Yazidism#Purity and taboos

The name of Yazidi is a exonym. The Yazidi people and religion are named after Sultan Ezid. Most modern historians hold that the name Ezid derives from the name of Yazid I ({{Circa|646–689}}), the second Caliph of Umayyad Caliphate.{{EI2|last=Kreyenbroek|first=Philip G.|title=Yazīdī|volume=11|pages=313–316}} The Adawiyya existed in the Kurdish mountains before the 12th century, when Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir (1072–1078), a Sufi of Umayyad descent,{{cite journal |last=Langer |first=Robert |date=2010 |title=Yezidism between Scholarly Literature and Actual Practice: From 'Heterodox' Islam and 'Syncretism' to the Formation of a Transnational Yezidi 'Orthodoxy' |journal=British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies |volume=37 |pages=393–403 |doi=10.1080/13530194.2010.524441 |jstor=23077034 |s2cid=145061694 |number=3}} settled there and attracted a following among the adherents of the movement. The name Yazidi seems to have been applied to the group because of his Umayyad origins.

In Yazidi religious lore, there is no trace of any link between Sultan Ezid and the second Umayyad caliph.{{cite journal |last1=Asatrian |first1=Garnik |last2=Arakelova |first2=Victoria |date=2016 |title=On the Shi'a Constituent in the Yezidi Religious Lore |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |volume=20 |issue=3–4 |pages=385–395 |doi=10.1163/1573384X-20160308 |jstor=44631094}} Some scholars have derived the name Yazidi from word yazata, the name for a divine being in Old Iranian.

{{Main|Yazidis#History}}

File:Views around the Yezidi shrine of Mame Reshan after its destruction by the Islamic State, in the Shingal mountains overlooking Shingal 06.jpg, partially destroyed by ISIL, in the Sinjar Mountains.]]

Yazidis believe in one God, to whom they refer as {{Lang|ku|Xwedê}}, {{Lang|ku|Xwedawend}}, {{Lang|ku|Êzdan}}, and {{Lang|ku|Pedsha}} ('King'), and, less commonly, {{Lang|ku|Ellah}} and {{Lang|ku|Heq}}.{{Cite journal |last=Omarkhali |first=Khanna |title=Names of God and Forms of Address to God in Yezidism. With the Religious Hymn of the Lord |journal=Manuscripta Orientalia International Journal for Oriental Manuscript Research |volume=15 |number=2 |date=December 2009 |url=https://www.academia.edu/7918282|language=en}} According to some Yazidi hymns (known as Qewls), God has 1,001 names, or 3,003 names according to other Qewls.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=45N4DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA76|title=Deutsche Yeziden: Geschichte, Gegenwart, Prognosen|last=Kartal|first=Celalettin|date=2016-06-22|publisher=Tectum Wissenschaftsverlag|isbn=9783828864887|language=de}} In Yazidism, fire, water, air, and the earth are sacred elements that are not to be polluted. During prayer Yazidis face towards the Sun, for which they were often called "sun worshippers". The Yazidi myth of creation begins with the description of the emptiness and the absence of order in the Universe. Prior to the World's creation, God created a {{Lang|ku|dur}} (white pearl) in spiritual form from his own pure Light and alone dwelt in it.{{cite journal |author-last=Rodziewicz |author-first=Artur |date=December 2016 |title=And the Pearl Became an Egg: The Yezidi Red Wednesday and Its Cosmogonic Background |editor-last=Asatrian |editor-first=Garnik S. |editor-link=Garnik Asatrian |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |volume=20 |issue=3–4 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill Publishers in collaboration with the Caucasian Centre for Iranian Studies (Yerevan) |pages=347–367 |doi=10.1163/1573384X-20160306 |eissn=1573-384X |issn=1609-8498 |jstor=44631092 |lccn=2001227055 |oclc=233145721}} First there was an esoteric world, and after that an exoteric world was created. Before the creation of this world God created seven Divine Beings (often called "Angels" in Yazidi literature) to whom he assigned all the world's affairs; the leader of the Seven Angels was appointed Tawûsî Melek ("Peacock Angel").{{cite journal |author1-link=Garnik Asatrian |date=January 2003 |editor-last=Asatrian |editor-first=Garnik S. |title=Malak-Tāwūs: The Peacock Angel of the Yezidis |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill Publishers in collaboration with the Caucasian Centre for Iranian Studies (Yerevan) |volume=7 |issue=1–2 |pages=1–36 |doi=10.1163/157338403X00015 |issn=1609-8498 |eissn=1573-384X |jstor=4030968 |lccn=2001227055 |oclc=233145721 |author1-last=Asatrian |author1-first=Garnik S. |author2-last=Arakelova |author2-first=Victoria}} The end of Creation is closely connected with the creation of mankind and the transition from mythological to historical time.

{{Main|Tawûsî Melek}}

File:Pavaangyal.jpg diĝir on the left, and the domes above Sheikh 'Adī's tomb on the right.]]

File:Yesidisches Gräberfeld Stadtfriedhof Hannover Lahe Pfau im Schaukasten auf dem Grab von Yezidi Suleiman Daoud.jpg on the grave of a Yazidi believer, cemetery of the Yazidi community in Hanover.]]

