Fire Worship In Achaemenid Persia

Introduction

The role of fire in Achaemenid Persian religion is a topic of intrigue for many historians. This is because later Zoroastrian tradition specifically under the Sasanians was known to center around fire-burning rituals, making scholars wonder if previous Zoroastrian traditions like those of the Achaemenids also practiced fire worship. With this said it is important to define the term fire worship as it may be misunderstood. If taken literally the term fire worship would refer to the worship of fire but for the purpose of this essay, it refers to the use of fire as a sacred element in ritual practice. This essay focuses on Greek, Roman, Achaemenid, and archaeological sources to answer the question of whether fire worship was central to the Achaemenid Persian religion. Classical Descriptions of Persian Ritual:

Greek and Roman authors have written about Persian religious practices, however, these accounts must be treated with caution due to their likely bias and because some of them were written centuries after the Achaemenid period. One recurring claim in classical sources is that the Persians did not erect temples like other ancient cultures and instead worshiped in open-air settings. Herodotus, who wrote during the Achaemenid period, claimed that the Persians did not have any temples and performed sacrifices under the open sky. This idea of open-air worship is agreed upon by some modern scholars as well. Michael Shenkar notes that “it seems that the majority of ancient Iranians, including the first Achaemenids, worshiped under the open sky”.[1] These pieces of evidence suggest that early Persian ritual was likely conducted outdoors in places such as hilltops.

Greek writers also mention the Magi who are believed to be a priestly class specializing in rituals. After the Achaemenid period, the Magis were believed to have tended to sacred fires however it is unclear if this was also the case during the Achaemenid period. According to Agathias Scholasticus a greek poet from the period 500 AD “Fire they hold to be worthy of reverence and very holy, and for this reason, the Magi keep it unquenched in certain holy buildings, set apart, and look toward it while performing their secret rites and inquiring about the future”.[2] Although Agathias was describing Persians from his time, De Jong states that, “it is a fair description of a fire temple: a holy building, set apart, where rituals are performed. That priests look into the fire would seem to be unavoidable in the rituals of the tending of fire”.[3] This indicates that foreigners knew of dedicated fire sanctuaries in Iran and the Magi’s practice of keeping the fire lit. However, it is unclear if these traditions extended 1,000 years back to the Achaemenid Period. One caution is that earlier observers like Herodotus did not mention Persians’ use of fire temples which suggests that those practices came after the Achaemenid era at least according to the Greeks.

Greek and Latin writers also give clues about the diversity of Persian religious figures. In addition to the Magi, there were other priests. The Elamite word šatin appears in Achaemenid descriptions and is thought to be a local cult priest. Wouter Henkelman explains that “šatin is an age‐old Elamite designation for “cultic expert, (sacrificial) priest,” occurring from the early second millennium BCE onward”.[4] Demonstrating that the Achaemenid religious landscape was diverse and included different kinds of ritual practitioners. The existence of multiple priestly titles hints that religious practices were not consistent throughout the entire empire. Some of the rituals occurring in the empire could have involved fire, while other areas of the empire had rituals without any connection to fire. In conclusion, it is almost certain that rituals centered around fire did not dominate all of Achaemenid Persia but this does not disprove the possible existence of some type of fire worship in the empire.

Administrative and Textual Evidence from the Persepolis Fortification Archive

While Greeks and Romans are able to give an outside perspective of the Achaemenid Empire, an internal perspective comes from administrative documents and inscriptions. The most well-known source of this evidence is the Persepolis Fortification Archive. Which is an archive containing thousands of clay tablets mainly used to keep records. These tablets are historians’ most valuable window into state-sponsored religious practices in Achaemenid Persia. Wouter Henkelman’s study of the PFA demonstrates that the Persian administration distributed equipment and items needed for sacrifices and other ceremonies. Specifically Henkelman cites “Two letter‐orders from Parnakka (PF 2067, PF 2068)” arranging “for allocations of wine and barley for the priests (šatinbe) at Gimarukkaš, “as has been given to them before” and to be used for “the gods whom (they worship) at Gimarukkaš.””.[5] This record is valuable as it shows that the Achaemenid government supported the worship of a local deity at a place called Gimarukkaš. It seems that offerings were common and aimed at local gods who were worshiped at Gimarukkaš. Henkelman observes that “the authorities recognized the principle that the deities to receive state‐sponsored worship were simply those belonging to the place in question”.[6] Meaning that instead of enforcing a single state religion the Achaemenids supported the existing religions and cults in the many regions of the Achaemenid Empire.

