Decoding the Elements of Iranian Rain-making Rituals

Iranian had struggled with drought from the very beginning of the history such deeply that Darioush the Great (549-529/530 B. C.) prayed to Ahura Maza for the protection of Iran from drought which was recorded in the inscription Dpd line 3. Consequently, rain-making rituals have been common throughout Iran from ancient times up to now. These rituals consist of common elements including making a doll mostly by kids and/or women, or choosing a person as a symbolic figure, procession through the village or to a sacred place, pouring water on people attending in procession or the doll, singing songs to demand rain, gathering gifts from people, preparing a special soap or cooking bread in that a green or blue bead was put, beating the one who finds the bead in his piece till somebody interfere and promises rain within three days. Basically, there are two dominant patterns for rain-making rituals: the first pattern shaped around making doll, procession, singing song and pouring water, the second pattern focused on gathering gift, cooking bread with a colored bead, eating the bread by people attending in procession and beating the one who finds the bead.Anyhow, the elements of these two patterns may symbolize an ancient belief or a mythological narration to follow a magic plan, so that the performing ritual could force the nature to rain.