Restrict membership

The recent meeting of the traditional Parsi/Irani Zoroastrians held at Bardoli and organized by the Bardoli Zoroastrian Anjuman, Khojeste Mistree and his team, and generously sponsored by none other than Areez Khambatta, a noble athornan, was a unique experience and a great eye-opener for most of us who were present (see "A tale of two worlds,” page 30).

If at all any traditional world body is to be formed, then it should be formed only according to the scriptures and tenets of the Zoroastrian religion, i.e., it should comprise only Parsi/Irani Zoroastrians and their progeny. Membership to this traditional world body should be restricted to only Parsi/Irani Zoroastrians and their progeny.

Let us take a look at some issues which are cropping up nowadays — the dual issues of intermarried Parsi fathers (patrilineality) and the court obiter (and not judgment) passed 90 years or so ago (law of the land).

"Patrilineality,’ as believed and known in the Mazdo-Aryan civilization and as applied to the Parsi/Irani Zara­thushti community today, simply means that the man is the head of his family and that his wife and his children will bear his ‘family name’ and will also embrace his own (first) name as their middle name so that the others in the community will identify the origin of ‘his family’ and recognize ‘his’ wife and children by the virtue of his name. Patri­lineality does not mean that a Zoroastrian man gives his bunyad (tokham) — the hereditary seed — to some juddin and creates a non-Zoroastrian progeny and claims the ‘right’ to convert this non-Zoroastrian progeny into the Zoroastrian faith, by performing a mock navjote.

The late Justice Jamshed Sanjana had this to say about the ‘law of the land’ issue: "No law of the land can supersede the time-honored laws of a religion or race — as established by its fundamental beliefs, precepts, tenets, customs and traditions — unless, of course, proved harmful to others.

"A malpractice which has been challenged — opposed — and objected to — from its very time of inception — cannot be construed as ‘usage’ — ‘in law,’ nor could it be considered as an acceptance — of such malpractice.

"Because something which is basically wrong — remains wrong — till such time it is corrected — or — eradicated.”

Therefore, the BPP trustees’ decision (and the FPZAI’s also) to join the bogus cosmopolitan world body to be formed abroad this year shows that the danger to our noble community is from the very heart of the BPP, which is infested with the diseased agents of the WZO who, unfortunately, are now in control over and manipulation of every breath and every step taken by the BPP.

The traditional world body of Parsi/Irani Zoroastrians should also include a clause and have a clear mandate to protect our revered Vada Dasturs and the Parsi/Irani Zoroastrian priesthood in general from false threats and intimidation of legal actions from those agents of the WZO acting within the BPP.

Ervad DARIUS N. SETHNA