Mazdak | |
|---|---|
مزدک | |
 Illustration of the execution of Mazdak from a copy of theShahnameh | |
| Born | Mazdak Bamdadan Mazariya, Pasa or Istakhr |
| Died | c. 524 or 528 (Other say 529 or 531) |
| Cause of death | Execution |
| Other names | Mazdaku, Mazdaka, Mazhdaq |
| Citizenship |  Sasanian Empire |
| Occupations | Mobad, Social Reformer |
| Years active | c. 480s - 520s |
| Known for | Mazdakism |
| Spouse | Hamzah (daughter of Fadeh) |
| Parent | Bamdad (father) |
| Religion | Zoroastrianism (Mazdakite sect) |
Mazdak (Persian:مزدک,Middle Persian:𐭬𐭦𐭣𐭪𐭩, also known asMazdak Bamdadan; died c. 524 or 528) was anIranianmobad (priest) and social reformer who rose to prominence during the reign of theSasanian emperorKavadh I. He instituted a religious and social movement known asMazdakism, which preached a dualistic cosmology and social welfare programs, including the communal ownership of property and, controversially, women (interpreted by some scholars as a reaction against theharem system).
Although initially supported by King Kavadh I to weaken the power of the nobility and clergy, Mazdak and his followers were eventually purged by Kavadh's son,Khosrow I (Anushiravan). His ideology survived in various forms, influencing later movements such as theKhurramites.
The nameMazdak is derived from the Old Iranian word Mazda (as inAhura Mazda), meaning "wise" or "wisdom". InAvestan, it is an attribute of God.[1] The name appears in various forms in historical texts, includingMazdaku,Mazdaka, andMazhdaq. The earliest historical attestation of a related name dates to the 8th century BC in the inscriptions ofSargon II ofAssyria, referring to Median chieftains, though this predates the Sasanian figure by over a millennium.[2]
In Islamic sources,Al-Biruni refers to him asMazhdaq, whileAl-Masudi uses bothMazdaq andMazdaqiyah.Al-Tabari records the name asMazdak and occasionallyMazdaq.[3]
Mazdak was the son of Bamdad and lived during the reign ofKavadh I (r. 488–531). Historical sources offer conflicting accounts of his birthplace.Al-Tabari states he was from Mazariya (modernKut), a city on theTigris.[4]Al-Biruni identifies his origin asNisa inKhorasan, whileAl-Dinawari claims he was fromIstakhr inFars. Other sources suggestPasa,Tabriz inAzerbaijan, or evenNishapur.[5]
At the time of Mazdak's rise, theSasanian Empire was facing severe crises. The defeat ofPeroz I by theHephthalites had resulted in heavy tributes, emptying the royal treasury. Domestically, the empire saw the growth of rigid class stratification and the immense power of the Zoroastrian clergy and nobility.
TheZoroastrian clergy held significant sway over the state, often amassing great wealth while the populace suffered. The strict formalism of the state religion had created dissatisfaction, paving the way for the appeal ofManichaeism and Mazdakism.
During the early reign of Kavadh I, severe droughts and locust swarms caused widespread famine.
The nobility practicedpolygamy and maintained largeharems, effectively monopolizing women and leaving many men in the lower classes without the possibility of marriage. This demographic imbalance caused significant social unrest.[6]
According to theShahnameh, Mazdak rose to prominence during a famine. He presented himself to KingKavadh I, arguing that the wealthy who hoarded grain while the poor starved were sinful. With the king's permission, Mazdak opened the royal granaries to the people.
Kavadh I supported Mazdak, likely for political reasons. The king sought to curb the growing power of the nobility and the Zoroastrian clergy who had previously deposed his predecessor. By aligning with Mazdak's populist movement, Kavadh aimed to weaken the aristocracy's grip on the state.[7] However, hostile sources claim Kavadh was motivated by the Mazdakite doctrine regarding women.
With royal patronage, Mazdakism spread rapidly. Kavadh even attempted to spread the doctrine to the Arab vassals of the empire, instructingAl-Mundhir III ibn al-Nu'man ofAl-Hirah to adopt the faith. When Al-Mundhir refused, he was temporarily replaced by the Kindite chiefAl-Harith ibn 'Amr, who accepted the doctrine.[8]
Mazdakism is often viewed as a reformist branch ofZoroastrianism with influences fromManichaeism.
Mazdak's theology was dualistic, positing the existence of two original principles: Light (Good) and Darkness (Evil).UnlikeMani, who viewed the mixture of Light and Dark as a cosmic tragedy to be escaped, Mazdak viewed the struggle more optimistically. A key distinction was that Mazdak believed Light acted through free will and design, while Darkness acted blindly and randomly.[9]Sources suggest Mazdak's teachings were based on an earlier figure namedZardusht-e Khuragan (also known as Bundos), a Manichaean preacher who had diverged from mainstream Manichaeism (known as theDrust-din sect).[10]
Mazdak preached that God created the earth's resources to be shared equally among all humans. He argued that the strong had encroached upon the weak, causing inequality. His "Five Demons" to be combated were Envy, Wrath, Vengeance, Need, and Greed.
