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www.pen-kurd.org/englizi/zorab/aspects-of-kurdish-demonology.html 1/16

Dr. Zurab ALOIAN

Aspects of Kurdish Demonology

Introduction

The study of such an essential side of any religion as the explanation and description of Evil and its host is of great importance. It is here

where theology and popular beliefs reach a sophisticated level of speculation. The reason, as was wittily noticed by Franz Kafka, was “Virtue

is in a sense dreary”. Thus, Virtue does not attract human mind, while the definition of Evil pre-determines the whole way of a culture and its

adherents.

To the best of my knowledge, Kurdish demonology has not been a subject of special studies. Needless to say, that the reconstruction of a

general history of how the demoniac beings penetrated the Kurdish beliefs is impossible to achieve in one paper. Therefore, my current

paper will discuss, although in a schematic way, some elements of demoniac picture as it can be detected on the basis of Kurdish history,

folklore and religious beliefs. I believe that the reconstruction of Kurdish Pandemonium, or the hierarchical and morphological elements of

demoniac beings in the Kurdish tradition, requires our reference to various sources, including old Iranian and old-Kurdish ones. As far as

Zoroastrianism is concerned, it is widely known that its ideas of Evil Principle have had a direct impact on the major monotheistic religions.

The history goes back to the Zoroastrian influence on the Jewish though during the Babylonian exile and consequently, through Judaic world

outlook, on Christianity and Islam. Therefore, one might assume that certain Islamic and Christian elements in Kurdish demonology, are

largely derived from old-Iranian tradition. In other words, if the historical sources of some demonological views in Kurdistan are Islam,

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Judaism and Christianity, their genetic sources (or origins per se) are again the common heritage of the Kurds and other communities of

Iranian cultural orbit.

My subject can be conventionally divided on three sub-topics. The first, and probably, the most challenging is why from a time immemorial

the neighbours have been viewing the Kurds as interrelated with supernatural, namely, demoniac forces. The major question here is whether

this picture was caused due to the distinctive nature of the Kurds, that is, strength, ability to resist foreign powers and a fairly isolated

mountainous life-style. The second sub-topic is a zoomorphical one: the role of Peacock and Serpent in the cosmic beliefs of the Kurds. And

the third sub-topic, which is probably of a general interest, is the relationships between Zoroastrian, Christian and Islamic and proper Kurdish

elements in demonology as attested in the traditions of Kurdistan. Certainly, the above-mentioned elements are never static in time and

space and therefore are subjected to constant changes and modification. However, the Kurdish history, like the history of any other group,

shows a certain degree of continuity. This is also true with the mythohistory of the Kurdish people.

1. Demonization of the Kurds

At the beginning of their historical path peoples do not create high culture or scholarly hypotheses. It is myths and legends through which theordinary people keep memories of the past. Such a mythohistorical representation is understandable and reliable since it represents a deepdistinctive truth without precise historical data and since it hints on sub-streams and hidden events. Thus the social climate and values of thepast are being re-created. Therefore, once we de-symbolise and decipher myths and legends, we are on the right way to understand thevicissitudes of ethnic and religious groups. It is essential to bear in mind that all peoples of the globe, both alive and extinct, begin theirorigins with mythology and legendary stories.

We are aware of many legends concerning the origins of the Kurds. It would be right to assume that least some of those legends had been

created in the neighbouring societies, by the Arabs, Armenians, Persians and others and only afterwards have been adopted by the Kurds

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themselves. Indeed, we cannot count as a Kurdish national self-description that the ancestors of the Kurds came from the Arabian Peninsula

being descendents of Solomon and his concubines. A different legend says that it was Timur-lang who connected humans with supernatural

beings which gave a birth to the Kurds.

A more attractive variant of the legend says that once King Solomon, who ruled over the supernatural world, called his angelic servants and

ordered them to fly to Europe for the sake of bringing to him 500 beautiful women. Once his servants were back they learned that their master

had passed away. Then they retained those women for themselves, and that was the origins of the Kurdish nation.