The absence of references to fire in the Fortification Archive can now be understood. Because if official religion revolved around sacred fires historians may expect to see mentions of this in the tablet. In reality, the documents mainly talk about food and drink offerings suggesting that although fire may have been used in some rituals such as burning offerings the materials needed to do so were not provided by the state. The administrative texts also talk about the Magi. For example, one tablet states “Mitukka makuš duša daušam lana, “720 (l. barley), Mitukka the magus received (as) offering for the oblation (rite)”.[7] Which shows that Magi were definitely active in an achaemenid religion receiving supplies for rituals. However no rituals are ever described in the Persepolis Fortification Archive. While we know that priestly figures such as Magi were present receiving materials for rituals, the rituals they practiced are unknown. In summary the administrative evidence from the Persepolis Fortification Archive illustrates that Achaemenid religious practices were diverse, changing in each region as opposed to having one central religion. It is also known that the Achaemenid Empire would fund these small cults giving them supplies in order to aid their worship. 

Archaeological Evidence

Due to the absence of text, archaeological evidence becomes extremely important in the quest to understand Achaemenid religious practice. Archaeologists have identified several structures from the Achaemenid period and earlier which appear to serve religious functions including altars which were likely used for fire sacrifice. These findings provide tangible evidence that fire rituals were performed.

One significant site is Dahan-i Ghulaman in Sistan, which was a city during the achaemenid-period. Excavations uncovered a large square building which has been interpreted as a temple. The building is dated to the late 6th or early 5th century BCE which was around the time of Darius and Xerxes. In the courtyard of the complex archaeologists found compelling evidence of fire ritual. Shenkar states that, “In the centre of the courtyard, three monumental stepped altars were installed. The remains of ashes mixed with grease and burned bones were found scattered throughout the temple”.[8] The presence of three massive altars with burnt animal remains indicates that sacrifices involving fire occurred at this temple. Shenkar suggests that the “The presence of three altars might be an indication of the worship of a triad of gods (Gnoli 1993: 584), but this can not be firmly established.”.[9] 

However, the interpretation of Dahan-i Ghulaman seems clear in reality it requires caution. The fact that burnt bones and ashes were left in the temple suggests practices that were at odds with later zoroastrian purity laws. Shenkar states, “Since burning sacrificial animals is absolutely unacceptable under the purity laws of contemporary Zoroastrianism, it has been suggested that the Dah-n-i-Ghu l-m-an temple could be evidence of a pre-Iranian, autochthonous cult, and yet another indication of Achaemenid religious tolerance (Boyce 1982:130)”.[10] This means that the Persians likely allowed people in regions of there empire to continue with their traditional fire sacrifices, even if they were frowned upon by Zoroastrian standards. In addition it could also mean that Achaemenid era Zoroastrianism did not have the same purity laws as it did in the later years. Either way the temple at Dahan-i Ghulaman illustrates that fire altars and temples did exist with Achaemenid persia, at the very least in small towns and provinces.

