Customer Reviews

Essays on Zarathustra and Zoroastrianism (Bibliotheca Iranica: Zoroastrian Studies Series)

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Dr. Prods Oktor Skjaervo deserves our deep thanks for taking the time to translate into English (and to elucidate further) four lectures on "Zarathustra and the Old Avesta" delivered at the College de France by a grand master on the lore of Avestan language and Zarathushtrianism, Dr. Jean Kellens. For me the greatest delight was to read pages 120-131, which highlights year by year, the magnificant output of Dr. Jean Kellens, displaying his depth and range of his "Avestic" erudition.

Though the book is intened for an advanced audience, the general outline and arguments can be followed even by a novice with appropriate reference guides. A novice may use this book as a model for scholarly publication in the difficult field of the Avestan language. I strongly recommend this book for review to every Parsee, Zarathushtrian and readers and admirers of Avestan lore.

In the introduction, Prods Skjaervo says that he translated these essays to help his students at Harvard. So if you are attending Harvard and planning on studying Mazdaism this is a great book to read. It is filled with many of the brilliant insights of Jean Kellens and is a great read for serious students of religion. However, if you are not that familiar with Mazdaism I suggest you start with another work probably Nigosian. This book also talks considerable about the textual analysis of the Avesta from a linguistical perspective which makes it difficult to follow if you don't have some knowledge of linguistics.

Prof. Jean Kellens (who as pointed before, is certainly a man!) is a leading scholar of Zoroastrian/Mazdaian studies. However, he clearly belongs to one end of the scholary spectrum on the matters of Zoroastrian studies and has his own well-known opinions. He certainly believes that Zarathushtra did not exist, and he has other specific beliefs which need more space to discuss than a review.

The translator, probably the most well-known and respected English language scholar of Old Iranian studies, is also the major representative of the "Kellens" school in North America. The book in a way is a statement, one establishing the presence of the Kellens system in North America, where it usually is not taken seriously.

The essays are certainly very learned and have impeccable scholary weight, but their conclusions and statements should be taken with warning. The non-specialist reader should always notice that the opinions expressed are only one side of the coin.

Also, Prof. Skjaervo "goes" with his middle name, Oktor.