著者

香月 法子

出版者

一般社団法人 日本オリエント学会

雑誌

オリエント (ISSN:00305219)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.47, no.1, pp.113-126, 2004-09-30 (Released:2010-03-12)

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Zoroastrian high priests in India are of the opinion that Parsi society and Parsi identity will be wiped out by the interfaith marriage and entry into the faith of the children of these marriages. But there is more to it than that. There are the currents of conversion to Zoroastrianism all around Central Asia. Most clearly converts have claimed that their ancestors were Zoroastrians.Quite a few Zoroastrians, of those who have been traditionally called, are negative about accepting members whose parents are not both Zoroastrians. Behind the tendency of refusing to accept converts in their society or institutions in India are the serious religious disturbances risen by communalism in India and the exclusive environment of Parsi society. To protect their own society, Parsis, who are minority in India, have accepted the interfaith marriages selectively and have accepted the children of the marriages as physically and spiritually pure because of the ties of blood.However, for others, even if they affirm that Zoroastrianism is the faith of their ancestors, it is difficult to say that they possess physical and spiritual purity from the point of view of Zoroastrianism. Nevertheless, the controversy about the issue of conversion to Zoroastrianism seems to be increasing, as society in general seems to recognize converts as Zoroastrians, in the absence of conditions for formal entry (naojot) or of a definition of a Zoroastrian which is accepted by everyone. However, unless Zoroastrians change their ideas of physical purity and impurity, which are considered integral parts of the tenets of Zoroastrianism, it will be difficult to find a unified view.