The Yazidis believe in a divine Triad. The original, hidden God of the Yazidis is considered to be remote and inactive in relation to his creation, except to contain and bind it together within his essence. His first emanation is Melek Taûs ({{Lang|ku|Tawûsî Melek}}), the Peacock Angel, who functions as the ruler of the world. The second hypostasis of the divine Triad is the Sheikh 'Adī. The third is Sultan Ezid. These are the three hypostases of the one God. The identity of these three is sometimes blurred, with Sheikh 'Adī considered to be a manifestation of Tawûsî Melek and vice versa; the same also applies to Sultan Ezid. Yazidis are called {{Lang|ku|Miletê Tawûsî Melek}} ("the nation of Tawûsî Melek").{{Cite book|last1=Asatrian|first1=Garnik S.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y1RsBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT23|title=The Religion of the Peacock Angel: The Yezidis and Their Spirit World|last2=Arakelova|first2=Victoria|date=2014-09-03|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-54428-9|language=en}}

Muslims and Christians have erroneously associated and identified the Peacock Angel with their own conception of the unredeemed evil spirit Satan,{{cite book|last1=van Bruinessen|first1=Martin|editor1-last=Kreyenbroek|editor1-first=Philip G.|editor2-last=Sperl|editor2-first=Stefan|title=The Kurds: A Contemporary Overview|date=1992|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=978-0-415-07265-6|pages=[https://archive.org/details/kurds00pkre/page/26 26–52]|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZ6JAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA29|chapter=Chapter 2: Kurdish society, ethnicity, nationalism and refugee problems|oclc=919303390|url=https://archive.org/details/kurds00pkre/page/26}}{{rp|29}}{{cite book|title=The Yezidis: The History of a Community, Culture and Religion|last1=Açikyildiz|first1=Birgül|date=2014|publisher=I.B. Tauris & Company|isbn=978-1-784-53216-1|location=London|oclc=888467694}} a misconception which has incited centuries of violent religious persecution of the Yazidis as "devil-worshippers".{{cite news|last1=Li|first1=Shirley|title=A Very Brief History of the Yazidi and What They're Up Against in Iraq|url=http://www.thewire.com/global/2014/08/a-very-brief-history-of-the-yazidi-and-what-theyre-up-against/375806/|work=The Atlantic|date=8 August 2014}}{{cite news|last1=Jalabi|first1=Raya|title=Who are the Yazidis and why is Isis hunting them?|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/07/who-yazidi-isis-iraq-religion-ethnicity-mountains|work=The Guardian|date=11 August 2014}} Persecution of Yazidis has continued in their home communities within the borders of modern Iraq.{{cite news|last1=Thomas|first1=Sean|title=The Devil worshippers of Iraq|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1560714/The-Devil-worshippers-of-Iraq.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1560714/The-Devil-worshippers-of-Iraq.html |archive-date=2022-01-12 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=19 August 2007|language=en}}{{cbignore}}

Yazidis, however, believe Tawûsî Melek is not a source of evil or wickedness. They consider him to be the leader of the archangels, not a fallen angel.

{{Blockquote|The Yazidis of Kurdistan have been called many things, most notoriously 'devil-worshippers', a term used both by unsympathetic neighbours and fascinated Westerners. This sensational epithet is not only deeply offensive to the Yazidis themselves, but quite simply wrong.{{cite book |title=The Evolution of Yezidi Religion - From Spoken Word to Written Scripture |chapter = The Evolution of the Yezidi Religion. From Spoken Word to Written Scripture|chapter-url=https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/16757/ISIM_1_The_Evolution_of_the_Yezidi_Religion_From_Spoken_Word_to_Written_Scripture.pdf?sequence=1 |website=Openaccess.leidenuniv.nl|year = 1998|volume = 1|issue = 1|pages = 14|publisher = ISIM, Leiden|last1 = Allison|first1 = C.}} Non-Yazidis have associated Melek Taûs with Shaitan (Islamic/Arab name) or Satan, but Yazidis find that offensive and do not actually mention that name.}}

{{Main|List of Yazidi holy figures}}Yezidis believe in Seven Angels, considered the emanations of God, who, In Yazidi creation stories, were created by God from his own light ({{Lang|ku|nûr}}) before the creation of this world. God assigned all of the world's affairs to these seven Angels and Tawûsê Melek was appointed as the leader. The angels are also referred to as Heft Sirr ("the Seven Mysteries"). In this context, they have, so to speak, a part of God in themselves. Another word that is used for this is {{Lang|ku|sur}} or {{Lang|ku|sirr}} (literally: 'mystery'), which denotes a divine essence from which the angels were created.{{Cite web|url=http://www.etd.ceu.hu/2009/mphspe02.pdf|title=Late Antique Motifs in Yezidi Oral Tradition|last=Spät|first=Eszter|date=2009|website=Central European University|page=71}} This pure divine essence called Sur or Sirr has its own personality and will and is also called {{Lang|ku|Sura Xudê}} ('the Sur of God').{{cite book|last1=Rodziewicz|first1=Artur|title=Rediscovering Kurdistan's Cultures and Identities |chapter=The Nation of the Sur: The Yezidi Identity Between Modern and Ancient Myth |editor1-last=Bocheńska|editor1-first=Joanna|date=2018|pages=259–326 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|location=Cham|isbn=978-0-415-07265-6|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZ6JAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA29|doi=10.1007/978-3-319-93088-6_7}} This term refers to the essence of the Divine itself, that is, God. The Angels share this essence from their creator who is God. In religious literature, these Angels are sometimes referred to as Cibrayîl, Ezrayîl, Mîkayîl, Şifqayîl, Derdayîl, Ezafîl, and Ezazîl.{{Cite book |last=Авдоев| first=Теймураз |script-title=ru:Историко-теософский аспект езидизма |language=ru |trans-title=Historical and Theosophical Aspect of Yezidism |year=2011 |isbn=978-5-905016-967 |url=https://www.academia.edu/32357769 |page=314| publisher=Э.РА }} The leader of these Angels is known as Tawûsê Melek, and the others are better known by the names of their earthly incarnations/representations: Fexreddin, Sheikh Shems, Nasirdin, Sejadin, Sheikh Obekr, and Shex Hesen (Şêxsin).{{Cite book|last=Murad|first=Jasim Elias|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WdTxtgAACAAJ|title=The Sacred Poems of the Yazidis: An Anthropological Approach|date=1993|publisher=University of California, Los Angeles|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Kreyenbroek|first=Philip G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OTQqAQAAMAAJ|title=Yezidism--its Background, Observances, and Textual Tradition|date=1995|location=Lewiston, New York |publisher=Edwin Mellen Press |isbn=978-0-7734-9004-8|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Açikyildiz|first=Birgül|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nuU4ygEACAAJ&q=Yezidi+beliefs|title=The Yezidis: The History of a Community, Culture and Religion|date=2019-12-17|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing Plc|isbn=978-1-350-14927-4|language=en}}

