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Nowruz, also spelled as Navrooz, is the festival of the Iranian and Persian New Year. “Nowruz” is derived from two Persian words – “Now” signifying “new” and “Roz” signifying “day,” and together literally signify “new day.” The festival signals the onset of spring and the start of the new year in the Persian calendar. It is an important festival that unites people to celebrate renewal, rebirth, and the coming of the new season.
Nowruz festival, however, does not only sign the beginning of a new year but also signs the moment in time when sun passes over the celestial equator and day is as long as night. Such an event occurs once a year and is called vernal equinox, an indicator of nature’s official debut into springtime. The fact that it makes the day exactly equal to a night in duration signifies that a balance and peace reign in the nature. Allies believe that through this balance come renewal and rebirth, for nature and mankind alike.
The festival is widely celebrated across Iran as well as in many Central Asian, Caucasus, and other countries. It is a time when families and communities gather together, tidy up their homes, cook special meals, and participate in all sorts of customs that represent fresh beginnings. The celebration is also accompanied by family reunions where individuals send best wishes to one another, spend quality time together, and celebrate the traditions that have been passed from generations. It is a joyful, hopeful, and nature-filled festival.
Nowruz has roots going back over 3,000 years to the ancient Zoroastrianism, an ancient tradition of the ancient Persian empire. The ancient Zoroastrianism, which is one of the oldest religions in the world, greatly influenced most of the Nowruz customs. The earliest written reference to Nowruz is present in Persian literature dated to the 1st century CE, when the Parthian Empire was ruled by the Arsacid Dynasty. The festival represented the triumph of good over evil, as it came after the cold winter and the beginning of the warmer, life-giving spring.
Nowruz is also attributed to Persian mythology, specifically to the mythical person of King Jamshid, who is also a character in the Shah-Nameh, an epic poem by the great Persian poet Ferdowsi. King Jamshid, it is said, constructed a bejeweled throne that grew into the sky. This incident inaugurated Nowruz and stood for the victory of light and life over death and darkness. The legend of King Jamshid is a significant element of the cultural heritage of Nowruz, symbolizing hope and rebirth.
After the centuries, Nowruz had spread beyond Persia and thus became a festival widely celebrated around the globe. Nowruz is observed in different forms by people of various cultures, religions, and backgrounds, predominantly by Iranians here, Afghans also Central Asians, and many others. The extent of the festival is so great that it has turned into a global festival, observed and loved by millions.
One of the areas where Nowruz is celebrated with so much passion is Kashmir. In Kashmir, Nowruz is celebrated as nature’s renewal and new spring. The agrarian nature of the people in the region has a lot of regard for the festival because it is believed that seeds planted on or after Nowruz will grow into good plants with a long lifespan and good production. This belief ties the people stronger to the land they till, representing renewal both physically and spiritually. It is not only a time of celebration of the new season but also a time of affirming the people’s dependency on nature and agriculture in their lives.
Badam Wari in Srinagar has emerged over the years as one important symbol of the beginning of spring and Nowruz festivities in Kashmir. The festival in the slopes of the Hari Parbat is a symbol of the start of spring through the bloom of the almond flowers. The blossoms remind people of nature’s rebirth and the new beginning that the new season brings.
On Nowruz, social and environmental groups of Kashmir conduct mass plantation drives at large scales to assist in addressing the increasing issues of environmental degradation. The drives serve to maintain the natural beauty of the area and emphasize the role of sustaining healthy ecosystems. Nowruz is also celebrated on the International Day of Forests, which promotes the significance of forests and forest conservation. This blend of cultural and ecological importance turns Nowruz into a day of collective effort, whereby people unite to make sure that the coming generations would have in their turn a prosperous and healthy world.
Nowruz in Kashmir is both a cultural festival and, in a large sense, an exhibition of the ever-deepening bond between the people of Kashmir and nature. This festival represents hope and renewal and embodies the essence of cooperation. This is when people come together to rejoice in nature and to work towards its conservation for coming generations. The blending together of cultural and environmental elements of Nowruz in Kashmir makes for a very special and significant celebration.
Kashmiri Pandits are one of the Hindu sects that celebrate Nowruz, thus attesting to the virtually historic presence of Zoroastrianism or its offshoot in the Kashmir valley. Anthropologists and historians have usually termed this association as the “Avestan” or Eastern Persian tradition, which originally covered areas like contemporary Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Northern Pakistan, and Gilgit-Baltistan. The Nowruz celebration in Kashmir implies that the region was once a part of the larger Eastern Persian cultural zone. The tradition reflects the enduring influence of Zoroastrianism on the region, whose festivals and traditions are well ingrained in the local culture.
Observance of Nowruz by Kashmiri Pandits portrays the ancient historical connection of the region to Perso-central Asian civilizations. Specific cultural and religious influences in the identity of Kashmir are overwhelming. Therefore, the celebration of Nowruz in Kashmir must bear testimony to the region’s great cultural heritage and influence from its ancient ties with Persia and other Central Asian cultures.
To conclude, Nowruz is not merely the celebration of the Persian New Year but a festival that encapsulates the spirit of rebirth, hope, and oneness. It unites individuals with varied backgrounds in their joy over the onset of spring, the beginning of a new year, and the inherent unity of humankind with nature. In regions such as Kashmir, Nowruz is observed with utmost fervor, reflecting the region’s cultural richness and its age-old connections with Persia and Central Asia. The celebration is a reminder that, wherever we are on earth, the advent of spring signals new beginnings, the victory of light over darkness, and hope for a better future.
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