A question commonly arises in most Parsi homes – how to deal with old items of a religious nature which are no longer in a usable condition. These include old, torn Sudreh; worn out or broken Kustis; tattered Khordeh Avesta or prayer books or other religious literature; photographs or illustrations of the Prophet or other religious symbols usually (and unfortunately) printed on invitation or greeting cards; old metal Karasyas or vases consecrated for the Muktad ceremonies of relatives whose prayers have now been stopped. Another important, but totally ignored item includes the fruit peels or remains of consecrated fruit or eatables received as Chasni from various prayers and generally consigned to the dustbin.
What is the guiding principle which should be kept in mind while dealing with these items? Firstly, although they are ordinary items made out of commonly available and used commodities, due to their particular religious function and use, these objects have exalted themselves in some way, thereby differentiating themselves from the common. For example, a Sudreh is made out of cotton mulmul, which in itself is not sacred. However when this piece of cotton is ritually sewed, by a qualified and practicing Parsi, following certain rules and Tarikats, it gets vested with certain spiritual characteristics. For example, the triangular seam on the right hand side of the Sudreh (for males, for females it should be on the left hand side) and the parallel seam on the left hand side (on the right hand side for the female Sudreh), along with the Gireban near the heart and the Girdo on the back change the structure of a simple cotton cloth and enhance it with certain properties which enable the catching and receiving of specific spiritual vibrations.
The second principle to be remembered is that these uncommon articles (because of their religious function) cannot and should not be disposed off in the way common items are. The act of disposing them along with other pollutants commonly thrown out in any house causes grave spiritual disorder. The aim in disposing these items should be to somehow preserve and protect their exalted nature, despite their utility having being outlived. This is why when we refer to disposing these items in Gujarati we do not use the common word (‘feki levu’) but rather use the term ‘vadhavi levo’, lit. ‘increase it’. The meaning of this term is that the item should be cleared in such a way that it goes back to nature in an unpolluted and unharmed manner, and hence ‘increases’ its intrinsic worth. Dear readers, just this difference in terminology will show that there is great depth and complexity in our religion, and there is a reason for each and every phrase, act and ritual. We just need to be spiritually aware and question why.
Bearing in mind these points we can now describe how each religious item should be properly returned to nature.
In the years gone by, when things were simple and uncomplicated, and man had not yet completely destroyed the pristine environment around him as we have today, the easiest way of disposing these religious items was to simply give them to the waters of the sea or a large lake or river. The natural inhabitants of the water, along with the cleansing properties of water itself, would adequately take care of the small offerings of the community. The act of disposing such articles also caused the spiritual progress of the aquatic life. This is why, even today, the elders of the family still advise us to ‘dariye vadhavi levo’, i.e. offer the items to the sea. But that method has a very big problem today. Over the years, our tremendous progress in science and technology has given us the arrogance of trying to lord it over other creations. Thus a majority of the refuse, sewage and human excreta is now pumped into the sea. This has caused the pollution of the sea (specially near the coastlines of major cities) to a horrendous extent and completely erased the cleansing properties of water. In such a condition, it is improper to offer the religious items to the sea near the shore. Even in the high seas, the pollution caused by the illegal cleaning of tanks of super ships and tankers and major oil spills and other varied pollutants have caused some irreversible changes in the character and nature of the oceans. So even that method is now unavailable. In short, the cleansing power of the seas and water is now unavailable to us to dispose religious items and therefore this method should be avoided at all costs. It may also be remembered that local laws in most cities now consider it an illegal act to throw anything in the water. (Which is hilarious after all the damage that has been done and continues to be done.)
