"Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions. It was founded by the Prophet Zoroaster in ancient Iran approximately 3500 years ago." (BBC)Join me as I speak to a former member, Zubin Madon, of a rarely heard about religion. In India and Pakistan they are a small and mysterious, dwindling community. We discuss how the religion has evolved over the years, the openness that reform has brought (psst..Islam, take some notes), how this community came to be in India/Pakistan, the reasons their population is declining, some bizarre, fascinating traditions involving "The Tower of Silence" and ... *vultures*. We talk Marriage, menstruation, IVF and Freddie Mercury. Links to articles mentioned in the podcast: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/zubin-madon/terror-has-no-religion-a-_b_10793300.htmlWhy does everyone want to silence ex Muslims? http://www.huffingtonpost.in/zubin-madon/why-does-everyone-want-to-silence-ex-muslims/Also mentioned in the podcast is Reason On Faith's excellent blogpost about my Polite Conversation with Tarek Fatah: http://reasononfaith.org/polite-conversations-tarek-fatah/iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/es/podcast/polite-conversations/id1086199663?l=en&mt=2#episodeGuid=tag%3Asoundcloud%2C2010%3Atracks%2F270328815You can support Polite Conversations here: https://www.patreon.com/nicemangos

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