Zoroastrianism
Subject in Religion
Zoroastrianism has come up in 1 episode across 1 podcast in TMT, including The Rest Is History. 1 person has made recorded remarks about it.
What people said
Tom HollandEnglish actor cast as Telemachus
Holland argues that Darius's ideology contained the seeds of later ideas that conquest in a god's name can be a moral duty.
“that conquest in the name of a god or of a kind of moral truth or order can be cast as a moral duty”
The Rest Is History: 668. Greece vs Persia: The Rise of the First Superpower (Part 1) (May 10, 2026) · Listen from 21:25
Holland contends that Darius was the first to promise soldiers divine blessings in life and after death for fighting enemies of his god.
“He tells his army, and no one had ever done this before in history, that if they go to war against the Elamites, they can expect, and I quote, divine blessings”
The Rest Is History: 668. Greece vs Persia: The Rise of the First Superpower (Part 1) (May 10, 2026) · Listen from 20:11
Holland argues that Darius's suppression of the Elamite rebellion was one of the most innovative episodes in world history.
“I mean, it's an incredibly obscure period of history, the Elamite rebellion. But I would argue that it's actually one of the most innovative episodes in world history”
The Rest Is History: 668. Greece vs Persia: The Rise of the First Superpower (Part 1) (May 10, 2026) · Listen from 20:21
Podcasts
- The Rest Is History · 1 episode
Episodes
668. Greece vs Persia: The Rise of the First Superpower (Part 1)The Rest Is History · May 10, 2026 · 1 h 13 min
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook trace Darius I's rise, the Ionian Revolt and Athens' role in burning Sardis, leading up to the Persian landing at Marathon in 490 BC.