Mithra is the Persian god of the rising sun, contracts, covenants, and friendship. He also oversaw the orderly change of the seasons, maintained cosmic order, and was responsible for bestowing divine grace on kings, legitimizing their rule and, as a protector of the faithful, was also invoked by warriors before battle and so became known as a god of war.
More about: MithraDefinition
Timeline
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c. 700 BCE - c. 300 BCEProbable dates for the development of the worship of Mithra.
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c. 550 BCE - 330 BCEMithra is referenced through inscriptions during the Achaemenid Empire.
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c. 67 BCE - c. 66 BCEMithra is worshipped by pirates relocated by Pompey the Great in Cilicia.
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c. 100 CE - c. 400 CEThe cult of the Roman god Mithras, based on the Persian Mithra, flourishes in the Roman Empire.
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651 CESassanian Empire falls to the invading Muslim Arabs; worship of Mithra suppressed along with much of Persian culture.
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c. 700 CE - c. 1000 CEZoroastrian Parsees flee Iran for India, taking sacred texts and keeping ancient traditions alive; worship of Mithra is preserved.
