Are Yazdi/Yezidi descendant from Zoroastrians? Many ethno-religious groups are struggling to survive in the Middle East in ever dwindling numbers and if the present trend of exodus and persecution continues it is unlikely that they will survive the twenty- first century in their homeland. Middle East, the very highway connecting north and south, east and west, has witnessed many people come and go, as well as many people and languages intermingle and mix. This trend will continue, for better or for worse until such time comes that the world is split asunder. Common origin of the Yazidi with the Shamsiyya/Shemsi and the Arewordik? Middle East has always been home to obscure religious sects some of which did not survive to the twentieth century. One such group is the Shemsi/Shamsiyya. The Shamsiyya, which according to some is the same as the Arewordik, as their name implies were, at least it seems to outsiders “worshippers of the Sun” which s apparent from their name; Shamsiyya, as well as Arewordik (Children of the Sun). The Shemsi were present in much of northward Kurdistan, and it is most likely they were concentrated mainly in Amid and Mardin, as we have to rely on the first written documentation that states the areas they live in; the first Tahrir Register conducted in 1518 in Amid and the the second Tahrir Register which identifies the Shemsi as a separate congregation. Aside from government sources, our paperwork on the Shemsi is very, very limited; Simeon, the Polish traveller who visited Mardin in the early seventeenth century, claimed that the Shemsi were Armenian speakers, while others claimed them to be Kurdish speakers. Simeon reported that a governor asked the sect of their origin. They said they were Armenian. The governor then gave them the choice of either attend a mosque or the Armenian Church or be put to the sword. The Shamsi promised to attend the Armenian Church. The governor threatened them with reprisals if they did not keep their promise. The frightened Shemsi were then said to have stopped using the temple and many migrated to Iran, Tur’Abdin Mountains, Tokat, Merzifon and elsewhere. Simeon also noted that the Shemsi were also known as Arevortik (sons of the sun) and that the sect was thought to be of Iranian origin. Simeon added that the Yezidis were also thought to be of Arevortik background. As the Yezidis prey at least twice a day facing the sun, the connection to the Yezidis seem plausible. Furthermore, the Shemsi/Arevortik pray in the form of songs. First mention of Yezidi; The first mention of Yazidis so far is found in the writings of al-Baghdadi (circa 1038) who observed: “The Yazidis are not regarded Muslims for they permitted the abolition of Islamic law in contrast to all Muslims.” The name Yazidi is likely derived from the word Yazad, angel/God, but they are also called by various other names, and “the Yazidis of Syria still call themselves Desanis.” Some believe that the Yazidis are named after King Cyrus who “was saturated with the teachings of Zoroaster.” Who are the Arevortik? Are they related to the Yezidi? In the “Chronicle of Matthew of Edessa” of the 12th century, mentions the sun worshipping Arevorti who appeared to have maintained the cult of fire (i.e. Zoroastrianism). Thomas Medzop’hetzi, historian of the fifteenth century, said, recounting the invasion of Timour (Tamerlan) in Mesopotamia: “[h]e came to Mardin and vandalised this city; he destroyed from top to bottom four villages lived by the worshippers of sun (the Arévorti): Schôl, Schmershakh, Safari and Maraghi. But afterwards [the Arevorti] multiplied in Mardin and Amid”. The possible connection between the Yezidis is also strengthened by the existence of a “major tribe among the Yezidis of Armenia […] named Şemsiki”. Keating Kelly who wrote in 1844 claimed that “[t]he Syrians distinguish the Yezidis into several classes, such as the shemsies (worshippers of the sun), the sheytanies (Satanists), and the catheless (cut throats). The shemsies, they say, are scattered descendants of the ancient Guebres [Zoroastrians], whose deity was the principle of fire, and who worshipped the sun as the great source of light and heat: they are by no mean numerous in Syria. But in all probability these distinctions are unfounded, for all the Yezidis appear to have one common creed, a traditional version, apparently of the old Magian doctrines, mingled with diverse extravagant fables.” Amed Gökçen who writes on Yezidis claims that the Shamsi sect survived right up to the 1960s: “[…] apparently until very recently, i.e. up to the 60s, in the Mardin-Urfa region there were Shemsi living. There are newspaper clippings about some members of the congregation. In the 1950s the Yezidi Mîr [Prince] came to Turkey and visited the community. He visited his followers in Urfa, Mardin and people came and told him that in this region that a group existed with similarities to the Yezidis, worshipping the sun, praying certain prayers very similar to them and that they want to intermarry with them and establish blood ties. And the Mîr went to the village and accepted them to Yezidism. Perhaps throughout the history it is the only time the sect accepted members to the congregation. From that we can conclude from that is that until the 1960s, we might not know but the congregation had information about people associated with [worshipping] the fire and the sun. There are certain groups that lived there being very cautious. If I'm not mistaken there were also tribes in Urfa, who until the Yezidi Mîr came lived as Shemsi and afterwards became Yezidis.” Further about the relationship between Yezidism and Zoroastrianism The following is written by Kersey Antia who is the Zoroastrian High Priest of Chicago, Illinois, a position he has held since 1977. “My first encounter with Yezidism [was] during 1965, when I ran into theYezidi and Kurdish students who were glad to relate with me after finding out that I was Zoroastrian… I remember one of them giving me a book on Yezidism with a Parsi-style picture of Zoroaster with a caption“Zoroaster our prophet.” “My study led me to believe that the Kurds in general and the Yezidis in particular are perhaps racially closest to the Parsis and Irani Zoroastrians than any other race in the world, as they, especially the Yezidis, have not married outside their race and mingled with the Arabs” “The Yazidi religious texts, Jalwa and Resh, are also interesting; the word Ankar they use for Satan may have some affinity with the word Angra as in Angra-Mainyu, which stands for Ahreman or Satan in Zoroastrianism. The Book of Resh mentions the names of Shapur I and II as Yazidi Kings who succeeded each other and ruled for 150 years, the present Yazidi princes being their descendants” “No doubt the Yazidis believe in God (Yazdan), Creator of Heaven and Earth. But they believe that from him two trinities emanated: celestial and terrestrial. The six deities came from one God, each having the same aspects of the great God,” which is reminiscent of the six Amesha Spenta of Zoroastrianism.” Conclusion; It seems apt to conclude that, while more research is needed into the history of the Yazidi which is hidden in obscurity as well as hidden by members of this religion, it can be said that definitely Yazidism was born from Zoroastrianism. Yazidism can be said to be the Zoroastrian religion of the Kurds who were pushed to the mountains from the invasion of the arabs, which mixed together with other Zoroastrian sects of the area; such as Zoroastrian Armenians and others. Later on Yazidism would have to, under pressure, take on aspects of Christianity and islam, which, as far as history is concerned, were enemies of the Kurds and Yazidism and Zoroastrianism until very recently. Some sources to read upon the Zoroastrian-Yazidi connection; https://www.academia.edu/5288926/Ancient_Rites_and_Old_Religions_in_Kurdistan http://www.atour.com/history/1900/20101115a.html http://www.avesta.org/antia/A_Brief_Review_of_the_Yezidi_Beliefs_and_Customs.pdf
Enter the password to open this PDF file:
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-