Zoroastrianism and the Parsis

This illustrated talk highlights some aspects of the history, teachings and religious practice of a little known religion, Zoroastrianism. Once the official creed of mighty Persian Empires, Zoroastrianism probably had an influence on the religious ideas of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It survives to the present day as the faith of small but influential minorities in Iran, India and diaspora communities around the globe.

Professor Almut Hintze

Almut Hintze is Zartoshty Brothers Professor of Zoroastrianism at SOAS, University of London, and Fellow of the British Academy. She specialises in Zoroastrianism and the tradition of its sacred texts, of which she has published several editions. She currently directs a collaborative project on the Multimedia Yasna, funded by European Research Council (2016–2021), to produce an interactive film of a complete performance of the core ritual of the Zoroastrian religion, the Yasna, electronic tools for editing Avestan texts, and an edition with a translation, commentary and dictionary of the Yasna.