THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HOLY FIRE IN THE RELIGION OF ZORASTRIANISM

FIRE When this word is put before us the images that come to our mind are energy, brightness, sparks, life... but for us zarthushtis some more words also come to our mind that our related to fire...purity, respect, way to GOD.

So then why do we parsis put so much importance to fire? There is this beautiful book called "A BRIEF HISTORY OF ANJUMAN ATASH BAHRAM- MUMBAI (1897-1997)". The Anjuman Atash Bahram entered the 100th year of its enthronement on Roz Ardibehesht Mah Aradibehesht Yz. 1366, monday 23rd September, 1996 and this book was published in this respect.

The preface of this book tells us the importance of fire in our religion.
In pre-zorastrian times fire was considered the holy emblem of God. To Zoraster himself, the fire was the sustaining and purifying Divine Power of Almighty God, thus making it worthy of man's devotion, veneration and homage. According to Yasna 19.2,4, it suggests that Ahura Mazda, the Almighty God, created fire before he did human beings. And while there are other interesting theories on the source, it is firmly established that the fire is indeed of divine origin, as preserved in the ancient writings of zorastrians and the Hindus.

Why do we preside over the fire? Because it is said that AHURA MAZDA has created Spiritual Beings(Amesha Spentas and Yazatas) for the management of the universe. And they are at work in nature. So each of the worldly creations is in the care of one of the Spiritual Beings. In the Avesta, Adar is the Yazata (Spiritual Being) in charge of the worldly, visible fire. So when a Zoroastrian offers his prayers to Adar, he offers them in actuality to the Spiritual Being pervading and presiding over the physical fire. And through the Spiritual Being, a Zoroastrian offers his prayers to the creator, Ahura Mazda.

Ahura Mazda himself is described as "full of lustre", full of glory(raevat khvarnvat) and hence his luminous creations-sun, the stars and the fire are especially regarded as His appropriate emblems. In the Avesta, the sun is called the most beautiful visible form of Ahura Mazda. And Adar, who presides over the fire, is venerated as the son of Ahura Mazda.

The holy hymns recited by ZARATHUSHTRA written in the GATHAS in avestan literature also show veneration of fire.

Avesta tells us that there is fire in the human body. The soul is the spark, a glow of light. The fuel required for this fire is good thought, good word and good deed. This shows that mental and physical purity is the first principle of a Zoroastrian.

There are five kinds of fires as described in pahlavi books:

ADAR BEREZISAVAH: "THE FIRE OF UTILITY". THE FIRE OF THE ATASH BAHRAM.

ADAR VOHUFRYANA: "THE FIRE OF GOOD FRIEND". THE FIRE IN THE BODY OF MAN AND ANIMAL.

ADAR URVAZISHTA: "THE MOST JOY-GIVING FIRE".

ADAR VAZISHTA: "THE FIRE SWIFTEST". THE FIRE IN THE CLOUD, THAT IS LIGHTNING.

ADAR SPENISHTA: "THE FIRE MOST HOLY", THIS IS THE FIRE BURNING IN THE PRESENCE OF AHURA MAZDA IN GAROTHMAN, THE HIGHEST HEAVEN.

And as regards the consecration of the holy fires, there are three grades. ATASH BAHRAM: THE FIRE DEDICATED TO VICTORY. ATASH ADARAN: THE FIRES--COLLECTED AND CONSECRATED. ATASH DADGAH: THE FIRES INSTALLED IN THE PROPER PLACE(HOUSEHOLD FIRE).

Religious ceremonies of high order are performed to consecrate and to install the holy fire. Ordinary fires of daily use are taken and then their pure essence is derived from their blaze and the ceremonies are performed over the pure essence of the fire to further purify it and make it worthy of veneration.

When we speak of Final Judgement, again fire plays an important role.
The principle of DIVINE JUSTICE in this case being: evil unto the doer of evil and bliss unto the holy. This DIVINE JUDGMENT shall be delivered by the heavenly tribunal, and at the time of FRASHOKEREITI(RENOVATION), the souls will be tested by red blazing fire,by shining metal and molten metal.

