...We pray to you, fire, the greatest creature of Ahuramazda , , ,
Creation of Fire by Human Being for the 1st time
About 29th January - 10th Bahman
Sad = 100
100th day of big winter
50 days + 50 nights to Norooz
Courtesy of Washington Post - Yazd, Iran
Kerman - Boodaagh Aabaad
by : Kaveh Faramarzian - 1363Y
Photo: Nazanin Niknam
Reports of Sadeh Celebration 2006 - Iran and other parts
Sample of Sadeh Song by Khodi Kaavni
Sample of Sadeh Announcement in Vancouver
A Report on Sadeh, Tehran, Jan 2003
Cultural Heritage News Agency - 3741 Z
Pictures from ISNA on Sadeh in Tehran - 3741z
Shiraz - Sadeh 2004 - Photos: R. Kavoosi
FIRE AND JASHN-E SADEH
Ali A. Jafarey
Greatest Discovery: Take away fire and man (stands for both the genders) will revert to wilderness like any other animal! The greatest discovery made by man alone on this good earth is the art of making and maintaining fire. He, like any other animal, had seen fire striking from clouds, devouring bushes and trees, and devastating large tracts of green land. He had also seen fire being spewed by a volcano and the molten lava snaking and snarling its way down the slopes. He also knew it gave heat and scared ferocious animals. Though still not proven, but most probably he had learned how to keep it burning. It provided him and his associates with light, warmth, and a device to keep ferocious animals away. He must have also learned to control fire which, in the long run, helped him to smelt metal ores. But man did not know how to kindle it. The day he discovered this art, he separated for good from the animal kingdom that roamed the earth. He had discovered the source of light, heat, and energy -- the very basis of civilization. Fire helped man to reduce nomadism and develop social and political institutions connected with a fixed abode.
Legends of how man learned to make fire are as numerous as there are ancient nations. A god brought or stole it down the sky is but an illusion to lightening striking and starting a fire. It was thrown up by the earth reminds us of a volcanic eruption. It was brought down a tree by a wise man indicates that it was obtained from a burning tree. It is a product of two rubbing branches or a child of ten mothers points to the much later discovery of creating friction by placing a stick in a wooden groove and rubbing, rather rotating the stick with two palms, the ten fingers, the ten mothers.
The most striking is the Iranian legend, preserved, among other writings, in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh. Here is a gist of the Shahnameh's story: Hushang Hushang succeeded his grandfather Kayumars, the first of the Pishdadian Kings. He girdled himself with wisdom and justice. The Discovery of Fire Our ancestors worshipped God, had their beliefs, and followed certain ceremonies. In those days, the blazing fire was the altar just as the Arabs have stone as their prayer niche. But the discovery of fire was quite incidental. This happened before iron was discovered.
One cold day, Hushang and his party were returning from a hunting expedition. They saw a snake coiled in their path. Hushang aimed his flint axe at it. He missed and the snake slithered away. But the axe hit another stone, also a flint and produced a bright spark The curious king took hold of the two flints and struck more sparks. And he learned to produce enough sparks to ignite a fire. He discovered how to make fire! "This spark," he proclaimed, "is God's gift. Hold it high in regard." He thanked God for the gift and made fire his altar. He held a great feast. Every person sang, danced, drank, and feasted around the bonfire. For the first time, Hushang and his people could light their dark caves and feel cozy and warm in their beds. They passed a wonderful winter. Hushang never forgot his revolutionary discovery. He held a great feast every year on that eventful day. It is called "Sadeh." He was the first to separate iron from ore and established the profession of smithery. He fashioned axes, saws, and adzes. Next, he diverted water from rivers into plains for cultivation. Prior to this human beings subsisted on fruits and covered themselves with leaves. Furthermore, Hushang separated the beasts which were hunted from those that could easily be domesticated. He introduced soft and comfortable furs as clothing. Hushang's reign introduced peace, prosperity, plenty, and happiness. He died after ruling for forty years." To put it in short: Fire was accidentally discovered when a flint-axe, thrown by King Hushang to kill a snake, missed and struck a rock and threw a spark. That sparked the idea to kindle fire by striking two pieces of flint together. This theory is confirmed by archeologists to be the most probable means of its discovery in the early stone stage.
