Two priests were banned from fire temples after they were found to have performed ceremonies for Parsis who chose to be cremated and children of non-Parsi fathers The Bombay Parsi Punchayet’s (BPP) three-year bitter court battle against two “renegade” priests may soon come to an end. Article by Jyoti Shelar Mumbai Mirror A recent mediation… Continue reading Parsi Priests’ Court Battle with BPP Likely To End Amicably
Category: Issues
Parsis consider surrogacy to boost population
Ultra orthodox in the community are debating if scriptures allow renting of a non-Parsi womb. Article by Jyoti Shelar | Mumbai Mirror Parsis are considering the option of surrogacy under the government funded Jiyo Parsi scheme to boost the community’s dwindling population. While a high priest who was consulted on the idea has given a… Continue reading Parsis consider surrogacy to boost population
A Death Rite At Peril
There are roughly 500 Parsis in Kolkata. But sadly, even this small community finds it difficult to maintain their age-old death ritual owing to a drop in the number of vultures and other problems. Anusua Banerjee reports. Article by Anusua Banerjee | New Kerala Some may consider this a morbid thought, but the rites and… Continue reading A Death Rite At Peril
Death in the city: How a lack of vultures threatens Mumbai’s ‘Towers of Silence’
In exclusive Malabar Hill, the city’s dwindling Parsi community continues with the Zoroastrian tradition of disposing of dead bodies by exposing them to scavenger birds. How much longer can this 3,000-year-old tradition survive? The Towers of Silence in the Indian city of Bombay, now known as Mumbai, around 1890. The first tower was consecrated… Continue reading Death in the city: How a lack of vultures threatens Mumbai’s ‘Towers of Silence’
Can Higher Salaries Save Parsi Priesthood?
Ardeshir Nariman, 15, is fast approaching graduation. Like many boys his age in Mumbai—educated and upwardly mobile, his curiosity heavily seasoned with ambition—he’ll continue to college to study science when he finishes school this spring. Unlike most of the other boys, he will also be ordained a priest. Nariman’s education was supplemented by intense religious… Continue reading Can Higher Salaries Save Parsi Priesthood?
Aging Parsis Turn to Community Charity
The Parsi ward at Mumbai’s JJ Hospital seems a particularly sunny convalescent home. Its full-length gothic windows and yellow-beige walls light 45 beds, which most patients cannot leave. The tiny piles of possessions beside beds hold journals, faded photographs and knitting needles. Article by Rosalie Murphy | Pulitzer Center Nergis Sidhwa, like most patients, came… Continue reading Aging Parsis Turn to Community Charity
Interfaith Marriages Challenge Parsi Families
Neither Kushroo Anita, 35, nor Viraf Mehta, 30, have found “the one” yet. They’ve both finished school, established careers and grown eager to start families. But even in a city of 18 million, they’re struggling to find spouses. Article by Rosalie Murphy | Pulitzer Center Anita and Mehta, both men, are young members of India’s… Continue reading Interfaith Marriages Challenge Parsi Families