The Yazidi pantheon contains a total of 365 holy figures venerated by Yazidis,{{Cite journal |last=Spat |first=Eszter |date=2016-10-08 |title=Hola Hola Tawusi Melek, Hola Hola Şehidêt Şingalê: Persecution and the Development of Yezidi Ritual Life |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.33182/ks.v4i2.426 |journal=Kurdish Studies |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=155–175 |doi=10.33182/ks.v4i2.426 |issn=2051-4891|url-access=subscription }} designated by various special terms including Xudan, Xas, Mêr and Babçak. According to Yazidi beliefs, God is almighty and absolute, and the Xudans are a part of His power, moreover, in relation to nature, Yazidis believe in Xudans for most of natural elements and phenomena and they are regarded as divine powers that have control over these phenomena. In Yazidi mythology, the Xudans appeared after the creation of the world for the four elements of nature and their manifestations.{{Cite book |last=Aysif |first=Rezan Shivan |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.17875/gup2021-1855 |title=The Role of Nature in Yezidism |date=2021 |publisher=Göttingen University Press |isbn=978-3-86395-514-4 |location=Göttingen |pages=94, 107|doi=10.17875/gup2021-1855 |s2cid=246596953 }}

{{Main|Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir}}

File:Dergehê perestgeha Lalishê 1 2012.JPG]]

One of the important figures of Yazidism is Sheikh 'Adī ibn Musafir. Sheikh 'Adī ibn Musafir settled in the valley of Laliş (some {{convert|36|mi|km|order=flip}} northeast of Mosul) in the Yazidi mountains in the early 12th century and founded the 'Adawiyya Sufi order. He died in 1162, and his tomb at Laliş is a focal point of Yazidi pilgrimage and the principal Yazidi holy site.Late Antique Motifs in Yezidi Oral Tradition by Eszter Spät. Ch. 9 "The Origin Myth of the Yezidis" section "The Myth of Shehid Bin Jer" (p. 347) Yazidism has many influences: Sufi influence and imagery (especially taken from Mansur al-Hallaj){{Citation |last=Rodziewicz |first=Artur |title=The Mystery of Essence and the Essence of Mystery: Yezidi and Yaresan Cosmogonies in the Light of the Kitab al-Tawasin |date=2022 |url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-981-16-6444-1_6 |work=Yari Religion in Iran |pages=103–187 |editor-last=Hosseini |editor-first=S. Behnaz |place=Singapore |publisher=Springer Singapore |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-981-16-6444-1_6 |isbn=978-981-16-6443-4 |s2cid=247034058 |access-date=2022-03-08|url-access=subscription }} can be seen in the religious vocabulary, especially in the terminology of the Yazidis' esoteric literature, but most of the theology, rituals, traditions, and festivals remains non-Islamic. Its cosmogony for instance has many points in common with those of ancient Iranian religions.{{Cite book|last=Turgut, Lokman|title=Ancient rites and old religions in Kurdistan|oclc=879288867}}{{Cite journal |last=Kaczorowski |first=Karol |title=Yezidism and Proto-Indo-Iranian Religion |journal=Fritillaria Kurdica. Bulletin of Kurdish Studies |number=3–4 |year=2014 |url=https://www.academia.edu/6928559 |language=en}}{{Cite journal|last=Foltz|first=Richard|date=2017-06-01|title=The "Original" Kurdish Religion? Kurdish Nationalism and the False Conflation of the Yezidi and Zoroastrian Traditions|journal=Journal of Persianate Studies|volume=10|issue=1|pages=87–106|doi=10.1163/18747167-12341309|issn=1874-7094}}{{Cite journal |last=Omarkhali |first=Khanna |title=The status and role of the Yezidi legends and myths: to the question of comparative analysis of Yezidism, Yārisān (Ahl-e Haqq) and Zoroastrianism: a common substratum? |journal=Folia Orientalia |volume=45–46 |year=2009–2010 |pages=197–219 |oclc=999248462}}{{Cite book|last=Kreyenbroek|first=Philip G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OTQqAQAAMAAJ&q=Ancient+iranian|title=Yezidism: its Background, Observances, and Textual Tradition|date=1995|location=Lewiston, New York |publisher=Edwin Mellen Press|isbn=978-0-7734-9004-8|language=en}}

Yazidis believe in the rebirth of the soul. Like the Ahl-e Haqq, the Yazidis use the metaphor of a change of garment to describe the process, which plays an exceptional role in Yazidi religiosity and is called the "change of [one's] shirt" ({{Lang|ku|kirasgorîn}}). There is also a belief that some of the events from the time of creation repeat themselves in cycles of history. In Yazidism, different concepts of time coexist:{{Cite book|author=Omarkhali, Khanna|title=The Yezidi religious textual tradition, from oral to written : categories, transmission, scripturalisation, and canonisation of the Yezidi oral religious texts: with samples of oral and written religious texts and with audio and video samples on CD-ROM|year=2017|publisher=Harrassowitz Verlag |isbn=978-3-447-10856-0|oclc=994778968}}

