A new year is just around the corner! Tuesday, March 20 2018 at 10:15 AM (mountain time), will be the official start of the year 1397, or the moment of ‘saal tahvil.’ It’s kind of funny to consider the western calendar, and how 1397 would be considered part of the medieval times… so are we somehow living in an extension of those times, despite our delusion that we live in a modern society? Now that would be interesting… but nah, it’s just a different 1397.
The time of Nowruz could not be more fitting: the first day of spring. A time of new growth, new beginnings, and hope reflected in the newly growing flowers (ahem – and Calgary is still snowy).
‘Nowruz,’ literally means ‘new day’ in farsi, and its importance essentially parallels that of the western calendar’s new years. But with this celebration comes a lot of work to prepare for it, and everything has to be perfect and ready for the transition into the new year. In this article, I wanted to go over some of these, and let’s pretend I did all the new year’s cleaning so you guys can think highly of me :P.
Khaneh Tekani (خانه تکانی)
Literally meaning ‘shaking the house,’ this is essentially a new year’s cleaning that everyone has to take part in. It’s rather similar to spring cleaning, and it embodies the idea of turning over a fresh leaf for the new year to ensure the best start possible. I’m the kind of person who is usually too lazy to clean, but when it comes to new years, I really have no choice. That may actually be a good thing. …but still…
Haft Seen! (سفره هفت سین)
As much as I love cleaning, my favourite part of new years is actually setting up the ‘Sofre Haft Seen.’ This is essentially a table (‘sofre’ means table cloth and Persians really like nice table cloths, not just rugs XD) on which seven (haft = 7) items are arranged, all of which start with ‘seen,’ or the Farsi equivalent of ‘s.’ Or one of them, anyways. For some reason, there are three kinds of ‘s’ (ث، ص، س) in Farsi, even though they all have the same sound… but the Sofre Haft Seen only uses this s: س.
A few of the most common things arranged on this table are:
- seeb (apples)
- sabzeh (green shoots often grown from lentils, which we have to start growing a few weeks before)
- serkeh (vinegar)
- sekkeh (coins)
- seer (garlic- to ward away vampires! …no, sorry.)
- somagh (or aka sumak, a spice)
- samanoo (a pudding-like food made solely from wheat. I don’t like it, but I appreciate how hard it is to make it)
- sombol (hyacinth flower)
The tradition of Haft Seen has existed for a long time, and way back in the day, there was more meaning associated with setting up these items due to cultural beliefs to do with seven creations and seven holy immortals which protected them. I don’t completely understand what the original purpose was beyond that vague idea, and most other Iranians don’t quite get it either. These days, Haft Seen is just something everyone does for fun, and it’s a culture so firmly implanted in Iran that not setting up a Sofre Haft Seen would be weird.
The seven seen’s make up the core of the table, but another few items are also commonly added. For example, many place mirrors and candles on their sofre haft seen, apparently to do with representing reflection. It’s also tradition to place a book of importance on the table, often the Quran as a means of blessing the new year. Many families also add goldfish to the table, and though my family did do that a couple years ago, the death of the fish a few days after new year’s discouraged us from getting them this year. Again, I’m not completely sure about the purpose of each little component, but Persian families insist on setting up a perfect Haft Seen every year, and setting up the table always gets me excited in any case.
Saal Tahvil (سال تحویل)
This is the moment the year changes, same as 12:00 AM of the western new year. In our culture, the moment is regarded with great importance and we have to plan for it to be perfect, as there is a superstition that whatever you’re doing then will reflect what you do for the rest of the year. Naturally, this means we want to be doing something good in that moment, something we hope to carry forward in the new year. As for me, I’ll be in class at 10:15 on Tuesday… hopefully doing something good :).
Eid Didani
Persians are always looking for an excuse to visit each other, and with New Years they find yet another reason. Eid didani specifically refers to new years visits, where friends and family visit one another, eat plenty of new years sweets, and share light conversation. Plenty of tea is brewed throughout the day to accommodate the many guests, as it is Persian tradition to serve tea immediately upon their arrival. Another snack you can find served in an Iranian’s household is ‘Aajil,’ which refers to a variety of mixed nuts and dried fruits. Though we always have a large bowl of it on the counter, the best is always saved for new years. And then, of course, there are the sweets. These are super fun to make, but always run out far too fast. This year, my mom and I made three types. They’re largely nut-based and have only a little sugar, so I don’t feel too bad about eating more than a couple each day ;).
Another perk of visiting friends for new years is, of course, the new years money. This is often kept in a book (the Quran or whatever other book is important to the family) by the host, and when guests get up to leave, children are gifted this money to appreciate their visit.
Sizdah Beh Dar (سیزده بدر)
The 13th day of the new year is spent outdoors, a break to reconnect with nature after the first few days of sweets and celebrations. Families prepare a large picnic and enjoy the day taking in nature, laughing and playing and enjoying the last bit of new years celebrations. On this day, families also bring their sabzeh (the lentil sprouts they had grown for Haft Seen) and throw them away, as 13 is auspicious in Iranian culture (as it is in a lot of cultures), and throwing away the sabzeh and spending the day outdoors is thought to ward off any bad luck in the new year.
Though this new year isn’t as big in Canada as it is in places like Iran, it is still important to families like mine, who hold on to old cultures despite having moved into a new country. This is a festive time of year for us especially, but for everyone, spring is about to start! Spring is always associated with new beginnings: growth, renewal, hope, and even a new year in some people’s case. And my goodness, do I hope Calgary will decide to recognize this and end winter on time… Anyways, I hope this was an interesting read and I wish you all the best in the new year, whenever that starts for you!
Eid-e shoma mobarak, sad saal be in saalha! (Happy new years, and wishing you 100 more!)