"Ours is a well-educated, forward-looking community which has forgotten to celebrate festivals with family. Revive the tradition of visiting atash behrams or agiaries with family on festive days like Navroz, New Year, paravs and on solemn days like muktads,” exhorted Dastur Khurshed Dastoor, High Priest of Udvada after leading a jashan performed by 17 mobeds at the Avan Yazad Parav on March 22, 2025 on the pier of the Bombay Presidency Radio Club in Colaba, notes an email by Kersi Limathwalla, chairman of the M. J. Wadia Fire Temple Trust in Lalbaug, under whose auspices the jashan was conducted. The email was forwarded to Parsiana by Kobad Gheewala on behalf of the organization. The youngest mobed was 13-year old Ervad Meherzad Bulsara, mentions the email.
Dastoor called upon Zoroastrians to donate to and take part in the gahanbars to allow our legacy of celebration with charity live on. He ended on an optimistic note: the earth would become a better place if we asked ourselves three questions before performing any deed — Will my deed help others? Will it benefit society? Is my deed a good deed? A deed should be performed only if the answer is "yes” to all three.
Clockwise, from above: jashan, Dastur Khurshed Dastoor;
Khojeste Mistree; Ervad Zerick Dastur; Zarine Commissariat; Kersi Limathwalla
The birthday of the water deity Avan Ardavisur Banu, an annual event, coincided with World Water Day this year organized by a committee comprising Limathwalla, Kersi Commissariat, Hanoz Patel, Ervad Zerick Dastur and Darayus Desai. The tradition was started over 50 years ago by the late Dinshaw Merchant and Rustomji Kooka, notes the write-up.
Zarine Commissariat compered the evening’s function. Limathwalla explained how Avan Ardavisur, a hamkara (co-worker) of Asfandarmad Ameshaspand and other Ameshaspands are responsible for the seasons and the water cycle. Keynote speaker Khojeste Mistree spoke glowingly of the powerful water divinity Avan Ardavisur Anahite. Zoroastrianism promotes ecology where all seven creations of nature (man, animals, fire, sky, earth, water and plants) are preserved, he said.
The evening was interspersed with monajats by Viraf Daruwala. Ervad Zerick Dastur recalled his memorable experience of performing humbandagi on the shores of the Caspian Sea in Iran.
Attendees received dar ni poris as a take home gift, notes the write-up. S. V.