Jashne Sadeh Khur residents prepare for ancient fire festival

Jashn-e Sadeh: Khur residents prepare for ancient fire festival

TEHRAN – Residents of Khur, a city in Isfahan province, are preparing to observe Jashn-e Sadeh, an ancient Persian festival marked by a communal fire ritual, local cultural heritage officials said.

Abbasali Iraji, head of the Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Department of Khur and Biabanak county, said residents gathered on the evening of the fifth of Bahman (January 25) to collect and prepare a large pile of firewood in a palm grove, which will be lit as part of the ceremony.

“The traditional Sadeh ritual, which dates back to the pre-Islamic period, begins with the lighting of the firewood,” Iraji told Miras Aria on Tuesday.

He said local residents believe that after the Sadeh celebration, the intensity of winter cold decreases and the approach of spring and Nowruz is announced.

The Sadeh ceremony in Khur and Biabanak county has been registered in Iran’s national calendar of tourism events, according to the local heritage office.

Sadeh is an ancient Persian festival held annually on the 10th of Bahman, which this year falls on Jan. 29. It is traditionally celebrated 50 days before Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, and 40 days after Yalda Night, another ancient festival.

The celebration is rooted in ancient Iranian traditions and mythology and is associated with the symbolic role of fire as a source of light and warmth during mid-winter.

The festival is also observed in several other Iranian cities, including Yazd, Kerman, Isfahan and Shiraz, and among Iranian communities abroad. In 2023, UNESCO recognized Sadeh as a shared cultural heritage of Iran and Tajikistan.

AM

source: tehrantimes.com