Exile Age Empires: Iran, Zoroastrianism, and the Rise of Greek Poleis
Early Iranian Groups and Empires
Initial Political Setting: Various Iranian groups existed on the fringes of the Mesopotamian world until approximately BCE.
Assyrian Empire's Influence: The expansion of the Assyrian Empire, around the July era, engaged Iranians more firmly in Mesopotamian politics.
Rise of the Medes: The Medes helped bring down the Assyrian Empire in June and created the first pan-Iranian state.
Emergence of the Persians: This state was subsequently overthrown by another Iranian group, the Persians. They rapidly established the largest and most multicultural empire in the world to that point, a process starting in May (discussed in Chapter from "War on the Empires").
Cultural Context: Persian rule over this complex and long-established region formed the basic context for the development of the "Exile Age tradition." (See Figure for reference).
Zoroastrianism: Religion, Ethics, and Governance
Foundational Principles:
Zoroastrianism was the Persian religion, with roots based on the Vedic religion of the Aryans.
Its core focus was the worship of Ahura Mazda, an all-powerful deity and the benevolent creator of the universe.
The unique doctrines of Zoroastrianism are attributed to the prophet Zarathustra (known as Zoroaster in its Greek form).
The Prophet Zarathustra:
Little is definitively known about Zarathustra, including his exact dates.
Traditionally, he is said to have lived around BCE, but some scholarship suggests he lived much earlier, possibly as early as BCE.
Many teachings attributed to him are likely later elaborations by his followers, with clearly discernible influences dating to the Achaemenian Persian Empire (transcript notes the unclear period: "the 05/1950 to BC to March").
Cosmic Worldview:
Zoroastrian beliefs posit the universe as a good creation of Ahura Mazda, characterized by truth and order ().
This good creation is perpetually at odds with lies and chaos, which are the work of Angra Mainyu (also known as Ahriman), who is portrayed as a liar and a lesser being than Ahura Mazda.
Angra Mainyu is ultimately destined to be defeated by Ahura Mazda after a cosmic struggle.
Humanity's Role and Ethics:
All humans were created by Ahura Mazda as allies in this cosmic struggle.
They are required to proactively participate in the struggle of good against evil through "good words, good thoughts, and good deeds" until the final cleansing and transformation of the world.
This emphasis on active participation makes Zoroastrianism anti-monastic, distinguishing it from traditions like Buddhism.
Afterlife and Judgement:
Ahura Mazda judges each person's life based on the balance of their good and evil acts.
This balance determines their fate in the afterlife: reward in paradise, existence in limbo, or condemnation to a fiery hell.
At the final cleansing, all souls will ultimately be released and join Ahura Mazda in paradise.
Influence and Implications:
The influence of Zoroastrianism on other major religions, particularly Christianity and Islam, is significant, especially regarding concepts of cosmic dualism, individual ethics, divine judgment, and an afterlife of heaven and hell.
While Zoroastrianism has less direct pronouncements on specific social order, it fostered certain societal structures:
It developed a special priestly class, often called the Magi.
It provided justification for the rule of Persian kings who practiced Zoroastrianism.
It appears to have encouraged a benevolent government by the Persians over their conquered peoples.
This benevolent rule is likened to a "velvet glove" replacing the harsh structure of Assyrian rule, much as Han Confucianists humanized the Qin Legalist structure.
One example of this benevolent attitude was the Persian toleration of other religions, stemming partly from principle and partly due to practical Zoroastrian beliefs.
Nature of Adherence: Despite its universalist claims, Zoroastrianism historically functioned as a religion of birth, not of proselytizing. It was a "religion of chosen people," a parallel case to early Judaism.
The Persian Empire and its Impact on Judaism
Hebrew Deportation and Liberation:
The Hebrews were significant beneficiaries of Persian politics.
Many had been forcibly deported to Babylon by the Chaldeans after their conquest.
Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Persian Empire, famously freed the Jews, allowing them to return to Palestine and Jerusalem.
Reconceptualization of Hebrew Faith:
The return from exile contributed to a profound reconceptualization of the Hebrew faith.
This shift was either directly influenced by Zoroastrianism or converged on similar ideas due to a shared environmental context, or both.
