Central Qewl Texts: Individual Analysis of Sacred Hymns

The Qewls (Kurmancî qewl, “word, saying”) are the sacred hymns of the Êzîdîs, sung texts transmitted purely orally over centuries, which in the Êzîdî religion occupy the place held in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam by the holy books (Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005). What defines the Qewl genre as a whole, its divinely inspired rank, its bearers (Qewwals), the centuries-old taboo on writing, the move to written form since the 1970s, and the threat after 2014, is treated in the overview article Qewl, the oral sacred tradition.

This article goes one level deeper: It presents individual, named, and scholarly edited Qewls and Beyts with their documented content, their theological significance, and their source situation. The basis is exclusively the published scholarly literature, above all the standard work by Philip Kreyenbroek and Khalil Jindy Rashow, God and Sheikh Adi are Perfect (2005), supplemented by Kreyenbroek Yezidism (1995), Khanna Omarkhali The Yezidi Religious Textual Tradition (2017), Eszter Spät, and the text editions by Artur Rodziewicz.

Preliminary Note: Sirr and Respect

Êzîdî sacred texts carry an esoteric dimension. Some contents belong to the Sirr (secret, mystery): over centuries they were deliberately concealed from outsiders and passed on only orally, from initiate to initiate. This article reports only what is published and analyzed in the scholarly literature: it does not interpret hidden meanings, asserts no “secret” sense, and quotes no complete verse texts. Where the scholarship itself speaks of uncertainty (for example in obscure stanzas), this is noted. The aim is factual, respectful information, not the unveiling of a mystery.

An important convention at the outset: Tawûsî Melek, the Peacock Angel, is in Êzîdî theology the highest of the angels and God’s vicegerent, never a “devil” or fallen angel. This equation comes from outsiders and is a slander; for a detailed treatment see the article Tawûsî Melek.

On language: The original language of all Qewls, Beyts, and Du’a named here is Kurmancî (Northern Kurdish); they were transmitted orally, not in a fixed written version. All contents and individual phrases reproduced in this article are German translations or content summaries from the cited scholarly edition, not the original Kurmancî wording. Where a single line is quoted in terms of its sense, it is to be understood as a translation; the original text can be consulted in the editions indicated (above all Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005).

How the Corpus Is Ordered

A recurring ordering principle of the Qewls is the salvation history around Şêx Adî (Şîxadî, Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir, 12th c.): many hymns refer to a time before and a time after the work of this central reformer and founder of the faith (Encyclopædia Iranica, “Qawl”). In terms of content, Kreyenbroek and Omarkhali group the texts, among other ways, by creation and early history, the holy figures, and eschatological themes.

The highest-ranking group is formed by the Qewlên Beran (“Ram Hymns”), which are performed within the Sema (the formal procession of the dignitaries). Among them are several of the creation hymns presented here (Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005). The following sections single out the best-documented individual texts.

Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr: the Hymn of the Weak Broken One

Theme and Content

The Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr (“Hymn of the Weak/Wretched Broken One”) is the central creation hymn of the Êzîdîs and counts among the Qewlên Beran, that is, among the highest-ranking texts of all. In it, one of the holy angels, Melik Fexredîn, is asked to recount the creation of the world (Cheung; Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005).

The documented sequence of creation follows a characteristic series of images: in the beginning God rests hidden within the primordial Pearl (dur), a luminous white sphere that holds all colors within itself. Out of this Pearl God comes forth and begins creation; through Love (mihbet), which acts like a “leaven,” the divine beings become manifest, among them Siltan Êzîd (Sultan Ezîd) as a spiritual leading figure. Water flows from the Pearl, Light and Tradition come forth, and the central sanctuary Laliş comes into being even before heaven and earth (Cheung). Belonging to this context is also the Xerqe, the sacred garment that God prepares and consecrates (Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005). The detailed creation myth is treated in the article Creation.

