Preparation The
Haoma plant (Avestan, middle and modern Persian:
hōm) is the source for the essential ingredient for the
parahaoma (middle Persian:
parahōm), the consecrated liquid that constitutes the offering (
zaothra). In Zoroastrian tradition, two independent preparations of
parahaoma are made for the offering. Both preparations must be made between sunrise and noon, in the
Hawan gah (Avestan:
havani ratu), the "time of pressing". The time of day of the
Yasna service is itself dictated by this restriction. The first
parahaoma is prepared during the preliminary rites (prior to the
Yasna service) in which the site of worship is consecrated. The second
parahaoma preparation occurs during the middle third of the
Yasna service. The recipes for the two
parahaoma preparations, though not identical, are largely the same. In both cases, the ingredients include three small
haoma twigs; consecrated water; twigs and leaves from a
pomegranate tree. The second
parahaoma also includes milk (in Iran from a cow, in India from a goat). The consecration of the water and
haoma (accompanied by ritual laving) also occur during the preliminary rites.
First pressing In the first
parahaoma, which is prepared immediately prior to the
Yasna service (during the preliminary ritual that also sanctifies the site of worship), the leaves or small twigs from the
pomegranate tree are cut into pieces, and together with the consecrated
haoma twigs and a little consecrated water are repeatedly pounded and strained. The liquid is retained in a bowl, while the twig and leaf residue is placed next to the fire to dry.
Second pressing The second
parahaoma preparation occurs during the middle third of the
Yasna service. It is prepared by the celebrant priest of the
Yasna and is essentially the same as the first, but includes milk, and is accompanied by even more pounding and straining. This second
parahaoma preparation begins with the recitation of
Yasna 22, and continues until the beginning of
Yasna 28 (
Ahunavaiti Gatha). During the recitation of
Yasna 25, the priest dedicates the mixture to "the waters" (see
Aban), which mirrors the purpose of the
parahaoma preparation (see below). The mortar remains untouched during the recitation of
Yasna 28–30. Finally, during the recitation of
Yasna 31–34, the priest pounds the mixture a last time and then strains the liquid into the bowl that also contains the first
parahaoma. The twig and leaf residue from the second
parahaoma is also placed next to the fire to dry.
Offering Yasna 62 marks the beginning of the final stage of the
Yasna service. At the beginning of the recitation of that chapter, the priest who made the first
parahaoma moves the (now dry) twig and leaf residue from next to the fire into the fire itself. Although this is done at a specific point during the recitation of the liturgy, the burning of the residue is not an offering to the fire, but the ritually proper way to dispose of combustible consecrated material.
Yasna 62.11 also marks the beginning of the actual
ab-zohr. During the following recital of
Yasna 62, 64, 65 and 68, the celebrant repeatedly pours the combined
parahaomas between two bowls and the mortar, such that, by the end of
Yasna 68, all three vessels contain the same amount of liquid. The service then concludes with the recitation of
Yasna 72, immediately after which the priest carries the mortar with
parahaoma to a well or stream. There, in three pourings, libations are made to the waters (
Aban), accompanied by invocations to
Aredvi Sura Anahita. The remaining
parahaoma in the two bowls is given to persons attending the ceremony. Since the liquid, in its ritually pure state, is considered beneficial, participants may choose to drink a little of it, or provide some to infants or the dying. The remainder is poured away on the roots of fruit-bearing trees. ==Symbolism and purpose==