Zoroastrianism — a brief introduction
Today, I would like to talk a little about my religion. Zoroastrianism, a religion based on the belief of monotheism. Today there are less than 200,000 followers that preach this religion mainly in India, United States and Iran. Zarathustra or Zoroaster was the prophet who preached this religion in Persia, the modern day Iran. He was born in the Mazdayasni section of Aryan tribes, which believed in superstitions and many Gods. Zarathustra was the first to introduce the idea of single creator “Ahura Mazda” and all other deities were just a subordinate. Ahura Mazda cannot be conceived completely by the human mind and thus has no human form. In conjunction to this Zoroastrianism is believed to have a dualistic faith — an interest in counterbalancing forces; good vs evil, light vs dark. Anghra Manyu (destructive mentality) is considered the counter balance of Spenta Manyu (creative mentality). Asha(truth) is the life force that originates from Ahura Mazda which stands in opposition to Druj(falsehood) the force of deceit.
The Avesta is the primary text of Zoroastrians wherein teachings are written in the language Avestan. It preaches the following core beliefs:
- The path of Asha: Good thoughts, Good words, Good deeds.
- Charity is the path which aligns to Asha, spread happiness not sorrow.
- Equality in gender.
- Do good without the hope of a reward.
The symbol of Zoroastrianism is known as the Faravahar or Farohar. The interpretation of this symbol taught to me during my childhood is that the human soul in the center of the symbol should follow the path of Asha. Each wing depicts one path, the inner most stands for good thoughts, which leads to good words; thoughts and words combined together form good actions. The lower tail of the symbol shows the path of the Druj which should be avoided.
In 641 A.D. the invasion of Iran had taken place by Arab hordes, there were military engagements with Yezdezard, the last ruler of the Sassanian dynasty. In the holy land of Nehavand, these battles were fought were many lost their life. The Arab invaders had numerous victories and these victories then lead to religious persecution, the then followers of Zoroastrianism were asked either to inculcate Islam or die. The survivors from this bloodshed, lived for decades in the mountains of Kohistan everyday on the edge of their life, getting hunted and tormented. Ultimately, the time came when they decided to leave their beloved Persia and set sail towards the west coast of India between A.D. 716 and 765. The refugees who landed were mostly from the Pars province of Eastern Iran. Thus, in India they are known as the Parsees — descendant refugees of Pars. In India during that time, caste system was prevalent and under this influence the Zoroastrians who migrated built themselves a cast barrier. Prior to their migration to India, there were no sects. In Iran, purely based on the occupation they divided themselves into priests, rulers, soldiers, tillers of soil, artisans and laborers. There is a famous lore known as Qissa-e-Sanjaan that was told to me by my grandparents and parents when me and my siblings wanted to hear stories. When the Zoroastrian refugees landed in India, they arrived at a place in Gujarat known as Sanjan. King Jadi Rana was the ruler at that time, a benevolent King. When they landed, they were no less than strangers, King Rana welcomed them nonetheless. He listened to the hardship that they had gone through in Iran, however there were doubts in the King’s mind as of how the Zoroastrian refugees would mingle with his folk, and whether his people would accept someone from a different part of the world. The Zoroastrian priests asked the King to get a bowl of milk. The King was under a dilemma as of why the priests are asking for some milk? When the bowl of milk was brought to them, the priests took some sugar and added it to the milk. Then they explained, as the sugar dissolves in milk, we the small community of Zoroastrians will assimilate with the people and the kingdom, they added on that by saying, as sugar also sweetens the milk, we will add only positivity, happiness, and success to the kingdom. The King was very impressed with this demonstration of intent from the priests. Thus, today as we know Parsees in India speak in Gujarati as they adopted the common language at that time. They also had an impactful economic integration, and a peaceful societal integration along with maintaining ethnic identity.
Fire is bright, always points upwards and is ever pure. Thus, it is a good manifestation of God. After migration to India, since the throne of the Iranian Emperors was no longer present, my forefathers symbolized their most sacred treasure the holy fire that travelled with them from Iran to India as Iranshah. Sanjan was the place where Iranshah was first placed in India. It was then shifted to Navsari, Bulsar and now rests in Udavada — a small town in Gujarat, India. The Parsees pray to three grades of fire — Atash-Behram, Adaran, Dadgah. The establishment of an Atash-Behram is a difficult process, takes almost about a year. The fire is derived from various sources, which include lightening fire, which can be obtained only when it ignites a jungle tree. Fire from a cremation pyre, fire from the hearth of a priest, and other fire from trades which include an operation of a furnace or an oven. All these fires are subject to rituals and then combined on an altar. This ceremony involves 32 priests. There are eight such Atash-Behram in whole of India — four in Mumbai, two in Surat, one in Navsari and Iranshah in Udavada which is the oldest and the most sacred one. The offerings made to the fire include sandalwood sticks and wooden logs. Across the altar inside the temple where the fire is kept, there are two huge bells, they are struck five times a day when the fire is fed with prayers and sandalwood sticks, the bells provide a strong vibration that drives away bad thoughts, bad words and bad actions amongst the devotees. The establishment of Adaran and Dadgah is comparatively simpler than Atash-Behram.
The ideas of Zoroastrianism have widely influenced various modern religions like Christianity and Judaism. They share thoughts like —
- Belief in one God.
- Triumph of good over evil.
- Heaven and Hell, and individual judgment.
- Strict moral and ethical code.
- Resurrection, final judgment and life everlasting.
- The words Satan, Paradise and Amen are of Zoroastrian origin.
- The belief of a savior to be born who brings the revelation of God. It is of interest to note that the three wise men(magi) who heralded the infant Christ, were Zoroastrian priests.
One of the ceremonies which every Zoroastrian child goes through is known as the Navjote(Initiation) ceremony. It is performed for the purpose of admitting a child into the faith of Zarathustra. It is performed when the child normally reaches an age of six, and should be performed before puberty. When the ceremony is completed the child is invested with the sacred Sudreh and Kushti. Sudreh is an undershirt of white muslin cloth and the Kushti is a woolen chord. The Sudreh has a symbolic wallet in the front, that reminds the devotee to follow the path of Asha. The Kushti helps in protecting oneself against evil. After the Navjote ceremony the child pledges to follow the teachings of Zarathustra and reaffirm the Kushti ritual everyday. During the day the ritual is performed facing the sun, during night one can face a heavenly body or face towards an artificial light. Weddings are also performed in a similar manner with the priests involved who recite prayers from the Avesta and shower the couple with rice and rose petals, offering affirmations and warm wishes.
One of the notable festivals of the Parsees include Pateti. It is known as the New Year’s eve. The next day is known as Nowruz or the New Year. The word Pateti comes from the Persian word Patet, which is a word for repentance, it is thus a day for people to reflect on their actions for the previous year and repent their bad deeds so that they are not repeated again for the coming new year. The repentance will allow growth, emotional stability and an opportunity to continue walking on the path of Asha if someone ever lost track. Presently, Pateti falls in August every year of the Gregorian calendar. The new year custom mainly includes, going to the fire temple to pray, decorating home with chalk designs on floor with various colors, hanging flower garlands on doors of the house, doing charity, preparing sweet dishes like fine fried vermicelli swirls also known as sev.
What I have learnt in my life till now from my religion is to exert and strive for all good things of life and enjoy them each in moderation with work being done on good deeds. We are travelers for whom life should be a voyage surrounded by good thoughts, good words and good deeds.
