Why is Zoroastrianism under-represented on Iranian.com?

Why is Zoroastrianism under-represented on Iranian.com?
by Aryana-Vaeja
12-Sep-2010
 
If a casual, non-Iranian observer were to stroll into this site and attempt to gauge a perspective on Iranian religions they would quickly form the mistaken impression that after Islam the only other Iranian religion being practiced amongst Iranians was Bahaism. Yet besides Islam or Bahaism Iran has a rich tapestry of various religious views and practices that are neither Islamic nor Baha'i. Zoroastrianism is where Iran and Iranians maintain their historical roots of religious views and practices. But barely is this ancient creed mentioned here. There are countless postings by Bahais promoting their product (only recently less than usual) but barely by the Zoroastrian community talking about themselves. In the interests of balance can longstanding members of the Zoroastrian community kindly step forward and share their perspective and experience. They are the only true  ancient Iranian religion of present minority capacity and their views on Iran's past and future should matter more than any other of the various religious minorities here.
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Aryana-Vaeja

Thank you, Javaneh

by Aryana-Vaeja on

These are by no means principles that are contemporary. Arguably they are articulated already by Asha Zarathushtra within the Gathas and they have been principles practiced by Zoroastrians from time immemorial since they constitute hu-dini (orthopraxy).

Equality of all human beings regardless of race and religion means that whether someone belong to a majority organization/creed, a   minority one or are a lone practitioner, they are equal. 

Condemnation of oppression entails condemnation of all oppression and tyranny and not privileging one form of oppression over another or even engaging in oppression in the name of condemning oppression.

Hard work and charity means you help those who are truly needy and destitute in the world and not spend billions of dollars on constructing meglomaniacal architecture without spending a dime on charity while claiming you work hard and give to charity merely because you organize conferences in fancy North American hotels and talk about it. Talk is not hard work and charity. Hard work and charity is exactly what it says it is.

-

May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth - Yasna XXX 9


nadeem khan

Thank you Javaneh

by nadeem khan on

That are the beautiful charecteristics of Zoroastrians, I believe that. But none of the these are found in the Baha'i Faith(?)

May be you can find this interesting.

//bahaism.blogspot.com/2010/04/duplicity-and-...

God bless you.


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by Shepesh on

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i am a bahai too

Wonderful, Javaneh!

by i am a bahai too on

Wonderful, Javaneh!


javaneh29

My contribution to this post

by javaneh29 on

Todays zoroastrians strive to maintain several principles. These are just a few that I think are relevent to this discussion. 

  • Equality of all human beings in all things, regardless of race or religion and
  • condemnation of oppression
  • Hard work and charity

Aryana-Vaeja

Only a dyed in the wool...

by Aryana-Vaeja on

Bahai cultist calls Fred Glaysher a moron. With everything you say you reveal yourself for what I say you are, a lying and dissimulating Bahai.

Fanatics are you Bahais who have a problem with the freedom and self-expression of other people and other creeds who see right through the racket of your hollow pretensions and aren't afraid to tell you what they think of you to your collective faces. You only want servile dupes and yes-men to kiss your backsides and uncritically rehearse your shameful fictions. It doesn't work like that, and even the Zoroastrians - the practitioners of the only true Iranian faith - are willing to tell you that.

If you think nobody cares, in the future don't read or post to my blogs proving you bahais do.

-
May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth
- Zoroastrian prayer


default

Last resort is always the same

by Shepesh on

Now copying and pasting some moron called Glaysher. Well ofcourse that must seal your argument for acting like a fanatic. Good luck to you.


Aryana-Vaeja

You are full of crap. You are a Bahai

by Aryana-Vaeja on

BAHAI Tactics & Techniques
//www.fglaysher.com/bahaicensorship/


"Slanderous Vilification" = The Baha'i Technique - Ad Hominem, Libel,
Slander, Demonize, Scapegoat, Ostracize, Shun, Banish, Backbite, Defame,
Vilify, Discredit, Smear, Revile, Suppress, Attack, Bully, Intimidate,
Threaten, Malign, Blackball, Deceive, Coerce, Silence, Harass... etc.,
etc.... CAUTION NON-BAHAIS

1. As far as possible they hold back from responding
2. Then they claim no knowledge of the given issue by feigning ignorance
3. After the exposer has exposed they will try to divert to secondary and totally peripheral and irrelevent side-issues
4. The exposer is then painted as someone with an axe to grind, biased, deluded (while they, the bahaim, still have not responded to the main issue exposed)
5. Next they relate mental instability and insanity to the exposer, i.e. shoot the messenger
***6. Then, the last tactic, is to wheel out several dubious personas on the scene who claim to be neutral non-bahai observers who then begin attacking the exposer as well as the issue exposed while supporting the bahais and their issues as so-called non-bahais**** - If you don't care, don't read or post to these blogs. This blog  specifically was meant for Zoroastrians not bahaim.

