Zurvan (also Zarwan or Zruvan) is the Iranian personification of time. In a myth recorded by Christian writers of the Sasanian era, Zurvan is the primordial being who, after a thousand years of sacrifice and a moment of doubt, fathered twin sons, Ohrmazd (Ahura Mazda) and Ahriman. The movement built around this idea, called Zurvanism, is much debated by scholars.
Zurvan and the Myth of Time at a glance
| Also spelled | Zurvan, Zarwan, Zruvan |
|---|---|
| Meaning | Time; Zurvan akarana, "infinite time" |
| Period | Flourished under the Sasanian Empire (third to seventh centuries CE) |
| Sons in the myth | Ohrmazd (Ahura Mazda) and Ahriman (Angra Mainyu) |
| Main sources | Armenian and Syriac Christian writers, including Eznik of Kolb and Theodore bar Konai |
| Scriptural basis | Yasna 30.3, the "twin spirits" of the Gathas |
Zurvan in the Avesta
In the Avesta, zurvan is simply a word for time, and Time appears only as a minor divinity. Later Avestan texts mention Zurvan akarana, "infinite time," and Zurvan darego-khvadhata, "time of long dominion," as powers invoked alongside others. Nothing in the surviving Avesta makes Zurvan the father of Ahura Mazda. That idea appears in later sources and became the defining teaching of Zurvanism.
In Zoroastrian cosmology more generally, time plays an important role. Middle Persian texts describe a world history of twelve thousand years, divided into periods in which Ohrmazd creates the world, Ahriman attacks it, and the struggle ends with the coming of the Saoshyant and the renovation of existence. Limited time, in this view, is the arena of the cosmic battle, set within infinite time.
The Myth of the Twins
The best-known form of the myth comes from Armenian and Syriac Christian authors who wrote against Persian religion. Before anything existed, Zurvan wished for a son who would create heaven and earth, and offered sacrifice for a thousand years. Then he doubted whether his sacrifice would bear fruit. At that moment two sons were conceived in his womb: Ohrmazd, from the sacrifice, and Ahriman, from the doubt.
Zurvan vowed to make the first-born king. Ohrmazd, who knew his father's thought, told his brother; Ahriman then tore his way out of the womb and presented himself first. When Zurvan saw the dark and foul-smelling Ahriman, he did not recognize him as his son. Bound by his vow, he granted Ahriman kingship for nine thousand years, after which Ohrmazd would reign forever. Zurvan gave Ohrmazd the priestly barsom twigs as a sign of priesthood.
Versions differ in detail. Some add that Ohrmazd then created the good world and Ahriman the evil one, and that Zurvan's doubt explains why evil exists at all. Critics of the story, both ancient and modern, noted that it makes the origin of evil depend on a failing within the highest being.
Sources and Historical Setting
Our knowledge of the myth comes largely from outsiders. The Armenian bishop Eznik of Kolb (fifth century) and the Syriac writer Theodore bar Konai (eighth century) give the fullest versions, and Greek and other Christian authors add details. Zoroastrian texts in Middle Persian speak of Time in more philosophical terms, and some later Zoroastrian works show Zurvanite influence.
The movement seems to have flourished under the Sasanian dynasty, when Zoroastrianism was the religion of the Persian empire. According to Britannica, Zurvanism taught that time alone, limitless and uncreated, is the source of all things, and it had a fatalistic and more pessimistic tone than orthodox Zoroastrianism. It left few traces after the Islamic conquest and seems to have disappeared by around the tenth century.
A Sect or a Tendency?
Scholars disagree about what Zurvanism was. The British scholar R. C. Zaehner, in Zurvan: A Zoroastrian Dilemma (1955), argued that it was a major current in Sasanian religion, perhaps even dominant at times. Others, including Mary Boyce, saw it as a theological speculation or heresy within Zoroastrianism rather than a separate church, pointing out that there is no evidence of distinct Zurvanite rituals or priesthood. Many specialists today speak of tendencies within the same religion rather than two rival sects.
The speculation may have grown from reflection on Yasna 30.3, where the Gathas speak of two primal spirits as "twins." If the good and evil spirits were twins, some thinkers asked, who was their father? Babylonian and Greek astrological ideas about time and fate may also have played a part.
Legacy and Modern Zoroastrian Views
Zurvanite ideas left traces in neighboring religions. In Middle Persian texts of Manichaeism, the supreme Father of Greatness is called Zurvan. Some scholars once linked the lion-headed figure of the Roman mysteries of Mithras with Zurvan, though this identification is disputed.
Modern Zoroastrians generally reject the Zurvan myth, since it makes good and evil brothers with a common origin and so compromises the goodness of Ahura Mazda. For historians, the myth remains an important witness to how ancient Iranians wrestled with the origin of evil, the nature of time and the relationship between Ahriman and the good creation.
Related entries
Frequently asked questions
Who is Zurvan in Zoroastrianism?
Zurvan is the Iranian personification of time. In the Avesta he is a minor divinity, but in the Zurvanite teaching of the Sasanian era he became the primordial being and father of both Ohrmazd and Ahriman. Most Zoroastrians today do not accept this teaching.
What is the Zurvanite myth of the twins?
The myth tells that Zurvan sacrificed for a thousand years to have a son, then doubted. Ohrmazd was conceived from the sacrifice and Ahriman from the doubt. Ahriman was born first and received a limited reign of nine thousand years, after which Ohrmazd rules forever.
Was Zurvanism a separate religion?
Probably not. Zurvanism is usually seen as a current or theological tendency within Sasanian Zoroastrianism rather than a separate religion. There is no clear evidence of its own temples or priesthood, and scholars such as Zaehner and Boyce differed on how widespread it was.
Sources and further reading
- Zurvanism · Wikipedia
- Zurvanism · Encyclopaedia Britannica
- R. C. Zaehner, Zurvan: A Zoroastrian Dilemma (1955) · Clarendon Press
This entry replaces an article from the original Mystica encyclopedia (online since 2001). It was rewritten from the sources above by The Mystica Editorial Team under our editorial standards. Last reviewed: September 30, 2026.