Difficult decisions

I take full pride in being a Zarathushti. And will always be one.

Today, I see a huge difference between being a Zarathushti and a Parsi. A Zarathushti is someone who follows Zarathushtra. A Parsi is a part of a Zara­thushti community that claims to follow Zarathushtra but in reality follows rules put down by self-appointed politicians.

In my short lifetime of 27 years, I have observed that we, as Parsis, suffer from a superiority complex. According to Parsis, non-Parsis also include other Zara­thushtis of the world. I would like to ask my Parsi brethren as to who gave us the right to decide that.

In spite of being citizens of India for the past 700 odd years, we are still called refugees or outsiders. I ask you, why? Even though our forefathers contributed so much to the country, why are Parsis always portrayed as a sweet but insane lot? I ask the Parsis, why do respectable, well-educated and professionally stable people of the community need to tolerate this nonsense?

Could we have done something to bring this image upon us? The answer is yes. We are solely responsible for the way people look at us today.

Parsis are the most literate people in India. But all the literacy hasn’t educated us to see the difference between historical facts and stories made up by people.

History says that in 588 BC, Zara­thushtra himself converted Vishtas­pa, a king of Chorasmia (an area south of the Aral Sea in Central Asia). How do you think Zoroastrianism flourished as the religion of Persia? It flourished because Darius decided to convert to Zoroastrianism and make it the religion of his empire.

The non-conversion norm is a cover-up because we are scared that if we accept conversion, we will lose out on some of the goodies that the Parsi sethias showered on us. Scholarships. Homes in colonies. Loans. In my eyes, this is selfishness and hypocrisy.

We talk about the superior bloodline of the Aryan race. Germany had just one Hitler. I dread to imagine how many Hitlers we have in this community.

There is a law that only considers children of a Parsi father as Parsis. This is sexual discrimination. Technically, a violation of the Fundamental Human Rights.

And after all this our right to a decent funeral has also been denied. Yes, yes we all know about the clean chit. Coke and Pepsi get them all the time.

I brought up the issue (like many other Parsis) about introducing electric cremations and burials with one illustrious Parsi. He said that the energy forces inside an electric crematorium and graves trap the souls and prevent them from reaching heaven! Most Zoroastrian customs and rituals talk about purity and have a scientific reason pertaining to hygiene. This explanation of souls getting trapped is totally baseless.

Having been a student of history, I can’t help but draw a parallel between today’s age and the Reformation Age where the church exploited its people because the Bible was written in a language that people didn’t understand.

Parsi children are taught the Avestan prayers by rote. But are they taught the meaning? Shouldn’t children be taught the meaning of the prayers or the history of the religion before their navjotes? I also have this nagging feeling that 60 percent of the priests also have no clue about the meaning and history of the religion.

During the Reformation Age people saw the difference between worshipping God and being a part of a community, which eventually led to a change for the better. But unfortunately, Parsis today are so blinded by the material benefits of being a part of the community that they’ve thrown the very essence of good words, good deeds and good thoughts straight out of the window. It showed during the personal attacks made on Dhun Baria, the woman who bravely campaigned against the ills of dakhmenashini.

Bringing about change among people who don’t want to see reality is like banging your head against the wall. It’s no use. That’s why I’m on the verge of making a very important and difficult decision.

I am seriously thinking of:

Denouncing my birthright to be a Parsi. I can do without those material benefits of homes in colonies, scholarships and loans.

Denouncing my right to be put in the Doongerwadi after I die. I can do without rotting and contaminating the pure environment (no matter what your clean chit says).

Denouncing my right to visit an agiary run by Parsis. Instead, I will continue to pray, say my kusti, light a diva, do my batti-loban and search for my good ol’ Zarathushtra whom we lost in our quest to be the perfect Parsis. Eventually he’s the one who will guide me to Ahura Mazda, not the pseudo Parsi community.

And wonder of wonders, nobody, no Parsi or non-Parsi, can stop me from praying and believing. You can excommunicate people. You can’t ‘uninitiate’ their faith.

After her graduation in history and postgraduation in advertising and marketing Sherrie Marker is currently working as a copywriter.