Tag Archives: persian

“After a lot of laughing always comes some crying.”

Nationality: Iranian-American
Age: 22
Occupation: College Student
Residence: San Diego, California
Performance Date: 3.23.12
Primary Language: English
Language: Farsi

A Persian saying described verbatim by informant:

“I can’t remember the Persian translation of it but in English its becomes like ‘After a lot of laughing always comes crying.’ They would say that to me when I was a kid. Say I was like laughing a lot at a joke cuz in the culture you’re supposed to be like very modest conservative, like kids are supposed to be quiet I had a really loud personality so if a kid was every misbehaving and being really hyper and laughing they’re like ‘Okay your laughing your laughing your laughing’ but soon like you’re gonna get smacked in the face and you’ll start crying cuz you’re being obnoxious. And that’s a thing they always say to little kids. My parents definitely said that to me, all the time. I would definitely say it to my cousins, I would say it to my cousins, but I would joke I wouldn’t actually like smack them but its like after a lot of laughing be prepared to experience the opposite of that.”

I find it interesting that my informant has turned this oppressive proverb into a joke she can share between her cousins, who are also first generation Iranian-American. The Persian culture from her description basically suppresses joy in the name of obedience and conservatism, which in her personal experience has been one of the biggest points of contention with her Iranian parents. The fact that this is a commonly said to children points to subjugation and authority which is core to the clan and family dominated culture. By turning the proverb on its head and saying it to her grown cousins in a joking manner she can softly criticize the strictness she struggles with.

Esfand and Sage Burning: Persian Cleansing

Nationality: Iranian-American
Age: 22
Occupation: College Student
Residence: San Diego, California
Performance Date: 3.23.12
Primary Language: English
Language: Farsi

Esfand and sage burning practices in Persian culture cleanse houses, bodies, and objects that may be occupied by evil spirits, spirits of the dead, or may be afflicted by the evil eye.

Described verbatim by informant:

“Esfand is basically these dried herbs that, every Persian household has them. And say um a lot of bad things have been happening like your car broke down, you got a bad grade, your boyfriend broke up with you, someone died, you know, so people feel like it’s obviously like it’s evil spirits literally are around your house and around your car and they’re around you so when you burn the esfand you walk around and its smells horrible and you walk around and you just you do it over everyone’s head you do it over even like around your pets head you do it around your car um everything you um walk through the room cuz you’re killing things by burning the esfand cuz it smells so bad and that like gives it’s like a cleansing to get rid of the bad spirits that are causing the bad things. It doesn’t even necessarily have to be evil spirits it can just be like people evil eyeing you and wanting bad things to happen to you. Negative Vibes.

Sage is kind of a similar process it’s just to clean whatever was in the house previously to be gone, it’s a fresh start, cuz you don’t know what happened someone could’ve died in that house, you know? Crazy things. So if you want a fresh start in a new home you can do that.”

Esfand to my knowledge is unique to Persian culture and this cleansing ritual. Ritual burning of herbs is common to many cultures, especially burning with sage. The idea of smoking out spaces and people for purification is something I know to be relevant to a lot of Native American tribes, Mesoamerican cultures, Aboriginal tribes, and countless others around the world. Though smoke is considered polluting and dangerous to many people, burning and beginning anew is a process found in nature, ie wildfires. This has since been observed by humans and emulated in swidden or slash-and-burn agriculture across the globe. Perhaps there is some root to the notion of burning and cleansing there, though that connection seems unlikely in the context of the Middle East, unless the practice of burning herbs was learned or brought in by some other influence (perhaps by trade ie along the Silk Road). This theory is purely speculative, though, as ritual burning could have begun in the Middle East or spontaneously come about for all I know.

I later got an email from my informant saying she wasn’t sure if she explained esfand and it’s relation to the evil eye well enough so she sent me a link to a website that she felt explained it well:

Esfand & The Evil Eye

Folk Speech/Protection – Evil Eye – Persian

Nationality: American, Persian
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 2011
Primary Language: Persian
Language: English

Folk Speech/Protection – Evil Eye – Persian

“Some Persians believe if you use a word like ‘scissors,” ‘knife,’ or ‘needle,’ it’s as if you are putting that sharp object in the evil eye of the person you’re saying it to, insinuating that person is evil eyeing you. So instead of saying, ‘pass the salt’ or ‘pass the knife,’ you would say, ‘pass that which cannot be named’ or ‘pass that which is far from your soul.’ This can be viewed as a sign of respect when speaking to people you don’t know well, and it also avoids offending somebody if you’re not sure if they believe this tradition. Lots of people have gotten in fights over this… and even families have been broken apart. It’s really ridiculous.”

