Zaouia
The term Zaouia or Zawiya ( Arabic زاويةIn the Maghreb countries of Morocco , Algeria , Tunisia , Libya and Mauritania , DMG zāwiya 'corner' refers to a religious brotherhood that is closely related to Sufism in the broadest sense , and which devoted itself to the posthumous veneration of a locally or regionally important tribal leader ( caid ), Koran scholars or healer or "holy man" ( marabout ). The mausoleum of the saint, usually made of stone (city) or rammed earth (land) and usually whitewashed , is also often referred to as zaouia ; in some cases the name was also transferred to the entire place (e.g. Zaouia d'Ifrane ). In cities there are often several Zaouias, each headed by a cheikh .
The terms Tekke (Turkish) or Chanqah or Dargah (Persian) are used synonymously in the respective countries.
history
In the Koran and in the hadiths there is no mention of the veneration of saints ; religious worship is due only to Allah . The origin of the first Islamic Zaouias is therefore in the dark; It can be assumed, however, that a large part of the underlying thought goes back to pre-Islamic (sometimes perhaps also Judeo-Christian) traditions. While the first brotherhoods were mainly devoted to religious or quasi-religious goals, in times of internal and external crises they also turned to political and social goals. In Morocco, for example, under the rather weak rule of the Merinids (1269–1465), Wattasids (1465–1554) and Saadians (1554–1667) , the Zaouias gained increased domestic political influence, even the Alawids , who had only officially been in power since 1667, initially could barely control; only Moulay ar-Raschid (ruled 1664–1672) succeeded in 1664 in a battle lasting several days near Meknes, eliminating the Dila brotherhood founded around 1566 and destroying their ancestral seat ad Dila in the Middle Atlas four years later .
function
In addition to their identity-creating function as the quasi-religious center of a rural place or area, which is expressed in annual pilgrimages and festivals ( moussems ), the members of a brotherhood in earlier times also devoted themselves to educational, school and medical-psychological tasks. In some cases the holy man's grave building is visited all year round by those seeking help in cases of physical or psychological illness or in the case of childlessness.
architecture
While outer domes are almost unknown in Moorish art , the smaller marabout tombs or zaouias regularly close with domes at the top . Some of these grave structures only have a simple entrance door; others have a more or less large walled forecourt, which gives the building the overall character of a small - minaret-free - mosque .
See also
literature
- Octave Depont and Xavier Coppolani : Les Confréries religieuses musulmanes. Algiers 1897, Reprint Paris 1987, ISBN 2-7200-1051-0
- Mohammed Lahlou: Zaouïa et développement culturel au Maroc. Édilivre, Paris 2015, ISBN 978-2332841612
Web links
- Zaouias and Marabouts - Info (English)
- Photos + brief - Zaouias in Essaouira (English)
- Zaouias - Photos + Info (Looklex English)