The traditional tales and stories of ancient Iran describe confrontations between good and evil, the victories of the gods, and exploits of heroes and fabulous supernatural creatures such as the magical bird Simurgh and the div or demons. Much of our information about Iran’s pre-Islamic past comes from the holy book of the Zoroastrian religion, the Avesta. Although not written down in its present form until the thirteenth or fourteenth century, parts of the ...
