Prophecies About Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in Zoroastrian Scripture

Bahram Maneckshah Partakhi from the North American Mobed Council gives the information that Atash Neyayesh is a prayer of the Zoroastrians which can be recited at any time of the daytime. There are no restrictions on the recitation of this Neyayesh, unlike some other prayers. It is a combination of three paragraphs of Yasna 33: 12-14 (beginning), Yasna 62: 1-10 (central portion) and Yasna 34: 4 (end) in that order. It is as follows:

“O fire of Ahura Mazda! May you burn (be a blazing fire) in this house. May you ever burn (be a blazing fire) in this house. May You increase in this house! Even for a long time, till the powerful restoration of the world, till the time of the good, powerful restoration of the world.” ¹

There are three grades of sacred fires. The first and the humblest class of fire is the Atash Dadgah. It is the household fire, the fire of the householder class. It can burn in any clean place, such as a well-kept home or a Zoroastrian meeting-house. The next grade is the Adur Aduran, which means ‘fire of fires’. This degree is connected with the warrior class. It burns in the fire temples. It is kept perpetually burning, or at least smouldering, by a team of priests who add fresh wood to it five times a daytime. The third and highest grade of fire is called the Atash Bahram, or ‘fire of victory’. This is the light of kings and royalty. It may have received its ‘victory’ designation because of the metaphor of fire as a warrior against evil and darkness. Historically, it was likewise a symbol of the Persian king's might, and embers from the Atash Bahram were brought to the battlefield as the touchstone of the Persian forces. It was composed of embers from a thousand and one fires, each from a different occupation of society: Brickmakers, potters, reapers, hunters, blacksmiths, bakers, herdsmen, etc. ²

Spiritually, this prayer is interpreted as the stages of the brightness of the inner flame which burns within every human being. This fire should be ever-growing, dark, ever constant and steady, ever bright and clear, and ever unquenchable till the renovation be achieved along the way to eternity and soul's consummation. ³

However, as pointed out before, Zoroastrians hold that this world is a battlefield between two opposing forces, good and evil. The world is presently in a temporary stage of the mixture in which both evil and good coexist. However, this is not how Ahura Mazda created the world, nor is it how it will always be. Universal history is divided into four periods of 3,000 years each. The fourth and final world age is the present age, and it began with Zarathustra. It is itself further divided into three periods of 1,000 years each. Each of the 1,000 year periods begins somewhat optimistically and deteriorates over time, ending with the need for a Saviour. Therefore, it was foretold in this prayer that the fire which the Zoroastrians kept burning would cease to burn when the restoration of the world would take place. Fire would incessantly burn, blaze, and increase for a long time in the fire temples of Iran, the home of Zoroastrianism. It is a clear historical fact that the good and powerful restoration came true with the advent of the promised Prophet Muhammad , and the fire of the Magians ⁴ was extinguished when the Muslims conquered Iran in 640 CE.

As a result, most of the Iranian people converted to Islam, and Islam corrected many flaws and defects which appeared in the Zoroastrian religion in the course of time.

The Final Saoshyant or Astvat-Errata and his pious Companions

In scripture, Zoroastrianism has a final renovation of the world, when wickedness will be put down, and everything else will be in complete oneness with God (Ahura Mazda). Meaning ‘making wonderful and excellent’, this renovation is termed as frashokereti in the Avestan language.

According to the teachings of Zarathushtra or Zoroaster, even human being is responsible for his or her salvation through a righteous life. However, besides the individual salvation, there is a universal salvation in which the renovators will bring salvation to the world. The Zoroastrian tradition envisions three future saviours, one for the end of each 1,000-year period that comprises the final 3,000 years of the world. These are called Saoshvants in the Zoroastrian terminology. The term Saoshyant means helper, beneficial, and saviour. The Farvardin Yasht mentions their names as, respectively, Ukhshyat-ereta, (Pahlavi Hoshedar), Ukhshyat-neznah (Pahl. Hoshedarmah), and Astvat-ereta, who is another title of the last, greatest Saoshyant. ⁵

During the time of Hoshedar, one-third of those who had not accepted Zoroastrianism, accept it. Then, there arises a tumult. Hoshedarmah comes and removes the turbulence from amongst people, with the result that, more than those brought to faith by Hoshedar accept faith. Once more the time of happiness passes by and the period of wickedness sets in. However, Siyavushani (the last and greatest Saoshyant) finally comes, and all the people of the world accept the Religion. This last saoshyant is called Saoshyant because he will salvage the material world and bring benefit to humanity and Astvat-ereta because he is the embodiment of righteousness and truth and will save the human creatures from destruction at the hands of the two-footed nasty ones. This Saoshyant par excellence is the most renowned restorer; he is called the friend of Ahura Mazda, the honourable one, who will bring the mighty work to completion. He will also make the world perfect and immortal, and evil (druj) will disappear.

