Yarsan
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Yarsan (also referred to as Yaresan in Kurdish) (Persian:اهل حق, "Ahl-e Haqq", derived from an Arabic phrase translatable as "People of the Truth" and as "Men of God"[link]) is a religious order of Yazdanism, and is currently primarily found in western Iran.
According to Encyclopaedia Kurdistanica, Yarsan, Yazidism and Alevi are three branches of Cult of Angels or Yazdanism, a native Kurdish religion [link]. Yarsan adherents are commonly labelled as Muslims because they adopted several superficial features, including veneration of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth Caliph, and recognizing Islamic taqqiyya (dissimulation). Critics of the faith refer to adherents as Ali-Ilahis or Aliullahis but according to the Encyclopaedia of Islam, the name Aliullahi (Ali Ilahi) applied to them by their neighbours is not accurate since Ali is not the dominant figure in their religion [link].
Adherents today still live in the western provinces of Iran, many in the Kermanshah province, close to the Iraqi border. There are also groups located around Kirkuk in Iraq. Most adherents are of Kurdish ethnicity, though there are also groups of Laki-Kurds, Lur, Azeri and Persian adherents [link]. There are also Arabic-speaking adherents in the Iraqi cities of Mandali, Baquba, and Khanaqin [link].
The order is supposed to have been founded by Sultan Sahâk, a largely mythical figure in the early 16th century AD in western Iran, but since it is a mystical order, not many verifiable facts are known about them. The Order of Ahl-e-Haqq is a strictly closed circle. Part of their literature is written in the Persian language [link].
Religious Beliefs
The Yârsâns believe God manifests one primary and 5 secondary avatars to form with God the Holy Seven, and re-manifests these avatars in each of the seven epochs. While the avatars of the First Epoch can be closely matched by name to the archangels of the Semitic religions, the avatars of the Second Epoch, which begins with Ali as the primary avatar, are all Muslim figures, except for Nusayr. Nusayr may be interpreted as referring to the "Nazarene," i.e., Jesus Christ, or as Nârsch, the minor avatar who later came to be known as Theophobus.
In the Fourth Epoch, the primary avatar is held to be Sultan Sahâk. It is said that he was given birth by Mama Jelale a Kurdish maiden (female virgin) and as in the case of Mary, it had been a virginal conception. Once while sleeping under a pomegranate tree, a kernel of fruit fell into her mouth, because a bird had nibbled the fruit directly over her and had made the kernel fall ([link], page 23).
There are similarities between Ahl-e-Haqq and the (Turkish-Kurdish) Alevis, though how closely these similarities point to evidence of a joint origin remains in dispute. Others see a similarity to the Yezidis, though much of this debate must remain speculation, as all these groups have few published writings and favour secretive religious practices.
Like the Yazidis, followers of Yarsan or "Ahl-i Haqq" believe in reincarnation. They have a famous saying about death: Men! Do not fear the punishment of death! The death of man is like the dive which the duck makes. Human beings go through a cycle of 1,001 incarnations. During this process, they may become more purified based on their actions. The scene of last Judgement will take place in the plains of Sharazur (Kirkuk) [link].
The Yarsan's holy book is called Serencam, which is the collections of their legends, consisting of Epoch of Khawandagar, Epoch of Ali, Epoch of Khoshin, and Epoch of Sohak. These are the different manifestations of Divinity. The epoch of Khoshin takes place in the Luristan region and the epoch of Sohak is placed in the Land of Gorans (Hawraman) near the river Sirwan. The sayings attributed to Sultan Sohak are written in Gorani Kurdish, the sacred language of the Ahl-i Haqq [link].
Famous People
The famous Iranian musician and mystic Nour Ali Elahi was a high-ranked member of Ahl-e-Haqq and published a book about beliefs and practices of this order which is one of the few reliable sources on the subject. Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, the self-proclaimed King of Kingdom of Kurdistan after World War I, claimed to be descended from the brother of Sultan Sohak in the twelfth generation [link].
See also
External links
- [Ahl-i Haqq], from Encyclopaedia of Islam.
- [Introduction to Yarsan Religion]
- [Yarsan] (in Kurdish/Persian)
- [Cult of Angels]
- [Ahl-e Haqq: An Oriental Order of Mysticism]
- [The official site of Nour Ali Elahi]
- [Ahle Haqq music , Razbar Ensemble]
- [Information to Yarsanism] Click forward on "Cult of Angels" then "Yaresanism"
- [Status of Yaresan in Iran]
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