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The illumination from the chandeliers and floral decorations transformed the edifice of the Seth Pestonji Kalabhai Vakil Kadim Atash Behram in Surat as it prepared to mark its 200th anniversary. The special glow was visible not only on Vakil Street where the Atash Behram is located but further down the Shahpore locality for even though the majority of Parsi households may have moved out from the vicinity, the sacred sentinel continues to stand. 

In case anyone had missed the sight the previous night, a blaring band outside the Atash Behram greeted devotees and passersby from 7 a.m. until the scheduled start of the khushali nu (joyous thanksgiving) jashan at 9.30 a.m. on October 17, 2023. The festive mood was palpable inside the precincts too with the chalk and floral decorations, the ladies and gents in their traditional Parsi outfits, their heads duly covered. While the early morning rituals that started with the offering of a maachi and hoisting of the zando (flag) saw nearly 100 devotees in attendance, by the time the function ended nearly 1,400 had participated in the complimentary khushali nu jaman (joyous feast). 

To usher in the sacred fire’s bicentenary on mah Tir, roz Ardibehesht according to the Kadmi calendar, 15 kg of sandalwood was offered in the Havan gah by Ervad Kerman Katpitia. The flagpole bearing the Atash Behram’s Kavyani zando was initially kept in a horizontal position in the wedding hall in the Atash Behram complex for devotees to garland it and to offer sukhad in the small afarganiyu beside it. The Kavyani zando (see "Flag for the faithful” pg 54) was then taken to the Atash Behram building and hoisted on the terrace amidst loud cheering, clapping and singing of Chhaiyé Hamé Zarthoshti.

Forty-five priests joined in the jashan led by Ervad Sarosh Behramkamdin in the hall of the Atash Behram. When Parsiana reached the venue there were seats available but thereafter many latecomers had to sit on the verandah or the chairs outside the fire temple building. Following the jashan, Dastur Cyrus Dastur of Surat led the assembly in a humbandagi. Those in attendance were mainly the middle aged, the seniors or the super seniors, some even using walkers. 

Pestonji’s promise

There is no photograph available of the founder Pestonji Vakil nor is information available on his birth according to the Kadmi calendar. As per the Vakil family tree, he was the fourth son of Kalabhai who ran a small grocery store in Surat. Pestonji, being young when Kalabhai expired, started work as a munim (accountant) and later joined a law firm in Surat where he quickly learnt the ropes. Soon he started appearing in court as an independent lawyer. 

When he was diagnosed with a serious illness, Pestonji vowed to build an atash behram on his recovery, stated Burzin Chiniwala, joint managing trustee of the Atash Behram in his talk on the founder and the fire temple. "When doing good work there are bound to be hurdles but with persistence he succeeded,” added Chiniwala, giving Pestonji credit for fulfilling his promise in 1823 when he was 48 years old.

Initially planning to build the Atash Behram on land fronting a river in the neighborhood of Mughalsarai, he subsequently decided to build it in Shahpore, a mohalla where he and many other Parsis lived, according to the history of the fifth oldest atash behram in the 70-page bicentenary brochure in Gujarati released on the occasion. While assembling the fires required from different sources to start an atash behram, the fire created by lightning was proving elusive. Unexpectedly, lightning struck a tree and caught fire in the Nawab’s garden resulting in the consolidation of 16 fires for the Atash Behram. Under the guidance of Dasturs Sorabji Nalladaru and Sorabji Kumana the rituals connected with sanctifying the building and the fire were performed. On the day of the consecration in 1823, the Surat court, the collector’s office and all the factories in this area remained shut. Following the jashan and felicitation of the key personnel, Pestonji was honored with nearly 20 shawls. The function ended with a lunch sponsored by the benefactor.

Unfortunately, within seven years, Pestonji passed away. An article in Gujarati in the Mumbai Samachar of January 11, 1830 referred to him as a stalwart not only of the Parsi community but other communities as well. He was further described as a highly religious minded, charitable, friendly, respectful and intelligent person. 

