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The Spellbook · Zoroastrianism

Nowruz Rites: Chaharshanbe Suri Fires and the Haft-Sin Table

The Persian New Year rites of Nowruz: jumping the fire at Chaharshanbe Suri, with fire safety, and setting the haft-sin table, with their Zoroastrian roots.

  • TraditionIranian New Year customs with Zoroastrian roots; Chaharshanbe Suri in its current form after the Islamic period, the haft-sin table largely modern
  • ForLuck, Blessings, Cleansing
  • DifficultyModerate
  • TimeSeveral days: spring cleaning, one evening of fire, the New Year table for thirteen days
  • WhenChaharshanbe Suri on the eve of the last Wednesday before the New Year (Tuesday night); the haft-sin is set before the moment of the vernal equinox (Tahvil) and kept for thirteen days
Haft-Sin or the seven 'S's, traditional table setting of Nowruz
Haft-Sin or the seven 'S's, traditional table setting of Nowruzدانقولا at Persian Wikinews · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Nowruz, "New Day", is the Iranian New Year, celebrated at the spring equinox by Iranians, Kurds, Afghans, Central Asians and Zoroastrians across the world. Two of its best-loved customs are the fire festival of Chaharshanbe Suri, when people leap over bonfires to burn away the old year's illness and misfortune, and the haft-sin, a table of seven symbolic things beginning with the letter s, set out to welcome the year's blessings. Both have roots in ancient Iranian religion, though, as historians note, their present forms are more recent than often supposed.

How to do it§

Before the New Year§

  1. Spring-clean the house. The custom of khāneh-tekāni, "shaking the house", clears dust and broken things before the year turns, much as Zoroastrians prepared homes for the returning spirits of the dead.
  2. Sprout the sabzeh. About two weeks ahead, soak lentils or wheat and spread them on a damp plate. Keep them moist; by Nowruz they will be a green mat of new growth.

Chaharshanbe Suri§

  1. Prepare a safe fire. On the evening before the last Wednesday of the year, build one or more small, low fires in a cleared outdoor space where fires are permitted, or use a proper fire pit. Keep water and an extinguisher at hand. Many cities hold public events; joining one is often the safest option.
  2. Jump the fire. One by one, take a run and jump over the low flames, saying the traditional words: zardi-ye man az to, sorkhi-ye to az man, "my yellowness to you, your redness to me". The sickly pallor of the old year is given to the fire and its healthy red glow is taken in return. Anyone who should not jump can simply walk past the fire and say the words.
  3. Other customs. Children may go qāshoq-zani, "spoon-beating", knocking on neighbours' doors for treats. Some people practise fāl-e gush, "eavesdropping divination", taking the first words overheard from passers-by as an omen for a wish.
  4. Let the fire die. Allow the fire to burn out completely. Folk custom says its ashes, like the old year's troubles, should be carried away and left outside the home. Make sure every ember is cold.

The haft-sin table§

  1. Set the table. On a cloth set the seven s items, each with a traditional meaning: sabzeh (sprouts, rebirth), samanu (sweet pudding, abundance), senjed (oleaster, love), sir (garlic, health), sib (apple, beauty), somāq (sumac, the colour of sunrise), serkeh (vinegar, patience and age). Add a mirror, candles, coins (sekkeh), painted eggs, a hyacinth (sonbol), and a book: the Qur'an, the Avesta, the Shāhnāmeh or the poems of Hafez.
  2. Gather at the moment of Tahvil. The family gathers around the table at the precise moment of the equinox, offers prayers or good wishes, embraces and gives gifts.
  3. Close the season. On the thirteenth day, Sizdah Bedar, families picnic outdoors. They throw the sabzeh into running water, taking the year's ill luck with it; many young people first knot the blades while making a wish.

Origins and history§

Nowruz is ancient. Iranian tradition credits it to the mythical king Jamshid, as al-Biruni recorded around 1000 CE and as Ferdowsi's Shāhnāmeh retells. Mary Boyce argued that the New Year was the seventh of the great Zoroastrian obligatory feasts, dedicated to fire and the coming resurrection. It was preceded by Hamaspathmaedaya, the last days of the year, when the fravashis, the souls of the righteous dead, were believed to return to their homes. Fires were lit on rooftops to welcome and later guide them.

Bas Relief of Tribute Bearer, Persepolis, Iran
Bas Relief of Tribute Bearer, Persepolis, IranA.Davey from Portland, Oregon, EE UU · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Chaharshanbe Suri ("Red Wednesday") probably descends from those year-end fires. Its Wednesday date reflects the Islamic seven-day week, however, and it took its present form in Islamic times. Zoroastrian priests and many Zoroastrians themselves do not jump over fire: fire is the sacred symbol of Ahura Mazda's truth, and the custom of giving one's sickness to it would be a pollution. Boyce, who lived among the Zoroastrians of Yazd, described their own quieter New Year observances. The leap over the fire is therefore best understood as an Iranian folk rite, shared by Muslims, Zoroastrians and others, that grew from Zoroastrian soil.

The haft-sin table is younger still in its familiar form. Older sources describe New Year tables of many kinds, and the fixed set of seven s items is well documented only from the twentieth century. Theories that it descends from a "haft-shin" or "haft-chin" are speculative.

Variations§

Zoroastrian families often set a sofreh with a portrait of Zarathustra, the Avesta, fire in a vase and rosewater. Kurds celebrate Newroz with mountain bonfires. In Central Asia sumalak, a sprouted-wheat pudding, is stirred through the night.

Safety and good sense§

Jumping over fire causes serious burns every year. Keep fires low and small, use a fire pit or a public event, check local laws, and keep water, an extinguisher and a first-aid kit close. Wear cotton or wool, not synthetic fabrics, tie back hair and loose clothing, and never let children jump unsupervised or over anything but very low flames. Never use petrol or fireworks to light or "liven" a fire. Seek medical help at once for any burn larger than a coin.

Sources and further reading§