Arsacid Cult of Ancestors: Its Origin and Religious-Political Nature

One of the problems raised regarding the influence of Hellenism on the ideology of the Arsacid kingship is the cult of king. Most of the researchers have taken this assumption for granted that the Parthians have followed the customs of the Seleucid kingship and elevated the founder of this dynasty to divinity by following them. The available information includes some historical sources and some archaeological and numismatic evidence. Did the Parthians worship their ancestors by imitating the Hellenistic culture? This article aimed to revises the existing assumption with an emphasis on Iranian traditions. Undoubtedly, Parthians used Hellenistic artistic traditions, but there is no evidence to specifically confirm the Cult of living kings in this dynasty unlike the Seleucids and Ptolemies. This research which is carried out with a descriptive-analytical method and is based on Iranian documents, i.e. Zoroastrian texts and Ostraca of Nisa, also shows that the divinity of Arsaces in the sources and monuments of old Nisa refers to the custom of sanctifying and honoring royal ancestors, its main origin is not Hellenism but ancient and pure Iranian/Zoroastrian beliefs in the worship of Fravahars.