Nowruz
Thursday March 20th will be Nowruz, the Persian New Year which lasts 13 days. Literally translated, Nowruz means New Day. Falling on the first day of the month of Farvardin, it dates back over 3000 years! Its roots lie in the Zoroastrian faith; however it is also celebrated by the Baha’i as well as by some Muslim communities. In 2010, Nowruz was added to the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
“The epic poem Shahnameh credits the foundation of Nowruz to the mythical Iranian King Jamshid, who saves mankind from a winter destined to kill every living creature. To defeat the winter, Jamshid constructed a gem studded throne. Demons raised him above the earth into the heavens where he sat, shining like the Sun. The world's creatures gathered scattering jewels around him proclaiming this was the New Day (Now Ruz).” -Wikipedia
The prelude to the New Year, Chaharshanbe Suri, will be next, Wednesday the 19th. Dating back to 1700 BCE, on this day, which takes place on the eve of the last Wednesday before Nowruz, people celebrate the triumph of light over darkness, enlightenment, and goodness. They jump over bonfires as they chant for health and good luck, renewal and purification.
In preparation for Nowruz, families do a major spring cleaning and decorate their homes with a Haft-sin table that is set with items each symbolizing something positive for the coming year. Haft-sin is a spread you put out for the new year, and it literally means “seven S,” which refers to the seven things on the table that start with the letter S. These are:
· Sabze – wheat or barley sprouts grown in a dish, symbolizing rebirth and the renewal of nature. This is the main centerpiece of the Haft-Sin table.
· Samanu – wheat sprout pudding symbolizing sweetness
· Senjed - Persian olive symbolizing love and fertility
· Serkeh – wine vinegar symbolizing immortality and eternity
· Sib - Apple symbolizing health and beauty
· Sir - Garlic symbolizing good health
· Sumac – crushed red berry symbolizing sunrise
· Sekkeh – coins symbolizing wealth
Other objects, can also be placed on the table, such as: a mirror to reflect the light of wisdom and creation, sonbol -hyacinth flowers symbolizing fragrance and spring, poetry such as Shahnameh of Ferdowsi and the divan of Hafez or a holy book such as the Quran, Bible, Avesta may also be included, candles to symbolize holy fire and enlightenment, decorated eggs to represent fertility, and goldfish to represent life and joy. People buy new clothes, visit family & friends, and cook special foods such as Sabzi polo with fish which is eaten on Eid night, Reshteh Polo which is rice with noodles and lamb or meatballs, Kuku Sabzi which is a Persian herb frittata, and sweets such as Nan-Nokhochi - cookies made with chick-pea flour, flavored with cardamom and garnished with pistachios or Persian Baklava. Before the arrival of Nowruz, families gather around the Haft-sin table and await the exact moment of the spring equinox to celebrate the New Year. On the 13th day after Nowruz, families go to the park and celebrate with a picnic near a river or lake. They throw the Sabze (wheat sprouts) back into the water for good luck.
To all our friends and families celebrating Nowruz, we wish you and your loved ones “Eyd e Shoma Mobarak” (Happy Eyd and Nowruz).
Sources include Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, Digitalfatemeh.com, surfiran.com, Wikipedia.com, Persianfoodtours.com, Pesianmama.com
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