Theological Significance

The hymn unfolds an emanative cosmogony: the world arises not out of nothing but through a gradual coming-forth from the divine unity, mediated through Love. Kreyenbroek and Rashow point out that individual stanzas pose riddles for scholarship, for example the phrase about the “branch of Love” in stanza 7, which they interpret as an indication that Love is understood as an independent power derived from the undivided essence. They further observe that the consistent use of Islamic terms and symbols in several Qewls suggests that an essential part of the Qewl tradition reaches back into a time in which identity could meaningfully be expressed in the terms of Islamic piety (Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005). Connections to mystical traditions (Sufism, late antique currents) have been worked out especially by Artur Rodziewicz (Mythology & Symbolism).

Source / Edition

The Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr appears scholarly edited and translated in Kreyenbroek (1995) and in detail in Kreyenbroek & Rashow (2005). A dedicated philological edition (Kurmancî text, translation, commentary) was presented by Artur Rodziewicz: Jezydzkie hymny kosmogoniczne: Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr i Qewlê Bê û Elîf (Przegląd Orientalistyczny 265–266, 2018).

Qewlê Bê û Elîf and the Creation Qewls: Pearl, Sirr, and Heft Sur

Theme and Content

The Qewlê Bê û Elîf (“Hymn of B and A,” after the Arabic-Kurdish letters bê and elîf) is a further cosmogonic hymn of the Qewlên Beran group. It develops fundamental theological concepts about the symbolism of the letters and, together with the Zebûnî Meksûr, belongs to the creation hymns jointly edited by Rodziewicz (Rodziewicz 2018).

Closely related is the Qewlê Afirîna Dinyayê (“Hymn of the Creation of the World”), the second great cosmogony. It recounts a similar sequence, the Pearl, the “pen” of power or of destiny, the leaven in the primordial ocean, and additionally introduces the Çar Yar (“Four Friends”), who distribute themselves to the four corners of creation and gather in Laliş, as well as the figure of Noah (Nûh) (Cheung). These hymns also depict the creation of Adam: his body is formed from earth, water, wind, and fire, yet his soul enters him only through the sound of the sacred instruments Şibab (flute) and Def (frame drum), and Tawûsî Melek acts as a mediator in this (Cheung).

Relation to the Sirr and to the Heft Sur

These images of creation are closely bound up with the Sirr (mystery) and with the Heft Sur, or the Seven Angels/Mysteries, to whom God entrusts the world. The material symbol of this teaching is the Berat: the small, pearl-shaped white sphere of sacred earth from Laliş, which in Êzîdî cosmogony points back to the primordial Pearl; Rodziewicz has examined its genesis and message specifically (“The Blessed Handful of Light,” 2022). The complete creation myth with Pearl, Sirr, and Heft Sur is presented in the article Creation; for the symbolic world see Mythology & Symbolism.

Theological Significance

That the Êzîdî doctrine of creation is not fixed in a single binding text but lives in several mutually complementing hymns (Zebûnî Meksûr, Afirîna Dinyayê, Bê û Elîf) is itself a theological statement: it reflects the principle of oral, variant-open transmission without a canonical “final version” (cf. Qewl Tradition).

Source / Edition

Qewlê Bê û Elîf and Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr: Rodziewicz 2018. Qewlê Afirîna Dinyayê and the creation hymns as a whole: Kreyenbroek (1995), Kreyenbroek & Rashow (2005), Omarkhali (2017); summarizing content analysis in Johnny Cheung (“On the Tales of Creation recounted by the Yezidi singers”).

Qewlê Şêx Adî: the Hymns about the Founder of the Faith

Theme and Content

Şêx Adî (Şîxadî, Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir, d. around 1162) is the central historical-religious figure of the Êzîdîs; his tomb in Laliş is the most important sanctuary. A whole series of hymns revolves around him and his companions, among them the Qewlê Şêxadî û Mêra (“Hymn of Şêx Adî and the Holy Men”), which praises Şêx Adî and the circle of holy figures and is of outstanding importance for the community’s identity (Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005; Omarkhali 2017).

Closely connected with this is the group of Qesîdes (poems of praise), traditionally attributed to the disciples of Şêx Adî, among them the Qesîda Şêx Adî. Qesîdes are regarded as venerable but, unlike the Qewls, not as divinely inspired (Encyclopædia Iranica, “Qawl”). On the person, genealogy, and religious role of Şêx Adî and the holy families, see Sacred Genealogy and Clergy.

