SAEDNEWS: The Lotus Festival is an ancient celebration from Iran that, it seems, continued even after the advent of Islam in the region—though over time, it gradually faded from memory. Explore this fascinating tradition
If you are familiar with the philosophy behind ancient Iranian festivals and their calendrical system, you know that in ancient Iran, every day of the year was given a specific name—each day had its own identity. The Niloufar Festival appears to have been one of these ancient celebrations, held on the 6th of Tir (June 26th–27th in the modern calendar), likely serving as a prelude to the Tirgan Festival—a celebration that has largely faded from collective memory today.
The Niloufar, or lotus flower, is also the symbol of the goddess Anahita. The renowned scholar Al-Biruni mentions the festival, noting:
"The lotus flower is the symbol of the goddess Anahita. This goddess, widely described in the Avan Yasht, is the deity of water, fertility, and life. Water and Anahita are inseparably linked to birth. The goddess Anahita is the source of life, purifying male seed and the womb of females for reproduction, and the lotus—being highly esteemed—represents Anahita, who has always been revered by Iranians."
The festival’s timing likely coincided with the lotus flowers’ bloom at the beginning of summer. Today, it is still celebrated in Farahan, Mahallat, and Khomein as the “First of Summer Festival” (Avval-e Toostoni).
The lotus (blue lotus, water lily, or Eastern lily) was one of the most venerated plants in ancient Iran. Its image appears on Persepolis reliefs and even on coins. According to the important and famous text Bundahesh, the lotus belongs to the goddess Anahita and also symbolizes purity and untaintedness. The lotus grows among swampy water, mud, and algae but remains clean and pristine—a reflection of Anahita herself, the water goddess. Hence, it is likely that the festival Al-Biruni described was celebrated near water, in homage to both the lotus and Anahita.
In the Persepolis reliefs, figures—kings, princes, and nobles of the Achaemenid Empire—are often depicted holding a flower resembling the lotus. Even the high-born Persians and Medians carry similar flowers, though the royal versions feature two smaller buds at the sides, suggesting symbolic significance. Unfortunately, no detailed scholarly study has definitively identified the flower in these reliefs, and most Iranian researchers have only briefly mentioned it, often assuming it is a lotus. The German Iranologist Walter Hinz, however, argued that the flower held by the king is actually a pomegranate blossom—a fruit native to Iran, symbolizing fertility, though its size and thick stem differ from the depictions in Persepolis.
At the age of 20 (390–391 AH), Al-Biruni studied various cultures and their calendars at the court of Sultan Qabus in Gorgan. He documented his findings in Āthār al-Bāqiya ‘an al-Qurūn al-Khāliya (The Remaining Works of Past Centuries). In this book, he mentions the Niloufar Festival but provides no detailed description of its rituals. He only notes that it was celebrated on the 6th of Tir. After Al-Biruni, references to the festival disappear from historical records, leading some researchers to suggest that the festival may have still been celebrated up to the 4th century AH, around Al-Biruni’s time.
Although the Niloufar Festival has largely been forgotten, its essence survives today in central Iran through the “First of Summer” celebrations in Farahan, Mahallat, and Khomein. It is an independent and ancient Iranian festival, distinct from Tirgan, which is celebrated on the 13th of Tir. The Niloufar Festival remains a testament to Iran’s rich cultural heritage and the symbolic beauty of the lotus flower.
