The Religion of the Peacock Angel: The Yezidis and Their Spirit WorldBased in Iraq, Syria and Turkey, the Yezidi people claim their religion - a unique combination of Christian, Islamic, and historical faiths - to be the oldest in the world. Yezidi identity centres on their religion, Sharfadin, which has evolved into a highly complex pantheon of one God with many incarnations, the chief of whom is Melek Taus, the Peacock Angel. The Yezidi faith can be traced to a range of pre-Islamic belief systems, such as Sufism, some extreme Shi'ite sects, Gnosticism and other traditions surviving from the ancient world. This particular formulation has served to unify Yezidi religious identity and ethnicity. Based on extensive fieldwork, 'The Religion of the Peacock Angel' presents the first detailed examination of the Yezidi pantheon. The idea of one God and his chief incarnations is first analysed, then the various 'deity figures,' saints, holy patrons and divinized personalities in the Yezidi belief system are considered in the context of related religious traditions. The study determines the place of all these characters in the system of the Yezidi faith, defining their main functions, features, and genealogies. |
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ad-din Adam Adawiyya Adi’s Ahl-i Haqq Allah ancient Arab Arakelova Armenian attribute Avdal Avesta Azrail believed Black Scripture Book of Revelation Caliph cattle Caucasus Celil & Celil character cock colour creatures cult cultic deity divine Dūzgin earth elements esoteric evil extreme Shi‘a Ezdineri faith Farid ad-din Attar Farxadin Fatima figure functions G. S. Asatrian Gnostic god’s holy hymn Ibid Iran Islam Kreyenbroek Kurdish Kurds Kurmanji Lalish legend lord Malak Malak-Tāwūs Malak—Tawus Māma-řašān Mama—rasan Mamē-Šivān Mandaean meaning Milyāk’atē-qanǰ moon Muslim mystical Old Iranian onion pantheon Peacock Angel pearl Persian Pīrā-Fāt prayer Prophet Qawlē region religion rite ritual saint Satan serpent Šēx Sharfadin Sheikh Adi Sheikh Hasane Sheikh Shams Shi‘a Shi‘a sects soul spirit Sufi Sufism Sultan Ezid symbol syncretic Tāwūs Tehran tion triad Umayyad worship Xidir-nabī xwadē Yazid Yerevan Yezidi community Yezidi religious Yezidi tradition Zargotina k’urda Zazas Zoroastrian