For the first time Fravardin parav prayers were held at the one-year-old Prayer Hall at Worli. A small crowd of around 30 gathered in the large airy main Hall to attend a jashan held in memory of the parents of the sponsor. Everyone was welcome to attend the ceremony regardless of caste, color, creed, age or sex.
After taking due permission from the trustees of The Prayer Hall, she sent out WhatsApp and email messages to family, friends and colleagues. Aside from a close circle of friends most were not aware of the jashan being held at The Prayer Hall. Last year there were no devotees at the site. Once the custom of Fravardin prayers is established at The Prayer Hall, the number of devotees may increase.
Fravardian prayers at The Prayer Hall
Fravardian prayers at Doongerwadi Photos: Jasmine D. Driver
"There is no competition with the traditional, only an acknowledgement and reverence for another, alternate way,” stated a devotee, Mehroo Kotval. "The happiest part is that on this occasion there was no physical disruption by the traditionalists who have been known in the past to object to navjotes and other events involving those whom they do not consider to be Parsi/Zoroastrians. The religion preaches tolerance, equality and choice. And in actual fact it is the so-called reformists who truly practice it,” the initiator of the prayers informed Parsiana.
Several in the community commented on the scanty crowd at The Prayer Hall on the occasion as versus the throngs that gathered at Doongerwadi to remember the dead. A Facebook post by journalist Nauzer Bharucha the following day, September 5, reads: "On Fravardin parav, one thought that the so-called Parsi Prayer Hall (not far from the Worli gutter) would wean away many Zarathushtis from Doongerwadi. Wrong. On Sunday, Doongerwadi was packed to the gills with throngs of devotees paying their respects to the departed at this salubrious 50-acre forest in the heart of South Bombay. Rich and poor, the weak and infirm were all there in a wonderful show of camaraderie and unwavering faith… The entire road leading to the bunglis was packed with cars, leading to a temporary traffic gridlock. …There was non-stop chanting of prayers by dozens of priests throughout the day…The ancient system of dakhmenashini is still functioning on the west coast of India, despite the vicious propaganda against it by the powerful liberals who have a vested interest in shutting down this sacred land. The community proved them so horribly wrong yesterday.”
The outcome is not surprising allowing for the fact that the Towers of Silence at Doongerwadi have been there close to 400 years, while The Prayer Hall has just entered its second year of existence.