Show PERSIAN NEW YEARS The Celebration of the Festival of No Kooz A GORGEOUS EASTERN PAGEANT i a A Day on Which Everyone Wears a Brand New Suit ol ClothesThe Shahs Address What are you about Hassan I said one pleasant evening in March to a Persian servant He vas standing holding his hands over his face while one of his fellows fel-lows named Ali Ashbar was turning him around slowly Alee looking at me said mechanically Bally Sahib yes sir and stopped hesitating hesi-tating I saw that some peculiar ceremony was going on which they did not want interrupted inter-rupted and waited and watched Alee gradually moved Hassan around until ho was fairly turned to too west with the new moon directly before him On being informed of this fact Hassan mutterred something to himself for a minute then withdrew his hands and looked at the moon with a slight bend of the head These menwere both Mohamedans but they were also Persians and descended from the old fireworshippers from whom it was evident they had inherited some vestiges of the religion of Zoroaster J rl p + 1 T 6 t + E a rv l r t l IH THE SHAH OF PERSIA ol which the scene I had just witnessed was undoubtedly a part Persians stoutly deny that any Zoroastrianism practices are mingled with their Mohamedan belief But one hasonly to look at their New Years customs in order discover erhoiv curiously the two religions are blended in their usages us-ages Xo Ivooz or Persian New Year comes at the time of tho spring solstice when the sun crosses the line This is a distinctive recognition of the sun as being presidin 1 over human destinies The No Kooz is indeed a great occasion with Persians a season of universal rejoicing of visiting festivity and cessation from business for the period of ten entire days For weeks before the great event they are engaged in preparing for its coming if for no other reason because every Persian be it man woman or child expects to come out then in a brand new suit of clothes Those who have not the ready money for the occasion place jewels embroidery or other choice articles in the hands of the dellals or itinerant itin-erant merchants to sell for them and great bargains may be picked up at that time Of course the weather is bound to be fine + for the short winter is over the roses are all in bloom and for six months at least I there will be little or no change The evening before after sunset the people gather around heaps of brushwood placed in a row in the gardens set fire to them and then leap over them in succession Doe not this remind one of the statement ii i n I w 9 sfx cgti cifa s arm vizIEnrLAs1tEn IS COURT KOBES Scripture that the Jews when following tho idolatries of neighboring nation caused their children to pass through the fire This scene Is provocative of much mirth as one after another awkward ly T jumps over the burning bushes and tumble swrawling this or that way in his axiety to escape being burned The hour when the sun crosses the line be it day or night is the momentous period of No Kooz and is celebrated by an impressive im-pressive ceremony at tho palace As tho flour approaches the high officers and nobles of the realm gather in the cat throne room or audience chamber where surrounded by the trophies of past age the Shah gives audience to his courtier arrayed in their costliest robes they as scnible and range themselves on each sid of the hall according to rank First in order are the Mollahs or prelates who seat themselves on the tessellated floor Persian fashion that is on their knees and heels Next to the Mollahs follow the uncles of the Shah the Sedr Azem the minister of foreign affairs and the minister of wa the last two facing each other Then flow ol f-low other high dignitaries including the official head of the Kh jar tribe to which the present dynasty belongs All remain standing except the Mollahs Then between be-tween the double row of dignitaries the Shah slowly proceeds and seats himself on a carpet of pearls before the peacock throne Then the chief of the Khajars by order of the Shah goes from one to the other followed fol-lowed by servants bearing trays 1 of small silver coins from which each one present receives a small pinch of coin in order that they may welcome the New Year with the good augury of money in their hands While this ceremony is proceeding high officials superbly arrayed place salvers before the Shah containing specimens of the fruits of earth and water or heapod with dazzling piles of intermingled gold and silver coins fresh from the mint His Majesty then burns incense on a brazier The royal astrologer in the meantime mean-time is carefully studying his instruments watching the expected transit As soon as the is announced the Shah 4 event seizes a magnificent Koran lying on a cushion be fore him and presses it reverently to his forehead lips and bosom He then turns to the Mollahs and earnestly exclaims Mombarekbawshedl may it be propitious propi-tious to n you A priest then arises and chants a solemn Invocation to the Almighty Each courtier according to rank next approaches and a kneels before his sovereign receives from his hands a share of the new coin and retires re-tires from the hall until all are gone and the King is left alone in his glory To me there is something extraordinarily impressive impress-ive and original in this custom of leaving tho Shah alone in his audience chamber Tan grand ceremony which in its observance observ-ance of the suns crossing and by the J X f i ° p0000 C Q 4 j CJj < > i I j l 1 tf r1 J t tI Di r u iir I J 1 4ri 4 1 ffi11M J > < I J 1 J j I t 1 1dIt d 1 ili r tf < 111 11 i It 1iI l t1i J I tL 1JI gim g a 1 ffjffl f i I i I n T I 7 r l L J f t > = t u Gr I AUDIENCE HALL OF THE SHAH presentation of the fruits of the earth evidently evi-dently far antecedes the Mohamedan conquest con-quest is only very rarely seen by Europeans Euro-peans and