In Search of Zarathustra : The First Prophet and the Ideas That Changed the World

Rating:
Summary: Paul Kriwaczek's joureny is a tantalizing tale
Review: "in search of Zarathustra" is a fascinating tale of author's search for Zarathustra's influence in Judeo-Christianity religion. Without falling into academic endless debates and tiring arguments, Mr. Kriwaczek provides tangible and meaningful evidence backed by history, records and visible signs.
What I found most engaging in PK's book was his journey and how it pulls you in with every chapter and every passage only to reach a most wonderful climax at the end.
Zarathustra lived more than three thousand years ago and his followers are a few by today's standards. However the power of his message is in its simplicity and profoundness. How much more does one need to know or remember than to take side with the good and fight evil in this world, to practice good thought, good words and good deed? Perhaps the simplicity of this everlasting message is what is most powerful about it.


Rating:
Summary: A Very Serious Work
Review: I am Achaemanish and I come from a long line of Zoroastrian High Priests who belong to the original Qadmi sect. Paul Kriwaczek has done a very thorough job in presenting my faith, devoid of any "My faith - right or wrong" obstinacy. The fact that he's a Jew -and I do not mean that in a derogative sense - he's probably the only one of his faith who freely recognizes the fact that Judaism, Islam and Christianity have borrowed their basic tenets from Zoroastrianism. It is very apparent that he loves Zarathustra, in spite of the fact that the Prophet preached his faith to the original Aryan race. It takes a very fine sense of clarity and objectivity to present such unbiased research. But then, his love for Zarathustra must transcend such mundane considerations. And I thank him for that. "Zarathustra Passed me By" is simply poetic. All "shaven headed" individuals who extol the "Aryan Brotherhood" should pay heed to the passage in the book which rightly identifies the origin of the true Aryan race to be in Bactria/Bamian and the "split" which caused some Aryans to migrate West into Iran and those still holding to their beliefs in mutiple god-heads to migrate south into India. This book is a true eye-opener.

Rating:
Summary: Diverting but uneven, overly speculative account
Review: In his journalistic account of the religion of Zarathustra (also known as Zoroaster), author Paul Kriwaczek takes us on a journey back in time from the Iran of the ayatollahs to the ancient days of Persia's pre-Islamic glory. Along the way, we encounter Nietzsche's anti-Zarathustra, the 13th-century crusade against the Cathars, the religion of light preached by the 3rd-century prophet Mani, the mysteries of Mithras in Roman Britain, the Zoroastrian apocalypse and its influence on the Hebrew Bible, and the religion of Ahura Mazda (the ancient Persian name for God) in the days of Cyrus the Great, Darius and Alexander.

There is much to recommend this book, especially to those with little or no prior knowledge of ancient Iran and the nature of its historical influence (even on the West). Kriwaczek is a good storyteller and the book is full of diverting anecdotes of his journey through central Asia in search of the "first prophet". Most rewarding are his discovery of Zoroastrian sun symbols in a mosque in Samarkand -- and the pretended ignorance of local Muslims when asked to explain its presence; his experience of Noruz (Zoroastrian New Year) celebrations in Teheran, including a meeting with a belated follower of Zarathustra who reveals the ironic hidden meaning of the Noruz "haft sin" (seven "S") table; and his account of a sort of Muslim passion play on Ashura, the Shi'ite day of mourning for Muhammad's grandson Hussein, which reveals an ongoing Zoroastrian influence on Shia Islam's conception of an eternal war between good and evil that will only end with the coming of a "messiah", whom they call the Mahdi or "hidden Imam".

The book also contains some wonderful little gems for trivia lovers, such as that the Old Testament figures of Esther and Mordecai are named for Babylonian gods (Ishtar and Marduk, respectively). Also enjoyable is his attention to such ephemera as a 1954 poem written on the occasion of an archaeological find in London that includes a truly delightful play on words ("and the bull dozes").

Unfortunately, Kriwaczek is no scholar and he is given to drawing often fantastic historical conclusions based on nothing more than pure speculation. Furthermore, he is a psychological reductionist who sees religion as nothing more than a psychological comfort and is far too literal-minded in his approach to understand the mythological wealth of the Gnostic tradition (so it is not surprising that he can only refer to their writings as "bewildering"). His chapter on the Cathars is so insensitive to non-materialist interpretive possibilities that I almost stopped reading. Still, I pressed on and would still recommend this book to anyone interested in the origins of the world's three great monotheistic religions -- Judaism, Christianity and Islam -- for they all owe a great debt to old Zarathustra.