Further east and north in Central Asia, fire related religious structures from around the Achaemenid period have been found. In Chorasmia a complex dating back to the 4th century BCE was found by excavators and identified as a fire temple due to its altars and ash deposits. Shenkar states “The complex consists of a high podium, a small courtyard and a labyrinthine system of rooms and corridors. Some of them contained thick layers of ashes. Several altars were also found attached to the walls”.[11] Furthermore, remains of what may have been an early fire shrine were reported at Kalaly-gyr and other sites in central asia. These findings suggest that eastern Iran and Central Asia had a stronger tradition of temples and fire worship, these biases were likely influenced by older local religions. Finally At Jarkutan excavators found an altar on a platform and a room for ash and burnt bone deposits dating back to 1400-1000 BCE. Shenkar writes “the focus of the temple was a 400 m.2 wide and 1,4-2,5 m. high platform on which an altar stood between four pillars. More pillars were found in the courtyard of the cultic area. Furthermore, one room (number 5) probably served as a depository for ashes mixed with burned bones (which apparently had some sacred significance). Based on these findings, the excavators called the cultic building at Jarkutan a "fire temple" (Askarov/Shirinov 1994: 23).2”.[12] While these sites came before the Achaemenid Empire for the most part, they indicate that the construction and worship at fire sanctuaries was part of the culture in eastern Iranian areas. Because of this it is likely that when the Achaemenids expanded to these regions they would have encountered and possibly integrated these practices to their religion.

Image of the Temple at Jarkutan.[13]

On the contrary, there are far fewer temples built in Western Iran. One temple in Western Iran is Tepe Nush-i Jan in Media. The temple was built around 700 BCE and it included a central altar, this altar foreshadows the altars that precede it. However, during the Achaemenid period scholars have very little evidence of new temple constructions in the Achaemenid Heartland. This aligns with Shenkar’s observation that ancient Iranians likely “became acquainted with temple architecture once they came into close contact with the highly developed civilisations of Margiana, Elam and Mesopotamia”.[14] The Achaemenid Persians likely prioritized open-air worship and therefore did not immediately develop a network of formal temples. Because of this over time regional divisions were created causing more temples to be made in certain areas of the Achaemenid Empire such as the eastern parts for example. Therefore, within the Achaemenid Empire a vast diversity of worship practice could be found.

Another form of evidence for Achaemenid religious practice is their art and iconography. The most debated upon by historians are royal tomb relief such as that of Darius I at Naqsh-e Rostam. In the depiction a king can be seen standing before a pedestal altar that appears to have flames rising from it, he worships facing the winged figure of Ahuramazda. The scene suggests that the Achaemenid kings themselves took part in rituals involving a sacred fire. With this said the relief does not portray a temple building instead the ritual is performed under the open sky.[15]

An image of the Naqsh-I Rastam Relief. [16]

My Take

After looking through many of the most respected documents that talk about Achaemenid religion one thing is certainly understood about Achaemenid religious practice and that is its diversity. The Persians seem to have respected fire and used it in worship, however they did not make fire worship central to the empire. The Achaemenid religion from what historians can tell, mainly focused on Ahura Mazda however the way this was done changed depending on where in the empire you were. Fire, in the current Zoroastrian religion, was the symbol of Ahura Mazda, and it is possible that the Achaemenid kings and priests also followed this mentality. Even with this high regard for fire it was never central to Achaemenid Zoroastrian practices.

Several factors can help explain this. First, due to the Achaemenid Empire’s vast reach and enormous amount of conquered territory, they inherited many local religions. Because of this they chose to practice tolerance and adapt to local religions. They paid homage to local deities and supported local religions in their worship. Because of this diverse environment, fire worship remained just one element of a vast religious landscape. Fire worship may have been more important to some members of the empire than others for example, it is possible Achaemenid troops or officials used sacred fires in their rituals. Herodotus notes that Persians sacrificed to forces of nature like sun, moon, earth, and fire.[17] This implies that they in some way regarded fire as a sacred element. However this respect to fire did not translate into the creation of large temples or the loss of other practices.

Second, it is unclear when Zoroastrianism was developed and how it developed. Some suggest that Zoroaster the creator of Zoroastrianism lived around 1000-1200 BCE, and that his teachings had fully seeped into Iranian culture by the time of the Achaemenids. However it is also possible that the zoroastrianism we know today that emphasizes ritual purity and sacred fire evolved later, possibly under the Parthians or the Sasanians. The Magi in Achaemenid times might have helped with fire rituals before there was a true system of fire temples. Wouter F.M Henkelman talks about the extinguishing of royal fires which was a Perisan gesture of mourning.[18] This use of royal fires implies that at least toward the end of the Persian empire Persians did have royal fires and royal altars. 

