The Western manner of celebrating birthdays and anniversaries by lighting candles on a cake and then blowing them out while singing Happy Birthday/Anniversary, has been copied by Parsis and others. This is totally against the Zarathushti tenets as it unwittingly insults fire. It is not a gesture of health, longevity or happiness, but signifies death.
Blowing out a lighted (birthday) candle releases foul breath and saliva on the fire, desecrating it. We revere fire as the son of God: "Aathro Ahurahe Mazdaao puthra, rave aatarsh puthra Ahurae Mazdaao.” It is considered a cardinal sin to desecrate fire. There are many instances cited in the Patet Pashemani prayer of repentance for defiling fire.
An appropriate and meaningful mode of celebrating birthdays and anniversaries would be to ask the celebrant to light an oil lamp (divo) while reciting the Yatha or Ashem prayer and wishing that the year ahead may be as bright as the light, full of happiness and health. The divo should be allowed to die out naturally.
If one is in a place where lighting a divo is not possible, one can light a small candle so that by the time the celebrations are over the light has died out of its own accord.
If ever it becomes absolutely necessary to extinguish a divo, a candle or an incense stick, it should be done by moving one’s hands or a fan swiftly. It should never be extinguished by blowing on it with foul breath from the mouth or by immersing it in water. As per the teachings of the Mazdayasni Zarathushti religion, among the five ancient basic elements, fire and air are friends while fire and water are enemies.
I hope devout Zarathushtis will heed this suggestion and not blow out a flame.
BURJOR DABOO
Ahmedabad
burkhurdar@yahoo.com