As an ethnic community, Parsis have lived in India for over a millennium and myriad myths have been cherished and closeted which require to be brought out and given an occasional dusting. We realised the need for doing this in the course of a recent interaction with some elders of the community. It dawned on […]
Category: Religion
Demoralizing Dole
. Thou hast kindled the spark of mercy, O merciful God, in human hearts to succour Thy poor whom old age has disabled to work and chronic disease has rendered invalids. When charity, however, becomes indiscriminate in the hands of the tender-hearted people, who aimlessly dole out largess all around, it tends to encourage subsidized […]
Holi – Ushering Change, Colour, Love & Warmth!
Holi signifies Change (from the cold winter to the warmth of spring), Colour (with all Nature awakening from its dull winter sleep to a riot of seasonal colours) and Love (which unfolds with the warmth of bonfires and festivity which foster friendship and bonding). As a spring festival, Holi provides one and all with the […]
Truth Is The Supremest Virtue
. Great is the glory of truth. It shines like the star Tishtrya. Truth is the queen of virtues. Truth is the good Mazda-worshipping religion. Truth is truth always and ever to the day of doom. Truth is omnipotent and immortal. Truth is one and thou art Truth, Ahura Mazda. Simple and straightforward is the […]
Zoroastrian Prayers and Rituals
Many people regard ‘Ritual’ and ‘Reason’ as being anti-thetical. In reality, both are complementary factors in the process of spiritual growth. Prayers and rituals are born of man’s adoration for that unseen power underlying the mystery of life. Each religion prescribes its own set of practices as a means of adoration or worship or to […]
Vice Is A Canker That Eats Into The Vitals Of Life
Man can soar higher than man, he can sink lower than animal. In his higher nature, man is like unto angel. His lower nature, he shares with animal. When the senses are asleep in childhood, children are innocent as the white lilies. When the sex in man is awakened, vice struggles to come on […]
Decay Of Morals Brings Dissolution Of Society
. Zarathushtra inculcates the simplicity of life and our early ancestors were brought up in simple habits of life. They lived a frugal, contented, and a happy life. When they became conquerors of vast territories and built the mightiest empires of their days, the influx of riches from conquered countries bred in them lassitude, a […]
Who Loses Character, He Loses All!
. Ahura Mazda, Thou dost create man; Thou dost not create his character. It is man’s own creation. Man is its maker and it springs from within him. It is his inestimable personal acquisition. Good thoughts, good words, and good deeds form character. It is the outward manifestation of man’s inner life regulated by the […]
When Bad Things Happen To Good People
Be prepared for and accept whatever challenges you may attract in life For these are meant to make you grow in strength and wisdom These experiences should make you better, not bitter. For centuries, men and women the world over, across race and creed, have asked the question, “Why, God, why?”, when disaster strikes. And, […]
Shirin Merchant Bags ‘First Women Award’
Leading Canine Behaviourist and Trainer, and Parsi Times columnist (Pet Puja) Shirin Merchant was recently felicitated with the ‘First Women Award’, organized by Ministry of Women and Child Development at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 20th January, 2018. Hosted by Maneka Gandhi, Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Shirin was felicitated by the Hon’ble President of […]
I Pray For Forgiveness On My Knees
Sin poisons the spring of my life. It hides the truth from me and deadens my heart to virtue. Sin is the death of my spirit. Let me daily die to sin. I abjure sin. I turn away from it. I forsake my sinful past. I foreswear it. I expiate my transgression with sincere resolve […]