Keeping Time with Blue Hyacinths: Poems

Notes on “Keeping Time with Blue Hyacinths: A NowruzSonata in Seven Movements”

Notes on “Keeping Time with Blue Hyacinths: A Nowruz Sonata in Seven Movements” Nowruz: the first day of spring and the beginning of the year in the Iranian calendar. haft-sin: literally meaning seven-S, the traditional table setting to mark arrival the New Year. It includes seven specific items, all starting with the letter s, sin ( ) in the Persian alphabet: sabzeh: wheat, barley, or lentil sprouts, symbolizing rebirth. samanu: sweet pudding made from wheat germ, symbolizing affluence. senjed: dried oleaster fruit, symbolizing love. seer: garlic, symbolizing medicinal cures. seeb: apples, symbolizing health and beauty. som– aq: sumac, symbolizing sunrise. serkeh: vinegar, symbolizing old-age and patience. Simourgh: a large, benevolent bird in Persian mythology that is believed to purify the land and waters and hence bestow fertility. Haji Firuz: a symbol of the rebirth of the Sumerian god of sacrifice, Domuzi, who was killed at the end of each year and reborn at the beginning of the New Year. On the day of Nowruz, he wears a red costume, paints his face black (an ancient Persian symbol of good luck) and sings and dances in the streets and at private and public gatherings. 77 Sizdeh Bedar: the thirteenth day after the New Year, a day of festivities marked by spending time outdoors, often accompanied by music and dancing. A literal translation is “expelling bad luck on the thirteenth day of the year.” Forugh Farrokhzad: arguably Iran’s most daring and significant female poet of the twentieth century. For more information about her life and poetry refer to Sin: Selected Poems of Forugh Farrokhzad, translated by Sholeh Wolpé (University of Arkansas Press, 2007.) 78 ...