Zoroastrian Holidays: Celebrating Khordad Sal

Zoroastrians in Iran and elsewhere in the world, along with the Parsis in India, observe Khordad Sal each year, a holiday commemorating the birth of their prophet Zoroaster. The date of the Persian prophet's birth falls on March 26. Scholars place the year he lived sometime during the Bronze Age when the language used for the Zoroastrian scriptures, Avestan, was a spoken language in what is now Afghanistan. Most of these scholars believe he was born around 1750 B.C.E. in present day Iran.(1) Zoroaster's message as a religion did not take hold in his present homeland, however, and he traveled east until he met the king of Balkh, a region of Afghanistan. King Vishtasp listened to Zoroaster's message of faith in belief in one god, Ahura Mazda, who is a spirit deity with no form, who is also all good. During a time when most tribal deities were anthropomorphic, this concept was considered revolutionary and was conceived when Zoroaster had a series of holy visions when he traversed the mountains in Iran during his third decade. Vishtasp became the patron of the faith along with Jamasp, one of his advisors, and soon the new religion spread throughout Afghanistan and eventually Iran, where there is still a community today.(2)

Zoroaster's birth was unlike that of any other prophet's: it is said that when his mother Dughdova gave birth to him, he laughed. His father, Pourushaspa, witnesses the miracle of his son, who seemed to be immune to the element of fire, of which he could not be burned with. The Dinkard records Zoroaster's birth and childhood into his early adult years when he sets out from home to seek sacred wisdom. Once he acquired the knowledge he desired to know, he obeyed the prophecy given him by Ahura Mazda and sought to spread his message across the Iranian plateau.(3)

On the day of Zoroaster's birth, believers of the faith have a clean home, with those in India having a rangoli decoration, colored sand formed to create a scared pattern on the floor in one room of the house. The family meets with other families and neighbors, and have an elaborate dinner with traditional foods like kebab, chelo, fish, and fruits of the season. Melons, nectarines, and apples are common fruits served on the holiday. Special tables are set up with the foods and flowers, along with dishes of nuts and candies. Zoroastrians and Parsis also visit their fire temples, or places of worship to give thanks to Ahura Mazda and remember the birth of their prophet. It is also at this time when believers make resolutions and making plans of prosperity for the upcoming year ahead of them. Zoroaster's birthday remains a sacred holiday for Zoroastrians and they recall the events of his birth with a special love and pride that has been maintained by followers of the religion for almost four thousand years.(4)

1. The Zoroastrian Tradition. Farhang Mehr. Rockport, MA: Element Books. 1991.

2. http://www.sacred-texts.com/zor/zarir/zarir.htm

3. The Dinkard, The Pahlavi Texts, Vol. 5. Sacred Books of the East. Motilal Banarsidass, India.

4. http://www.manyzone.com/festivals/khordad-sal.aspx