As is known, there are no Avestan stories of the Kurds. Nevertheless, both the Kurds and medieval authors detected in Avesta certain,

though indirect, evidence. The following legend with variations exists amongst the Kurds and their neighbours, and which is also very

important in the “Shah-name” of Firdousi and “Sharaf-name” of Bidlisi. The tyrant Zahhak was a next to Djamshid King in the dynasty of

Pishdadids. Zahhak was hit by a strange illness of two snakes that grew from his shoulders. The best physicians and magicians could not

help him to recover. Then the Devil suggested he eats brains of two young men every day. Meanwhile the person who had to kill the conveyed

young men (according to another version there were two cooks), was kind and compassionate. Therefore, instead of two people he killed

only one substituting the brains of the second by sheep's brains. The saved young people had to hide in inaccessible rocky mountains;

gradually, their number increased and thus the Kurds came into existence. For a long time they remained war-like and unwilling to

communicate to other people, and therefore their language became different.

Undoubtedly, this legend has Avestan lining. But whereas some may conclude Iranian nature of the Kurds, others would argue that their

flight from Achaemenids means anti-Iranian trend of the Kurds, and maybe even their non-Iranian nature. Thus, even this kind of symbolism

discloses the complexity of Iranian and proto-Iranian elements characteristic of the Kurds. In the case of the Kurdish language, we can speak

about proto-Iranian substrate and Iranian character.

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The Armenian story says that when the legendary Tigranes defeated Zahhak, the latter was homed in the district of Ararat and gave a birth

to the Armenian aristocratic family of Vishapuzunk meaning “the children of the Dragon”. Armenian historian Moses of Khoren/Movses

Khorenazi (5th c. AD) traces back Mar nation to miraculous snake or dragon.

The legend says, that Tigranes in alliance with Persian King Cyrus crushed Medians. Tigranes was first ally of Azhdahak (who may be the

legendary unifier of the Medes Deyok), and gave him his sister Tigranuhi. Then Tigran killed him and sent Tigranuhi back to Armenia.

Azhdahak's first wife, Anuysh, and 10,000 other prisoners were settled beyond the eastern range of Ararat. Then Tigranes has appointed the

Medes as servants to Anyush and settled them at foot of Ararat. Here we detect another historical fact, namely, that from ancient times the

Kurds inhabit the territory around Mount Ararat, but this is a different question.

Here we come to the essential issue. All similar legends about the forefathers of the Kurds refer to the dragons, snakes and other

demoniac elements. Not surprisingly, the Armenian sources of the 5th century AD identified the Kurdish homeland as either Korchek, or

Kortichaik, or the country of strong Medes, or Marastan. The latter means “the country of snakes” with mar for “snake” in both Armenian and

Kurdish.

Afterwards, an Armenian manuscript of the 15th century which dealt with lenaguges and alphabets would describe Kurdish as „the

language of the Medians or the Mar people”.

We might speak about certain linguistic evidence connecting the term Mar (Medians) to the Kurds, which was disclosed by Niko Marr and

Vladimir Minorsky. Then, the chain may be as follows: Me-d ® Mi-d ® Ma-d ® Mar-d ® Mar (in which Mard refers to an ethnic group in

ancient Kurdistan, according to Herodotus).

The image of the inhabitants of ancient Kurdistan as interrelated with demoniac forces can also be found in historical chronicles. Thus, the

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Gutium or Guti (the Kutu of Assyrian sources), who inhabited the land north-east of the lake Urmiya and reigned in Mesopotamia between

2622-2498 BC, putting an end to the powerful dynasty of Sargonids, are described in the contemporary sources either as “white people” or

“dragons of mountains”.

The language of the Gutium has not yet been satisfactorily researched, although it is believed to have been close either to that of the

indigenous Palaeo-Caucasic ancestors or to Elamite. Some scholars came to the conclusion that the Guti together with the Lullubi and the

modern Kurds belong to the same anthropological sub-racial type.

The demonization of the Kurds, or rather their mysterious images in the eyes of the outsiders, goes through the whole Islamic history, too.

Not surprisingly, there are many sayings and proverbs like the Arabic: “there are 3 misfortunes in the world - rats, locusts and Kurds”

(“thalathat fawaji': al-jirdhan wa-l-jarad wa-l-akrad”) and “the Kurds are a tribe of the jinns” (“al-akrad hum at-ta`ifa min al-jann”).

The written sources also serve as evidence for such ideas. Thus, Ibn al-Jawzi narrates that in 1064 the hunting Kurdish militants had learnt

that the king of the local jinns called Saiduk had died and in order not to be harmed by his servants people should lament. Then, the crying

and keening were carried out by prostitutes and imbecile men (safsaf) in Baghdad, Wasit and Khuzistan. Remarkably, the people there had

no doubt that the Kurds could well have the first-hand knowledge about the death of the demon.

