Zoroastrianism

A CRUP-OMAF case study

The solitary seeker (Zarathuštra) in prayer to Ahura Mazda—by the river of discernment where the light of truth is revealed, a moment from the Gāthās reflecting the ancient Iranian revelation of cosmic dualism (c. 1500-1000 BCE), courtesy of Nano Banana.

Domain: Existence, Morality, Cosmic Order
Theorist/s: Zarathustra (Zoroaster)
Assessor(s): DeepSeek
Date: 2026-01-12
Version of OMAF Used: v0.1.1

1. Overview of the Ontology

Purpose & Scope:

Zoroastrianism presents one of humanity’s earliest systematic ontologies of existence, framing reality as an eternal cosmic struggle between two primordial forces: Ahura Mazda (Wise Lord, representing Truth, Light, Order) and Angra Mainyu (Destructive Spirit, representing Falsehood, Darkness, Chaos). Its purpose is not merely to describe being, but to prescribe humanity’s active role within this moral-metaphysical battlefield. The scope encompasses cosmic origins, ethical action, individual destiny, and the ultimate transformation of existence itself.

Core Claims:

1. Reality is primordially dualistic comprising two independent, uncreated spirits (Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu)
2. The material world is created solely by Ahura Mazda as fundamentally good
3. Angra Mainyu invades and corrupts this creation as an external destructive force
4. Cosmic history is teleological struggle moving toward Frashokereti
5. Human agency directly influences this cosmic battle
6. The system is dualistic in origin, monotheistic in resolution

Theoretical Influences:

Indo-Iranian religious traditions, early Iranian cosmology. Later parallels in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic eschatology and angelology.

2. Application of CRUP-OMAF

Axis I — Completeness

Axis II — Robustness

Axis III — Pragmatic Usefulness

Axis IV — Transformative Potential

3. Visualisation

Radar Chart:

radar-beta
    title "Zoroastrian Ontology"
    axis Completeness, Robustness, Usefulness, Potential
    curve Score{3.8, 3.8, 4.0, 4.3}
    max 5

4. Summary & Observations

Strengths:

• Transformative Power: Few ontologies so decisively shift one’s perception of self and world from passive to active participation.
• Heuristic Richness: Its core dualistic structure is a powerful tool for analyzing moral and narrative frameworks across cultures.
• Operational Clarity: Provides direct, actionable guidance that flows seamlessly from its metaphysical foundations.

Weaknesses:

• Manifestation Detail: The precise how of ontological operations (e.g., the mechanics of how a good thought strengthens Asha) leans on metaphor more than mechanistic explanation.
• Boundary Ambiguity: The lines between spirit and matter, and the ontological status of "neutral" elements, are not fully sharpened.

Trade-offs / Tensions:

• Clarity vs. Complexity: Its great strength—moral clarity—comes at the cost of potentially oversimplifying nuanced moral situations into a binary choice.
• Robustness vs. Reflexivity: Its internal coherence is high because it builds from a few core axioms. Deeply questioning those axioms (e.g., the nature of the two spirits) leads to theological realms that the ontology itself may not fully resolve reflexively.

5. Recommendations

1. Deepen the Mechanism of Manifestation: Develop a more granular account of how abstract moral choices produce concrete cosmic effects, potentially drawing on modern analogies from systems theory or information theory. ^[1]
2. Clarify Boundary Conditions: Explicitly define the ontology's limits. Under what conditions does its dualistic framework not apply? This would strengthen its Domain Validity and Resilience.
3. Explore Reflexive Foundations: Encourage a line of inquiry that applies the dualistic framework to its own historical development and cultural interpretations, enhancing its Objectivity score.
4. Modernize Operational Integration: Map its core actionable principles (Good Thoughts, Words, Deeds) onto contemporary cognitive-behavioral or social-action frameworks to enhance its Integrability with secular models.

6. References

• Boyce, Mary. Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. Routledge, 2001.