Thus Spoke Zarathustra

This might just be evidence that esoteric interests have separated me from the rest of society, but I found this article on the survival of the Zoroastrian religion in the Boston Globe absolutely fascinating. Although most of it deals with the society of the Parsis in Bombay, it included this gem about Zoroastrianism in Iran (and some former provinces of ancient Persia):

But from outside the shattered splendor of Persepolis, the ancient capital of Persia, Bahram Agaheri, a Muslim teacher, talked in elegiac rhythms about the desire of many Iranians to rediscover the faith of their forefathers.

''People are tired of the mullahs," Agaheri said, referring to the country's religious leaders. ''If we were allowed to convert, millions would convert to Zoroastrianism. I challenge the government to allow conversion out of Islam for even one day."

But he is unlikely to see that day. Islam bans its adherents from converting, and a Muslim who renounces his faith can face a death sentence.

Caught between a religion that will not allow them out and one that will not let them in, many Iranians are thought to practice Zoroastrianism in secret.

There is also evidence that people in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and some Kurdish regions are rediscovering their Zoroastrian and Persian roots.

A secularized version of Nowruz, the traditional Zoroastrian New Year, is increasingly being celebrated across the region.

These tremors of change excite many Zoroastrians, who despite their demographers' troubling estimates, think their religion is poised to witness a renaissance.

Just imagine it: millions of converts to Zoroastrianism. The theocracy will falter and fail one day. As I've learned in my study of Farsi, modern Iranians deeply resent the Arabic influence on their culture, and are at pains to explain to westerners that they are not Arabs. It would be profoundly ironic if the ultimate consequence of the Islamic revolution were a significant rejection of Shi'ism in favor of Zoroastrianism.