In this post, I shall explain the “Zoroastrian Religion” for which, the city of Yazd is famous for…
STOP PRESS:
Most Iranians (especially younger ones) will say “merci” for “thank you” instead of the Persian “sepas”. There are also heaps of French cars roaming about (especially Peugeot). Why ? Because During the Napoleonic Wars, France and Persia formed an alliance (1807-1809) against Russia and Great Britain. After Napoleon's fall, France focused on expanding its commercial presence in Iran, seeking trade concessions and political influence to counter British and Russian influence. French language and culture gained influence in Iran, particularly among the upper classes who sought higher education in France and brought the language back to Iran. Despite periods of tension, France and Iran maintained significant economic ties, with French companies investing in Iran and French exports being a major part of Iran's economy. All this is now gone but not forgotten !!!
We greeted the start of May 2025 with a 450km drive from Shiraz to Yazd. A variety of landscapes. It started out with the so-familiar view of a flat wide irrigated valley with distant rugged sandstone ridges. Then we climbed to 2255m passing a narrow gorge with smooth sides. Back down to the flat valley but this time at a steady 2200m rising to 2500m. Then all of a sudden – flat desert with no vegetation at a steady 1500m !!! A grey tan colour that reminded me of the Etosha Basin in Namibia Africa. The only thing that was missing was the lions !!! About 28km out from Yazd we came across a narrow valley with HUGE jagged high mountain ridges on both sides. Very rocky. Very rugged. We arrived at our 4yr old almost new hotel at 3pm and by 4pm I was finishing Post 13 in a nice cool room away from the 33C heat outside. At 6pm all the shops, stalls, cafes and restaurants open and the deserted streets of Yazd fill with local families, the elderly and plenty of cars and motorbikes given sunset at 630pm with a very comfortable 25C. I joined the group at the Silk Road Restaurant to partake of the local specialty “Camel Stew” !!! Delicious. Just like beef. Tender, flavoursome and served with rice, red cabbage and pickled cauliflower. Pity this dish could not be celebrated with a nice red so lemon-malt carbonated drink just had to do.
The old quarter of Yazd (Pop 601,000, Elev 1,216m), founded in the 5thCentury AD, is UNESCO protected as it has the best-preserved Persian architecture which involves mud & straw instead of bricks and mortar. Yazd is famous for preserving the early Zoroastrian religion and very well known for its Zoroastrian fire temples. It is also famous for its cisterns, underground channels, Persian handicrafts, handwoven cloth (Persian Termeh), Persian cotton candy, its time-honoured confectioneries and bicycles – first to adopt them with the highest number of bicycles per capita in Iran. Silk weaving is also huge here due to its prominence on the Silk Road.
I woke up (Fri 2MAY) with gout in my big right toe and a headache. Dehydration. I realised I had drunk very little water the day before and now I was paying for it. Classic symptoms. Despite this I tried to run but could not. My toe was too swollen for my runner and I was light headed and out of breath. I managed to drink enough and pop some aspirin to get me on the van to tour Yazd. It was 30C at 9am when we left so no wonder I was dehydrated. Yazd is very much in a desert and is preserved by mainly underground water. The van was necessary to protect us from the searing dry heat and one of the key Zoroastrian attractions is 10km from the centre. We saw the following attractions: Towers of Silence (Zoroastrian Graveyard), Zoroastrian Fire Temple (Fire burning 1000yrs), Dowlet Abad Garden (Tower & Reception), Amir Chaqmaq Square & Pishtaq, Clock Tower, 15thC Jameh Mosque (with mosaic dome & tallest minarets in Iran). A Russian movie was being filmed in the Zoroastrian Graveyard so we only got to see its structures from afar. Here is what you need to know about the Zoroastrian religion.
Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion centred on the teachings of Zoroaster who lived around 2000BC making this religion one of the oldest in the world given Judaism began around 1800BC. Zoroaster professed one “good” spirit and one “bad” spirit making it the first monotheistic belief if indeed it began around 2000BC since there is nothing recorded of Zoroaster until 600BC. The good spirit (or loosely god) is called Ahura Mazda and the bad spirit is called Angra Mainyu. This is very much a reflection of ying and with an eschatological outlook predicting the ultimate triumph of Ahura Mazda over Angra Mainyu. Zoroastrianism shaped Iranian culture and history. It was the official religion of the Achaemenid and Sasanian Empires. In the 7th Century AD, the Muslim conquest of Iran marked the beginning of the decline of Zoroastrianism. The persecution of Zoroastrians by the early Muslims prompted much of the community to migrate to the Indian subcontinent. Today, most Zoroastrians reside either in India (50,000–60,000), in Iran and Kurdistan in Northern Syria (15,000–25,000). The religion is slowly in declining due to intermarriage. Zoroastrianism focuses on the elements of fire, water, wind and earth to reach out to good Ahura Mazda. I first encountered this religion in Erbil, the capital of the autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern Syria. Worship is in caves or mud-dwellings called “fire temples” with shamans or “holy men” burning personal offerings like food and clothing to invite Ahura Mazda to bestow those who made the offerings with good virtues. The Iranian version is more sophisticated with a set ritual of prayers and chanting. The first Zoroastrians did not bury their dead. They would hold a funeral service then place the body on top of a hill to be eaten by vultures and the leftover bones retrieved and interred in a special fire temple. This practice has long since been replaced by burial in a conventional graveyard dedicated to the religion.
Our tour ended around 130pm and I decided to invest in a 2hr siesta complete with hydrolyte, water and aspirin to try and recover from my dehydration. I felt better on the other side but refrained from going outside, instead turning to research on the Stans. That night I enjoyed the 3.5hr epic 2004 Oliver Stone movie of “Alexander” (the Great) given our visit to Persepolis and that we would touch on some of his footsteps as we crossed the Stans. Enjoy the strange sites of the desert oasis of Yazd…
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Unfortunately, my investment was not enough. A headache actually woke me. Very rare for me. Executive conclusion ? I was still dehydrated recovery. Threw down more hydrolyte and aspirin before setting out on our 390km desert drive to the “outback” village of Esfahak. Weird. The heat does not normally affect me so my theory is that I have done so much running and walking in the heat compared to water-intake that it tipped me over the edge. The drive was not much to report. Flat yellow-grey desert with rugged peaks on both sides. Very little or no vegetation. Dry heat. 30-35C. Still on the Iranian Plateau 1200-1800m. We struggled to get fuel under the rationing system since we had no petrol card and no one would sell us one. Upside was plenty of pee and ice-cream stops in our repeated attempts to get fuel. Boy was it hot. Like the Ozzie outback. Desert as far as the eye could see. In the last hour of our trip, if I put on red sunglasses, I swear I would think I was on Mars !!!
The lovely village of Esfahak (Pop 1,050, Elev 1,054) , is an oasis in the Tabas Desert with the mighty Shotori Mountain Range behind it. The 400+ year old clay adobe village was destroyed due to an earthquake in 1978, but another village was founded near it. Arched doorways, domed roofs with skylights, and small windows are among the features of the old houses in Esfahak. Given the number of earthquakes in this part of Iran a seismological centre was established in Esfahak capable of predicting natural hazards. Dates and saffron are the main products in Esfahak.
We arrived in Esfahak at around 430pm and stayed in two mud-brick compounds equipped with a courtyard, 6 bedrooms, kitchen (with gas stove and even a fridge !!!) and one toilet and two showers for sharing. Bedrooms had fans which made the 35C heat outside just bearable. Thank goodness I got a room to myself. Nice floor rug with 2-3 foam mattresses as a comfy bed. Had plenty of cheese and olives to occupy me until a group 730pm dinner at the only restaurant in town. Straight to bed after that for a 5am rise the next day to beat the heat !!!
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