“Pope for the Parsis”

I am amazed at Aspi Irani’s letter "Pope for the Parsis” (Readers’ Forum, Parsiana, February 21, 2008), strongly suggesting that the Parsi community should have a chief pontiff: a Parsi "Pope.” We have seen, abundantly, the fall-out of such a centralized power in Christianity and in Islam and their offshoots.

Irani writes "our religion is unintelligible to our community members… as the scriptures are in a language which is archaic.” The scriptures of all the ancient religions are in dead languages. Don’t the followers read translations in the current languages? What stops Parsis from reading our scriptures in Gujarati, English or in Persian?

What is the function of the high priests but to propagate our hoary religion in a scientific, dispassionate manner? It is not their job to align themselves with the World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis (WAPIZ) and trumpet the latter’s views. It is not their job to go on a bandwagon with Khojeste Mistree, Adi Doctor and K. N. Dastoor to a meeting and disrupt its proceedings until they are thrown out.

Let these "mini Popes” first work towards eradicating unacceptable/unZoroastrian practices which have crept into our community, such as not wearing the sudreh and kusti (tantamount to apostasy); going to Haji Malang and Haji Ali darghas; going to Catholic churches to attend novenas on Wednesdays; going to Hanuman temples on Saturdays; following the advice of our domestic help (in the hinterland) and practising ootaars (removing the evil eye) to ward off their children’s sickness.

Have any of our high priests publicly condemned these fetishes which have crept in over the years? If they haven’t tackled these serious frailties, may I ask Irani how a Parsi Pope is going to cure these deep-rooted evils?

The remedy does not lie with the proposed Pope but with the community. It lies in "going back to the Gathas” as suggested by Dr Dadabhai Naoroji 90 years back, and re-searching our roots in the pristine Gathas. Do we Parsis have the time for that? No. But we have all the time in the world to attack Homi Dhalla, Kersey Antia and others. As Shakespeare says, "the fault doth lie with ourselves that we are underlings.”

BEHRAM T. DASTUR

dasturbehram@yahoo.com