Hushang, the Iranian legend says, celebrated the discovery by throwing a feast, a feast that has been kept alive through ages. It is held every year on 10 Bahman (30 January), almost mid-winter. It is called "Sadeh," meaning "century" because according to one popular tradition, it falls on the hundredth day from 21 October, the beginning of winter among ancient Iranians. Or, as I see it, it is the contracted form of the Avestan "saredha," Persian "sard," meaning "cold, winter." On that afternoon, people gather outside their town, make a hill of dry shrubs, bushes, weeds, and branches. Priests lead the prayers, exalting fire as the divine light, warmth, and energy, ask God for an ever-progressing life to eternal happiness, and as the sun sets in the blazing west, set the hill ablaze. It is a sight to watch huge leaping flames. Those at home light little bonfires on top of their flat mud-plastered "fire-safe" roofs -- a tribute to the civilized blessings given by the discovery of kindling fire. Venerating Fire: At a time when man was hunted and haunted, he discovered fire and that changed his whole pattern of life. No wonder the blazing fire soon became the object of veneration, especially when his imagination formed for him many forms of deities. Fire became a deity too, a deity too close and touching. The sky god was sky high, the earth goddess was earth wide, the wind god was blowing across, the sun god/goddess was traveling light, the moon god was waxing to wane, and the water goddess was streaming by. Fire was the only deity that sat very cozy and close. It held a special position. It was kindled with care and was kept alive with more care. It gave light. It gave heat. It gave power. It turned night into day and winter into spring. It baked clay into pots, and smelted metal into instruments. It frightened away dangerous animals, and above all, it made the daily food tender and tasty. It had revolutionized human living. It required constant attention, and attention means attraction and affection. It became "special." It had a special seat, the hearth. It became the center of his activities -- cooking, eating, conversing, sleeping, and of course, receiving his homage. Moreover, it went up the sky in a smoke column. The fire god had contact with the gods and goddesses above and men and women below. He was the intermediary, and the hearth became the altar, the earliest altar. All the gifts presented to deity and deities -- animal fat and flesh, grains, food, sweet smelling herbs and wood -- were put to burn and rise in smoke to reach the deity/deities. It was a smoky, smelly offer! Ever-burning: Kindling fire by striking flints or rubbing sticks was no easy job. It was much easier to keep it burning. Man learned that fire can snugly sleep beneath ashes and arise glowing when blown in flames. The habit of keeping fire "alive" through sleeping and leaping became a habit. Habit forms tradition. The hearth fire and later the temple fire became an ever-burning fire. Tradition becomes sacred. Sacredness demands ritual. Ritual becomes elaborate. Once sanctified and ritualized, even when well out-dated and fossilized, a tradition cannot be easily abandoned by conservatives. Match sticks and gas and electric lighters have put out the hearth fire, and yet I know in Iran there are still old ladies, Zoroastrians and Muslims, whose hearth fire is never extinguished. My mother and mother-in-law, one from Kerman and the other from Shiraz, 300 miles apart, had the hearth fire going as long as they lived. If this could be with homes, what should one expect from places of worship? Fire has served as the altar, the illuminating light, for many religions. Fire, in form of candid candle, lighted lamp, burning incense, and blazing wood, still adorns prayer niches, rooms and halls all over the world. Fire Altars and Temples: Hearth fire is venerated in the Atash Nyayesh in the Later Avesta. This is the earliest form of it and it formed the altar for all domestic rituals.The Haptanghaiti in the Gathic dialect mentions "fire-enclosure" as a communal altar. Median and Achaemenian bas-reliefs show persons standing, with uplifted arms" in the Gathic fashion, in front of fire altars. Plinths at Pasargadae confirm the "fire-enclosure," the Gathic communal fire altars. Open fire altars survive at Naqsh-e Rostam from Sassanian days too. Avestan texts speaks of no fire-temple or fire-house. It did not exist in those days. Temple is an Elamite and