Over the weekend, Iran hosted the presidents of Iraq, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan to celebrate Nowruz, the ancient Persian new year marking the first day of spring that is celebrated by some 300 million people around the world who together form an important cultural bloc. By Kaveh L Afrasiabi / Asia Times Both Supreme Leader… Continue reading Iran rediscovers value of Persian roots
Category: Iran
Iranians celebrate spring equinox as their new year begins
Jamshid Goshtasbi got the call at 1:25 p.m. Saturday from his younger brother in Kerman, a city in southeastern Iran. By Tara Bahrampour /Washington Post Were he and his family ready? Was the "haft-seen" table set up, with its mirror, its goldfish, its seven items starting with the letter S? Only seven minutes remained until… Continue reading Iranians celebrate spring equinox as their new year begins
Thousands gather to celebrate ancient Zoroastrian fire festival
CHAM, Iran – Thousands of Iranians gathered at dusk against a snowy mountain backdrop to light giant bonfires in an ancient midwinter festival dating back to Iran’s pre-Islamic past that is drawing new interest from Muslims. By Associated Press / Boston.com Saturday’s celebration was the first in which the dwindling remnants of Iran’s once plentiful… Continue reading Thousands gather to celebrate ancient Zoroastrian fire festival
Achaemenid K’aba of Zoroaster In Danger of Collapsing
The Achaemenid dynastic structure known as the Ka’aba of Zoroaster is on the verge of collapse due to escalating earth sinkage at the ancient site of Naqsh-e Rostam in Fars Province. Published by Circle of Ancient Iranian Studies The measured earth sinkage previously reported by experts was five centimetres, but a new survey shows that… Continue reading Achaemenid K’aba of Zoroaster In Danger of Collapsing
The Lost Persian Army: Compelling Evidence in the Sahara
The remains of a legendary 50,000-strong army which was swallowed up in a cataclysmic sandstorm in the Sahara Desert 2,500 years ago are believed to have been found. Italian archaeologists Angelo and Alfredo Castiglioni, twin brothers, have discovered bronze weapons and hundreds of human bones which they reckon are the remains of the lost army… Continue reading The Lost Persian Army: Compelling Evidence in the Sahara
Prayers Offered at ancient Azargoshasb Fire Temple
From Amordad News. The sound of Avesta, on 27 Shahrivar (18 September) once again filled Azargoshasb Fire Temple. In Azargoshasb Fire Temple Zoroastrians recited the Avesta and prayed for a strong unity and cooperation of Zoroastrians of the world. It is 6 years that this ceremony is being organized, annually, by Yatha Ahu site. … Continue reading Prayers Offered at ancient Azargoshasb Fire Temple
On the road in rural Iran
Rural Iran has startlingly beautiful landscapes that are largely unexplored by outsiders By Jini Reddy The Guardian, Saturday 12 September 2009 [Hat Tip: Jim Engineer via NextGenNow@Linkedin] I was tired. Exhausted. Ready to flop. I’d arrived in Zarabad, a sweet secluded village north of Tehran, with sleep rather than sightseeing on my mind. But in Iran,… Continue reading On the road in rural Iran
Zoroastrian Anthropology Museum in Kerman, Iran
The idea of establishing the museum goes back to the year 1983, when the library of the Kerman Association of Zoroastrians was established. Head of the association Parviz Vakhshuri and library director Mehran Gheibi collected historical artifacts for the museum. The museum was officially inaugurated in summer 2005 in the presence of the then head… Continue reading Zoroastrian Anthropology Museum in Kerman, Iran
Iranian Hospitality: Food and Social Customs
Iranian hospitality attack A survival guide for the non-Iranian traveler By Hamid Taghavi March 20, 1998 The Iranian Beware! Forget about all the xenophobic, anti-Iranian propaganda dominating the media.What they say about terrorism and your life being in danger in Iran is absolute hogwash (I have no idea what that word means, but I like… Continue reading Iranian Hospitality: Food and Social Customs