Peace on Earth

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Nazy Kaviani
by Nazy Kaviani
24-Dec-2007
 

Some people believe as Iranians and born Moslems, Christmas is not a celebration for us. I have known Iranian parents who tell their kids "We are not Christian, so we don't celebrate Christmas." I have even known of people who in that same vein, tell their very young children that there is no Santa Claus. That all seems so unnecessarily cruel, more so to the children, but also to the adults who think that way. I think in addition to Iranian customs and celebrations which are very important to our identity, there is no harm in taking other opportunities to celebrate. Especially those occasions which enable us to be a part of the community and nation which we now call our home.

I fell in love with Christmas the first year I came to US as a student almost three decades ago. I loved the lights, the colors, the presents, and the good spirit people had around Christmas. Though even then I was aware that this is a Christian holiday in origin, I never felt excluded from the celebrations by virtue of my religion or nationality. Much talk goes around about how commercial Christmas has become. It doesn't feel commercial to me, as I celebrate it for the joy and happiness it brings me and my family.

When we moved to Tehran in 1992, finding a Christmas tree and a turkey became a fairly complicated annual task. In Tehran these days, you can find perfect Christmas trees and huge turkeys to celebrate Christmas. In the early 1990's however, I wasn't so lucky, so I had to do with what I could find.
While we could find Christmas trees in the Armenian neighborhoods of Tehran, because Greek Orthodox Armenians celebrate Christmas a little later on January 1st, finding a tree a few weeks before December 25th wasn't always very easy. Some years I could find perfect trees, and some years I would find less than perfect ones which might be crooked or bald, threatening to topple over (and topple they did a few times!).

The turkeys from those first years in Tehran were also a memorable story. That first year in Tehran, when I asked a relative to help me find a turkey for our Christmas dinner, he delivered a live turkey to my door! The next year, the same relative who had had to put up with my complaints for a whole year, delivered a turkey that had been shot in a hunt. The next year life did not improve that much, as the turkey I received, though not alive nor shot, had all its feathers on it intact, and I had to be the one to clean it before cooking it! Until you have had to do the deed, you won't know what a gruesome task this is!

In later years, turkey farms were developed and I could get a decent turkey in most butcher shops. My family would celebrate Christmas with tens of other friends and relatives each year. Santa would come, too, but would only deliver "surprise" small gifts, seldom things on a wish list.

I live in these parts again. My children are grown and have now come to appreciate Christmas for the chance to be with family. Three decades on, I still don't believe Christmas is an "overly commercial" event, or a "stressful time of year," as many suggest. I think it is a time to come together, celebrate, visit with family and friends, and contemplate peace. For me it continues to be a time to be happy and festive regardless of our religious beliefs. No matter what our spiritual beliefs, we all know and appreciate and need peace, now more than ever. I wish you all a Merry Christmas and invite you all to join me in praying for, or wishing for, peace on earth. Merry Christmas To All!

//nazykaviani.blogspot.com/

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Some Christmas Traditions Began in Iran

by Sho (not verified) on

Thanks for sharing, Nazy. Growing up as a second-generation American, I was told by my Iranian parents exactly what your Iranian friends told their kids: "We are not Christian, so we don't celebrate Christmas." Oh, how I pleaded with my mom to put up a Christmas tree! Now after all those years, I learn the shocking news that the tradition of decorating trees began with ancient Iranians.

As Dr. Esmail Nooriala explained in his lecture about Shabe-e Yalda, which was recently posted on Iranian.com, "It is both surprising and delightful to look at Christmas trees and their decorations and remind ourselves that this is the same evergreen or Cypress tree (Sarv) our ancestors used to decorate in their cottages for the birth night of Mithra."

You can watch the nearly hour-long lecture here - //iranian.com/main/singlepage/2007/yalda-...

The complete text of an older version of the lecture is here - //iranian.com/EsmailNooriala/2001/Decembe...

If you don't have time to watch or read the whole thing here's a brief summary:

Before abstract religion, there was natural religion, which is what the ancient Aryan tribes who lived on the steppes of Iran practiced. It would get so cold there that they worshipped the sun for its life giving force. They called their sun god "Mithra." Every year they celebrated Mithra's birth on the longest night of the year because it meant that the days would start getting longer, the triumph of light over dark. Mithraism thrived in Iran and even spread to the Roman Empire, through their armies' contact with Iranian soldiers. The Romans adapted the Iranian version of Mithraism to create their own brand of it. It became so popular that when the Romans adopted Christianity as their state religion they incorporated elements of Mithraism, as well as Greek mythology, to assuage the masses.

According to Dr. Nooriala, "Mithra's birth night became the birthday of Christ and many of the Mithraic rituals were adapted as Christian ones. . . Every Christmas, we should remind ourselves that it is Yalda again. During every Yalda we celebrate both the rebirth of the sun and the birth of a man who is supposed to have come for the salvation of human kind. This is the magic of cultural genetics at work. We are all from the same origin and same sequence of genes."


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Kaasseh garm tar az aash

by Grinch (not verified) on

Why Iranians have to be ALL things at ALL times? How many non-Iranians, non-muslims do you know who celebrate the birth of prophet of Islam while living in Iran? Have you ever seen a German, French or English family, living in Iran, who would go to their local mosque to listen to the priest's sermon on an Islamic festive day? Have you seen a Westerner who would fast during the month of Ramadan and would throw an Eftari to his/her muslim friends (and I don't mean the American ambassador's annual ritual). Then why Iranians are so quick to change their color like a chameleon and mix up with their surrounding habitat? They only copy their Western models without having gone through the initiation process. Christmas has much more to it than blindly buying the tree and presents and stuffing oneself with the stuffed turkey. Merry Copymas.


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Celebrate away...

by Lamp-e rangi (not verified) on

Give me an occasion to celebrate and I'm there to celebrate it!
Festivities just bring out the best in me!
I love Noruz, Sizdah Bedar, Charshanbeh Souri, Christmas, New Year, Yalda, Mehregan....
I loved the happiness, the coming together with family and - back then lots of other kids - and
all the joy that was there to share... oh... and how could I forget the abundance of great FOOD!
( and yeah ... I know there is soooo much suffering going on in the world, but will the suffering cease if I make myself and others miserable?)
Just look at those twinkiling lights... Have a Merry Christmas everyone it's a Birthday so let's celebrate!


Jahanshah Javid

Memorable

by Jahanshah Javid on

Thank you for sharing Nazy. As a kid in Abadan I loved Christmas. Only for the gifts, and the decorations and ornaments. It was not a religious occasion, but a happy one. As you entered the house, you say our small pine tree with fake snow and lovely ornaments and boxes of gifts underneath. MERRY CHRISTMAS!