All the Soashyants mentioned discharging their roles with the assistance of great heroes. The final and most considerable Saoshyant will be helped in his great undertaking by pious comrades or attendants, who will be fiend-smiting, of good thoughts, good words, and good deeds, and who are such to have never known falsehood. They follow the teaching of Ahura Mazda. If they did not destroy the idolatrous temples, the renovation of the world could never be carried out. ⁶

If we sum up the features of the final Saoshyant's mission, the following points come to consider:

• The last Saoshyant's mission is universal and will bring welfare to all humanity. He will save people both physically and spiritually, i.e., he will be both a ruler with an earthly authority and a spiritual guide. The only prophet who was sent with a universal mission and empowered with both an earthly authority being a ruler and with spiritual guidance, and who was a mercy for all the creatures, is Prophet Muhammad .
• The final Saoshyant, the saviour of the world, came after the two great prophets and saviours, namely, Moses and Jesus . Exactly as it is said concerning the mission of Saoshyant, the Holy Prophet says:

. . . عرضت علي الليلة الأنبياء وأممهم وأتباعها من أممها، فجعل النبي يمر، ومعه الثلاثة من أمته، وجعل النبي يمر، ومعه العصابة من أمته، والنبي وليس معه إلا الواحد من أمته، والنبي ليس معه أحد من أمته، حتى مر موسى بن عمران في كبكبة من بني إسرائيل فلما رأيتهم أعجبوني، فقلت:”يا رب، من هؤلاء؟ “ قال:”أخوك موسى بن عمران، ومن تبعه من بني إسرائيل.“ قلت:”يا رب! فأين أمتي؟“قال:”انظر عن يمينك.“ فنظرت، فإذا الظراب ظراب مكة، قد أسود بوجوه الرجال، فقلت:”يا رب، من هؤلاء؟“قال: ”هؤلاء أمتك، أرضيت؟“ فقلت: ”يا رب، قد رضيت“ قال: ”انظر عن يسارك“فنظرت، فإذا الأفق قد سد بوجوه الرجال، فقلت: ”يا رب، من هؤلاء؟“ قال: ”هؤلاء أمتك، أرضيت؟“فقلت: ”رب رضيت“ قيل: فإن مع هؤلاء سبعين ألفا بلا حساب ⁷ . . .

. . . . (Yesterday) Night, prophets were displayed to me with their nations; a prophet passed along with three followers, a prophet passed accompanied by a group of his followers, a prophet passed along with no one except a single fellow, and a prophet without any fellow until Moses bin Imran passed by in the mob of Bani Israel, when I saw him, he looked me good. I asked: “My Lord, who are they?” He replied: “Your brother Moses bin Imran and those who follow him”. I asked: “My Lord, where is my Ummah?” He replied: “Look at your right side”. I saw and found a mountain, a hill of Makkah, looked black because of people’s heads. I asked: “My Lord, who are they?” He replied: “This is your Ummah, are you agreed?” I said: “My Lord, I am agreed”. He said: “Look at your left side”. I saw and found a greater multitude filling the horizon. I asked: “My Lord, who are they?” He replied: “This is your Ummah, are you agreed?” I said: “My Lord, I am agreed”. I was told: out of them seventy thousand shall enter Paradise without reckoning…

This hadith basically states that the the number of believers o=in prophet Muhammad’s will outnumber the believers of the previous prophets since the religion brought by him is the final religion, and would enter every house before the destruction of the world.

From among the scriptures, it is the Holy Quran in which righteousness (Taqwa and salihat-piety and goodness, righteous deeds) and truth are emphasising the most. As pointed out before, among the prophets, only Muhammad has been known and called al-Ameen (the Truthful and Trustworthy) since his adolescence.

The last Saoshyant is the most famous restorer; he is referred to as the friend of Ahura Mazda, the meritorious one, who will bring the mighty work to completion, and evil (druj) will disappear through him. Among the prophets, the one who is the nearest to God, one who is loved by both God and humanity the most, and brought the mighty occupation of divine prophethood and communication of the Divine Message to its completion is Prophet Muhammad . Likewise, evil (druj) and Satan (Angra Mainyu) have been defeated most severely by him. As mentioned several times earlier, God declared some eighty days before his departure from the world:

... الْيَوْمَ يَئِسَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْ دِينِكُمْ فَلَا تَخْشَوْهُمْ وَاخْشَوْنِ الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ الْإِسْلَامَ دِينًا...3⁸

. . . this day, the disbelievers are in despair concerning your religion, so do not fear them and fear Me; this day have I perfected your religion for you and completed My favour upon you, and have chosen Islam as your religion . . .

Prophet Muhammad himself declared on the same day:

إن الشيطان قد أيس أن يعبد بأرضكم هذه، ولكنه قد رضي منكم بما تحقرون. ⁹

O people! This day Satan has lost all hope of re-establishing his worship in this land of yours. But should you obey him even in what may seem to you trifling, it will be a matter of pleasure for him.

The last Saoshyant will make the world perfect and immortal. While all the prophets before Muhammad represented and conveyed the divine religion restrictedly since each was sent to a particular people and for a limited period, Muhammad represented and expressed it in its catholicity. Likewise, among the prophets, it is Muhammad who, being the last and thus closer to the last day, made the greatest stress on the Resurrection and Judgment Day and on attaining perfection and immortality by following God's way. Besides, since he is the last prophet, there will come no prophet after him, and he represents perfection and immortality.

The final and greatest Saoshyant will be helped in his great undertaking by his pious comrades or attendants, who will be fiend-smiting, of good thoughts, good words, and good deeds, and who are such as have never known falsehood. They conform to the teaching of Ahura Mazda. If they did not destroy the pagan temples, the renovation of the world could never be carried out.

