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Spirituality & Religious StudiesYazids
Also spelled Yesidis.
They’re a Kurdish-speaking endogamous religious group indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey, & Iran, with small numbers living in Armenia & Georgia (the country). Endogamy is the cultural practice of only marrying within a specific social group, religious denomination, caste, or ethnic group. The majority of the Yazidis remaining in the Middle East today live in Iraq, primarily in the governorates of Nineveh & Duhok.
Yazidism came about through a complex historical process involving a pre-Islamic Kurdish religious substratum & teachings of Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir. Generally, scholars regard Yazidism as an independent religious tradition with deep roots in ancient Iranian beliefs, shaped by later Sufi influences. Yazidism was adopted by many Kurdish tribes & Emirates. It reached as far west as Antioch & as far east as Sulaymaniyah. Sulaymaniyah/Slemani is a city in the East of the Kurdistan region of Iraq.
Yezidi manuscripts (called misurs) were written in the 13th century. It contains lists of Kurdish tribes affiliated with Yezidi Pir saints. Only 2 of the 40 total manuscripts have been published so far. Namely, the Misur of Pir Sini Darani & the Misur of Pir Xetib Pisi. The list in the Misur of Pir Sini Darani includes several large tribes that have been largely or fully Islamized today.
From the 14th century on, Yazidis developed their own religious & political institutions in the areas where they lived. The Yezidi territories were divided into 7 administrative centers. Each has its own Sincaq (This is an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire). More commonly known as Tawis among the Yezids. Sincaqs are sacred bronze effigies bearing the image of a bird or peacock to symbolize Tawusi Melek. They serve as symbols of power for each administrative center.
Every 6 months, the Yezidi Quwals, who are trained reciters of Qewls & other forms of sacred oral Yezidi tradition, were sent out to other Yezidi-inhabited areas with military protection from the central administrative region of Shekhan & the spiritual center of Lalish.
This tradition serves to preserve the Yazidi faith & doctrine. The Qewals, supported by voluntary alms, led a Sincaq through Yazidi villages to maintain spiritual legitimacy & symbolize the authority of Lalish & the Mir.
During WWI, the Armenian genocide of 1915 caused a mass exodus of Yazidis from Van, Kars, & Bazid, Turkey. Together with many Armenians, they fled from the Ottoman Empire in masses to Transcaucasia (a.k.a. South Caucasus. This is located on the border of Eastern Europe & West Asia, which straddles the southern Caucasus Mountains.).
They followed their families/relatives who had already migrated to the territories of the Russian Empire after fleeing during the Russo-Turkish wars in 1828-1829 & 1877-1878. In May 1918, Ottomans crossed the Akhuryan River to invade the Armenian Republic. The Yezidi participation in the decisive Battle of Sardarabad is still commemorated by Armenians.
Yazidism is a monotheistic faith based on belief in 1 God, who created the world & entrusted it into the care of a Heptad of the 7 Holy Beings. Often known as angels or heft sirr (the 7 Mysteries). Preeminent among these is Tawusi Melek (also known as Melek Taus), the Peacock Angel. Traditionally, Yazidis who marry non-Yazidis are considered to have converted to the religion of their spouse.
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