Spring brings with it a host of holidays. Easter, Passover, and Ostara to name a few. This episode unveils a holiday you may not have heard about – unless you’re Persian. It’s the holiday of Nowruz, and it celebrates the coming of Spring in some very special ways. Listen in as Kim and Leigh share what they’ve learned about the traditions ranging from defeating demons to picnicing in the park.Episode Notes
Nowruz
“Nowruz” means New Day, and this Persian New Year holiday marks the coming of Spring with a large family feast at the stroke of Vernal Equinox and a Haft-sin table decorated with everything that symbolizes new beginnings.
Nowruz is practiced by over 300 million people around the world, and the first of its 13 days of celebration begin literally at the Vernal Equinox where sunlight is evenly divided between the North and the South hemispheres. In 2010, the UN General Assembly adopted March 21 officially as the International Day of Nowruz.
Religious & Secular Roots of Nowruz
Leigh and Kim start with the history of Zoroastrianism, the oldest and most continuously practiced religion in the world, whose followers celebrate the metaphorical triumph of Good over Evil as evidenced by Winter giving way to Spring, and the vanquishing of dark nights by longer days. Many of the Zoraster beliefs that everything is imbued with spirit gave Nowruz celebrations its roots.
We also discuss a secular version that roots the holiday in the story of Jamcheed, a mythological king who vanquished demons intent on making an eternal winter by tricking them into raising him up on a jeweled throne “where he shone like the sun and defeated the darkness.”
The Haft-Sin Table
The Haft-sin table is very central to celebrating Nowruz. We discuss the seven (Haft) S-named items (sin) that are always placed on the table and what each item represents:
Seeb is an apple and it represents beauty.
Seer is garlic which represents good health.
Serkeh, which has vinegar, represents patience.
Sonbol, or hyacinth, represents Spring itself.
Samanu is a sweet pudding made with wheat and it represents fertility.
Sabzeh are wheat sprouts, and they represent rebirth
Sekeh, which are coins, represent prosperity.
Other items that might appear on haft-sin tables are crushed sumac berries to represent the sunrise or the “spice of life,” mirrors to help you reflect on the past and look into the future, and goldfish to symbolize life.
Nowruz Food Traditions
We finally get to the food and discuss what dishes we might find at a family table immediately after the Vernal Equinox. That might include dishes like Sabzi-polow-ba-mahi, which is rice tinted, vivid green with herbs and served with fried fish, as well as kuku-ye-sabzi or an herbed omelet. Other popular dishes include Reshteh Polo which is chunks of lamb with rice and noodles; Dolmeh Barg< grape leaves stuffed with a mixture of rice and ground lamb; Shirin Polo which is a sweet rice pilaf; andAsh Reshte is a thick soup of noodles.
Nowruz concludes its 13 days fittingly outdoors with a picnic. Some of the dishes recommended for this occasion are Kahoo Se-kan-je-bin, or lettuce leaves eaten with vinegar and honey syrup, and Baghali Polo composed of broad beans and rice. What spring holidays do you celebrate
In our next episode we discuss another Spring celebration that commemorates the beginning of a new nation, Passover.
Nowruz Transcript
🎧 Click here for the full, interactive transcript of this episode 🎧
Sources We Found Helpful for this Episode
Books We Think You’ll Enjoy Reading
Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies, Najmieh Batmanglij
Bottom of the Pot: Persian Recipes and Stories, Naz Deravian
Recipes You Really Need to Try
Kuku Sabzi (Persian Herb Omelette) – Family Spice
Persian Dolma (Stuffed Grape Leaves with Meat and Pomegranate) - Family Spice
Shirin Polo with Raisins (Persian Sweet Rice) – Family Spice
Ash Reshteh – Family Spice
Sekanjabin (Persian Mint and Cucumber Cooler)– Family Spice
Episodes We Think You’ll Like
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