Theological Significance

In the Şêx Adî hymns the Êzîdî interpretation of history is concentrated: Şêx Adî marks the turning point of salvation history, at which “before” and “after” divide. Noteworthy is the fusion of Şêx Adî with the divine that is discernible in several texts; the title of the standard work, God and Sheikh Adi are Perfect, takes up precisely this close coupling of God and Şêx Adî in Êzîdî piety.

Source / Edition

Kreyenbroek & Rashow (2005) edit several Şêx Adî-related texts; most rest on Khalil Rashow’s transcriptions of audio recordings. Further evidence in Kreyenbroek (1995) and Omarkhali (2017).

Qewlê Tawûsî Melek: the Hymn to the Peacock Angel

Theme and Content

The Qewlê Tawûsî Melek is a paean to Tawûsî Melek, the highest of the angels and God’s vicegerent on earth. The hymn celebrates his strength, his goodness, and his boundless, primordial-eternal power; it contains invocations that praise him as “angel-ruler of the world” and as “primordially eternal from of old” (Asatrian & Arakelova; Kreyenbroek 1995). In ritual practice, prayer is made to God “through the standards of the Peacock Angel” while the Qewlê Tawûsî Melek is sung (Asatrian & Arakelova).

Theological Significance

The hymn is a key text for understanding the central angelic figure of the Êzîdîs. Noteworthy is a finding of scholarship: according to the documented state, this Qewl is not a fixed component of a particular ritual but functions rather as a free form of prayer and praise (Asatrian & Arakelova). The detailed theology of the Peacock Angel, and the clear demarcation against the slander as “devil,” is treated in the article Tawûsî Melek.

Source / Edition

The most complete version was published by Pîr Xidir Silêman and Xelîl Cindî Reşo in 1979 in their groundbreaking collection Êzdiyatî (Baghdad), one of the first text volumes set down in writing by Êzîdîs themselves. Philip Kreyenbroek published it again in 1995; on the publication history cf. Asatrian & Arakelova, “Malak-Tawus: the Peacock Angel of the Yezidis.”

Qewlê Qiyametê: the Hymn of the End of the World

Theme and Content

The Qewlê Qiyametê (“Hymn of the Resurrection” or “Hymn of the End of the World”) is the central eschatological text of the corpus. Omarkhali (2017) records two independent versions, each with its own melody. The hymn treats the end of the world and the last things (Kreyenbroek 1995, “The Hymn of the Resurrection”; Omarkhali 2017).

The published scholarship gives for this text above all title, versions, and melody; a broad detailed content analysis is, in the overview sources evaluated here, more concise than for the creation hymns. The article therefore deliberately reports with restraint only the secured theme (eschatology, resurrection, end of the world) and refers, for the Êzîdî doctrine of death, soul, and the hereafter, including the transmigration of souls, to Death & Soul.

Theological Significance

With the creation Qewls at one end and the Qewlê Qiyametê at the other, the corpus of hymns spans the entire arc of salvation history, from the primordial Pearl to the end of the world. Eschatology and cosmogony thus form the two poles between which the Êzîdî interpretation of the world unfolds in sung form.

Source / Edition

Kreyenbroek (1995); Omarkhali (2017), who systematically records both versions together with the melody specification.

Beyta Cindî: the Wake-up Call of the Simple Believer

Theme and Content

The Beyta Cindî (“Beyt of the Simple Believer,” English Song of the Commoner) is one of the best-known Beyts among the Êzîdîs: that is, a highly esteemed text that, unlike a Qewl, does not count as divinely inspired (Kreyenbroek 1995; Omarkhali 2017). It calls on the believers to “awaken from sleep,” to face the harsh world with resolve and to go into battle (Spät).

The Beyta Cindî is often recited together with the Qewlê Kofa (“Hymn of the Headdress”); this seemingly independent part is, according to Spät, the literary expression of the third element of the “wake-up call”: the promise of heavenly reward (Spät). At the performance, Def and Şibab sound.