"The Atash Behram precincts have been like a rock of faith,” reminded Homi Vakil, sixth generation descendant of Pestonji and currently joint managing trustee of the Atash Behram. Many in the community have had their navjotes and weddings performed here. While earlier the Atash Behram was maintained by the Vakil family, when they ran short of funds they solicited donations from the community who obliged willingly. Among the many who gave generously Homi was particularly impressed by two of their boiwalas, Ervad Shapur Marzban who left all his personal belongings on his passing away to the Atash Behram and Ervad Rustomji Sohrabkhan who single-handedly renovated the entire edifice at an enormous cost and whose family continues to give donations to the Atash Behram.  

On the Atash Behram’s 150th anniversary it was Homi’s father, Justice Nusservanji, who addressed the gathering while Homi sat in the audience.  At the bicentenary, Homi experiencing difficulty in speaking aloud that morning, his speech was read by his wife Dolly. 

Dignitaries and devotees

Following the jashan, for the three-hour felicitation function on the 200th anniversary, the venue shifted to the wedding hall. Once the divo was lit by Cyrus Dastur, every speaker invited to the dais was welcomed with a prominent tilo on the forehead. The rest of the congregation was accommodated under the shamiana outside where a large screen gave a clearer view of the dais. Even though bottles of water and soft drinks were periodically being served on that hot, sultry morning, one pregnant lady briefly lost consciousness, making the master of ceremonies, Maharukh Chichgar, remark that the function was having an impact on even those yet to be born!

Stressing on the importance of preserving religious rituals and maintaining purity, Dastur delineated the occasions when performance of the kusti and undergoing the nahn are mandatory. Additionally, before sleeping at night, one should review the day’s events to analyze how many good deeds were performed and how many more could have been done, he advocated.

There are four challenges currently confronting the community: "deliverance, ignorance, avoidance, arrogance,” summed up Bombay Parsi Punchayet trustee Adil Malia in his address as the chief guest. Amazed at the depth and scholarship available, he was saddened by the tremendous amount of ignorance that makes the spiritually starved laity "seek solace from different babas and murtis (idols).” He referred to those in the community who have a "phantasmagoric (dreamy imagery)” notion of Ahura Mazda in a human form instead of realizing that "Ahura Mazda is an-ainah (formless), abi-anjam (without an end), an-aiyafah (incomprehensible). The closest imagery for that most powerful and wise energy would be atash or fire, the putr (son) of Ahura Mazda.” 

Malia was critical of the self-appointed community advisors who maintain "èm karvu joiyé and thavu joiyé (this should and must be done)” and when asked to implement their suggestion counter with "tamé karo (you do it).” He was equally disappointed with the "prevailing arrogance among those who are blatantly ignorant yet aggressively defiant and will insist that what you are saying is wrong but neither do they know what is right.” The management consultant advocated the "amesha spenta model of leadership” incorporating the good mind, righteousness, piety, beneficent power and wholeness. "Do not ever give up on your prayers,” he urged the gathering.

"Fire is the representative of Ahura Mazda,” reminded guest speaker Ervad Marzban Hathiram of the Behramji Unwalla Memorial House in Udvada. According to him, maintenance of a fire is much more difficult than setting up a fire temple, for the jokhamdari and jimmedari (risk and responsibility) to preserve its sanctity is far greater. With what thoughts do we come to the atash behram and what gifts does it bestow? We go to the atash behram with a list of wants that are channeled through the sandalwood stick, the boiwala priest, the fire, ultimately to the court of Ahura Mazda where they are either accepted or kept on hold. The blessings from the fire are bestowed through the rakhia (sacred ash) that goes on the third eye, through the sudreh kusti, to the body. In the first stanza of the Atash Nyaish the devotee seeks to be purified of all that is unclean within him/her. For salvation we need righteousness, courage, humility to accept that you can’t do anything without His grace. The most important asset of the community is its priests whom we did and do not value and on whom we need to confer respect and dignity, he believed.

