The Importance and Place of Animals in Zoroastrianism

Animals and their laws are of the most important and classical issues in Zoroastrianism, as far as significant portions of Zoroastrian texts are concerned with this subject, animals. Generally, animals in the Zoroastrianism are divided into two categories, which are two-fold divisions of the Zoroastrianism. On the one hand, beneficial animals are the creatures of Ahura Mazda, and they are beneficial to human beings and other creatures of Ahura Mazda, and on the other hand there are animals and insects that are corrupt or insidious animals, being the parts of Evil, and hurting the creatures of Ahura Mazda, especially water and land.

The type of behavior that Zoroastrians use in relation to animals whether useful or harmful, are very influential in the worldly life and in the past, and can result in salvation, or vice versa in Hell.