The most recent case of demonization of the Kurds took place on the 17th August, 1979, when Ayyatolah Khomeini had declared Kurds

"the children of Satan" and called for a decisive strike against them.

In broader terms, these examples conform with the general phenomenon of the cloaking of foes in mysterious, often negative images.

However, in the historical prospective, the demonization of opponents through ascribing evil characteristics to them never leads to the

desired results. Ironically, the Satanites whom man seeks to destroy include his own group. For man in turn becomes a Satanite for all those

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whom he calls Satanites.

2. Zoomorphic Representations in Kurdish Demonology

The morphological types of demoniac beings refer to the following images: anthropomorphic, zoomorphic, anthropozoomorphic,

zeromorphic (incorporeal), and amorphic (indefinite). We can observe that due to constant borrowings, innovations and contradictory

changes, three types appear to be more clearly represented in Kurdish culture: amorphism, anthropomorphism, and zoomorphism.

With regard to zoomorphism, it appears to be rooted in totemism. Indeed, the supernatural abilities of zoomorphic demons do not differ

much from those ascribed by the primitive people to wild animals. Both suddenly arrive and in 'no time at all' disappear; both are in touch with

strange voices; and both in the mind of the people have mysterious links with natural and human disasters. Demons enter the human body in

the same manner as the souls of the wild beasts did in popular superstitions.

The Soviet anthropologist Zelenin maintained that demons could have replaced beasts in popular superstitions concerning evil forces in

the epoch of the domestication of animals. At that time, the demons established some patronage over certain domestic animals and

remained fully identified with certain wild ones.

Apparently, the same phenomenon is seen in the superstition of the Yezidi Kurds that all domestic animals have their personal patrons,

which care of them and communicate through a special language.

In an indirect way, zoomorphic superstitions have been expressed by the Zoroastrian term xrafstra, which signifies harmful animals as

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belonging to the devs.

With regard to Serpent, Kurdish folklore has many such fairy-tales as “Snake a Guardian”, “Snake-King” and “Snake at the Water-source”.

The famous Kurdologist Basile Nikitine mentioned a region called Oramar in Central Kurdistan, where snakes found their best refugee. The

Christian saint Mari Mammu had a power over them, and a church was built their. Once a year a Christian guardian family was able to see

the father of those snakes, and a belief would be spread amongst the local Kurds that should this family be deprived from this privilege, the

snakes will scatter all over the region.

We know that Snake is of an importance for the followers of Yezidism. The Yezidi Kurds refrain from talking about snakes, because

according to their superstition, those who start to talk about snakes, are themselves been mentioned by their foes. Apart from this, snakes

are believed to have soul and consciousness. Thus, there is a funeral keening which asks snakes not to disturb a deceased Yezidi person.

Although the image of snake is important world-wide, it is fascinating to recognize the origin of many tattooing motifs still used by traditionalKurds to decorate their bodies as replicas of those which appear on Hurrian figurines. One such is the combination that incorporatesserpent, sun disc, dog and comb motifs. In fact some of these Hurrian tattoo motifs are also present in the religious decorative arts of theYezidi Kurds. Since the Indo-European, Semitic and other traditions identified the Serpent with Evil, this phenomenon should have been of auniversal character.

Ascribing supernatural power to alive or organic objects, primitive man and people of later epochs particularly trembled before snakes and

some other chthonic beings. These enigmatic crawling beings inspired fear due to their ability to move noiselessly and to bite mortally.

Feeling himself weak before the snakes, man recognised their power and elevated them to the category of the most vigorous supernatural

evil forces.

With regard to Peacock, one general remark has to be made: chthonic beings and birds have old and deep mythological, as well as

zoological, links. The superstitions of many peoples intimately connected their roles and origins. The relics of this can be observed in Slavic

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folklore and in the so-called Balto-Finnic ethno-linguistic area. Thus, in Ingermanlandia, the historical land between St. Petersburg, Karelia

and Finland, the same words are used to describe birds and crawling beings.

As is known, Peacock has been of great religious and symbolic significance in many places of the Middle East and beyond. However, the

most expressive form of the representation of this bird can be detected in the tradition of the Yezidi Kurds. The Melekê Tawus (‘The Peacock

Angel’) of the Yezidis has double implications: as one of three emanations of the lower deity, who co-exists with the Creator, and as the

Fallen Angel.

