Zoroastrianism

A fascinating introduction to a religion I'd only heard a bit about in history books. I remembered that it introduced concepts that later became part of Christianity but until I read this I didn't realize how many and how important they were.

Zoroastrianism is often referred to as the earliest Christianity. It is hard to state that Christianity didn't come from this ancient religion who has its roots in N. Iran there are numinous roots written primary for the scholar and the serious researcher, this is of no exception. It is light and sketchy, giving only facts the author deem relevant. the parallels between this earlier belief system and earlier Christianity cannot be ignored. As a primer, it is recommend.

I have lived in India twice and had many Parsi friends and colleagues. So I thought it was time I learned more about Zoroastrianism. I hoped that this book would be a good introduction. It isn't. There is no clear statement of the fundamentals of the religion, and it is easy to get confused with the "bureaucracy" of minor gods and attendants that even monotheistic religions seem to accrue. I also found it hard to distinguish between what Zoroaster himself preached and what is included in today's religion. Since it spans 3,000 years, more chronology (with actual dates) would have helped. The book's cover promises to focus on the linkage between Judaism and Zoroastrianism, but again there is no consolidated discussion, and the final chapter, which to some extent explores linkages, says "Other coincidences might easily be multiplied, and with them the equally important dissimilarities; but space forbids". In what is already a very short book, this is frustrating. The early pages state that this is an edition with new material and revisions, presumably by the editor (identified only as "E.S.W."), but the revisions are not specified, which makes one wonder if material has been inserted to support the editor's personal agenda. Finally, the book is disconcerting to read, because it is printed in one typeface but with two different font sizes, used apparently more or less at random. Now, curiosity awakened, I have to find a book that is a little more organized!

It’s not easy to find information on Zoroastrianism. This was a very good source with quotes from the Avesta.

Nice mix of Zoroastrian creed & historical context. I learned quite a bit, and at 100+ pps. it was a modest investment of time.

Factual, honest & good references. Really liked it.

Excellent, arrived way early.

as always, fast service and item as advertised

short and sweet. not in much depth though. i'm now having to look for another book for more details.

This was interesting but very difficult to read. I was hoping for a more basic understand to the religion but it was rather full on, despite being a very thin book. I was expecting much more from it and I have left feeling like I only really learned a few pages worth of it’s content.

A very interesting discussion of Zoroastrianism, an ancient Persian religion and how it influenced Judaism and hence Christianity and Islam. Waterhouse outlines the basic tenets of Zoroastrianism and then points out the many similarities between this most ancient of religions and Judaism. Judaism was of course contemporaneous with Zoroastrianism and the author feels that given the fact that the Jews were in exile in Persian-controlled Babylon prior to the Islamic invasion of Persia it's likely that Zoroastrianism and Judaism influenced each other. Here are a few examples from Zoroastrian beliefs, beliefs which existed before the interaction with Judaism. Ahura Mazdah (the Zoroastrian name for "God") told Yima (the first prophet in the religion) that there was to be a an ice age during which all would be destroyed and that Yima was to save two of each animal and plant. Sound familiar? The dualistic nature of Zoroastrianism (good vs evil) was also unique at a time when most people held polytheistic beliefs. The Persians had a belief in places of bliss and punishment where good and bad people would go after death, yet the Old Testament barely mentions Heaven or Hell. The Persians believed that a man's soul finally left his body after three days, that he wasn't really dead until the fourth day - compare that with the raising of Lazarus after three days or the Resurrection of Christ after three days. There are other examples in the book and the author states that he hasn't included all similarities between Zoroastrianism and Judaism. These examples could be written off as coincidence, but I think that it is possible to follow a common thread back through time, a thread that connects religions of the Middle East, back through Persia and beyond. Reading this book is an excellent way to pick up that thread and see where the big three monotheistic religions, starting with Judaism, picked up many of their ideas. Why four stars? I feel that Waterhouse was holding back on his belief that Judaism picked up a lot of its ideology and tales from Zoroastrianism. I felt that he was pulling his punches and could have scored some really solid hits had he not been perhaps afraid of insulting Jews and Christians. Just my gut feeling. All in all though a very enlightening read!

Some what interesting book about Zoroastrianism. The terms here are a little out dated, using words like mohamadens to refer to muslims but other than that it was ok not too great. The author is clearly a Christian you can tell he is slightly bias in the book.

Not very informative, but a good little pocket book