Being born a Parsi must be considered the greatest boon by every member of the community, reiterated guest of honor Shernaaz Engineer, editor of Jam-e-Jamshed Weekly. Knowing that we cannot become a Parsi and have to be born one, she felt the responsibility to preserve the religion with "unflinching faith and unwavering adherence” is greater on the current generation who are like "relay runners that have to pass on the baton and carry forward the flame to the next generation” of this "ethnoreligious” community. Convinced that India is the only country where the Zarathushti tarikats are followed, she cautioned, "If we lose them, they will be gone forever.” 

 

Viewing faith as a ray of light in the darkness of our lives, she advised, "To overcome the storms in life one needs a lighthouse (the Zarathushti religion), a lifeline (prayers), a life vest (sudreh-kusti) and lifeguard (the Prophet and the priests). To those distracted by inconsequential controversies, she counselled, "We are so small, we cannot afford to lose one another… There is an absolute certainty that Ahura Mazda will look after you when you seek his help. If he has sustained us for 1,300 years, we should trust Him to carry the faith forward and not compromise on matters of religion.”

On seeing someone in difficulty or in need, we must make the first move to help out, recommended Dr Homi Doodhwala, president of the Surat Parsi Panchayat (SPP). When asked to address the gathering, he jested, "I was initially told that I would be required to sit on the dais but like the extra batsman who is summarily asked to play on the team, I have been asked to speak.” To those attending weddings/navjotes at the Kadim Atash Behram, Doodhwala enquired what is wrong if they additionally do the kusti and pray there? Do as many kustis and pray the Atash Nyaish as possible. You don’t have to seek favors from the sacred fire. Ahura Mazda knows what is needed, stated the president. 

SPP senior trustee and thespian Yazdi Karanjia advocated practicing gratitude and laughter to get closer to others. Until his last breath he will endeavor to bring a smile to others, he announced. Instead of causing discord when upset over trifles, he recommended a willingness to lose when dealing with others and to win when battling one’s own weaknesses. 

The speeches were interspersed with messages from those who could not join in the celebrations, monajats by the ladies of the Zoroastrian Women’s Assembly of Surat, several rounds of felicitations, and entertaining comments by Chichgar. 

Dastur Khurshed Dastoor of Udvada who could not attend the function had sent his message praying for growth, peace and harmony within the Zoroastrian fold. The Zoroastrian representative on the National Commission for Minorities, Kersi Deboo hoped the sacred fire would continue to provide inspiration and spiritual solace in the years to come. 

Among those felicitated were the principal donors who helped stem the current shortfall in funds with contributions of over a crore each. The largesse of the late Jal Sethna, Hoshie Malgham, Firdosh Anklesaria, Pearl Daruwala and the Sohrabkhan family was recognized. Also acknowledged were the current trustees of the Atash Behram: joint managing trustees Homi and Chiniwala along with Malgham, Nozer Variava, Hormazdyar Patel and Behzad Kharas. Equally dedicated are the three boiwalas: Ervads Yazad Engineer, Adil Dastoor and Katpitia. Additionally the priests supporting the Atash Behram, those helping with day-to-day clerical and maintenance work, those involved in the renovation and sprucing up of the Atash Behram for the bicentenary were all duly called on stage to acknowledge their contribution — some with a shawl and garland, and others with an additional monetary gift. Although Kharas mentioned that his father-in-law Homi had provided him a four-page list of individuals to thank, since the program had stretched way beyond the estimated time, he briefly express his gratitude to all.

The maintenance of the Atash Behram is becoming a greater challenge in current times even though the premises continue to be used by community members. Last year there were only two weddings, three navjotes and two baby showers, as per statistics shared by Homi. This, despite the premises being available for Rs 7,000 per day.  (When Parsiana sought to identify individuals who were married/navjoted in 1963-64, the time when the magazine was conceived, we learnt there were 12 navjotes and 10 weddings at this venue.) Commuting and parking difficulties in this locality have become a deterrent for those who would prefer to avail of other options in the newer part of the city. However, for the free and subsidized meals that are offered here at the 26 gahanbars during the year, Zoroastrians of all sects are willing to come.