Zoroastrian Q&A

26/04/2023

A recording of Pablo's recent talk at the California Zoroastrian Center is now available!

Translating Old Avestan, Teaching Our Faith, and the Struggles and Responsibilities of a Modern Mazdayasni.Pablo Vazquez, Zoroastrian scholar, theologian, ho...

18/04/2023

14/04/2023

If you're in the LA/Orange County area, Pablo will be speaking at the California Zoroastrian Center on April 21 at 11 AM. Copies of "The Sacred Gathas of Zarathushtra and the Old Avestan Canon" will be available for purchase and signature. More information available at the link!

On Sunday, April 23 at 11:00 AM, the California Zoroastrian Center-OC will gladly host speaker Mr.Pablo Vazquez. The subject of his lecture would be: The Wisdom of Mazdayasna: Translating Old Avestan, Teaching Our Faith, and the Struggles and Responsibilities of a Modern Mazdayasni Join Pablo Vazque...

20/12/2022

My publisher is having a 50%-off sale on ebooks so now's the time if you want to pick up a copy of my book in ebook format for less than $3! Just use the coupon code FESTIVE50 and you should be set!

Zarathushtra's Gathas & the Old Avestan canon are the central texts of Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest continuously practiced religions in the wo...

17/12/2022

https://www.w-z-o.org/shab-e-yalda-the-zoroastrian.../

I really encourage all of you, my fellow Zoroastrians, to celebrate Yalda Night/Chelleh Eve (on the 21st of this year) in whatever way you can even if you only spend it being gregarious with your household or even just online. I am part of an initiative amongst Zoroastrians of making it our distinct December festival of celebration, feasting, and gift-giving. If you can be public about it, please do so and I understand those who can't because of political or family circumstances. Post photos of your celebration, feasts, music, art, and more, and give gifts to your neighbors and friends on this day. I will have a small PDF ready by then if you'd like to help them know more.

Check out the article linked to learn more and please do ask any questions you have. Our people celebrate festivals like Christmas and Hannukah but our own solstice festival is there and full of joy. I won't discourage you from celebrating the others but why not be a proud Zoroastrian and give Yalda Night/Chelleh Eve a try as well this year and those following? I'm sure your kids, if you have them, will love it and they'll have something to tell their friends of other faiths about!

Happy Yalda Night/Chelleh Eve, my fellow Zoroastrians!

Shab-e Yalda: The Zoroastrian Winter Solstice By Tushna Ghadially | 20/12/2021 | Comments Off on Shab-e Yalda: The Zoroastrian Winter Solstice We are delighted to be able to share two articles about the festival of Yalda which is celebrated by Zoroastrians on 21st December. The second article, contr...

11/10/2022

A recording of the recent lecture by our host, Pablo, for Classical Wisdom Weekly!

Though it was the largest religion in the ancient world by both the number of adherents and geographical scope, Zoroastrianism is still vastly understudied in religion,…

09/09/2022

Join our host Pablo as they speak Anya Leonard, founder and director of Classical Wisdom Weekly, about Zoroastrianism, the Gathas, and how they connect to the ancient world and ours. You don't want to miss this!

Understanding Zoroastrianism: What was its essential role in ancient history and its lasting legacy today?

21/08/2022

A cool multimedia experience revolving around the Zoroastrian Yasna ritual developed at SOAS

https://muya.soas.ac.uk/tool/film-multimedia/

The interactive film is available at the “interactive film” link on the top right corner. A short introduction on how to use the interactive film is provided below.

08/08/2022

Have you checked out mazdayasni.com yet? With articles, blog posts, resources, and more to help Mazdayasnis old and new with various aspects of their faith, we are happy to present this resource!

Dedicated to Ashavic Enlightenment

02/08/2022

Only a couple more months until my book, a translation of the possibly 4000-year-old Gathas and the other Old Avestan texts, the central compositions of Zoroastrianism, is released internationally! Please, if you can afford it, do me a favor and pre-order a copy at the attached link. If you work at a bookstore and want to figure out how to carry it, please contact me. Same with if you want an advance copy and want to review it for your newsletter/podcast/video series, etc. Also, stay tuned for my book tour dates which will be announced at the start of next month!

https://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Gathas-Zarathushtra-Avestan-Canon/dp/1785359614

The Sacred Gathas of Zarathushtra & the Old Avestan Canon: A Modern Translation of Ancient Wisdom

01/07/2022

NEW EPISODE!