Prophetic Shift in Second Isaiah: Prophecies about the Persian king Cyrus in Second Isaiah (e.g., Isaiah ) capture this religious transformation:
"For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel, mine elect, I have even called thee, Cyrus, by thy name. I have surnamed thee the great, although thou hast not know me. I have made the earth and created man upon it… I have raised him, Cyrus, up in the righteousness, and I will direct all of his ways. He shall build my city, Jerusalem, and he shall let go my captives nor the price nor the ruler, say saith the lord of hosts."
Evolution of the Hebrew God: The Hebrew god, originally conceived as the exclusive deity of a pastoral tribe, evolved. Like Ahura Mazda, Yahweh became not just the creator of everything, but also a universal god of righteousness and the director of kings and peoples (whether they acknowledged Him or not) within a cosmic narrative positioning the Jews as a chosen people.
Ethical Monotheism and Cultural Identity in the Exile Age
Core Themes: The cultural frames of the Exile Age, particularly concerning Persians and Jews, are linked by two major themes:
Development of Ethical Monotheism:
Zarathustra's Contribution: Through Zarathustra, early Persian religion moved towards monotheism by diminishing, demoting, and reinterpreting its multiple gods to focus predominantly on Ahura Mazda.
Second Isaiah's Completion: In Judaism, Second Isaiah completed a process that universalized tribal monotheism, establishing Yahweh as the sole Lord and unique God.
Shared Interpretation: Both peoples interpreted their respective gods as the ultimate framework for individual morality and the meaning of the universe.
Righteous Rule: Within this framework, social order essentially came down to righteous rule — governance conducted in accordance with the demands of a just God.
Legitimacy Challenges: Kings in both Israel and Persia, early in their states' histories, faced challenges to their rule's legitimacy from religious leaders (Hebrew prophets and Zoroastrian Magi, respectively).
Endowing Universal Gods with a Chosen People/Cultural Identity:
Both groups attributed to their universal gods a concept of a "chosen people" (themselves) who had a special relationship to the divine and the universe.
Shared Context: This outcome was likely influenced by the cultural context of Southwest Asia and the Persian Empire.
Both Persians and Hebrews were formerly pastoralists who had settled among more established, culturally traditional societies.
Both constituted small minorities within the total population of their regions.
They faced significant pressures to acculturate to their subjects and neighbors.
Response to Assimilation Pressure: As predicted by the nomadic-sedentary model (and evidenced by Hebrew prophets' early struggles against the worship of agricultural gods like Baal), both groups responded by constructing a cultural framework that:
Endowed a universal deity with meaning and informed individual ethical thinking.
Created a powerful tool for maintaining a unique and separate cultural identity amidst assimilation pressures – a significant intellectual achievement of the Exile Age.
Greece: Migrations, Polis, and Cultural Flourishing
Indo-European Migrations to Europe: Indo-European chariot warriors migrated not only eastward into Persia and India but also southwestward into the steppes and the Balkan Peninsula.
Geographical Setting of Greek Speakers: The branch of Indo-Europeans who would eventually speak Greek occupied the southernmost tip of the Balkans, a challenging landscape of mountains and small valleys.
Post-Mycenaean "Dark Age": Following the collapse of the Mycenaean world (characterized by warring chiefdoms), Greece experienced a period from approximately BCE to BCE. This era saw further migrations, a near disappearance of cities and commerce, and the emergence of a society dominated by a warrior elite and peasants who cultivated olives, grapes, and wheat.
Rise of the Polis (City-State):
As the population grew in the agriculturally restricted valleys, social organization became focused on central settlements within each valley, which developed into the Polis (plural: Poleis).
The Greek Polis was a city-state typically centered around an open marketplace (Agora) and its surrounding cultivated land.
Colonization and Expansion during the Archaic Period:
Due to limited land resources, many Poleis turned to the sea for expansion.
They established colonies on the coasts of Asia Minor and in the fertile agricultural regions bordering the Black Sea.
During the Archaic Period (approximately to BCE), the Greek world expanded beyond its original homeland. Its center shifted to the Aegean Sea, which became a network of crisscrossing trade routes and connections between "mother cities" and their colonies, as well as between Greeks and non-Greeks.
Cultural and Literary Development:
The Greeks adopted the alphabet from the Phoenicians and borrowed various ideas from across the Eastern Mediterranean.
This facilitated the transcription of a long tradition of oral epic poetry into written form, culminating in monumental works like the Homeric Iliad and Odyssey.
This act initiated a thriving era of written culture.
The Polis served as the vital center and context for their culture's significant development.