Roj Sarosh Mah Amardad, 1383 Yz.
Frashogard wishes all its readers a Happy New Year 2014!
The beginning of a new year, whether Christian or Yazdezardi is a day of hope, of cheer, of optimism for the future as we walk on the long path to Frashogard.
On this day, it is customary to banish any evil or negative thoughts, to fill our hearts with love and profuse optimism for the coming months. It is also an apt moment to shower benedictions and blessings on all those we love and respect.
What better place to take inspiration from then our own scriptures? I present here a few sentences from the Pazend prayer called the Afrin-i-Haft Ameshaspand. This benedictory prayer is recited at the end of each and every Afringan which is performed in our Agiaries and Atash Behrams every day. It contains some very beautiful thoughts and Mithras which, if passed continuously in our minds, especially on auspicious days like today, would create a feeling of positivity and hope for the future.
Ke raa vish aavaayaad vish baad!
Ke raa veh aavaayaad veh baad!
Ke raa zan aavaayaad zan baad!
Ke raa farzand aavaayaad farzand baad!
Getihaa aidun baad, chun tan kaam andar fraaruni!
Minoihaa aidun baad! Chun Ravan kaam andar ashahi!
May he who wishes for and deserves greatness, attain greatness!
May he who wishes for and deserves goodness, achieve goodness!
May he who wishes for and deserves a righteous wife, come across a righteous wife!
May he who wishes for and deserves righteous children, attain virtuous children!
May these blessings fructify in this Geti (the physical world) of ours, so that our physical wishes are all attained, through goodness!
May these blessings fructify in Minoi (the Spiritual World), so that the longings of the Ruvan are all realized, through righteousness!
The first four lines of the benedictions are easy to understand and assimilate. It is important to note here that merely wishing for something does not mean one will get it. One must deserve it, one must work towards it, only then will it come in our grasp. However, the last two lines deserves some further explanation. Dastur Adurbad Mahrespand, who created this beautiful prayer in Pazend makes the subtle but important difference between the wishes of the physical world and the real longings of the spiritual world.
Dastur Adurbad counsels us that the wishes of the physical world, the Geti, can be achieved only through the practice of goodness. Thus even though some of us may achieve certain wishes through improper means, the happiness achieved through such inappropriate choices will be very transient and fleeting. Such actions will give us only a sudden high, like the rush of sugar in a diabetic’s blood, which will soon subside and create worse hunger pangs. These inappropriately achieved goals cause envy and resentment in others. But the happiness of achieving our worldly goals which are brought about by righteous thoughts, words and actions is much longer lasting. The happy effects of virtuously attained worldly goals lingers through our lives and arouses a sense of wonder and respect in those around us.
In the same manner, Dastur Adurbad Mahrespand counsels us that the real goals are those which our soul, our Ruvan longs for. What are the longings of the Ruvan? Its one over-arching longing is to re-unite with its broken fragments which exist in the human, animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms. One that is achieved, the Ruvan longs to reunite with its Creator, the Lord Ahura Mazda. How can these longings be fulfilled? Only through the practice of righteousness. Righteousness does not mean doing what we think is rightful or just. It does not mean pandering to our physical senses and saying: ‘I am doing this in private, so how does it hurt anyone else?’ It is to be remembered that we are never alone. Our Ruvan, our Fravashi and the Lord Ahura Mazda is always with us. We can never hide our innermost thoughts, words and actions from them. So where is the question of being alone and acting alone?
Righteousness implies rather doing that which Nature and our Religion enjoins us to do. It implies putting others before the self, taking the longer term view rather than the short term. Only when our mind becomes trained, over many years of prayer, penitence and inner self-examination, that we can begin to behave in the way that our Religions asks us to. Once our mind is conquered by goodness, when the physical no longer attracts or repels us, only then are we competent to achieve the longing of the Ruvan to achieve wholeness and unity with Ahura Mazda. That is the meaning of the word Frashogard. May we all, in this coming year, move some degree towards achieving that ultimate goal.
Ervad Marzban J. Hathiram
JAN
