"We humans have a free will to choose either to work for the force of good manifested in Ahura Mazda or its opposing force manifested in Ahriman and be prepared to accept the consequences thereof, individually and collectively.” Ervad Kobad Zarolia, former president of the North American Mobeds Council, was expounding the Zoroastrian philosophy at the session on "Religion and Responsibility: The Vision of a Just Society” at the four-day conference in Jerusalem on "Ancient Traditions, Contemporary Realities,” from September 11 to 15, 2016. As he further explained, "This is enshrined in the natural law of Asha or the law of righteousness (truth and justice)… The combined effect of the individual free will with our choice to exercise it and the law of righteousness gives us a sense of individual responsibility to endeavor to make this world a better place for all…giving us a vision of a just society.”
Ervad Kobad Zarolia (left) with Rabbi Prof (Dr) Daniel Sperber
Ervad Kobad Zarolia with religious heads and the President of Israel Reuven Rivlin (seated center)
At the meeting of Israel and Asia faith leaders organized by The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel, The American Jewish Committee and the World Council Of Religious Leaders, Zarolia got an opportunity to interact with two Hindu acharyas, two Jain nuns, the head of the Sikh Golden Temple, Buddhist representatives from China, Myanmar, South Korea and Taiwan, and the head of the Shinto faith from Japan. The 10 religious heads were introduced to the President of Israel Reuven Rivlin and were also invited to the office of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, for a short meeting.
At the conference, Zarolia explained the philosophical view according to which Ahura Mazda and Ahriman bestow upon the religion of Zarathushtra its characteristic of being dualistic. "But one must be careful not to extrapolate it to being duo-theist for Zarathushtra’s faith is clearly monotheist…”
Extolling the virtues of Cyrus the Great and his proclamation of human rights, Zarolia stressed, "It is the basic responsibility of all religious leaders and all human beings to protest when unjust acts are done.” He concluded with the famous line "Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”
Zarolia also participated in the other sessions on "Safeguarding the Garden: The Ecology of Planet Earth in an Industrial Age” and "Repairing the World: The Role of Religious Leadership in Peace Making.” Due to time restrictions at the sessions, discussions with other religious heads "continued at the lunch and dinner tables,” Zarolia informed Parsiana. Prayer and meditation sessions were regular features at the meet and the last two days were devoted to interactions with Israel’s non-Jewish religious leaders.