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"They feel they are practicing, not pretending to be Zoroastrians,” stated Aleksandra (Sasha) Zasiadko sharing her observations of Russians in St Petersburg who have chosen to follow the religion propounded by Prophet Zarathushtra. When studying the neo-Zoroastrian community of St Petersburg for her Master’s thesis at the Department of Anthropology, European University at St Petersburg (EUSP) between 2021 and 2023, she learnt that once numbering nearly 300 in the 1990s, they are now down to nearly 15 who meet every Thursday. "They see themselves as fighters of good against evil. When it is easier to be like everyone else, they are determined to find the inner light and continue their faith,” she observed.

Convinced that Zarathushtra was born and lived in their vicinity in the Perm region near the Ural Mountains, they make an annual pilgrimage to a site selected by them to offer thanksgiving prayers. "They even cite genealogy to legitimize their claim and right to be Zoroastrians,” Zasiadko informed Parsiana on January 18, 2024 during her three-month stay in India until February. She is currently pursuing her PhD from EUSP having chosen as her subject the transmission of Zoroastrian religion in mixed families (where only one parent is a Zoroastrian) in India.

The community in St Petersburg is "very friendly. They are facing challenges and a lot of bumpy roads. There is no infrastructure to practice the faith, to train the priests or the laity. Most of them are self-trained, from books, and the Internet.” She was surprised they managed to understand the faith since the majority cannot comprehend or converse in English. "An average person doesn’t need to speak English in Russia,” she informed us. They have a weekly service every Thursday when they pray in the presence of a fire. A small bell hanging from a chimney is struck to symbolize the boi bells in a fire temple. On Parsiana’s request she shared photographs of their practice of the faith. Their weekly worship ends with socialization over tea. 

Likening them to Tolkien’s Elves (the fictionalized first race that had the fairest and wisest) she conveyed that "theirs is a lonely life, practicing their faith apart from their families but they manage to give comfort to each other.” Prior to their professing the Zoroastrian faith, they were members of the Russian Orthodox Church for they had been baptized when the Soviet system was Christianized. 

"They are slowly dying out; there are no newcomers. In India, a navjote is a big celebration. In Russia, it is a private ceremony, maybe only you and the priest,” mentioned Zasiadko. The more devout among them may have undergone their initiation three times — in Russia, Iran and India! Over the years, they have been encouraged by Dame Meher Master-Moos of the Mazdayasnie Monasterie in Sanjan.

They are all followers of the Russian astrologer Pavel Globa who, according to his website (globainstitut.ru), was rector of the Astrological Institute and honorary president of the Association of Avestan Astrology. Apparently his maternal great-great-grandmother was of Iranian Zoroastrian descent. Globa’s grandfather who founded the Zoroastrian community that appeared in St Petersburg before the Bolshevik revolution had a priceless library with many sacred manuscripts and rare books on astrology written by ancient Persian Zoroastrians, states the website. 

Since Globa had access to this collection he studied and disseminated his interpretation of the religion. Being editor-in-chief of Mitra magazine (discontinued since 2018) and radio and TV presenter of thematic programs, he was able to draw people to Zoroastrianism and registered the Zoroastrian community of St Petersburg in 1994. Their dream was to build a fire temple and put their beliefs into a physical form of religion. Globa though was mainly interested in imparting the "esoteric (mystical) direction” of Zoroastrianism that has come to be known as Zervanism. The group would meet regularly to study the spiritual values enshrined in the sacred texts. 

  Herbad Mikhail Chistyakov; devotees at a weekly meeting 

The exoteric side of the religion with its rules and rituals was not given weightage although one day he told his band of followers, "I will initiate you tomorrow.” Overnight they had to arrange for the sacred vestments, trying to sew what looked like a sudreh. In lieu of a kusti was a tri-color cord to represent good thoughts, words, deeds. Freedom of choice being integral to the religion, it was left to each individual to decide whether to convert or not. But all those who opted for conversion have chosen to be initiated in their adulthood. They have not influenced or persuaded their families to follow Zoroastrianism. Zasiadko assumes that when they die, they will be buried like members of the Russian Orthodox Church as per the family practice. Whether the neo Zoroastrians recite their kusti prayers regularly Zasiadko could not confirm although she knew that some of them pray in Avestan. 