The sacred fire is metaphorically spoken of as a king, having a spiritual jurisdiction over the district round about. The marble stand on which the censer stands, is spoken of as its throne. Its sanctum sanctorum is in the shape of a dome, reminding us of the dome of the heavens. The censer on the slab stands just under the centre of the dome. A metallic tray hangs high above over the fire, spoken of as the crown which is the symbolic emblem of a ruler. The swords and maces hanging about on the inner wall of the gumbad, serve as symbols of the temple militant, to signify, that the devotees should fight against moral evils and vices. The sacred fire burning in an ATASHKADEH(HOUSE OF FIRE), serves as a perpetual reminder to the faithful standing before it, to preserve piety, purity, humility and brotherhood. The fire on the censer reminds one that though pure in itself, though the noblest of creations of the Wise Lord and the best symbol of the diety, it had to undergo certain processes of purifying itself. It had to extract the quintessence of purity, to enable itself to be worthy of occupying the exalted position. So it is important for us to go through the process of righteousness and purity, virtue and mortality, through his good thoughts, words and deeds in order to acquire an exalted position in the life after.
The fire of the Atash Bahram is made up of a collection of fires gathered from people of different grades of society. This reminds us that just as all these fires from the houses of men of different grades have, through the processes of purification and consecration, equally acquired the exalted position in the censer. So too men, in the eyes of AHURA MAZDA, no matter to what strata of society they belong, are equal, provided they preserve the trinity of pure thoughts, words and deeds.

The pinch of the sacred ash applied to the forehead reminds us about the transitoriness of life. The dazzling, resplendent Fire, spreads the fragrance of sandalwood and frankincense around it before it reduces to ashes. Mortal beings have to depart also from this transient life. So it reminds us to spread, as it were, the fragrance of virtue and charity and live a life of righteousness, dedicated to the betterment of humanity, before we turn to dust.

So friends, you see how important fire is in our lives...i hope this knowledge that i shared with you from this lovely book will help our youth to be a little more respectful towards god's gift.. fire...

OUR HOLY AATASHPATSHA SAHEB (THE HOLY FIRE OF PARSIS) 

NEW, EXCITING FEATURES ADDED TO MY SITE

HELLO TO ALL MY VISITORS...THIS POST IS TO INFORM YOU THAT EXCITING NEW FEATURES HAVE BEEN ADDED TO MY BLOG WHICH WILL MAKE YOUR VISITS MORE INTERACTIVE AND FUN. THE NEW FEATURES ARE LISTED BELOW.

1. A BRAND NEW GUESTBOOK IN WHICH YOU CAN VIEW ALL MY GUEST COMMENTS AND ALSO ADD IN YOUR VALUABLE COMMENTS ON HOW YOU LIKE MY SITE.
2. AN INTERACTIVE NEW VOTING BOOTH IN WHICH YOU CAN CASTE YOUR VOTE BASED ON THE TOPIC...BELIEVE ME ...EVERY VOTE COUNTS...SO MAKE YOURSELF HEARD.
3. THIS FEATURE IS MY FAVOURITE BECAUSE IT IS THE NEW FUN JOKE OF THE DAY BLOCK WHERE YOU CAN CLICK AND READ A HILARIOUS JOKE..A NEW ONE FOR EACH DAY.
4. THERE IS ALSO A SITE METER LOCATED AT THE END OF THE PAGE WHERE YOU CAN SEE AS TO HOW MANY VISITORS HAVE COME TO THIS SITE.

SO GUYS... WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR...GET INVOLVED,HAVE FUN AND KEEP VISITING THE SITE TO SEE WHAT'S NEW. ALSO YOUR COMMENTS AND OPINIONS REALLY MATTER GUYS SO DON'T FORGET TO SIGN THE GUESTBOOK AND ADD YOUR VALUABLE VOTES IN THE VOTE BOOTH.

RAKSHABANDHAN FESTIVAL

Today is the festival of RAKSHABANDHAN...So I wish everyone all over the world a very happy rakhshabandhan. For my friends who are not aware of this festival, let me tell you something about it.

The festival of rakshabandhan started in ancient times when the Indian rulers were fighting with the Britishers who had invaded India. A queen had tied this thread on the wrist of another Indian ruler symbolic of asking him to protect her and her region... since then this tradition is carried on.

On the day of rakhshabandhan the sister wakes up early in the morning, gets dressed up in fine clothes and then offers her prayers to GOD. Then the steel plate is made ready with kumkum(red powder put on forehead on auspicious occasions),rice,earthen oil lamp and the rakhi which is this thread about the length of a wrist watch which the sister would tie on her brother's hand.

When the brother is ready, the sister puts bit of kumkum on his forehead, some rice, and then she ties the rakhi on her brother's right wrist. By getting the rakhi tied the brother pledges that he will protect his sister for the rest of his life. Then as a token of thanks, the brother gives her sister any gift or some money.

