Asha
Asha is the Zoroastrian principle of truth, cosmic order, and right conduct, opposed to deceit and disorder.
Druj: Druj is the Zoroastrian principle of deceit, falsehood, and disorder. Druj names the falsehood and disorder that Asha opposes.
Gathas: The Gathas are seventeen hymns attributed to Zarathustra and preserved within the Avesta. They present Asha as both cosmic order and a standard for human choice.
Avestan: Avestan is the ancient Iranian language in which the Zoroastrian Avesta is composed. Asha is the Avestan form of a term whose linguistic roots clarify its meaning.
Zoroastrian purity laws: Zoroastrian purity laws regulate contact with substances considered spiritually or ritually polluting. They apply the maintenance of order to bodies, places, and daily conduct.
Ahura Mazda: Ahura Mazda is the supreme deity in Zoroastrianism, associated with wisdom and goodness. Asha is closely associated with Ahura Mazda and the order attributed to him.
Zarathustra: Zarathustra, also called Zoroaster, is the ancient Iranian religious figure whose teachings underlie Zoroastrianism. The Gathas connect Zarathustra's teaching to choosing Asha over deceit.
Proto-Indo-Iranian religion: Proto-Indo-Iranian religion is the reconstructed religious tradition ancestral to ancient Iranian and Vedic religions. Asha belongs to an inherited Indo-Iranian concept of truth and cosmic order.
Fire temple: A fire temple is a Zoroastrian place of worship where a sacred fire is maintained. Its care for sacred fire exemplifies ritual discipline associated with right order.
Zoroastrianism: Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion founded on devotion to Ahura Mazda and the struggle between good and evil. Asha is a foundational principle within this religious tradition.
Good thoughts, good words, good deeds: A Zoroastrian ethical maxim that expresses moral responsibility through thought, speech, and action. It translates alignment with Asha into everyday ethical conduct.