* There is strong constructive evidence, from the nature of the Aryan Mythology, from the pages of the Vedas, from the anthropological resemblances between Persians, Caucasians, Greeks, Latins, Germans, British, and others; from the linguistic alliances between what have been called the Indo- Germanic races; and from a variety of other sources, each small in itself, but strong in the aggregate, for the belief that the origin of the Aryan mythology, or the Vedic religion as it is otherwise called, may be traced to Bactria or to Ancient Persia. Persia is spoken of by Plato as if her people carried the dynasties of their kings far back into eternity. (First Alcibiades, Bohn's edition, vol. iv., p. 343). Herodotus again (Book i., c. 131) tells us that the Persians from the earliest times have sacrificed to the sun and moon, to the earth, fire, water, and the winds, that they sacrifice on high places, have no divine statues, nor do they build temples. Now this is almost entirely a description of the old Aryan religion. The sun, for example, is Surya, Aryama, Mitra, Vivaswat, Martunda, Savitor, Sura, Ravi, Varuna, Indra Yama, Vishnu, and Krishna (Moor's Hindoo Paillhcon, p. 287). The moon is Chandra and Soma, and the origin of these words is to be found in the Persian as well as in the Sanscrit writings (Moor's H. P., p. 284-5). The Earth is Prit'hivi, 11a, Lakshmi, and Vasta. Fire is the powerful Agni. The water is Nara, or Narayana (Moor's JET. P., 74), from which all things came (see Water in Ancient Faiths), and the Winds are Maruts and Vaya. To these deities, individually or collectively, the modern Hindoo offers prayer and praise; and the hymns of the Rig Veda, such as we have them edited by Max Muller and Wilson, are copies probably of the same chants which accompanied the sacrifices of the Ancient Persians. This seems to indicate that the Persian religion was then undergoing some supervision by rulers who had a different faith to that held at a later period. When we next turn to Herodotus, Book L, c. 101, we find that the Magi were one of the six tribes which composed the Medes; and we notice that Phraortes, the son of Deioces, reduced the Persian kingdom under the dominion of the Medes about B.c. 650. If, then, we regard Zoroaster as being the founder of the Magi, we must throw back his epoch considerably further than this date. But even if we accept this conquest as the era of the Parsee prophet, we find that Zoroaster preceded the first public promulgation of the Mosaic law amongst the Jews.*