These days rakhis come in lots of shapes and sizes. They are made of many materials ranging from simple cotton threads,wool to silk, silver and even gold ones. Some come with beads in them. For the kid brothers rakhis are even available in the form of many cartoon characters. As you can see in the post below, that's a rakhi thread and that's the rakhi that my sister sent for me... Yes you would ask me that we are sisters, but the thing is that we do not have any real brother so we tie rakhis to each other.

It doesn't matter whether the rakhi is simple or fancy expensive one, it doesn't matter whether your brother gives you expensive gifts or blessings as a gift, it doesn't even matter whom you tie your rakhi too, I even tie it to my dog BOSCO... What matters is the sentiment that lies behind this ceremony...The sentiment that your loved one pledges to keep you happy and to protect you is what is really the beauty of this festival...

This is the typical rakhi thread that a sister ties on her brother's hand on the festival of RAKSHABANDHAN.  

ARE WE PARSIS FIRE WORSHIPPERS OR GOD WORSHIPPERS?

Im sure a lot of people have this question in mind whether we parsis are fire worshippers or god worshippers. Let me try and answer this question. Before answering I wud like to say that I have been reading this book called "1251st ANNIVERSARY OF INSTALLATION OF SACRED IRANSHAH ATASHBAHRAM " PUBLISHED BY R.M.D. CHAMARBAUGVALA,PRINTED BY RUSI KHAMBATA AND EDITED BY ERVAD N.E. TUREL, M.A.

This piece of information that im going to write has been given to us by DASTURJI KAIKHUSRU MAHYAR KUTAR DASTUR DARAB PAHLAN, M.A.

PAUL BRUNTON, a great scientist says that all material existences are changed into atoms, electrons, protons and deutrons, and ultimately it exists as energy which is light. Further he rightly says, "all matter is ultimately the condensation of radical energy, that is light, in other words this marvellous structure of the material universe which we see around us, has dissolved away, does not exist when you inquire into it and try to find out its true nature. It dissolves away and becomes that most intangible of all things, light."

It has also been said:-
" From light all creation takes its birth
And it is in light that it disappears
At the moment of its dissolution,
And once again from light
It once again takes its rise."

SAINT KABIR says:
"The holy light was the first born of heaven,
From that primeval light did the lord then create
All forms of life,
When the origin of all is the same
Who is superior to whom?"

So we can say that the whole universe has come from the light of God. Light is no other than God, the Being of God; Light is God. Science also rightly acknowledges that God created Light out of his own Being.
If science then acknowledges the fact that God is light, then is not fire the visible symbol of God? Then we can safely say that fire worship is really God worship
An American writer has rightly said..."Those Orientals who worship God with fire are wise and full of vision."
The great German scholar Prof. MILLS after studying the ZORASTRIAN RELIGION says that..."I am almost a fire-worshipper myself."

A zorastrian rightly says in his prayer ..." O AHURA MAZDA! through fire we reach Thee and Thee alone."

Hence this excerpt clears all our doubts of whether we parsis are fire worshippers or God worshippers
I truly thank this book and its writers for sharing this wonderful knowledge with me and my readers..yazdan panah bad... may god be with you.

CASSIA THE MYSTERIOUS SPICE

CASSIA IS THE MYSTERIOUS SPICE FROM WHICH MY NAME KEZIAH IS DERIVED... TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS SWEET SMELLING COUSIN OF CINNAMON CLICK ME NOW...

PROPHET ZARATHUSHTRA THE STORY OF WHICH I SHALL WRITE IN MY NEXT POST 

i know this picture is really hazy, sorry just taken from my webcam, but this is my pet bosco when he was just a month old, aint he adorable..hes my darlin 

HAPPY NAVROZE!

I wish all zorastrians all over the world a very HAPPY NEW YEAR. God bless you all and hope all your wishes come true this year. My special new year wishes to all my family members...mummy,daddy,vaseeta,bosco,khushi,granny,keki uncle,freny aunty,zubin,tukshad,phiroz uncle and family,kashmira and her family,jeroo aunty and family.
Also my new year wishes to all my parsi friends...delzad,khushnum,naazneen and family,kaizad,burzin unwalla,zubin daruwalla,xerxes dorabjee,porus mandviwala,delna bodhanwala... and all others..sorry if ive missed out any name...my best wishes to all of u..god bless u all.

here we see a child wearing the sudreh and with a kusti in his hand as the priest is performing the navjote ceremony with him the details of which are in my post below. 

