Avesta (Zoroastrianism) - Avesta (Zoroastrianism) The Avesta is a collection of the sacred texts of the Zoroastrian religion. The language of these scriptures is known as 'Avestan'. It is very closely related to Sanskrit, the sacred language of Hinduism. The Avestas were collated over several hundred years. The oldest portion, the Gathas are the hymns written by Zoroaster himself. The later portions constitute elaborations of Zoroastrian thinking along with detailed descriptions of ritual practices. According to legend the full text of the Avesta was destroyed by Alexander the Great when he invaded Persia. It was later only partly reconstructed from the memories of Zoroastrian priests. This story is not generally accepted by scholars now, but it is acknowledged that the existing text of the Avesta is a fraction of the.
Zoroastrianism - Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism (also sometimes known as Mazdaism) was founded by Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) in Persia around 600 BC (although some scholars estimate as early as 1500 BC). Zoroastrianism combines elements of monotheism and dualism. Some modern scholars believe that Zoroastrianism had a large influence on Judaism and Manichaeism, and thus indirectly influenced Christianity and Islam. The holy book of Zoroastrianism is the Avesta. Of the Avesta only the Gathas (the hymns) are attributed to Zoroaster. Ahura Mazda (literally: "the Wise Lord" like the Sanskrit "Asura Medha"; later transcription: Ohrmazd, Ormazd or Ormus) is revered and worshipped by Zoroastrians as the good God. Opposed to Ahura Mazda stands Ahriman (Angra Mainyu), who in some traditions is Ohrmazd's twin brother. According to Zoroastrianism, the earth was created by Ormazd.
Jellaladin Mahommed Akbar - closely to Delhi. He ordered the court moved to Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra, but when this proved untenable, he set up a roaming camp that let him keep a close eye on what was happening throughout the empire. He tried to develop and encourage commerce; he had the land accurately measured for the purpose of rightly adjusting taxation; he gave the strictest instructions to prevent extortion on the part of the tax gatherers. Religion He was at first Muslim, but skepticism as to the divine origin of the Koran led him to seek the true religion in an eclectic system. He accordingly set himself to obtain information about other religions, sent to Goa, requesting that the Portuguese missionaries there should visit him. Based on these inquiries, he adopted a religion called.
Islam - Muhammad is viewed as the 'Last Messenger' bringing the final message of God to all mankind through the Qur'an. Messengers and prophets were sent to every nation and civilization, and every prophet was given a book for those people. These individuals were mortal humans; Islam demands that a believer accept all of the prophets, making no distinction between them. In the Qur'an, 25 specific prophets are mentioned. Islamic law The study of scripture is strongly emphasized. The Qur'an is the foremost source of Islamic jurisprudence, and the second is the Sunnah (Life and way of the Prophet). One cannot practice Islam without consulting both texts. From the Sunnah, related but not the same, is the Ahadith (narrations of the Prophet). A hadith is a narration about the life of the Prophet.
History of the Levant - and over the next century shrank to its territorial core, its central authority permanently weakened. Only Assyria escaped significant damage. The Iron age The destruction at the end of the bronze age left a number of tiny kingdoms and City-states behind. A few Hittite centres remained in northern Syria, along with some Canaanite (Phoenician) ports that escaped destruction and now developed into great commercial powers. Southern Palestine initially fell to the Philistines, but by the 11th century BC had been conquered by the Hebrews. And most of the interior, as well as Babylonia, was overrun by Aramaeans. In this dark period a number of technological innovations spread, most notably iron working and the alphabet, developed by the Canaanites around the 16th century BC. Also around this time, the Hebrew religion developed.
History of Islam - in Arabia in the 7th century. At that time the Arabs followed various polytheistic religions; a few of them followed Judaism, Christianity (including the followers of Nestorius) and Zoroastrianism. Muhammad was born in the year 571 (Common Era, or CE). His father died before his birth, and his mother died at a very early age, so he was raised by his uncle Abu Talib. When he was about 25 years old, Muhammad married a wealthy widow, Khadija, who was 40, and began his career as a trader. Fifteen years later, according to Islamic tradition, he experienced his initial prophetic call, while meditating alone inside a cave in the hills above Makkah - a city in the Arabian peninsula. Muslims believe that Muhammed was chosen by God, like prophets before him, to.
Genesis - it today was redacted together around 440 BCE from earlier sources. See the Documentary hypothesis entry for more information. Christian views The author of the book of John refers to the opening words of Genesis, in the New Testament, personifying the speech of God as the eternal Logos (Greek: λογος "reason", "word", "speech"), that is the origin of all things "with God", and "was God", and "became flesh and tabernacled among us". Christians interpret this as an example of apostolic teaching of the doctrine of the Trinity and the deity of Christ; however, Genesis standing alone does not suggest this teaching. Main themes There is only one God, who has created the world. God has called all objects and living beings into existence by his word. The universe is, in the.
