Zarathustra
The Founder of Zoroastrianism
Thousands of years ago, the transition from polytheism to monotheism happened by way of henotheism. In line with this, as religiosity and spirituality evolved for generations on end, in certain parts of the world the gods and goddesses of polytheism became the angels and demons of monotheism, and the Supreme Being took on the form of God counterbalanced by the Devil. This highly significant paradigm shift in spiritual consciousness took place with the first prophet, Zarathustra, also known as Zoroaster. Two millennia later, this was then mirrored in many ways during the life of the last prophet, Muhammad. To put that in context, modern Eastern religion began in India with Krishna in the 31st century BCE, but modern Western religion didn’t begin until much later with Zarathustra in the 16th century BCE.
As far as I can tell, modern Middle Eastern monotheism began around three thousand six hundred years ago when the original prophet lived in the northern mountains of what is now Iran. He was said to have been born in a place called Airyanem Vaejah. Presumably, the chronology of his life worked out this way. At the age of only 7, Zarathustra began his training for the priesthood as a polytheist. As part of this, he became a highly proficient astrologer. Years later, he became a priest at the age of 15. Following this, Zarathustra gained knowledge from other teachers and personal experience from traveling when he left his parents at the age of 20. A decade later, at the age of 30, Zarathustra finally experienced his first theophany during a spring festival. After that, he went on to become the most important Magi in the history of the world.
While standing on a sacred riverbank, under the influence of a mysterious psychedelic sacrament known as Haoma, the prophet Zarathustra saw a shining being, who revealed himself as Vohu Manah, meaning “Good Purpose”. According to legend, Vohu Manah told Zarathustra about the Creator God Ahura Mazda, meaning “Wise Lord” and five other radiant ones. Over time, the original monotheistic prophet also warned people about the Devil, Angra Mainyu , meaning “Destructive Spirit”. The great and powerful Magi Zarathustra then received further revelations and he saw a vision of the seven Amesha Spenta. At that point, Zarathustra decided to spend his life preaching Asha, meaning “Truth”. As such, his teachings were collected in the Gathas and the Avesta, which are filled with quotes like this:
In the beginning there were two primal spirits,
Twins spontaneously active,
These are the Good and the Evil, in thought, and in word, and in deed.
Between these two, let the wise choose aright.
Be good, not base!
As one might suspect, after receiving his divine revelations, Zarathustra became a radical religious reformer who taught the Zoroastrians that everyone will be judged, that there is a struggle between the forces of good and evil, and that there will be a great war between God and the Devil during the apocalypse at the end of time. In line with this, the great ethicist and eschatologist Zarathustra spoke of the Lord’s divine commands and the wicked sins that oppose them. According to traditional Zoroastrianism, Asha is the righteousness of Ahura Mazda, while Druj is the wickedness of Angra Mainyu. Philosophically, this equated good, right, and true in opposition to evil, wrong, and false. The moral notion of “divine command theory” was later confirmed in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, even though Zarathustra’s teachings were lost on the Sadducees.
One of the most influential teachings of Zarathustra was that of a coming Messiah. He used astrology to predict that on August 22nd of 7 BCE, when every planet would be in its own sign, the savior of the world would be born. This was the year that there was a triple conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in Pisces. More to the point, Jupiter signified kingship, Saturn signified the Israelites, and Pisces signified Judea, thus heralding the arrival of the “King of the Jews”. This is why countless Magi were scouring the land of Judea for a special child around the time of the birth of Christ. In line with this, the notion of a savior was embraced by Moses in the 13th century BCE, and again by Jesus in the 1st century CE. However, the concept of a “Messiah” was eventually rejected by Muhammad in the 7th century CE.
Either way, the point is that, back in the 16th century BCE, the late great Zarathustra was murdered by a spiteful daivic priest who wanted to preserve the classical pantheon of deities that he was raised to worship. Thus, the first prophet died when he was 77 years and 40 days old, but his spirit still lives on, although just barely. The Zoroastrians are being replaced by the Muslims who will soon have a mosque on Mars, as well as every corner of the Earth. Regardless, Zoroastrianism remained the official religion of the Persian Empire, from the 6th century BCE to the 7th century CE. Unfortunately for their descendants, based on their strict religious practices, Zoroastrians will soon become a thing of the past, as Ahura Mazda becomes replaced by Allah more and more. To make matters worse, since a Zoroastrian has to be born into their faith and they don’t marry outside of it, not long from now, the followers of Zarathustra will all be dead and gone…just like him.
