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The Rivayats (also spelled as Revayats) are a series of exchanges between the Zoroastrian community in India and their co-religionists in early modern Iran. [1] They have been ascribed the same importance of the Talmud to Judaism by Jivanji Jamshedji Modi. [2]
The word Rivayat has disputed etymology. Some claim the word to have origins from Arabic but this is contentious. [2]
The content of each Rivayat varies but they are usually queries on matters of worship, customs, rituals and observance. [3] The issues range form the mundane, such as queries about the preparation of ink for the writing of religious documents, to important issues including conversion. [4]
Over three centuries, twenty-two Rivayats were sent from India to Persia. The first Revayat was brought in 1478 AD by Nariman Hoshang of Broach. [1] [5] Hoshang was a layman, supported by Chang Asa a notable leader of the Navsari Parsi community. [6] Hoshang spent a year in Yazd, learning Persian and supported himself by 'petty trade'. [7] Eventually his Persian improved to the extent that he was able to question the dasturs of Iran.
After this initial Rivayat, Indian priests would gather up questions and send representatives to Iran with the questions. These Rivayats are known by the emissary who brought them back. Some Rivayats are anonymous as the person who brought them is unknown, these Rivatays are more or less incomplete. [2]
In the 17th century the Rivayats were classified according to the subject they pertained to by Hormazdyar Framarz, Darab Hormazdyar, and Barzo Kamdin.
The Rivayats are notable as the only Modern Persian text composed in the Avestan script.
During the 18th Century the Kadmi sects in both Iran and India exchanged additional Rivayats, which culminated in the Rivayat-e Haftad va Hast (translated as the Rivayat of 78 Questions) (also known as the Ithoter Rivayat). [1]
Zoroastrianism, also known as Mazdayasna and Behdin, is an Iranian religion. One of the world's oldest organized faiths, it is based on the teachings of the Avesta and the Iranian prophet Zoroaster. Zoroastrians exalt an uncreated and benevolent deity of wisdom, commonly referred to as "Ahura Mazda", as the universe's supreme being; opposed to Ahura Mazda is "Angra Mainyu", who is personified as a destructive spirit and the adversary of all things good. Zoroastranism combines a dualistic cosmology of good and evil with an eschatology predicting the ultimate triumph of Ahura Mazda over evil. Opinions vary among scholars as to whether Zoroastrianism is monotheistic, polytheistic, or henotheistic. Some assert that it combines elements of all three.
The Parsis or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of the Persian Empire to escape religious persecution. Parsis are the older of the Indian subcontinent's two Zoroastrian communities, the other being the Iranis, whose ancestors migrated to British-ruled India from Qajar-era Iran. According to a 16th-century Parsi epic, Qissa-i Sanjan, Zoroastrian Persians continued to migrate to the Indian subcontinent from Greater Iran in between the 8th and 10th centuries, and ultimately settled in present-day Gujarat after being granted refuge by a local Hindu king, Jadi Rana.
A dakhma, also known as a Tower of Silence, is a circular, raised structure built by Zoroastrians for excarnation, in order to avoid contamination of the soil and other natural elements by the decomposing dead bodies. Carrion birds, usually vultures and other scavengers, consume the flesh. Skeletal remains are gathered into a central pit where further weathering and continued breakdown occurs.
The Farvahar, also known as the Foruhar (فروهر) or the Farre Kiyâni, is one of the best-known symbols of Zoroastrianism, an Iranian religion. There are various interpretations of what the Faravahar symbolizes, and there is no concrete universal consensus on its meaning. However, it is commonly believed that the Faravahar serves as a Zoroastrian depiction of the fravashi, or personal spirit.
Ervad Godrej Sidhwa was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and studied the Avesta, Pahalvi, Persian, & Pazend languages, as well as Ancient Iranian literature at M.F. Cama Athornan Institute, Andheri, Mumbai, for six years. He was initiated into the Zoroastrian priesthood by going through the Navar and Maratab initiation ceremony from Iranshah Atash Behram, Udvada, India. His initiation as a priest accounts for the "Ervad" ('Reverend') title.
The Irani are an ethno-religious community in the Indian subcontinent; they descend from the Zoroastrians who emigrated from Iran to British India in the 19th and 20th centuries. They are culturally, linguistically, ethnically and socially distinct from the Parsis, who – although also Zoroastrians – immigrated to the Indian subcontinent from Greater Iran many centuries prior, starting with the Islamic conquest of Persia.