• An esoteric time sphere (Kurdish: {{Lang|ku|enzel}}), This term denotes a state of being before the creation of the world. According to Yazidi cosmogony, there is God and a pearl in this stage.
• {{Lang|ku|Bedîl}} or {{Lang|ku|dewr}} (a cyclic course of time): it means literally 'change, changing' or 'turning, revolution' and in the Yazidi context denotes a new period of time in the history of the world. Therefore, it may also mean 'renewing' or 'renewed' and designates the start of a renewed period of time.
• A linear course, which runs from the start of the creation by God to the collective eschatological end point.
• Three {{Lang|ku|tofan}} ('storm, flood') i.e. catastrophes. It is believed that there are three big events during history named tofan that play a purificatory role, changing the quality of life in a positive manner. Each catastrophe, which ultimately brings renewal to the world, takes place through a basic element: the first through water ({{Lang|ku|tofanê avê}}), the second through fire ({{Lang|ku|tofanê agirî}}) and the last is connected with wind (air) ({{Lang|ku|tofanê ba}}). It is believed that the first {{Lang|ku|tofan}} has already occurred in the past and that the next tofan will occur through fire. According to this perception, the three sacred elements, namely water, fire and air, purify the fourth one, the earth. These events however are not be considered as eschatological events. They occur during the life of people. Although the purificatory events cause many deaths, ultimately life continues.{{Cite book|last=Agustí.|first=Allison, Christine, ed. Joisten-Pruschke, Anke, ed. Wendtland, Antje, ed. Kreyenbroek, Philip G., 1948- Alemany i Vilamajó|title=From Daena to Din : religion, Kultur und Sprache in der iranischen Welt: festschrift für Philip Kreyenbroek zum 60. Geburtstag|date=2009|publisher=Harrassowitz|isbn=978-3-447-05917-6|oclc=1120653126}}

In Yazidism, the older original concept of metempsychosis and the cyclic perception of the course of time is harmonised and coexists with the younger idea of a collective eschatology.

The Yazidi cosmogony is recorded in several sacred texts and traditions. It can therefore only be inferred and understood through an overall view of the sacred texts and traditions. The cosmogony can be divided into three stages:

1. Enzel – the state before the pearl burst ({{Lang|ku|dur}}).
2. Developments immediately after the burst – cosmogony II
3. The creation of the earth and man – anthropogony{{Cite web|url=http://www.yeziden-colloquium.de/inhalt/gesellschaft/intergration/DOI_Yeziden.pdf|title=Yeziden - Eine alte Religionsgemeinschaft zwischen Tradition und Moderne|last=Franz|first=Erhard|date=2004|publisher=Deutsches Orient-Institut}}{{Cite book |last1=Omarkhali|first1=Khanna |last2=Rezania |first2=K. |chapter=Some reflections on the concepts of time in Yezidism |title=From Daēnā to Dîn Religion, Kultur und Sprache in der iranischen Welt |editor1=Christine Allison |editor2=Anke Joisten-Pruschke |editor3=Antje Wendtland |year=2009 |url=https://www.academia.edu/7915697|language=en}}

The term Enzel is one of the frequently mentioned terms in the religious vocabulary and it comes up numerous times in the religious hymns, known as Qewls. For instance, in Qewlê Tawisî Melek:

"{{Lang|ku|Ya Rebî ji Enzel de her tuyî qedîmî}}" (English: Oh, Creator of the Enzel, you are infinite){{Cite book |last=Авдоев |first=Теймураз |title=NEWŞE DÎNÊ ÊZÎDIYAN ЕЗИДСКОЕ СВЯЩЕНОСЛОВИЕ THE YEZIDI HOLY HYMNES |year=2020 |url=https://www.academia.edu/42054492|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210920212633/https://www.academia.edu/42054492|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 20, 2021|language=en}}

{{Lang|ku|Ezdayî me, ji direke enzelî me}}

(English: I am a follower of God, I come from an "enzelî" pearl)

Qewlê Bê Elif:

{{Lang|ku|Padşê min bi xo efirandî dura beyzaye}} – My King created the white pearl from himself

Textê nûrî sedef – The shining throne in the pearl

The Yazidi qewls mention the universe as having originated from a white pearl that existed in pre-eternity. At the beginning of the time prior to the creation, God emerged from the cosmic pearl, which rested on the horns of a bull that stood on the back of a fish. After God and the pearl separated, the universe burst out of the pearl and became visible as waves rippled across from pearl to form the primeval Cosmic Ocean.{{cite book | last=Kreyenbroek | first=Philip | author-link=Philip G. Kreyenbroek | title=God and Sheikh Adi are perfect: sacred poems and religious narratives from the Yezidi tradition | publisher=Harrassowitz | publication-place=Wiesbaden | year=2005 | isbn=978-3-447-05300-6 | oclc=63127403}} As the pearl burst open, the beginning of the material universe was set in motion. {{Lang|ku|Mihbet}} (meaning 'love') came into being and was laid as the original foundation, colours began to form, and red, yellow and white began to shine from the burst pearl.

