Refreshing curriculum
Mobeds, athornans and behdins alike benefit from the Residential Refresher Programme of the M. F. Cama Athornan Institute
"What is the major problem facing the community?” Desai asked the audience. "Housing,” said one. "Incompetent trustees,” said another which made the guest of honor retort, "You elected them!” "It is intercommunity marriages,” said a lady seated in the audience. Interfaith marriages are one more nail in the coffin of the Parsis, the BPP trustee agreed. "Who will solve this problem and how? It is only mobeds who can stop this. Otherwise in 50 years we will be wiped out with liberalization,” he lamented. Calling the priests "soldiers of Ahura Mazda,” Desai pledged a personal donation of Rs 50,000 to the ESA.
Chief guest Dastur Kaikhushro Dastoor Meherjirana of Navsari addressed the audience on Ilm-e-Khshnoom, and the mystical movement’s founder Khshnoomist Behramshah Shroff. "Religions are made by God. We do not understand the realities in nature. Religion shows us the path… Modern science can’t understand khudrat (nature). Mysticism is what’s beyond our understanding. Where science ends, mysticism begins…” The high priest narrated how Shroff, a stammerer and botther (uneducated person) gave the slip to his mother, went to Peshawar in Pakistan where his mama (maternal uncle) resided, crossed the Chaman no darwajo (door), met two magavand sahebs who took him to their ustad Rashid. He explained how Shroff received spiritual enlightenment after he was taken to Mount Demavand.
Solicitor and former BPP trustee Dadi Engineer stated, "I believe religion is a matter of the heart,” adding that he has been going to the fire temple every day. "Today these children in the front row are the finest examples of our community. Let there be more mobeds.” He donated Rs 10,000 to the organization.
"Jah suddhi maathapar ai saféd pugree rehsé né sharir ma dam rehsé, mobedi kadi khalas nai thasé (As long as I wear this white crown and have breath in my body, mobedi will never die),” said 12-year-old participant Ervad Farzad Driver with fervor, urging young athornan boys to take up the priesthood as a profession for the "sheer pleasure of serving the Almighty.”
Summing up the program chief coordinator Ervad Cyrus Dastoor briefed the audience about the course held from May 7 to 18. This year’s 26 participants comprised three ervads, three ostas and 20 behdins, the youngest being four-and-a-half years old. The participants "all underwent a spiritual experience in these 12 days,” he said.
1) Section of the audience; 2) Ervad Pirojshah Sidhwa; 3) Karanjia;
Meherjirana; 11) Osta Behram Motafram with best osta trophy;
12)Youngest participant Raamin Sanjana being felicitated by Ravji and Dastoor
Driver walked away with the Best Overall Performance Trophy in the ervad category. The Best Overall Performance trophy for osta was presented to Osta Behram Motafram, while Meherji Malegamwala took the Best Behdin Pasbaan trophy home. Behdin Pasbaans Taronish Patwa, Zubin Fanibanda and Farhan Gandhi stood first, second and third in bhanter (prayers), whereas Driver, Rayomand Motafaram and Malcom Masani excelled in the ervad category, while brothers Behram and Sarosh Motafram came first and second respectively amongst ostas. Religious quiz winners included Driver, Fanibanda and Gandhi (juniors). Their counterparts in the senior group were Malegamwala, Mehernosh Nagpurwala and Navroze Santoke.
The efforts of ex Municipal corporator Arvind Parmar were appreciated by Ervad Keki Ravji, ESA’s vice chairman. Parmar was reportedly responsible for the naming of the Cama Baug Chowk. The participants, young and old, led the humbandagi followed by two minute’s silence in remembrance of late Ervad Homi Gowadia, one of the pillars of the program. Monajats were sung with accompaniment by Viraf Daruwala on the harmonium. Ervad Pirojshah Sidhwa, one of the main organizers ended the evening with his "most important duty” of reading out the vote of thanks. While appreciating donors, speakers, well-wishers and helpers, Sidhwa particularly singled out the contribution of Godrej Fanibanda and Fardun Patel in managing the daily nitty-gritties after which the congregation feasted on a dinner catered by Ervad Noshir Govadia and his wife Dhun.
Inaugural function
Meherjirana and Dastur (Dr) Peshotan Mirza, ESA chairman presided at the inaugural function on May 7, 2013. Delivering the keynote address on "The Exalted Status of Fire in Zoroastrian Religion,” guest of honor Ervad (Dr) Ramiyar Karanjia, principal of the Dadar Athornan Institute, likened the atash padshah to a human being. Both need food for sustenance (wood for the atash), both could be used to create energy and to do evil things, he added.
Stressing the importance of yasna in the religion, Meherjirana asserted that the asar (repercussions) of the performance of kriyakam (rituals) can be felt in the entire universe.
The evening started with a jashan, followed by a brief humbandagi, after which Mirza delivered the inaugural address to a packed hall. Giving insights about our religious heritage and prayers given to us by our Prophet, he urged the congregation to "have faith in your religion and accept the rewards from Ahura Mazda… Get knowledge from religious leaders and live a life of righteousness.” Before introducing this year’s participants, Dastoor paid rich tributes to MFCAI’s founder late Merwanji Mancherji Cama. "Today whatever we (referring to the ex-students present) are, is because of him. We remember and thank him always,” acknowledged a grateful Dastoor.
The Programme
ESA is carrying forward the vision of founder Cama. The Association’s aim is to impart education on the religion and its ceremonies. In the event of there being no mobeds in moffusil areas where there is an atash dadgah, behdin pasbaans trained at the course can perform the afringan, farokshi, stum and jashan ceremonies, even making the darun, papdi and malido themselves!
The exhaustive 12-day program included talks by eminent speakers who shared their expertise. Treats for the eyes came in the form of films on the jashan/boi ceremonies and Kavyani Zando by Frohar Films, Sanjan excavations by Rukshana Nanji, the enthronement of the Godrej Baug Agiary, ecology by Dr Homi Dhalla, glimpses of the glorious Iranian history by Noshir Dadrawala and Power Point presentations on the Achemenian Empire of Cyrus the Great by Karl Sahukar.
Religious fervor was fanned by a trip to Udvada and a tour of the four atash behrams in Bombay. High priest Dastur (Dr) Firoze Kotwal hosted an afternoon at his residence where he patiently answered participants’ queries. An evening spent at Della Adventure in Lonavla, courtesy BPP trustee Jimmy Mistry (who met the participants there) enhanced their fun quotient.