Some scholars find it appropriate to connect the word of presumably Semitic origin with the Greek name for God, Theos, an Indo-Iranian

parallel of which will be discussed below. Since in the Yezidi doctrine God-Creator entrusted earthly matters to Melekê Tawus, Theodor

Menzel describes the latter as alter ego of God.

There is another version concerning the etymology of the word meaning “peacock”, but we are unable to comment on it. According to

Bernard Springett, the peacock was called in Greek Taos, which is “a pure Chinese word” with the connotations “Holy Spirit” and “God”.

Believing in a controversial Principle who governs the world, the Yezidis deny by this His negative nature. Moreover, the Yezidi oral

tradition also ignores the portrayals of Hell and Paradise. This old Zoroastrian belief in absence of posthumous life in Hell is connected with

Islamic tradition through the following legend. Melekê Tawus with His tears of remorse in 7000 years put the Fire of Hell out and thus won a

victory over it.

On the other hand, the bird image of `The Peacock-Angel' appears to correspond to the old Babylonian fashion of giving demons wings

and covering them with feathers. That may be one of the reasons, together with the struggle against idolatry, why the Old Testament imposed

a prohibition on the worship of birds (Deut. IV, 16,17).

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The following story of the Islamic tradition identifying the Peacock with the Devil has the analogous legends amongst the Yezidis, the Ahl-e

Haqq (Yaresan) Kurds, the Druzes, and other religious groups.

Thus, the Yaresan story of the Fall says that Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise along with Satan, the snake, and the peacock.

A similar phenomenon is contained in the relevant story of the Druzes, where the snake and the peacock together tempt Adam.

This seems to be mythological re-thinking of the identified crawling and flying beings with each other and with evil powers, as has already

been mentioned.

According to Yezidi viewing of the Peacock-Angel, it was Melekê Tawus who expelled Adam from Paradise, although God had before

placed the primordial man there. The question of the identification of Iblis with the Peacock also provokes controversy. The most popular

explanation, probably, is that this bird was seen as proud with its beauty, and this pride recalled that of Iblis.

However, well-based analyses must also deal with deeper mythological cognition between the bird (especially such an impressive one as

a peacock), soul, and angel.

Since angels traditionally designate intellectual substances, birds could also be viewed as free and flying intellect. Therefore, the Indian

Holy Book confirms that: "Intellect is the swiftest of birds" (Rg Veda, VI, 9, 5).

The representations of the peacock as angel, deity or demon must not be viewed as contradictory to each other. The important matter is

the general mythohistorical cognition between the divine and demoniac aspects. Therefore, the epithet 'Paradise bird' rather refers to the

peacock's beauty and locality, and it may not have a connotation of praise.

3. Some Features of Kurdish Pandemonium

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Apart from Serpent and Peacock, there are other demoniac beings in the Kurdish tradition. One is fully entitled to start with the very word

dêv or dêw as the general description of a monster or demon. In the Kurdish fairy-tales, there are various types often differentiated by colour:

the red, black or white Dêv, which is already connected with colour symbolism. In addition, the same type of being exists in Georgian folklore

and the word itself means “demon” in the Armenian language.

As it has been already researched, in many monotheistic and semi-monotheistic religious systems, many beneficent pagan deities would

“develop” to the angels, whereas the malicious divine beings together with some of the “good” deities would be granted as many negative

attributes as possible. Gradually, the latter group would be seen as demons.

A prominent student of Zoroastrianism Gherardo Gnoli examined demonization of the daevas. The most worshipped and most important

Indian deities (devas) Indra, Sarva, Nasatya and some others were considered to be hostile by the followers of the Zoroastrian faith. The

power and might of these foreign gods was understood as an unwelcome feature. There could have been two major motivations. The first is

that the Indian religious culture in open forms presumes the ambiguity of God and Brahma is called "the creation and destruction of all

people". The second motivation was the aggressive and impetuous characters of Indra, Sarva, Rudva-Siva and other gods.

Thus, while these deities occupied a position of particular importance as Zoroastrian demons in the consciousness of the Iranian peoples,

the term itself became more and more widely used to mean every sort of demoniac being. The Prophet Zarathustra while asserting his

monotheistic ideas, condemned the daevas as such (apparently independently of their non-Iranian origin).