Theological Significance

Eszter Spät has interpreted the sleep-and-awakening topos of the Beyta Cindî as a Gnostic “wake-up call,” a motif that connects the Êzîdî tradition with late antique (Gnostic-Manichaean) religious currents. The human being is therein presented as a sleeper who must be “awakened” to the recognition of his true condition. From this Spät draws the further-reaching conclusion that the Êzîdî oral tradition could have preserved old late antique heritage (Mythology & Symbolism). It remains important here that this interpretation is a religious-studies interpretation, not an Êzîdî self-statement.

Source / Edition

Kreyenbroek (1995); Omarkhali (2017). Content analysis and Gnostic interpretation: Eszter Spät, “The Song of the Commoner: The Gnostic Call in Yezidi Oral Tradition” as well as Late Antique Motifs in Yezidi Oral Tradition (Gorgias 2010).

Further Edited Qewls, Beyts, and Du’a

Beyond the texts treated individually above, the standard work by Kreyenbroek & Rashow (2005) contains numerous further edited and translated hymns, prayers, and narratives. The following selection names the most important ones with theme and location in this edition (original language throughout Kurmancî; the page numbers refer to the printed edition):

Faith and Image of God

• Qewlê Hezar û Yek Nav (“Hymn of the Thousand and One Names,” p. 74): on the countless names of God, the one God who reveals himself in many names. It complements the statement that God bears 1,001 (or 3,003) names (see Religion).
• Qewlê Îmanê (“Hymn of Faith,” p. 83): foundations and obligations of the Êzîdî faith.
• Qewlê Qendîla (“Hymn of the Lights,” p. 90): the divine Light as the medium of manifestation, closely linked with the symbolism of sun and light.

Holy Figures

• Qewlê Pîr Dawud (p. 127) and Qewlê Êzdînê Mîr (p. 184): on central holy mediator figures.
• Dua û Qewlê Şêşims (p. 201) and Beyta Sibê / Beyta Şêşims (p. 210): veneration of Şêx Şems, the figure of sun and light; the morning Beyt connects with the prayer to the rising sun (see Prayer and Everyday Practice).

Law, Death, and the End Times

• Qewlê Mirîdiyê (“Hymn of the Mirîd,” p. 292): the position and duties of the lay caste (see Social Order).
• Qewlê Seremergê (“Hymn of the Moment of Death,” p. 341): recited at burials; soul, dying, and transition (see Death & Soul).
• Qewlê Tercal (“Hymn of the False Redeemer,” p. 364) and Qewlê Şerfedîn (p. 368): the eschatological antithetical pair of end-time trial and messianic hope, a complement to the Qewlê Qiyametê treated above.
• Qewlê Aşê Mihbetê (“Hymn of the Mill of Love,” p. 379): mystical purification through divine Love.

In addition, Kreyenbroek & Rashow edit independent Du’a (prayers) such as the Dua Bawiriyê (“Prayer of Faith,” p. 104), Dua Ziyaretbûn (“Prayer of Pilgrimage,” p. 106), and Dua Tifaqê (“Prayer of Concord,” p. 109). Khanna Omarkhali (2017) has additionally presented complete sample editions of further hymns, among them Qewlê Padişa (“Hymn of the Lord”) and Qewlê Pişt Perde (“Hymn behind the Veil”); the latter treats the Hidden of God before creation.

The Profession of Faith (Şehde)

Unlike most sacred texts, which belong wholly or partly to the Sirr, the Şehde (also Şehdetiya Dîn, “Testimony of Faith”) is a publicly known and documented profession. It is spoken, among other occasions, before going to sleep and is identity-forming. Its three publicly transmitted basic statements are:

1. There is one God (Yek Xwedê ye); Êzîdism is monotheistic.
2. Tawûsî Melek is professed as witness of this divine unity (never as “devil”).
3. The veneration of sun and moon as visible signs of the divine Light.

The full form is documented in the scholarly literature (Omarkhali 2017) and in Êzîdî publications of their own. On the lived prayer practice, the daily prayers (Du’a Sibê/Êvarê), and the direction of prayer toward the sun, see Prayer and Everyday Practice; on the demarcation of the genres Qewl, Beyt, Qesîde, Du’a, and Dirozge, see Qewl Tradition.

