oğuzhan özoğlu
iranologist
Maidyarem Gahanbar
Maidyarem Gahanbar, a cornerstone of Zoroastrian tradition, represents the spiritual and social depth of midwinter as the fifth seasonal festival. Shahbazi notes that this period is not merely a calendar marker but a critical survival threshold for ancient pastoral communities. Honoring the stage of animal creation emphasized in the Bundahišn, the festival integrates with the ethical guidance of Vohu Manah, the patron of “Good Thought.” Boyce grounds the class-dissolving nature of Gahanbar feasts in the concept of hambandagih (communal solidarity), while Modi highlights their role in institutionalizing justice. Today, as Kreyenbroek suggests, Maidyarem carries ancient ecological awareness into modern ethical debates, re-establishing the unbreakable bond between humanity and nature as a living tradition.