No prophet other than Muhammad ever had friends or comrades so faithful to their prophet and praised by God and almost all of whom were saintly as the companions of the Holy Prophet . Many from among them did not believe in polytheism and worship idols, even before their conversion to Islam. Moreover, it was solely through Muhammad and his companions that the idolatrous temples were demolished. It is a historical fact that Iran, the native land of Zoroaster where his religion spread, was conquered by the companions of the Holy Prophet and the pagan temples there were destroyed. Whatever land has been seized by the Muslims, idolatry has almost entirely been abandoned, and its temples have either been demolished or converted into mosques. The Holy Quran praises the companions of the Holy Prophet with almost the same words of the Zoroastrian sacred texts:

مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا سِيمَاهُمْ فِي وُجُوهِهِمْ مِنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَمَثَلُهُمْ فِي الْإِنْجِيلِ كَزَرْعٍ أَخْرَجَ شَطْأَهُ فَآزَرَهُ فَاسْتَغْلَظَ فَاسْتَوَى عَلَى سُوقِهِ يُعْجِبُ الزُّرَّاعَ لِيَغِيظَ بِهِمُ الْكُفَّارَ وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنْهُمْ مَغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا 29¹⁰

Mohammed is the Noble Messenger of Allah, and his companions are stern with the disbelievers and merciful among themselves – you will see them bowing and falling in prostration, seeking Allah’s munificence and His pleasure; their signs are on their faces, from the effects of their prostration; this trait of theirs is mentioned in the Taurat; and their trait is mentioned in the Injeel; like a cultivation that sprouted its shoot, then strengthened it, then thickened and then stood firm upon its stem, pleasing the farmer – in order to enrage the disbelievers with them; Allah has promised forgiveness and a great reward to those among them who have faith and do good deeds.

In addition to these clear indications to the Holy Prophet , there are other references to him and his companions in the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism. Some of them are discussed as follows:

The victory in the battle of Badr

The Holy Book of Zoroastrianism Zamyad Yasht outlines some of the characteristics of the Saoshyant as:

“That will cleave unto the victorious Saoshyant and his helpers, when he shall restore the world, which will (thenceforth) never grow old and never die, never decaying and never rotting, ever living and ever increasing, and master of its wish, when the dead will rise, when life and immortality will come, and the world will be restores at its wish; When the creation will grow deathless-the prosperous creation of the Good Spirit and the Druj shall perish, though she may rush on every side to kill the holy beings; she and her hundredfold brood shall perish, as it is the will of the Lord. For its brightness and glory, I will offer it a sacrifice.” ¹¹

These words categorically refer to the distinct personality of the Holy Prophet and his loyal companions when they were victorious in the Battle of Badr. It is enlightening enough that the Muslims of Madina have been mentioned with the honorary title of Ansar (Helpers) exactly as they are referred to in the prophecy mentioned above in Zamyad Yasht.

It was two years after the prophet's migration to Madina that a powerful Makkan army comprising of about one thousand fighters marched toward Madina to establish their superiority by crushing the rising Muslim power which was trying to uproot idolatry and restore the world. The pagan army was sure to their victory due to the mass numberof soldiers and abundance of resources.

The Muslim army was very few in number, 313 men in total with 3 horses, and some weapons. Nevertheless, the Muslims still met the pagan army in the battle ground of Badr. The Muslims were few in number, but were full to the brim with religious zeal and were willing to sacrifice their lives for the cause of Islam. God helped the believers and the Muslim army emerged victorious. The pagans, on the other hand lost many great leaders, and other soldiers. The Muslims were victorious because God willed it, as He declared in the Holy Quran that He would ensure that truth conquers false hood. As the Holy Quran states:

وَإِذْ يَعِدُكُمُ اللَّهُ إِحْدَى الطَّائِفَتَيْنِ أَنَّهَا لَكُمْ وَتَوَدُّونَ أَنَّ غَيْرَ ذَاتِ الشَّوْكَةِ تَكُونُ لَكُمْ وَيُرِيدُ اللَّهُ أَنْ يُحِقَّ الْحَقَّ بِكَلِمَاتِهِ وَيَقْطَعَ دَابِرَ الْكَافِرِينَ 7 لِيُحِقَّ الْحَقَّ وَيُبْطِلَ الْبَاطِلَ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْمُجْرِمُونَ 8¹²

And remember when Allah promised you that one of the two groups (of enemies) is for you, and you wished to get the one that posed no danger, and Allah willed to prove the truth with His Words, and to cut the origins of the disbelievers. In order that He may prove the truth and disprove falsehood, even if the criminals get annoyed.

Despite the vast asymmetry between the forces, the Muslim army controlled by the Holy Messenger turned out to be utterly triumphant. All of the most refractory leaders of the idolatrous enemy were killed. The brilliant, decisive victory gained at the Badr made Islam a force to be reckoned with throughout Arabia. Many hardened hearts were inclined to accept Islam.

The prophet's victory against all kinds of evil or evildoers from amongst humankind and jinn

Dadis an-Dinik, a holy scripture of Zoroastrianism, highlights some further distinguished characteristics of the Holy Prophet with the mention of Saoshvant as:

“The renovator (frashagar) Saoshyant, who is the putter down, with complete subjugation from the world, of the glorification of fiends and demons, and of the contention with angels in apostasy and heterodox, of various kinds and unatoned for; and the one who completes of the renovation through the frill continuance of the glorification of the angels, and the perfect continuation of the pure religion. And through that excellent, unblemished, brotherly, work such a ruler may be seen above the sun with swift horses, the primaeval luminaries, and all removal of darkness, the advance of illumination which is the display of the days and nights of the world.” ¹³

This passage describes how God's Messenger became victorious in his struggle against all kinds of evil or evildoers from all sorts of heterodoxy from amongst humankind and the jinn (fiends and demons). He was likewise sent to the jinn, and as recounted in the Holy Quran (al-Ahqaf, 46: 29-32; al-Jinn 72: 1-16), many from among the jinn became Muslims, and all the jinn were prevented from overhearing angels. Contact between fortune tellers and jinn and/or devils have a particular function in certain sorts of fortune telling. The spying devils, who are the representatives of the foulness and wickedness on the earth, attempt to soil the clean and pure realm of the heavens that are inhabited by pure beings, and spy on the talk of their inhabitants to mislead people, particularly through sorcerers, and ill-willing mediums, and soothsayers. God Almighty allowed them to grab some snatches of information from their talks before the advent of His Last Messenger . However, just before his advent, He shut the gates of the heavens to them completely. When they attempt to reach the heaven, they find it filled with strong guards who would hurl missiles at them. Therefore, if anyone from among the disbelieving jinn can grab something, they are pursued (and destroyed) by a shooting star dispatched by the angels on guard there. The Holy Quran relates this as:

وَأَنَّا لَمَسْنَا السَّمَاءَ فَوَجَدْنَاهَا مُلِئَتْ حَرَسًا شَدِيدًا وَشُهُبًا 8 وَأَنَّا كُنَّا نَقْعُدُ مِنْهَا مَقَاعِدَ لِلسَّمْعِ فَمَنْ يَسْتَمِعِ الْآنَ يَجِدْ لَهُ شِهَابًا رَصَدًا 9 وَأَنَّا لَا نَدْرِي أَشَرٌّ أُرِيدَ بِمَنْ فِي الْأَرْضِ أَمْ أَرَادَ بِهِمْ رَبُّهُمْ رَشَدًا 10¹⁴

And we reached the sky, so we found it strongly guarded and filled with comets. And that we sometimes used to sit in some places in the sky, to listen; so whoever now listens finds a fiery comet waiting for him. And we do not know whether harm is intended for those on the earth, or whether their Lord intends goodness for them.

While the evil spirits were prevented from overhearing angels and fouling the heavens, God's Messenger received great help from the angels, the pure inhabitants of the heavens. As recounted in the Holy Quran, God sent many angels to his help in many of his battles against the forces of evil. As the Holy Quran states

إِذْ تَسْتَغِيثُونَ رَبَّكُمْ فَاسْتَجَابَ لَكُمْ أَنِّي مُمِدُّكُمْ بِأَلْفٍ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ مُرْدِفِينَ 9 وَمَا جَعَلَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَّا بُشْرَى وَلِتَطْمَئِنَّ بِهِ قُلُوبُكُمْ وَمَا النَّصْرُ إِلَّا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ 10 إِذْ يُغَشِّيكُمُ النُّعَاسَ أَمَنَةً مِنْهُ وَيُنَزِّلُ عَلَيْكُمْ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً لِيُطَهِّرَكُمْ بِهِ وَيُذْهِبَ عَنْكُمْ رِجْزَ الشَّيْطَانِ وَلِيَرْبِطَ عَلَى قُلُوبِكُمْ وَيُثَبِّتَ بِهِ الْأَقْدَامَ 11 إِذْ يُوحِي رَبُّكَ إِلَى الْمَلَائِكَةِ أَنِّي مَعَكُمْ فَثَبِّتُوا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا سَأُلْقِي فِي قُلُوبِ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا الرُّعْبَ فَاضْرِبُوا فَوْقَ الْأَعْنَاقِ وَاضْرِبُوا مِنْهُمْ كُلَّ بَنَانٍ 12¹⁵

When you (Prophet Mohammed ) were seeking the help of your Lord, so He answered your prayers that, “I will help you with a row of thousands of angels.” And Allah did this just for your happiness and for your hearts to gain contentment, and help does not come except from Allah; indeed Allah is Almighty, Wise. When He made the slumber overcome you, so it was as a peacefulness from Him and sent down water from the sky upon you to purify you with it, and to remove the impurity of Satan from you, and to give your hearts fortitude and firmly establish your feet with it. And when O dear Prophet ( ), your Lord was inspiring the angels that, “I am with you – so make the believers stand firm; I will soon instil fear into the hearts of the disbelievers, so strike above the disbelievers’ necks and hit their each and every bone joint.”

ثُمَّ أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ سَكِينَتَهُ عَلَى رَسُولِهِ وَعَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَأَنْزَلَ جُنُودًا لَمْ تَرَوْهَا وَعَذَّبَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا وَذَلِكَ جَزَاءُ الْكَافِرِينَ 26¹⁶

Then Allah sent down His calm upon His Noble Messenger and upon the Muslims, and sent down armies you did not see, and punished the disbelievers, and such is the reward of the deniers.

إِلَّا تَنْصُرُوهُ فَقَدْ نَصَرَهُ اللَّهُ إِذْ أَخْرَجَهُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا ثَانِيَ اثْنَيْنِ إِذْ هُمَا فِي الْغَارِ إِذْ يَقُولُ لِصَاحِبِهِ لَا تَحْزَنْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَنَا فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ سَكِينَتَهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَيَّدَهُ بِجُنُودٍ لَمْ تَرَوْهَا وَجَعَلَ كَلِمَةَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا السُّفْلَى وَكَلِمَةُ اللَّهِ هِيَ الْعُلْيَا وَاللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ 40¹⁷

If you do not help him (Prophet Mohammed ), Allah has helped him – when he had to go forth due to the mischief of the disbelievers, just as two men – when they were in the cave, when he was saying to his companion “Do not grieve; indeed Allah is with us”; then Allah caused His calm to descend upon him and helped him with armies you did not see, and disgraced the word of the disbelievers; and Allah’s Word is supreme; and Allah is the Almighty, the Wise.

He also travelled through all dimensions of existence or all heavens as high as God's holy presence. The inhabitants of the heavens welcomed him during this miraculous journey and escorted him. The above quotation from Dadis an-Dinik refers to these realities as well. Moreover, it describes how the darkness prevailing over the world was removed through the divine guidance of the Holy Prophet .

