Angra Mainyu (; ) is the

Avestan Avestan ( ) is the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism. It belongs to the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family and was First language, originally spoken during the Avestan period, Old ...

name of

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zoroaster, Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, ...

's hypostasis of the "destructive/evil spirit" and the main adversary in Zoroastrianism either of the Spenta Mainyu, the "holy/creative spirits/mentality", or directly of

Ahura Mazda Ahura Mazda (; ; or , ),The former is the New Persian rendering of the Avestan form, while the latter derives from Middle Persian. also known as Horomazes (),, is the only creator deity and Sky deity, god of the sky in the ancient Iranian ...

, the highest deity of Zoroastrianism. The

Middle Persian Middle Persian, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg ( Inscriptional Pahlavi script: , Manichaean script: , Avestan script: ) in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasania ...

equivalent is Ahriman (anglicised pronunciation: ). The name can appear in English-language works as Ahrimanes.

In the Avesta

In Zoroaster's revelation

Avestan ''angra mainyu'' "seems to have been an original conception of

Zoroaster Zarathushtra Spitama, more commonly known as Zoroaster or Zarathustra, was an Iranian peoples, Iranian religious reformer who challenged the tenets of the contemporary Ancient Iranian religion, becoming the spiritual founder of Zoroastrianism ...

's." In the Gathas, which are the oldest texts of Zoroastrianism and are attributed to Zoroaster, ''angra mainyu'' is not yet a proper name.Proper names are altogether rare in the Gathas. In these texts, even

and

Amesha Spenta In Zoroastrianism, the Amesha Spenta (—literally "Immortal (which is) holy/bounteous/furthering") are a class of seven divine entities emanating from Ahura Mazda, the highest divinity of the religion. Later Middle Persian variations of the ter ...

are not yet proper names. In the one instance in these hymns where the two words appear together, the concept spoken of is that of a ''mainyu'' ("mind", "spirit" or otherwise an abstract energy etc.)The translation of ''mainyu'' as "spirit" is the common approximation. The stem of ''mainyu'' is "man", "thought", and "spirit" is here meant in the sense of "mind". that is ''angra'' ("destructive", "chaotic", "disorderly", "inhibitive", "malign" etc., of which a manifestation can be

anger Anger, also known as wrath ( ; ) or rage (emotion), rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong, uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt, or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experie ...

). In this single instance – in ''

Yasna Yasna (;"Yasna"
''

antithesis Antithesis (: antitheses; Greek for "setting opposite", from "against" and "placing") is used in writing or speech either as a proposition that contrasts with or reverses some previously mentioned proposition, or when two opposites are introd ...

". A similar statement occurs in ''Yasna'' 30.3, where the antithesis is however ''aka mainyu'', ''aka'' being the Avestan language word for "evil". Hence, ''aka mainyu'' is the "evil spirit" or "evil mind" or "evil thought," as contrasted with '' spenta mainyu'', the "bounteous spirit" with which

conceived of creation, which then "was". The ''aka mainyu'' epithet recurs in ''Yasna'' 32.5, when the principle is identified with the ''daeva''s that deceive humankind and themselves. While in later Zoroastrianism, the ''daevas'' are demons, this is not yet evident in the Gathas: Zoroaster stated that the ''daevas'' are "wrong gods" or "false gods" that are to be rejected, but they are not yet demons. Some have also proposed a connection between ''Angra Mainyu'' and the sage Angiras of the Rigveda. If this is true, it could be understood as evidence for a religious schism between the deva-worshiping

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed ...

Indo-Aryans Indo-Aryan peoples are a diverse collection of peoples predominantly found in South Asia, who (traditionally) speak Indo-Aryan languages. Historically, Aryans were the Indo-Iranian speaking pastoralists who migrated from Central Asia int ...

and early Zoroastrians. In ''Yasna'' 32.3, these ''daevas'' are identified as the offspring, not of Angra Mainyu, but of '' akem manah'', "evil thinking". A few verses earlier it is however the ''daebaaman'', "deceiver" – not otherwise identified but "probably Angra Mainyu" – who induces the ''daevas'' to choose ''achistem manah'' – "worst thinking." In ''Yasna'' 32.13, the abode of the wicked is not the abode of Angra Mainyu, but the abode of the same "worst thinking". "One would have expected ngra Mainyuto reign in hell, since he had created 'death and how, at the end, the worst existence shall be for the deceitful' (''Y.'' 30.4)."

