Fire worship

Worship or deification of fire (also pyrodulia, pyrolatry or pyrolatria) is known from various religions. Fire has been an important part of human culture since the Lower Paleolithic. Religious or animist notions connected to fire are assumed to reach back to such early prehuman times. In Indo-European languages, there were two concepts regarding fire: that of an animate type called *h1n̥gwnís (cf. Sanskrit agni, English ignite from Latin ignis, Polish ogień and Russian ogon), and an inanimate type *péh2wr̥ (cf. English fire, Greek pyr, Sanskrit pu). A similar distinction existed for water. Archaeologically, evidence for Indo-Iranian fire worship and the rite of cremation is found at the transition from the Sintashta-Petrovka to the Andronovo culture around 1500 BC. Fire worship was prevalent in Vedic and the ancient Iranian religion. Whereas cremation became ubiquitous in Hinduism, it was prohibited in Zoroastrianism. Evidence of fire worship has also been found at the Indus Valley sites of Kalibangan and Lothal. In Zoroastrianism, fire is considered to be an agent of purity and as a symbol of righteousness and truth. In the present day this is explained to be because fire burns ever-upward and cannot itself be polluted. Sadeh and Chaharshanbe Suri are both fire-related festivals celebrated throughout Greater Iran and date back to when Zoroastrianism was still the predominant religion of the region. Zoroastrianism, however, is sometimes mischaracterised as a fire-worshiping religion, whereas it is a monotheistic faith with Ahura Mazda as its central figure and a dualistic cosmology of good and evil. Fire simply exemplifies a medium for spiritual wisdom and purity, but is not worshiped. In Vedic disciplines of Hinduism, fire is a central element in the Yajna ceremony, with Agni, "fire", playing the role as mediator between the worshipper and the other gods. Related concepts are the Agnihotra ritual, the invocation of the healing properties of fire; the Agnicayana ritual, which is the building of a fire altar to Agni; and Agnistoma, which is one of the seven Somayajnas.