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Stories & essential guides from the Kurdistan Region.

Practical guides, historical features, and original articles exploring the people, landscapes, archaeology, and culture of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

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Traditions

Alevism: The Sacred Tradition of Ali and the Ancient Cult of Angels

Across eastern Anatolia and Kurdistan, Alevism has preserved a distinctive religious tradition centered on sacred manifestations, communal ritual, and reverence for Ali. Associated particularly with the Dimila Kurds and some Kurmanji-speaking communities, it is known by names including Alevi, Alawi, and Qizilbash. Alevism belongs to the ancient Cult of Angels, with Ali regarded as a primary avatar of the Universal Spirit. In Alevi tradition, Ali and the Prophet Muhammad are joined as Alimuhammad. Its religious life includes communal ceremonies, hymns, and reverence for the sun and moon.

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Traditions

Yarsanism: The Sacred World of the Universal Spirit

Across the mountains of Kurdistan, Yarsanism, or Ahl-e Haqq, survives as one of the branches of the ancient Cult of Angels, alongside Yezidism and Alevism. At its center is Haq, the Universal Spirit, whose manifestations unfold through seven epochs, or Biyabas. Yarsani belief also teaches a journey of the soul through successive forms of existence. After reaching humanity, the soul continues through reincarnation, known as Dun ba Dun, until it reaches perfection and union with the Universal Spirit.

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Lalish temple
Traditions

Yazidism: The Ancient Faith That Refused to Disappear.

Hidden among the rugged mountains and quiet valleys of Kurdistan survives one of the world’s oldest living religious traditions. Long before the rise of Islam, Christianity, or the dominance of Zoroastrianism in the Persian empires, the highlands of the Zagros nurtured a spiritual worldview unlike any other. Today, that ancient heritage continues through Yazidism—a faith whose roots stretch back thousands of years while preserving beliefs that have survived the rise and fall of civilizations.

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