In the Younger Avesta

''Yasna'' 19.15 recalls that Ahura Mazda's recital of the Ahuna Vairya invocation puts Angra Mainyu in a stupor. In ''Yasna'' 9.8, Angra Mainyu creates Aži Dahaka, but the serpent recoils at the sight of

Mithra Mithra ( ; ) is an ancient Iranian deity ('' yazata'') of covenants, light, oaths, justice, the Sun, contracts, and friendship. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of Truth ( ...

's mace ('' Yasht'' 10.97, 10.134). In '' Yasht'' 13, the

Fravashi Fravashi (, ) is the Avestan term for the Zoroastrian concept of a personal spirit of an individual, whether dead, living, or yet-unborn. The ''fravashi'' of an individual sends out the ''urvan'' (often translated as ' soul') into the material wo ...

s defuse Angra Mainyu's plans to dry up the earth, and in ''Yasht'' 8.44 Angra Mainyu battles but cannot defeat Tishtrya and so prevent the rains. In ''

Vendidad The Vendidad /ˈvendi'dæd/, also known as Videvdat, Videvdad or Juddēvdād, is a collection of texts within the greater compendium of the Avesta. However, unlike the other texts of the Avesta, the ''Vendidad'' is an ecclesiastical code, not a ...

'' 19, Angra Mainyu urges Zoroaster to turn from the good religion by promising him sovereignty of the world. On being rejected, Angra Mainyu assails Zoroaster with legions of demons, but Zoroaster deflects them all. In ''Yasht'' 19.96, a verse that reflects a Gathic injunction, Angra Mainyu will be vanquished and Ahura Mazda will ultimately prevail. In ''Yasht'' 19.46ff, Angra Mainyu and Spenta Mainyu battle for possession of '' khvaraenah'', "divine glory" or "fortune". In some verses of the Yasna (e.g. ''Yasna'' 57.17), the two principles are said to have created the world, which seems to contradict the Gathic principle that declares Ahura Mazda to be the sole creator and which is reiterated in the cosmogony of ''

'' 1. In that first chapter, which is the basis for the 9th–12th-century ''

Bundahishn The ''Bundahishn'' (Middle Persian: , "Primal Creation") is an encyclopedic collection of beliefs about Zoroastrian cosmology written in the Book Pahlavi script. The original name of the work is not known. It is one of the most important extant ...

'', the creation of sixteen lands by Ahura Mazda is countered by the Angra Mainyu's creation of sixteen scourges such as winter, sickness, and vice. "This shift in the position of Ahura Mazda, his total assimilation to this Bounteous Spirit azda's instrument of creation must have taken place in the 4th century BC at the latest; for it is reflected in

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

's testimony, which confronts Areimanios with Oromazdes (apud Diogenes Laertius, 1.2.6)." ''Yasht'' 15.43 assigns Angra Mainyu to the nether world, a world of darkness. So also ''Vendidad '' 19.47, but other passages in the same chapter (19.1 and 19.44) have him dwelling in the region of the ''daeva''s, which the ''Vendidad'' asserts is in the north. There (19.1, 19.43–44), Angra Mainyu is the ''daevanam daevo'', "''daeva'' of ''daeva''s" or chief of the ''daeva''s. The superlative ''daevo.taema'' is however assigned to the demon Paitisha ("opponent"). In an enumeration of the ''daeva''s in Vendidad 1.43, Angra Mainyu appears first and Paitisha appears last. "Nowhere is Angra Mainyu said to be the creator of the ''daeva''s or their father."

In Zurvanite Zoroastrianism

Zurvanism Zurvanism is a fatalistic religious movement of Zoroastrianism in which the divinity Zurvan is a first principle (primordial creator deity) who engendered equal-but-opposite twins, Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu. Zurvanism is also known as "Zu ...

– a historical branch of Zoroastrianism that sought to theologically resolve a dilemma found in a mention of antithetical "twin spirits" in ''Yasna'' 30.3 – developed a notion that Ahura Mazda ( MP: Ohrmuzd) and Angra Mainyu (MP: Ahriman) were twin brothers, with the former being the epitome of good and the latter being the epitome of evil. This mythology of twin brotherhood is only explicitly attested in the post-

Sassanid The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

Syriac and

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

polemic such as that of Eznik of Kolb. According to these sources the genesis saw Zurvan as an

androgynous Androgyny is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex or gender expression. When ''androgyny'' refers to mixed biological sex characteristics in humans, it often r ...

