Why Juddins Are Not Permitted to Enter Our Consecrated Fire Temples:

by:  Pervin J. Mistry

It is often asked, if Christians allow non-Christians to enter their churches and Muslims allow non-Muslims to enter their mosques, why cannot Parsi-Irani Zarathushtis permit juddins to enter our consecrated Fire Temples such as Agiaries and Atash-Behrams?

First of all, this assertion itself is wrong! For example, the Muslims do not allow any non-Muslims to enter Mecca or their sacred mosques where they conduct their communal prayers/rituals. Even the different sects, such as the Sunnis do not allow the Shi’is to enter their mosques and vice-versa! The Christians as well do not permit the tourists to go beyond a certain demarcation cordoned off from the rest of the St. Peter’s at Vatican and at the other orthodox Churches! The Jews also do not permit any Gentiles (non-Jews) or any Reformist Jews to enter their synagogues. The Hindus do not permit any intermarried Hindus or any non-Hindus to enter their consecrated Temples, the prime example being the Jagannath Temple at Puri! Therefore, we are not the only religious community who has rules of admission for entry into our consecrated Fire Temples!

Even a Parsi-Irani Zarathushti is barred from entry into our own Fire Temples due to certain requisite rules of purity, for both men as well as women! So why do some community members not understand that every religion has certain revealed set of rules which are meant for the followers to follow and obey, and if any detractor does not wish to subscribe to these mandated rules, why cannot such a rebel convert to any other religion of his/her own choice or set up a new cult instead of dragging the community down the path of disobedience? Let us try and sort out the reasons why certain spiritual laws are required to safeguard the continuity of spiritual disciplines which are indispensable for the survival of a specific religious community.

In our religion we talk about “pavi”, “kash”, “pavikat”, etc. In English, we refer to these as “spiritual force-field”. A “spiritual force-field” is an energy field around an object.  “Pav” means to “make pure” and therefore, a “pavi” is an unseen spiritual perimeter wherein nothing impure can enter due to the constant upkeep of certain rituals performed within. If the “pavi” is not maintained the strength weakens. “Kash” means the same. It indicates a circle or a boundary. Specifically, in connection to the issue being discussed, it means to draw a talismanic circle while performing certain rituals wherein the electro-magnetic forces do their work within the marked area!

How is this talismanic circle generated? It is so formed through an elaborate process of “consecration” by making the marked area sacred or “holy”! The Mobed Sahebs undergo a strict ritual of “barshnoom” (ritual ablution) of nine days. Then they start reciting the sacred Yasna and Vendidad rituals after drawing a boundary around the ritual area. Every Agiary and Atash-Behrams has furrows cut into the stone floors. These were consecrated when an Agiary or an Atash-Behram makaan was constructed. Additionally, more special consecration processes/rituals were performed separately for the Atash Padshah Saheb who is enthroned usually within the 9 marked “kash” or “pavi” beginning from the stone hindora on which the Padshah is enthroned!

If, when the Mobed Sahebs recite the rituals after observing all the mandated rules of purity, in reality, a strong spiritual force-field is created within the area. Can we see this force-field? No, not with our physical eyes because we can see only the visible portion of the light spectrum! Our eyes are not able to see the entire spectrum which includes the ultra-violet and infra-red light. But today, when people talk of “atoms’ and the “God Particle”, do they really see an atom or the “God Particle”? No – they only look for evidence that these exist! These are also beyond the scope of physical science and yet, following physicists’ theories, scientists believe in “parallel” Universes which are unseen and which is the origin of everything physical! Scientists believe that behind every atom, there is something spiritual that propels it and sustains it, which some call Super Intelligence! Whose Super Intelligence it is or from where this Intelligence comes, has yet to be discovered by science! Still, some of our community members will believe in and talk of the atoms and the God Particle as if they know these exist in reality but when the same principle applies to our rituals and religion, they wish to have physical proof!

It is preposterous not to have faith in the teachings of our Paigambar Saheb who is a Yazad, a Divine Being, an Immortal Spiritual Being, who is acquainted with both the seen as well as the unseen Universes! HE has given us the Great Mazdayasni Zarathushti Din which is super-scientific; it is the Science of all Sciences! Besides the many spiritual disciplines to attain to Frashogard, HE has also taught us the laws of “consecration”! To create an electro-magnetic circuit – within our Agiaries and Atash-behrams and to keep these spiritual “force-fields” recharged at all times, HE has taught us to use the natural energies working all around us and within us through Nature! Our Laws are all based on the Immutable Laws of Asha, meaning “Nature”!

Nature is full of different energies. Just as Light, as an energy, is a part of the electro-magnetic spectrum, the energy of Sound working in Nature also has its decibels. Energy, being Spirit or non-physical, can never be destroyed but it can be transformed into other different energies. An Oscilloscope represents sound as light patterns because these are both energies.

In our rituals we use both these energies of Light (Fire) and Sound (Manthravani/staot). Plus we also use water which is a good conductor of electro-magnetic energy; human magnetism of the ritually purified priests, ceremonial metallic implements which are also good conductors of electricity, and the earth itself on which the ritual is performed plus the stone hindora on which the afarganiyu is placed, are conductors of the electro-magnetic forces as well. As a result, a constant force-field is activated within our Agiaries and Atash-Behrams.

Being created with the use of our unique manthravani, atash which too is derived from previous different Zarathushti establishments, we maintain our consecrated area according to the magnetism created specifically to suit the spiritual needs of a Soul who is born of both Zarathushti parents who are from the same Parsi-Irani lineage preserved over thousands of years! The genes, the specific traits, are ingrained within our DNA. We respond to the specific manthavani, to the wavelength of the specific Light (Fire) and to all the rituals which our previous generations have followed and we follow the continuity! Juddins have their own different ways of worship, their own prayers, and their own spiritual strengths. Nature itself is diverse and so is humanity! If a juddin enters our consecrated places, there is disturbance of the energy which we cannot see but then it does not mean such spiritual reaction does not take place. Because Religion is spiritual, it has to be taken on faith and obeyed with complete dedication. If we do not see the spiritual side of nature, it does not mean such spiritual influences do not exist. It would not be very “scientific” or “educated” to deny the unseen forces of the Divine Universe we live in!

Please, please, out of ignorance do NOT destroy our “kash” by letting juddins infiltrate the sacred area where they should not. Intermarried couples must also realize that once they are married and cohabit with a juddin, they lose their original Parsi-Irani Zarathushti “khoreh” and their entry also harms the sacred “kash” inside our consecrated places of worship! This is not nonsense, in fact in today’s nuclear age, such things as “force-fields”, even the kids know of! But our Parsi brethren who wish to alter spiritual disciplines according to “likes” and “what they want” show a pathetic absence of wisdom and knowledge of the rules of Nature!