Persian holidays tend to be centered on the change of seasons and other solstice-type events. Today is Shab-e Yalda, the longest night of the year. It's the "eve of the birth of Mithra, the Sun God, who symbolised light, goodness and strength on earth." [ reference ]
According to my mother-in-law Nasrin, we're supposed to eat watermelon and pomegranate "to keep you warm all year."
In Iran today, despite of the advent of Islam and Muslim rituals, Shab-e Yalda is still celebrated widely. It is a time when friends and family gather together to eat, drink and read poetry (especially Hafiz) until well after midnight. Fruits and nuts are eaten and pomegranates and watermelons are particularly significant. The red colour in these fruits symbolises the crimson hues of dawn and glow of life, invoking the splendour of Mithra.
Because Shab-e Yalda is the longest and darkest night, it has come to symbolise many things in Persian poetry; separation from a loved one, loneliness and waiting. After Shab-e Yalda a transformation takes place - the waiting is over, light shines and goodness prevails.
[ reference ]
MORE INFO about Shab-e Yalda:
farsinet
wikipedia
cultureofiran
persianmirror
Questions I still have:
The night of the fortieth... what?
(Forty days before the next major Persian festival Jashn-e Sadeh?)
wikipedia
cultureofiran
persianmirror
Questions I still have:
The night of the fortieth... what?
(Forty days before the next major Persian festival Jashn-e Sadeh?)