Babylon gift to Median and Persian Zoroastrians. Parthians and Sassanians followed with increasing elaborations. Ruins of Zoroastrian fire-temples of pre-Islamic era are spread from Iraq to the Pamirs and beyond. I have visited, lit a candle and prayed at many, including the one on the Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf and those in Persepolis, Naqsh-e Rostam, Pasargadae, Isfahan, Khuzistan, Azerbaijan in Iran, and Taxila in Pakistan. Various grades of fire-temple are also the evolution of elaborating the system. Atash Bahram, the Victory Fire, at present the highest consecrated temple is a Sassanian invovation. When Ardeshir Babakan, the founder of the dynasty, rose against the Parthian rule and won a victory against Vologeses V in 224 CE, he had to fight many a battle to conquer the vast empire. Wherever and whenever, scored a victory over his enemies, he would erect one "Victory Fire" temple in memory. History books written by Muslim travelers speak of fire-temples "miraculously" lit without being fed by any firewood. They were in the oil-rich regions, from present day Khuzistan in Iran to Azerbaijan in the former Soviet Union. They were fed by natural gas harnessed by the experts in those days. The one in Baku has been reconstructed by the authorities there and has the gas fire on. The gas-fed Azar Goshnasb temple in Azerbaijan, Iran, was where the Sassanian emperors were crowned. Recent excavations have revealed the baked clay pipeline to the fire-altar. This makes the present gas-fed fire altars in North America as no innovation but following the past in modern times. It is less air polluting and does not devour firewood and therefore plays no part in deforestation. Once installed in a temple, it became a tradition. That tradition continues. I would add that it should continue with modern modifications. Already a number of "prayer rooms" and "Dar-e Mehrs" in North America and Europe -- and it includes the Zarathushtrian Assembly prayer hall -- are lit by natural gas. The Sassanians had two other major fire-temples. Azar Farnbagh, for the Priestly class, was in Nishabur, Khorassan, northeast Iran, and Azar Borzin, for the Agricultural and Industrious class, was in Darab, Pars, south Iran. Incidentally, the domed Muslim mosque is the continuation of the Sassanian architecture of fire-temple. The dome stood above the fire-altar. All that the Arabs or Iranian converts to Islam had to do is to remove the altar and prepare the hall for their prayers. Some of the old former fire-temples, turned into congregational mosques still have the fire-altars placed in their yars and filled with water. The domed building is not an Arabian architecture at all. Fire in the Gathas: Fire has been used eight times in the Gathas. It is mental (Songs 4.3 and 12.6), the radiant light (4.19 and 16.9), the warmth (8.4), and full-of-energy (7:4), which helps good and evil people to find happiness. It helps to meditate in quest of righteousness (8.9) and to enlighten one's mind to find means to ward off danger (11.7). The Gathic Fire symbolizes the Divine Progressive Mind in human beings. It is the altar that enlightens a meditating mind of a Zarathushtrian. Facing it, a Zarathushtrian wishes to forge an ideal society. Here are two brief prayers, one in the Haptanghaiti and the other from Atash Nyayesh (Fire Prayer) in the Avesta. They explain fire's symbolism and depict the society a Zarathushtrian wants the world to enjoy: "In this fire-enclosure, first of all, we approach You and You alone, Wise God, through the most progressive mentality, symbolized by Fire -- bright, warm and energetic. Reverence to it, because You have appointed for reverence. Fire, you belong to God Wise. You symbolize the most progressive mentality. This is the best of your designations. O Fire of Ahura Mazda, it is because of this that we approach you. (Haptanghaiti, Song 3.1-3) Grant me, O Fire of Ahura Mazda, prompt welfare, prompt maintenance, prompt living; full welfare, full maintenance, full living; zeal, progress, eloquence, discerning intellect; next, comprehensive, great and lasting knowledge; next, all encompassing courage, steadiness; vigilance, wakeful even at rest; and self-supporting children, able to govern the country, outstanding in assembly, harmonious in growth, and gentle in character, who shall advance our homes, settlements, districts, countries and the world fellowship. (Atash Nyayesh) May the Fire of Mazda enlighten our minds!
