Zoroastrian prayer and worship revolve around cultivating purity and aligning oneself with asha, the divinely ordered truth, in relationship to Ahura Mazda. Devout adherents recite structured prayers several times a day, traditionally at five set periods known as gāhs, which span from dawn through the night. These prayers, drawn from the Avesta and including manthras such as the Ahuna Vairya and Ashem Vohu, are often offered while facing a source of light, whether the sun, a lamp, or a consecrated fire. Worshippers typically stand during prayer, sometimes with hands raised, and approach the act of recitation as both devotion and ethical reaffirmation, guided by the ideal of good thoughts, good words, and good deeds.

Fire, as the most luminous symbol of Ahura Mazda’s presence, occupies a central place in both communal and domestic worship. In fire temples, consecrated flames of varying grades, including the highly revered Atash Behram, are kept perpetually burning and tended by priests who observe strict purity regulations. Laypeople usually pray before the fire from a respectful distance, sometimes offering sandalwood or incense that the priest places upon the flames. At home, many families maintain a simple fire, oil lamp, or small altar, using it as the focal point for daily prayers and recitation from the Avesta. In all these settings, fire is not regarded as a deity but as a radiant medium through which the worshipper orients heart and mind toward the divine.

Ritual purity is woven into every aspect of this devotional life. Before prayer, worshippers commonly wash the hands, face, and other exposed parts of the body, and they ensure that the prayer space is clean. The distinctive ritual garments—the white sudreh and the woolen kusti cord—are worn as visible reminders of religious commitment. The kusti ritual, performed multiple times a day, involves untying and retying the cord with specific prayers, symbolically shaking off impurity and consciously recommitting to the path of righteousness. This repeated act transforms ordinary transitions in the day—waking, working, returning home—into moments of renewed spiritual orientation.

Communal worship and major rituals deepen this pattern of daily devotion. The Yasna, a central high liturgy conducted by priests before the sacred fire, combines extended recitation of Avestan texts, including the Gāthās, with offerings such as water, milk, and the haoma preparation, all under conditions of careful ritual purity. Other liturgical recitations, such as those associated with purity and protection, further articulate the community’s relationship to the sacred order. Festivals like Nowruz and the seasonal Gahambars draw the community together for intensified prayer, temple visits, offerings, and acts of charity, allowing the ideals expressed in formal worship to flow into shared ethical and social life.