Festival or ((Jashn)) means (act of worship) in ancient Iran and religious service that was an essential part of every festival.Every festival is essentially a holy occasion for those who taking apart must be in spritual and physical purification .They should dispel All thoughts that come from cacodemon of anger, grief ,resentmnet or the like and try to entertain contentment ,cheerfulness and cooperation feelings toward others.In Zoroastrian doctrine cheerfulness is positive point, a weapen to deal with sorrow And dejection . Also feasting the freindly and enjoyable sharing of food and drink devised a prominent part of Zoroastrian festivals.
Persian New Year festival
Norouz is a famous attestation to Iranian rich civilization ,national characteristics and history .It proves how a nation through all devastation ,political chaos,oppression and hardship flourish for centuries… Persian have applied the Norouz spirit to every dark challenge that has come their way ,thus this spirit has made Norouz far more than just a New year celebration over the course of history.Norouz is a relic of ancient time .According to Zoroastrians ,the month of Farvardin(the first month of Iranian solar calendar) refers to spirits ,which return to the material world during the last 10 days of the year,so they hold in great respect the 10 day period in order to appease the spirits of their deceased ancestors .
Celebrating Yalda night festival
Iranian commemorate Yalda as one of the most ancient Persian festivals. It’s celebrated the arrival of winter on yalda ,the renewal of sun and the victory of light aganist darkness.it’s considered as an longest night of the year. yalda eve is the night when ancient Iranians celebrated the birth of Mithra (the god of light).Yalda means birth as an syriac word imported into the Persian language,it’s also referred to a celebration of winter solstice on December 22 (the last night of autumn &the longest night of the year that the next day belonged to the lord of wisdom,Ahura mazda ).In Alamut valley tours we celebrate yalda night more glorious than usually due to high respect of ancient traditional values. during our Alamut valley tours we try to show our traditional customs to our clients .
In addition to Iran ,central Asian countries such as Afghanistan,Tajikistan,Uzbekistan ,Turkmenistan and some Caucasian states such as Azerbaijan and Armenia share the same tradition and celebrate Yalda night annually,families get toghether (most often in the eldest member’s house )and stay awake All night long .Dried nuts ,watermelon & pomegranate are served as supplications to God for increasing his bounties ,moreover classic poetry and old mythologies are read aloud.Iranians believe those who begin winter by serving summer fruits would less fall sick during cold season,therefore, not only eating watermelon is one of the important traditions in this night but also pomegranate is highly recommended as symbol of cycle of life ( birth and revival of generations).Iranians adopted their annual renewal festival from the Babylonians and incorporated it into their rituals of Zoroastrian .
Another important tradition of Yalda night is the recitation of classic poetry of Hafez (Iranian poet 14th AD).Each member of the family makes a wish and randomly opens the book and asks the eldest member of family to read it aloud ,What is the conception of poem is believed to be the interpretation of the wish and whether and how it will come true, thus this is called Faal_e_ Hafez in Farsi (Hafez Omen).
Sadeh Celebration
Sadeh is an ancient Iranian tradition celebrated 50 days before nowrouz.Sadeh in Farsi means “hundred”and refers to one hundred days & nights left to the beginning of the new year, celebrated at the first day of spring on march 21st each year.Sadeh is a mid winter festival that was celebrated with grandeur and magnificence in ancient Iran .It was festivity to honor fire and to defeat the forces of darkness,frost and coldness.According to religious beliefs , Sadeh Celebration recalls the importance of light ,fire and energy .
For more information about Iran’s cultures an traditions , you could check our blogs . visit our Tour Package of northern part of Iran HERE