The Yazidi religion has its own perception of the colours, which is seen in the mythology and shown through clothing taboos, in religious ceremonies, customs and rituals. Colours are perceived as the symbolizations of nature and the beginning of life, thus the emphasis of colours can be found in the creation myth. The colors white, red, green and yellow in particular are frequently emphasized. White is considered the color of purity and peace and is the main colour of the religious clothing of the Yazidis.{{Cite web|title=Schöpfungsmythos – Êzîpedia|url=http://www.ezipedia.de/schopfungsmythos/|access-date=2021-06-07|language=de-DE}}

Yazidi accounts of the creation differ significantly from those of the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), since they are derived from the Ancient Mesopotamian and Indo-Iranian traditions; therefore, Yazidi cosmogony is closer to those of Ancient Iranian religions, Yarsanism, and Zoroastrianism.Richard Foltz Religions of Iran: From Prehistory to the Present Oneworld Publications, 01.11.2013 {{ISBN|9781780743097}} p. 221{{Cite journal |last=Omarkhali |first=Khanna |title=The status and role of the Yezidi legends and myths. To the question of comparative analysis of Yezidism, Yārisān (Ahl-e Haqq) and Zoroastrianism: a common substratum? |journal=Folia Orientalia |volume=45–46 |year=2009–2010 |url=https://www.academia.edu/7918305|language=en}}

{{More citations needed section|date=June 2022}}

{{further|Yazidi literature}}

The religious literature of Yazidis is composed mostly of poetry which is orally transmitted in mainly Kurmanji and includes numerous genres, such as {{Lang|ku|Qewl}} (religious hymn), {{Lang|ku|Beyt}} (poem), Du‛a (prayer), {{Lang|ku|Dirozge}} (another kind of prayer), {{Lang|ku|Şehdetiya Dîn}} (the Declaration of the Faith), {{Lang|ku|Terqîn}} (prayer for after a sacrifice), {{Lang|ku|Pişt perde}} (literally 'under the veil', another genre), {{Lang|ku|Qesîde}} (Qasida), {{Lang|ku|Sema}}‛ (literally 'listening'), {{Lang|ku|Lavij, Xerîbo, Xizêmok, Payîzok,}} and {{Lang|ku|Robarîn}}. The poetic literature is composed in an advanced and archaic language where more complex terms are used, which may be difficult to understand for those who are not trained in religious knowledge.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}} Therefore, they are accompanied by some prosaic genres of the Yazidi literature that often interpret the contents of the poems and provide explanations of their contexts in the spoken language comprehensible among the common population. The prosaic genres include {{Lang|ku|Çîrok}} and {{Lang|ku|Çîvanok}} (legends and myths), and {{Lang|ku|Dastan}} and {{Lang|ku|Menal Pîr}}s (interpretations of religious hymns). Yazidis also possess some written texts, such as the sacred manuscripts called {{Lang|ku|mişûr}}s and individual collections of religious texts called {{Lang|ku|cilvê}} and {{Lang|ku|Keşkûl}}, although they are rarer and often safekept among Yazidis.{{Cite book|date=2018|editor-last=Bocheńska|editor-first=Joanna|title=Rediscovering Kurdistan's Cultures and Identities|doi=10.1007/978-3-319-93088-6|isbn=978-3-319-93087-9}} Yazidis are also said to have two holy books, Book of Revelation and Black Book whose authenticities are debated among scholars.

{{Wikisource|Mishefa Reş}}{{Wikisource|Kitêba Cilwe}}The Yazidi holy books are claimed to be the Book of Revelation and Black Book. Scholars generally agree that the manuscripts of both books published in 1911 and 1913 were forgeries written by non-Yazidis in response to Western travellers' and scholars' interest in the Yazidi religion; however, the material in them is consistent with authentic Yazidi traditions. True texts of those names may have existed, but remain obscure. The real core texts of the religion that exist today are the hymns known as qawls; they have also been orally transmitted during most of their history, but are now being collected with the assent of the community, effectively transforming Yazidism into a scriptural religion. The sacred texts had already been translated into English by the early 20th century.{{Cite web|url=http://bnk.institutkurde.org/images/pdf/VMKLSEJ8R4.pdf|title="Devil worship"; the sacred books and traditions of the Yezidiz}}

A very important genre of oral literature of the Yazidi community consists of religious hymns, called {{Lang|ku|Qewl}}s, which literally means 'word, speech' (from Arabic {{Transliteration|ar|qawl}}). The performers of these hymns, called the Qewal, constitute a distinct class within the Yazidi society. They are a veritable source of ancient Yazidi lore and are traditionally recruited from the non-religious members of other Kurdish tribes, principally the Dumilî and Hekarî.{{Cite web|last=Cheung|first=Johnny|title=Qewl {{!}} Yezidi Stories|date=28 October 2016 |url=https://yes.hypotheses.org/tag/qewl|access-date=2021-06-02|language=en-US}} The qewls are full of cryptic allusions and usually need to be accompanied by čirōks ('stories') that explain their context.

Mishurs are a type of sacred manuscripts that were written down in the 13th century and handed down to each lineage ({{Lang|ku|ocax}}) of the Pirs; each of the manuscripts contain descriptions of the founder of the Pir lineage that they were distributed to, along with a list of Kurdish tribes and other priestly lineages that were affiliated with the founder. The mishurs are safekept among the families of Pirs in particular places that are designated for their safekeeping; these places are referred to as {{Lang|ku|stêr}} in Kurmanji.{{Cite journal|last1=Pirbari|first1=Dimitri|last2=Mossaki|first2=Nodar|last3=Yezdin|first3=Mirza Sileman|date=2019-11-19|title=A Yezidi Manuscript:—Mišūr of P'īr Sīnī Bahrī/P'īr Sīnī Dārānī, Its Study and Critical Analysis|journal=Iranian Studies|volume=53|issue=1–2|pages=223–257|doi=10.1080/00210862.2019.1669118|s2cid=214483496|issn=0021-0862}} According to the Yazidi tradition, there are a total of 40 mishurs which were distributed to the 40 lineages of Pirs.