Christians About an hour before noon of tho same day tho Shah receives the diplomatic corps who go in all the state they can muster to offer the congratulations of the season I dare say his majesty smiles when he sees them for he knows that at least three distinct dates for the New Year are observed bv the nations which have legations at Teheran The Russian the Ottoman and the English minister for example each has a separate day for celebrating cele-brating the time when the world began to be all of which shows how perfectly well with what absolute correctness the precise dato of that important event has been ascertained as-certained It would be money in tho Shahs pocket probably as well as of the ministers if there were more doubt on the subject because so long as it continues to be a fact th it tho world was created on four different differ-ent days different ceremonial occasions must be observed at the court of Persia On the morning of each of these Now Years twelve servants in scarlet livery appear ap-pear at the legation bearing on their heads trays heaped with confectionery The trays are laid on the pavement before the parties of the legation where the weather being fine they remain re-main some days as evidence of the bounty of the Shah But the minister who receives this royalgift is in turn bound by the obligations of courtesy to present each of the bearers of the confectionery with a present in money Therefore we say that as NusredDeen Shah is a man of shrewd wit he doubtless smiles to himself a sarcastic sarcas-tic smile as he reflects on the various birthdays birth-days of this terrestrial ball After the diplomatic reception of tho No Cooz is over His Majesty attended by his oldest son proceeds to hold a popular au i I MARBLE THRONE IN PALACE TEHERAN dience in one of the pavilions the garden of the palaceone of ths few occasions when he seems to come in actual contact with the people and recognizes tho mutual character of their interests He occupies the upper end of a marble throne shaped like a raised platform and supported by carved lions He sits on his knees with acushion of velvel embroi dered with gems at his back and faces the garden and the people Files of soldiers are ranged on either side of an immense im-mense tank between the avenues and around them swarm the people A jewelled pipe is presented to the shah which he smoke with zest before his subjects sub-jects One of the great court dignitaries then presents him with the congratulations of the season in the name of tho people to which the shah replies in a short speech given in his usual earnest somewhat abrupt manner but expressing the goodwill good-will ho entertains for his Persians and his desire for their welfare and prosperity A poet then advances with an edo prepared for the occasion which he recites in a loud sonorous chant that appears to give all present immense satisfaction This over the shah sententiously says rlarakhus which means you have leave to depart and the audience breaks up The following day or if a high wind be blowing on the next calm day during dur-ing the No Kooz the great annual horse races are held under the auspices aus-pices of the Shah at the royal race course just outside of the city walls He has a beautiful pavilion there built in two stories with separate latticed balconies for his wives Spacious tents of embroidered stuffs are spread arouni for the benefit of the courtiers The couse is circular a little over a mile long and the horses go around six times in each race The races are running run-ning matches as trotting is not a favorite gait with oriental horsemen The Shah enters a number of horses and prizes are given The Arabian stallion which he ore sented to the United States legation lead won several prizes at those races and ever after when he caught sight of the racecourse race-course it vas difficult to hold him in because he became so excited at the memory of his former triumphs When the state ceremonials and pageants of No Kooz are over then the people aban don themselves to unrestrained jollity and social intercourse The bazaars are cleared and everyone keeps open house having according to his means confectionery and sherbets spread on the rug or table of the reception room for the visitors who call to exchange the compliments of tho season With the wealthy it is no small burden to entertain at No Kooz for they must be on hand to receive visitors who announce their coming days in advance and also pay considerable con-siderable sums in fees to the servants who bring gifts to them from other gentlemen as well as distribute largesses to their own servants The last dav of the No Kooz is perhaps the most remarkable in oriental social life All barriers of rank seem to be let down for the occasion As there are no public parks every grandee throws open his grounds to the people who surge in from every quarter and roam with full liberty in every part of the gardens being treated with marked courtesy by the proprietor All are dressed in new garments and the scene is gay enough and yet everywhere perfect propriety is preserved as if the people felt that the national reputation for orderly bearing was in question The tinkle of the guitar the beat of the rebeck are heard on all hands and merry songs from merry hearts but there is no license nor disorder apparent On that day and that day alone in Persia does a Persian walk abroad with his wife as one may see man and wife walking in Europe engaged in genial conversation and sharing the fes tivities of the day It is a day which Persian Per-sian wives love to anticipate and to look back to as indeed a white day in their otherwise secluded lives This pleasant custom may also bo traced back to the period when the religion of Zoroaster ob tained Persia and tho bright luminary of day was believed to have a controlling sway over the destiny of men |