Ok guys, Tuesday is the new Thursday (which, by the way was the new Friday). So on March 13, on behalf of the Bay Area Persian community (of which I’m a very non-active member), I invite all locals, Persian and non-Persian alike to come join me at the Persian Center for my very first Chaharshanbe Suri.
Chaharshanbe Suri (in Persian: چهارشنبه‌سوری‎) is the ancient Iranian festival dating at least back to 1700 BCE of the early Zoroastrian era.[1] The festival of fire is a prelude to the ancient Norouz festival, which marks the arrival of spring and revival of nature. Chahrshanbeh Suri, is celebrated in the last wednesday before the Noruz. The word Chahar Shanbeh means Wednesday and Suri is red.[2] The celebration usually starts in the evening. On this occasion people make bon-fires on the streets and jump over them. The young use much firework before and during the Chaharshanbe Suri (literally: Red Wednesday).
The tradition includes people going into the streets and alleys to make fires, and jump over them while singing the traditional song Sorkhi-ye to az man; Zardi-ye man az to. The literal translation is, Your fiery red color is mine and my sickly yellow paleness is yours. This is a purification rite and ‘suri’ itself means red and fiery.[3] Loosely translated, this means you want the fire to take your paleness, sickness and problems and in turn give you redness, warmth and energy. There is no religious significance attached to Chahar Shanbeh Suri and it serves as a cultural festival for all Iranian Jews, Moslems, Armenians, Turks and Zoroastrians alike. Indeed this celebration, in particular the significant role of fire, is likely to hail from Zoroastrianism.
