Abanegan: The Feast of the Waters
Caption
Abanegan, the Feast of the Waters, falls when the day Aban meets the month Aban, both named for the Waters. Zoroastrians gather at streams, lakes and the sea to honour the Waters and Ardvi Sura Anahita. Which water festival does your culture keep? #Abanegan #Zoroastrian
Image description
Infographic titled The Feast of the Waters on a deep-teal background, with a Faravahar at the top right and three photos: the Khosrow II investiture relief at Taq-e Bostan, the spring-fed pool there, and a Sasanian silver plate. Panel 1, Name meets name: a row of 12 months with the eighth highlighted and a grid of 30 days with the tenth highlighted, both named Aban, the Waters. Panel 2, Ardvi Sura Anahita: a gold crown medallion between the numbers 30 sections and 133 paragraphs of the Aban Yasht, and six attributes: golden crown with stars and rays, square gold earrings, golden necklace and beaver-skin mantle, sacred baresma twigs, four white horses, a river of a thousand channels. Panel 3: a map of seven cities with statues set up by Artaxerxes II, Sardis to Bactra about 3,400 km. Panel 4, The rite: go to water, recite the Aban Niyayesh and Aban Yasht, offer flowers, sugar and coconuts. Panel 5: timeline from Artaxerxes II to Biruni.