The sacred well of Zamzam

There is a point to mention concerning the birth of the final Saoshyant. It was developed in the tradition of Zoroastrianism that a maiden who had "not associated with men" would bathe in Lake Kansava in Seistan and get pregnant with the seed of Zoroaster which had been preserved miraculously by angels for many centuries. Therefore, the final Saoshyant or the promised Astvat-Ereta will be born of this maiden as the son of Zoroaster and as one who will preserve the original Zoroastrian faith, kill the devil, eradicate idol-worship, reclaim the Zoroastrians from their vices and establish righteousness on the earth. As it has been mentioned:

"In the end time, it is a different matter altogether because then evil will be at its lowest ebb. At this time, when the world is ready and waiting for the last of the Saviours, a virgin named Gobak-abu will conceive the third and final son of Zarathushtra. At the age of fifteen, she will become pregnant after drinking the water of Lake Kans in Iran. She shall give birth, in the realm of Khvaniras to the most glorious ASTVAT- ERETA (Soshyos) - his very name signalling that he is the final Saviour to come: for it means ‘He who will establish ERETA, righteousness on this earth'!” ¹⁸

This prophecy, which has been developed later in Zoroastrianism, clearly requires interpretation if it is an authentic tradition. It is true that Prophet Muhammad , the universal saviour has re-established and preserved the true faith proclaimed by all the prophets before him. He crushed the devil, eradicated idol-worship, and reclaimed the Zoroastrians from their vices by opening the way for their conversion to Islam or return to their original, true religion. However, as for the spiritual part of the prophecy, it is a fact that when a metaphor passes from the hands on knowledge to the hands of ignorance, it tends to be taken literally and opens the door to superstitions. Thus, a metaphor is not accepted for a reality and requires interpretation.

According to the Zoroastrians, Lake Kansava is the same spring of the water of life where King Xerxes of Zoroastrians and Khadr (Khidr) of Muslims is believed to be alive, teaching wisdom to the people and guiding those who have lost their way.

Just near the Ka'ba in Makkah, there is a spring of Zamzam, which miraculously gushed out at the feet of Ishmael . When the Abraham , left Hagar with his son Ishmael in the desert, with the hope of finding water or seeing a caravan passing by which would provide water for them, Hagar ran frantically between the hits of Safa and Marva ¹⁹ many times. However, when she was left despair of finding it, she unexpectedly saw a spring gushing out at the feet of Ishmael , who was yet a baby. This spring has been called Zamzam because of its gushing forth. It is a sacred source out of which millions of pilgrims have been taking water for thousands of years. According to the Bible:

فَوَجَدَهَا مَلَاكُ ٱلرَّبِّ عَلَى عَيْنِ ٱلْمَاءِ فِي ٱلْبَرِّيَّةِ، عَلَى ٱلْعَيْنِ ٱلَّتِي فِي طَرِيقِ شُورَ. . . . ١٠ وَقَالَ لَهَا مَلَاكُ ٱلرَّبِّ:تَكْثِيرًا أُكَثِّرُ نَسْلَكِ فَلَا يُعَدُّ مِنَ ٱلْكَثْرَةِ. ١١ وَقَالَ لَهَا مَلَاكُ ٱلرَّبِّ: هَا أَنْتِ حُبْلَى، فَتَلِدِينَ ٱبْنًا وَتَدْعِينَ ٱسْمَهُ إِسْمَاعِيلَ، لِأَنَّ ٱلرَّبَّ قَدْ سَمِعَ لِمَذَلَّتِكِ. ²⁰

The angel of the Lord met Hagar at a spring in the desert on the road to Shur. . . Then he said, “I will give you so many descendants that no one will be able to count them. You are going to have a son, and you will name him Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your cry of distress.

Prophet Muhammad came to the world as a son of Abraham through Ishmael almost twenty-five hundred years later. In the Holy Quran, God swears by the holy city of Makkah and both Muhammad as the son of Abraham and Abraham who begot Muhammad :

لَا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ 1 وَأَنْتَ حِلٌّ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ 2 وَوَالِدٍ وَمَا وَلَدَ 3²¹

I swear by this city (Mecca) –For you (O dear Prophet Mohammed ) are in this city. And by the oath of your forefather Ibrahim, and by you – his illustrious son!

The sacred spring or well of Zamzam is a sign of the spiritual fountain that was to spring out in the desert, i.e., the Holy Quran. Moreover, the water of this very spring extinguished the fire that had been burning in the Zoroastrian temples and satiated the thirst of millions for the ‘water of immortality or eternal life’.

A description of the Holy Prophet as a prophet and a ruler

With all of its parts, the following dialogue which exists in Yasna, 19: 20, obviously points to Prophet Muhammad as well as the Holy Quran and Islam.

Question: Which thought is the well thought?

Answer: (It is that which the holy man thinks), the one who holds the holy thought to be before all other things.

Question: What is the word well spoken?

Answer: It is the Mathra Spenta, the bounteous word of reason.

Question: What is the deed well done?

Answer: It is that done with praises, and by the creatures who regard righteousness as before all other things.

Question: Mazda made a proclamation, whom did He announce?

Answer: Someone who was holy, and yet both heavenly and mundane.

Question: What was His character, He who made this sacred enunciation?

>Answer: He who is the best (of all), the ruling one.

>

Question: Of what character (did He proclaim him the coming one)?

Answer: As holy and the best, a ruler who exercises no wanton or despotic power. ²²

Consider what follows

The word well-spoken is the word which is beneficial to all in respect of human happiness in both worlds, and it is the Holy Quran and the traditions of the Holy Prophet .