It seems a lot of you have been wondering what Kurdish Zoroastrianism's all about. Well, Pablo, a scholar of Kurdish Zoroastrianism, is happy to fill you in and give you a crash course on this fascinating and volatile segment of the global Zoroastrian spiritual landscape. Listen in (coming to you from the 12 World Zoroastrian Congress 2022 NYC), learn, and enjoy!

Discord link mentioned in the episode: https://discord.gg/VRZVty5WSy

Pre-order "The Sacred Gathas of Zarathushtra & The Old Avestan Canon" here: https://mazdayasni.com/books/the-sacred-gathas-of-zarathushtra-the-old-avestan-canon-a-modern-translation-of-ancient-wisdom/

It seems a lot of you have been wondering what Kurdish Zoroastrianism's all about. Well, Pablo, a scholar of Kurdish Zoroastrianism, is happy to fill you in and give you a crash course on this fascinating and volatile segment of the global Zoroastrian spiritual landscape. Listen in, learn, and enjoy...

19/03/2022

NEW EPISODE ALERT (PART TWO)

We're back and we've returned with some exciting news (and an excuse for our absence): Pablo has translated the Old Avestan texts (which include the Gathas) and it will all be published in book form in October 2022! This episode (part two and the final part of a two part series) has Pablo reading from the translation during this Zoroastrian Holy Season right before Nowruz. We've also launched a new website where you can pre-order the book and read more articles about Zoroastrianism. Check it out at mazdayasni.com! Thank you for listening and happy learning!

You should listen to "Reading the Gathas, Part One" here: https://anchor.fm/zoroastrianqa/episodes/Episode-1-Season-2-Reading-the-Gathas--Part-One-e1fs34p

Have questions about Zoroastrianism, the oldest continuously practiced religion? Join your host Pablo, a Zoroastrian convert and scholar, as they provide the answers to all those questions you've been pondering about!

19/03/2022

It's the Zoroastrian Holy Season! Learn more about it here:

The Zoroastrian Holy Season By Tushna Ghadially | 18/03/2022 | Comments Off on The Zoroastrian Holy Season As we look forward to the celebration of Nowruz 2022 at the time of the Vernal Equinox on Sunday 20th March 2022 at 15:33:26 GMT, we hope that you enjoy reading this informative article, kindly...

17/03/2022

NEW EPISODE ALERT!

We're back and we've returned with some exciting news (and an excuse for our absence): Pablo has translated the Old Avestan texts (which include the Gathas) and it will all be published in book form in October 2022! This episode and a couple of the following ones will have Pablo reading from the translation during this Zoroastrian Holy Season right before Nowruz. We've also launched a new website where you can pre-order the book and read more articles about Zoroastrianism. Check it out at mazdayasni.com! Thank you for listening and happy learning!

We're back and we've returned with some exciting news (and an excuse for our absence): Pablo has translated the Old Avestan texts (which include the Gathas) and it will all be published in book form in October 2022! This episode and a couple of the following ones will have Pablo reading from the tra...

25/10/2021

Apologies for the delay! New episode with big updates coming before the end of the year. I've been working on something you may all enjoy!

07/01/2021

Apologies for the delay in the next episode! We'll have an interesting one up within the next couple of weeks.

12/11/2020

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A explores a slew of questions combined to provide an overview of the priesthood in Zoroastrianism throughout the ages including questions on Pablo's own opinions on subjects related to the priesthood and the like. The second half of the episode includes an interview with Mobed Adil Minocherhomjee on not just what it was like growing up in a priestly bloodline but also his thoughts on a variety of matters relating to Zoroastrianism. Thank you for listening and happy learning!

To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://forms.gle/r2KH3wPvRg1qL31n9

(We had some sound issues and had to reupload the episode, so a new link is attached to the post. Use this one. Apologies!)

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A explores a slew of questions combined to provide an overview of the priesthood in Zoroastrianism throughout the ages including questions on Pablo's own opinions on subjects related to the priesthood and the like. The second half of the episode includes an interview w...

03/11/2020

New video will be out next week! We need a bit more time for research and editing, so thanks for sticking with us!

20/10/2020

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A gets personal as Pablo answers a question that's been posed to them often: How did you get here? What's your conversion story? What led you to become a Zoroastrian and what struggles have you faced? Thank you for listening and happy learning!

To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://forms.gle/r2KH3wPvRg1qL31n9

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A gets personal as Pablo answers a question that's been posed to them often: How did you get here? What's your conversion story? What led you to become a Zoroastrian and what struggles have you faced? Thank you for listening and happy learning! To submit your questions...

