The teachings of the magi

"The Teachings of the Magi" is an introduction to the main tenets of Zoroastrianism -- the religion founded by Zoroaster or Zarathustra, the Prophet of Ancient Iran -- a potent force for more than a thousand years. Such fundamental subjects as the nature of God and the Devil, the genesis of the universe, the reasons for its manifest imperfection, man's situation within it, and the purpose of religion are presented largely in the words of the Zoroastrian texts themselves. The author's aim is to demonstrate the essential reasonableness of Zoroastrian dualism -- the dualism of a good and an evil spirit -- to show what this means in everyday life and how it is philosophically justified. He discusses teachings on cosmology, the relation of man to God, sacraments and sacrifice, ethics, the soul's fate at death, and eschatology. -- From publisher's description.