The deed well done is that made to praise God. The first chapter of the Holy Quran, which is the opening chapter and regarded as the ‘seed’ and epitome of the Holy Quran, is Surat al-Hamd (the Chapter of Praise) and begins with: All praise is for God, the Lord of the Worlds. The Holy Quran also regards righteousness as the only criteria of superiority among human beings. It declares itself:

يَاأَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنْثَى وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ 13²³

O mankind! We have indeed created you from one man and one woman, and have made you into various nations and tribes so that you may know one another; indeed the more honourable among you, in the sight of Allah, is one who is more pious among you; indeed Allah is All Knowing, All Aware.

The one announced by Mazda (God) is the one who is holy yet celestially mundane. For he is both a prophet and a ruler; he is one who lives on the earth but in essence is heavenly. He is a ruler, yet he is the best and holiest because he as a prophet-ruler exercises no wanton or despotic power. He follows and exercises God's law without the least deviation. He regards serving people as the essence of the rule, as he declared:

سيد القوم خادمهم²⁴

"The master of a people is he who serves them."

Also, Islam does not discriminate based on race, colour, age, nationality, or physical traits. The Holy Prophet declared:

كلكم من آدم وآدم من تراب...... والمسلم أخو المسلم، والمسلمون إخوة... ²⁴

"You are all from Adam, and Adam is from earth . . . And Muslim is the brother of a Muslim, and Muslims are brothers. . .

Those who are born earlier, have more wealth and power than others, or belong to certain families or ethnic groups, have no inherent right to rule others.

Islam also upholds the following fundamental principles:

• The power lies in truth, or right is might, a repudiation of the common idea that truth relies upon power or might is right.
• Justice and the rule of law are essential.
• Freedom of belief and the rights of life, personal property, reproduction, and health (both mental and physical) cannot be violated.
• The privacy and immunity of individual life must be maintained.
• No one can be convicted of a crime without evidence, or accused and punished for someone else's crime.
• An advisory system of administration is essential.

The Mmiraculous protection of the Holy Prophet

The following passage from Farvardin Yasht describes how Prophet Muhammad was miraculously protected against his enemies and particularly during his migration to Madina:

“We pay homage to the good, strong, Fravashis (guardian angels, angelic ones) of the faithful who fight at the right hand of the reigning lord. They come flying unto him; it seems as if they were well-winged birds. They come in as a weapon and as a shield, to keep him behind and to keep him in the front, from the enemy unseen, from the female varenya fiend, from the evildoer, bent on mischief and from that fiend who is all death, Angra-Mainyu. It will be as if a thousand men were watching over one man, so that neither the sword well thrust, nor the club well-falling, nor the arrow well-shot, nor the spear well-darted; nor the stones flung from the arm shall destroy him." ²⁶

The protection of God's Messenger was an apparent miracle, as expressed in the Holy Quran:

...وَاللَّهُ يَعْصِمُكَ مِنَ النَّاسِ...67²⁷

. . . . and Allah will protect you from the people . . .

When the God's Messenger proclaimed the divine message, he did not challenge just one tribe or race, a few politicians, or a particular religion, but all rulers and all religions. Despite one of his uncles and many from among his tribe being among his greatest enemies, as well as the numerous conspiracies directed against him, he drew his last breath in his own bed in perfect contentment and reached the highest incorporeal realm after 23 years without a guard or any form of protection. In this respect, we cite only a few of the many indisputably certain exemplary events, as follows:

Scholars of Hadith and biographers of the Holy Prophet report that the Quraysh plotted to kill him when they lost all hope of his giving up communicating Islam to the people. Advised by a diabolical man or by Satan himself (Angra-Mainyu) in the form of a man from Najd, they chose at least one man from each clan to avoid any intra-tribal dispute. Abu Jahl and Abu Lahab, the two evildoers, bent on mischief with the latter being his uncle who was among his bitterest enemies together with his wife Umm Jamil, led around 200 men who besieged the Messenger's house. Ali , his young cousin, who was with the God's Messenger that night, was told to sleep in the Messenger's bed. When the Quraysh surrounded the house, the beloved Messenger left. Throwing some dust on them, passed by without being seen, continuing toward Madina together with his closest friend Abu Bakr . ²⁸ The passage above from Farvardin Yasht refers to this incident in particular.

Abu Bakr relates that after Surat-ul-Lahab, which begins with, ²⁹تَبَّتْ يَدَا أَبِي لَهَبٍ وَتَبَّ (May both the hands of Abu Lahab be destroyed – and they are destroyed!) was revealed, Abu Lahab's wife, the female varenya fiend, one of the bitterest enemies of the Holy Prophet like her husband Abu Lahab, described therein as the carrier of the firewood (Holy Quran, Lahab 111: 4), picked up a rock and went to the Ka'ba. The Holy Prophet and Abu Bakr were sitting near it. The reporter says:

. . . فوقفت على أبي بكر ولم تر رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه عليه وسلم فقالت: يا أبا بكر، إني أخبرت أن صاحبك هجاني. فقال: لا ورب هذا البيت ما هجاک۔۔۔³⁰

She stayed near Abu Bakr but could not see God's Messenger and asked: “Abu Bakr! I hear that your friend satirised me. (Abu Bakr) replied: “No, but God of this house (Ka’ba) satirised you. . .

On the way to Madina during the Prophet's migration, the Qurayshi chiefs sent Suraqa, a very brave man, to assassinate him in return for a substantial reward. Abu Bakr , Muhammad’s fellow traveller, became anxious when he saw Suraqa coming. He said:

. . . واتبعنا سراقة بن مالك، فقلت: أتينا يا رسول اللّٰه، فقال:”لا تحزن إن اللّٰه معنا“فدعا عليه النبي صلى اللّٰه عليه وسلم فارتطمت به فرسه إلى بطنها, فقال: إني أراكما قد دعوتما علي، فادعوا لي، فاللّٰه لكما أن أرد عنكما الطلب، فدعا له النبي صلى اللّٰه عليه وسلم فنجا، فجعل لا يلقى أحدا إلا قال: قد كفيتكم ما هنا، فلا يلقى أحدا إلا رده، قال: ووفى لنا³¹.

