Zoroaster — "I try, O Mazda, through the radiance of wisdom to know You. You who are the crea…"
I try, O Mazda, through the radiance of wisdom to know You. You who are the creator of existence.
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More from Zoroaster
"I counsel you to always choose the better way. Unless the better way involves a really steep hill. Then, maybe consider a detour."
"Whoso causes affliction to the righteous, him shall the evil spirit hold captive."
"War and courage have done more great things than charity. Not your sympathy, but your bravery has saved the unfortunate."
"The liar is the greatest enemy of mankind."
"Whoso makes the poor joyful, him Ahura Mazda will make joyful."
About Zoroaster (c. 1500-1000 BCE (debated))
Iranian prophet who founded Zoroastrianism, the first major religion of cosmic dualism between good (Ahura Mazda) and evil (Angra Mainyu). Closely associated with The Buddha (near-contemporary Eastern moral-cosmological revolutionary). For an intellectual contrast, see Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher of 'beyond good and evil' — Nietzsche appropriated Zarathustra's name for Thus Spoke Zarathustra (1883) precisely to invert the original's moral cosmology — the historical Zoroaster founded the good-versus-evil framework Nietzsche's character announces the end of.
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Understanding this quote
What it means
The speaker is actively seeking to understand the supreme god Mazda by using the clarity and light of wisdom as the tool for that search. Rather than claiming certainty, they acknowledge effort and humility: understanding the divine requires intellectual work, not just faith. They also name Mazda as the source of all that exists, meaning everything encountered in life ultimately points back toward the being they are trying to comprehend.
Relevance to Zoroaster
Zoroaster framed his reform around Ahura Mazda, literally 'Wise Lord,' making wisdom the defining attribute of divinity rather than raw power or tribal favor. As a priest-prophet who reportedly received revelations at around age thirty, he pushed worshippers toward ethical reasoning and personal choice between truth and falsehood. This line mirrors his Gathas, the hymns he composed, where he repeatedly addresses Mazda directly, asks questions, and treats knowing God as an ongoing intellectual pursuit.
The era
Zoroaster lived in ancient Iran, commonly placed between roughly 1500 and 1000 BCE, among semi-nomadic Indo-Iranian tribes who worshipped many nature deities through animal sacrifice and ritual intoxication. Warrior cults, cattle raiding, and polytheistic priesthoods dominated religious life. Writing was barely used for sacred text, so teachings survived orally. Against that backdrop, elevating a single wise creator accessed through reflection and moral choice was radical, laying groundwork that later influenced Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
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