Let us start with the Sudreh first. For residents of Mumbai, there is a very easy and charitable method. The Sudreh should be washed and cleaned completely (even if torn). After drying, the Sudreh should be kept aside in a separate bag. When a sufficient quantity has been collected, the same should be taken to the Dungerwadi and handed to the Nasseh-salaars or the manager there. There is a great shortage of old and torn Sudreh which are used for ritually cleaning the dead body and also to cover up any part of the body where the skin may have erupted or where blood is flowing out. There is no better use for old and torn Sudreh than this purpose. Till a few years ago, every household would keep aside old and torn Sudreh and when an unfortunate event occurred, the bag containing the old Sudreh would be taken along on the journey to Dungerwadi. For some reason, this practice has almost completely stopped and very often relatives have to run around for old Sudreh when asked for by the Nasseh-salaars. Thus for Parsis of Mumbai or other towns where Dokhmenashini is practised, this is an ideal way to use the old Sudreh. It is important to reiterate that the Sudreh, before being packed away for disposal in this manner MUST be washed and cleaned properly and only then stowed away for later use. Never give a dirty, worn or unclean Sudreh for this purpose. Even if the Sudreh is partly torn, it can be gently rinsed in soapy water by hand and then dried for use.
In places where the Towers of Silence are not present, the following alternative methods are suggested. After washing and drying the Sudreh, the seams of the same should be carefully torn away, i.e. the Gireban, the Girdo, the sleeves and the Tiris should be cut off and kept aside. The plain cloth that remains can be used either to clean the place where the family Divo or photographs are generally placed. The cloth can also be used to wrap up the Khordeh Avesta or any old religious book. Preferably this cloth should not be used for household cleaning. What should be done with the cut off seams? A method used earlier was to tie these bits around a stone and then drop it in the water where it would sink to the bottom and slowly disintegrate. Since this method is now not advisable, it is better to burn these bits and seams in the Dadgah fire lit at home for doing the Loban ceremony every day. After the Loban has been passed around the house, the seams can be put on the smouldering coals and allowed to slowly burn away.
Similarly, old and broken or worn out Kustis should be disposed in the same way on the house Dadgah. However, the separate Kustis and the cut off seams of the Sudreh kept by women to wear during their periods should not be burnt on the house Dadgah. These should be collected and then buried in the ground in an area where there is no danger of the hole being opened up by dogs or other animals. Another method used till about a few years ago in Parsi populated villages was to tie the broken bits of the Kusti on tree branches, where they would slowly disintegrate with the effect of the sun and rains.
Old prayer books or other religious literature should be collected and kept separately. When a sufficient quantity has been collected, they should be opened out and placed in a wide metal bin and then lit up using a match stick. A stick can be used to push around the heap till the fire has reduced all the pages to ashes. After cooling, the ashes should be mixed with the ash kept in the tray of the house Afarganyu. A similar method can be employed to destroy old photographs, religious symbols or pictures. When an excess amount of ash is collected the same should be packed in a paper bag (never plastic or any other non-bio-degradable substance) and taken to the local Agiary and the priest should be requested to dispose of the ash along with the ash which is removed from the Afarganyas used in the Agiary.
A question arises as to how the Ash which is formed in the Afarganyu of the Atash Padshah Himself is disposed? In Behram Baug we follow the old method sanctioned by our forefathers and specially recommended by our Ustad Saheb. We have had a dry well dug about 8×8 feet and about 15 feet deep. The bottom is not cemented but is just the earth. A boundary has been built around as in a normal well and the top is covered with a metal mesh, which allows the sunlight to fall inside. The ash collected from the Padshah Saheb as well as other excessive ash is placed in this well on a regular basis. The sunlight and rain slowly compact this ash into the ground over the years. Ustad Saheb had told his close followers that this same method was followed by our forefathers in ancient Iran. Some doubting Thomases laughed at his words. A few years later the noted archaeologist and numismatist Dr. Jamshed Unwalla made a tour of several ruins of ancient Atash Behrams and Agiaries in Iran. When he came back he recounted that most of these ruins had deep wells near them which were filled with ash, thereby proving what Ustad Saheb had said many years ago.
