Which part of land shall I go to succeed?
A journey to Yazd Iran
A bright image in the dark, candles burning, people’s half-lit faces above them. People pray with arms outstretched, palms up. They burn one candle from another, candles burn out to give life to other candles. Candles are stuck in sand, an unusual one, denser, greasier. Its substance has become heavier taking in the burnt candles. The smell of candles burning away is mixed with incense. It’s a Zoroastrian prayer scene in Chak Chak, a shrine in the mountains.
The scene is familiar. Why? Where have I seen this?
YASNA
Yasna, a name that I heard by hazard. A year passed by, I started a project and was looking for a name. Yasna swam out of my memory and I never looked for anything else. I knew that was it.
So, what’s Yasna? This is easy to find out. Yasna is the name of the principal act of worship and the liturgical collection of Zoroastrian texts, according to Wikipedia. The climax of the ceremony is the “offering to waters” and the essence is the purification of waters.
As I read about Yasna, the water pool I go to almost every day comes to my mind. The shower is my first ceremony. Standing under the flow of water pouring on my head and cleansing my thoughts and my anger, almost permanent for a few years now… Then I go into the pool, no jumping like children or serious swimmers. Instead I slip between the “layers“ of water, reach the mosaic floor, swim in the void and silence of the underwater. The silence deletes my thoughts and stops the endless internal monologue. I come out to the surface and hand my body to the waves, try to take a wave-like shape so the waves can take me away with them. I don’t know if there is any link here but Yasna sounds like the Russian word ясный which means clear, serene. Serene water where you immerse yourself to become clear again.
So, this is my connection to Yasna? Or no? Is there something else? Where does Yasna come from? Zoroastrianism, where was it born, who are these people, Zoroastrians? Where are they now?
IZAD, DIVINE
Yazd, the center of Zoroastrianism in Iran. Photos, traveller tales, videos, there is so much information in the age of internet.
A city of adobe, Yazd is in fact the biggest city on earth built almost entirely out of mud brick. The adobe has a reddish color that has equated the city with the surrounding desert. The golden hue of the setting sun plays on the walls of the houses. From the day it rose from the sands, the city has lived in and with the desert, learned to adapt to the rules of the game there. One of the prominent features of Yazd skyline is wind towers, tall towers on the roofs of houses of well-to-do Yazdis. The towers, with their chequered caps, catch the faintest breeze from the desert and channel into the houses, to the people. And people do take care of keeping this little cool they receive. They build their houses around a shady courtyard with trees and flowers and a small pool. Morning and evening breeze sees the family gathered on the takht, a raised platform near the pool. The windows of the rooms look into the courtyard, the outer wall is blind, with no windows. The stained glass of the windows softens the blazing sun and creates bright colors. It also creates an illusion of a garden to the eyes tired of the dull cinnamon red of the desert. And a pragmatic reason too, the glass keeps away the flies.
As I look into these images, Cordoba, Spain, on a hot September day comes to my mind. I remember a patio, a paradise garden to me, hear the soft sound of the dipping water. The mosaic rim of the pool, flowers everywhere, on the ground, shelves, tables, hung from the ceiling. All this runs through my mind in a second.
FIRE OF VICTORY
Back to Yazd and on to the fire temple. The temple is a low building, raised a few steps form the ground. It looks like a house, not a place of worship which I expected to look a little more intense. The Zoroastrian symbol, Faravahar, adorns the façade. Faravahar represents the human soul, the man on the figure is mature, representing wisdom. One of the hands of the figure points up, urging believers to always strive for improvement and be mindful of higher powers. The other hand holds a ring, which represents loyalty and faithfulness. The figure emerges from a circle which represents the immortality of the soul. Some interpret the ring as repercussions of our actions created by eternal divine order. The two wings comprise three rows of feathers, representing good thoughts, good words and good deeds. This is the basis of Zoroastrian ethics. The tail too comprises three rows of feathers which represent bad thoughts, bad words and bad deeds. A believer will strive to rise above these. The two streamers represent Spenta Mainyu and Angra Mainyu, the good and evil spirits. Every person will have to choose between the two, so the figure is facing one and turning his back to the other. There is a small, round pool in front of the building used in the “offering to waters“ at the end of Yasna. The pool reflects the building, making it two and emphasising the eternal fight between the good and the evil. The good is above the ground and the evil is below. “There is a pilgrimage in June” says the hirbod (priest), “Not here. In the shire in the desert, Chak Chak”.