The current head of the community is Konstantin Starostin. The erstwhile head was Herbad Mikhail Chistyakov [who in 2010 had faced the wrath of Parsi vigilantes in west India when undergoing the bareshnum nahn ceremony at the Zoroastrian College in Sanjan (see "The shame at Sanjan,” Parsiana, March 7, 2010)]. While he was not permitted to complete his priestly training in Sanjan, he continued to officiate as a priest in St Petersburg, reciting prayers and performing navjotes and jashans. 

"It is a major task to construct a religious community while holding on to your job and family responsibilities. It is hard to maintain this lifestyle that follows a different calendar and festivals,” commented Zasiadko. The average age of the attendees is between 50-60 years. The youngest in attendance she has seen was one staunch and devout 17-year-old, young man. 

They are not rich but from the Russian middle class, having worked in banks or taught at schools. Many now are living on pension. There are shadow members who exist but don’t participate regularly in religious events but come occasionally as for Navroz. They need money to sustain this community. Money to rent a room where services are conducted, for candles, oil… 

Knowledge about Zoroastrianism in the Russian language is limited. When you go to a library it is extremely difficult to find a translation of the Gathas. One of the leading Russian scholars of Iranian Studies, Ivan Steblin-Kamensky though has translated the Avesta into Russian. He is the chief scientific researcher at the Institute for Linguistics, and a Fellow of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Archeological excavations in Arkaim, Russia’s Stonehenge of the East, have continued to intrigue researchers since 1987. "Academics have drawn parallels between the layout of Arkaim and the cosmic model of cities described in ancient Indo-Aryan/Iranian spiritual texts, such as the Vedas and the Avesta,” as reported on thearchaeologist.org. With Arkaim being designated a "national and spiritual shrine” of Russia, for Zoroastrians in that area it fortifies their belief that they have historical connections with the religion. 

Within Russia, the Zoroastrian community in St Petersburg is different from the community in Moscow where Mobed Kamran Jamshidi guides the community. He works under the banner of Anjuman-e Bozorg Bazgasht (great return organization) in Scandinavia that is part of Det Norske Zarathushthriske Trossamfunn (Zarathushthrian Association of Norway). They make concerted efforts to assist those interested to learn and convert to Zoroastrianism. The adult group navjotes they perform are frequently reported on social media.

"Zoroastrianism appeals to me very much,” admits 24-year-old Zasiadko who realizes though that since she is not a linguist she would not be able to refer to the original source of the sacred texts. "Every lecture I listen to like a hungry person. When studying, it is important to have a passion. The topic has to touch you,” she declares. 

Although she has no intention of converting, she mentioned that her parents are wary of her fascination for the subject. "They fear that I will convert. When studying orthodox monasteries, they thought I would go and stay there permanently.” But the cultural anthropologist is only interested in doing social research and tackling theoretical problems. "I feel the urge to study constantly. I don’t want to be a professor who knows everything,” she smiled. Her graduation studies were from the Higher School of Economics in the School of Philosophy and Cultural Studies, Moscow. 

Her empathies clearly lie with the Zoroastrians in St Petersburg who are not able to share their religiosity with ""those who don’t understand. It is not easy to be open about religion. Far away from the cultural centers of Zoroastrianism, they need support.” Her way of assisting them was to carry back sudreh-kusti and religious books as requested by them. Unlike North America where neo Zoroastrians are accepted by those born to the faith, in Russia, there is no such community. According to Zasiadko, these people "deserve a medal for being so consistent and devout.”