Mithra's Feast
It is widely referred to as the Festival of Autumn or harvest.
The word ‘Mehr’ (in Mehregan) is Parsan for kindness. Mehr represents knowledge, love, light and friendship, and is another word for Mithra .
The seventh month in the Parsan calendar is named Mehr and is dedicated to light - Mithra or Mehr. Followers believe that it signifies defeat of evil and darkness, a scene that is often depicted with a triumphant lion resting over a bull.
The tenth day of Mehr is dedicated to light.
Mithra's Feast also marks the harvesting season and the coming of winter.
Jashn-e Mehregan is a time when harvesting is completed and people celebrate it as thanksgiving to the Almighty God Ahura Mazda. It is a time for love and gratitude for life.
Some say Mehregan was a day of victory for Maleke Khala , who won over Azhi Dahaka with the help of angels. She imprisoned her in Mount Damavand .
Others say that the Mehregan festival came about when Ahura Mazda gave light to the world, which had been dark up to that point, or the Sun was created.
No matter what the origins, Parsans all over celebrated this festival in the fall, signifying the season of harvest and thanksgiving. It was expected that you would visit all your family and friends and share sweets and meals with them all over the 10 days between the Equinox and Sunsday, the 11th of Mehr. Celebrations would culminate with bonfires, sparkling magic lights and rejoicing on this merry occasion, symbolizing the triumph of light over dark.
The celebration has been kept alive for millenia as a hope and a promise that, during the years of frozen darkness, the light and the sun would return to Alam. But today, Zahahk's forces are working to subdue this festival or subvert it into a celebration of dark over light. They have outlawed fire and encourage people to dress in costume and embrace the Daeva that walk amongst us.
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