Part 28 - Literature Review: Zarathushtra by Kety K. Dady Burjor

[Book Name: Zarathushtra, The Story of the First Prophet on Earth by Kety K. Dady Burjor.]

The book speaks about Prophet Zarathustra also spelled sometimes Zarathushtra as in above book, also known as Zoroaster, who is considered as the first Prophet on Earth by Parsi people and who is the messenger of a powerful Avestan God, Ahura Mazda. One may recall that Vedic deity Varuṇa and Iranian God Ahura Mazda have much in common. This similarity has been studied in detail by Indian as well as Western scholars and many pages have been dedicated to this subject. Therefore, taking cognizance of this book would be an addition to the knowledge on this subject.

A colorful and attractive book with eye-catching illustration is a wonderful gift by author Kety K. DadyBurjor. The book has thirty-eight pages. It has been printed on glossy art paper. The cover page has a beautiful picture of Prophet Zarathustra standing on a rock facing the Golden rays of the Sun which creates a great first impression. The simplicity of language, the placement of chapters, the flow of the story is very well carried out by the author. Though written for the young minds, it equally educates the young and old alike, rather breaking the barriers of age group. The book begins with a preface by the author, followed by a foreword by the High Priest of the Parsi community Mr. Peshotan Dastur Hormzdyar Mirza from Udwada (Gujrat) which is considered as the first place where the Parsi community disembarked upon reaching the shores of India after a long voyage from Iran. The foreword is significant as the book is on a religious subject and the same is blessed by the High Priest of the community which also in a way validates the contents of the book. In the foreword, the Head Priest has not only congratulated the author, Mr. Kety DadyBurjor, but also wished that the book should find a place in the house of every Zoroastrian House.

A one-page introduction precedes the main contents of the book wherein the author has outlined the material in the pages to follow.

There are three chapters in the book. The first, with a heading ‘Of Miracles & Wonders’ describes the early year, birth and childhood of the Prophet. The Governor of the province of ‘Rae’ (A province in Iran) where the Prophet was born, was a harsh and cruel ruler lusting after wealth and power. People lived in fear under his rule. The Prophet was born to remove the suffering of the people. The child was born to a couple from a noble family, yet living a simple life as a herder of horses and cattle. At the time of birth of the child, a brilliant radiance was seen surrounding him. The child had the most beautiful smile on his face. Soon the news of the birth of such a child with radiance surrounding him reached the ruler creating fear in him. Whereas the common folk thought the child had come to the world to relieve people of their miseries.

It may be worthwhile mentioning here that the researcher has found a striking similarity in the description about the enchanting smile and the ethereal glow on the faces of both the Prophet Zarathustra and Lord Jhulelal at the time of their birth.

As the story unfolds further, some more miracles take place during the childhood of the Prophet. Interestingly, such miracles have also been observed during the childhood of Lord Jhulelal, the evidence of the miracle being the invincibility of both in face of life-threatening situation brought upon them by the tyrannical ruler of their respective province.

The heading of the second chapter is ‘Of Journeys and Quests’. The road to Enlightenment which deals with the Prophet’s journey to enlightenment as the title suggests. In this chapter, it is described that in response to his deep inner voice, he set forth on a journey to find his fate before which he sought the blessing of his father and mother. He wandered for many days and one day he experienced the presence of the creator of the Universe at a mountain peak. He realized his mission on the earth that he was the messenger of a powerful God Ahura Mazda. He learned three principles from Ahura Mazda which were Good thoughts, Good words and Good deeds and he received three gifts from Ahura Mazda to enable him to fulfill his mission. Those were a prayer, a holy fire and a Cypress tree. The prayer was capable of revealing the wisdom and the universal secrets of the Ahura Mazda, the God, the holy fire was the flame of truth and the Cypress tree was a symbol of Eternity. During the subsequent period of many years, Zarathustra received knowledge and wisdom from Ahura Mazda and also from Amesha Spentas and Yazada. The Amesha Spentas, six in numbers also gave their blessings to Zarathustra.

After completion of a ceremony called Navjote, Zarathustra was ready to spread the message of Ahura Mazda God.

In the third and final chapter with the heading ‘Of teachings and Truth: The spread of Divine message’ the Prophet approaches the king and he proves his wisdom and knowledge to the king and his courtiers. However, due to jealousy of some courtiers, he had to face a difficult time and due to a misunderstanding on part of the king, he was put in jail by the king. However, with the support and blessings of Ahura Mazda, a miracle was soon to happen to convince the king that the prophet was a true messenger of Ahura Mazda. The ailing horse of the king was cured by the prophet within no time. As a result, the king along with his family and his courtiers accepted that Zarathustra was the Ratu (messenger) of Ahura Mazda. In the time to follow, he stayed with the king and spread the message and teachings of ‘Gatha’, their divine scripture.

The striking similarities in the story of Lord Jhulelal and Zarathustra are to be noted, especially the miracles performed by both of them on mainly two occasions, viz. during the childhood and later on to teach a lesson to king or ruler to bring him on to the right path. Even though the two entities are separated by many centuries, one finds notable similarities in their life stories. Along with miracles, one can take a note that Zarathustra was the prophet of Ahura Mazda, the most powerful Iranian God, whereas Lord Jhulelal was incarnation of a powerful Vedic Deity Varuṇa and both taught a lesson to the ruler to bring him on the path of justice and humanity and gave a message of love and brotherhood.