George Gemistos Plethon - Aristotle had exercised over European thought for eight centuries. Cosimo de' Medici attended these lectures and later founded an academy in Florence, where Italian students of Plethon continued to teach after the conclusion of the council. Because of this Plethon is considered one of the most important influences on the Italian Renaissance. While in Florence Plethon wrote De Differentiis, a description of the differences between Plato's and Aristotle's conceptions of God. Scholarios later defended Aristotle and convinced emperor Manuel II Palaeologus that Plethon's support for Plato amounted to heresy. Manuel had Plethon confined in Mistra, though he remained somewhat of a celebrity. In Mistra he wrote pamphlets to Manuel II describing how the Empire could be reorganized according to Plato's Republic. He also wrote a Summary of the Doctrines of Zoroaster.
God - their views on two fundamental issues: Is God singular or plural? Is God transcendent or immanent, or both? Answers to these questions reflect, and imply, different positions concerning the relationship between god(s) and the world, and between god(s) and humankind. Theism holds that God is both transcendent and immanent; thus, God is simultaneously infinite and in some way present in the affairs of the world. Most theists hold that God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent, although this belief raises questions about God's responsibility for evil and suffering in the world. Some theists ascribe to God a self-conscious or purposeful limiting of omnipotence, omniscience, or omnibenevolence. For a discussion of the meaning of "God" in this sense, see: What is God. Deism holds that God is wholly transcendent: God exists, but does.
Golden Rule - against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself." - Bible, The New International Version, Leviticus 19:18, Judaism. 700 BCE "That nature only is good when it shall not do unto another whatever is not good for its own self." - Dadistan-i-Dinik 94:5, Zoroastrianism. ? BCE "Whatever is disagreeable to yourself do not do unto others." - Shayast-na-Shayast 13:29, Zoroastrianism. 500 BCE "Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful." - Udana-Varga 5:18, Buddhism. ~500 BCE "What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others." Analects of Confucius 15:24, Confucianism, tr. James Legge.[1] ~500 BCE "Now the man of perfect virtue, wishing to be established himself, seeks also to establish others; wishing to be enlarged himself, he seeks also to enlarge others..
Gujarat State, India - largest city in India. The basis for creation (demarcation) of the state in its present form on May 1, 1960 was linguistic majority (Gujarati). The primary language is Gujarati. The majority of people are Hindus, with significant percentage following Buddhism, Islam, Jainism, Zoroastrianism and Christianity. There is a large Muslim minority, and Gujarat recently suffered through major religious conflict, in particular the 2002 Gujarat violence. The state government is a stronghold of the Sangh Parivar. Gujarat is a state with a reputation for people with shrewd business acumen and considerable financial talent. But apart from this stereotypical image, there have been Gujaratis with various other talents. Gujarat has given to India two of its biggest leaders in the Indian Independence Movement, Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Gujaratis have also made.
Eschatology - the eschaton, the times of the end, 'last things', or 'end times.' In Zoroastrianism, Christianity and in Norse pagan theology, eschatology refers to a theology concerning the end of the world, as predicted in the prophecies of these faiths, and as recorded in their sacred texts. Eschatology also refers to the study of general afterlife concepts of other religions, especially the western monotheistic faiths. In this broader sense, eschatology can refer to the messiah, a messianic era, the afterlife, and the soul in religions which have such beliefs. As far as we know, Zoroastrianism had a fully developed concept of the end of the world as being devoured by fire already in 500 B.C. and is thus the oldest eschatology we know of. Eschatologies of particular religions: Ancient religions (no longer.
Discrimination against non-Muslims in Iran - report. The majority of the Christian population are ethnic Armenians and Assyro-Chaldeans. There also are Protestant denominations, including evangelical churches. The UNSR reported that Christians are emigrating at an estimated rate of 15,000 to 20,000 per year. The Mandaeans, a community whose religion draws on pre-Christian gnostic beliefs, number approximately 5,000 to 10,000 persons, with members residing primarily in Khuzestan in the southwest. The Government figures reported by the United Nations in 1996 place the size of the Zoroastrian community at approximately 35,000 adherents. Zoroastrian groups cite a larger figure of approximately 60,000, according to the same U.N. report. Zoroastrians mainly are ethnic Persians and are concentrated in the cities of Tehran, Kerman, and Yazd. Zoroastrianism was the official religion of the pre-Islamic Sassanid Empire and thus played a central role.
