bleu ciel wrote:WOW.. BRAVO !!!!!! These all are amazing posts, all the pics and added explainations.. thanks a lot. Zert and Alan.
Kurdistan IS beatiful country and I hope I will visit all the places I have seen in this forum.
Also as a stranger, I just hope that there is one section which tells history of kurdistan, or some kurdish heroes or heroins, or some interesting stories involved historical sites or foods, or clothings,, any thing. again, thanks
Thanks, I'm happy to hear you've enjoyed the info and pics. I believe another member will put up a thread detailing the origins of the Kurds soon, 'till then this wikipedia page is a good place to start:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of ... ish_peoplePART 4RELIGIOUS SITESKurdistan is also home to many religious sites, sitting on the crossroads of civilizations (Persians, Armenians, Medes, Romans, Assyrians, Arabs, Turks and many others), it has also been influenced by many religions. The Kurds themselves are a good example of this; while most Kurds are Sunni Muslims, you also have Kurds that are followers of Shi'ism, Christianity, Judaism, Atheism, Alevism, Yarsanism and Yezidism (and perhaps a small number Zoroastrians too). The three religions mentioned lastly (Alevism, Yarsanism and Yezidism, together they're called Yazdanism) are thought to be indigenous religions, deriving from ancient religions such as Mithraism and Zoroastrianism (although Alevism also contains elements of ancient Turkic rites).
I've already shown some religious sites that are present in Kurdistan, namely:
1. Takht-e Soleyman (Zoroastrian Temple)
2. Çiyayê Nemrûdê (statues of various Gods)So, let's continue.
3. The Pool of Sacred Fish (Riha/Urfa) The Pool of Sacred fish is a well-know site throughout the Middle East. According to the legend, Abraham angered King Nimrod due to his criticism of idolatry and because the King's daughter fell in love with Abraham. King Nimrod then had a huge pyre built in the city, on which he planned to burn Abraham.
Abraham was indeed tossed into the flames, but due to divine intervention, the flames turned into water, and the wooden logs into fish.
Since then it's revered as a sacred place, and it's said that anyone who harms the fish will fall ill.
Also, according to the legend, if one sees a white fish, the gates to heaven will open.
The Pool of Sacred Fish is in the courtyard of the beautiful mosque of Halil-Ur-Rahman , which was built by the Ayyubids in 1211.
4. Girê Navokê (a.k.a. Göbekli Tepe, Riha)That even the most ancient of civilizations tried to win sympathy from higher powers is apparant when one sees Girê Navokê.
This 11,000-year-old temple was probably built by hunter-gatherers from the Neolithic and drastically changed the way in which historians thought about that time period.
The funny thing is that this important archaeological site was not discovered by archaeologists, but by a Kurdish shepherd.
In 1994, this shepherd was tending his flock when he noticed something in the sand, brushing away some of it, he discovered a large, stone slab. He would discover more of these, and realized that it was best to inform the people of the village of his finds, because, just perhaps, these could be of importance.
What was unearthed was a large structure, mainly composed of T-shaped pillars, proably meant to ward off malificent powers. On these pillars, many organisms such as humans, foxes, donkeys, snakes and even animals which are not present in the Middle East anymore like lions are depicted. There's even some anthropomorphic figures (animals with humanoid characteristics).
This has led some to believe that this was the legendary Garden of Eden, transcribed in the Bible.
The sophistication and scale of the Temple baffled archaeologists, and it's currently being preserved by the Global Heritage Fund.
To be continued.