The largest Yezidi temple in the world built in Armenia

In September, in the village of Aknalich in Armenia, the largest and only the third Yazidi temple in the world was consecrated.

The religion of the Yezidis is little studied and not widespread. According to tradition, just as one cannot become a Yezidi, one cannot accept the Yezidi faith. In this faith one can only be born. Perhaps it was this immutable law that allowed a nation that did not have its own state to survive for thousands of years. Before the formation of their religion, the Yezidis were adherents of Zoroastrianism. The majority refused at one time to accept the faith of other nations.

The new doctrine of the Yezidis, the founder of which is Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir (1072 – 1162), absorbed elements of Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Manichaeism. The Yezidis themselves call their religion – Sharfadin.

The Yezidis recognize the Creator God, the creator of the Universe Huade and the supreme angel (deity) Malake Tavus (in the form of a peacock). The main shrine of the Yezidis is the temple at the mausoleum of Sheikh Adi in Lalesh, which is 40 km north of Mosul (Iraq). There is also the residence of the spiritual leader of the Yezidis – Sheh Miri.

In total, there are no more than 2,000,000 Yezidis in the world, most of them live in northern Iraq, there are large communities in Germany and Armenia. But only in Armenia, at the state level, they help the Yezidis to preserve their identity. There are dozens of schools in Armenia with the opportunity to study the Yezidi language, and there are two modern temples in Armenia.

photo: Vahagh Grigoryan