Offering of fuel or fragrance to fire is a widespread religious practice in many religious traditions across the world. Offering fragrant firewood or incense to the fire is an act of purification and transformation linking one’s senses to the Divine and fire acting as a mediator that carries offerings upward. However, in many ancient traditions, […]
Herodotus, in his ‘Histories’, as also Strabo and other Greek writers aver that early Achaemenians did not have temples or enclosed places of worship. Cicero states that Xerxes the Great considered it to be sacrilegious to keep Divinity, whose home is the whole universe, enclosed within walls. However, Xenophon records that the Persians in his […]
As per the Shehenshahi calendar, the holy Adar month has already commenced and tomorrow will be Roj Daepadar, observed as ‘Chulah nu varas’ or the birthday of the hearth fire, and next day will be Roj Adar, observed as Atash nu Parab or the birthday of fire. The term Adar is derived from Pahlavi Adur […]
Today, 21st March, 2026 is Navruz – officially the first day of Spring, a time when Nature reawakens in the Northern hemisphere, characterized by blooming flowers, blossoming trees, warmer weather and longer days. It signifies a period of renewal, new life and increased activity for animals, often marked by the melting of snow and the arrival […]
The Spring equinox this year falls on 20th March, at 8:16 pm IST, marking equal day and night, which occurs when the sun is directly over the equator. We observe this celestial event as Jamshedi Navroz. This year’s Spring Festival of Navroz coincides with the Year of the Horse, symbolizing vitality, speed and dynamic progress, encouraging […]
Good health is our true wealth. Given a choice between health and wealth, choose health because if you have good health, you can earn wealth and more importantly, enjoy your wealth. What’s the point in having wealth but no health to enjoy it! Several studies have indicated that prayer can positively impact health. It can […]
“A child’s caste should be the same as its adoptive parents.” On 29th January 2026, Bombay Hight Court’s two-judge bench, comprising Justices S M Modak and M S Karnik, ruled that a child’s caste should be the same as its adoptive parents. The court opined that when a child is adopted, its ties with its […]
If ye will only know and learn these Laws, Which Mazda hath ordained for ye, O men, The Laws of happiness, the Laws of pain, That falsehood hinders progress, That Truth leads on to a fuller higher life, Upon all such the Light Divine shall dawn. (Yasna 30:11) According to Zoroastrian theology, death involves the […]
A Parsi Times reader asked who Dastur Dinyar (also known as Salman-e-Fars) was and whether he was a close companion of Hazrat Mohamed, the Prophet of Islam? The reader has also asked whether the Prophet of Islam had issued various Firman (edict) called Ahadnameh decreeing that Zoroastrians should not be harmed? While it seems that […]
Noshir H. Dadrawala The Governor of Maharashtra state vide Ordinance No. VII of 2025 has amended the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act 1950, which has come into effect from 1st September, 2025. The amendments have far-reaching impact on religious and charitable trusts registered in the state of Maharashtra, under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act 1950. [Ordinance […]
Last week we featured Shahpur, son of Ardashir, and his new statue installed in Tehran. This week, we explore Ardashir himself – Founder of the Sasanian dynasty, who established Zoroastrianism as Iran’s State Religion in the third century. In the third century AD, Iran experienced a significant revival and consolidation of the Zoroastrian faith. During […]