The informant described a couple of instances in which this affected her. One was when a woman was asking her to pass some salt at the dinner table, and the woman refused to say the word “salt” because it is corrosive and was afraid the informant would be offended. She also gave the example of, when suspicious of a person’s intentions when addressing you, you can make statements like, “I have a toothache,” “today I had to get an injection,” or “my bones ache.” All of these statements are believed to ward of the negative energy associated with the evil eye, because they are “sharp” and can pierce the evil eye. Another instance that this affected the informant was through her friend. When this friend visited her sister-in-law’s house in Beverly Hills for the first time, the sister-in-law immediately brought her to the tapestries hanging on the wall and stated something like, “look at the delicate needle-work on this tapestry.” The friend of the informant was extremely offended and stormed out of the house, thinking her sister-in-law was accusing her of jealousy. This confrontation resulted in cutting off relations with her sister-in-law. This example exemplifies how strong evil eye superstitions continue to be, even in a modern city like Los Angeles.
According the informant, the evil eye superstition, along with this method of protection, began when potential theft was an issue in Iran. People often worried about theft of their cattle or other belongings that were crucial to their survival, so this was a method of protecting themselves. Furthermore, the evil eye superstition exists all over the world, especially in the Middle East, in both Islam and Judaism. Therefore, it only makes sense that such a widespread superstition would endure.
I agree with the informant’s analysis, but I think there is another level to its relevance in modern usage. The informant’s community is predominantly Persian and Jewish, and mostly upper class residents of Beverly Hills. Therefore, it would make sense that these perceived notion of envy would endure in this community, both internally and externally, and they would continue to try to protect themselves from it.

Folk Speech/Idiom – Persian

Nationality: American, Persian
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 2011
Primary Language: Persian
Language: English

Folk Speech/Idiom – Persian

“’The wall has mice in it, and mice have ears.’ If you’re sitting somewhere and you realize you’re sitting by nosey people, you whisper this to your friend so they know not to say anything important.”

The informant made it very clear that Persian people use idioms in everyday speech almost always, stating that it is not unusual to use five idioms in one conversation. She attributes this to the oppression that existed in Iran, which forced Persians to be extremely careful about what they spoke about in public. Furthermore, this oppression created figures of speech and metaphors that allowed them to communicate without fear of persecution. Idioms such as this one, according to the informant, have been passed down for generations, and are still used today. Even though there is no risk of persecution, they still use these idioms to converse concisely and, as the informant described it, non-confrontationally. They are able to convey an idea very quickly to somebody from within their own culture using these idioms.
I agree with the informant’s interpretation of this idiom. These idioms contribute to a part of their cultural identity as Persian immigrants, while giving them a strong sense of community with other Persians in the community. Furthermore, it serves as a connection and reminder to their past.

Game – Persian – Call to Hafez

Nationality: American, Persian
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 22, 2011
Primary Language: English
Language: Persian

Persian Script“Oh, Hafez from Shiraz, you are the keeper of all secrets. By the devotion that you have to your lover, I beseech you to answer my wish.”

Hafez was a Persian poet, and his work has become extremely influential in Persian culture. Although it is authored work, his poems and sayings have become a part of the daily lives of Persian people, becoming almost like folklore. The ways in which his work is now used is particularly striking, and these uses have become folkloric in that they are ritualized and have become traditional. Many Persians will recite the “Call to Hafez” out loud, express a wish or desire, or even ask a question in their mind, and then open to a random page of poetry in the collection, “Odes of Hafez.” The performer will then read the poem and interpret its meaning, which they view as an answer or response to the desire or question they expressed. The informant made it very clear that this tradition has existed for several generations, as she remembers her father doing it with his friends when they lived in Iran. Furthermore, she made it very clear that this tradition cannot be distinguished by social or economic status either, and is a tradition practiced by all kinds of people. I found it particularly interesting when the informant insisted that I perform this tradition and ask Hafez a question. After asking a question and opening to a page, the informant became very excited and read the poem aloud, asking if it provided any insight into the question I asked. After stating that I was unsure, I revealed that I asked Hafez if I would be able to find employment after college. According to her analysis of the poem, my future is optimistic. Her excitement at not only performing this tradition herself, but also in sharing it with me, exemplified its role as a social activity, or game, that is fun and entertaining. It also exemplifies that people of all cultures have long tried to predict their futures and fortunes, often through astrology or entertaining traditions like this one.

Book of poems used: Odes of Hafiz: Poetical Horoscope (translated by Abbas Aryanpur Kashani)