The holiday of Navruz (from the Persian. “New day”), is celebrated in the East on March 21 – on the day of the spring equinox. The length of the day and night is the same – 12 hours. March 21 The Earth enters a period of world astronomical equality. And yet, on this day, the seasons change over the hemispheres: if autumn comes in the southern hemisphere, spring comes in the northern hemisphere.
The main day of the holiday is the first, March 21. On this day, it is customary to set a festive table and treat all your acquaintances, neighbors and everyone you meet with “New Year’s” dishes, the main of which are Khalis and Sumalak (they prepare only once a year for Navruz). Khalis is prepared from seven types of cereals with the addition of meat, and all boiled soft to a state of homogeneous mass. And sumalak is prepared from sprouted wheat grains with the addition of flour and sugar. Begin to cook these complex dishes on the eve of the holiday. All the women of a large family, the community (in modern conditions of high-rise buildings – neighbors) gather at large boilers and stir the dish all night long so that it does not burn on wood fire. Often, a handful of small stones are placed on the bottom of the cauldron, not as a seasoning, of course, but so that with stirring it is better to grind and not to burn a thick ritual dish. It is believed that if someone accidentally gets a “happy” pebble, then luck will surely be waiting for him in the New Year. So that the long and laborious process around the campfire does not become a tedious duty, he is accompanied by music, songs and dances, thereby starting a merry meeting of the New Day.
On September 30, 2009, Navruz was included by UNESCO in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, since that time, on March 21, it has been announced as the International Day of Navruz.
