Mason Pazhwak ’23
Foreign Correspondent
Every year, students here at North Grounds join hundreds of millions of people in a geographic span that stretches from the Indian subcontinent to the Balkans in celebrating a holiday called Nowruz. As with many major holidays, it has different meanings and involves different practices for the wide variety of ethnic, linguistic, religious, and cultural groups that observe it, and so I will try to avoid too many generalizations in my description.[1] However, there are also rich commonalities and fascinating, fun customs that many share, a few of which I will cover here!
To start, it is perhaps easiest to first look at the name of the holiday itself and the date on which it falls. Nowruz is the romanization of نوروز in Farsi. This name can be broken down into two parts: “now” (نو), meaning new and “ruz” (روز), meaning day, quite literally translating into “new day” in English. This is appropriate, as the holiday traditionally commemorates the start of a new period. It does so literally according to the Solar Hijri calendar (گاهشماری هجری خورشیدی) used in Afghanistan and Iran, marking the beginning of the first month Farvardin (فروردین)[2] and thus the start of the new year in a way akin to January 1 of the Gregorian calendar. More generally, it always falls on the vernal equinox, aligning it with the astronomically defined start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere (falling on March 20, 2022 this year). Whether or not it aligns with a calendar new year, the name and date of Nowruz invokes themes of renewal, rebirth, and revival for the people observing it. In coinciding exactly with the passing of winter into the longer days, warmth, and greenery of nature that accompany the advent of spring, it not only fulfills the age-old, universal human desire to have a symbolic moment to leave the past behind and begin anew, but also serves as a reminder of the human link to nature and its cycles.
To delve a bit into its history, it can easily be said that the holiday is ancient, with evidence of its celebration stretching back at least 3,000 years.[3] It has its roots in the mythology of Iranic peoples, with the Shahnameh,[4] a Farsi-language epic poem, claiming that a mythical king, Jamshid, created the holiday after saving humankind from a winter that threatened to freeze the entire planet.[5] It has thrived as a celebration amid the many political, cultural, and religious changes that have shaped the regions that Farsi-speaking peoples continue to inhabit, while its observance has also spread to neighboring groups who have added to it in unique ways that reflect a much broader set of influences. Thus, modern Nowruz, by adapting with time and to the mores of different peoples, has transcended difference while attaining a largely secular status for those who observe it. Nevertheless, deep histories and traditions are evident in how it is celebrated, while its story continues to be written anew year after year.
One Nowruz practice that I have always particularly enjoyed is the preparation of a “Haft-seen” table (هفتسین). “Haft” (هفت) is the number seven in Farsi, while “seen” (سین) is the fifteenth letter of the alphabet (س). The table thus consists of an arrangement of seven items whose names in Farsi begin with “seen” and which each have a symbolic meaning. They can vary, with different tables substituting different items starting with “seen, ”but often consist of some combination of “seeb” (سیب), or apples, representing beauty; “seer” (سیر), or garlic, representing good health; “serkeh” (سرکه), or vinegar, representing patience; “sonbol” (سنبل), or hyacinth, representing spring; “samanu” (سمنو), or sweet pudding, representing fertility; “sabzeh” (سبزه), or green sprouts of various kinds, representing rebirth; and “sekeh” ( سکه), or coins, representing prosperity.[6] It will also often include other items, such as a “book of wisdom” that can be a book of poetry for the secular, or a Qur’an for the religious, and various treats or painted eggs. A family will often display one in their house and even gather around it for the moment where the new year begins at the astronomical equinox. In Afghanistan, this “Haft-seen” table is accompanied by the eating of the “Haft-mewa” (هفت میوه), meaning seven fruits, which is a dish consisting of seven different dried fruits which have been kept throughout the winter that are thrown together to make a kind of fruit stew. This symbolizes the finishing of the previous year’s winter larder and preparation for the new growth that will come with spring.
The revered Persian poet Saadi wrote: “Awaken, the morning Nowruz breeze is showering the garden with flowers.”[7] So, feel free to join a friend or fellow law student in this ancient celebration, and enjoy the happiness and new energy that comes with the passing of winter into spring (as well as the chance for a second new year if your resolutions have already hit the wayside).
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mwp8kk@virginia.edu
[1] As someone very much steeped in Afghan traditions surrounding Nowruz, I can remember as a kid comparing notes with some of my Iranian American friends and loving that they celebrated the same holiday that I did while also being confused by some of the traditions that they described. We shared much more than we differed on, but there is a wealth of nuance regarding this holiday that could fill books.
[2] This could also be romanized to Farwardin in Afghan Dari.
[3] What is Nowruz and why do we celebrate it?, United Nations, https://www.un.org/en/observances/international-nowruz-day (last visited Mar. 13, 2022).
[4] This epic poem, whose romanized name, Shahnameh, means “Book of Kings” (شاهنامه), is commonly regarded as a literarymasterpiece and one of the key cultural works of Farsi-speaking peoples and others in the wider region.
[5] Scheherezade Faramarzi, What is Nowruz? The Persian New Year explained, Middle East Eye (Mar. 18, 2020), https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/what-nowruz-explained-persian-new-year-celebrated; Pardis Mahdavi, The Story of the Iranian New Year, Nowruz, and Why its Themes of Renewal and Healing Matter, The Conversation (Mar. 17, 2021), https://theconversation.com/the-story-of-the-iranian-new-year-nowruz-and-why-its-themes-of-renewal-and-healing-matter-156701.
[6] April Fulton & Davar Ardalan; Nowruz: Persian New Year's Table Celebrates Spring Deliciously, NPR (Mar. 20, 2016), https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/03/20/471174857/nowruz-persian-new-years-table-celebrates-spring-deliciously.
[7] Faramarzi, supra note 5.