Chahar Shanbeh Soori

The last Tuesday night of the Iranian year, Iranians everywhere gather around bonfires with family and friends to celebrate the eve of Chahar Shanbeh Soori, or Fiery Wednesday. Traditionally, this ancient holiday is practiced by jumping over flames and chanting phrases like, "Sorkhiye toh az man, zardiye man az toh”. Meaning, your (the fire's) glow/ruddiness in exchange for my (the jumper's) fatigue. Although my family does not practice this tradition, my first Chahar Shanbeh Soori took place at my aunt’s house.

Sometimes, this celebration can get out of line when fireworks are involved. I read an article discussing the last Chahar Shanbeh Soori. The article discussed the strict enforcement by officers to monitor firework activities because for many of Tehran’s youths, Chahar Shanbeh Soori starts about a month early, when firecrackers can be bought from street vendors.

Aside from the legal variety, teens and kids in their 20s manage to get their hands on Molotov cocktails, grenade-type concoctions that discharge a bunch of stones upon explosion, and other items that are illegal. These fireworks are also thrown at pedestrians, windshields of moving cars, high school teachers within campus buildings, and other inappropriate targets. Some of these amateur pyrotechnists also spit gasoline from their mouths into a lit match, creating a fireball effect.

On Iranian T.V. stations, they aired a number of hour-long primetime specials on Iran’s Chahar Shanbeh Soori. These cautionary documentaries show the chilling effects of recklessly setting off fireworks, such as the third-degree burns on kids' faces, young men who'd gone blind after a firecracker burst too close to their faces, the boy missing his eyeball because he was hit by a random explosive, hospital burn units overcrowded with patients, and other incidents reflecting the gory aftermath of pyrotechnics gone bad.

Tehran's police force has tried to contain this wildly unsafe way of celebrating Chahar Shanbeh Soori. Outlawing the holiday, at least in public streets where passersby can be targeted, simply doesn't work; instead, officers set out to guard the streets weeks ahead, hoping to arrest individuals with illegal firecrackers, while also collaborating with the news station to inform the public about the consequences of unrestrained fire play. Most people refuse to leave their homes from Tuesday morning, with students voluntarily taking the day off from school to avoid accidents.

On a similar account, my aunt told me stories of tragic events happening on the eve of Chahar Shanbeh Soori. On one occasion, a boy spit gasoline onto a lit match creating a huge flame. This flame reached the windshield of a car catching on fire. Only several feet away, my aunt rushed away from the car to avoid the sudden explosion. Luckily, she did not get burned from the explosion. However, this was an unforeseen event that traumatized my aunt because of the possibility of burning to death. At the time, she said she would not forget that day and would reconsider celebrating this tradition. However, this event did not stop her from continuing to celebrate Chahar Shanbeh Soori because of her close tie to Iranian culture.