā

s

The Doctrine of the

Gāthā

s

The Sole Source of Zoroastrianism?

Concluding Remark

CHAPTER 3C: Dimensions of the

Gāthās

as Poetry

Further Reading

CHAPTER 3D: The

Gāthās

as Myth and Ritual

Summary

Background

The Historical Zarathustra in Western Scholarship

My Approach

The

Gāthā

s as the Story

of

Zarathustra

The Gathic Ritual Myth

CHAPTER 4: Zarathustra

Zarathustra as Author and Source

Zarathustra as Hero, Recipient of Revelation, and Prophet

Narratives and Identifications

Visual Representations

Conclusion

Further Reading

Part II: Periods, Regions, and Contexts

CHAPTER 5: Religion and Politics in Pre-Islamic Iran

Zoroastrianism before the Iranian Empires

The Achaemenid Empire

The Origin of Achaemenid Court Rituals

The Zoroastrian Calendar

The Judgment of the Soul

The Zoroastrian Story of Creation and the End of Time

Alexander and the Seleucids

The Parthian (Arsacid) Empire

The Rise of the Sasanians

Further Reading

CHAPTER 6: Zoroastrianism under Islamic Rule

Historical Periodization

Conquest and Settlement of the Arab Muslim Conquerors (7th

CE

)

The Age of Conversion and “Heterodox” Movements

The Zoroastrian Dark Ages (11th–16th Centuries

CE

)

Zoroastrians under a Shī’ī Gunpowder Empire (16th–18th Centuries

CE

)

Further Reading

CHAPTER 7: Armenian and Georgian Zoroastrianism

Armenia and Georgia: Geography and History

Languages and Sources

The Religion of Pre-Christian Armenia

The Religion of Pre-Christian Georgia

The Parthian Commonwealth

Further Reading

CHAPTER 8: Zoroastrianism in Central Asia

Sources

Calendars

The Kushan Pantheon

The Sogdian Pantheon

Temples

The Clergy and Its Literary Productions

Marriage Customs

Funerary Practices

After the Muslim Conquest

Conclusion: Central Asian Zoroastrianism in Perspective

Further Reading

CHAPTER 9: Zoroastrianism in the Far East

The History of Zoroastrian Studies in the Far East

Main Periods

The Advance of Zoroastrianism into the Far East (the 4th–9th Centuries)

The Formation of “Sinicized” Zoroastrianism (the 10th–20th Centuries)

The Parsis in the Far East (the 18th–21st Centuries)

Conclusion: Studies on Zoroastrianism in the Far East

Acknowledgments

Appendix:Chronological Table of Zoroastrianism in the Far East

Further Reading

CHAPTER 10: The Parsis

The Early Days

Colonial India

Parsis in Independent India

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 11: Zoroastrians in Modern Iran

The Amelioration Society, the Struggle against Discrimination and New Agencies

Constitutional Changes

Under the Pahlavīs

Nationalism: Ideological Reappraisal and Civic Zoroastrianism

Religious Boundaries and Modernization

The Islamic Republic

Some Conclusions and Prospects

Further Reading

CHAPTER 12: The Zoroastrian Diaspora

Zoroastrians in China

Zoroastrians in East Africa

Parsis in Pakistan

Zoroastrians in Britain

Zoroastrians in North America

Zoroastrians in Australia

Final Remarks

Further Reading

Appendix Chronological table

Part III: Structures, Discourses, and Dimensions

CHAPTER 13: Theologies and Hermeneutics

“Religion” and the “Sacred Word”

Good and Evil, Truth and Falsehood

The Nature, Will, and Desire of God

The Nature of the Evil Spirit and the Demons

The Divine Plan, Predestination, and Time

Human Behavior, Religious Wisdom, and Life Practices

“The Problem of Evil” and Defenses of Dualism

Textual Taxonomies: The

Ahunwar

, the Twenty-One

Nask

s, and the D

ē

n

Sacred Wisdom, Priestly Authority, and the Teaching of Religious Knowledge

Religion and Polemics: Disciplining Selves and Critiquing Others

Conclusions

Acknowledgment

Further Reading

CHAPTER 14: Cosmologies and Astrology

The Cosmic Fight and the Double Dimension of Existence and of Creation

Unlimited and Limited Time

The Organization of the World and the Place of the Iranians in the Mazdean Cosmography

Early Iranian Astral Cosmology and Mythology

The Avestan Heaven and the Astral Bodies

The Myth of Tištriia and the Astral Battle against the Falling Stars

Later Mazdean Cosmology and Astrology

The Planets, Their Names, and Their Demonization

Other Doctrines

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 15: Myths, Legends, Eschatologies

The Beginnings

Zoroaster’s Life

The End

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 16: Gender

A Gendered Concept of the Divine?

