Ervad Marzban J. Hathiram, (born Oct, 1970), is a qualified and practicing priest having undergone the Navar (1984) and Maratab (1986) initiations. He belongs to the 27th generation of the famous ‘Asa Faredun Pol’ of the Bhagaria Priests of Navsari, who trace their lineage back to Dastur Nairyosang Dhaval, the leader of the Parsis who landed in India in the 9th century AD.
Marzban’s academic background is in Accounting and Audit. He completed his Articleship from the reputed Chartered Accontants’ firm of Kalyaniwalla & Mistry and rose up to the level of Financial Controller of an international media consultancy in Mumbai. He subsequently gave up this job and took up the position of Panthaky and Head Priest of the Ustad Saheb Behramshah Nowroji Shroff Daremeher [Fire Temple] in Mumbai, India thereby fulfilling his long cherished desire to serve the religion and his community and re-establish the Priestly tradition in his family.
Ervad Hathiram’s specialization, over nearly two decades, is in Ilm-e-Khshnoom – the esoteric science of the Zarathushtrian religion revealed by the Master, Ustad Saheb Behramshah Nowroji Shroff, who was fortunate to live with the Hidden and Secluded Masters of the Demavand Koh at the end of the 19th century. In addition, he has studied Avesta, Pahlavi and Old Persian Cuneiform languages at the Masters level under the guidance of Dastur Dr. K. M. JamaspAsa.
With a view to increasing the awareness of Khshnoom, both within and outisde the community, Marzban started Frashogard – The Journal of Ilm-e-Khshnoom, a serious quarterly publication containing for the first time, scholarly level articles on the Zarathushtrian Mystical Revelation in simple, concise English. In order to spread the reach of this Journal even further, he has set up this website and blog.
Marzban lives in Mumbai with his wife Mahazareen, a Civil & Environmental Engineer, and their children Mahafreen and Behzad. You can contact Marzban at the following addresses:
Sir,
Navroz Mubarak! I am really thankful to you for spreading your knowledge thru the medium of internet for so many zoroastrians like me who want to understand much more about our religion.
God bless you.
Rgds
Shahzad Jimmy Vasaigara
Marazban! As curious laity member i must demand of you that you create a video showing how a mobed’s turban is tied. Many laity members think it is a hat you buy at the sukhadwalla ni dookaan. Please just one video it would be very pleasing! thank u!
@Behram Wadia
Your curiosity can be easily satisfied by visiting any Agiary and seeing the priests do it. Somethings are best seen in reality.
Ervad Marzban J. Hathiram
1. what are your views on a shop selling alcohol inside a fire-temple in andheri west on s.v.road. can all vada dasturs come together and close down this shop.
The decision has to be taken by the trust on whose property the shop is located. It is in no way harming the spiritual authority of the Padshah since it is outside the compound.
charity commissioner’s office is hand in glove with the trustees of patel trust who is bribing them since last many years. police is also corrupt. excise dept is also corrupt who is renewing licence every year. the law is crystal clear that irrespective of any religion, a shop selling alcohol must be more than 50 metres away from any religious place or school. here this is not even 22 metres away. it is in the same compound and i am sure 9 vada dasturs seating in udwada can definetely pass a resolution and close down this shop forever but they are busy doing nothing for the religion. your comments / action please. you are my one and only hope for safeguarding our religion.
There are worse things happening inside Agiaries. let us try to rectify those rather than external issues which have no bearing on the sanctity of the Agiary. The Vada Dasturs have more important things to think about, and indeed so should you.
thank you for your valuable time. It went in waste. I feel even you could not save parsi religion. let us all wait for shah behram varzawand to come. i am sure he will do the needful to guide us. we will wait and watch.
Respected Ervad Marzban Hathiram,
Kindly let us know what ceremony besides ,Jashan or Fareshta can we have for a newly renovated house. Can we have a Venidad prayer recited by a priest during one night
That is right, a properly qualified priest can come and pray the Vandidad chapters, without any ceremony in the Ushahin Gah. It helps to get rid of any negative influences due to the previous owners or of the workers during renovation etc.
Ref. to Behram Wadia’s note:
The knowledge of how a Pagdi is to be tied and set is seldom known amongst the Priests. I have taught many Priest on how to tie correctly however the shape differs per each group: Surat, Navrari Udvada and todays Modern Bombay Priests. I would be glad to document or demonstrate on video.
Dear Dastoorji,
MAAAAAN, you are younger than me. You have reached great heights. I thought you were an old, long bearded Dastoorji.
Wow! You realy fantastic Dastoorji.
@Mubed Bhada
I would appreciate video on how mubeds tie the turban. The turban shows the prestige of a priest, the Irani priest just wear caps or the have this stupid looking leather turban now. But please do post a video it would be very interesting for those of us abroad.
Dear Ervad Saheb,
I am a regular reader of your e-magazine, and I find it very interesting. From childhood I use to read Jame-Jamshed, which use to print articles on our great religion, but you have excelled all the modern authors.
The most important issue which our community faces is the cycle of misfortune and black magic. I have heard endless stories of such incidents, and of people who rush to soothsayers for relief. Years back, I believe a certain dasturji from Colaba Agiary use to provide prayers and tavizis to people suffering from the malefic effects of occultism.
It would be in the interest of the community that you should start guiding such sufferers, by offering them prayers and guidance, so that such individuals dont fall prey to Babas, and thus save their soul.
Can you write a article on remedies for negating the effects of misfortune and black magic.
Thanking you in anticipation
@Meherwanji,
I am already providing this guidance at my Daremeher at Behram Baug. The remedies cannot be given out generally and depend on a case to case basis.
Dear Ervad Saheb,
I have observed that every community has a distinct flag, for example hindus have triangular saffron flag, muslims have a crescent green flag, sikhs have a distinct flag. I wonder what was the flag of our ancestors / religion. It is just a silly thought, but I feel we should have a flag of our religion. Kindly shed some light on it.
Lastly, I have seen in my childhood, that My grandfather (God bless his soul), used to wear a black satin cap the moment he use to come home from work. In your blog can you guide us what color & type of caps were our ancestors actually wearing. Can you also shed some light on the practice of wearing caps, and what type of cap a zorastrian should be wearing, also enumerate the advantages of wearing a cap etc.
Thanking You
Yours truly
(D. N. MEHERWANJI)
Dear Ervad Saheb,
May I request you to please let me know how the right way to wear a Sudreh, what to say/think looking at various parts of Sudrah. Also, it should be said in mind since Kusti is not on body or loudly. Lastly, just to clarify the lenght of Sudreh has to be covering the knee or till the begining of knee. I request to please advise for both male and female.
Thanks & Best Regards,
Arzan Irani
Dear Ervad Hathiram,
Thank you very much for the all the efforts put in by you in creating the Frashogard blog, of which I am a great fan.
For an earnest student of the ancient divinely revealed Zoroastrian religion, it is a real feast to read so many knowledgeable and well written articles on diverse religious topics. The wealth of knowledge that one can get from your blog is indeed immense.
More importantly, you are scanning and displaying religious articles of savants, which we did not even know existed and would have been lost to us had it not been for your efforts.
Thanks once again. May the Almighty One add more strength to your shoulders to carry on this task.
Regards
Hanoz M Mistry