According to him, the daevas were false deities, because they were the outcome of a mistaken choice made by men. As a result, the

daevas evolved from being respected Indian deities to hostile gods in Zoroastrianism to approach to the category of demons. In the “Younger

Avesta”, Angra Mainyu would even be described as daevanam daevo, that is, the main of the daeva.

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The divine origin of dêv/dêw is also apparent from linguistic point of view: the Sanscrit word deva is etymologically connected with both the

Greek Theos/Qeos and the Latin Deus.

In addition, the daeva would make “a glorious carrer” thoughout the Middle Ages. Thus, Dew became one group of the jinns amongst some

Muslim groups. The daeva have also entered Slavic, in particular Russian, popular superstitions by receiving the form div, with the male

equivalent samodiv.

In Georgian folklore, which until the late Middle Ages was greatly influenced by Iranian culture, as well as in Kurdish fairy-tales the dew got

the function of a giant and a monster. Tradition of many peoples presupposes that monsters, although being distinguished from demons,

could also blend with them.

Moreover, the common Indo-European divine being conventionally described as DVS/QVS reveals itself in old Iranian sky-god Dyaosh, his

analogue in India Dyaus, and Greek Zeus.

In order to represent the mythohistorical “vicissitudes” of the Indo-European Divine Power we can draw the following table:

DYAUS « DYAOSH « ZEUS

(Vedic Sky-God) (Old Iranian Sky-God) (Greek Deity)

QVS/DVS

(Indo-European Divine Power)

¯ ¯ ¯ ¯

DEVA « THEOS « DEUS « DIEVAS

(Sanskrit) (Greek) (Latin) (Lithuanian)

¯

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DAEVA (Indian Divinity)

¯

DAEVA (Borrowed Divinity in Zoroastrianism)

¯

DAEVA (Hostile Power in Zoroastrianism)

¯

DAEVA/DEV

(Zoroastrian Demon)

¯

DEV/DEVI (Monster in Kurdish and Georgian Folklore)

DEV (Kurdish and Armenian Demon)

DEV/DEW (Category of Jinn in Islam)

DIV/SAMODIV (Slavic Demon)

Such a double-representation of a former divine being is also characteristic of the Yaresan religion. Here this occurred with the two Islamic

Fallen Angels, Harut and Marut. They spring from the two Zoroastrian deities: the sixth deity Hourvatat, who was Protector of the Waters, and

the seventh one Ameretat, whose duty was to be Protector of the Plants. These two supernatural beings, always mentioned together,

changed in nature many times in the history of religion. Subsequently, they entered the Mazdaean (late Zoroastrian) group of seven angels,

the Haftan (the Zoroastrian Heptad): Hourvatat as Hordad/Khordad and Ameretat as Amordad/Mordad still with their previous functions.

Afaterwards, despite their sins, according to Islam, Harut and Marut would be honoured by the Yaresan Kurds.

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Generally speaking, since the continual re-evaluation of former divinities continued for a long period, in many religions it was possible for

monotheistic and polytheistic tendencies to have coexisted. In this sense, monotheistic standpoint could not completely delete the influence

of polytheistic gods and goddesses. The most vivid case for this is the Semitic Suffix -el/-il, which originally was the word for divinity, but

during the monotheisation of Semitic world outlook would describe angels (Gabriel, Michael) and demons (Satanael). The former Semitic

gods and goddesses, already in the capacity of angels, would also be present in the Yezidi Story of Creation: Angel Darda’il, Angel Israfil,

Angel Mika’il, Angel Gibra’il, Shimna’il and Angel Nura’il.

Obviously, the examples of deities turning angels and demons could be continued. Even the very word daimon originally signified a god in

ancient Greece, and only in later usage, demons came to mean non-divine powers of a destructive kind. Thus, while in the Iliad, daimon is

frequently used as an equivalent of Theos, already in the Odyssey the term has mostly negative connotation. Only by the late Hellenistic

period had the term daimonion acquired entirely bad connotation.

Another feature attested in Kurdish demonology is also of a world-wide connotation. As is well known, in many cultures the extraordinary

abilities, such as soothsaying, poetry and talent for music and languages in the eyes of “ordinary” people are rooted in supernatural, mostly

demoniac world. Therefore, the greatest Kurdish epos “Mem û Zîn” is said to be recounted by the assembly of the jinns: by the order of their

mîr (chief), the musician demons sing this story:

Her dem, her dem, der deme,

Mîrê cina gazî dike: "Gelî sazbenda, ez li bextê weme,

K`îja civat caxîya, ko hûn têda rûnên, û saz û sazbendê xwe bie`dlînin,

e`wil hûn bikin h`ikaîyeta stîya Zîn û Meme".