Overview: the Texts Treated

Classification

The texts presented here are only a section of the corpus of around 100 Qewls regarded as authentic and over 1,150 documented oral texts in total (Omarkhali 2017). Many further hymns and Beyts have so far been recorded only as titles or audio recordings and have not yet been edited. Whoever wishes to understand the structure of the genre, the role of the Qewwals, and the rescue projects after the genocide of 2014 will find this in the article Qewl Tradition; on the Êzîdî religion as a whole, see Religion.

Sources

All sources were retrieved and checked for this article in June 2026. Only published, scholarly analyzed contents are referenced; complete verse texts and unpublished esoteric interpretations are deliberately not reproduced.

1. Philip G. Kreyenbroek & Khalil Jindy Rashow: God and Sheikh Adi are Perfect: Sacred Poems and Religious Narratives from the Yezidi Tradition (Iranica 9, Harrassowitz 2005), publisher/institute page FU Berlin: https://www.geschkult.fu-berlin.de/en/e/iranistik/publikationen/iranica/iranica09/index.html · Review Cambridge (Iranian Studies): https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/iranian-studies/article/god-and-sheikh-adi-are-perfect-sacred-poems-and-religious-narratives-from-the-yezidi-tradition-philip-g-kreyenbroek-and-khalil-jindy-rashow-wiesbaden-harrassowitz-verlag-2005-isbn-3447053003-xvii-435pp/C46B6A9EBF8382142EDC2DD48FA2C042
2. Khanna Omarkhali: The Yezidi Religious Textual Tradition: From Oral to Written (Harrassowitz 2017), full-text PDF (Univ. Göttingen): https://www.uni-goettingen.de/de/document/download/7aa23de7edf74949749e706f404d2d4e.pdf/Omarkhali_Yezidi_Religious_Textual_Tradition_2017.pdf
3. Wikipedia (en): “Yazidi literature” (list of the Qewls/Beyts with references from Kreyenbroek/Rashow 2005, Omarkhali 2017, Allison 2001), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yazidi_literature
4. HandWiki: “Religion: Yazidi literature” (detailed list of the Qewls incl. Qewlê Qiyametê 1 & 2, melody specifications), https://handwiki.org/wiki/Religion:Yazidi_literature
5. Johnny Cheung: “On the Tales of Creation recounted by the Yezidi singers”, research blog Yezidi Stories (hypotheses.org / OpenEdition), https://yes.hypotheses.org/36
6. Estelle Amy de la Bretèque & Khanna Omarkhali: “The Yezidi Religious Music”, Oral Tradition Journal, https://oraltradition.org/the-yezidi-religious-music/
7. Encyclopædia Iranica: “QAWL” (on the classification of the Qewls and on the Şêx Adî salvation history), https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/qawl/
8. Artur Rodziewicz: Jezydzkie hymny kosmogoniczne: Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr i Qewlê Bê û Elîf (Kurmancî text, translation, commentary; Przegląd Orientalistyczny 265–266, 2018), https://www.academia.edu/38199521/
9. Artur Rodziewicz: “The Blessed Handful of Light: Genesis and Message of the Yezidi berat”, British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 51/1 (2022), https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13530194.2022.2108000
10. Artur Rodziewicz: Eros and the Pearl: The Yezidi Cosmogonic Myth at the Crossroads of Mystical Traditions (Peter Lang), https://www.peterlang.com/document/1305489
11. Garnik Asatrian & Victoria Arakelova: “Malak-Tawus: the Peacock Angel of the Yezidis” (on the publication history and ritual function of the Qewlê Tawûsî Melek; refers to Silêman & Reşo, Êzdiyatî, Baghdad 1979), https://www.academia.edu/3172037/Malak_Tawus_the_Peacock_Angel_of_the_Yezidis
12. Eszter Spät: “The Song of the Commoner: The Gnostic Call in Yezidi Oral Tradition”, https://www.academia.edu/33663927/THE_SONG_OF_THE_COMMONER_THE_GNOSTIC_CALL_IN_YEZIDI_ORAL_TRADITION · Late Antique Motifs in Yezidi Oral Tradition (Gorgias 2010): https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.31826/9781463222024-011/html

This article is part of the multilingual Êzdîxan Wiki and supplements the overview article Qewl Tradition.

