The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1906-11-07
zORCAsTRiANS or PERSIA.
They Are a Much Prosecuted and
UnjustIy Judged People.


Zoroaster, the prophet Of ancient
Iran, arose about the middle of the
seventh century hafore Christ as a re-
former of the older creed Of Persia,
primitive form Of nature worship
which had become debassd through
corruption and Grass superstition. His
birthplace is believed to have been in
the province OF AZarbaijan, to the west
Of the Caspian sea. q region abounding
in volcanic mountains, hot springs,
naphtla wells and other igneous phe-
Romena. BY Inheritance he was. mem
Der Of the sacerdotal tribe of the Magi
and by calling a foreru1ner of the wise
men from the east who worshiped cen
turies later at the cradle in Bethlehem.
Inspired by ecstatic visions Of heaven
and warned by prophetic signs of the
people the ethical meaning Of the con-
fict between good and evil under the
form Of Ormazd and AhrimanI as god
and devil. Filled with the hope of an
resurrection Of the dead he sought to
lead his followers to a rlore:H spiritual
life and to teach them the Moral sig
nifcance Of the motto Of his faith,
Good thoughts. good words, good
Deeds" and to guide them also in prac-
tical ways, inculcating the practice Of
agriculture, kindness to animals, es-
pecially the COW, habits Of thrift and
industry, together with those of bodily
cleanliness and the observance Of GER
tain rites and ceremonies in their daily
life His death is thought to have :oc-.
CURED at Ballsh. in eastern Iran, about
$50 B. c., during the religious war be-
tween Iran and Turan, which was
called forth by his teaching.
Zoroaster's creed became the religion:
of an eastern world empire. The law
OF the Medes and Persians, which knew
no change, nodded the history Of the
early kingdom Of Iran, and the same de-
crees prevailed in Bacteria. 1t was by
Ormazd's will that the sovereign rulers
of these lands held sway, kings by di-
Vine right Cyrus the Great is called
the Lords ''anointed' and his 'shep-
herd even in the Bible, and ':king by
the grace Of AuramaZda" was Darius
own proud claim The inscriptions and
the -Avesta alike eXalt the sacred maj
esty Of the king. But many Of those
who once were kings Of Zoroasters line
are now known only by name. Persia.
is Mchammedan, the PerSians are
Mussulmans by faith, and Islam has
blotted out much Of theeancient history
and creed. The Zoroastrians Of Persia,
stigmatized as Gabars, number not
more than 10000 souls. Yezd is the
home Of about 5000 Of these. Airman,
a smaller city to the southeast, claims
about 1000 more. Teheran, the capi-
tai, near where Zoroasters mother is
said to have been born, has less than
900. ShirZ numbers, not fifty OF the
ancient belief, Isfahan 4 half dozen
and some Of the minor towns can each
add three or four more to make up
the talesman's count. Frowned upon
as fire worShipers," which they really
are not, despised or prosecuted as in
.fGels, surrounded by business restric-
tions anG social disabilities, the Jews
Of the east" as they are sometimes
called, maintain their lives at high
cost. And yet they possess admirable
qualities, and it is these characteristics
that have preserved their religion from
being utterly effaced. Through ages
of misfortune and distress they have
remained true to it, and by their ster-
ling traits of truth, .uprightuess, gen.
erosity and devotion they still exem-
plify what was best in it-A Y. Will
liamS Jackson in Century.