House of Strength: History, Rituals and Traditions of the Persian Zurkhaneh

Varzesh Bastani, meaning ‘ancient sport’ or Varzesh Pahlavani, meaning ‘the sport of heroes’ is a traditional Iranian system of athletics. Originally used to train warriors, Varzesh-e Bastani combines martial arts, calisthenics, strength training, spirituality, ethics, devotion, literature, art, and music. It fuses elements of pre-Islamic Persian culture (Zoroastrianism, Mithraism, and Gnosticism) with the spirituality and code of ethics of Shia Islam and Sufism. Varzesh-e Bastani is practiced in a dome structure called the ‘Zurkhaneh’ which, when translated into English, means house of strength. (https://medium.com/@dforouznv/house-of-strength-the-history-and-traditions-of-the-zurkhaneh-4c41c58d569a )