Barashnûm, or Barashnûm nû shaba, is a

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic on ...

ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, b ...

which lasts nine nights. Because the ritual lasts nine nights, it is known as Barashnûm nû shaba or "Barashnûm of the nine nights".

Darmesteter Darmesteter is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Agnes Mary Frances Duclaux (once Darmesteter) (1857–1944), English writer and scholar *Arsène Darmesteter (1846–1888), French philologist *James Darmesteter James Darmestet ...

, Pg 119

Etymology

Barashnûm is a

Zend Zend or Zand ( pal, 𐭦𐭭𐭣) is a Zoroastrian technical term for exegetical glosses, paraphrases, commentaries and translations of the Avesta's texts. The term ''zand'' is a contraction of the Avestan language word ' (, meaning "interpretat ...

word meaning "top of the head".

, Pg 133 The whole ritual is named "Barashnûm" because purification starts from the head of the person, which is the first part in his body which is purified.

Purpose

In pre-Islamic times, Barashnûm was used to purify men and women who had been defiled by contact with dead matter and by priests before undergoing training for priesthood and certain ceremonies. However, now the Bareshnum ceremony is only undertaken by priests before their Navar and Martab training ceremonies for initiation into priesthood and before the Vendidad Nirangdin

Yasna Yasna (;"Yasna"
''

Vendidad prescribes the requirements for the Barashnûm ritual. It prescribes that a series of six holes two feet deep if it was summer season and four feet deep if it was winter season be dug at a distance of three feet from each other and a series of three holes at a distance of nine feet from the other six.

, Pg 121 The hole at the most extreme corner should be situated at a distance of at least thirty paces from the holy fire or consecrated

barsom A barsom is a ritual implement used by Zoroastrian priests to solemnize certain sacred ceremonies. The word ''barsom'' derives from the Avestan language ''baresman'' (trisyllabic, '), which is in turn a substantive of ''barez'' "to grow high. ...

and three paces from "clean" Zoroastrians.

, Pg 120 The holes should lie in a north–south direction and the first six are to be filled with '' gōmēz'' while the other three are to be filled with water. Holes 4-6 should be separated from holes 7-9 through a ring of 3 furrows arranged concentrically which act as a protective barrier.

, Pg 122 Similarly, holes 4-9 were to be separated from holes 1-3 by a barrier of 3 furrows. This arrangement is called the Barashnûm-gâh and is to be separated from cleaner pastures by an outer enclosure comprising a series of three furrows. The impure person should walk to each of the holes containing ''gomez'' in turn while reciting

Yasna Yasna (;"Yasna"
''

and sprinkles gomez upon the impure person on completion of each recitation.

, Pg 123 - 125 The priest purifies the brows, the back of the skull, jaws, ears, the shoulders, arm-pits, chest, back, nipples, ribs, hips, genitals, thighs, knees, legs, ankles, feet and toes of the subject by sprinkling a few drops of gomez upon them. Once the purification is complete, the subject recites the Ahunwar, Kem-na-Mazda, Kem verethrem ja and other principal prayers of the Zoroastrians.

, Pg 126 The defiled person, then sits inside the outer enclosure but outside the ones enclosing holes 4-9 and rubs dust all over his body for it to dry.

, Pg 127 He, then enters the inner furrows and steps in the holes 4-9 cleansing himself with the water contained in them. Once the ritual is complete, he may come out of the Barashnûm-gâh and is permitted to return to his house.

, Pg 128 However, he is confined to a corner of the house called Armêsht-gah for nine nights. During this period, he is prohibited from contacting water, fire, earth, cow, trees and other Zoroastrians as he is considered to be impure and his contact is believed to defile the objects around him. Once every three days, he is enjoined to bathe himself and wash his clothes in ''gomez'' and water as a part of the purification ritual. On the completion of his third bath, he is considered to be "completely purified" and is permitted to lead a normal life.

Fee for the cleanser

The fee to be paid to the priest who cleanses an impure person is also specified in the Fargard 9 of the Vendidad.

, Pg 129 The Fargard decrees that a fellow defiled priest should be cleansed in return for blessings, the lord of province for the payment of a camel, the lord of a town for the payment of a horse, the lord of a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

for the payment of a bull, and a householder in return for a three-year-old cow. The Vendidad also specifies the punishment to be handed to a priest who has erred in the rituals.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barashnum Zoroastrian rituals