Wikipedia
Haft-Seen
Haft-Seen also spelled as Haft Sīn (, the seven seen's) is a tabletop (sofreh) arrangement of seven symbolic items traditionally displayed at Nowruz, the Persian new year. The haft-seen table includes seven items all starting with the letter in the Persian alphabet.
The Haft-Seen items are:
- Sabzeh – wheat, barley, mung bean or lentil sprouts growing in a dish - symbolizing rebirth
- Samanu – sweet pudding made from wheat germ – symbolizing affluence
- Senjed – dried oleaster Wild Olive fruit – symbolizing love
- Seer – garlic – symbolizing the medicine and health
- Seeb – apple – symbolizing beauty
- Somāq – sumac fruit – symbolizing (the color of) sunrise
- Serkeh – vinegar – symbolizing old-age and patience
The following items may also appear on the Haft-Seen table as ornaments or for the sake of completeness. Although some of these items are Persian symbols, they are not the main part of the traditional Haft-Seen.
- The holy book
- Divan-e Hafez, a Persian poetry book
- a mirror
- a goldfish in a bowl represents life and the end of astral year-picas (Goldfish is originally a symbol of Chinese new year)
- a low brazier full of fire
- a lamp
- sprays of cypress or pine
- pomegranates
- painted eggs
- coins as a symbol of wealth
- candles for each member of the family
- a bowl of water
- wheat or bread