According to theShahnameh and other sources, Prince Khosrow arranged a religious debate where Zoroastrian Mobads and Christian bishops challenged Mazdak. After Mazdak was declared defeated in the debate, Khosrow ordered a massacre.
The execution is famously described in theShahnameh: Khosrow planted 3,000 Mazdakites head-down in a garden, with their legs in the air, resembling trees. He then invited Mazdak to view this "garden" before hanging Mazdak upside down and having him shot with arrows.[13]Other sources, such as theSiyasatnama, claim Khosrow invited the Mazdakites to a banquet to receive robes of honor, only to have them slaughtered. The massacre reportedly took place on the feast ofMehrgan, possibly nearCtesiphon.
Mazdak's teaching acquired many followers, to the point when even KingKavadh I, ruling from 488 until 531, converted to Mazdakism. He also reportedly sponsored its adoption by the Arab vassal kingdom ofal-Hirah, entailing the deposing of the previous king al-Mundhir by theKindite chief al-Harith.[14][15]
With the King's backing Mazdak could embark on a program of social reform, which involved pacifism,anti-clericalism and aid programs for helping thepoor. Mazdak had government warehouses opened to help the poor. He also had all the Zoroastrian fire temples closed except the three major ones.
A Jewish tradition relates a slightly different story. TheExilarch of Babylon,Mar-Zutra II, rallied the Jewish community and their allies, who defeated Mazdak and established an independent Jewish kingdom inMahoza that lasted for seven years[16] (495–502).
Thehistoricity of the persona of Mazdak has been questioned.[17] He may have been a fabrication to take blame away from Kavad.[18] Contemporary historians, includingProcopius andJoshua the Stylite make no mention of Mazdak naming Kavad as the figure behind the movement.[18] Mention of Mazdak only emerges in later Middle Persian Zoroastrian documents, namely theBundahishn, theDenkard, and theZand-i Wahman yasn.[18] Later Islamic-era sources, particularlyal-Tabari's work, also mention Mazdak.[18] These later writings were perhaps corrupted by Iranian oral folklore, given that blame put on Mazdak for the redistribution of aristocratic properties to the people, is a topic repeated in Iranian oral history.[18] Other "villains" in Iranian history, namelyGaumata in theBehistun Inscription of theAchaemenid rulerDarius the Great (r. 522 – 486 BC), andWahnam in thePaikuli inscription of the Sasanian shahNarseh (r. 293–302), are frequently accused of similar misdeeds.[18]
A few Mazdakites survived and settled in remote areas. Small pockets of Mazdakite societies are said to have survived for centuries after theMuslim conquest of Persia. Their doctrines probably mixed with radical currents ofShia Islam, influencing them and giving rise to later powerful revolutionary-religious movements in the region. The cult ofal-Muqanna‘, who claimed to be the incarnation of God and had followers among the Mubaiyyidah sect of Zoroastrianism and even some Turks, upheld the laws and institutes of Mazdak.[19] In the 9th century, theKhurramites, an egalitarian religious sect possibly originating from Mazdakism, led a revolt under the leadership ofBabak Khorramdin against theAbbasid Caliphate and successfully defended large territories against the Caliphate's forces for some twenty years.[20] TheBatiniyya,Qarmatians and other later revolutionary currents of Islam may also be connected to Mazdakism and were often equated with it by contemporary authors.[21]
Turkish scholarAbdülbâkî Gölpınarlı sees even theQizilbash of the 16th century – a radical Shi'i movement in Persia which helped theSafaviyya establishTwelver Islam as the dominant religion of Iran – as "spiritual descendants of theKhurramites" and, hence, of the Mazdakites.[22] "Mazdakist" eventually seems to have become a standard derogative label attached by pre-modern Persian and Arabic authors to any radical egalitarian movement in subsequent Iranian history.[23] While medieval Muslim historiography primarily focused on the "socialist" aspects of Mazdak, Zoroastrian tradition, on the other hand, remembers Mazdak above all as a dangerous heretic and enemy of the true faith (Zand-i Wahman yasn 2:1).
The author of theDabestan-e Mazaheb, writing as late as the 17th century, claims to have met individual adherents of Mazdakism who practised their religion secretly among the Muslims and preserved theDesnad, a book inMiddle Persian containing the teachings of Mazdak.[24][25]
Philosopher and poetMuhammad Iqbal, who inspired thePakistan Movement inBritish India, termedKarl Marx as the modern reincarnation of Mazdakite thought.[26] In the poemIbless ki Majlis-e-Shura, he drew similarities between Marxism and Mazadak thought of redistribution of excess, reduction of the importance of religious formality, emancipation of love and social revolution. Iqbal describes Karl Marx as reincarnation of the soul of Mazdak. These views penned in 1936, whenRussian Revolution was still fledgling, remained skeptical if Mazdakite logic of Marxism was the solution of problems of the poor and the downtrodden. Iqbal devotes a chapter on Mazdak in his PhD thesis with Munich University onThe Development of Metaphysics in Persia.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Zoroastrianism | ||
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