ZARATHUSHTRA'S FAMILY TREE

LET ME TELL U ABOUT PROPHET'S FAMILY TREE A PICTURE OF WHICH I HAVE TRIED TO SHOW BELOW:

1. MOTHER: DUGHDOVA.
2. FATHER: POURUSHASPA.
3. MATERNAL GRANDFATHER: FRAHIMRVANAZOISH.
4. WIFE: HVOVI.
5. ELDER BROTHER: RATHUSHTAR.
6. ELDER BROTHER: RANGUSHTAR.
7. FIRST FOLLOWER/COUSIN: MAIDHYOIMANHA.
8. YOUNGER BROTHER: NODARIGA.
9. YOUNGEST DAUGHTER: POURUCHISTA.
10. YOUNGER BROTHER: NIVEDIS.

HERE IS PROPHET ZARATHUSHTRA'S FAMILY TREE... 

THE NAVJOTE CEREMONY

Today i shall share my knowledge about the zorastrian ceremony of NAVJOTE to u.
Long ago in ancient Iran, the voice of God SRAOSHA whispered into the ear of king JAMSHED..."Great kind, let every man, woman and child in your kingdom wear the sacred shirt SUDREH, and tie the sacred girdle KUSTI, over the sudreh and the kusti be the national badge of all Iranians"
So king Jamshed called his people and told them what Sraosha had whispered in his ear, and they gladly obeyed.
Several hundred years later, Zarathushtra, the messenger of God, was born in Iran. He taught the people about one God, AHURA MAZDA lord of life and wisdom.
Then ZARATHUSHTRA said:
"LET THE SUDREH AND THE KUSTI BE THE BADGE OF SERVICE TO AHURA MAZDA. LET THE PEOPLE CHOOSE TO SERVE AHURA MAZDA AND PUT ON THE SUDREH AND KUSTI FOR THE FIRST TIME AT THE NAVJOTE. LET THIS CEREMONY BE HELD BETWEEN THE AGES OF SEVEN AND FIFTEEN YEARS,AFTER THE PERSON HAS LEARN THE MEANING OF THE KUSTI PRAYERS AND CAN RECITE THEM BY HEART. LET THE NAVJOTE BE THE NEW BIRTH, AN ENTRY INTO A NEW LIFE LIVED FOR THE LOVE OF AHURA MAZDA. LET THE SUDREH AND THE KUSTI BE WORN NEXT TO THE SKIN ALL THROUGH LIFE, TO REMIND EVERYONE OF HIS PROMISE TO AHURA MAZDA TO DO THE RIGHT THING AND MAKE OTHERS HAPPY."
The navjote ceremony is as under:

The child is taken to the fire temple by his parents,relatives and all. There the priest MOBED,makes the child recite special prayers. Then the child is given a pomegranate leaf to chew and spit out. In ancient Iran the pomegranate was considered the fruit of wisdom. He is also made to sip the yellow-green juice of the HAOMA plant mixed wid a little water. Formerly in Iran, people believed this juice kept the person young and beautiful forever. Today we know the haoma plant as EPHEDRA, from which the medicine EPHEDRINE is made.
The mobed now gives the child a sacred bath called the NAHN. A day before the water is drawn from the well near the firetemple and blest. Just as clean water washes away all dirt from the body, the child must keep his heart pure and his mind full of good thoughts.

After the bath, the child is taken to the hall wher in the centre is the the AFARGHAN or the fire-censer about a foot high resting on a metal tray.
Then the mobedji recites prayers along wid the child while makin him wear the sudreh and makin him tie the kusti round his waist.

The sudreh is a kind of a vest sort of clothing made out of white muslin cloth. The word SUDREH means the pure and straight path to AHURA MAZDA. The ancient Iranians called it VOHUMANIK VASTRA, the clothing of AHURA MAZDA'S good and loving mind.
All parsis have to wear the sudreh and kusti all the time except during bath. It makes us feel as if the lords love is wrapped round our heart. The white cloth of sudreh stands for purity. Our sudreh is made of 9 seams which have their own significance:
1. THE GAREBAN IN FRONT IS A SQUARE INCH POCKET WHERE ONES GOOD DEEDS ARE STORED DURING ONES LIFETIME.
2. THE GIRDO IS A SEMICIRCULAR SEAM AT THE NAPE OF THE NECK WHICH SIGNIFIES THE LAW OF ASHA.
3&4. THE 2 SLEEVES SIGNIFY THE TWO PRIMAL FORCES OF SPENTA AND ANGHRE. THE RIGHT SIDE SIGNIFIES GOOD WHILE THE LEFT SIDE SIGNIFIES EVIL.
5&6. THE 2 SIDE SEAMS SIGNIFY THE 2 WORLDS THE MATERIAL(GETI) AND SPIRITUAL(MINOI).
7&8. THE TRIANGULAR TIRI ON THE LEFT FOR LADIES AND ON THE RIGHT FOR GENTS SIGNIFIES THE TRINITY OF HUMATA, HUKHTA AND HUVARASHTA...GOOD THOUGHTS, GOOD WORDS, GOOD DEEDS.
9. THE SINGLE VERTICAL TIRI ON THE RIGHT FOR LADIES AND ON LEFT FOR MEN SIGNIFIES THAT THERE IS ONE GOD-AHURA MAZDA.
THE FRONT OF THE SUDREH REPRESENTS OUR PAST
THE BACK OF THE SUDREH REPRESENTS OUR FUTURE.
THE DEVOTEE WEARING SUDREH REPRESENTS THE PRESENT.