Therefore, when we talk about fire worship in the Achaemenid Empire, the most reasonable conclusion is that fire was present in ritual life but not the main focus. The Achaemenid emperors did not force an empire wide worship of fire. They also did not create a fire altar in every province and district of their territory. Instead, the people of Achaemenid Persia worshiped a variety of gods in a variety of settings. Some scholars in the past hypothesized that early fire temples did exist under the Achaemenids. But while this can not be definitively confirmed or denied it is highly unlikely to be true. In reality the most likely form of Worship for the Achaemenids was a fluid system that used fire as a tool but not as a focus of their religion. In this reality it is likely that depending on where someone goes in the Achaemenid empire they encounter different levels of fire use. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, the evidence analyzed shows that fire held an important but not central place in Achaemenid religious practices. The Persians of the Achaemenid era likely regarded fire as holy and included it in ceremonies, maintained altars with fire, and their Magi may have kept ritual fires burning during sacrifices. However, the Achaemenids did not put fire as their sole worship tool or their main focus for worship. Worship most often took place under the open sky or at local shrines, where offerings were given to certain gods. The diversity seen in Achaemenid religion shows that the Achaemenids were supportive to all the religions under their rule.

Notes

[1] Michael Shenkar, “Temple Architecture in the Iranian World before the Macedonian Conquest,” Iran and the Caucasus11, no. 2 (2007): 169–94, https://doi.org/10.1163/157338407x265423.

[2] Albert F. de Jong, Traditions of the Magi: Zoroastrianism in Greek and Latin Literature (BRILL, 2015).

[3] Ibid.

[4] Bruno Jacobs and Robert Rollinger, A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire, 2 Volume Set (John Wiley & Sons, 2021).

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Michael Shenkar, “Temple Architecture in the Iranian World before the Macedonian Conquest,” Iran and the Caucasus11, no. 2 (2007): 169–94, https://doi.org/10.1163/157338407x265423.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Ibid.

[14] Ibid.

[15] Mark B. Garrison, The Ritual Landscape at Persepolis: Glyptic Imagery from the Persepolis Fortification and Treasury Archives (Oriental Institute Press, 2017).

[16] Erich Schmidt, Xerxes I tomb top, landscape photo, 2012, photograph, Wikimedia Commons, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Xerxes_I_tomb_top.jpg.

[17] “Herodotus,  The Histories, Book 1, Chapter 131,” accessed February 26, 2025, https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/textdoc=Hdt.%201.131&lang=original.

[18] Bruno Jacobs and Robert Rollinger, A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire, 2 Volume Set (John Wiley & Sons, 2021).

*Image featured as cover of post: Erich Schmidt, Xerxes I tomb top, landscape photo, 2012, photograph, Wikimedia Commons, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Xerxes_I_tomb_top.jpg.

Bibliography: 

Canepa, Matthew P. The Iranian Expanse: Transforming Royal Identity through Architecture, Landscape, and the Built Environment, 550 BCE–642 CE. Univ of California Press, 2018.

Department of Near Eastern Studies. “Khatchadourian on the Naqsh-i Rustam Monument.” Accessed March 4, 2025. https://neareasternstudies.cornell.edu/news/khatchadourian-naqsh-i-rustam-monument.

Garrison, Mark B. The Ritual Landscape at Persepolis: Glyptic Imagery from the Persepolis Fortification and Treasury Archives. Oriental Institute Press, 2017.

“Herodotus,  The Histories,Book 1, Chapter 131.” Accessed February 26, 2025. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hdt.%201.131&lang=original.

Jacobs, Bruno, and Robert Rollinger. A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire, 2 Volume Set. John Wiley & Sons, 2021.

Jong, Albert F. de. Traditions of the Magi: Zoroastrianism in Greek and Latin Literature. BRILL, 2015.

Shenkar, Michael. “Temple Architecture in the Iranian World before the Macedonian Conquest.” Iran and the Caucasus 11, no. 2 (2007): 169–94. https://doi.org/10.1163/157338407x265423.

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