Rating:
Summary: A Spiritual Journey
Review: In Search of Zarathustra is an uneven book in many respects. It is partly a travel diary of the author's many trips to Iran and Central Asia over a period of some forty years. The primary purpose of the book is to trace the legacy of the ancient Iranian religious leader Zarathustra or Zoroaster. This legacy is indeed fascinating, since it has had a major influence on the development of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Unfortunately Kriwaczek sometimes is more enthusiastic than thorough or organized, and the reader is forced to leap back and forth through time and space and can wind up a bit confused about which traditiona and which era is being discussed. Also, Kriwaczek's use of modern slang expressions can sometimes distract.

I enjoyed this book, regardless of the problems I noted above. I found the descriptions of modern day Shia Islam and its probable legacies from Zoroastrianism very illuminating, so that I have a better grasp of the differences between Sunni and Shia Islam. The descriptions of present day Iranians and their pre-Islamic religious traditions are also intriguing. I wish that Kriwaczek had spent more time on Mithraism and the Cathars and Bogomils, but what he did include was fascinating, too. That's the only real reservation I have about this book, it is simply too short to do justice to its subject.

Rating:
Summary: Not much about the man himself
Review: My belief when purchasing this book was to learn some of the teachings of Zarathustra. Instead, the reader is taken on a quasi modern tour of the middle east describing the repression of a population.

The most useful information I gathered from this book was that the religion today is not necessarily the religion it was in the time of the prophet himself.

There is very little, almost nothing, of the teachings of Zarathustra himself, and the author's "search" continues.

Rating:
Summary: Subjective speculative armchair academic work
Review: Sorry to say this book is NOT what you are looking for when it comes to Zarathustra and his great religion.

This author just writes about his travels in central asia and tries to connect Zarathustras ideas to anything dualistic that comes his way, in a typical european academic, but unconsiously pseudo superior way.

This book is a good pocket book to kill time, but not to enlighten the mind and break the silence on this high religion that is criminally neglected.

Praise the enlightened Zarathustra and the almighty Ahura Mazda (God)

Rating:
Summary: Good start for those wanting to learn more about Zoroaster
Review: This book does indeed go in search of Zarathustra, starting in the present and going backwards. Perhaps the real Zarathustra can never be found, for we see him through a host of shimmering filters, the last of which is Nietzsche, who composed his theme with decided variations just in the period in which this the most ancient of prophets was being resurrected by nineteenth century scholarship.
Backwards...Islam, the gnostic world, the Persian Exile, then...When did Zarathustra really live? We still don't know, and we should suspect that we still don't really understand the core of his message, since it is always cast in the key of what came later.
His teaching sprang from a world just recently separated linguistically from the Vedic, and it is interesting that 'deava' and its cognates crystallize on the one hand as 'god' and on the other as 'devil'. There you have it. Polytheism turning monotheism, and reaching by logical musical chairs to a duality. It is should be courteously pointed out that monotheism was never invented, for these reasons, as Nietzsche suspected, even as he went completely haywire.
One might also read N. Cohn's Cosmos and Chaos here, and the discussion of the 'Aryan combat myth'.
This book is nice, in search of Zarathustra indeed. Hits the spot. More should be known about this tradition. It is pervasive in disguise in all later monotheism and all the basic elements are Zoroastrian.

Rating:
Summary: hackwork
Review: This book is about the author and his biases, not about Zarathustra and his faith. Read the Avesta if you want to know, or read Boyce. Don't read these Brits and Europeans who "trek" around "discovering" things to make a quick pound or two.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful story of Zoroaster?s legacy
Review: This book is wide in scope and erudite. It is also a delight to read. The travels of the author in his search for the ancient prophet takes him to all corners of the ancient world. From Iran to Great Britain, Spain, the central Asian steppes, and to Germany with the philosophical legacy of the famous existentialist, Nietzsche. The manner in which Kriwaczek makes the topic relevant to all stages of history is fascinating. You will come away with a rich appreciation for the impact that this prophet had on history.