07/10/2020

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A seeks to answer an interesting question: What is the Vendidad? Why is it controversial? To answer this, we explore the Vendidad chapter by chapter, the opinions of Zoroastrians and academics of the text, and my own opinions on it as requested by our listeners. Thank you for listening and happy learning!

To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://forms.gle/r2KH3wPvRg1qL31n9

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A seeks to answer an interesting question: What is the Vendidad? Why is it controversial? To answer this, we explore the Vendidad chapter by chapter, the opinions of Zoroastrians and academics of the text, and my own opinions on it as requested by our listeners. Thank....

13/09/2020

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A seeks to answer our third most sent-in question: What did Zarathushtra teach? We'll be going through the Gathas and the Yasna Haptanghaiti exploring each individually so that we can get to learn what Zarathushtra was teaching us all those millennia ago. Much care and research went into making this episode and we apologize if you find it to be against your own interpretations. Please note we remained as neutral as possible in dealing with the teachings of Zarathushtra, so we hope you understand that and can learn together with us from the greatest Ashavan of all time. Thank you for listening and happy learning!

To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://forms.gle/r2KH3wPvRg1qL31n9

In this episode, Zoroastrian Q&A seeks to answer our third most sent-in question: What did Zarathushtra teach? We'll be going through the Gathas and the Yasna Haptanghaiti exploring each individually so that we can get to learn what Zarathushtra was teaching us all those millennia ago. Much care and...

09/09/2020

No podcast episode today, sadly! We'd like to get more research done to make sure the topic is properly explored, so expect it closer to the end of the week for this one. Thanks and blessings of Ahura Mazda on you all!

25/08/2020

In this second episode of our two-part exploration of Zarathushtra's life, Zoroastrian Q&A reviews the Pahlavi Zarathushtra and the Modern Zarathushtra to contrast what was explored in the first episode of this duo, the Gathic Zarathushtra and the Avestan Zarathushtra. Thank you for listening and happy learning!

To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://forms.gle/r2KH3wPvRg1qL31n9

In this second episode of our two-part exploration of Zarathushtra's life, Zoroastrian Q&A reviews the Pahlavi Zarathushtra and the Modern Zarathushtra to contrast what was explored in the first episode of this duo, the Gathic Zarathushtra and the Avestan Zarathushtra. Thank you for listening and ha...

16/08/2020

We're looking for volunteers versed in Kurdish, Farsi, Arabic, and Gujurati (along with any other languages you know) to transcribe the podcasts so that even non-English speakers could engage with them. Please message the page if you're interested in helping out!

12/08/2020

Did you know we're on Spotify? Feel free to listen to us there as well!

Listen to Zoroastrian Q&A on Spotify. Have questions about Zoroastrianism, the oldest continuously practiced religion? Join your host Pablo, a Zoroastrian convert and scholar, as they provide the answers to all those questions you've been pondering about! To submit your questions anonymously for the...

11/08/2020

In this inaugural episode, Zoroastrian Q&A seeks to answer our most sent-in question: Who was Zarathushtra? What was his life like? This one will be a two-parter, so in this episode we'll review the Gathic Zarathushtra and the Avestan Zarathushtra while the next episode will focus on Pahlavi Zarathushtra and the Modern Zarathushtra. Thank you for listening and happy learning!

Special thanks to Ardeschir Hazrati Pour Fard for helping with verifying the meanings of the names of Zarathushtra's family! If you're on Facebook, please join his incredible Iranian Onomastic Studies group.

To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://forms.gle/r2KH3wPvRg1qL31n9

In this inaugural episode, Zoroastrian Q&A seeks to answer our most sent-in question: Who was Zarathushtra? What was his life like? This one will be a two-parter, so in this episode we'll review the Gathic Zarathushtra and the Avestan Zarathushtra while the next episode will focus on Pahlavi Zarathu...

03/08/2020

Welcome to the page for Zoroastrian Q&A, a new Zoroastrian podcast! Have questions about Zoroastrianism, the oldest continuously practiced religion? Join your host Pablo, a Zoroastrian convert and scholar, as they provide the answers to all those questions you've been pondering about!

Have questions about Zoroastrianism, the oldest continuously practiced religion? Join your host Pablo, a Zoroastrian convert and scholar, as they provide the answers to all those questions you've been pondering about! To submit your questions anonymously for the show, please use this form: https://f...

03/08/2020

03/08/2020