Zoroastrians celebrate other thanksgiving days as well. These include the dates of the Prophet’s birth and death and days that recall the yazatas, such as the divinity of Rain and Fertility, the divinity of Water, and Mithra, the divinity of Sun and Justice. They also celebrate the five Gatha days at the end of the year by remembering the fravashis of those who have died and by giving thanks for those in the present world whom they love and care for.
The ceremony in which young people are initiated into Zoroastrianism is known as navjote. Among Iranian Zoroastrians the age for navjote or, as it is called there, sudre-pushti, has traditionally been 15. Parsi Zoroastrians perform it at an earlier age, usually seven or nine, but no later than 11.
Training in the way of faith, which begins in babyhood, is the responsibility of the parents. With the navjote young people take on the responsibility for their own lives by choosing good over evil. From that time on their parents are no longer responsible for their actions. The navjote is the same for both boys and girls. At the navjote the initiate receives the symbols of the religion. These are the sudreh and the kusti. The sudreh is a white muslin garment ceremonially made, which devout Zoroastrians wear as an undergarment. It symbolizes purity. The kusti is a cord that is wrapped around the body. It is woven from lamb’s wool and symbolizes Vohu Mana, the Good Mind. Besides being a reminder that the wearer is bound to the Good Religion, the kusti plays an important part in Zoroastrian daily prayer and ritual.
The initiate comes to the navjote freshly bathed. Before the ceremony begins the young person recites special prayers, including the Kusti prayers that are part of daily worship. He or she is then asked to sip a consecrated liquid. Traditionally this has been nirang, bull’s urine that has been ritually prepared, although pomegranate juice is often used today. The drink ritually cleanses the body and soul within. Then the initiate recites a series of prayers, including the Ashem Vohu, the “Principle of Righteousness,” in a prescribed order. He or she then goes for a ritual bath, or nahan. These actions symbolize inner and outer purifi cation.
After the nahan the initiate returns to the room where the ceremony will be held, dressed entirely in white and wearing the white cap that Zoroastrians always wear during prayer. The officiating priest recites the Patet, or “repentance,” prayer, which represents a turning away from sin. After that the initiate and the priest stand facing each other, holding the sudreh together. Together they recite the Din No Kalmo, or “Declaration of Faith.” Next the priest puts the sudreh on the initiate. In taking the sudreh the initiate symbolically accepts the responsibility of working for good and helping to bring about the final renovation of the world. The priest then stands behind the initiate and ties on the kusti according to prescribed ritual, while the two pray aloud together.
The kusti is circled around the initiate’s waist three times and knotted four times. The three circles around the waist represent Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good Deeds. The exact symbolic meaning of the knots is not known, but one explanation is that the first represents one God, the second that Zoroastrianism is the word of God, the third that Zarathustra is the Prophet of God, and the fourth is a reminder that the wearer is bound to the religion forever. Zoroastrians are to wear the kusti at all times, tying and untying it and reciting the basic prayers and according to tradition on getting up, after using the bathroom, before daily prayers, after a bath, and before meals.
Zoroastrian Priesthood and the Ancient Culture of God's Man
