Set your Haft-sin
Tap anything on the table to see what it means. Make the table your own, save or share a picture of it, then plan your shopping and your sabzeh.
Wheat, lentil or mung bean sprouts, grown on a plate
Stands for: Rebirth and growth: the green of the new year
Start it about two weeks ahead (see the planner), or buy it ready-grown.
Your table has its seven sin.
Plan your Haft-sin
Shopping list
0 of 15 ready.
Grow your sabzeh
- Soak the lentils in water overnight.
- Spread them on a plate lined with a damp cloth or cotton, and cover with another damp cloth.
- Once they sprout, uncover them, move them into the light and mist with water every day.
- Tie a red ribbon around it and set it on the table.
- On Sizdah Bedar, take it outside and let it go in running water.
Shop in your city
Persian grocers carry samanu, senjed, sumac and ready-grown sabzeh before Nowruz; hyacinths are at florists and garden centres.
How to set the table
- Lay a beautiful cloth: termeh or block-printed ghalamkar is traditional.
- Stand the mirror at the back in the middle, with a candle on each side.
- Arrange the seven sin in front of the mirror, with the sabzeh where everyone can see it.
- Put the book, painted eggs, coins, the orange in water and the goldfish in the front row.
- At Sal Tahvil 1406, light the candles and gather round.
What each thing on the table means
- سیب (Seeb)
- Apples: beauty and health.
- سنجد (Senjed)
- The dried fruit of the oleaster tree: love.
- سیر (Seer)
- Garlic: health and medicine.
- سبزه (Sabzeh)
- Wheat, lentil or mung bean sprouts, grown on a plate: rebirth and growth: the green of the new year.
- سمنو (Samanu)
- A sweet pudding slow-cooked from sprouted wheat: affluence, and the sweetness of life.
- سماق (Somagh)
- Sumac, ground to a red powder: the colour of sunrise: light over darkness.
- سرکه (Serkeh)
- Vinegar: age and patience.
- سنبل (Sonbol)
- Hyacinth in bloom: spring and new life.
- آینه (Ayeneh)
- A mirror: reflection, and a clear look at the year ahead.
- شمع (Sham)
- Candles: light and warmth.
- نارنج در آب (Narenj)
- An orange floating in a bowl of water: the earth, floating in space.
- تخممرغ رنگی (Tokhm-e morgh)
- Painted eggs: fertility and new life.
- کتاب (Ketab)
- A book: the Divan of Hafez, the Shahnameh or the Quran: wisdom and blessing.
- سکه (Sekkeh)
- Coins: prosperity.
- ماهی قرمز (Mahi)
- A goldfish in a bowl: life, and the movement of the new year.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the seven items of the Haft-sin?
Sabzeh (sprouts), samanu (sweet wheat pudding), senjed (dried oleaster), seer (garlic), seeb (apples), somagh (sumac) and serkeh (vinegar): seven things whose Persian names begin with the letter sin (س), each a wish for the new year.
Can I swap one of the seven for something else?
Yes. Sekkeh (coins) and sonbol (hyacinth) also begin with sin, and many families use one of them in place of one of the seven. What matters is seven things that start with sin.
When do you set up the Haft-sin, and when do you take it down?
Usually a few days before Sal Tahvil, and it stays up until Sizdah Bedar, the thirteenth day of the new year.
What do you do with the sabzeh after Nowruz?
On Sizdah Bedar it goes into running water, carrying the year’s bad luck away. Many people tie a knot in the grass first and make a wish.
Do you need a live goldfish?
No. The fish stands for life, and many families now use a ceramic, glass or paper fish instead of a live one.