Fighting Words: Religion, Violence, and the Interpretation of Sacred Texts

7. Justifiable Force and Holy War in Zoroastrianism

158 7 Justifiable Force and Holy War in Zoroastrianism Jamsheed K. Choksy Preliminary Observations There are numerous past and present scholarly debates over interpretations of theological, ritual, and philological issues in the Zoroastrian Avesta, or scriptures, and its Zand, or priestly commentaries. However, unlike for example the raging discussions over the Muslim pillar of faith known as jihād, scholars of the ancient Iranianreligionnamed Zoroastrianism, afteritsfounderZarathushtra,haverarely broached the issues of just and unjust violence and of holy and sacrilegious war. Combat when examined both by the faith’s practitioners and by scholars is largely understood in terms of theodicy and eschatology linked to the human condition. Many individuals who inquire into the workings of faith while aware of Zoroastrianism ’s fabled status in the history of religions actually know few specifics; and the same holds for most general readers. Therefore, broader details of Zoroastrianism ’s history, beliefs, and practices need to be discussed since those are relevant to this inquiry into religion, violence, and the interpretation of sacred texts. Historical Contexts Each Zoroastrian customarily refers to himself or herself as a Mazda-worshipper (Avestan: Mazda-Yasna, Middle Persian: Māzdēsn, Gujarati: Mazda-Yasnī) becausethereligion ’screatordeityorgodisAhuraMazda.DesignationssuchasZoro­ astrian (Middle Persian: Zarduxshtīg, New Persian: Zardoshti, Gujarati: Zarathushtri )andMagian(Arabic:Majūs)arebasedonthefaith’sfounder,Zarathushtra, and the male clergy or magi. Zoroastrianism’s basic doctrines are traced back to Zoroastrianism    159 a devotional poet named Zarathushtra, who much later was called Zoroaster by the classical Greeks. Zarathushtra’s time and place of ministry are uncertain. Most likely, he lived sometime between the eighteenth and sixteenth centuries b.c.e., during the late Bronze Age. Most probably, he preached somewhere in Central Asia. His words gradually drew followers and, around 1500 b.c.e., after the ProtoIranians began migrating to the land that gained its name—namely Iran—from them, Zarathushtra’s hagiography was modified to depict him as the prophet of ancient Iran and a major religious founder. From among the newly resettled Iranian tribes, first the Medes (673–550 b.c.e.) and then the Achaemenid clan of the Persians (550–331 b.c.e.) founded empires that at their zenith extended from Egypt and Turkey to the Indus River Valley. After the reign of Darayavahush or Darius I (522–486 b.c.e.), Zoroastrianism was clearly the official faith of Iran, although other religions were freely practiced as well. Conflict between Iranians and Greeks eventually resulted in the GrecoMacedonian conquest, led by Alexander in 334–31 b.c.e., and the Seleucid kingdom (312–238 b.c.e.), both cast by the magi as evil, confused periods. Iranian rule and Zoroastrianism as the official religion were reestablished in the region from the Euphrates River to western Central Asia under the Parthian Kingdom (247 b.c.e.– 224 c.e.) and then the Sasanian (224–651 c.e.) Empire. Arab Muslims conquered Iran in the seventh century c.e., and Zoroastrianism gradually became a minority faith through conversion to Islam between that time and the thirteenth century c.e. In the tenth century c.e., a few Zoroastrians emigrated from Iran to the Indian subcontinent to freely practice their own religion. Their descendants are called Persians or Parsis (Sanskrit: Pārsika, Gujarati: Pārsi) byotherIndians.Althoughaverysmallminorityindemographicterms,ParsiZoro­ astrians spread throughout the Indian subcontinent in the centuries after, contributing to culture, politics, and economy. They also survived in Iran, again in small numbers.1 Since the eighteenth century c.e. onward, Zoroastrians have migrated to other countries as well and now form a worldwide community of approximately 120,000–200,000 individuals.2 Terms, Texts, and Combat Theology Zoroastrian scripture postulates a universal battle at both the spiritual and the corporeal levels between two eternal principles: asha (Avestan) or order (Old Persian: arta, Middle Persian: ardā, New Persian: ord, Gujarati: asha), which is equated to righteousness, truth, good, right, and holy; and drug (Avestan) or confusion (Old Persian: drauga, Middle Persian: drō, druj, New Persian: doruq, Gujarati: drug), which is equated to evil, lying, bad, wrong, and the profane. War or ardīg (Middle Persian) is considered an appropriate means of striving, struggling , and fighting (Middle Persian: kōxshishnīg, kōshishnīg) against all forms of 160    Jamsheed K. Choksy evil during the period, known as the time of the long dominion (Middle Persian: zamān ī dagrand-xwadāy), when order...