File:Pilgrims and festival at Lalish on the day of the Yezidi New Year in 2017 06 (cropped).jpg festival at Lalish, Iraqi Kurdistan]]

{{main|Yazidi New Year}}

The Yazidi New Year ({{Lang|ku|Sersal}}) is called {{Lang|ku|Çarşema sor}} ("Red Wednesday") or {{Lang|ku|Çarşema Serê Nîsanê}} ("Wednesday at the beginning of April").{{Cite book|last=Авдоев|first=Теймураз|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t78gDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA75|title=Историко-теософский аспект езидизма|date=2017-09-05|publisher=Litres|isbn=9785040433988|language=ru}} It falls in spring, on the first Wednesday{{Cite journal |last=Rodziewicz |first=Artur |date=March 2020 |title=The Yezidi Wednesday and the Music of the Spheres |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/iranian-studies/article/abs/yezidi-wednesday-and-the-music-of-the-spheres/EFA16C6D6A2585CF3F1F3A318B32E60B |journal=Iranian Studies |language=en |volume=53 |issue=1–2 |pages=259–293 |doi=10.1080/00210862.2019.1654287 |s2cid=211672629 |issn=0021-0862|url-access=subscription }} of the April and Nîsan months in the Julian and Seleucid calendars, i.e. the first Wednesday on or after 14 April according to the Gregorian calendar.{{Cite web|url=http://ciwanen-ezidi.de/pdf/rotemittwoch.pdf|title=Das êzîdîsche Neujahr}}{{Cite book|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/9781108623711/type/book|title=The Cambridge History of the Kurds|date=2021-04-22|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-108-62371-1|editor-last=Bozarslan|editor-first=Hamit|edition=1|doi=10.1017/9781108623711|s2cid=243594800|editor-last2=Gunes|editor-first2=Cengiz|editor-last3=Yadirgi|editor-first3=Veli}}

{{main|Feast of Ezid}}

File:A_Yazidi_ceremony_called_Tawwaf_in_the_town_of_Baashiqa_in_Iraq.jpg in the town of Bashiqa in Iraq.]]

One of the most important Yazidi festivals is {{Lang|ku|Îda Êzî}} ("Feast of Êzî"), which is celebrated in commemoration of the divine figure Sultan Ezid. Which every year takes place on the first Friday on or after 14 December. Before this festival, the Yazidis fast for three days, where nothing is eaten from sunrise to sunset. The {{Lang|ku|Îda Êzî}} festival is celebrated in honor of God and the three days of fasting before are also associated with the ever shorter days before the winter solstice, when the Sun is less and less visible. With the {{Lang|ku|Îda Êzî}} festival, the fasting time is ended. The festival is often celebrated with music, food, drinks and dance.{{Cite book|last=Urban|first=Elke|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ni2lDwAAQBAJ&q=Ida+%C3%8Az%C3%AE|title=Transkulturelle Pflege am Lebensende: Umgang mit Sterbenden und Verstorbenen unterschiedlicher Religionen und Kulturen|date=2019-07-24|publisher=Kohlhammer Verlag|isbn=9783170359383|language=de}}

{{main|Tawûsgeran}}

Another important festival is the Tawûsgeran, where Qewals and other religious dignitaries visit Yazidi villages, bringing the {{Lang|ku|sinjaq}}, sacred images of a peacock symbolizing Tawûsê Melek. These are venerated, fees are collected from the pious, sermons are preached and holy water and berat (small stones from Lalish) distributed.{{Cite book|last=Kreyenbroek|first=Philip G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E4FpDDbrvqkC&pg=PA22|title=Yezidism in Europe: Different Generations Speak about Their Religion|date=2009|publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=9783447060608|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Maisel|first=Sebastian|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EFgIDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA50|title=Yezidis in Syria: Identity Building among a Double Minority|date=2016-12-24|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=9780739177754|language=en}}

{{main|Feast of the Assembly}}

File:Lalish.jpg (Şêx Adî) in Lalish]]

The greatest festival of the year is the {{Lang|ku|Cêjna Cemaiya}} ('Feast of the Assembly'), which includes an annual pilgrimage to the tomb of Sheikh 'Adī' (Şêx Adî) in Lalish, northern Iraq. The festival is celebrated from 6 October to 13 October,{{Cite book|last=Guest|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0h0U-f8FbDEC&pg=PA39|title=Survival Among The Kurds|date=2012-11-12|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136157363|language=en}} in honor of the Sheikh Adi. It is an important time for cohesion.{{Cite book|last1=Yousefi|first1=Hamid Reza|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wxApBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA165|title=Ethik im Weltkontext: Geschichten - Erscheinungsformen - Neuere Konzepte|last2=Seubert|first2=Harald|date=2014-07-22|publisher=Springer-Verlag|isbn=9783658048976|language=de}}

If possible, Yazidis make at least one pilgrimage to Lalish during their lifetime, and those living in the region try to attend at least once a year for the Feast of the Assembly in autumn.{{Cite book|last=Açikyildiz|first=Birgül|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ql4BAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA105|title=The Yezidis: The History of a Community, Culture and Religion|date=2014-12-23|publisher=I.B.Tauris|isbn=9780857720610|language=en}}

{{main|Tiwaf}}

Tiwafs are yearly feasts of shrines and their holy beings which constitute an important part of Yazidi religious and communal life. Every village that contains a shrine holds annual tiwafs in the name of the holy being to which the shrine is dedicated.{{Cite journal|last=Spat|first=Eszter|date=2016-10-08|title=Hola Hola Tawusi Melek, Hola Hola Şehidêt Şingalê: Persecution and the Development of Yezidi Ritual Life|journal=Kurdish Studies|volume=4|issue=2|pages=155–175|doi=10.33182/ks.v4i2.426|issn=2051-4891}}{{Cite book|last=Kreyenbroek|first=Philip G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XpbXAAAAMAAJ|title=Yezidism--its Background, Observances, and Textual Tradition|date=1995|location=Lewiston, New York|publisher=Edwin Mellen Press|isbn=978-0-7734-9004-8|pages=75|language=en}}

