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Today, Auckland is the world's largest Polynesian city. Around 63% of its residents are of European descent, 11% are Maori, 13% are of Pacific Island descent and there is a growing Asian population of around 12%. In the city centre, Auckland's growing popularity as an international education destination has seen an explosion of ethnic restaurants and shops. The first known Zoroastrian to come to New Zealand was Hormuzji Ratanjee Shroff, a businessman with a Master of Arts degree from Oxford University, England. He migrated in 1877 with his wife and three children and set up a hardware supply business, Shroff and Sons, in Auckland which is still being run by his descendants. Not much is known about the community's Diaspora to New Zealand until the 1960s. Those who came thereafter were largely educated professionals in search of a better life. In 1986 there were said to be just about 17 Zoroastrians in the country. By 1990 the number increased to approximately 45 and by February 2000 the community numbered 300.
According to Asfandiar (Aspi) Shahlori whom we recently met in Mumbai, New Zealand now has a Zoroastrian population of over a thousand and still growing. This is truly heartening. Auckland's waterside location has fostered the locals' love affair with the sea, earning this place the nickname "City of Sails". Auckland sprawls over a narrow isthmus between the sparkling waters of the Waitemata and Manukau Harbours. A cloak of rainforest covers the surrounding hills, dozens of dormant volcanic cones dot the landscape and enchanting holiday islands are scattered throughout the vast Hauraki Gulf. Two of the best island getaways are Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island. Auckland's heart beats to a Polynesian rhythm, its people a melting pot of South Pacific and Asian cultures and a strong indigenous Maori heritage. This diversity brings with it an abundance of unique dining and shopping experiences. Auckland 's temperate climate, easy access to the coast and variety of activities earn the city consistent top five rankings in international lifestyle surveys. Discover for yourself why it is one of New Zealand's best destinations.
Wherever you stay in Auckland, you're never far from breathtaking scenery, beautiful beaches, invigorating walks, idyllic holiday islands, outstanding food and wine, great shopping and exciting nightlife. Aspi Shahlori migrated to Auckland in the year 1989 and faced a number of hardships and setbacks. But in true Zoroastrian spirit, these challenges helped him to become better instead of bitter. Today, his family, which includes his wife Daulat (Dolly) and their eight years old twin Darian and Zeba are not only well settled but they are now committed to helping other migrating Zoroastrians settle down and provide a 'home away from home' to visiting Zoroastrians. It all started with providing a simple guest facility at home and later expanding it into the now well-known 'Parsiana Lodge' - generally the first taste of Zoroastrian-Polynesian hospitality for migrants. On August 1, 2004 the Shahlori's threw open the Foroud Shahlori Dar be Mehr. There were no invitations to the opening of the 500 sq foot, single room structure where the 10 volunteer mobeds of New Zealand performed the inaugural jashan. The volunteer mobeds Hormuz Patel, Freddy Gonda, Kayomarz Fatakia, Yezdi Dastoor, Viraf Fatakia, Khushru Master, Aspi Bilia, Jamsheed Tata, Farzan Rao and Kayan Gonda - all of them occupied in various service jobs - have been taking turns to ritually tend the dadgah fire with boi ceremony three times a day. Unlike in the U.K. and the U.S.A. this is not a gas fire but fueled by wood - mostly Tea Tree wood which is fragrant and slow burning. "The Zoroastrian community has multiplied by leaps and bounds in Pakuranga locality of Auckland and many already call it Parsi-ranga because of the number of community immigrants", said Aspi enthusiastically. The Dar be Meher is today a reality thanks mainly to his vision and zeal to bind the community in common faith and prayer. The project was born of Aspy's desire to provide the nearly 70 children of Zarathushti parents in New Zealand the infrastructure to learn and understand the practices of the faith. The necessity for such a place stirred his consciousness when his twin children, son Darian and daughter Zeba, came home with stories of Jesus Christ when they were less than seven years old. Aspy met the school authorities and got them exempted from the school's Bible classes, but there had to be something to replace the Bible stories, he felt. "When we were children our parents took us by the hand to the Agiary, explained the customs and practices. So I took a mortgage to build a separate structure of about 400 to 500 sq feet where the children can see things firsthand and their parents too can meditate in peaceful solitude before the sacred fire," explained Aspy. He hopes to extend the structure, build a community hall for Navjotes and Lagans, maybe, even elevate the Dadgah to the status of an Adaran in time to come. Aspi believes his faith in Ahura Mazda will help him to come through in due course. The demographics of the Zoroastrian community in New Zealand, as compiled by former ZANZ president Tehmus Mistry from 2003 data, sets the total figure at 840 individuals. Adult males number 331, and adult females 302. Comprising 349 families, 75 have one child, 120 have two children and 12 have three and over. About 142 families are unaccounted for in terms of their children and presumably are couples or single member households. The majority - 90 percent - live in Auckland, four percent in Wellington and two percent in Christchurch. The majority of new migrants were originally from Bombay, but the Middle East, Pakistan, Canada and the US have also contributed to the growing community. Aspi has many dreams and aspirations as also the capacity to translate many of them into reality. From lodging facilities to establishing the community's first Dar be Meher in Aukland his next dream is to establish a Parsi colony in Pakuranga so that the community can feel a sense of cultural bonding and lead a Zoroastrian way of life in the melting pot of cross-cultures. Aspi is also keen to encourage more and more Zoroastrians to settle in Auckland. "It is a better quality of life out there and those who work hard also have the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of their labour to the maximum", he felt. "Carpenters, masons and plumbers make a killing" he said. In fact most of the plush villas along the beach are owned by plumbers. "They charge NZ $ 85 to 150 per hour of work", according to Aspi. There is also scope for software engineers and qualified nurses. The quality of education and health care is also very good. |
Auckland,
in New Zealand, has been captivating to passing travelers for 800 years. New Zealand's
indigenous people, the Maori, called this land "Tamaki Makau Rau" - a maiden with
100 lovers. It was a place desired by many and fought over for its riches, including
its forested hills, productive volcanic soils and harbours full of seafood.