Suraqa bin Malik followed us, and I said, 'We have been discovered, O Allah's Apostle!' He said, Don't grieve for Allah is with us.' The Prophet invoked evil on him (i.e. Suraqa), and so the legs of his horse sank into the earth up to its belly. Suraqa said, 'I see that you have invoked evil on me. Please invoke good on me, and by Allah, I will cause those who are seeking after you to return.' The Prophet invoked good on him, and he was saved. Then, whenever he met somebody on the way, he would say, 'I have looked for him here in vain.' So he caused whomever he met to return. Thus Suraqa fulfilled his promise."

God protected the Holy Prophet as referred to in the prophecy under discussion, he was backed and helped by the Archangels Gabriel and Michael as if they were his aides-de-camp (helper). As it is stated in the Holy Quran (Al-Anfaal 8: 9-10, 12, 50; At-Tawba, 9: 26, 40) and we have pointed out in this study that God sent angels to help and back him and his holy army in the battles.

The Good News Of The Advent Of Prophet Muhammad In Dasatir

As pointed out at the beginning of this section, there are two parts of the Zoroastrian scriptures: Zend Avesta and Dasatir. Dasatir means a book of ten parts: Das means ‘ten’ and ti’ means ‘a part’. Dasatir is also the plural of dastur in Persian, which means law or religious code. Dasatir is further divided into two parts: Khurda Dasatir and Klan Dasatir. We have already discussed the prophecies in the Zend Avesta, and what follows is a clear prophecy about Prophet Muhammad in Dasatir (Sasan 1, verses 54-60):

“While they are so engaged, there shall arise a man among the Tewarjis (Taziz-they are the Arabs). By whose followers, the diadem, and the throne, and the government, and the religion shall be all overthrow, and instead of an idol temple or of the fire-temple of the house of the Abad shall be seen a place toward which prayer is directed, but stripped of its images. Moreover, around is brackish water. Moreover, afterwards they will subdue the Fire-temple of Madain and whatever is in them and Yenfud, and Newak (Tus and Balkh) and the great places and their law-giver shall be an eloquent man and his words involved.” ³²

The current editions of the Dasatir contain fifteen sections or epistles which are said to have been revealed to fifteen successive prophets. The first of whom is Mahabad and the last Sasan V. Among these sections or epistles the epistle of Sasan I is remarkable and records the above-quoted prophecy about Muhammad in very clear words. The edition of Dasatir from which the above-quoted prophecy is taken was translated into English and published by Mulla Feruz Bin Kaus in Bombay in 1818. Mulla Firuz, who was a Zoroastrian priest, lived in Bombay (India) and he was an eminent scholar of Pahlavi, Zend, Persian, and Arabic languages. He worked with several famous Zoroastrian priests to authenticate his translation. The original text is in Pahlavi.

Some Christians, without any concrete evidence, try to bring doubt on the authenticity of this prophecy claiming that there was no Sasan-I, and Sasan was the eponymous ancestor of the Sasanian royal family, but nothing is known about him, and the name was never borne by any king of the dynasty. However, Encyclopedia Britannica and Britannica Concise Encyclopedia give the information that Sasan was the eponymous ancestor of the Sasanian dynasty in ancient Persia. Details of Sasan I's life vary, but most scholars believe he was originally a prince in the province of Persis and a vassal of Gochihr, the chief petty king in Persis. His son or descendant was Babak, who was the father of Ardashir-I, the founder of the Sasanian Empire.

In the article on Sasanians in Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, edited by James Hastings (Vol. 11, Pg. 201), the following is written:

"Sassanians (is) the national dynasty, which, overthrowing the Arsacid line, ruled in Persia from AD. 226 to 651-George Rawlinson's Seventh Great Oriental Monarchy derives its name from Sasan, father of Papak (otherwise Babek), whose son Ardashir I (same name as Artaxerxes) was the founder of the line of some 28 monarchs who ruled Iran for over four centuries."

It should be noted concerning the authenticity of the Dasatir that Sir William Jones (1746-1794), who was an Anglo-Welsh philologist and scholar of ancient India, had labelled the Zend Avesta a forgery. When he was presented a transcript of the Dasatir, he pronounced it the authentic Zoroastrian scripture. ³³

The real author of the prophecy under discussion was, in fact, Zoroaster himself and not Sasan-I, for Sasan was just a reformer of the Zoroastrian faith. He added explanatory notes here and there in the book. Before the prophecy begins, the licentiousness and dissoluteness of the Iranians are mentioned.

In this prophecy, it is stated that when the Zoroastrian Iranians forsake their religion in dissolution, a man will rise in Arabia, whose followers will conquer Persia, overthrowing the diadem, and the throne, and the government, and the religion of the arrogant Persians. Instead of worshipping fire in their temples, they will turn their faces in prayer toward Ka'ba of Abraham (Great Abad), which will be cleared of all idols. Those followers of the Arabian Prophet will subdue Madain, Tus, Balkh, the sacred places of the Zoroastrians and the neighbouring territories. Their prophet will be a law-giver and an eloquent one telling miraculous things.

Hence, the arrival of the beloved Prophet had been declared with a clear mention of his clear-cut features. Thus, Zoroastrians who regard and value their holy scriptures as their guide should not delay in believing the prophethood of Prophet Muhammad for their salvation.

