پنج

The number 5 carries quiet weight in Iranian culture. The Five Pillars of Islam (ارکان پنج‌گانه, arkân-e panj-gâne) structure religious practice. The پنجه (panje), the hand with its five fingers, is also a metal or painted hand amulet against the evil eye, often hung in homes. In Shia tradition the پنج تن آل عبا (panj tan-e âl-e abâ), "the five of the cloak," refers to Muhammad, Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Hossein, the five sacred figures whose names appear on amulets. Persian classical music has a پنج‌گاه (panj-gâh) mode. And Thursday evenings (شب جمعه, shab-e jom'e) following panj-shanbe are when Iranian families traditionally visit graves, recite Quran, and remember the dead. The number lives in proverbs too: پنج انگشت برابر نیستن (panj angosht barâbar nistan), "the five fingers are not equal," used to explain that even within one family, no two people are alike.