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Who cares?

by Shepesh on

Only you. And by the way, I as a Muslim do not "hate" bahais and do not know anyone else that does either. Lets hope there are still decent people in this world that care about Human Rights first, irrespective of colour, religion etc. You can also copy and paste what Islamists say abut Bahais, but that does make what they say right. And do we have the other side of the story, the bahai that this person is referring to - what he has to say? Ofcourse not.

I do not care WHICH minority gets more exposure anywhere as that is not the issue for Iranians who want positive change. The only reason you care is that you are competitive and care about your own beliefs over the Human Rights of others. That is what you have displayed here on IC. So whatever religion you are posing as today does not change the fact that you are a flawed individual. Perhaps get a job and some interests that steer you away from your obsession about Religion.


Aryana-Vaeja

The cheek is all yours

by Aryana-Vaeja on

And I can speak on behalf of whatever and whoever I wish without seeking permission from agents of the Bahai Internet Agency as to what I do or who I speak for. Dastur Dhalla's opinion of the Baha'is is published on an official Zoroastrian site. It is not hearsay because it is the general view that both the Parsi community as well as the Iranian Zoroastrians hold of you Baha'is. Face it, the Zoroastrians do not like you people and rightfully consider your creed a made-up, opportunistic cult.

And this attitude described by the Dastur has been in conspicuous exhibition on IC towards everyone of all other faiths. You are dangerous cultist bigots the Zoroastrians have known about for a long time:

"He could not tolerate my praises of the Zoroastrian faith."

Baha'is can not tolerate no one other than themselves or those who act like servile dupes to them. This is a Zoroastrian dastur saying this. Not some two-bit Muslim cleric.

-

May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth - Zoroastrian prayer


default

You really have a cheek

by Shepesh on

Posting hearsay and individual opinions we are supposed to believe. So what? Everyone has an opinion and they certainly do not go round attacking or putting down other peoples beliefs on the internet. Peoples religion is their own business and it is not for your to judge.

Your rubbish says .... "Hearing my words he attacked me with missionary fanaticism."

Is that not what you have been doing to Bahais all along here on IC through use of multiple IDs? Bahais here have been forced to defend themselves from your attacks, and I do not blame them at all for mocking you. You have printed lies about their situation in Iran on your website which displays the unpleasant motives you have about their Human Rights. 

Even your blog about Zoroastrianism here has spiteful attacks on Bahais. You are projecting all your wrong doings on people who you have been attacking. Why could you not leave out vicious remarks about Bahais from your blog about Zoroastrians? Somewhere else I read you claim Zoroastrians hate Bahais - this is a lie. Now you are projecting your own feelings on Zoroastrians. You are not their elected representative anywhere.


Aryana-Vaeja

Perhaps I am Dastur Dhalla as well

by Aryana-Vaeja on


//www.avesta.org/dhalla/saga.htm

"Bahai businessmen have spent many years in Bombay and Poona, hence they
are well-acquainted with the Parsi community. From the moment this
gentleman knew that I was going to Am...erica
at the expense of the community for further studies in Iranian
languages, he began to persuade me that I would find nothing new in
America and that it was a folly to spend so much money and labour on
advanced studies of these dead languages. He stated that Zarathushtra
had promised that a Soshyost would come. True to the prophecy the
Soshyant had already arrived and he was Bahaullah himself, the
founder of the Bahai faith. The headquarters of the Bahais was at Acca
and he was on his way there. He expressed a desire to take me there
along with him and volunteered to introduce me to Abbas Effendi, the
head of their sect. True light would come to me only in Acca and to go
to America instead was a sheer waste of money. Bahaism was God's newest
religion and his last and final prophet was Bahaulla. We had lengthy
discussions on the topic. He could not tolerate my praises of the
Zoroastrian faith. Daily three or four hours would pass in such
arguments. In jest I told him that I would visit Acca on my return
voyage. He informed me that life was short and unpredictable. Should
some untoward incident occur and I were to die, God would not forgive me
for not having taken advantage of the opportunity of following the new
light when it had come so close to me and for procrastinating it to a
future day. Being acquainted with the Bahai religion I told him that it
did not teach anything more than what the Zoroastrian faith teaches. My
religion was dear to me and I held it in higher esteem than Bahaism or
any other religion in the world. Hearing my words he attacked me with
missionary fanaticism. After that, communication between us ceased."