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• ¹  Atash Neyayesh: http://www.avesta.org/other/atash1.pdf: Retrieved: 26-12-2016
• ²  The Sacred Fire: http://www.pyracantha.com/Z/atarsh.html: Retrieved: 26-12-2016
• ³  Atash Neyayesh: www.avesta.org/other/atash1.pdf: Retrieved: 26-12-2016
• ⁴  Magi (Latin plural of magus) is a term, used since at least the 6th century BCE, to denote followers of Zoroastrianism or Zoroaster. The earliest known usage of the word Magi is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius the Great, known as the Behistun Inscription. Old Persian texts, pre-dating the Hellenistic period, refer to a Magus as a Zurvanic, and presumably Zoroastrian, priest. Pervasive throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia until late antiquity and beyond, magos, "Magian" or "magician", was influenced by (and eventually displaced) Greek goes (γόης), the older word for a practitioner of magic, to include astrology, alchemy and other forms of esoteric knowledge. This association was in turn the product of the Hellenistic fascination for (Pseudo‑) Zoroaster, who was perceived by the Greeks to be the "Chaldean", "founder" of the Magi and "inventor" of both astrology and magic, a meaning that still survives in the modern-day words "magic" and "magician". ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magi: Retrieved: 26-12-2016)
• ⁵  James Hasting (Editor) (1912), Salvation, Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, T.&. T. Clark, New York, USA, Vol. 11, Pg. 137-38.
• ⁶  Atash Neyayesh: http://www.avesta.org/dhalla/history4.htm: Retrieved: 26-12-2016
• ⁷  Abu Hatim Muhammad bin Haban (1988), Sahih ibne Haban, Zikru Wasful Anbia, Hadith: 7346, Moassisat-ul-Risala, Beirut, Lebnon, Vol. 16, Pg. 341.
• ⁸  Holy Quran, Al-Maaida (The Table Spread for Food) 5: 3
• ⁹  Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Hanbal Al-Shebani (2001), Musnad Al-Imam Ahmad bin Hanmbal, Hadith: 8810, Moas’sisa-tur-Risala, Beirut, Lebanon. Vol. 14, Pg. 409.
• ¹⁰  Holy Quran, Al-Fath (The Victory) 48: 29
• ¹¹  Zamyad Yasht, 19: 89-90
• ¹²  Holy Quran, Anfaal (The Spoils of War) 8: 7-8
• ¹³  Dadis an-Dinik 2: 13-15
• ¹⁴  Holy Quran, Al-Jinn (The Genie) 72: 8-10
• ¹⁵  Holy Quran, Anfaal (The Spoils of War) 8: 9-12
• ¹⁶  Holy Quran, Tawba (The Repentance) 9: 26
• ¹⁷  Holy Quran, Tawba (The Repentance) 9: 40
• ¹⁸  The Three Mighty Saviours to come: Zarathushtri religious belief, from "The Saga of the Aryans", Vol. V, chapter: 7, http://tenets.zoroastrianism.com/three33.html: Retrieved: 30-12-2016.
• ¹⁹  Al-Safa and Al-Marwah are two small hills now located adjacent to the Masjid al-Haram in Makkah, Saudi Arabia between which Muslims travel back and forth seven times during the ritual pilgrimages of Hajj and Umrah.
• ²⁰  The Bible, Genesis 16: 7, 10 - 11
• ²¹  Holy Quran, Al-Balad (The City) 90: 1-3
• ²²  Atash Neyayesh: http://www.avesta.org/yasna/yasna.htm#y13: Retrieved: 27-12-2016
• ²³  Holy Quran, Al-Hujuraat (The Dwellings) 49: 13
• ²⁴  Abul Khair Shams Uddin Muhammad bin Abdul Rehman Al-Sakhawi (1985), Al-Maqasid al-Hasana, Hadith: 579, Darul Kitab Al-A’rabi, Lebanon, Pg. 395
• ²⁴  Abu Abdullah Muhammad bin Umer Al-Waqdi (1989), Al-Maghazi, Sha’nu Ghazwat-ul-Fathe, Darul A’lami, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 2, Pg. 836.
• ²⁶  Farvardin Yasht 63: 70-72, Quoted by Ali Unal in The Prophet Promised in World Scriptures, Tughra Books, New Jersey, USA, Pg. 408.
• ²⁷  Holy Quran, Maaida (The Table Spread for Food) 5: 67
• ²⁸  Abu Muhammad Abdul Malik bin Hasham (1955), Al-Seerat-ul-Nabawiya, Khurooj-ul-Nabi, Mustufa Al-Babi Al-Halbi, Egypt, Vol. 1, Pg. 842-843.
• ²⁹  Holy Quran, Al-Masad (The Palm Rope) 111: 1
• ³⁰  Muhammad bin Abdullah Abu Abdullah Al-Hakim (1990), Al-Mustadrak A’la Sahihain, Min Tafseere Surah Bani Israil, Hadith: 3376, Darul Kutub Al-I’lmiya, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 2, Pg. 393
• ³¹  Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Ismail Al-Bukhari (1999), Sahih Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Manaqib: Hadith: 3615, Darussalam, Riyadh, Saudia, Pg. 607.
• ³²  The Dasatir or Sacred Writings of the Ancient Persian Prophets in the Original Tongue Together Pith the Ancient Persian Version and Commentary of the Fifth Sasan; Carefully Published by Mulla Firuz bin Kaus, Who has subjoined a copious Glossary of the Obsolete and Technical Persian Terms: To Which is Added an English Translation of the Dasatir and Commentary, Vol. 2, Bombay, India, 1818.
• ³³  Prophet of Mahabad: http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.edu/msg12636.html: Retrieved: 29-12-2016

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