Prayers occupy a special status in Yazidi literature. They contain important symbols and religious knowledge connected with the Holy Men, God, and daily situations. The prayers are mostly private and as a rule they are not performed in public. Yazidis pray towards the sun,{{Cite book|last=Maisel|first=Sebastian|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EFgIDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA55|title=Yezidis in Syria: Identity Building among a Double Minority|date=2016-12-24|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=9780739177754|language=en}} usually privately, or the prayers are recited by one person during a gathering. The prayers are classified according to their own content. There are:

• Prayers dedicated to God and holy beings
• Prayers of Yazidi castes
• Prayers for specific occasions
• Rite of passage prayers
• Prayers against health problems and illnesses
• Daily prayers
• Prayers connected with the nature, i.e. the Moon, stars, Sun, etc.{{Cite journal|last=Omarkhali|first=Khanna|date=2011-03-20|title=YEZIDI RELIGIOUS ORAL POETIC LITERATURE: STATUS, FORMAL CHARACTERISTICS, AND GENRE ANALYSIS: With some examples of Yezidi religious texts|journal=Scrinium|volume=7-8|issue=2|pages=144–195|doi=10.1163/18177565-90000247|issn=1817-7530|doi-access=free}}

File:Baptîzma êzidiyan.jpg of a Yazidi child in Lalish]]

Children are baptised at birth and circumcision is not required, but is practised by some due to regional customs.{{cite web |last1=Parry |first1=O. H. (Oswald Hutton) |date=1895 |title=Six months in a Syrian monastery; being the record of a visit to the head quarters of the Syrian church in Mesopotamia, with some account of the Yazidis or devil worshippers of Mosul and El Jilwah, their sacred book |url=https://archive.org/stream/sixmonthsinasyr00parrgoog/sixmonthsinasyr00parrgoog_djvu.txt |publisher=London : H. Cox}} The Yazidi baptism is called {{Lang|ku|mor kirin}} (literally: 'to seal'). Traditionally, Yazidi children are baptised at birth with water from the {{Lang|ku|Kaniya Sipî}} ('White Spring') at Lalish. It involves pouring holy water from the spring on the child's head three times.{{cite web |title=Yazidis ii. Initiation in Yazidism |url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/yazidis-ii-initiation-in-yazidism |access-date=18 September 2021}}{{Cite book |last=Kreyenbroek |first=Philip G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E4FpDDbrvqkC&pg=PA31 |title=Yezidism in Europe: Different Generations Speak about Their Religion |date=2009 |publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag |isbn=978-3-447-06060-8 |language=en}}

File:YezidiTemple.JPG in northern Iraq. The temple is so old that no one remembers how it came to have that name, but it is believed to derive from the burial of forty men on the mountaintop site.{{cite news|last1=Lair |first1=Patrick |title=Conversation with a Yazidi Kurd |url=http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2008/1/kurdsiniraq6.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080123063620/http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2008/1/kurdsiniraq6.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 January 2008 |access-date=24 June 2015 |work=eKurd Daily |date=19 January 2008 }}]]

Many Yazidis consider pork to be prohibited. However, many Yazidis living in Germany began to view this taboo as a foreign belief from Judaism or Islam and not part of Yazidism, and therefore abandoned this rule.Halil Savucu: Yeziden in Deutschland: Eine Religionsgemeinschaft zwischen Tradition, Integration und Assimilation Tectum Wissenschaftsverlag, Marburg 2016, {{ISBN|978-3-828-86547-1}}, Section 16 (German) Furthermore, in a BBC interview in April 2010, Baba Sheikh, the spiritual leader of all Yazidis, stated that ordinary Yazidis may eat what they want, but the religious clergy refrain from certain vegetables (including cabbage) because "they cause gases".[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/8598970.stm "Richness of Iraq's minority religions revealed"], BBC. Retrieved 3 July 2015.

Some Yazidis in Armenia and Georgia who converted to Christianity, still identify as Yazidis even after converting,{{cite web |title=Population (urban, rural) by Ethnicity, Sex and Religious Belief |url=https://www.armstat.am/file/doc/99486278.pdf |website=Statistics of Armenia |access-date=22 May 2019}} but are not accepted by the other Yazidis as Yazidis.{{Cite web|url=https://chai-khana.org/en/georgias-yazidis-religion-as-identity|title=Georgia's Yazidis: Religion as Identity - Religious Beliefs|last=Aghayeva|first=Elene Shengelia, Rana|date=2018-09-06|website=chai-khana.org|language=en|access-date=2019-08-30}}

{{Main|Yazidi social organization}}

The Yazidis are strictly endogamous;{{Cite book|title = The Yezidis: The History of a Community, Culture and Religion|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ql4BAwAAQBAJ|publisher = I.B.Tauris|date = 2014-12-23|isbn = 9780857720610|language = en|first = Birgül|last = Açikyildiz}}{{Cite web|title = Everything You Need to Know About the Yazidis|url = https://time.com/3091932/yazidi-iraq-isis-obama/|website = Time|access-date = 2016-02-07|first = Mirren|last = Gidda| date=8 August 2014 }} members of the three Yazidi castes, the murids, sheikhs, and pirs, marry only within their group.

There are several religious duties that are performed by several dignitaries, such as the Mir Hejj (Prince of the Pilgrimage), Sheikh el-Wazir (who oversees the sanctuary of Sheikh Shems at Lalish), Pire Esbiya (treasurer of the sanctuary of Sheikh Shems at Lalish), Mijewir (local shrine custodian), Baba Chawush (guardian of the sanctuary of Sheikh Adi), and others.