HIGHEST PEAKS OF THE MOUNTAINS
It’s hot, we have been driving through the desert. For several hours we‘ve seen only the desert and rootless scrubs rolling on the sand. Finally we reach the track that leads to Chak Chak, the most important of Zoroastrian pilgrimage sites. The tradition requires that we stop the moment we see Chak Chak and continue our climb on foot. Up on a rather steep path toward a group of buildings perched on the edge of the rocks․ This is not June, the time for the pilgrimage and there are no people to be seen. As we approach the temple we see fig and pomegranate trees and a drooping willow. Seems like a real garden in the naked rocks on the edge of Dasht-e-Kevir desert. But the green is not surprising. Chak Chak means “drip drip”, the mountain spring giving its name to this grotto-shrine is still dripping down the rocks. We approach the entrance of the temple or the grotto, doors with the image of Faravahar open. We take off our shoes and enter.
The back wall of the grotto is the rock itself, there is a mountain spring running down the rocks. The floor is wet and there is a rhombus of a candle holder in the trough dug into the rocks. Three flames reminding of the Zoroastrian commandment of good thought, good word and good deeds burn there. An elderly woman approaches us, she carries aromatic herbs which she waves over our shoulders. This is a welcome message, something like “may your prayers be accepted”. In the middle of the room, on a multi-petal table, the sacred fire burns. There are a few pilgrims putting apples and pomegranates on the table, adding incense to the fire. People form a circle around the table, they pray, their faces illuminated by the prayer and the fire. The fire flickers and reveals or hides sequences of face fragments. Reminds me of shadow theatre. A woman starts to sing in the old Avesta language. The song is solemn but tender, it’s more like a story than a religious hymn.
The pilgrims leave the grotto and invite us out for a tea and sweets Yazd is famous for. We sit under the trees, on a carpet, our legs crossed. We have left the intense atmosphere of the grotto behind and now have an irresistible urge to talk, to smile. We talk about simple things, how people live every day, what they feel, love and hate. A woman tells how she had met her future husband here in Chak Chak one fine June evening. As we go down Chak Chak a few minutes later, we hear the pilgrims singing, the sound of a tambourine. “Zoroastrianism is a religion of happiness, of optimism“ the elderly woman has said.
Poetic stories about the last Sassanian princess — the legend you will hear in Chak Chak, young people who somehow resist the temptations of modern life and hold on to the tradition to visit a place of power like this one… These are the images and thoughts we take away from Chak Chak.
Mariam, journalist
WHERE IRANIAN COUPLES GO FOR THEIR HONEY MOON
“Goher, doughter of Shirin, do you wish to marry Mehraban? “ It is the evening of a traditional Zoroastrian wedding day, in Yazd. The best man is asking this question to the bride who lies down covered with a green silk shawl, pretending to sleep. The bride wears bloomer-like pants, a flowing robe of cinnamon silk and a long jacket-like garment. A green silk shawl from which hang gold coins, covers the head. The bride has silver bangles on, a gold ring set with an emerald and a silver chain necklace with a talisman depicting the sacred flame. The best man has come to the bride’s house with his friends, without the groom. He has brought apples, peaches, pomegranates, sweets and the bride’s dress. “She does not answer “, he shows anger but smiles at the same time. “Goher, doughter of Shirin…”, “Goher․․․․“. The question repeats eleven times, each time in a louder voice. The last “Goher” sinks in the waves of the guests’ laughter. A lazy “bale, yes “ by the bride, as she wakes up. Some of the guests hurry to the groom‘s house to give him the good news.
The procession to the groom’s house begins in a short while. The head of the procession are the relatives of the bride who carry tulips sent by the groom and lamps to light the way. Then comes the bride with the best man and his friends. As soon as the group starts, the bride stands still and announces “I am not coming, you go “. The best man stops too and starts to joke and cajole her into taking a step. Then he takes out a present sent by the groom from his pocket. The bride takes five steps and stops again, more presents and more stops follow. Before they get to her new home, she has already accumulated a smart amount of presents. Finally they arrive. The priests have lighted the fire and the party makes three rounds around it, while the bride receives more presents.
