Abstract:
Flag- taking– Jaridah Bardāri– and water- caring– Saqqāei– are examples of mourning rites in the month of Muharram which were established by Qalandariyah and Fetyān. Historical sources testify the prevalence of these rites among Fetyān during Ilkhānid and safavid period. According to treatises written on Futuwwat– Futuwwat Nāmeh–flag- taking and water- caring in the month of Moharram were performed among Sufi orders particularly Qalandars and did not have a common currency between other groups of mourners. These ritual were gradually noticed by others and became a part of shi،ite mourning rites for Imām Husein. In the Qājār and Pahlavi period، little by little the mentioned ritual found a popular acceptance and their Sufi origin were forgotten. Nevertheless the trace of them in Sufism is recognizable. The mourning attributed to water- carriers includes the remembrance of affliction and disasters suffered by the family of the prophet of Mohammad –Ahlal- Bayt– especially Husein ibn ‘Ali and his loyal followers، in the form of a group and harmonious lamentation without chest-beating and using instruments such as chain –zanjir–، cymbal– senj– and drum– tabl–. Jariden is a special flag which was put in the façade of Huseiniyeh or other mourning centers and carried in front of mourners’ group. There are authenticated documents which show around the end of Qājār period flag- taking in cities like kāshān has been prerogative of Qalandari groups and for carring of flag permission of their master– Bābā– has been necessary.
Machine summary:
The history of the Qalandariyya and the content of their texts and treatises, composed during different historical periods, indicate the evolutionary course of Qalandari thoughts towards Shiism and Muharram mourning rituals in Iran, as seen in the comparison between eighth-century Qalandarnamas and Safavid-era Qalandarnamas, which shows a significant shift towards Shiism and Muharram mourning rituals.
(See: Fourteen Treatises on Futuvva and Guilds; Futuvva-namas and Khaksari Treatises; Qalandari Rituals) In this article, we aim to examine two rituals, Saqqai and Jarideh-bardari, which Sufi groups have entered into Muharram mourning and have played an essential role in performing.
1. Saqqai Saqqai is one of the most dignified Muharram mourning rituals that is prevalent in various cities of Iran, and various Saqqai groups in the cities of Hamadan, Kashan, Tehran, Tabriz, Qom, Yazd, Arak, Kerman, Aran va Bidgol, Nowabad, Niasar, and even the holy cities in Iraq, perform this ritual in a magnificent manner.
Volumes 4, 5 and 6) However, there is another type of performance of this ritual, based on which during the mourning days, members of the Saqqai groups wear Saqqai clothing, carry a blue goatskin bag on their shoulders, hold a cup or a bowl in their hands, and quench the thirst of the thirsty along the mourning path; while doing so, they recite the calamities of the Ahl al-Bayt of Imam Hussain(a), especially the thirst of His Eminence, his Ahl al-Bayt, and his companions.
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