California Parsis Celebrate Reopening With Gahambar
A Maidhyoshaem Gahambar was celebrated on 3rd July, 2021 at the ZAC Atash Kadeh. Attended by about 50 Zarthostis, the celebration began with a Jashan (sponsored by Dhun and Katy Alamshaw) and a Humbandagi led by Er. Zerkxis Bhandara. Er. Zarrir thanked the congregation and explained the importance of attending Jashans and Gahambars.
When an attendee exclaimed ‘food’ as the purpose of attending, Er. Zarrir agreed, adding that while food was one of the aspects, the community that prays together, also eats together and stays together. He further explained, “The last ten minutes of the Jashan comprises ‘Afrins’ which are full of blessings. You may have heard these words which are repeated three times “Ravan garosmani bad” it means: “for every single step you have taken to attend the Jashan, you may advance by 10,000 steps towards paradise”. When you prepare yourself by showering, wearing clean clothes, covering your head , performing a Padiyabe kusti and then attending a prayer ceremony, you become one the with the gathering/Anjuman. By focusing purely on the prayers, your mind gets relaxed and your sub and super conscious get strengthened.”
Answering those who question this with the reasoning that most do not understand a word or the meaning of what is being prayed, Er. Zarrir assured them that knowing the literal translation of the prayers was just the tip of the iceberg. “The real power and importance lies in the vibrations of our prayers. The Avestan prayers are composed on the law of Stoat Yasna/vibrations, so when you attentively listen to prayers, your conscious mind relaxes and your sub/ superconscious is awakened and you are imbibing the vibrations of the prayers with the blessings they contain. Blessings are around you all the time when you are attuned with Mathravani prayers,” he explained.
“Everybody has a set prescription. As a Zoroastrian, the prescription for you to attain salvation is through reciting prayers and attending religious ceremonies. This helps one to progress in this world and the next. What is so special about attending the Gahambar Jashan? What does Gahambar mean? ‘Gah’ means time or period. just like ‘Havan gah’, which later came to be known as ‘geh’. There are six Gahambars, the first 350 days of the year are divided by the first five Gahambars and the last 5 days are the Hamaspathmaidhyem Gahambar. ‘Ambar’ means coming together in prayers or ceremonies and partaking in food. One of the obligations for a Zarthosti is to attend and participate in all Gahambars – this is mentioned in ‘Patet/ Patet Ravan ni’, which is recited on the first three days of a person passing away. In the Sarosh nu Patru prayers, forgiveness is asked, if the deceased did not attend or participate in Gahambars. Hopefully, you now understand the importance of attending Gahambars,” concluded Er. Zarrir Bhandara.
