Is our Aatash really that fragile?
Can a flame that has survived invasions, wars, floods, cyclones, earthquakes and more be threatened by a Metro tunnel? A Parsi reader doesn’t think so
Parsis can sometimes be a confusing lot, especially when it comes to understanding one another’s sentiments within the community.
The battle being fought within the community regarding the tunneling work being carried out by the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) for Metro 3, which is slated to pass under the Wadiaji Aatash Behram and the Anjuman Aatash Behram at Princess Street Junction proves this. This mud-slinging between our citizens, priests and Fire Temple trustees combined with a some advocates and civil engineers really had me baffled about the Holy Aatash.
I am not a tunneling engineer, nor an advocate, and nor a Dasturji (Priest). I am a Zoroastrian, and the vastly contrasting views of eminent scholars and know-alls in our community have left me with a puzzling conundrum.
The Metro tunneling machines are boring their way towards the two Aatash Behrams, but the work had been put on hold due to a petition filed in the Bombay High Court. On November 30, the High Court stated that it did not “find it appropriate to withhold the infrastructure project of this magnitude any further.” An appeal in the Supreme Court was rejected and the MMRCL has been given the go-ahead to continue the work.
The petitioners stated that, “If a tunnel for the Metro is allowed to be bored under the premises of the above Aatash Behrams, the spiritual circuits will be breached and negative forces of physical and spiritual will attack the holy fire, thus diminishing its spiritual prowess.”
In contrast, the respondents stated that “one cannot establish the fact that if the tunnel is allowed to pass beneath the premises of the Aatash Behrams, an essential and integral part of the Zoroastrian faith would be defeated.”
I didn’t know what to believe. So I turned to my faith and asked myself one question. Is our Aatash really that fragile?
The Aatash, or holy flame of the Zoroastrians, is an eternal flame. Growing up, I was taught that it represents the spirit within all of us, makes us mighty, is a symbol of timeless purity and gives us something to pray to – a visible signature of Ahura Mazda, God of the Zoroastrians.
This Aatash burning in our Aatash Dadgahs, Aatash Adarans and Aatash Behrams has survived the harshest of forces over centuries. It survived the fall of the Sassanid Empire after the conquest of Persia and persecution by the conquerors. Then after enduring a grueling and torturous voyage by sea and land from Iran, it landed in Sanjan around 1,300 odd years ago. On arrival in India, the Aatash was taken back and forth between various places in Gujarat, before being established at Udvada and its descendants being housed at several Agiaries, Dadgahs and Aatash Behrams all over India. These Aatashs have survived the invasion of Mahmud of Ghazni, the wars of Alauddin Khilji, the Battle of Diu against the Portuguese Empire, the exploitation by the East India Company, the Indo-Pak war, floods, cyclones, earthquakes, communal riots, terrorist attacks, bomb explosions, droughts, pollution, traffic and much more.
If the Aatash has survived all this, I am convinced that a Metro tunnel with a passenger filled train passing under the sanctum sanctorum will never result in “complete desecration” of the Aatash. Add to this the basic maxims of the Zoroastrian religion which encourages thinking good thoughts, speaking good words, doing good deeds and the spirituality will remain eternal with Good conquering Evil.
Anyone who thinks otherwise may just have tunnel vision!