But the game is not over yet, the bride makes her last attempt to hide. Elderly members of the family light candles and look for her. Finally they find her and take her to sit on the wedding sofreh, by her future husband. The ceremony starts, a fruit bowl covered by a green silk handkerchief held above their heads. Priests ask the bride whether she agrees to marry this man. She does not reply twice, only at the third repeat, her soft “bale, bale” comes out. The guests are to appreciate that it was not an easy decision for her, that she has done a good deal of thinking. The priest turns to the guests and asks whether they are witnesses that this woman wishes to marry this man. Men’s loud “bale” confirms. The priests read about the laws, advice and commandments of the religion which the groom accepts. The just-married make seven rounds about the fire, the guests sing hymns. The ceremony is over, it is time for us to return to our hotel.
We thank Laura for her story. I don’t know if this ceremony has a role in the amazing close-to-zero rate of divorces in Yazd. Maybe the reason is simpler — the people‘s ardent belief in good thought, good word and good deed? A weird and perhaps even a naive belief in our fast-paced and cynical age.
TELLING THE TRUTH
I am watching professor Kaikhosrov D. Irani’s interview on Youtube about the philosophy of Zoroastrianism. The basis of this scheme of thought is asha, the truth. It is an ideal form of existence we recognize through our mental domain, mainyu which is the source of the English word mind, by the way. The world can evolve according to asha, the truth and achieve perfection. Butasha may not actualise as there are spirits that promote it and those that oppose it. OK, I understand, have to stop the video to bring what’s on my mind to an end and to words. I have always had the feeling that what‘s created, conceived, can be in danger and is in need of protection. It is now clear that the aim of Yasna ceremony is the strengthening of good existence against destructive forces. Hence, the connection with water, the source of renewal and light. But let’s go back to professor Irani “What‘s the task of the man in this world? Every human being has the capacity to recognize and actualize good thought, good word and good deed. If a man chooses the evil, then he does not recognize the good, his mind is “clouded or polluted”. The mind gets polluted from greed and fear. These are the forces that make a man deviate from the good way. Thus each individual has an opportunity to choose their way and be responsible for his choice. Responsible decision in its turn leads to the concept of free will. This sounds obvious to us but Zoroastrianism has emerged 3500 years ago. It sure is remarkable for that time.” The interviewer puts in a comment on responsibility. “If there is responsibility, then there must be reward and punishment. From this we can derive the idea of final judgement, paradise and hell?” Unbelievable, we believed Christianity was the first religion to talk about this but it appeared in Zoroastrianism long before that, need to stop once more and think … Continues the professor. “According to Zoroastrianism a book records all deeds of a man during his life. When the soul passes the gates of death, it finds itself on a bridge, one side of which is the good and the other — evil. If the good committed by the man is more than the evil, he crosses the bridge and ascends to the world of higher consciousness. If not, then he falls down into the world of worst consciousness.” Interviewer․ “All this is rather abstract. But we know that Zoroastrianism spread in the Achaemenid empire and neighboring regions. How did it happen, how did these intellectual concepts spread among the people?” “In every religion the initial prophet’s message contains spiritual messages. He makes them believable and attractive with his own charisma. Then the man is gone. And the priesthood has to create standard stories of the divine and make them look human. The priesthood has to provide techniques to communicate with the divinity. We call this the ritualisation of charisma.” Yasna is one of these ceremonies or techniques of communicating with the divinity. Pilgrimages, enabling people to distance themselves from everyday life, renew their energy, are another. “See the truth, have the will and courage to take its path, this is the true wisdom“ finalises professor Irani.
This story started from my attempt to understand Zoroastrianism. Why it interests me or rather why it should interest me. These ideas, this way of life, the wedding and the pilgrimage, are familiar, native, if I may use that word. Now I know why, know what water is for me, what connections it has with the beliefs of people living in another place and time. Who they are, how they live, what they believe in, this I can imagine now a little better than before. But there are still many questions. The main question is how come these beliefs, from all possible other schemes, have entered my mind and my life so firmly. This I still don’t know. There is still much to learn and think and know …
“I have lived on the lip of insanity, wanting to know reasons, knocking on a door. It opens. I’ve been knocking from the inside.”
Rumi
