Posted on 06/12/2007 3:02:27 AM PDT by blam
I thought the buzzards that ate the dead were becoming extinct.
Make that 150,001. I've never heard of anything so cool. Why can't there be a huge resurgence? N.B. By believing in a good god and an evil one they avoid the problem of evil that derails monotheism.
So are Zoroastrians.
Give you some of ‘that old-time religion’ huh?
Cremation is an ancient Hindu/Greek/Roman custom, and I suspect some Zoroastrians might be prescribing to that method of disposal. All three cultures have come in contact with the Zoroastrians through time, so they could have borrowed it from anywhere.
Parsis, also known as Zoroastrians, worship fire and believe that cremation is a mortal sin and that burial pollutes the earth. So they leave their dead atop the towers to be devoured by vultures, a process they believe releases the deceased's spirit.Zoroaster was a reformer of Zervanism. But anyway, there was indeed a problem with the Griffon vultures which the Zs of India use for the excarnation "ritual".
In Search of Zarathustra [Pre-Islamic Iran once again making a strong come back]To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. Thanks.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on or off the
"Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list or GGG weekly digest
-- Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
I don’t believe you can convert to Zoroastrianism...
Sure you can. You just can’t do it in the bigger zoroastrian countries due to religious persicution (my guess).
Any religion that would refuse people from coming into it is never going to leave being a “Cult” and will then likely die out very soon.
Why guess...and guess wrong, at that? The information is easy to find.
http://www.religioustolerance.org/zoroastr.htm
Zoroastrians do not generally accept converts. One has to be born into the religion. This belief is disputed by some members.
The traditional wing of Zoroastrianism discourages and does not recognize inter-faith marriages. More details: http://www.religioustolerance.org/ifm_deno.htm#zor.
There are some things even a vulture won't eat?
How is it guessing wrong? From your own words- there is a part of the Z faith that is welcoming to outsiders. There is a (im assuming larger) portion devoted to “keeping it in the family”. Thats like saying you cant be “part german” and be born in the 1930s-40s due to racism.
And words like “generally” aren’t exactly known for being *concrete* in evidence.
He certainly wasn't a good zxrxastrian, since he was a homosexual and zxrxs believe that is the one unpardonable sin.
They believe everyone is supposed to remain in the religion of his birth. They don't even feel the need to win Iran back from islam. Everyone is exactly what they are supposed to be.
There is a similarity in this teaching and that of a much younger Iranian religion, bahai, which teaches that all religions are true and all "sacred texts" inspired.
All Parses are Zoroastrians, but not all Zoroastrians are Parses.
Also, Zoroastrians do not worship fire. They believe fire, air, earth and water are sacred, but hey worship one God, and are the world’s FIRST monotheists.
We get our belief in God, Satan, the conflict between good and evil, angels, resurrection of the dead, and last judgment from Zoroastrianism. ALL of the preceding predated Moses.
No interfaith marriages. Interesting. Especially since my maiden name points to possible Zoroastrian roots and as fascinated as I am by the religion I am not one of them.
Ah. The Glory days. If only Iran was still Zoroastrian. :(
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.