Happy Nowruz: Celebrating the Persian New Year

Sophomore Noor Jahanshahi explains the extended celebration of Nowruz

A Nowruz celebrant jumps over fire.

A Nowruz celebrant jumps over fire.

Noor Jahanshahi '15, Staff Writer

Persian New Year is a holiday of ancient traditions, family, and most of all, a whole lot of fun. Celebrated on the exact date and time of the spring equinox, the festivities carry out over thirteen days, each of which delegates certain traditions of its own. Persian New Year, or “Noruz” (pronounced noh-rooz), also has celebration days leading up to itself.

While the actual festivities begin the last Tuesday before the new year, preparation begins up to a month in advance. The celebration that takes place on the final Tuesday before the new year is called “Chaharshanbeh Soori” (pronounced the way it is spelled). It literally translates into “the night before the last Wednesday”. The biggest part of Chaharshanbeh Soori involves jumping over a fire. I know you are probably thinking “What the heck?”, but trust me, there is a method and purpose behind the madness. While many a person wearing long garments has caught on fire during this seemingly insane tradition, there is also something beautiful about jumping over that fire. When one jumps over the small fire, one says “Zardiyeh man as toh, sorkhiyeh toh as man”, which translates into “I will give you (the fire) my negativity, and I will take in your boldness and your positive attributes”. In addition, there is a fireworks display and a special stew and sweets that are eaten on that night. It’s really quite beautiful that one seeks to become anew before the new year.  Macintosh HD:Users:noorjahanshahi:Desktop:12.jpg

 

Now we move on to the bigger festivities. The exact date and time of the equinox for Los Angeles this year, at which all of my fellow Persians and I will be celebrating, will be the 20th of March at exactly 9:57:07 AM. Every year the exact time of the new year changes, and the date tends to vary between March 20th and the 21st. Now, when I said that preparation for the holiday often starts about a month in advance, that is due to a thing called the “Haft Sin” (haft-seen). Meaning “Seven S’s”, the Haft Sin is a table that contains many symbolic items, seven of which begin with an “S” in farsi. Here is a list of the table items and their symbolic meanings:

Mirror: shows the world in movement and is a symbol of the continuation of life

Candles: the end of darkness, the hope for a bright future and bright new beginnings

Apples: health and beauty

Lentil or Bean Sprouts: rebirth Macintosh HD:Users:noorjahanshahi:Desktop:sofreh-haft-seen3-custom.jpg

Vinegar: patience

Coins: wealth and prosperity

Hyacinth flowers: the beginning of spring

Dried buckthorn fruits (senjed): love

Somagh (soh-mug): sunrise (the dawn of a new day, new beginnings)

Live Fish (usually goldfish): life, and new tides and a new moon

Garlic: medicine

Samanu (a sweet wheat pudding): affluence

Painted eggs: fertility

Various traditional sweets: sweetness in life

Honey: happiness

In addition, new clothes must be bought and worn on the day, and a massive spring cleaning must be done around the entire house and all old or unwanted possessions either given to charity or thrown away. At the time of the equinox, the entire family gathers around the Haft Sin for a countdown and then a celebration to ring in the new year. This is normally proceeded by a mightily large lunch or dinner (with we Persians it’s go big or go home) and the adults give presents and money to all the children. Fun right? The traditional food for that day is a white fish (like cod, or halibut), and an herb soufflé type thing called “koukou sabzi”, all of which are accompanied by an aromatic herby rice. The following days are dedicated to the visiting of older relatives, family friends, family, colleagues, and neighbours.

The festivities are finished on the thirteenth day with a massive picnic with your entire family including grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and sometimes very close friends. This day is called “Sizdahbedar” (seez-deh-beh-dahr), meaning “thirteenth day”. The picnic includes everybody’s favourite foods, and all the children play together in the park while the adults sit and talk, read, or just generally relax. Playing backgammon is a popular pastime for that day. It is the most low-maintenance day of the festivities for all and is one of the most enjoyed ones, despite the fact that it signifies the end of the Noruz season.  Macintosh HD:Users:noorjahanshahi:Desktop:FK7YROG.jpg

 

The Persian culture has many truly wonderful traditions and values, but no celebration embodies them quite like Noruz does. If you are not Persian, but think this sounds fun and wish to partake in the festivities, I highly doubt there are many Persians who would object to you celebrating with them. If you wish to experience some of this beautiful culture or simply learn a little more in-depth about Noruz, visit Westwood Village on March 20th for some Noruz celebrations, or watch A First Noruz a cartoon about a boy who celebrates Noruz for the first time. Happy Noruz to you all!

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Pictures from: http://www.oznoz.com/newsletter/march012012/happyNorooz.jpg http://i.kdcdn.com/3/6/FK7YROG.jpg http://mypersiankitchen.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/sofreh-haft-seen3-custom.jpg http://parstimes.com/gallery/fire_festival/12.jpg