deity, existing alone but desiring offspring who would create "heaven and hell and everything in between." Zurvan then sacrificed for a thousand years. Towards the end of this period, Zurvan began to doubt the efficacy of sacrifice and in the moment of this doubt Ohrmuzd and Ahriman were conceived: Ohrmuzd for the sacrifice and Ahriman for the doubt. Upon realizing that twins were to be born, Zurvan resolved to grant the first-born sovereignty over creation. Ohrmuzd perceived Zurvan's decision, which he then communicated to his brother. Ahriman then preempted Ohrmuzd by ripping open the womb to emerge first. Reminded of the resolution to grant Ahriman sovereignty, Zurvan conceded, but limited kingship to a period of 9000 years, after which Ohrmuzd would rule for all eternity. Eznik of Kolb also summarizes a myth in which Ahriman is said to have demonstrated an ability to create life by creating the peacock. The story of Ahriman's ripping open the womb to emerge first suggests that Zurvanite ideology perceived Ahriman to be evil by choice, rather than always having been intrinsically evil (as found, for example, in the cosmological myths of the ''

''). And the story of Ahriman's creation of the peacock suggests that Zurvanite ideology perceived Ahriman to be a creator figure like Ormazd. This is significantly different from what is found in the Avesta (where Mazda's stock epithet is ''dadvah'', "Creator", implying Mazda is ''the'' Creator), as well as in Zoroastrian tradition where creation of life continues to be exclusively Mazda's domain, and where creation is said to have been good until it was corrupted by Ahriman and the '' dev''s. In some Zurvanite narratives, it is mentioned that Zurvan had a wife and had children with Ahura Mazda and Ahriman, later, Ahura Mazda married his mother and had children with her, including the

sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as visible light a ...

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...

s, pigs,

donkey The donkey or ass is a domesticated equine. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a separate species, ''Equus asinus''. It was domes ...

s, and

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...

In Zoroastrian tradition

In the Pahlavi texts of the 9th–12th century, Ahriman (written ''ʼhl(y)mn'') is frequently written upside down "as a sign of contempt and disgust." In the ''

Book of Arda Viraf The ''Book of Arda Viraf'' (Middle Persian: ''Ardā Wirāz nāmag'', lit. 'Book of the Righteous Wirāz') is a Zoroastrian text written in Middle Persian. It contains about 8,800 words. It describes the dream-journey of a devout Zoroastrian (the ...

'' 5.10, the narrator – the 'righteous Viraf' – is taken by Sarosh and

Adar Adar (Hebrew: , ; from Akkadian ''adaru'') is the sixth month of the civil year and the twelfth month of the religious year on the Hebrew calendar, roughly corresponding to the month of March in the Gregorian calendar. It is a month of 29 days. ...

to see "the reality of God and the archangels, and the non-reality of Ahriman and the demons" as described by the German

philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also defined as the study of ...

and orientalist Martin Haug, whose radical interpretation was to change the faith in the 19th century (see "In present-day Zoroastrianism" below). This idea of "non-reality" is also expressed in other texts, such as the ''

Denkard The ''Dēnkard'' or ''Dēnkart'' (Middle Persian: 𐭣𐭩𐭭𐭪𐭠𐭫𐭲 "Acts of Religion") is a 10th-century compendium of Zoroastrian beliefs and customs during the time. The ''Denkard'' has been called an "Encyclopedia of Mazdaism" an ...

'', a 9th-century "encyclopedia of Mazdaism", which states Ahriman "has never been and never will be." In chapter 100 of ''Book of the Arda Viraf'', which is titled 'Ahriman', the narrator sees the "Evil spirit, ... whose religion is evil ndwho ever ridiculed and mocked the wicked in hell." In the Zurvanite ''Ulema-i Islam'' (a Zoroastrian text, despite the title), "Ahriman also is called by some name by some people and they ascribe evil unto him but nothing can also be done by him without Time." A few chapters later, the Ulema notes that "it is clear that Ahriman is a non-entity" but "at the resurrection Ahriman will be destroyed and thereafter all will be good; and hange?will proceed through the will of God." In the ''Sad Dar'', the world is described as having been created by Ohrmuzd and become pure through his truth. But Ahriman, "being devoid of anything good, does not issue from that which is owing to truth." (62.2) '' Book of Jamaspi'' 2.3 notes that "Ahriman, like a worm, is so much associated with darkness and old age, that he perishes in the end." Chapter 4.3 recalls the grotesque legend of Tahmurasp (Avestan: Taxma Urupi) riding Angra Mainyu for thirty years (cf. ''Yasht'' 15.12, 19.29) and so preventing him from doing evil. In chapter 7,

Jamasp Jamasp (also spelled Zamasp or Djamasp; ; ''Jāmāsp'') was Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 496 to 498/9. He was a son of Peroz I and younger brother of Kavad I. Jamasp was installed on the Sasanian throne upon the deposition of the latter ...

explains that the Indians declare Ahriman will die, but "those, who are not of good religion, go to hell." The ''

