“A mirror to reality”

In your editorial "A mirror to reality” (Parsiana, June 21, 2016) you write: "If the Parsi traditionalists wish to be taken seriously they have to present a cohesive, persuasive and organized argument. They have to create platforms and institutions. They have to present documentation and scriptures to substantiate their arguments. They have to put in the required, sustained hard work and thought. They cannot be mere armchair conservatives, spouting out random thoughts and fanciful stories. Unless they demonstrate some tangible results, they will continue to remain on the margins of society.”
You are interested in persuasive and cohesive organized argument. As if after we provide it, you will accept all our age old traditions. Haven’t all vada dasturs stated umpteen times and given in writing that intermarriage is bad and you cannot increase the fold by intermarrying? Even if the Prophet were to descend you will ask to see his university degree. Our Prophet is called as Aevo, the one and only. Some of the Hindu saints are known as Trikal Gyani or knowledgeable about three eras whereas our Prophet has known seven eras (Saat Kaal). He knows the past, present and future of all time until salvation or Frashogard.
You feel that we have to reform because our age old practice of dakhmenashini has become defunct for lack of vultures. Have you at all considered the fact that for Zarathushti souls no other method of disposal is permitted if they have to reach Chinvad Pul? There are places a soul has to dwell in after physical death on earth, like Naman, Vees, Jantu, Dakhyu, Varjamkard, Kang Daeza, Ganjesh (portal) as stated in our Avesta and Afringan prayers and in the Meher Niyaesh. Physical death is not end of everything, for nothing can be destroyed in nature. It can merely be transformed from one element to another, which is the basis of alchemy whereby lead can be converted to silver, or copper to gold. Here we are talking about the spiritual alchemy of a soul. That is why dakhmenashini is called Awal Manzil, which is the well oiled machinery of nature for disposal of atoms of a dead body in a defined and swift manner where they are taken care of by Daham Yazad. If other forms of disposal are used, Daham Yazad won’t be able to help the soul.
You would like to believe that by cremating the body or burying it we are giving dignified disposal to the body and the matter ends there. What you are missing out is that in addition to the physical body, there are other parts, the ultra physical and divine parts of the body, that have to be taken into consideration. Death is not the end of our journey but only a step further towards it. Besides the three physical bodies of tanu, gaetha and azda there are three ultra physical parts known as keherp, ushtan and tevishi and the divine part of the body is known as ruvan, baodang and fravashi all of which have to be taken into consideration.
Are you so wise as to question the authority of our Prophet who has shown us the path and these long standing customs that are valid for all ages? Even today in the absence of vultures we have the sun shining all year round which will crumble the physical body to powder form. Exposure of the body to the sun is known as Khurshed Nagirashni. Under the guise of being practical and pragmatic you would like to do away with our age old practices.
Why did we leave our homeland of Iran? To preserve and protect our religion and ethnicity. Amongst a huge population we have shone out due to our Parsipanu and preserving of our seed known as boonak pasbani, and under the guise of reform you want to give up all that? Fear tactics and brain washing of the gullible will not last long, for our religion will last for all time to come. The numbers may shrink but can never disintegrate for there is a higher hierarchy taking care of this. What will not last are the deformists who think it is time to change. Certain things cannot be changed. For example, just as you cannot change your children who are gifts from God, you cannot change your religion or tell others to forgo their own religions and come into our fold. I dread to think what the hardliners will do when they come to know of your conversion policy. Consider yourself lucky that you are dealing with a cultured community. Had you gone ahead with such gimmicks in any other community, they would have dealt death to the reformer.
It is one thing to believe what you want, but it is a sin or margarjan gunah to confuse the laity/fence-sitters with your distorted and convoluted way of looking at our religion. Please desist from doing that for on the day of judgment everyone has to answer for their misdeeds.
FIRDOSH K. SUKHIA
firdosh.sukhia@gmail.com

The editors reply:
Nowhere in the editorial or elsewhere in the magazine has Parsiana ever said that people should opt for cremation or forsake dakhmenashini. We have only pointed out the problems that could arise from the system. We carry comments from those who may oppose or support the system because we believe in freedom of expression.
The sun does not shine all year round. During the monsoons it is often hidden.
A Vada Dastur performed the navjote ceremony of Suzanne Briere, a French lady and the mother of J. R. D. Tata. The high priests disagree amongst themselves on many issues. And where is it said that Zoroaster opposed interfaith marriages? He would in all probability have welcomed the non-Zoroastrian spouse if she had consented to follow his nascent religion.
If we left our homeland to protect our religion, why did we land and stay in Diu which was a Muslim protectorate?
Parsiana has never espoused conversion but the freedom to follow the religion of one’s choice. People have changed religion from time eternal otherwise there would only be one religion in the world.
All the souls at Parsiana are safe. One should rather worry about the well-being of those who foist their views on others.