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Let him talk to and agree with himself

by Shepesh on

Aryana-Vaeja = Nadeem Khan etc...........

With his many IDs he will never be alone .


Aryana-Vaeja

ای کوته آستینان تا کی دراز دستی

Aryana-Vaeja


This mesra' from Hafez says it all. Thanks Nadeem for finding that gem of a quote from the Zoroastrian site. That is a view shared by countless Zoroastrians.

-

May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth - Zoroastrian prayer


i am a bahai too

okay nadeem khan

by i am a bahai too on

Okay nadeem khan. You can have this thread now. Have a good conversation! Be good! cheers! Have a nice day!

 


nadeem khan

For Agent IABT

by nadeem khan on

Dreading the oppression of the Muslim Mullahs of Iran, the Bahais carried on their work clandestinely in the beginning. They could not construct public places of worship. Practising of the faith and even conversion when the occasion presented itself, were conducted behind closed doors. For generations our community had been disgruntled by the persecution of the mullahs. We had been rebuffed, repudiated and rejected. At such a stage of existence the Bahais welcomed us with open arms. They invited us to dine with them. This was something to gladden the hearts of our unfortunate co-religionists in their homeland, Iran. They were naturally drawn towards the Bahais. The shrewd Bahais played upon their religious sentiments and deluded the ignorant Zoroastrians that the prophecy in their scriptures that Shah Behram Varjavand would come one day has been fulfilled, for Bahaullah himself was Shah Behram Varjavand.
In some of the unauthentic Pazand and Pahlavi books written after we lost our kingdom, it has been foretold that Shah Behram Varjavand of Kyanian lineage will come some day. At the age of thirty he will raise an army of Hindus and Chinese and attack Iran and conquer it and will reinstate a Zoroastrian regime in Iran.
It is understandable that uneducated Zoroastrians of Iran, fifty or sixty years ago, believed these fictitious fairy tales; but for highly qualified and cultured Parsis of India to gulp down such fantastic stories today is truly regrettable.

More here :

//www.avesta.org/dhalla/saga.htm


i am a bahai too

Zarthoshti Janam

by i am a bahai too on

Sorry that you didn't understand. Here a suggestion for this thread:

 

ZOROASTERIAN RELIGION

Place of Origin
Persia (modern day Iran), somewhere between 1500 and 1000 BCE.

Founder / Central Figure
Zarathushtra (Zoroaster in Greek; Zarthosht in India and Persia)

Sacred Writings
"The Zorastrian holy book is called the Avesta. This includes the original words of their founder Zarathushtra, preserved in a series of five hymns, called the Gathas. The latter represent the core text of the religion. The Gathas are abstract sacred poetry, directed towards the worship of the One God, understanding of righteousness and cosmic order, promotion of social justice and individual choice between good and evil. The Gathas have a general and even universal vision.

"At some later date (most scholars say many centuries later), the remaining parts of the Avestas were written. These deal with laws of ritual and practice, with the traditions of the faith. The Zoroastrian community is sharply divided between those who would follow mostly (or exclusively) the teachings of the original Gathas, and those who believe that the later traditions are important and equally divinely inspired."
--Religious Tolerance.org

Sacred Language
Need text for this section.

Core Beliefs / Values / Ethical Teachings
"[Zoroastrians believe in] a single god (Ahura Mazda) who is supreme [and is represented in symbolic form by fire]. Communication between Himself and humans is by a number of Attributes, called Amesha Spentas or Bounteous Immortals. Within the Gathas, the original Zoroastrian sacred text, these Immortals are sometimes described as concepts, and are sometimes personified.

"[Another central element to Zoroastrianism is the dualism between good and evil. This may take the form of a literal cosmic dualism, between the] all powerful God Ahura Mazda and an evil spirit of evil spirit of violence and death, Angra Mainyu, who opposes Ahura Mazda. The resulting cosmic conflict involves the entire universe, including humanity who is required to choose which to follow. Evil, and the Spirit of Evil, will be completely destroyed at the end of time. Dualism will come to an end and Goodness will be all in all. Another school of thought perceives the battle between Good and Evil as an ethical dualism, set within the human consciousness."
--Religious Tolerance.org

Much has been made in scholarly circles of the influence of Zoroastrianism on the later development of Judaism and Chrisitanity. Zoroastrianism is thought by some to be the first monotheistic faith, even before Judaism, and Zoroastrian ideas on good and evil, heaven and hell, are similar to later Christian doctrine. Zoroastrians also believe that a Saoshyant (savior) will come to earth to raise the dead and judge the earth's inhabitants in a final judgement. This savior figure, according to Zoroastrian thought, will be in the lineage of Zoroaster, but will be born of a virgin.

