How Zoroastrians Argued with Muslims in the Early Islamic Period

March 13, 2024 This lecture will explore the early conflict between Zoroastrians and Muslims by examining the most important polemical treatise in the Zoroastrian tradition, the Škand Gumānīg-Wizār (“The Doubt-Dispelling Disquisition”), written by the ninth/tenth century theologian and philosopher Mardānfarrox son of Ohrmazddād. A sophisticated work of rationalist theology, the treatise systematically critiques several rival religions of the late antique and medieval Middle East, including Islam. The critique of Islam in chapters 11 and 12 is the only sustained, systematic polemic against Islam in premodern Zoroastrian literature, one that attacks monotheism by focusing on the problem of evil. This lecture will consider Zoroastrians’ relationship with Muslims, the influence of Islamic theology on Zoroastrian thought, and the place of the Škand Gumānīg-Wizār in Middle Persian literature. Sahner, Christian. "How Zoroastrians Argued with Muslims in the Early Islamic Period," Pourdavoud Lecture Series (March 13, 2024). https://pourdavoud.ucla.edu/media/vid...