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BOOK III.
CHAPTER I.
ORPHIC AND MITHRAITIC TRINITY SIMILAR TO THAT OF THE CHRISTIANS.—SIR WILLIAM JONES ON THE RELIGION OF PERSIA.—PERSIAN OROMASDES, MITHRA, ARIMANIUS.—OPINIONS OF HERODOTUS, PORPHYRY, STRABO, JULIAN, ON THE ABOVE.—HYDE AND BEAUSOBRE RESPECTING TIMES OF PYTHAGORAS AND ZOROASTER.—FOLLOWERS OF ZOROASTER, NOT YET EXTINCT—WORSHIP FIRE.—THE VEDAS DESCRIBE THE PERSIAN RELIGION TO HAVE COME FROM UPPER INDIA.—MAURICE ON THE HINDOO TRINITY.
1. In the former part of this work, in treating of the Trimurti or Trinity, it was found scarcely possible to avoid anticipating part of what was intended to form the subject of the present book, but the author flatters himself, that the apparent repetition will not be found useless or uninteresting.
Having proved the absolute identity of the religions of the family of Abraham and of the Persians, in this book will be shewn a similar identity between several of the dogmas of the Romish and Protestant Christians, generally accounted of the greatest importance, particularly the Trinity and similar dogmas of the religions of Orpheus and Mithra, or the Sun, held by the Persian Magi: of the latter of which Zeradust was either the great prophet or founder, or the reformer. It is very possible that the moral doctrines of two races of people, totally unconnected, may be the same, or nearly so, because the true principles of morals must be the same: there can be only one true morality; and each, without any connexion, may originally discover the truth. But it is evidently impossible that such artificial regulations and peculiar opinions, as will be pointed out, could have been adopted by two races of people without some very intimate connexion existing between them. Justin Martyr observed the striking similitude, and very easily explained it. He says, the evil spirits, or demons, introduced the Christian ceremonies into the religion of Mithra. Though this explanation of ceremonies and doctrines, existing long anterior to Christianity, might be satisfactory to the ancient and venerable fathers of the church, it will hardly prove so to modern philosophers. It cannot be expected, that the author should go through the whole of the ceremonies of each religion, and shew that in every individual instance they exactly agreed. The unceasing exertions of Christian priests to conceal the truth, and the change, arising from various other causes, which we know always takes place in long periods of time, in every religion, and indeed in every sublunary concern, render such an expectation unreasonable and absurd; but it is presumed that the circumstances which will now be pointed out, in addition to what has already been stated, will leave no doubt on the mind of any reasonable and unprejudiced person, that the religions under consideration were originally the same.
In contemplating the different, and often contradictory, circumstances of the religion of the ancient Persians, it is impossible not to observe the striking similarity both of its doctrines, and