“Priesthood of Believers”

Purity, Pollution, and Sexuality

Religio-Social Experience

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 17: Law in Pre-Modern Zoroastrianism

Reconstructing Zoroastrian Law

Law and Religion

Law of Persons and Animals

Family Law, Marriage, and Succession

Law of Property and Obligations

Criminal Law

Legal Proceedings

Zoroastrian Law after the Muslim Conquest

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 18: Law and Modern Zoroastrians

Reinventing Zoroastrian Law

Inheritance

Marriage

Religious Trusts

Beyond India

Final Remarks

Abbreviations

Further Reading

Cases

Statutes, Constitutions, and Related Papers

Part IV: Practices and Sites

CHAPTER 19: Ethics

The Ritual or “Narrow” Morality

Morality in a General Sense

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 20: Prayer

Introduction

Prayer Texts in Avestan

Prayers in Languages Other than Avestan

Prayer in Modern Zoroastrianism

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 21: Purity and Pollution / The Body

The Source of Impurity and the Effects of Pollution

Analysis

The Removal of Pollution

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 22: Rituals

Terminology

Reform and Change

Animal Sacrifice

The Art of Words

Priesthood and Laity

The Ritualization of Daily Life

Priestly Liturgies

Initiations and Weddings

Initiation into the Priesthood

Funerals and Post-Funerary Services

Further Reading

CHAPTER 23: Festivals and the Calendar

The Earliest Zoroastrian Festivals

Zoroastrian Festivals in Sasanian and Early Islamic Iran

Festivals in the Modern Period

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 24: Religious Sites and Physical Structures

Ancient Holy Structures

Institutions of Late Antiquity

Medieval and Pre-Modern Places of Piety

Modern Communities and Their Religious Sites

Further Reading

Part V: Intersections

CHAPTER 25: Early India and Iran

The Indo-European and Indo-Iranian Heritage of Avestan

Linguistic Similarities between Avestan and Old Indic

The Old Indic and Avestan Literature

Time and Place of the Indo-Iranians

The Old Indic and Avestan Poets and Their Poetry

Shared Myths: Cosmology

Dragon-Killers and Other Myths

Mythical Geography

Poetic Formulas

Gods and Demons

Ahura Mazdā

Mitra/Miθra

Vāyu/Vaiiu

Apām Napāt /Apąm Napā

Bhága/Baga (Baγa)

Aryamán/Airiiaman

Evil Deities

Ritual

Soma/Haoma

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 26: Judaism

Early Encounters: The Achaemenid Conquest of the Near East

Intersections with Zoroastrianism in Second Temple Times

Intersections during Late Antiquity: The Talmud and Zoroastrianism

After the Conquest: Medieval Intersections between Jews and Zoroastrians

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 27: The Classical World

Early Greek Cosmologists: 540–450

BCE

Greek Historians of the East: 450–370

BCE

Plato and the Academy: 370–300

BCE

The Hellenistic Period: 300–30

BCE

The Roman and Early Byzantine Periods: 30

BCE

–600

CE

Final Remarks

Further Reading

CHAPTER 28: From Miθra to Roman Mithras

CHAPTER 29: Christianity

The Wise Men from the East

Zoroastrian Elements in Early Christianity

Zoroaster and Iranian Religion in the Church Fathers and Gnostic Literature

Christians in Arsacid and Sasanian Iran

Persecutions of Christians in Sasanian Iran

Zoroastrian Polemics against Christianity

Early Islamic Times

Further Reading

CHAPTER 30: Manichaeism in Iran

Manichaeans in Sasanian Iran

Zoroastrian Topics and Elements in Manichaeism

The Manichaean “Worldview” in Zoroastrianism and in Later Iranian Traditions

Pahlavi Texts against Manichaeans and Anti-Zoroastrica Written by Manichaeans

Conclusion

Further Reading

CHAPTER 31: Islam

The Attitudes toward Zoroastrianism in Early Islam

Descriptions of Zoroastrianism in Muslim Literature

Iranian Influence in Early Arabic Literature

The Iranian Festivals: Nowrūz and Mehragān

Zoroastrian Polemics against Islam

Secular Themes in Islam Derived from Iran

Middle Persian Books Translated into Arabic

Further Reading

CHAPTER 32: The Yezidi and Yarsan Traditions

Further Reading

CHAPTER 33: The Bahā’ī Faith

Early Interactions with Zoroastrian Leaders

The Zoroastrian Conversions

Factors in the Conversion of Zoroastrians

Separation, Integration, and Intermarriage

The Zoroastrian Converts in Later Years

Conclusion

Further Reading

Part VI: Primary Sources

CHAPTER 34: Primary Sources

Avestan

Middle Persian

Scholarly Resources

CHAPTER 35: Primary Sources

The Zoroastrian Dialects of Yazd and Kermān

Texts Written in Middle Persian Language in Persian Script (Pārsī)