View of Humanity
"Zoroastrians believe that Ahura Mazda created humans as allies in the cosmic struggle against evil and that humanity will be resurrected and granted immortality once evil has been defeated. They further view the material world as a trap into which evil has been lured and in which evil will undergo defeat by divinities and humans working together. Zoroastrianism preaches that when someone dies his or her soul undergoes individual judgment based on actions while alive. If the soul’s good deeds are greater than its evil deeds, it enters paradise. If the soul’s evil deeds outweigh the good done while alive, it is cast into hell to await the day of universal judgment. In cases where a soul’s good deeds equal its evil deeds, it is consigned to limbo."
--Jamsheed K. Choksy, entry on Zoroastrianism in MSN Encarta

Exclusivist, Inclusivist or Pluralist? - Pluralist
While Zoroastrians believe that Zarathustra brought a universe message applicable to all humankind, Zoroastrians also respect the validity of other religions as paths to truth. Zoroastrianism is not a missionary religion; in fact, traditionally it has been against religious law to accept converts to the faith, and intermarriage with persons of other faiths was prohibited. These laws are becoming increasingly unfeasible, and many modern-day Zoroastrians are concerned that if these practices do not change, the Zoroastrian faith could be in danger of dying along with its followers. Consequently, there are efforts among some Zoroastrians to increase acceptance of converts to ensure the religion's survival.

For more information...
Note: These are third party links provided for informational purposes only. Their listing here does not assume our support of the content. If you have any questions, please contact us. www.zoroastrianism.cc Entry on Zoroastrianism in MSN Encarta... //encarta.msn.com/text_761558789__1/Zoroastrianism.html The Zarathushtrian Assembly...
www.zoroastrian.org
www.zarathushtra.com Interfaith Dictionary

nadeem khan

Nice Mumbo-Jumbo

by nadeem khan on

Thank you.


i am a bahai too

Hear no evil,and see no evil, abase not thyself

by i am a bahai too on

O COMPANION OF MY THRONE!   Hear no evil, and see no evil, abase not thyself, neither sigh and weep. Speak no evil, that thou mayest not hear it spoken unto thee, and magnify not the faults of others that thine own faults may not appear great; and wish not the abasement of anyone, that thine own abasement be not exposed. Live then the days of thy life, that are less than a fleeting moment, with thy mind stainless, thy heart unsullied, thy thoughts pure, and thy nature sanctified, so that, free and content, thou mayest put away this mortal frame, and repair unto the mystic paradise and abide in the eternal kingdom for evermore.   - Baha'u'llah  

nadeem khan

And stop speaking on behalf of IC readers...

by nadeem khan on

Please


nadeem khan

Agent IABT (Pure Soul) for you - Select your Group

by nadeem khan on

Currently, the Baha'is think of humanity as being divided into a few official groups or castes. I have organized them in a list from "best" to "worst" based on how many rights they would have in a future Baha'i world order:

1. Baha'i in good standing
2. Baha'i with administrative rights removed
3. non-Baha'i
4. Covenant-breaker

If you include more subtle gradations, which may possibly acquire a greater degree of official status in the future, the list would look like this:

1. Baha'i in good standing, active
2. Baha'i in good standing, inactive
3. Baha'i with some administrative rights removed
4. Baha'i with all administrative rights removed (Feast attendance, voting, eligibility for election, contribution to Funds, contribution to Huququ'llah, plus anything I'm forgetting to mention)
5. non-Baha'i (never been a Baha'i)
6. ex-Baha'i, left voluntarily (not an opponent)
7. ex-Baha'i, membership revoked/expelled by UHJ (not an opponent)
8. opponent or enemy of the faith, non-Baha'i
9. opponent or enemy of the faith, ex-Baha'i
10. child or grandchild of Covenant-breaker, not practicing in Covenant-breaker organization
11. Covenant-breaker, not officially declared by UHJ but member of Covenant-breaker organization
12. Covenant-breaker, officially declared by UHJ

Groups 10-12 constitute the Baha'i version of the "untouchable caste." Groups 4-12 (the vast majority of categories) would not have the right to vote in elections for the highest governmental positions, i.e. the Baha'i Houses of Justice that would have final authority at the local, national, and international levels.

How's that for unity of all people, huh?


i am a bahai too

Gladden My Spirit

by i am a bahai too on

Poor soul, Aryana. You will probably will babble on about the Baha'i Faith to your last breath.

Wish you could have a happier persona, though, Truly do. The way to effectively "undermine" something is not aacomplished by being so cringingly negative, so accusatory, so epithetical. It is like sounding a one note bell over and over. Plus you insult the intellect of the rather sophisticated readers here.

