Readers' Forum
Children of one God
I have been reading Parsiana for years. It makes me really sad to see the unresolved controversies, the unwillingness of the dasturs, community leaders and elected trustees to move with the times and be willing to accept change and guide the community in the right direction. What was good thousands of years ago is no longer applicable today.
At the risk of being ridiculed and criticized, I have decided to express my views. Dakhmenashini was designed in keeping with our religious teachings of charity and not polluting the environment. It was the most advanced and environment-friendly method of disposing dead bodies until recently when the vultures moved out of the city due to rapid urbanization. The bodies lying in the dakhmas for days and weeks emit a foul smell that spreads in the surrounding areas including Godrej Baug. Yet our so-called, self-proclaimed guru(s) try to convince the community that dakhmenashini is still the religious method of disposal.
Disposal of the dead body whether it is buried, cremated, consigned to the dakhmas or donated for medical research has no religious significance. Funeral prayers are to soothe and assist departed souls on their journey towards the spiritual world and they are neither for the corpse nor for the method of disposal. Some time back, two mobeds were chastised and barred from performing prayers at Doongerwadi and agiaries because they were performing prayers for the souls of cremated persons. But I applaud the courage of their convictions.
Refusing to perform interfaith marriages or navjotes of children of mixed marriages, barring a non-Parsi spouse from attending any of our prayers, including the funeral ceremony of their loved ones, is against the tenets of our faith. Who decided that people not born in the Zoroastrian faith should not be allowed to follow the path of Asha? A human being living his/her life in accordance with the universal principles of good thoughts, good words, good deeds and all the other virtues should be considered no different than any Zoroastrian.
Why do some think that the universal teachings of our dear Prophet are reserved only for a select group of people? A person born into the faith but not living his/her life as per the teachings of our religion can enter the fire temple without desecrating the fire yet a virtuous non Zoroastrian’s presence in the fire temple is not permitted. How does the mighty power of the fire get desecrated by the mere presence of a non Zoroastrian?
In Atash Nyaish, fire is defined as the son of God ("Atash Ahurahe Mazdao Puthra”) 16 times. If we truly believe that Atash is the son of God, can the presence of a mortal human, not born in the Zoroastrian faith, have a greater power? Can any human being overpower the mighty fire that provides heat, light, tranquility, divine guidance, help, peace of mind and nourishment for our soul? Every other place of worship — be it a church, synagog, temple (mandir), mosque or gurudwara — allows entry to people from other faiths. Only Zoroastrians do not allow non-Zoroastrians entry into our fire temples.
Are we spiritual or obsessed with rituals, customs and dogmas? The path of Asha prescribes the virtues of being truthful, charitable, tolerant, peaceful, understanding, loving, compassionate and forgiving; to have empathy; to be faithful, humble, kind, generous and benevolent; to be respectful and to treat everyone equally. Instead, we follow the negative traits of manipulation, egoism, falsehood, gossip, arrogance, jealousy, anger, envy, hatred, greed, selfishness, hypocrisy, cruelty, revenge, stubbornness, deceit, harassment, and so on.
Zoroastrians take pride in saying that Zarathushtra was the first Prophet who believed in one God: the creator of the entire universe and galaxies beyond. Then are we not all children of the same God? There is no religion in the spiritual world. Every religion ultimately talks about one Supreme Being. Then why do we think we are superior to other communities and religions? Do we really think that God has chosen us above his other creations? God does not discriminate, so why are we discriminating against those who believe in the same God through their faith?
We took birth on this earth to learn our lessons, pay for our bad karma and create good karma, to receive blessings, to live a virtuous life and improve spiritually. Our priests and community leaders, elected trustees and self-proclaimed, opportunist scholars have misled and misguided the community, thereby creating bad karma not only for themselves but also for others who follow them. JAL PANTHAKY
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
jal_panthaky@yahoo.ca
At the risk of being ridiculed and criticized, I have decided to express my views. Dakhmenashini was designed in keeping with our religious teachings of charity and not polluting the environment. It was the most advanced and environment-friendly method of disposing dead bodies until recently when the vultures moved out of the city due to rapid urbanization. The bodies lying in the dakhmas for days and weeks emit a foul smell that spreads in the surrounding areas including Godrej Baug. Yet our so-called, self-proclaimed guru(s) try to convince the community that dakhmenashini is still the religious method of disposal.
Disposal of the dead body whether it is buried, cremated, consigned to the dakhmas or donated for medical research has no religious significance. Funeral prayers are to soothe and assist departed souls on their journey towards the spiritual world and they are neither for the corpse nor for the method of disposal. Some time back, two mobeds were chastised and barred from performing prayers at Doongerwadi and agiaries because they were performing prayers for the souls of cremated persons. But I applaud the courage of their convictions.
Refusing to perform interfaith marriages or navjotes of children of mixed marriages, barring a non-Parsi spouse from attending any of our prayers, including the funeral ceremony of their loved ones, is against the tenets of our faith. Who decided that people not born in the Zoroastrian faith should not be allowed to follow the path of Asha? A human being living his/her life in accordance with the universal principles of good thoughts, good words, good deeds and all the other virtues should be considered no different than any Zoroastrian.
Why do some think that the universal teachings of our dear Prophet are reserved only for a select group of people? A person born into the faith but not living his/her life as per the teachings of our religion can enter the fire temple without desecrating the fire yet a virtuous non Zoroastrian’s presence in the fire temple is not permitted. How does the mighty power of the fire get desecrated by the mere presence of a non Zoroastrian?
In Atash Nyaish, fire is defined as the son of God ("Atash Ahurahe Mazdao Puthra”) 16 times. If we truly believe that Atash is the son of God, can the presence of a mortal human, not born in the Zoroastrian faith, have a greater power? Can any human being overpower the mighty fire that provides heat, light, tranquility, divine guidance, help, peace of mind and nourishment for our soul? Every other place of worship — be it a church, synagog, temple (mandir), mosque or gurudwara — allows entry to people from other faiths. Only Zoroastrians do not allow non-Zoroastrians entry into our fire temples.
Are we spiritual or obsessed with rituals, customs and dogmas? The path of Asha prescribes the virtues of being truthful, charitable, tolerant, peaceful, understanding, loving, compassionate and forgiving; to have empathy; to be faithful, humble, kind, generous and benevolent; to be respectful and to treat everyone equally. Instead, we follow the negative traits of manipulation, egoism, falsehood, gossip, arrogance, jealousy, anger, envy, hatred, greed, selfishness, hypocrisy, cruelty, revenge, stubbornness, deceit, harassment, and so on.
Zoroastrians take pride in saying that Zarathushtra was the first Prophet who believed in one God: the creator of the entire universe and galaxies beyond. Then are we not all children of the same God? There is no religion in the spiritual world. Every religion ultimately talks about one Supreme Being. Then why do we think we are superior to other communities and religions? Do we really think that God has chosen us above his other creations? God does not discriminate, so why are we discriminating against those who believe in the same God through their faith?
We took birth on this earth to learn our lessons, pay for our bad karma and create good karma, to receive blessings, to live a virtuous life and improve spiritually. Our priests and community leaders, elected trustees and self-proclaimed, opportunist scholars have misled and misguided the community, thereby creating bad karma not only for themselves but also for others who follow them. JAL PANTHAKY
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
jal_panthaky@yahoo.ca
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