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Chapter 12: The Religions of the Middle East
1. The sacred book of the Zoroastrian faith is the __________.
2. In pre-Zoroaster Iran the common people worshipped powers known as __________.
3. The sacred __________ plant was used to prepare a sacramental psychedelic potion used in
worship in the pre-Zoroaster period.
4. The conception of of an underlying order in the world, both natural and moral was called
__________.
5. The one true god to Zoroaster was named __________.
6. The opposition between __________ or Right and Truth, and __________, the Lie is a
cornerstone of early Zoroastrianism.
7. The term __________ refers to the moral center of personality, the higher nature, specifically
the seat of religion, the conscience.
8. In later Zoroastrianism, a term for a unitary world principle (boundless Time or Space) from
which both good and evil sprang was __________.
9. The __________ Bridge spans hell and connects the earth with heaven.
10. The __________, or towers of silence, provide the Parsis of India with an approved way of
disposing of their dead without contaminating soil and water with spoiling flesh.
Multiple Choice
11. The __________ was a bundle of boughs that was worshipped as supernatural and held
before the face during the adoration of the sacred fire.
a. asha
b. barsom
c. haoma
d. yasht
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12. An increasingly burdensome practice of worship for settlers, compared to nomads was the
__________.
a. burning of some of the harvest yield
b. consumption of psychedelic potions
c. consuming the costly barsom plant
d. sacrifice of animals
13. At age thirty, Zoroaster received a vision from the archangel __________.
a. Ahura Mazda
b. Vohu Manah
c. Gathas
d. Hutaosa
14. The conversion of this Aryan ruler by Zoroaster was an important turning point in the spread
of the Zoroastrian faith.
a. Hutaosa
b. Isfendir
c. Vishtaspa
d. Zain
15. The prophet Zarathustra is most often known as Zoroaster in __________.
a. India
b. Iran
c. the middle east
d. the West
16. The important ruler, Vishtaspa converted to Zoroastrianism after Zoroaster cured the ruler’s
favorite __________.
a. consort
b. cow
c. horse
d. wife
17. The religion Zoroaster taught was .
a. animistic
b. monotheistic
c. pantheistic
d. polytheistic
18. The name of the Supreme God of Zoroastrianism is ___________.
a. Ahura Agni
b. Ahura Mazda
c. Ahura Mirtha
d. Ahura Veda
19. According to Zoroaster, the Supreme Being expresses his will through __________.
a. archangels
b. Druj
c. nature
d. Spentu Mainyu
20. Zoroaster believed that within each human soul there is a constant battle between _________.
a. Asha and Mainya
b. good and evil
c. purification and purity
d. yang and yin
21. According to Zoroaster, souls face judgment after death at __________.
a. the Bridge of the Righteous
b. the Bridge of the Separator
c. the Bridge of the river Kwai
d. the gates of heaven
22. The Zoroastrian scriptures are called the __________.
a. Avestas
b. Daena
c. Kavis
d. Vedas
23. The monotheism of Zoroaster changed after his death and the followers began subscribing to
the worship of a number of deities called __________.
a. daevas
b. rashnus
c. Vedas
d. yazatas
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24. Currently, the two primary groups of practicing Zoroastrians are the __________ of Iran and
the __________ of India.
a. bahdinans; gabars
b. gabars; bahdinans
c. gabars; parsis
d. zarathustras; parsis
25. __________ different purified fires must be combined to generate the most holy fires for the
most sacred temples.
a. Eleven
b. Nineteen
c. Sixteen
d. Thirteen
26. The fire worship of the ancient Iranians was practiced __________.
a. at home
b. in special temples
c. on floating boughs in rivers and streams
d. under the open sky
27. Ahura Mazda is the __________ of Zoroastrianism.
a. current leader
b. first convert
c. the one good God
d. the embodiment of evil
28. The __________ is the most commonly used symbol of Zoroastrianism.
a. Faravahar
b. Gathas
c. Rig-Veda
d. Vishtaspa
29. The Gathas is essentially __________.
a. a sacred text
b. a set of prayers
c. devotional hymns
d. theological writings
30. Zoroaster took great pains to purge all religious ceremonies and worship of __________.
a. animal sacrifice
b. fire ceremonies
c. magic and idolatry
d. purification rites
31. At the end of the world, Zoroastrians believed a __________ would take place.
a. final battle between good and evil
b. great flood
c. rebirth of the world
d. resurrection and final judgment
32. According to myth, when Zoroaster was a baby he was saved from harm when
a. a cow straddled him from a stampede
b. an evil spirit was destroyed by Ahura Mazda
c. his family received a revelation of impending danger
d. worshippers surrounded him
33. Zoroastrianism had a significant influence on other religions most particularly on
__________.
a. Mainya
b. Mithra
c. Moses
d. Muhammad
34. The Iranis dress their boys in clothes with three sacred __________, which represents good
thoughts, words, and deeds.
a. colors
b. symbols
c. threads
d. words
35. Zarathushtra is the__________.
a. brother of Ahura Mazda
b. brother of Ahura Mainyu
c. prophet who founded the Zoroastrian religion
d. wife of the prophet Zoroaster