The kusti means a waist-band. It is woven of seventy-two threads of the finest sheep's wool which represents humility and gentleness. 3 rounds represent MANASHNI, GAVASHNI, KUNASHNI.
THE 4 KNOTS REPRESENT:
1. THERE IS ONLY ONE GOD, AHURA MAZDA.
2. I AM A FOLLOWER OF HIS PROPHET, ASHO ZARATHUSTRA.
3. VIDAEVO, I AM FIGHTER AGAINST DEVAS, EVIL.
4. AHURA TAKAESHO I WILL DO WHAT IS PLEASING TO GOD.

The prayers that we recite during the kusti ceremony that we do everyday after having bath, has such great strength that if done with a true heart it protects us from all the evils. The kusti is like a protection wall built around us. The purpose of me explaining the sudreh kusti significance is that very few people these days wear it..if through this post i can inspire even one to wear it and follow gods true path of good thoughts, good words and good deeds then i shall consider myself blessed.

I am a true ZARTHOSTI, a follower of ZARATHUSHTRA, choosing the good and turning away from the bad. I know that AHURA MAZDA wants me to love and serve the DRIGHU, who are the poor and homeless, the sick and the sad.
By looking after them i build the KSHATHREM-CHA AHURAI the kingdom of AHURA in this world.

THANKS JENNA

In this post of mine id like to thank Jenna for visiting my blog posting her comment. Thanks jenna, your comment is very valuable and i shall try to put ur suggestions into practice. I have just started to contribute to my blog and hopefully with practice i shall be able to make it a blog worth visiting.. take care..

this is a pic of prophet ZARATHUSHTRA the holy prophet of the zarathushthis who keeps his loving hand on his children always 

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST TEA IN THE WORLD

this is my secret recipe for makin the best cup of tea in the world..atleast thats wat i think..
for one cup of tea u take half cup water and half cup of milk in a vessel and put it on fire... then add to it two teaspoons of tea leaves, sugar as much as u want, two cardomoms crushed, one nice long lemon grass leaf and some mint leaves.. let the mixture boil...
once it has boiled, put the fire on slow, and add to it half teaspoon of cinnamon powder and mix it nicely in the tea and let the tea simmer for 5 to 7 mins...
then just giv it one boil and shut off the gas..
thats it.. try it once and tell me how u like it... i personally find it very yum especially the cinnamon flavour in it is just amazing... for me the aroma of the tea is very important
related to this, u know wat my name keziah means??? its a hebrew name originally taken from word casia meaning a sweet smelling spice like cinnamon! how cool is that!

MOMS BIRTHDAY

Tomorrow, that is 15th of august is my mothers birthday.. so this post is dedicated to her. Her name is HUFRIZ. 53 year old beautiful virgo lady who has a craze for plants and fishes. First of all i must give due credit to her for raising two children as i think being a mother is one of the toughest jobs in the whole world.
My earliest memories of my mom are this slim tall lady with long hair who used to take me to school. She wud hand me the tiffin box and my hankerchief and water bottle. In the afternoon she wud fetch me from school and take me wid her to where she used to give tutions. I remember her taking me to the doc holding me in her arms wen i was ill. She has been workin and workin all her life...life has been very tough wid her...but she has gone thru all and survived the same.
Some of the sweetest things she has done for me are that once i was refused to go my friends house by my tution teacher just cos i hadnt done my home work, so wen i returned home, i was sad and mom gave me this new video casette of tom and jerry cartoons...that was so thoughtful of her.
Its not that i never fight wid her or anything, infact we keep arguin over somthing or the other but in the end the thing is i cannot do widout her. U dont realise the worth of a person until he or she isnt near u... and soon wen im gone far away from her every small thing will make me miss her.
MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY MOM. I love you and neither this post nor a thousand more posts will do justice to describe wat a beautiful person u r, hope some day ill be able to do all that u have done for me mom, i wont forget all that uve done and ill try my best to give all that love back to u...