After his adult faith crisis, Nietzsche one day was "visited" by Zoroaster high up the mountains, when night became day, and one became two. You see, Zoroaster innovated strict ethical dualism, the separation of good from evil, and embodied these principles into two beings, constantly at war with each other, with mankind pitted in the middle and compelled to choose between the two. This separation, and its consequent morality was, to Nietzsche, one of the greatest travesties to have ever been invented. It enslaved mankind in a delusional game in which there was no winner, and he dedicated much of his writing to the liberation of mankind from the tangles of restrictive religion, which was doing far more harm than good. His writings became the basis for 20th century existentialism, postmodernism, deconstructionism, and Rorty's antirepresentationalism, oddly connecting Zoroastrianism to postmodern secular culture.

The Cathar heresy of Spain wherein pope Leo had thousands of its followers massacred, believed in two powers, two entities that were equals from eternity and were in battle with one another. This was not Catholic dualism, it was heresy, for it made Satan into God's equal. Individual's spirits would be passed on to the next generation if they had not reached the full maturity required of them. For these beliefs, they paid with their blood, after Leo's famous statement "Kill them all; God will know his own". Kriwaczek speculates on the possible source of their beliefs (unproven), the Hunnish Goths from the central Asian steppes, who passing through the Balkans may have passed on Manichaeism to the Cathars by way of historical tradition. Manichaeism, of course, began as a heretical sect within Zoroastrianism, and the ruler of Persia had Mani put to death. His followers did not abandon him or his Gnostic beliefs but adapted a new religious tradition out of them.

The chapter on Mithras is the least helpful, and considering the recent scholarship of Ulansey on Roman Mithraism, which calls into serious doubt any links to Persia at all, probably contains a lot of inaccurate speculation. Nonetheless, the description of the mysteries of the religion, and the stories of the Mithraeum controversy in post-war Britain are both interesting.

Alexander's conquest slowed the Zoroastrian faith for a time, and a period of syncretism followed for the prophet's faith in which many Greek ideas were incorporated. Biblical Daniel was the Hebrew most profoundly affected by Persian religion and incorporated its compelling ideas into Judaism. The belief in a final eschatological battle, the coming of a messiah, and the future resurrection of the dead were all originally Zoroastrian beliefs. The Qumran community of the Essenes were apocalyptic enthusiasts whose Dead Sea Scrolls reveal a tremendous amount of Zoroastrian influence.

Finally, we come to the first significant group of people influenced by these beliefs: the rulers of ancient Persia, with special attention on Cyrus and Darius. Both were committed Zoroastrians who spread their religion throughout their empire and who both have tombs still visited by tourists depicting the symbol of Ahura Mazda and other religious inscriptions.

The author points out the distinct character of Iranian Islam, and the traces of the ancient Zoroastrian traditions that are still part of Iranian practice and belief, if only unconsciously. The celebratation of Noruz, the Zoroastrian New Year, adapted for Islam. Depictions of Mithra, the Zoroastrian sun god, can still found in Iran. Shi'ite belief (centered in Iran and southern Iraq) in practice is very distinct from Sunni, with its belief in a hidden twelfth imam, who will appear at the end of time, destroy the forces of evil, and establish a kingdom of justice and righteousness. All of this, of course is evocative of the Zoroastrian Saoshyant, who would be miraculously conceived by a virgin in a lake preserving the prophet's semen, and accomplish the same act.

This work is not a profound work of scholarship, so be wary of drawing too many firm conclusions from it. But, it is a joy to read and can be done so in a short amount of time. It is lively and entirely engaging, highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: One of the best non-fiction books I've read in a long time
Review: This book is written by a lay man for lay people, which means whether or not you already know anything about Zoroastrianism or the Persian empire, you can enjoy this book just as much as the next person, although more scholastic knowledge might actually enhance your enjoyment of this book. This book is a good, fun read, written by a fine author who imbues it with his sense of fascination for the past and his love of learning about different cultures. That alone makes it worth reading because you also will learn about the past and present and different cultures from a book which is written in a fast, easy style. Still, I think the best feature is the admirable way in which the author demonstrates a link between a religion that is over 3000 years old and the religions of today. In the end, whether you believe his arguments or not, you will have learned something that will change your outlook on religion. Few books have that kind of impact, and I highly suggest you avail yourself of the opportunity to learn something.