It may interest my readers to know that the Modi Atash Behram in Surat has three such wells. As per the information given by an old Boywalla Saheb I was in contact with, over its life of nearly 200 years (the Atash Behram was consecrated in 1823) two wells have been completely filled up and now sealed while the third is being used. This was the foresight our ancestors had! In the case of another Atash Behram, the ash would be taken in a Parsi bullock cart to the nearby seashore at a time when the coast would be deserted and the ash merged with the sea waters. However, that process has now been stopped and the well procedure is now being followed at this and other Atash Behrams.
With respect to metal Karasyas and vases which were consecrated in the name of deceased relatives and which are now not being used in the Muktad ceremonies, there are two options. The first option is to donate them to some Agiary or other religious institution where they can be used. The second option is to have them melted, sell the metal at scrap price and use the proceeds for some ceremonies in the name of the deceased or towards religious charity. However, karasyas and vases should never be sold whole, because it is now common knowledge that unscrupulous metal dealers scrub these old vessels, have them polished or plated and sell them off as new. The vessel should be either broken down in front of your eyes or it should be sold after completely mangling or twisting it such that it cannot be mended and sold off as new.
Flowers used in ceremonies, garlands hung on the photo frames of departed ones and other such religious vibration filled items such as rice used in welcoming guests into the house should never be thrown in the garbage. In Agiaries, these can easily be thrown in the garden to become compost. In houses, they should not be mixed with other compostable items but should be allowed to dry for three days (to remove the traces of the vibrations) and then composted in the society garden or household flower pots.
An often ignored item full of religious vibrations which is invariably thrown in the garbage bin is the peels of fruits received from the Agiary after ceremonies or Jashans, and left over dry Daran or other eatables. These should not be thrown or mixed with normal garbage. There are different methods to deal with them. The first is to pack up the peels and other remainders and feed them to either goats or cattle available in many Agiaries and Atash Behrams or those found standing near Hindu temples. The second option is to dry the peels over a few days in the sunlight in a secluded area and then compost them in the manner described earlier. The third option is to desecrate the peels and then dispose them. How is this to be done?
It is unfortunate that many Parsis have totally forgotten the concept of ‘Chokhu’ and ‘Ajithu’, i.e. pure and impure. In earlier days, the elders always instructed youngsters to eat consecrated items like fruit and sweets in a ‘chokha’ way – i.e. the fruit would be cut into small pieces and then the piece would be kept in the mouth without the fingers touching the inside of the mouth. A banana or an apple would never be held whole and then progressively eaten one bite after another, since the part going into the mouth would come out covered with saliva and hence was immediately ‘ajithu’. Today we have forgotten these important practices and it pains me when I go out to do Jashans and people merrily walk around with fruits in their hand or use one spoon to take Malido from the box and then put the spoon back in the same box after haven taken it in their mouth! Even a common sense of hygiene would teach that this is incorrect and potentially unsafe. It is important to note that any consecrated fruit LOSES its religious potency if eaten in an impure manner. An interesting observation was made on my trip to Iran where the custom is to cut the fruit into small pieces first and then put it in the Jashan or other prayers. In this method, the problem of peels is avoided and it is easier to eat the fruit in a pure manner.
Thus an easy way in which to dispose of fruit peels would be to lightly bite into them and hence make them impure. Then the peel can be disposed in the normal way. However, this method is not desirable and should be used only as a last resort. It is better to use the two other methods explained earlier.
This discussion shows that there is great depth of knowledge and an intricate science on which our religious laws of purity are based. Religion is not merely good thoughts, words and deeds [read www.frashogard.com/does-the-zarathushtrian-religion-teach-only-good-thoughts-good-words-good-deeds]. Rather religion comprises not only ethical and moral teachings but also a scientific code of practice which was carefully preserved over the centuries and handed down generation to generation. In our haste to become modern and adopt western civilization, we are slowly but surely forgetting these religious precepts, with a result that the next generation has no idea of what a true Zoroastrian way of life is. This is the main reason why Parsis are so eager to remove their Sudreh and Kusti in the name of fashion – even in religious functions like weddings and Navjotes. What our ancestors died for and suffered tremendous persecution is now an irritant and uncomfortable accessory! May we regain our senses and bring ourselves back to the true Zoroastrian way of life.
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