Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions, having originated in ancient Persia. It contains both monotheistic and dualistic elements, and many scholars believe Zoroastrianism influenced the belief systems of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
With the spread of Islam in the mid-seventh century, the Persian-speaking world became predominantly Muslim although vestiges of the earlier pre-Islamic religious and philosophical traditions remained.
Zoroastrianism became the foremost religion of the Achaemenid (550–330 BCE), Parthian (247 BCE–224 CE) and Sasanian (224–651 CE) empires, engaging with the religions of the Jews and with nascent Christianity and Islam.
So there are many similarities between Islam and Zoroastrianism, but not all of them are recognized as similarities. In fact, ironically, they are often emphasized as differences. If you look at early Islamic history, Muslims were not the majority in the Middle East or anywhere for a very long time.
Parsis (/ˈpɑːrsiː/) 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 (part of the early Muslim conquests) in order to preserve their Zoroastrian identity.
The reality is slightly different. Most Parsis are indeed non-vegetarian. However, many Parsis I know, and who belong to my generation, do try to avoid red meat, add vegetables to their diet, have cut down on fried foods and have less copious amounts of alcohol, in keeping with the thinking of our times.
They arrived in Gujarat region of India. The Parsis believe in the existence of one invisible God. They believe that there is a continuous war between the good forces (forces of light) and the evil forces (forces of darkness).
Wearing eyeglasses, long cloak, trousers, hat, boots, socks, winding their turbans tightly and neatly, carrying watches or rings, were all forbidden to Zoroastrians.
The constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran recognizes Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism as official religions. Article 13 of the Iranian Constitution, recognizes them as People of the Book and they are granted the right to exercise religious freedom in Iran.
The Muslim conquest of Persia between A.D. 633 and 651 led to the fall of the Sassanian Persian Empire and the decline of the Zoroastrian religion in Iran.
As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global population, known as Hindus. Hinduism has been called the world's oldest religion still practised, though some debate remains.
It is now widely believed that the annexation of the Lakhmid kingdom was one of the main factors behind the fall of the Sasanian Empire and the subsequent Islamic conquest of Persia, as the Lakhmids agreed to act as spies for the Muslims after being defeated in the Battle of Hira by Khalid ibn al-Walid.
The Islamization of Iran occurred as a result of the Muslim conquest of Persia in 633–654. It was a long process by which Islam, though initially rejected, eventually spread among the population on the Iranian Plateau.
The Constitution of Iran stipulates that Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians are the only recognized religious minorities.
Prior to Zarathustra, the ancient Persians worshipped the deities of the old Irano-Aryan religion, a counterpart to the Indo-Aryan religion that would come to be known as Hinduism. Zarathustra, however, condemned this practice, and preached that God alone – Ahura Mazda, the Lord of Wisdom – should be worshipped.
Zoroastrians believe that there is one universal, transcendent, all-good, and uncreated supreme creator deity, Ahura Mazda, or the "Wise Lord" (Ahura meaning "Lord" and Mazda meaning "Wisdom" in Avestan).
Islam teaches us to believe in one and only God “Allah” whereas in Zoroastrianism in the guise of God a dualistic belief is there. This dualistic belief has been studied very thoroughly by experts and religious scholars.
One God. Zoroastrians believe in one God, called Ahura Mazda (meaning 'Wise Lord'). He is compassionate, just, and is the creator of the universe.
Founded more than 3,000 years ago, Zoroastrianism is one of the oldest monotheistic religions still in existence, predating Christianity and Islam by many centuries.
English, Farsi, Gujarati, Persian There is no religious restriction about diet, although some Zoroastrians avoid pork & beef. Restrictions on meat eating occur on certain days in the month and year.
Zoroastrianism has been criticized for the perception that it promotes a patriarchal system, expressed through such avenues as an all-male priesthood and its historical allowance of polygamy—practiced by Zoroaster himself.
Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions, having originated in ancient Persia. It contains both monotheistic and dualistic elements, and many scholars believe Zoroastrianism influenced the belief systems of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Animal protein is so fundamental to the Parsi diet that even during the holy month of Bahman, when Zoroastrians are supposed to abstain from meat, they're permitted fish and eggs. Vegetables, on the other hand, are almost never eaten in isolation.
Under Muslim jurisprudence, a Muslim man could marry a woman from Ahl-ul-Kitab (literally 'people of the book', and refers to what Muslims believe are divine religions), which included Christians, Jews and, by a large jurisprudential interpretation, Zoroastrians.
However, Ahura Mazda remained symbolized by a dignified male figure, standing or on horseback, which is found in Sassanian investiture.