Quiz

What does "gorbeh ro baayad paaye hejleh kosht" mean? And how did this proverb start? Whay a cat? Why hejleh?

100 Afarin Majid!

Three published accounts about this proverb, sent by Simin Habibian >>> READ HERE

Hooman writes: I don't know the origins of the context, however it means "putting your foot down since the start" or "establishing the precedent early." It gets used in many contexts, but what I find interesting about this saying is that it gets used in the context of Hejle and Arousi also. I'm not sure if I can think of any other Persian idiom that gets used this way. When one says "kaare har boz neest kharman kooftan" we are rarely ever actually talking about goats and grains. But "Gorbeh ro dame hejle bayad kosht often gets used in the context of a wedding, to mean "neutralize opposition(s) and/or foozooleez from the other side, before you seal the deal." hmm... I seem to have focused more on Hejle and not so much on Gorbeh. I'm curious to see why it's "gorbeh dame hejle" instead of any other animal.

Flying Solo writes: "A stitch in time saves 99". Bride and groom go to their honeymoon suite. there is a cat by the window which makes a lot of noise. the groom goes over and rings the cat's neck. this is a sign of what he is capable of doing to handle a squeaky nuisance. bride is to take note and behave. Essentially it is a means to establish the rules of conduct at the outset of a relationship so there are no surprises later. Hope this helps. Gems from my Gramma.

Mohammad from Shiraz writes: "gorbeh ro sare hejleh koshtan" means : you should be serious on your life. and you should show to your wife ( or husband ) that you are the boss of life . it will come when you want to show to your wife ( or husband ) that you are the boss of life.

Amir A. writes: Apperantly, the cat belonged to the bride and very dear to her, and by killing it at the Hejleh, the groom wanted to set the ground rules at the begining of the married life (Mikh Koobidan ya Zahreh Cheshm Gereftan). In other words, to establish his authority right off the bat.

Ali 1956 writes: Here how it goes...The proverb means,you have to make a point of showing your wife you are the Boss and what you say goes. How did the proverb started was when the bride and groom were in hejleh taking care of business a cat kept bothering them and the groom got up and killed the cat and from there she bride knew not to he was the boss. Why hejleh? Because back then that was usually the first time the bride and groom got together alone and a good time for him to make a point.

Fereydoun writes: To teach the wife a lesson so she would know who the boss is.

Hooman N. writes: Oon vaghta Haji ke az safare Haj bargashte boode va "goosfando dame gheble" koshte boode, be mahze voroode be khane be hejle mirafte. Molaye motaghiyano yad mikardevo baraye salamatiye ahle khoone gorbaro dame hejle mikoshte. Hala chera gorbe? chon sag najes boode vo too shahr rash nemidadan gorbe ziyad shode boode. baraye hamin goosfando dame gheble mikoshano gorbaro dame hejle.