Outmarried Parsis
Shame is the word that pops up in my mind when I read about the insensitive, unkind treatment meted out to Parsi women who have married outside the community, and to their children. These women have not given up their Zoroastrian religion nor converted to their husband’s faith.
I have always thought that Parsis are a reasonable, forward thinking lot — educated, philanthropic, intelligent and liberal. So why can’t they be more inclusive, keeping the core ethics of Zoroastrianism in mind? When it comes to Parsi women marrying outside the community, reason, common sense and compassion fly out the window.
I also feel very strongly that a handful of people control our places of worship and prevent other Zoroastrians who are not Parsis or Iranis from India being accepted and included in our faith, citing a Bombay High Court order of 1908. This is nothing short of ugly racism and power politics!
I sincerely hope more liberal, forward-thinking Parsis open up their hearts to all Zoroastrians — whether born or willing converts — and rejoice in our beautiful faith!
Asha Vahishta, The Zoroastrian Centre in Poona grants entry to spouses/offspring of interfaith marriages and others. It is a matter of great joy and pride to see common sense and decency prevail at last! I sincerely hope this trend of inclusion continues and grows, and the cobwebs of ignorance and bigotry are swept away. SOONOO ANDREWS
sheekshee@hotmail.com
The children of Parsi Zoroastrian men married outside the community can become Parsis, but the same is not true of the children of Parsi women married to non-Parsis. Why? The truth is that even Parsi Zoroastrian men cannot marry non-Parsi women. If they insist on doing so, they are committing a great sin as described in the Patet Pashemani prayers and also in the Vendidad and some other tracts in our ancient scriptures.
DARYUS ARDESHIR
daryusrandelia@gmail.com
The editors reply:
Conversion to Zoroastrianism was permitted and enjoined in ancient Iran. So a non-Zoroastrian could convert and marry. In India, following a Bombay High Court judgment of 1908, anyone can convert to Zoroastrianism but they are not legally considered Parsis. This double qualification of Parsis and Zoroastrians did not exist in Iran at the time.
If women had economic power and were heads of industrial and financial houses, their interfaith marriages too would have been unquestionably accepted! Look at the families of the wealthy Parsis...just start with JRD Tata who was the son of a Roman Catholic French mother Suzanne Briere. Did anyone dare to oppose his father Sir Rattan Tata and keep his son from being accepted as a Parsi? There are others in the Tata family and among other industrial and business magnate families, and the list is long - go check it out!
The Zoroastrian population worldwide is not more than 130,000 and is decreasing fast. Deaths outnumber births by a wide margin. The old and non- married significantly outnumber the young and married. Separation and divorces have increased significantly in recent years as per press reports specially among the Zoroastrians in North America and Iran.The numbers of Zoroastrians living in India,Pakistan and Iran according to press reports is on the decrease. In a decade or so the UN will surely pass a resolution to declare the followers of the faith still left as a protected specie in order to prevent complete extinction. The orthodox and priests are blind to these problems and will be so till the UN resolution when it will be too late