He was a hindu priest from what is now eastern Iran or Pakistan, in charge of gathering water and psychedelic herbs for use in their rituals. Basically, one day he was enrapt in a vision of the Almighty. Where he was told that there was only one God, and one Devil (as opposed to the multiple deities and demons in Hinduism.) Sounds similar to Mohammad doesn't it?
Paraphrasing Wikipedia here:
[In Zoroastrianism, God] is the beginning and the end, the creator of everything that can and cannot be seen, the Eternal, the Pure and the only Truth.
[God] created the floating, egg-shaped universe in two parts: first the spiritual ... and 3,000 years later, the physical... [He] then created Gayomard, the archetypical perfect man, and the first bull.
The metaphor of the "path" of [Law or Covenant] is represented in Zoroastrianism by the muslin undershirt Sudra, the "Good/Holy Path", and the 72-thread Kushti girdle, the "Pathfinder".
[One must] choose the responsibility and duty for which one is in the mortal world ... Predestination is rejected in Zoroastrian teaching. Humans bear responsibility for all situations they are in, and in the way they act toward one another. Reward, punishment, happiness, and grief all depend on how individuals live their lives.
... Zoroastrian morality is then to be summed up in the simple phrase, "good thoughts, good words, good deeds"
Zoroastrianism also includes beliefs about the renovation of the world and individual judgment ..., including the resurrection of the dead.
Zoroastrian hell is reformative; punishments fit the crimes, and souls do not rest in eternal damnation.
In Zoroastrian eschatology, a 3,000-year struggle between good and evil will be fought, punctuated by evil's final assault. During the final assault, the sun and moon will darken and mankind will lose its reverence for religion, family, and elders. The world will fall into winter, and [the Devil's] most fearsome miscreant, Azi Dahaka, will break free and terrorize the world.
The final savior of the world, Saoshyant, will be born to a virgin... [He] will raise the dead – including those in both heaven and hell – for final judgment, returning the wicked to hell to be purged of bodily sin.
Heavenly forces will ultimately triumph over evil, rendering it forever impotent. Saoshyant and [God] will offer a bull as a final sacrifice for all time, and all men will become immortal.
Mountains will again flatten and valleys will rise; heaven will descend to the moon, and the earth will rise to meet them both.
Does any of this sound familiar?
Also, there was at one time a certain group of Zoroastrians called "Magi". Were the 3 kings adherents of Zoroaster?
Alexander the Great and later the Ottomans conquered the (the adherents of Zoroaster) after the Persian empire had ended. Legend has it that most of their religious texts were destroyed by the invaders.
Zoroastrian adherents still exist in our day and age.
Notice also that Zoroastrianism is not considered to be an Abrahamic religion, and so researchers have a difficult time explaining how it could share so many common traits with Abrahamic religions. Apparently, another religion like this is Bahai.
C.S. Lewis was of the opinion that religion had evolved over time and that with Christianity and Jesus Christ, we had finally arrived at the truth. But I think we believe the opposite; that true religion came intact with Adam, and has since devolved into partial truths. In other words, the ancients knew God a whole lot better than we do in the modern day. There's a scripture in the old testament where God tells Elijah (or some other prophet, I can't find the reference) that there are other prophets. I think the example of Zoroaster shows that God spoke to others besides those mentioned in the bible.
Notice also that Zoroastrianism is not considered to be an Abrahamic religion, and so researchers have a difficult time explaining how it could share so many common traits with Abrahamic religions. Apparently, another religion like this is Bahai.
C.S. Lewis was of the opinion that religion had evolved over time and that with Christianity and Jesus Christ, we had finally arrived at the truth. But I think we believe the opposite; that true religion came intact with Adam, and has since devolved into partial truths. In other words, the ancients knew God a whole lot better than we do in the modern day. There's a scripture in the old testament where God tells Elijah (or some other prophet, I can't find the reference) that there are other prophets. I think the example of Zoroaster shows that God spoke to others besides those mentioned in the bible.
To paraphrase something I read from Hugh Nibley: You don't go off starting a University with the dumbest men you can find and then grow it from there (e.g. wait for it to evolve). Usually, you start with the most brilliant men to get it off to a good start. Doesn't it make sense that God would have done the same thing when he created the world? Adam was one of His best and brightest. Unfortunately, often after great beginnings, things begin to fall apart from there. This is the point where restoration to the original standards is necessary. Enter Joseph Smith - a prophet.
