Rising up over on the edge of town, with a back drop of a spine of steep,snow capped stands one of the oldest and most striking places in Iran - the Zoroastrian Temple of Silence.
Before the arrivals of the invading Arabs and Islam in the 7th century the peoples of Iran were in large part Zoroastrians. They followed the teachings of the Persian prophet Zoroaster and believed in "cosmogonic dualism and eschatological monotheism" - that is the ongoing battle between good and evil and a single god - named Ahura Mazda (Wise Lord). They also came up with the idea of free will, and lived by the creed of humata, hukhta, huvarshta (Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds) - all concepts which subsequently influenced traditions adopted by Jews, Christians and Muslims alike.
One of their interesting beliefs is that the human corpse should avoid with earth and fire - both of which are considered sacred. So to remedy the problem of disposal, they built large temples on hills at the edge of towns, exposed to the open air to allow carrion (birds of prey) to remove the flesh from the bones. One of the oldest still standing, sits on what once the edge of Yazd, but the sprawling city means that the dormitories of the huge university are within a stone's throw.
However the place is still majestic, atop a natural hill a circular crown was constructed, surrounded by a low wall. From the top you can look out over the mountains to one side with the afternoon sun falling behind them, the flat, rocky desert to another, and everywhere else the sprawl of the city nibbling at the edges. It was easy to imagine the bodies laid out in the tower, and birds circling and swooping.
The buildings immediately below, belonged to the community of workers who prepared the bodies, so explained three chador clad Iranian students I met at the top. Apparently these workers were not allowed to come in to contact with the broader community so they lived an isolated life in a walled compound.
In Iran the practice faded due to the influence of Islam - in a curious way. Islam considers dissecting a corpse mutilation and is prohibited, however newly created medical schools needed corpses so people would break in to the towers and remove bodies. In response Zoroastrians came up with a clever solution - concrete lined tombs, which meant the corpses didn't touch either fire or earth!!
After the arrival of Islam many Zoroastrians fled east and ended up in India - they are known as Parsis (Persians) and continue to practice this ritual. They feature prominently in Rohinton Mistry's fantastic book A Fine Balance, which has a great description of the entire burial process.
Before the arrivals of the invading Arabs and Islam in the 7th century the peoples of Iran were in large part Zoroastrians. They followed the teachings of the Persian prophet Zoroaster and believed in "cosmogonic dualism and eschatological monotheism" - that is the ongoing battle between good and evil and a single god - named Ahura Mazda (Wise Lord). They also came up with the idea of free will, and lived by the creed of humata, hukhta, huvarshta (Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds) - all concepts which subsequently influenced traditions adopted by Jews, Christians and Muslims alike.
However the place is still majestic, atop a natural hill a circular crown was constructed, surrounded by a low wall. From the top you can look out over the mountains to one side with the afternoon sun falling behind them, the flat, rocky desert to another, and everywhere else the sprawl of the city nibbling at the edges. It was easy to imagine the bodies laid out in the tower, and birds circling and swooping.
In Iran the practice faded due to the influence of Islam - in a curious way. Islam considers dissecting a corpse mutilation and is prohibited, however newly created medical schools needed corpses so people would break in to the towers and remove bodies. In response Zoroastrians came up with a clever solution - concrete lined tombs, which meant the corpses didn't touch either fire or earth!!
After the arrival of Islam many Zoroastrians fled east and ended up in India - they are known as Parsis (Persians) and continue to practice this ritual. They feature prominently in Rohinton Mistry's fantastic book A Fine Balance, which has a great description of the entire burial process.
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