PATETI

India is a country of many castes, creeds and religions. From as

early as Alexander's army to the Mughal invaders, the British,
Portuguese, French and Dutch colonialist, people have come here in
search of the abundance of India. Here is a story of how some people
came to India many centuries ago in search of a peaceful life.
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Before the 8th century AD the dominant religion in Persia was Zoroastrianism. It
was the first religion to believe in only 1 all-powerful God and was practiced in
what is modern-day Iran. When Islam began to grow in popularity, Arab tribes
started invading land around Saudi Arabia and converting the people who lived
on the lands they conquered.
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• They finally reached Persia and began to force the people there to convert to Islam. The
Zoroastrian people were not equipped to fight because they practiced a form of religion that
was peaceful but neither did they want to give up their religion. So to avoid religious
persecution they began to board ships and fled to India.
• When they arrived in Gujarat local rulers offered them asylum and allowed them to settle in
their kingdoms. As the story goes, when the spiritual leaders were taken before King Jadi
Rana of Gujarat to ask if they could settle on his land, the king asked them to explain their
customs and beliefs. After recognising that they would not be a threat to his kingdom he
presented the leaders with a full glass of milk.
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• He said that his kingdom was like a cup about to overflow

and therefore had no room for immigrants. One of the leaders
then put a pinch of sugar into the cup and told the king that
his people would not make the kingdom overflow but enrich
the community.
• Jadi Rana was very pleased with this response and granted
them permission to stay if they promised to adopt the local
language and clothes, and never bear arms against the king.
Since there was no name for this religion or group of people
when they arrived on the shores of India they were given the
name Parsi, which literally means Persian.
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• The Parsis came to India so they could maintain their culture and way of life. This
meant that they also brought along the Shenshai calendar. According to this calendar
the new year falls sometime in August and is known as Pateti or Parsi New Year.
• Pateti is actually new-year's eve and a day on which people are required to think
about all the good and bad things that have happened in their lives during that year.
They then reaffirm a promise to live their lives through the tenets of Zoroastrianism-
right thoughts, right words, and right action.
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• Over the years Pateti has become a single-day celebration that is celebrated on
new-year's day itself. Parsis visit the Agiari (fire temple) and offer prayers. They
burn sandalwood in their houses and decorate their houses with rangoli.
• Pateti is a time for feasting in Parsi households since people visit friends and
family and are usually greeted with something to eat. Breakfast usually begins
with ravo (suji prepared with milk and sugar) or sev (vermicelli cooked in a
sugar syrup and served with raisins and almonds). For lunch there is usually rice
pulao, sali boti (a mutton gravy) and pathra-ni-machchi (fish prepared in banana
leaves). And then there's always some sutarfeni or jalebi to finish the meal.
Famous Parsi personality
 MERCI
(THANK YOU)