The Zoroastrian sacred cord worn by initiates is called the kusti, also spelled kushti.
The kusti is a thin, knotted girdle worn around the waist together with the sudreh, a sacred white garment. Receiving these items during the initiation ceremony marks a person’s formal entry into the Zoroastrian religious community. The cord symbolizes religious commitment and readiness to follow the faith’s ethical discipline.
Zoroastrians ritually loosen and retie the kusti while reciting prayers, a practice often called kusti or kusti-padyab. This is normally performed after ritual ablution and at regular points in the day. The ceremony renews the wearer’s connection with the religion and recalls the central Zoroastrian emphasis on good thoughts, good words, and good deeds.
A common mix-up is to answer “sudreh.” The sudreh is the sacred shirt, whereas the kusti is the cord or girdle. “Turban” and “pagri” refer to headwear in other cultural or religious contexts, not to this Zoroastrian waist cord. The term is also related to the Middle Persian kustig.