Iran's Zoroastrians celebrate ancient feast - Yahoo-AP
SADEH
by Kayomarsh P. Mehta
Sadeh
is a mid winter festival celebrated by Zarathushtis. It is popularly
known as Jashan-e
Sadeh. In Iran it is the third largest
celebration after Navrooz
and Mehergaan.
For some reason, this festival is not celebrated in India.
In
Farsi language, Sad
means hundred. There are several
different traditions as to
when to celebrate Sadeh.
In Yazd, the festival is celebrated
on Roj Astad,
Mah Adar, which is 100 days
before Navrooz,
the beginning of Spring. This places the festival to be celebrated on December
11th. In Kerman,
the festival is celebrated on Roj Aban,
Mah Behman, which is the
100th day after the
Ayathrem Gahambar,
the beginning of winter. Yet others, celebrate it on January 29th,
which is 50 days and 50 nights before Navrooz. Most organizaions in US celebrate
it on the weekend close to January 29.
In Shahnameh, Sadeh is referred to as a celebration of mankind’s discovery of generating fire. There is a legend that King Hooshang saw a snake and threw a stone to kill it. The stone missed the snake but hit another rock. The friction between the stones created a spark and a fire. Fire caused by natural phenomena ( lightning, volcano, etc) was known to mankind for ages before. However, the importance of King Hooshang’s incident seems to be that for the first time, mankind discovered how to create fire at will and control it for practical purpose. This was a big step in the history of human civilization. Hence the tradition of the Sadeh celebration.
Traditional
celebration of Sadeh
involves lighting a big fire outdoors. Mobeds perform a
Jashan
ceremony followed by singing and dancing around the fire by the people gathered
for the festivity. Everyone is expected to participate in the festival by
bringing wood for the fire! A
folk song reads:
Shax e shax e
Armani A
branch, a
branch of …..
Har kas shax e be
dehaad
Whosoever offers a
branch,
Khodaa muraad
esh be
dehaad! May
God grant
their wishes!
Har kas
shax e na
dehaad
Whosoever does not offer a branch,
Khodaa muraad esh na dehaad!
May God
not grant
their wishes!
So,
one must participate in this festival by offering a branch of wood for creating
the fire. An outward significance
of participating in the festival and offering wood to light the Physical
Fire is to fight the Evil - the cold of the winter, by helping to provide Heat
and warmth. A more deeper
significance of the festival and the offering of the wood is to remind us to
feed and light the Inner
Fire to fight the Evil - in our mind, our bad thoughts. By remembering to
feed the Flaming Fire of Thought within us, we can provide Light
and Illumination to our Mind. With the development of Good Mind, our soul can
progress and fulfill the mission of life.
In our religion, Fire - Atar or Adar has a very deep significance. For a clearer understanding of this concept, let us examine the context in which Fire is mentioned in few of our scriptures.
Gathas
- Yasna
43.9 Asho
Zarathushtra communes with Ahura Mazda:
What is Thy Holy Will? To Whom daily my utmost homage should I pay?
Unto Thine Inner Flame I pay my homage & to Thine Eternal Law.
Gathas
- Yasna
46.7 Who
will protect me from evil in my hour of need?
My Inner Light and Willpower shall protect me from evil.
Haptan Yasht - Yasna 36 Through the Agency of Thy Divine Fire , approach we Thee and Thee alone, O Ahura Mazda!
Gathas - Yasna 46.7, Kem Naa Mazda The use of words Aathraschaa Mananghaschaa togather clearly suggests that the prayer does not refer to physical fire. Instead it refers to Flaming Fire of Thought.
Atash
Nyaish The
Fire of Ahura Mazda gives instructions to everyone….
It
cannot be the external fire. The fire here refers to the flash of the intuition
which becomes their Teacher.