The Genre System of the Religious Texts

The hymns presented here individually are part of a richly structured genre system. The Êzîdî religious tradition consists predominantly of poetry, which is transmitted orally and very largely in Kurmancî; alongside it stand prose genres that explain the dark, archaic language of the hymns for the community (Omarkhali 2017; Wikipedia, “Yazidi literature”). The following systematics summarize what scholarship distinguishes as separate genres; for the fundamental distinction between Qewl and Beyt, see also Qewl tradition.

The Poetic Genres

• Qewl (“word, saying”) — the religious hymn in the narrower sense, regarded as divinely inspired and thus the highest-ranking type of text. The Qewls form the center of the corpus (around 100 Qewls considered authentic; Omarkhali 2017).
• Beyt — outwardly similar in form to the Qewls, but lower in rank: Beyts are regarded as venerable, yet not as divinely inspired (Kreyenbroek 1995; Omarkhali 2017). Example: the Beyta Cindî discussed above.
• Qesîde (Arabic qaṣīda, praise poem) — poems of praise, traditionally attributed to the disciples of Şêx Adî; venerable, but not divinely inspired (Encyclopædia Iranica, “Qawl”). Example: Qesîda Şêx Adî.
• Du’a (“prayer”) and Dirozge — two prayer genres; the Dirozge is characterized as an intercession by its long litany of saints (e.g. Dirozga Şêxşims; Omarkhali 2017).
• Sema’ (literally “hearing, listening”) — denotes both the solemn procession of the dignitaries and the texts recited within its framework. Recitation within the Sema’ is the decisive criterion of rank: precisely because the Qewlên Beran (“Ram Hymns”) are sung during the Sema’, they are regarded as the highest-ranking Qewls of all (Omarkhali 2017; Amy de la Bretèque & Omarkhali, “The Yezidi Religious Music”).
• Robarîn (also Robar) as well as Lavij, Xerîbo, Xizêmok, Payîzok — further poetic genres of the Êzîdî tradition named in scholarship; they are listed in the genre catalogues, but are far less thoroughly studied academically than Qewl and Beyt (Omarkhali 2017; Wikipedia, “Yazidi literature”).
• In addition there are functionally defined special forms such as Şehdetiya Dîn (the creed Şehde, see above), Terqîn (prayer after the sacrifice) and Pişt Perde (“behind the veil”), which deals with the hidden God before creation (Omarkhali 2017).

The Prose Genres and the “Mishabet”

Alongside the archaic-poetic tradition stand prose genres, above all Çîrok and Çîvanok (legends, myths and narratives). They are couched in spoken, generally comprehensible language and serve to explain the content and context of the hymns (Omarkhali 2017; Wikipedia, “Yazidi literature”). One example is the Çîroka Siltanî Zeng û Şîxadî (the tale of the Zangid sultan and Şêx Adî).

Poetry and prose meet in the Mishabet (“sermon, didactic lecture”): a Qewwal typically recites parts of a hymn, tells the associated story in prose, and draws from it a moral lesson (Kreyenbroek 1995; Wikipedia, “Yazidi literature”). The Mishabet is thus the ritual-didactic form in which the sung Sirr knowledge is opened up for the community.

The Cosmogonic Core Hymns at a Glance

Within this system, two prominently named texts form the cosmogonic core, both of which are discussed in detail above and both of which rank among the highest Qewlên Beran:

• Qewlê Zebûnî Meksûr (“Hymn of the Weak Broken One”) — the central creation hymn with the sequence of images Primordial Pearl → Love as “leaven” → emergence of the divine beings → origin of Laliş (see above; Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005; Rodziewicz 2018).
• Qewlê Afirîna Dinyayê (“Hymn of the Creation of the World”) — the second great cosmogony, with the Pearl, the “pen” of destiny, the Çar Yar (“Four Friends”) and the ensouling of Adam through the sound of Şibab and Def (see above; Kreyenbroek & Rashow 2005; Cheung).

That creation is unfolded not in a single canonical text but in several mutually complementary Qewls (Zebûnî Meksûr, Afirîna Dinyayê, Bê û Elîf) is itself an expression of the variant-open, oral character of the genre.