Sir-o-Sur

Culture of origin: Iranian · Ancient festival

Holiday sources: Iran · Zoroastrianism

Sir-o-Sur, the garlic feast, was kept on Gosh day, the 14th of Dey in the old calendar of 30-day months; in today's calendar, whose first six months have 31 days, that day is 8 Dey. Al-Biruni writes that people ate garlic, drank wine and cooked greens with pieces of meat to protect themselves against the devil. He traces it to the mourning after Jamshid was killed, when people swore never to touch fat; the feast ended that vow, and the dish was used to cure illnesses blamed on evil spirits.