Bil Gardani, a thanksgiving ceremony of water and nature with a root in water and irrigation culture, is one of the ancient and championship ceremonies of Iran, which is performed as the symbol of effort and empathy in the main square of Nim Var in form of a match along with folk music and the presence of passionate people.
It is a ceremony for water goddess. This ritual ceremony is the symbol of expressing thanks for Anahita (the water goddess) due to the value and importance of water, irrigation and agriculture in this fertile region. The people of Mahallat, the capital of flower in Iran, welcome the spring planting process through this ceremony. It has been common from the past among the local farmers to help each other in cleaning up the water rout each year during Esfand or in the early spring, in the threshold of irrigation time, when the muds block the directions of Qom River and growing plants and weeds harden the irrigation process.. After completion of the dredging, which lasts several days, when the water from creek reaches to the first branch, named Vargo in folk language, the Bil Gardani ceremony will start as the memorial of customs and bravery.
Competition Regulations
Before the Bill Gardani ceremony, farmers with their shovels walk the road to reach the special platform at the center of Nim Var, the place of matchevent. Bil Gardanan (people who rotate their shovels) are the athletes of this region that fasten seven shovels tightly to each other in two sets of quadruple and triple, with the intention of seven heavens. four shovels fasten together are taken with the right hand and the other set is taken with their left hand; they put their right foot forward from the first level of the match to the end, then raise two sets of shovels parallel to their shoulders and spin them simultaneously crosswise at two opposite directions between 5 to 30 times skillfully, insofar as they can.
They show their strength in this way with orison and intention to move the seven heavens and show their inherent power to the people. If the Bil Gardan (The athlete) loses his balance and the shovels fall on the ground and collide into each other, he will be the loser and blamed by his fans. Based on the values and aspects of this ritual ceremony, Bil Gardani is currently the folk sport of Markazi province and it has been registered as one of the spiritual heritage of Iran in 2010.
Embroidery of Sistan and Baluchestan