'', a Zoroastrian account of creation completed in the 12th century has much to say about Ahriman and his role in the cosmogony. In chapter 1.23, following the recitation of the Ahuna Vairya, Ohrmuzd takes advantage of Ahriman's incapacity to create life without intervention. When Ahriman recovers, he creates Jeh, the primal seductress who afflicts women with their menstrual cycles. In Bundahishn 4.12, Ahriman perceives that Ohrmuzd is superior to himself, and so flees to fashion his many demons with which to conquer the universe in battle. The entire universe is finally divided between the Ohrmuzd and the ''yazad''s on one side and Ahriman with his ''dev''s on the other. Ahriman slays the primal bull, but the

moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

rescues the seed of the dying creature, and from it springs all animal creation. But the battle goes on, with mankind caught in the middle, whose duty it remains to withstand the forces of evil through good thoughts, words and deeds. Other texts see the world created by Ohrmuzd as a trap for Ahriman, who is then distracted by creation and expends his force in a battle he cannot win. (''The epistles of Zatspram'' 3.23; ''Shkand Gumanig Vichar'' 4.63–4.79). The ''Dadistan denig'' explains that Ohrmuzd, being omniscient, knew of Ahriman's intent, but it would have been against his "justice and goodness to punish Ahriman before he wrought evil ndthis is why the world is created." Ahriman has no such omniscience, a fact of which Ohrmuzd reminds him (''Bundahishn'' 1.16). In contrast, in

Manichaean Manichaeism (; in ; ) is an endangered former major world religion currently only practiced in China around Cao'an,R. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''. SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 found ...

scripture, Mani ascribes foresight to Ahriman. p. 392. Some Zoroastrians believed Ahriman "created dangerous storms, plagues, and monsters during the struggle with Ahura Mazda" and that the two gods were

twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two e ...

Ahriman after influence of Islam

Maneckji Nusserwanji Dhalla described the doctrine of the Gayomarthians sect as another attempt to mitigate the dualism that has always been the essence of Zoroastrianism. This was due to the Prophet Muhammad’s emphasis on monotheism and the Muslims’ mockery of the doctrine of worshipping two gods, which made the Zoroastrians view dualism as a defect, so they added monotheism, which led to the Zoroastrians’ division into sects and he mentions examples of the Zoroastrian attempt to establish a monotheistic belief by diminishing the importance of Ahriman, including that Ahura Mazda and Ahriman were created from time, or that Ahura Mazda himself allowed the existence of evil, or that Ahriman was a corrupt angel who rebelled against Ahura Mazda. Then he mentions the name of a Persian book from the 15h century in which it is written that the Magi (Zoroastrians) believe that Allah and Iblis are brothers.

In present-day Zoroastrianism

In 1862, Martin Haug proposed a new reconstruction of what he believed was Zoroaster's original

monotheistic Monotheism is the belief that one God is the only, or at least the dominant deity.F. L. Cross, Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. A ...

teaching, as expressed in the Gathas – a teaching which he believed had been corrupted by later Zoroastrian dualistic tradition as expressed in post-Gathic scripture and in the texts of tradition. For Angra Mainyu, this interpretation meant a demotion from a spirit coequal with Ahura Mazda to a mere product of Ahura Mazda. Haug's theory was based to a great extent on a new interpretation of ''

Yasna Yasna (;"Yasna"
''

but as a separate created entity, Spenta Mainyu. Thus, both Angra Mainyu and Spenta Mainyu were created by Ahura Mazda, and should be regarded as his respective 'creative' and 'destructive' emanations. Haug's interpretation was gratefully received by the

Parsi The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...

s of Bombay, who at the time were under considerable pressure from

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

(most notable amongst them John Wilson) who sought converts among the Zoroastrian community and criticized Zoroastrianism for its alleged dualism as contrasted with their own monotheism. Haug's reconstruction had also other attractive aspects that seemed to make the religion more compatible with nineteenth-century enlightenment, as he attributed to Zoroaster a rejection of rituals and of worship of entities other than the supreme deity. These new ideas were subsequently disseminated as a Parsi interpretation, which eventually reached the west and so in turn corroborated Haug's theories. Among the Parsis of the cities, who were accustomed to English language literature, Haug's ideas were more often repeated than those of the

Gujarati language Gujarati ( ; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Indian state of Gujarat and spoken predominantly by the Gujarati people. Gujarati is descended from Old Western Rājasthāni, Old Gujarati (). In India, it is one of the 22 Languages with ...

objections of the priests, with the result that Haug's ideas became well entrenched and are today almost universally accepted as doctrine. While some modern scholars have theories similar to Haug's regarding Angra Mainyu's origins, many now think that the traditional "dualist" interpretation was in fact correct all along and that Angra Mainyu was always considered to be completely separate and independent from Ahura Mazda.