Narratives of the Lives of Religious Figures

The

Ṣ

addar

s

Religious Miscellanies

The Persian

Revāyat

s

Scientific and Astrological Texts

Zoroastrian–Muslim Apologetic Texts

Stories of Migration to India

Didactic and Ethical Works

Devotional Works

Ā

z

ar Kayvān

The 18th and 19th Centuries

Persian Printing in the 19th Century

20th-Century Zoroastrian Persian Texts

Community Magazines

CHAPTER 36: Primary Sources

Old Parsi Gujarati Translation Texts

The Archive of the Navsari Bhagarsath Anjuman

The Classical Compositions of Ervad Rustam Peśotan Hamjiār

The 18th- and Early 19th-Century Compositions

The Calendar Controversy and the Beginning of Print Literacy

The Missionary Controversy

Zoroastrian Reform and Iranian Philology

Theosophy and

Ilm-e K

ṣ

num

(Khshnoom)

Travelogues

Sources on Zoroastrian Ritual

Parsi History and Genealogy

Translations of Avestan and Pahlavi Texts

Novels, Poetry, Songs, and Drama

Library Abbreviation

Bibliography

Index of People, Places, and Topics

Index Locorum

End User License Agreement

List of Illustrations

Chapter 01

Figure 1.1 Chains of countries in the first chapter of the

Vīd

ē

vdād

.

Chapter 08

Figure 8.1 Vaiiu (

W

ē

šparkar

) and Apąm Napā on a Panjikent painting,

c

. 740

CE

.

Figure 8.2 Nana and Tīr-Tištriia on an ossuary from near Shahrisabz (Shakhrisabz), Uzbekistan,

c

. 7th century

CE

.

Figure 8.3 The Am

ə

a Sp

ə

ṇ

tas on an ossuary from Biya-Nayman near Samarkand,

c

. 7th century

CE

. From left to right: Amurdād, Ardwahišt, Hordād, Šahrewar, Wahman, Spandarmad.

Figure 8.4 Srōš “who has the Sacred Word for Body” on a Panjikent painting,

c

. 740

CE

.

Figure 8.5 The weighing of the soul on an ossuary from Yumalaktepa near Shahrisabz,

c

. 7th century

CE

. The seated gods on top are Ardwahišt (as master of Paradise), Rašn (holding the scales) and probably Srōš (as fighter against the demons of corruption, see the fly-swatters).

Chapter 21

Figure 21.1 A conceptual map of the Zoroastrian purity and pollution system.

Chapter 24

Figure 24.1 Corpse exposure areas above Achaemenid tombs, Naqš-e Rostam, Iran.

Figure 24.2 Ruins of Sasanian

č

ahār tāq

, Fīrūzābād, Iran.

Figure 24.3 Interior of Second

ārāmgāh

, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Figure 24.4 Interior of

dakhme

,

č

am, Iran.

Guide

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The Wiley Blackwell Companions to Religion

The Wiley Blackwell Companions to Religion series presents a collection of the most recent scholarship and knowledge about world religions. Each volume draws together newly-commissioned essays by distinguished authors in the field, and is presented in a style which is accessible to undergraduate students, as well as scholars and the interested general reader. These volumes approach the subject in a creative and forward-thinking style, providing a forum in which leading scholars in the field can make their views and research available to a wider audience.

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The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism

Edited by

Michael StausbergandYuhan Sohrab-Dinshaw Vevainawith the assistance of Anna Tessmann

This edition first published 2015© 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism / Edited by Michael Stausberg and Yuhan Sohrab-Dinshaw Vevaina.  pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index.

 ISBN 978-1-4443-3135-6 (cloth) 1. Zoroastrianism. I. Stausberg, Michael, editor. II. Vevaina, Yuhan Sohrab-Dinshaw, editor. III. Title: Companion to Zoroastrianism. BL1572.W55 2015 295–dc23

    2014044819

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Cover image: Temple door at Chak Chak, Yazd, Iran. Photo © Jamshid Varza