SUMMARIES OF ARTICLES.
ETHICAL.
Dualism was a characteristic tenet of the Zoroastrian creed. The two contending spirits of Good and Evil are absolute. This is fundamental to the entire ethical system. As a prime factor in this tenet stands the doctrine of the freedom of the will; and a second important element is the doctrine of man's responsibility. The quintessence of the moral teachings of Zoroaster may be summed up in the doctrinal triad, "good thoughts, good words, good deeds." Through these three stages the soul of the righteous man ascends after death into the infinite light; while evil thoughts, etc., are the grades through which the spirit of the damned falls to endless darkness. In the ethical code we may find almost every article of our duty towards God, neighbor, and self. Physical culture and freedom from defilement were emphasized. The reform of Zoroaster had also its social aspect, in that it upheld the care of domestic animals and "the good deeds of husbandry" (avesta), and assigned to each class in the state its own particular duties.—On the other hand, certain vicious practices and a few gross superstitions worked their way in. With the decadence of the Achaemenian dynasty, the moral tone of Iran was weakened by a wave of luxury; but the faith contained in itself the remedy against dissolution. As proof of the merit of the Zoroastrian creed, as a working hypothesis, stands the character of those who profess the faith to-day. These are the community of the Parsis in India, religious exiles from Iran since the days of the Mohammedan invasion.
Albert Lefevre.
Conscience, the guiding principle of man's ethical judgments, is not something external, or independent of his personality. Moral judgments
