The head of the Organization of Islamic Culture and Communications (ICCO), Hojjat-ul-Islam wal-Muslimeen Mohammad Mahdi Imanipour on Sunday said Nowruz in addition to its cultural value is an opportunity to develop the cultural relations of his beloved country Islamic Republic of Iran with its neighbours and also to develop regional synergies and unity through cultural affinity. Hojjat-ul-Islam wal-Muslimeen Mohammad Mahdi Imanipour, in his message, felicitated the Iranians and others nations on the arrival of the ancient Nowruz and the beginning of the Iranian new year 1402, especially Iranians living abroad, statesmen and citizens of the cultural and religious sphere of Nowruz.
The Organization of Islamic Culture and Communications issues Imanipour’s message here. Mohammad Mahdi Imanipour said the spiritual and civilized view of Nowruz could become a point of the deep connection between the nations of the region. “Looking at Nowruz as an ancient ritual and tradition is not the whole story. Nowruz originated from a kind of original civilization and has the power to create a cultural-civilizational union in different countries,” he added.
In the region of Central Asia, Caucasus and West Asia, Nowruz could become more than a “common tradition” but rather a “common cultural center” to reach a “unified cultural system”, he emphasised. He underlined that this cultural system was not limited to a specific time (the end of winter and the beginning of spring) and its extension included all the days of the year. This cultural-civilized capacity should be considered and promoted by the countries that celebrate Nowruz for utilising it as a tool to unite and enhance cultural and people-to-people bilateral relationships, he added. He also quoted a Persian saying, “The breath of the Saba wind will blow. The old world will be young again.”
Mahdi Imanipour elaborated that Nowruz was the crystallization of new life in the body of nature and a new opportunity for people to reflect on their life and circumstances and seek help from God to reach the best. “Nowruz is an opportunity for renewal and interpretation of the human need to evolve in a holy path full of signs of the power of the Holy Prophet (PBUH),” he said. This transformation and delivery was at the same a divine tradition that Nowruz could be considered as a turning point, he said, adding, “The harmony of the nations of Nowruz brings their hearts and minds closer to each other in the glorious and beautiful moments of the New Year beginning. The breath of Saba gives a sense of renewal to the Persian-speaking nations and even the non-Persian-speaking nations who consider Nowruz as the ancient heritage of their ancestors.”