Having
examined these various references of Atar,
we observe that in every case, the external
fire implies internal essence,
the Divine Spark, the Fravashi
, the Element of God within us. Interesting to note that St. Paul in the New
Testament uses a similar metaphor: Know
ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in
you?(I Corinthians,3,16) .
So each time we offer a piece of sandal wood to the fire, let us remember that Fire is the Visible symbol of the Invisible Divine Light, the Divine Spark , the Fravashi within us.
By
offering the sandal wood to the fire, we are reminding ourselves that we must
light the fire within us. Just as the piece of sandal wood burns up and
turns to ashes, we need to lead a life of self sacrifice,
charity and helping others. Just as the sandal wood leaves a sweet fragrance
behind, we will be remembered by others long after we are gone for the good
deeds that we have done.
Offering
wood to the outward Physical Fire is a suggestive gesture to kindle this Divine
Spark within us. By invoking and following the advice of our the Divine Spark - Fravashi
- the Inner Fire, we can advance our soul by getting
rid of the evil within us. The eternal Flame within us when sanctified
will help us purge out all the evil that seeks sanctuary within us. It is this
Internal Flame that needs to be kept burning by living a useful, meaningful
life, by practicing Humata
-
Good Thoughts, Hukhta
- Good Words
and Huvarashta
- Good Deeds and by
following the path of Asha
- Righteousness, Truth and
Divine Order.
As we celebrate this festival, let us then join in the prayers to thank Ahura Mazda for providing us this INNER FIRE which can guide us to lead a good life and help our soul to attain Perfection and Immortality.
From IRNA: 31 Jan 2004 Archive
MP
at Zoroastrians` Sadeh Celebration: Islam promotes cheering up of the
pious
Tehran, Jan 30, IRNA -- Head of the Parliament`s Cultural Committee Dr.
Ahmad Purnejati, attending the Tehrani Zoroastrians` ancient
Sadeh Celebration here on Friday, said, "Keeping in mind that Islam
promotes cheering up the hearts of the pious, the question is how
come the heavy hegemony of sorrow has in recent years replaced `The Ceremony` of
the Sun in Iran?"
Pour-Nejati`s reference was to Sadeh Celebration, that is also referred to as
`the Ceremony of the Sun`, or the day that fire was discovered in ancient
Persia, according to Iran`s mythical poet, Hakim Abolqassem Ferdowsi in his book
"Shahnameh", or "The Letter of the Kings."
Every year on the night of the 10th day of the Iranian month of Bahman (Jan
30th), the Zoroastrians around the globe, particularly those of them in their
beloved ancient motherland, Iran, gather huge piles of dried bush and set them
ablaze after the sunset, thus celebrating the discovery of fire by their
ancestors on such a day. This year, too, thousands of Iranian Zoroastrians,
among whom there were the top Zoroastrian clerics, or the Mo`bads, as well as
the ambassadors of France and Germany in Tehran and a number of the Iranian
Parliament`s representatives gathered at one of their holiest sites, called the
Koushk-e-Varjavand, located in the west side of Tehran, to celebrate the
occasion and set their bushes ablaze during highly emotional and memorable
rituals.
Pour-Nejati, one of the speakers before the ancient Iranian ceremony, stressed
in his address, "It is necessary to revive the traditional Persian
celebrations and I believe if a national campaign would take roots aimed at the
revival of those celebrations, many of the problems with which the Iranian
society is currently entangled would be eliminated."
He said, "From a psychological viewpoint, the extent of cheerfulness or
depression of a nation is measured based on how many parties, or mourning
anniversaries that have annually."
Pour-Nejati added, "The ancient Iranians celebrated many different
occasions throughout the year, that showed how cheerful they were and how
optimist they felt towards the future."
The MP stressed, "Sadeh Celebration does not belong merely to the
Zoroastrians alone, and I am truly sorry that such ancient Iranian celebrations
are held so quietly and in segregated corners, without adequate propagation at
national level beforehand."
Pour-Nejati meanwhile referred to the Zoroastrian faith as "An ancient
monotheist religion, with high emphasis on man`s quest for light, as one of the
significant manifestation of God."