The Ateshgah of Baku, Azerbaijani: Atəşgah), often called the "Fire Temple of Baku", is a castle-like religious temple in Surakhany town, a suburb in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The Story of Sanjan is an account of the early years of Zoroastrian settlers on the Indian subcontinent that was originally written in 1599 CE by Parsi priest, Bahman Kaikobad. In the absence of alternatives, the text is generally accepted to be the only narrative of the events described therein, and many members of the Parsi community perceive the epic poem to be an accurate account of their ancestors.
Udvada is a town situated in Pardi taluka in the Valsad district in the state of Gujarat, India. Udvada is a coastal town located around 24 km from the Valsad city. The Zoroastrian temple, Udvada Atash Behram is situated here.
Āzar Kayvān was the Zoroastrian high priest of Istakhr and a gnostic philosopher, who was a native of Fars, Iran and later emigrated to Patna in the Mughal Empire during the reign of Emperor Akbar. A member of the Sepāsīān community, he became the founder of a Zoroastrian school of ishraqiyyun or Illuminationists, which exhibited features of Sufi Muslim influence. This school became known as the kis-e Abadi "Abadi sect".
The kushti also known as kosti, kusti and kustig is the sacred girdle worn by invested Zoroastrians around their waists. Along with the sedreh, the kushti is part of the ritual dress of the Zoroastrians.
A mobed, mowbed, or mobad is a Zoroastrian cleric of a particular rank. Unlike a herbad (ervad), a mobed is qualified to serve as celebrant priest at the Yasna ceremony and other higher liturgical ceremonies. A mobed is also qualified to train other priests.
The persecution of Zoroastrians has been recorded throughout the history of Zoroastrianism, an Iranian religion. The notably large-scale persecution of Zoroastrians began after the rise of Islam in the 7th century CE; both during and after the conquest of Persia by Arab Muslims, discrimination and harassment against Zoroastrians took place in the form of forced conversions and sparse violence. Muslims who arrived in the region after its annexation by the Rashidun Caliphate are recorded to have destroyed Zoroastrian temples, and Zoroastrians living in areas that had fallen under Muslim control were required to pay a tax known as jizya.
A barsom is a ritual implement used by Zoroastrian priests to solemnize certain sacred ceremonies.
Dr. Sir Ervad Jivanji Jamshedji Modi (1854–1933), who also carried the title of Shams-ul-Ulama, was a prominent Zoroastrian Parsi-Indian priest, scholar and community leader in Bombay. One of "the most decorated priests in history", he wrote over 70 books, produced over 120 scholarly papers on Zoroastrian history, traveled and researched into Zoroastrian affairs extensively and was instrumental in organizing the Parsi community in India. During his lifetime he had been called "the greatest living authority on the ancient history and customs of the Parsis."
Ayādgār ī Zarērān, meaning "Memorial of Zarēr", is a Zoroastrian Middle Persian heroic poem that, in its surviving manuscript form, represents one of the earliest surviving examples of Iranian epic poetry.
Jamshedji Sorab Kukadaru was a Zoroastrian priest in Mumbai, India. He was revered by Zoroastrians for a number of miracles he is believed to have performed. He was well known by his contemporaries for his simple lifestyle and asceticism, as well as his unflinching adherence to priestly purity rules. Most of his life is said to have been spent in prayer.
Kharshedji Rustomji Cama (1831–1909), often known as K. R. Cama, was an Indian Parsi scholar and reformer from Bombay.
Zoroastrianism in India has significant history within the country. Zoroastrians have lived in the Indian subcontinent since the Sasanian period. The Zoroastrians also moved to India in successive migrations during the Islamic period. The initial migration following the Muslim conquest of Persia has been canonized as a religious persecution by invading Muslims. Zoroastrianism meanwhile suffered a decline in Iran after the conquests. Subsequent migrations also took place after the attempts by Safavids to convert their subjects to Shiism.
The Iranshah Atash Behram, also known as the Udwada Atash Behram, is a sacred fire housed in a temple in Udvada, Valsad district, Gujarat on the west coast of India. The Atash Bahram, meaning "Victorious Fire", is the oldest fire temple in India, dated to the eighth century, and represents the historical cultural and religious links with Iran. The current temple housing the sacred fire was built in 1742 by Motlibai Wadia from Bombay. The temple structure, built spaciously, is well decorated and contains the Dasturji Kaiyoji Mirza hall and a museum. The main hall of the temple is accessed through a two-stage staircase. The temple attracts Zoroastrian pilgrims from all parts of India, Pakistan, and from around the world.
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