PARSISM. — This is the name given to that small group of Persians who are followers of Zoroaster (v. PERSIANS, religion of) and who, refusing to abandon their religion, fled before the Arab invasion that overran Persia (650) and made their way toward India, first occupying the islands of Ormus and Din (Persian Gulf), then passing into the territory of Sanjan granted to them, and finally settling in Bombay, which became their adopted capital; the city had been ceded in 1668 by Portugal to England, which thus became the effective protector of the Parsis.
During the long centuries from the 7th to the 18th, the Parsis remained steadfastly faithful to their religious traditions, only partially modifying them through contact with both the English and the Hindus. These traditions consist: 1) in the veneration (not adoration) of fire, regarded as the most radiant manifestation of the power of God (Ahura Mazda) and kept perpetually alive in the appropriate temple by the priest (dastur, zoth) acting as guardian of the fire (raspi) by rekindling it five times a day with six pieces of sandalwood stacked in pairs; 2) in the profession of a radical dualism with abhorrence of the principle of Evil (Ahriman), which at the end of the world will be destroyed by a river of molten fire that will purify and invigorate the world (frashokreti); 3) in the respect for the three good elements of creation: fire, water, and earth, which imposes upon them that special form of corpse disposal that forbids burial so as not to pollute the earth, or cremation so as not to pollute the fire, but instead exposes the body to be consumed by vultures in special circular buildings known as “towers of silence” (dakhma). These are the principal religious characteristics of the Parsis. Numbering 100,000, they enjoy an enviable economic position thanks to their commercial acumen, unhampered by the restrictions of Hindu society, and a high cultural standing due to the sums they freely spend to promote the culture and well-being of the people.
The Parsis wear a white muslin garment (sudra) bound to the body by the sacred cord (kusti); women, in addition to the inner muslin garment, wear for going out the sair, a long silk cloth bordered by a ribbon. They enjoy a more honorable position than that of Muslim or Hindu women.