Taura (month)

Taura
Native nameࡕࡀࡅࡓࡀ (Classical Mandaic)
CalendarMandaean calendar
Month number4
Number of days30
Seasonabhar (spring)
Gregorian equivalentOctober / November
Significant daysEad Fel (Taura 2-4)
Dehwa Hanina (Taura 18)
← Embra
Silmia →

Taura (Classical Mandaic: ࡕࡀࡅࡓࡀ), alternatively known as Ayar (Classical Mandaic: ࡀࡉࡀࡓ, romanized: Aiar),[1] is the fourth month of the Mandaean calendar.[2]

The month begins with the festival of Ead Fel, during which crushed dates with roasted sesame seeds are eaten. It is followed by 3 days of light fasting on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th days of Taura. Dehwa Hanina, the Little Feast, is celebrated on the 18th day of Taura.[3]

It is the Mandaic name for the constellation Taurus.[2] It currently corresponds to October / November in the Gregorian calendar due to a lack of a leap year in the Mandaean calendar.

  1. ^ Häberl, Charles (2022). The Book of Kings and the Explanations of This World: A Universal History from the Late Sasanian Empire. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press. ISBN 978-1-80085-627-1.
  2. ^ a b Bhayro, Siam (2020-02-10). "Cosmology in Mandaean Texts". Hellenistic Astronomy. Brill. pp. 572–579. doi:10.1163/9789004400566_046. ISBN 9789004243361. S2CID 213438712. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  3. ^ Gelbert, Carlos (2005). The Mandaeans and the Jews. Edensor Park, NSW: Living Water Books. ISBN 0-9580346-2-1. OCLC 68208613.