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As far as the linguistic abilities are concerned, the Yezidi Melekê Tawus is believed to know the 72 languages of the world and would easilyclaim to belong to every nation whom he visits. This is not unique of the Yezidi views.

Thus, the demons in the Mandaean religious culture, in Iraq and Iran, are good linguists, and their Sacred Book “Ginza Rba” (“The GreatTreasure”) says: "The King of Darkness knows all the languages in the Universe".

The Chapter 6 of the Manichaean text “Kephalaia” gives us the similar information on the King of Darkness, who understands the speechesand languages of his five worlds.

To the same typological paradigm belongs the sudden knowledge of previously unknown languages in medieval Europe, which was blamedon contacts with the Devil.

In summary, such a capability of demoniac beings and their Master should not be isolated from the system of features common to both Godand His adversary.

Apart from the primary demoniac figure, dêv, the two other important beings, jinn and shaitan, are of foreign origin.

Thus, the jinn have almost entirely passed into Kurdish popular tradition from Islam, or rather from popular Arabian beliefs, in which the

surrounding world - deserts, mountains, stones, trees - was inhabited by the jinn. The generally accepted opinion is that the term is derived

from the verb JaNNa (“to cover”, “to conceal”). Another version connects the term with the common Semitic janna (“garden”, “grove”, “copse”),

which might illustrate the residence of these demons. According to the third etymology, the name jinn is a loan-word from the Latin genius,

spirits with similar features.

The word shaitan has also penetrated Kurdish mythology from Islamic religion, although it has a very complicated history. There is little

doubt about the cognition of this word with the Hebrew Satan, the Adversary of God. The matter is that before their exile, the Jews had the

conception of Satan as a servant of God (Zech. III, 1). The Iranian influence in Babylon must have changed the position of Satan making him

God`s Adversary, just as Angra Mainyu/Ahriman in the cosmic beliefs of the Zoroastrians.

Apparently, the word came to the Arabs through the Ethiopian Christians, taking on the form of shaitan through Amharic.

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Another important point is the linguistic taboo of this word amongst the Yezidi Kurds. The Muslim authors explain it by the fact that Shaikh

`Adi b. Musafir wanted to make peace between the people, and for this reason he advised to avoid the curses, including those against the

Devil.

The real situation, probably, was that the attempts of Shaikh `Adi found fertile historical and cultural soil: the remnants of an old belief that it

would be safer not to mention the Devil̀ s real name. This phenomenon can also be observed in England, Scotland, and the Carpathian

region. Genetically it may be close to taboos against the mentioning of the name of God.

Another explanation could have been a Yezidi displeasure with the negative connotation and their different understanding of

personification of Evil. Thus, according to Zervanism, a religious doctrine originated from Zoroastrianism, Angra Mainyu/Ahriman was a

legitimate prince of this world. Thus, to serve the Power of Darkness meant at the same time to serve the godhead Ahura Mazda, who

himself gave birth to Darkness. And such indeed seems to be the secret of the nocturnal cult which, according to Plutarch, certain Magi

devoted to Ahriman. The essence of this concept was also in different ways used by Manichaeism, Mazdakism, Bogomilism, and some

other teachings.

Conclusion

Obviously, the roots and specificities of the Kurdish demonology are highly complicated and interesting. The theme involves Indo-Iranian

(old Kurdish, Zoroastrian and Armenian) Semitic (mostly Mesopotamian and Arabo-Islamic), Manichaean and other elements.

For thousands of years, the Kurdish people were seen as interrelated with demoniac forces, the fact which can be attested in both oral and

written traditions. The Kurdish demonology is itself based on Zoroastrian ideological premises (as in the case with dêv/dêw) and it is

blended with Arabo-Islamic elements, which in turn have either common Semitic (jinn) or broader (shaitan) connotations. The images of

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Serpent and Peacock are also trans-cultural. However, they have a common human observation of interrelationships between the chtonic

beings. The taboos, which cost the Yezidi Kurds many pains throughout their history, may also be rooted in Zoroastrain past, although

compromised with monotheistic explanations. And finally, the Kurds have a very elaborated system of demoniac superstitions together with

dialectic views of Evil and Virtue, which results in the attitude of the outsiders: it is either fascination, or hatred, but never indifference.

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