Historical Spiritual Trend of Dualism - 500 BCE to 300 CE

(March 3, 2025)  While dualism started innocently enough it has become one of the great curses of humanity amplifying the "us versus them" mentality. Dualism was an idea by a Pagan Persian priest called Zoroaster (by the Greeks). He observed that conscious experiences like smells were inherently good or bad. Therefore the divine realm was also inherently good or bad. (this assumption of inherent valuation of conscious experiences was only proved false in modern times by neuroscience). 

Zoroastrianism claimed these two realms were at war with each other until the end times when they would be united once again. Zoroastrianism was adopted as the religion of the Persian Achaemenid Empire (550-330 BCE) because this ideology ended up supporting empires. Their kings could portray themselves as the good guys fighting the evil other. The resulting empire spread dualism far and wide. This is also why Roman Emperor Constantine (306 to 337 CE) adopted it in its Christian form and why his successors forced it onto the Roman empire.

In the west, idea was inserted into Judaism and from there into Christianity and Islam. In the east it triggered the debates which led to the founding of Buddhism as a dualist religion whose followers seek to escape the imperfect material world. Buddhism in turn led to the counter ideology of Hinduism seen in the Bhagavad Gita which is a statement against the impossibility of defining absolute evil.

Mainstream classical culture also became dualist with its traditional nature based spirituality (Pythagorean, Orcus in classical times) being replaced by Stoicism. The anti-dualist reaction against Stoicism was Epicureanism and Skepticism (305 BCE and after) with its teaching that pleasure is not evil.

(July 3, 2022, updated March 17, 2025) Dualism within its conscious feeling context is first detected in the earliest Zoroastrian scriptures (Yasnas) known as the Gathas where Spenta Manyu (community supporter) is at odds with the Angra Manyu meaning “Anger supporter.” Anger is a conscious feeling. Also notice the perceptheism here in which divine powers are personified. 

• (Yasna 30, verses 4-5) Once those two Manyus join battle, a man adopts life or non-life, the way of existence that will be his at the last; that of the wrongful - the worst kind, but for the righteous one - Vohu Manah [Good Support]. 5 Of those two manyus, the Angra Manyu chooses to do the worst things. The Spenta Manyu chooses Right, he who clothes himself in adamant (“the hardest stones”); as do those also who committedly please the Lord with genuine actions, Ahura Mazda. (West 2010)

Yet Zoroaster did not really like the consequences of his dualism because it meant splitting the Divine realm into Good and Evil halves at war with each other. Thus he came up with the end times idea which would reunite the two halves into an eternal whole:​

• (Yasna 43, verse 6) At that bend (the end times) where thou comest with Thy Spenta Manyu, mindful in dominion, there, with Vohu Manah [Good Support], by whose actions the flock prospers with Asha [Rightful Order], Armati [Honor] announces to them the verdicts of Thy wisdom which no one deceives. (West 2010)

Because Zoroastrianism was lordified it separated divine powers into spirits and personified gods and goddesses. The spirits of nature, the daevas now became evil because they could not discern between Good and Evil. The religious culture of Zoroaster was fully lordified with the result that Divine powers were now thought of as impersonal spirits instead of as deity which could be optionally personified. This word became “devils” in English. As shown below, all those who follow Evil powers (druj) were to be killed and those doing the killing will be favored by lord Mazda.

• (Yasna 30, verse 6) Between these two (Good and Evil) the very Daevas fail to discriminate rightly, because of delusion comes over them as the deliberate when they choose worst thought; they scurry together to the violence with which mortals blight the world. (West 2010)
• (Yasna 31, verse 18) Let none of you listen to the wrongful one’s [the druj, the evil spirits] prescripts and teachings, for he will give house or manor or district or region into chaos and ruin; so cut them down with the axe. (West 2010)
• (Yasna 33, verse 2) He that does evil to the wrongful one, whether by word or thought; or hands or instructs his comrade in goodness, such men will be prompt to His will, in Ahura Mazda’s favor. (West 2010)
• At the apocalyptic end times the evil will be punished because those in the service of Good Thoughts will be given the power to deliver the evil into the power of the Good:
• (Yasna 30, verse 8). And when the requital [that is, the end times] comes for their misdeeds, for Thee, Ahura Mazda, together with Vohu Manah [Right Support] will be found dominion to proclaim to those, Lord, who deliver Wrong into the hands of Right. (West 2010)

Yet Good thoughts can also lead to the kingdom (dominion) of God (Ahura Mazda) on earth. Jesus seems to adopted this idea without the dualism:

• (Yasna 31, verse 6) It will go best for him who knows and speaks my truth, the prescript of health, right, and continuing life, what he increases for Him through Vohu Manah [Good Support, that is dominion for Ahura Mazda. (West 2010)​

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