For me, January 1 is just another day. Nothing special. But once it’s March 20, my whole world begins anew. Such is the joy of Norooz, or Iranian New Year. Literally translating to “new day,” Norooz is a 3,000 year old holiday with roots in Zoroastrianism and Proto-Indo-Iranian paganism celebrated by 300 million people annually. Norooz is split up into three days: Charshanbe Soori, Norooz, and Sizdeh Bedar. 

Leading up to March, Persian households buy new clothes and undergo khoonehtakooni, or spring cleaning that involves the burning of espand, or wild rue to get rid of unwanted energy. Families also set up the Haft-Sin, a table with seven symbolic things beginning with the letter “s”: sabzi (lentil sprouts), samanu (seed pudding), senjed (dried lotus fruit), serke (vinegar), sib (apples), sir (garlic), and sumac (a sour tasting spice). The table will also include a “book of wisdom” (my family puts the Quran), goldfish, coins (sekeh), hyacinth flowers, chickpea sweets, and a mirror for looking within oneself to find God. My family goes to Persian Square in Westwood to buy these supplies where there is a large population of Iranian immigrants that have set up shops from Persian grocery stores to Farsi booksellers with everything written in and people only speaking Farsi. 

Charshanbe Soori is celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian calendar by jumping over fire to burn the past, as fire is considered sacred. Typically, we bow to the fire and chant, “Your redness to me, my paleness to you”, meaning getting rid of weaknesses and gaining strength from the fire. Similar to Halloween, children go around the neighborhood in disguises while banging on pans, demanding nuts and candy. 

Norooz, celebrated on the spring solstice, the New Year’s Day. A common symbol of Norooz is a lion killing a bull, a folkloric motif that can be seen throughout Iranian history (even on the walls of Persepolis) as symbolic of fana, or “dying before one dies” (dying to one’s animal self and coming back as a human incarnation). It includes parties with excessive food, receiving money from elders, the ritual handing out of coins (sekeh), the retelling of folk stories and recitation of poetry. 

Folkloric figures include Amoo Norooz (Uncle Norooz) who is married to Nane Sarma (Grandma Frost) and Hajji Firuz, a jester-like character that plays obnoxious music. Folk stories vary from province to province, but mostly come from Shahnameh, Iran’s national epic. The calling or visiting friends and family is customary and will last up to many days.