For people who may have never heard of it or celebrated, what is Nowruz?

Nowruz (pronounced no + ruz) means a new day. It’s the Persian New Year! Nowruz is a festival that is celebrated on the first day of spring, on March 21, when the day and night are equal in length.

Celebrated by many Persian Jews, Nowruz offers a chance to connect to community and nature. We give gratitude, instill hope, and remind ourselves of the possibilities that new opportunities can afford to us.

What are some of the traditions and rituals associated with Nowruz? Are there any connections between Nowruz and Jewish holidays and traditions? 

Nowruz is filled with many rich traditions which fittingly hold similarities with Judaism’s spring holidays of Purim and Passover. For example, khuneh takunee is a Persian version of spring cleaning, much like in Passover, when Jews clean their homes in preparation for the holiday. In Iran, there is a tradition of “spoon banging” where people, mostly young children, wear costumes, much like Jews do during Purim, and go door to door to hit spoons against plates and bowls. They also receive packaged snacks, similar to Purim’s mishloach manot, when there is an exchange of gifts.

A lot of the foods we eat on Nowruz symbolize sprouting or the beginning of the spring season. We eat sabzi polo–a rice dish with green herbs, kuku sabzi–egg frittata with herbs, fish as a symbol of life, and others.  

Another Jewish connection you might notice is the similarity between the foods and symbolism of a Haftsin table (Persian New Year ritual table) and what goes on the Passover seder plate.

While elements of spring and community are important, the most essential part of the Nowruz tradition is the Haft(7) Sin table: 7 items that begin with the letter “S,” all of which holding their own symbolism.

1. Sabzeh-wheat, barley, or lentil sprouts: symbolizing rebirth and growth.
2. Saman-sweet pudding made from wheat germ: symbolizing sweetness and fertility.
3. Senjed-dried oleaster fruit: symbolizing love.
4. Seer-garlic: symbolizing medicine and health.
5. Seeb-apple: symbolizing beauty and health.
6. Somagh-sumac: symbolizing the sunrise and new beginnings.
7. Serke-vinegar: symbolizing age and patience.

In addition to the above items, some families may also include additional items on their Haftsin, such as:

• Sonbol-hyacinth flower: symbolizing spring and the renewal of nature.
• Sekkeh-coins: symbolizing wealth and prosperity.
• Shirini-sweets: symbolizing happiness and joy.
• Tokhm-e-Morgh-decorated eggs: symbolizing fertility and new beginnings.
• Goldfish: symbolizing life and the flow of time.
• A mirror: symbolizing reflection and self-reflection. 
• Candle(s): symbolizing light and happiness.
• Holy book(s): symbolizing spirituality and faith. (Jews might use a Torah while Muslims use a Quran, and others might use a book of Persian poetry such as Hafez),

“Chaharshanbe Suri In Iran – Festival Of Fire,” Mahboobeh Razavi, SurfiranMag 2024.

Another Nowruz tradition is Chaharshanbeh Suri which takes place on the last Tuesday of the Persian New Year, prior to new years.  What do we do? We jump over fire on this evening, symbolizing leaving behind darkness of the past year and embracing the purifying flames to start anew. The fire symbolizes purification and renewal and is a constant reminder that light always triumphs over darkness. This practice is similar to biyur chametz– the burning of bread before Passover begins, which symbolizes getting rid of the past in anticipation of preparing and making room for the new.

Nowruz has many memorable elements in it. Do you have a favorite Nowruz memory? 

Because Nowruz is on the first day of spring, it is about coming out of a dark winter and seeing spring, greenness and new things sprouting– a sign of hope and possibility. One of my favorite childhood memories around Nowruz is going out to a picnic with the Persian community in Los Angeles, on Sizdah Bedar which takes place on the 13th (Sizdah) day of the Persian month of Farvardin. The idea is to get rid of negative energy, to come together with the community and strengthen those relationships, to play games, share stories, and merely be outdoors with friends and family.

Are there any unique ways that Persian Jews celebrate Nowruz compared to other Persian communities? If so, can you also elaborate on what unique traditions are found in different Persian communities or regions?

Nowruz is an important part of Persian culture, connecting us across experiences. Almost all Persians celebrate Nowruz because it predates the monotheistic religions and is a Zoroastrian holiday. There is always a holy or spiritual book on the Haftsin table. While a Persian Muslim may have a Quran on the Haftsin table a Persian Jew might have a Torah/Tanach or a non-religious person might have a book of poetry from Hafez, otherwise the symbols on the table are shared and identical.

Some Jews feel that to celebrate a Zoroastrian holiday is not right to do as Jews–but most do not see it as a threat and understand that it is merely a way of celebrating the Persian new year. Persians are proud of this holiday because when the Muslims conquered Iran and forced conversion, Persians proudly kept their language of Farsi (even though their letters were changed to Arabic, the language remained) and proudly kept their holiday of celebrating Nowruz. It is not a holiday that is celebrated amongst other Arab countries and is proudly Persian.

As a rabbi especially, what are ways for people to meaningfully reflect on Nowruz? 

With Nowruz originating from Zoroastrianism, it is interesting that Purim also takes place in ancient Persia, and that the rituals of Passover, around the same time, are all linked; after all Passover is originally one of the Jewish New Years! Later, the rabbis made Rosh Hashanah the Jewish New Year, but originally we had four, Passover being one of them. It is interesting to help people think about the changing seasons in a way that brings about an opportunity to cleanse, reset, and move forward towards a new day. Nowruz is a holiday that really connects to nature symbols like flowers, eggs, goldfish in a bowl, all remind us of life. The mirror on the Haftsin table is also a wonderful opportunity for us to reflect on our lives, much like we do during Yom Kippur or weekly on Shabbat. It is an opportunity for us to connect to nature and remind ourselves that time is fleeting but that we have an opportunity to grow and change and plant new seeds and watch them blossom.

Stay on the lookout for Be’chol Lashon’s upcoming video series on Nowruz funded by a YES (Youth Education Special Projects) Fund grant from the Women of Reform Judaism.

Rabbi Tarlan Rabizadeh is the Vice President of Jewish Engagement at the American Jewish University. She directs the Maas Center, which oversees the AJU Mikvah and the Miller Introduction to Judaism program, the most popular course track for the basics of Judaism and conversion.

She is a dynamic leader in the Jewish community who blends tradition and modernity to create meaningful Jewish experiences. Raised in Los Angeles’s Persian Jewish community, known affectionately as “Tehrangeles,” she is passionate about fostering diversity and inclusivity in her role at American Jewish University.

Rabbi Tarlan holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Boston University and a master’s in Jewish education and Hebrew literature from Hebrew Union College-JIR, where she was ordained.

Her previous roles include Director of Student Life and Senior Jewish Educator at UCLA Hillel, Jewish Emergent Network Rabbinic Fellow at The Kitchen in San Francisco, and faculty member at Milken Community High School.