I. THE ZEND AYESTA.
The Persians, properly speaking, had two Bibles, or Testaments,
regarded as inspired and of divine authority,--the _Zend Avesta_ and the
_Sadder_, which may be denominated their Old and New Testaments.
With these may be classed other sacred books of Persia, known as the
"Desatur" (or Revealed Will of God), the "_G. Javidan_" (or Eternal
Wisdom), and the "_Sophi Ibraham"_ (Wisdom of Ibraham). Hyde, in his
Biography of Brittain, eighth chapter, pronounces the _G. Javidan_ older
than the writings of Zoroaster, which were penned 600 B.C.
The Zend Avesta presents a detailed account of creation in six _kappas_,
or indefinite periods of time; the temptation and fall of man, and his
final restoration; the immortality of the soul, &c.
II. PERSIAN BIBLE--THE SADDER.
The Sadder depicts "the war in heaven," in which the great dragon, or
devil, Ahrimanes, is finally slain. This sacred book, as well as the
Zenda Avesta, contains many beautiful precepts. The Persian sacred
writings are all full of prayer and praise to God. One portion addresses
him as _Ormuzd_, another as _Ahura Mazda_. None of their Holy Books
countenance or show any favor either for idolatry or polytheism. The
Persians have alway's opposed the making and worship of deific images;
and they worship but one God, with the above names. One of their
prayers, as a specimen, will show this: "O Ahura Mazda, thou true and
happy being! aid us to think and speak of thee, and do only those things
which promote the true welfare of body and soul. I believe in thee as
the just and holy God, thou living Wise One! Thou art the author of
creation, the true source of light and life. I will praise thee, thou
Holy Spirit, thou glorious God Mazda! Thou givest with a liberal hand
good things to the impious, as well as to the pious." In that portion of
the Zenda Avesta called the "Yacna," constituting seven chapters, it
is declared, "We worship Ahura Mazda, and pray for the spread of his
religion. We praise Mazda's religion, and the pure brotherhood which it
established. From the Holy Spirit Mazda proceeds all good, and he is the
source of perfection and immortality." Here let it be noted that Cyrus
of Persia was teaching the doctrine of immortality of the soul, while
Moses seems never to have thought of such a thing: he is silent on the
subject. Zenda Avesta means "The Living Word of God." It has also been
called by its disciples "The Revealed Word;" and Ahura Mazda has been
called the "God of gods," as the Jews called Jehovah. Who is to settle
this counter-claim?
Sin, repentance, and forgiveness are all recognized in the sacred books
of the Persians. This is evinced by a devout disciple, when he says,
in prayer, "I repent, O Lord, of my wicked deeds in thought and words.
Forgive, O Lord: I repent of my sins." A writer says, "Upon the really
fundamental duties of man, the Zenda Avesta upholds a high standard of
morality and honesty, and seeks to inculcate the immense importance
of leading an upright and virtuous life,--such a life alone as can be
pleasing to God and useful to man." A text in this sacred book reads,
"You can not be a worshiper of the one true God and of many gods at the
same time;" which is a very explicit avowal of the belief in but one
God. This Persian Bible declares, that one way to advance God's kingdom
on earth is to confer benefit upon the poor. Its spirit of kindness and
sympathetic regard for suffering extends even to the brute creation. It
forbids cruelty to any class of beings, and enjoins kindness to all.
Its psalms, hymns, and liturgies breathe forth a spirit of deep piety. A
compliance with the divine law is urged as a means of saving the sinner
from future punishment. The stern moral fortitude of the great teacher
and moral exemplar Zoroaster, in resisting, like Christ, the temptations
of the Evil One, evinces a high appreciation of true virtue. As a whole,
the sacred books of the Persians, like those of other nations, contain
a considerable amount of golden truth mixed with much rubbish and
superstition.
ANALOGY OF THE PERSIAN AND JEWISH RELIGIONS.
Doctor Pocoke says, "Many things taught in the sacred books of the
Persians are the same as those taught in the Pentateuch of Moses,
and other parts of the Bible. They also contain many of the psalms
erroneously called by the Jews and Christians the Psalms of David." Sir
William Jones, in his "Asiatic Researches," says, "The primeval religion
of Iran (Persia) is called by Newton the oldest, and it may justly be
called the noblest, of all religions." It teaches "a firm belief that
one supreme God made the world by his power, and governs it by his
providence. It inculcates a pious fear, love, and adoration for God;
also a due reverence for parents and aged persons, fraternal affection
for the whole human species, and a compassionate tenderness even for the
brute creation." Can as much as this be said of the Christian religion?
Mr. Goodrich, after stating that the ancient Hebrews evidently had no
idea of astronomy as a science, says, "The Chaldeans appear to have
made observations on eclipses earlier than the commencement of written
history" ("History of All Nations," p. 25).
The Chaldeans and Persians have a story of creation essentially the same
as that of the Jews. It represents Ormuzd as creating the world through
the word in six kappas, or periods of time. Previous to that period,
nothing but chaos, or darkness, and water had existed. Ormuzd created,
first, the heavens and the earth; second, the firmament; third, the seas
and waters; fourth, the sun, moon, and stars; fifth, birds, reptiles,
quadrupeds, &c.; sixth, man. The Persians and Chaldeans have also a
story of a deluge, in which Xisuthra, being warned in a dream, built an
ark, in which he saved himself, his wife and daughter, and the pilot,
and a pair of every species of animals, reptiles, and birds. After the
rain had ceased, he sent out a pigeon, which, finding no resting place,
came back to the ark. The second time, it came with mud in its bill,
which was a better evidence that the waters had subsided than the leaf
which Noah's dove returned with, as that might have been picked up while
floating on the waters. They had a giant in strength (a Gaza) answering
to that of Samson. They had a story of a lofty tower designed to reach
to heaven, but the gods destroyed it, and confounded the language of the
builders. The Persians had their priests, their prophets, their angels,
their twelve patriarchs, their holy fires, holy water, and rites of
purification, like the Jews; also their ordinance of water-baptism.
Their holy mountains, holy rivers, and holy waters, their animal
sacrifices, and their sacrament or ceremony of bread and wine, were
all similar to those of the Jews. They had a Soleimon and a Soleimon's
temple. Their religion was a theocracy, and was violently opposed to
idolatry; but, unlike the Jewish religion, it taught the doctrine of the
immortality of the soul, and the lofty idea that the human mind is an
emanation from the divine nature. We find the principal elements of the
Christian system also mixed up with the doctrines and principles above
set forth; such as two primary principles of good and evil (Ormuzd and
Ahrimanes), termed by Christians God and the Devil,--two Gods with their
two kingdoms, which were always at war with each other, to moderate
which stands Mithra the Mediator, who was born, like Christ, of an
immaculate virgin. For a further elucidation, see "The World's Sixteen
Crucified Saviors."
ANTIQUITY OF THE PERSIAN RELIGION.
The historical facts to establish the existence of the Persian religion
long prior to that of the Jews are numerous, cogent, and unanswerable.
They have calculations in astronomy which, scientists admit, must have
been made four hundred years anterior to the time of Moses. According to
Berosus, fragments of their history have been found which extend it back
fifteen thousand years; and he tells us it is computed with great care.