1. For centuries since 652 AD, the Zoroastrians in Iran, mostly Persians and some Kurds, practiced their faith in quiet seclusion in rural Iran. From 19th century, most Zoroastrians moved to urban centers and towards business, the professions and industry.

2. Zoroastrian entrepreneurs were the first to: introduce sports in schools; modernize irrigation and agriculture; found steel, aluminum and plastic factories; start large scale construction projects; and endow hospitals and schools in Iran.

3. Suddenly, in 20th century Iran, the Zoroastrians began to excel in all walks of life; business, industry, arts and sciences.

So, what made this sudden difference?
A changing socio-political situation, amendments to laws & closer ties with Europe. https://twitter.com/JrRezvani/status/1223341791316828160?s=20

4. While no religion is better or worse than the other, religious ideologies create idiosyncrasies that animate a society adhering to it.

Zoroastrianism is not a "prescriptive ethic" based on obedience, fear or love, but rather, an ethic of personal responsibility.

5. A Zoroastrian is taught to lead an industrious, honest and, above all, charitable life. There is no place for asceticism in the Zoroastrian faith. The "generation of wealth" is part of the ethos, as long as it is achieved honestly, used charitably and consumed modestly.

6. A Zoroastrian jashan ritual in the shadow of the revered Mt Damavand in Iran.

7. The oldest tree in Iran, the Zoroastrian Sarv, aka the Cypress of Abarkuh, is 4,000 yrs old and located in Yazd province, central Iran. It's a protected national monument.

8. The quintessence of Zoroaster's teachings are embodied in the triad + 1:

HUMATA: good thoughts
HUKHTA: good words
HVARSHTA: good deeds
JCPOA: good deals

Iran remains essentially Zoroastrian while practicing Shi'a Islam.

9. The Zoroastrian concept of "frashkat", which means to refresh and renew the values, has allowed the faith to evolve with the times and come to represent gender equality in spiritual life. There're a number of women mobeds (priests) now.

10. In 2015, two Zoroastrian centers opened in Sulaimani city, both are recognized by the Kurdish Regional Government in northern Iraq. Notably, Zoroastrianism in Kurdistan is nationalistic, postmodern, and liberal.