The Worship of Ahriman

According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

, Zoroaster taught the worship of Ahriman. The Encyclopedia of Iran claims:

Islam

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic discourse, Ahriman embodies the absolute evil (the Devil) in contrast to

Iblis Iblis (), alternatively known as Eblīs, also known as Shaitan, is the leader of the Shayatin, devils () in Islam. According to the Quran, Iblis was thrown out of Jannah#Jinn, angels, and devils, heaven after refusing to prostrate himself bef ...

(Satan) who represents an original noble being still under God's power. Although the ''divs'', the creations of Ahriman in Zorastian beliefs, entered Islamic literature, to the point of being identified with the demons of Islamic religion, Ahriman is mostly a stylistic device to refute the idea of absolute evil.

Rumi Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī (), or simply Rumi (30 September 1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century poet, Hanafi '' faqih'' (jurist), Maturidi theologian (''mutakallim''), and Sufi mystic born during the Khwarazmian Empire ...

denies the existence of Ahriman completely:

This is our main quarrel with the Magians (Zoroastrians). They say there are two Gods: the creator of good and the creator of evil. Show me good without evil – then I will admit there is a God of evil and a God of good. This is impossible, for good cannot exist without evil. Since there is no separation between them, how can there be two creators?

Anthroposophy

Rudolf Steiner Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (; 27 or 25 February 1861 – 30 March 1925) was an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect, esotericist, and claimed clairvoyant. Steiner gained initial recognition at the end of the nineteenth century ...

, who founded the

esoteric Western esotericism, also known as the Western mystery tradition, is a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas and currents are united since they are largely distinct both from orthod ...

spiritual movement

Anthroposophy Anthroposophy is a spiritual new religious movementSources for 'new religious movement': which was founded in the early 20th century by the esotericist Rudolf Steiner that postulates the existence of an objective, intellectually comprehensibl ...

, used the concept of Ahriman to name one of two extreme forces which pull humanity away from the centering influence of God. Steiner associated Ahriman, the lower spirit, with

materialism Materialism is a form of monism, philosophical monism according to which matter is the fundamental Substance theory, substance in nature, and all things, including mind, mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. Acco ...

science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

heredity Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic infor ...

, objectivity, and soul-hardening. He thought that contemporary Christianity was subject to Ahrimanic influence, since it tended towards materialistic interpretations. Steiner predicted that Ahriman, as a supersensible Being, would incarnate into an earthly form, some little time after our present earthly existence, in fact in the third post-Christian

millennium A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...

''Opus Sanctorum Angelorum''

The '' Opus Sanctorum Angelorum'', a debated group inside the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, defines Ahriman as a "demon in the Rank of Fallen Powers". It says his duty is to obscure human brains from the Truth of God.''Das Handbuch des Engelwerkes''.

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

, 1961. p. 120.

In popular culture

* " Temple of Ahriman" is a 2016 song by Swedish

black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...

band Dark Funeral, about Angra Mainyu and the Towers of Silence. * Various incarnations of Angra Mainyu appear in

Type-Moon Type-Moon (stylized as TYPE-MOON) is a Japanese video game company, best known for their visual novels, co-founded by author Kinoko Nasu and illustrator Takashi Takeuchi. It is also known under the name for its publishing and corporate operation ...

's ''Fate'' series. * Various incarnations of Angra Mainu and Ahriman appear in ''

Final Fantasy is a Japanese fantasy Anthology series, anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi which is owned, developed, and published by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fanta ...

'' game series. * The character Ahzek Ahriman from the ''Warhammer 40,000'' setting is based on Angra Mainyu, and his brother Ohrmuzd is based on Ahura Mazda * DRAUGA by Michael W. Ford is an occult work exploring the lore, mythology and modern magical practice of Yatuk Dinoih (witchcraft) and daeva-yasna (demon-worship) from ancient Persia from a Luciferian approach. * Angra Mainyu is the lead "deity" of the Mahrkagir of the Drujan kingdom in '' Kushiel's Avatar'', the third book in the '' Kushiel's Legacy'' series by Jacqueline Carey. * Ahriman is a major character in the JRPG '' Felvidek''. * Ahriman is a major antagonist in the JRPG '' Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne''.

Footnotes

Citations

External links

* {{Authority control Ancient Iranian gods Chaos gods Daevas Demons in the ancient Near East Destroyer gods Devils Evil gods Iranian words and phrases Zoroastrianism Yazatas Iranian deities Iranian gods Divine twins