{{Portal|Kurdistan|Religion|History

}}

• List of Yazidi holy places
• List of Yazidi saints
• List of Yazidi settlements
• Persecution of Yazidis

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book | last=Allison | first=Christine | title=The Yezidi oral tradition in Iraqi Kurdistan | publisher=Curzon | publication-place=Richmond, Surrey England | year=2001 | isbn=0-7007-1397-2 | oclc=45337769}}
• {{cite book |author1-last=Asatrian |author1-first=Garnik S. |author1-link=Garnik Asatrian |author2-last=Arakelova |author2-first=Victoria |year=2014 |title=The Religion of the Peacock Angel: The Yezidis and Their Spirit World |chapter=Part I: The One God - Malak-Tāwūs: The Leader of the Triad |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y1RsBAAAQBAJ |location=Abingdon, Oxfordshire |publisher=Routledge |series=Gnostica |pages=1–28 |doi=10.4324/9781315728896 |isbn=978-1-84465-761-2 |oclc=931029996}}
• {{cite journal |author1-last=Asatrian |author1-first=Garnik S. |author1-link=Garnik Asatrian |author2-last=Arakelova |author2-first=Victoria |date=January 2003 |title=Malak-Tāwūs: The Peacock Angel of the Yezidis |editor-last=Asatrian |editor-first=Garnik S. |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |volume=7 |issue=1–2 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill Publishers in collaboration with the Caucasian Centre for Iranian Studies (Yerevan) |pages=1–36 |doi=10.1163/157338403X00015 |eissn=1573-384X |issn=1609-8498 |jstor=4030968 |lccn=2001227055 |oclc=233145721}}
• {{cite book | last=Guest | first=John | title=The Yezidis: a study in survival | publisher=KPI Distributed by Methuen Inc., Routledge & Kegan Paul | publication-place=London New York New York, NY, USA | year=1987 | isbn=0-7103-0115-4 | oclc=470948318}}
• {{cite book | last=Kreyenbroek | first=Philip | author-link=Philip G. Kreyenbroek | title=God and Sheikh Adi are perfect: sacred poems and religious narratives from the Yezidi tradition | publisher=Harrassowitz | publication-place=Wiesbaden | year=2005 | isbn=978-3-447-05300-6 | oclc=63127403}}
• {{cite book | last=Kreyenbroek | first=Philip | author-link=Philip G. Kreyenbroek | title=Yezidism: its background, observances, and textual tradition | publisher= Edwin Mellen Press | publication-place=Lewiston, New York | year=1995 | isbn=0-7734-9004-3 | oclc=31377794}}
• {{cite book | last=Omarkhali | first=Khanna | author-link=Khanna Omarkhali | title=The Yezidi religious textual tradition, from oral to written: categories, transmission, scripturalisation, and canonisation of the Yezidi oral religious texts | publisher=Harrassowitz Verlag | publication-place=Wiesbaden | year=2017 | isbn=978-3-447-10856-0 | oclc=994778968}}
• {{cite journal |author-last=Rodziewicz |author-first=Artur |date=December 2016 |title=And the Pearl Became an Egg: The Yezidi Red Wednesday and Its Cosmogonic Background |editor-last=Asatrian |editor-first=Garnik S. |editor-link=Garnik Asatrian |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |volume=20 |issue=3–4 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill Publishers in collaboration with the Caucasian Centre for Iranian Studies (Yerevan) |pages=347–367 |doi=10.1163/1573384X-20160306 |eissn=1573-384X |issn=1609-8498 |jstor=44631092 |lccn=2001227055 |oclc=233145721}}
• {{Cite book |title=Yari Religion in Iran |date=2022 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-981-16-6444-1 |editor-last=Hosseini |editor-first=S. Behnaz |location=Singapore |pages=103–187 |language=en |chapter=The Mystery of Essence and the Essence of Mystery: Yezidi and Yaresan Cosmogonies in the Light of the Kitab al-Tawasin |doi=10.1007/978-981-16-6444-1_6 |chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-16-6444-1_6}}
• {{cite journal |author-last=Sfameni Gasparro |author-first=Giulia |date=April 1975 |title=I Miti Cosmogonici degli Yezidi |editor1-last=Feldt |editor1-first=Laura |editor2-last=Valk |editor2-first=Ülo |journal=Numen |volume=22 |issue=1 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill Publishers |language=it |pages=24–41 |doi=10.1163/156852775X00112 |eissn=1568-5276 |issn=0029-5973 |jstor=3269532 |lccn=58046229 |oclc=50557232}}
• {{cite journal |author-last=Sfameni Gasparro |author-first=Giulia |date=December 1974 |title=I Miti Cosmogonici degli Yezidi |editor1-last=Feldt |editor1-first=Laura |editor2-last=Valk |editor2-first=Ülo |journal=Numen |volume=21 |issue=3 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill Publishers |language=it |pages=197–227 |doi=10.1163/156852774X00113 |eissn=1568-5276 |issn=0029-5973 |jstor=3269773 |lccn=58046229 |oclc=50557232|doi-access=free }}
• {{cite thesis |title=Late Antique Motifs in Yezidi Oral Tradition |first=Eszter |last=Spät |publisher=Central European University, Department of Medieval Studies |type=Doctor of Philosophy |location=Budapest |date=2009}}

{{commons category}}

{{YazidisOutline|state=expanded}}

{{Religion topics}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Ethnic religions in Asia

Category:Iranian religions

Category:Mesopotamian religion

Category:Monotheistic religions

Category:Religion in Armenia

Category:Religion in Georgia (country)

Category:Religion in Iraq

Category:Religion in Kurdistan

Category:Religion in Syria

Category:Religion in Turkey

Category:Yazidi culture

Category:Yazidi mythology

Category:Ethnic religions

Category:Kurdish words and phrases