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Happy New Year?
Mar. 20th, 2009 04:53 pmI know nothing about Iran except whatever gibberish spewed at us by the propaganda machine for the past 30 years that they've been sort of our enemy. I intuit however, that today was a huge holiday there (an NPR reporter whined that it was hard to gauge the Iranian reaction to Obama's video letter because everyone was home, not out on the street). Someone on LJ posted "Happy Persian New Year. With no other evidence, I assume that's what today's big holiday is.
This makes me unreasonably happy, because I've wanted the new year to start on the Vernal Equinox for some time. As I have mentioned in other posts, I pretty much hate all holidays, on account of their arbitrary or irrelevant or infuriating nature. I do think New Years should be celebrated, but I think January first is a terrible place for it. I think it was the Romans who were responsible; they had the power to change the calendar for a lot of people all at once, and they were prone to arbitrary and insane decisions. Before large imperial governments monkeyed with the calendar for their own reasons, the year was built around astronomical events and seasons, with holidays spread out more or less evenly.
When I was a practicing Neopagan, I celebrated those holidays. Unfortunately, from my point of view, the Neopagan idea of New Years, happened on Halloween (Samhain or whatever). In general, I think the Neopagans treat Halloween with too much solemnity, and emphasis on death. There are good reasons for it (in much of Europe it was the time when you had to slaughter a number of livestock in order to make it through the winter) but I like fun, lighthearted Halloweens. Also, starting the year just as the weather is about to suck for six months is depressing.
January is a no better time for a New Years celebration. Big Xmas party, big New Years Party, then glumness cold and dark until Easter. A lot of Asia is a little more sensible, putting it toward the end of the winter (but tying it to the moon so that it moves around all the time) so Chinese (etc.) New Years celebrations are more fun to me than January ones.
But in my opinion, the logical time to start the year is the Vernal Equinox. The point at which the day length finally equals the night length is worth celebrating. It really feels like a beginning to me.
So later, when I have more time to waste (as if I haven't by writing all this) I'll research Persian New Year celebrations. Alas, modern Iran doesn't seem like a party State to me, what with the religious prohibition against alcohol. But it's good to see that there's at least one culture that put the start of the New Year in the right place.
This makes me unreasonably happy, because I've wanted the new year to start on the Vernal Equinox for some time. As I have mentioned in other posts, I pretty much hate all holidays, on account of their arbitrary or irrelevant or infuriating nature. I do think New Years should be celebrated, but I think January first is a terrible place for it. I think it was the Romans who were responsible; they had the power to change the calendar for a lot of people all at once, and they were prone to arbitrary and insane decisions. Before large imperial governments monkeyed with the calendar for their own reasons, the year was built around astronomical events and seasons, with holidays spread out more or less evenly.
When I was a practicing Neopagan, I celebrated those holidays. Unfortunately, from my point of view, the Neopagan idea of New Years, happened on Halloween (Samhain or whatever). In general, I think the Neopagans treat Halloween with too much solemnity, and emphasis on death. There are good reasons for it (in much of Europe it was the time when you had to slaughter a number of livestock in order to make it through the winter) but I like fun, lighthearted Halloweens. Also, starting the year just as the weather is about to suck for six months is depressing.
January is a no better time for a New Years celebration. Big Xmas party, big New Years Party, then glumness cold and dark until Easter. A lot of Asia is a little more sensible, putting it toward the end of the winter (but tying it to the moon so that it moves around all the time) so Chinese (etc.) New Years celebrations are more fun to me than January ones.
But in my opinion, the logical time to start the year is the Vernal Equinox. The point at which the day length finally equals the night length is worth celebrating. It really feels like a beginning to me.
So later, when I have more time to waste (as if I haven't by writing all this) I'll research Persian New Year celebrations. Alas, modern Iran doesn't seem like a party State to me, what with the religious prohibition against alcohol. But it's good to see that there's at least one culture that put the start of the New Year in the right place.
