“The sounds of...”

In support of Jamsheed Kanga’s article "The sounds of silence” (Parsiana, August 7, 2006), I wish to add:

That conversion is enjoined in our faith is very clear from our own Avesta prayers. In Doa Tandarosti we pray "In doaya baad, In khoaha baad, Hame andar kasara, Zarthoshti din shaad baad, Aedun baad” which means "It is our good wish, and ardent desire, that amongst the people of this earth, the religion of Zarathushtra, may spread cheer. So be it.”

Similarly, in Din-No-Kalmo, we pray, "Din beh rast va darust, Ke khodae bar khalk ferasta deh, in hast, ke Zarthosht avardey hast” which means "The most correct and perfect religion, which God has sent for the people of this earth, is the one that has been brought by Zara­thushtra.”

From the above it is clear, that the Zoroastrian religion is for the people of this earth, and not only for a particular community.

It is also not true, that the question of conversion did not arise at that time, because Zarathushtra was the very first prophet on this earth, and there was no religion before him. It is a historical fact, that Zarathushtra was born during the reign of King Lohrasp who was the fifth king of the Kayanian dynasty of Iran. Before Lohrasp, there were 10 kings in the previous Peshdadian dynasty. Zara­thushtra came much later in the history of Iran.

The most famous amongst the kings of the Peshdadian dynasty was King Jamshed. He was a very religious man, and invoked help from God’s angels, Avan Yazad, Ram Yazad, Sarosh Yazad etc to fight against evil. During that period, the kings were temporal as well as spiritual leaders of the people. Their religion was Mazdayasni meaning worship of God.

It was King Jamshed who introduced the practice of tying kusti round the waist, to ward off evil. It was King Jamshed who created four distinct professional groups: athornans, the priests, ratheshtars, the warriors, vastriyosh, the farmers, and hutaokhsh, the traders, artisans and craftsmen. The idea behind this was that specialized skills may take roots in specific groups, and pass on from the father to sons, for generations on end.

From this it is quite clear that much before the birth of Zarathushtra, worship of God under the Mazdayasni faith, did exist. But with passage of time, this faith was getting polluted by people practicing black magic, sorcery, witchcraft, etc. It was Zarathushtra’s mission to restore this faith to its pristine purity. Thus, Zarathushtra did convert the worshippers of devil, to become worshippers of the one and only God.

What is meant by conversion? Will permitting people of other faiths to pray in our fire temples amount to conversion? If it is not so, for churches, temples, gurdwaras, mosques, synagogues, why will Zoroastrians be accused of conversion, if free entry is allowed in our fire temples, to any human being, a creation of God?

FARAMARZ B. SETHNA

Gandhidham (Kutch)