The ceremony of Vaj Yasht of the last gahanbar of the year, hamaspathmaidyem gahanbar, was held with many Zoroastrians participating. The Vaj Yasht prayers of the Gahanbar started from midnight with the chanting of Mobed Kourosh Bolandi, in Tehran fire temple, and on the dawn of ahnavad day of the month of Gatabio (Zoroastrian calendar) equal to Thursday, 25 Esfand 1401 of the solar calendar, participants joined in the Jashan khani prayers, together with Mobed Mehrab Vahidi. Rashid Khorshidian, Farhang Ziatabari, Hormoz Khosroviani, and Farzad Lohrasbi, gathered around the table to welcome the first day of the gahanbar. The white tablecloth had evergreen stalks of Cypress and cedar, a bowl of water, a large tray of lark (dried fruits), and other promising creations of Ahura, each symbol of Amshaspandan. Each chahreh of gahanbar lasts 5 days. While reciting the prayers Mobed grinds the stems of the houm plant (a plant with healing properties) in a mortar with water and obtains Houm syrup.
This syrup is poured into small containers, and residents drink it in the ceremony. Breakfast and lork (7 types of dried fruit) on this first day of Hamaspathmaidyem was offered to the participants, and the host this time was Khosraviani family, in memory of their mother Ravanshad Dowlat Khodabakhsh Hormozdi Mohammadabadi. The Vaj Yasht ceremony is held jointly by Tehran Zoroastrian Association and Tehran mobed Association.
The gahanbar ceremony is held on the 6 different times of the year, called the 6 chahreh. Each chahreh lasts 5 days. according to a belief, the 6 chahreh of gahanbar represent the 6 steps of the creation of the world. The God-sent joy in Zoroastrian celebrations, together with prayers to Ahura Mazda, the creator of the material and the spiritual world, is filled with laughter, cooperation and solidarity, and this becomes a pleasant religious duty for all Zoroastrians. They celebrate Hamaspathmaidyem gahanbar on the days between 25th and 29th Esfand (solar calendar). the 6th and last gahanbar of the years, the Hamaspathmaidyem gahanbar, is also called the Panje gahanbar or Panje Namvar.
Photos by Homayoun Mehrzad