Devil - refer to a lesser demon in the hierarchy of Hell. At the same time, the term devil is also derived from the same Indo-European root word for deva, which roughly translates as "angel." The notion of a central supernatural embodiment of evil, as well as the notion of angels, first arose in Western monotheism when Judaism came into contact with the Persian religion of Zoroastrianism. Unlike classical monotheism, Zoroastrianism features two gods, one good and one evil, locked in a cosmic struggle where both are more or less evenly matched and the outcome is uncertain. Ahura Mazda ("Wise Lord"), also known as Ohrmazd, is the god of light, and Ahriman ("Evil Spirit"), also known as Angra Mainyu, is the god of darkness. In a final battle between the supernatural forces of.
Deva - of Timisoara and Cluj-Napoca have opened branches in the city. Deva is dominated by Citadel Hill, a protected nature reserve because of its rare floral species and the presence of the horned adder. Perched on the top of the hill are the ruins of the Citadel built in thirteenth century. In Hinduism, a deva is a demigod or minor deity, such as Agni, Indra, Soma, and Ushas. According to Hindu mythology, the devas are opposed to the Asuras. The conflict, between devas and asuras, causes the eternal churning of the "Cosmic Milk" upon which all Creation "floats". See also: Mahadeva, Ishvar, Listing of Hindu deities. The In Zoroastrianism, a deva is an evil spirit..
Demonology - demonology seem to be compiled for the assistance of those who would invoke evil spirits, containing instructions on how to summon them and (hopefully) bend them to the conjuror's will. The grimoires of occult magic are the tomes that contain the lore of this version of demonology. The existence of a malevolent supernatural personality who works to thwart the will of a good God is a central tenet of both Christianity and Islam. These faiths, in turn, derive the Satan or Shaitan figure from Judaism. It is generally accepted among scholars that Judaism received the concept from Zoroastrianism, wherein a good god known as Ahura Mazda is engaged in a cosmic battle with an evil god known as Angra Mainyu. The New Testament explicitly affirms the existence of lesser adversary spirits,.
7th century BC - Asia Collapse of Susa, end of Elamite Empire Assyrians conquer Egypt (674 BC - 670 BC) Collapse of Nineveh, end of Assyria (612 BC) Japanese capital founded Zoroastrianism founded Significant persons: Thales of Miletus (c.625 BC - c.546 BC) Sappho of Lesbos Zarathushtra Inventions, Discoveries, Introductions First coins used by Lydians Iron allegedly discovered in China.
Ahura Mazda - Ormus, Ohrmizd) - The Wise Lord - is a god of the Zoroastrianism religion in Persia. He is revered and worshipped by Zoroastrians as the good god. He is opposed by Angra Mainyu (Ahriman), who according to some traditions is his twin brother. According to Zoroastrianism, the Earth was created by Ahura Mazda as a battlefield to fight Angra Mainyu. Atar, Ahura Mazda's son, battled Azhi Dahaka, the great dragon of the sky, and bound it in chains on a high mountain. The dragon was, however, destined to escape and destroy a third of mankind at the final reckoning, before it was slain..
Also sprach Zarathustra - it has most usually been printed as a single volume. It chronicles the wanderings and teachings of a philosopher, self-named Zarathustra after the founder of Zoroastrianism in ancient Persia. It uses a poetic, fictional form, often satirizing the New Testament, to explore many of Nietzsche's ideas. Central to Zarathustra is the notion that human beings are a transitional form between apes and what Nietzsche called the Übermensch, literally "Over-person," usually translated as "Overman." The name is one of the many puns in the book and refers most clearly to the image of the sun coming over the horizon at dawn as well as the basic notion of overcoming. Largely episodic, the stories in Zarathustra can be read in any order. Zarathustra contains the famous statement, "God is dead." Also sprach Zarathustra.
Al-Mahdi - or departments, for the army, the chancery, and taxation. Qadis or judges were appointed, and laws against non-Arabs were dropped. The Barmakid family staffed these new departments. The Barmakids, of Persian extraction, had originally been Buddhists, but shortly before the arrival of the Arabs, they had converted to Zoroastrianism. Their short-lived Islamic legacy would count against them during the reign of Haroun al-Rashid. The Barmakids introduced paper from India, which had not yet been used in the west - the Arabs and Persians used papyrus, and the Europeans used vellum. The paper industry boomed in Baghdad where an entire street in the city center became devoted to sales of paper and books. The cheapness and durability of paper was vital to the efficient growth of the expanding Abbasid bureaucracy. al-Mahdi had.
