The Geti Kharid ceremony

Posted by:

Roj Khorshed Mah Ardibehesht, 1388 Yz.

“One God, one law, one element,

And one far-off Divine event,

To which the whole creation moves.”

These striking words penned by Alfred Lord Tennyson in his famous poem ‘In Memoriam’ greets visitors to the Great Hall of the Library of Congress in Washington DC, where they are inscribed on one of the eight giant pillars supporting the Rotunda. To my mind, these words are also apt for every Zoroastrian place of worship, because they are a  beautiful ...

Continue Reading ?
11

The importance of wells and well water in Zoroastrianism

Posted by:

Roj Jamyad Mah Khordad, 1387 Yz.

The presence of clean, free-flowing water is an essential requirement in all our religious ceremonies. The foundation of all Zoroastrian ritual is the performance of the Kusti. Before the Kusti can commence, the hands, open arms, face, neck and exposed parts of the feet need to be washed with clean free-flowing water in a special manner, which is known as the Padyab ritual. The word Padyab is derived from Avesta paiti-apa – ‘to throw water ...

Continue Reading ?
7

Some thoughts on Bahman Mah

Posted by:

Roj Ram Mah Bahman, 1386 Yz

I was just about to go to sleep the other day when a Whatsapp message from a friend arrived: ‘Hi, I’m at dinner with cousins at the Yacht Club, love the place, has a lovely old-world charm… good food, but I’m veg for Bahman Mahino…and watching them eat fish…eggs…prawns…salivating, but then mind over matter!’

My friend’s predicament brought to mind a very interesting story recounted by Paramhansa Yogananda in his epic Autobiography of a Yogi. He ...

Continue Reading ?
11

Our greatest inheritance

Posted by:

Roj Khorshed Mah Khordad, 1386 Yz.

It’s a tough world and many of us face a tough life. At such times, the feeble mind tries to fall back on some interesting ‘what if’ scenarios. What if I had this or that, what if I had married some person or the other, what if I had done this in my childhood days, what if a magical genie suddenly appeared and gave me three wishes…

Going through the Whatsapp status messages on the mobile, ...

Continue Reading ?
14

The real meaning of Patet-part 3

Posted by:

Roj Khorshed Mah Spendarmad 1384 Yz/ Kadmi Khordad Sal/Baj of Dr. Saheb Framroze S. Chiniwalla

To answer this let us try to understand what exactly our body is made up of. A very long time ago, just at the beginning of time itself, there existed two Divine Bodies. They knew they had been brought into existence by a Creator but they could not perceive Him or understand Him and His purpose of creation. One of those Divine Bodies accepted the situation ...

Continue Reading ?
4

The real meaning of Patet – part 2

Posted by:

Roj Amardad Mah Dae, 1384 Yz.

There are two keys to open the locks to the road to salvation, to exit from this world of endless returns and misery forever and to get nearer to the House of God. These two keys are known in the Zoroastrian tradition as Meher and Patet. They can open our eyes to the real truth that exists in Nature, not the illusory truth that is seen or perceived by our senses, which are very easily ...

Continue Reading ?
2

The real meaning of Patet

Posted by:

Roj Hormaz Mah Dae, 1384 Yz.

[Editor’s Note: To say that the last few months have been challenging would be a gross understatement.

Buffeted by personal issues, workplace issues, medical crises, over-busy schedules and a fundamental questioning of the reason for one’s very existence, it has been an interesting time, to put it mildly. During such times, the mind oscillates between varying degrees of sanity, or otherwise. Myriad thoughts, not all pleasant, invade the deep personal space, where no one else is ...

Continue Reading ?
23

Parsi Navjotes and Marriages: A critique of our conduct

Posted by:

Roj Ram Mah Sherevar, 1384 Yz.

[Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Mr. Hoshang H. Mandviwalla. Hoshang bhai is a pucca Khshnoom Fidai, a great humanist and a devoted Zoroastrian. His living style and habits are exemplary. His command over Avesta Manthras is such that it can put many a Mobed to shame. To see him standing in front of the Atash Padshah at our Daremeher and recite the Hoshbam prayer early in the morning totally by heart, is ...

Continue Reading ?
11

Ending the debate on Organ Donation

Posted by:

Roj Meher Mah Amardad, 1384 Yz.

My article in response to Dasturji Khurshed’s appeal to community members in favour of Organ Donation received enthusiastic responses from both sides of the debate. However, there has been no response so far from Dasturji himself. In the meanwhile, many have written to me asking various points of clarification. Some important points have also been made by a few writers who have disagreed with my views. These queries and points require to be answered, hence ...

Continue Reading ?
12

The Perils of Organ Donation

Posted by:

Roj Dae-pa-Meher Mah Tir, 1384 Yz.

[A note to overseas readers of Frashogard: On 17th November 2014, Dasturji Khurshed of Udvada, in his address to community members gathered at the Sanjan Memorial to observe Sanjan Day, made a plea for Parsis to donate their organs. This plea was given headline publicity by the Jame Jamshed in its issue dated 23rd November. A rejoinder to Dasturji Khurshed’s views was sent by me to Jame and appears in today’s edition. It is reproduced ...

Continue Reading ?
19
Page 1 of 6 12345...»