Here is something for you:

O God!  Refresh and gladden my spirit.  Purify my heart.  Illumine my powers.  I lay all my affairs in Thy hand.  Thou art my Guide and my Refuge.  I will no longer be sorrowful and grieved; I will be a happy and joyful being.  O God!  I will no longer be full of anxiety, nor will I let trouble harass me.  I will not dwell on the unpleasant things of life.

O God!  Thou art more friend to me than I am to myself.  I dedicate myself to Thee, O Lord.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá

Aryana-Vaeja

Zarathushtra

by Aryana-Vaeja on

Not Zoroaster. Only those under the influence of European colonialist discourses and thinking still use the form Zoroaster. It is Zarathushtra and it is customary to use the honorific Asha before the utterance of His name.

And prophet in Avestan is Vakshur. One amongst the recent vakshuran many Zoroastrians consider was the mobed-dastur Azar Kayvan. Azar Kayvan had many disciples from countless religions and sects, and he did not insist they change their religion or convert to his Zoroastrian faith in order to become his disciples. He was a true universalist without the kind of empty and hollow pretension to universalism some only pretended to. As such Azar Kayvan has more a claim to being a Light of Iran than Husayn 'Ali Nuri who is only darkness.

-

May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth - Zoroastrian prayer


i am a bahai too

Beloved Prophet

by i am a bahai too on

I will literally weep into my tea dear Aryana-joon, if indeed you actually consent to impart something about the Great Zoroaster. It would make my morning, my entire week.

Please start right away! I will delay imparting any more secrets if you actaully would just discuss this Beloved Prophet.


Aryana-Vaeja

Also note

by Aryana-Vaeja on

How these Bahais cannot help themselves in hijacking even a discussion about Zoroastrianism. They must assert themselves even here. This is one of the many feature characteristics of the Bahais that drives Zoroastrians up the wall about these people.

-

May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth - Zoroastrian prayer


Aryana-Vaeja

Manekji was not a bahai

by Aryana-Vaeja on

Dear Nadeem

The Baha'is have made all kinds of wild claims about Zoroastrians. For example, they claim the prominent 19th century Parsi mercantile agent Manekji Limji Hataraya to have been a convert. He also corresponded with Husayn 'Ali Nuri. Yet the descendents of Manekji and the Parsi Zoroastrian community swear the Baha'is are lying and can prove Manekji was not a Bahai convert with documentation. One Iranian Zoroastrian recently remarked to me on facebook that Manekji considered Husayn 'Ali Nuri's claims to him to be Shah Bahram Varjavand to be nothing but hot air (his words). Manekji merely pursued a lucrative mercantile business relationship with these people, and nothing more, but was not a convert. The Baha'is have claimed Manekji in order to give themselves legitimacy but it is a false association among many others.

Don't pay any heed to the McCarthyist accusations of these BIA terrorists on IC here. Calling someone Islamist is just a  labeling scare tactic of these fascists. I defy (nay, challenge) these fascists to come and make such an accusation amongst the Iranian Zoroastrians I talk to publicly and see how far they get.

Bahai CULT FAQ

-

May we be amongst those who are to bring about the transfiguration of the Earth - Zoroastrian prayer


i am a bahai too

MORE & MORE BAHA'I SECRETS

by i am a bahai too on

me, too:

What We Believe House of Worship

BTW, successful enmity for modern hate mongering requires a more elevated approach than the one you are been taking. May I advise not using one-syllable epithets and your other more rudimentary forms of hate speech? The audience here at IC is pretty sophisticated. They will get bored with your uninspired accusations and I will have nothing to report to my vast network. My dentist is difficult to please.  Plus your site really looks like a self-satisfying joke, a sort of one-off; but do carry on, you are doing fabulous work convincing the multitude that is your very self.   

BIA Agent One, over and out, having tea with my vast network. Oooh careful, Kitty! What luck! v Agent Two has just arrived to take a meter reading!

 

Sorry you can't join us!

Roozbeh_Gilani

Why are Islamist regime's agents are over represented

by Roozbeh_Gilani on

On this site!

And why do they poke their nose into any discussion? I mean look at this blog, I bet you can spot at least one of them.

Sometimes reading this site, I think i am looking at the pages of the filthy islamist rag "Kayhan". 


nadeem khan

Thank you.. I have one more

by nadeem khan on


i am a bahai too

GET YOUR BAHA'I SECRETS HERE!!!

by i am a bahai too on

Here they are! See this list for Baha'is secrets, if thisisisn't enough, we have more!!

Agent One, Over and Out!