Character Catalog

Seventeen sacred hymns in Old Avestan directly attributed to Zoroaster, forming the spiritual and literary heart of Zoroastrianism. These poems of great beauty set out his dualistic theology and his ethical vision of the world.

A liturgical section of the Avesta written in archaic Avestan prose, composed by Zoroaster's earliest followers. It extends the teachings of the Gathas and stands as one of the oldest Indo-Iranian prayer texts in existence.

Zoroaster is recognized as the founder of one of the earliest monotheistic religions in history, introducing the concept of a single creator deity, moral free will, and the judgment of the soul after death.

Zoroaster transformed the polytheistic Indo-Iranian religion by elevating Ahura Mazda to the status of sole supreme deity and demoting the other gods (daevas) to the rank of demons. This theological revolution stands as one of the most significant of the ancient world.

I wish to speak to you of what the Holy One has taught me — it is the best word for mortals. Whoever obeys Ahura Mazda in heart and will, to him shall be granted health and immortality.

Zarathustra asked Haoma: Who are you, whose face is the most beautiful I have seen among corporeal creatures? Haoma replied: I am Haoma, O Zarathustra, the pure one, who keeps death at bay.

Zarathustra was born into the Spitama family, in Airyana Vaejah. From the moment of his birth, he burst into laughter — a sign of his prophetic nature — while demons fled before him.

The religion of Zarathustra is the straight path: good thought, good word, good deed. Whoever follows this path contributes to the victory of Ahura Mazda over darkness.

Ahura Mazda is great above all gods. It is he who created this earth, who created this sky, who created man, who created happiness for man.

The mythical homeland and legendary birthplace of Zoroaster according to Zoroastrian texts, identified by some scholars with the region of present-day Azerbaijan or northern Afghanistan. It is here that the prophet is said to have received his first revelations.

An ancient city of Bactria sometimes identified as the center of Zoroaster's activity and the seat of King Vishtaspa's court. It is here that Zoroastrianism is believed to have achieved its earliest successes in spreading.

The ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire, where Zoroastrianism served as the royal religion. Reliefs and inscriptions attest to the worship of Ahura Mazda under the successors of Cyrus II.

An Iranian city home to the Atash Bahram fire temple, one of the oldest sacred Zoroastrian fires still burning today. It is now the world center of the Zoroastrian community in Iran.

The site where Darius I had his trilingual inscriptions carved, invoking Ahura Mazda — a major testament to the spread of Zoroastrianism as the imperial ideology of the Achaemenid Empire.