The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-03-29
MAZDAKISM.
An Historical Episode.

Written for the Indianapolis Journal.
Romance may be called the dessert, and
poetry the spice of literature Too much Of the
former spoils the digestion, and an overdose of
the latter leads to perversion of taste. The bet
ter class of newspapers of to-day are feeding the
popular appetite, which is hungry for fact, to
surfeit of novels tales stories, and all that
kind, and to such disproportonate degree that the
mental digestion must be disordered, and so lead
to mal-assimilation and intellectual unbalance.
1t will be wise to turn for few minutes to a
brief glimpse of an interesting manifestation,
occurring in genuine human history as long ago
as the fifth century after the death of Jesus and
in that, TO US, yet comparatively unknown region
of the earth comprised in what was
then the second Great Persian
empire-that of the Sassanides, A. ID. 4SS
and the following years, during the reign of Shah
Kobad /, and in its influences extending into the
subsequent reign of the justly famous and sue
cessful Shah Chosroes /. To rightly comprehend
this peculiar phase of human development,
which will probably be more studied during the
next century, would compel careful and some
what minute recital of all that bears on that
people and period, and would require too great
space. But limited and suggestive glance at
the political, social and religious surroundings
and circumstances OF the Persian people in that
day will clear the way for the due appreciation
of that episode to which attention is directed.
The Roman empire had for centuries been the
great power of the civilized world. This
supremacy had been contested for the last
hundred years only by the semi barbarous
Parthian empire, which had inherited the
suzerainty of eastern ASIA when it rose to pre-
eminence after Alexander the Great had sub
jeeted the first Persian empire. After 500
years, by sudden evolution of energy, the Per-
sian people had arisen, oyerthrown the Parthian
and arrested the Roman empire. and become
masters of all the country contiguous and &C
cessible (the regions now known as Persia
eastern Arabia, Asia Minor, Palestine. Egypt
Afghanistan, Caucasia Turcomania and West
ern Thibet
The people of that Persian empire were mostly
e-worshippers-ther priests mag their
ceremonial august and gorgeous, their disposi-
tions more or less tolerant at rapidly tchanging
periods. The lower ranks were cowed by mill
tary dominance and constant wars with their
accompanying subordination The taxes We're
regularly enormous, often being one-half of all
the farmer produced, in addition to liability
to military service. at call, during the entire
summer season. The court was ostentatiously
splendid. The people barely able to i've the
king uncontrolled master of their lives. The
territory was dotted with towns, cities, and
regions occupied by prisoners of war, transported
thither by settlements by the conquering Per-
slams. Hence Jews, Greeks Romans and bar
barous tribes intermingled with Christians and
the worshipers of Zoroaster, each nationality
having illdefned limits and rules. Wars were
constant, revolutions frequent in the royal
house, and assassinationo of the king the rule, fol-
lowed by civil war for the succession ,Polyg-
amy prevailed among the principle MOBILES Pes
tilences, droughts and foods were not rare
Five and half centuries of servitude under
their Parthian eonquerors had debased the once
majestic ana warlike Persians of the empire of
Cyrus. The vices of the subject empires of AS
syria and Babylon had penetrated the body OF
the people. Mingled with the intelligent
worshipers of Ormazd-'the Holy God"-were
temples and the rites Of Anahlt
the Babylonian Venus, whose worship was "un
chaste orgy" Christians, both Jew and gentle,
were numerous, dwelling in groups and tracts,
ardent with the spirit of proselytism. Yet let
it be said to the credit of the Persian people that
except during civil war. its commerce was hon.
Orable its roads safe, its courts of justice pure,
and kept so by the right of appeal of the hum
blest person to the august court, over which the
king presided in, the presence of his mobiles and
high priests Agriculture was religious duty;
Immortality of the soul, eternal rewards and
punishments taught by the magi, the priests of
the state religion, whose chief, the Tenpet, was
reasonably tolerant of encroaching sects, except
at exceptional crises. The country extending
from the Caspian sea to the Persian gulf was
haap nj Of tho md 70 Init
varied in cimate-''a land of flowers and fruits,
and fragrant air." For $50 years following the
conquest of Alexander the Great the Persian
empire had been reduced to sub
kings, but subject to the Parthian
empire. Persia had suddenly risen to
be the empire of the East. Ko5ad was just
reinstated monarch. Various nationalities, and
religions, and customs were mingled in a seeth-
ing government, as yet but i'll organized after
bitter civil war, many Of the subordinate king
- doms being conquered by arms, but neither sub
dued nor assimilated into homogeneous ma
tionality but timidly burning with a desire to
throw off their yoke, and painting for the su-
premacy of their religious cult, the time-en-
deared ceremonies of their accustomed temples.
On the north the Eastern empire of Rome
(called the Creek, on the east the Furanian
hordes on the west Arabia and Romanzed
Persian empire with inroad or formidable at
tack whenever failure disputed succession, pes
thence or defeat encouraged, by promise Of feeble
resistance.
At this period in this empire of Per-
STA appeared one Mazdak, born in
Persepolis, the capital, an archimagus
or high priest of the national religion, one of the
next in rank to the Tenpet or head of the magian
priesthood Slowly quietly by eloquence, position,
and persuasive power which some exceptional
men so highly possess, having announced him
self as reformer of the Zoroastrian religion,
into which liberalzing doctrines and practices
had crept, made proseytes and unfolded a new
scheme of religious ideas, which he claimed him
self divinely commissioned to organize in Persia
and extend over the earth. He taught the
sacredness of all life, even ANIMAL hence his fol-
lowers eat only eggs, cheese and milk, obtaina-
BILE without killing, together with grain, herbs,
nuts and fruits. He imposed simple, healthy
and comfortable apparel; advocated abstemious-
He said that "All men were, by Gods providence,