A narrative of the sweet repetition of the customs of the people of Kurdistan in “Shehu Chele” or “Shehu Yalda”

Arya’s Legacy: Yalda and the ceremony that is held on the first night of winter and the longest night of the year, has a history of several thousand years and is one of the special traditions of Aryans. Celebrations and night parties on this night are considered a long-standing tradition, which has not only lost its value until today, but has found a very special place in the eyes of Iranians.

The celebration of Yalda night, or the so-called “Sheho-Zestan” or “Sheho-Chele” of the Kurdish speaking people, in Kurdistan, as in other regions of Iran, is of great importance and has an ancient history, so it is still held in the best possible way in the cities and villages of this country. will be

The main feature of Shab Cheleh is to replace customs

The main feature of Shab Cheleh is the gathering of families in the big house of the clan to fulfill their customs in traditional ways; In this long night, because there were no means of mass communication between houses like today, various entertainments were used, such as fortune-telling and playing some local games after eating dinner.

The sock game is the most famous night game

The most famous of these games in Kurdistan is Gurwa Game or Sock Game. A group game where the participants are divided into two groups, all guests can participate in this game, and usually it is accompanied by the expression of people’s emotions and takes a few hours of the night.

After the sock game, it is time to play Doz or Chuz in Kurdi, which was the traditional form of this game today and was played with peas and beans. At the same time two people are playing Doz, two other members of the family are working on a chair. .

Also, during this period, the elders of the family used to tell old stories, myths and legends, today in the villages, storytelling still remains and grandparents tell stories like “Khatun Zamhrir” to their grandchildren in this long, dark and cold winter night, as well In the past, it was common to read Shahnameh, Golestan and Bostan, and Iskandarnameh.

Ancient Kurds’ beliefs about Shab Chele

In this long, dark and cold winter night, the elders of the family used to tell stories, motels and old legends, one of the most important of which is the story of Khatun Zamharir.

In Kurdish culture, it is interpreted that there are two small and big chela, the big chela lasts 40 days and starts from the 1st of January and continues until 10th of Bahman, after 40 days the younger brother or the small chela arrives, which lasts until 20 The day is alive.

The people of this country believe that after the death of their brothers or small and big children, their sister named Khatun Zamharir arrives and grieves for the death of her brothers. It happens, and on the second day, when it calmed down a bit, the cloudiness of the air decreases and it rains slowly, on the third day, according to Shion Khatun Zamharir, there is no news of cloudy weather, nor snow or rain, but only the promise of the nearness of spring.

But I will also say this from the words of Nasrullah Haddadi, a researcher of history and culture, about this long-standing custom that in the old days, no food was bought from the market, and usually the women of the family collected and prepared everything throughout the year, and on Yalda night, the guests also brought food with them. .

Among the other interesting customs that are common on this night, we can point out that the bridegroom’s family brings a khwanche for the bridegroom. All the food of Shah and Chele evening from dinner to nuts and fruits should be taken to the bride’s family, in addition to these, a valuable cloth or a piece of gold is usually placed in the bride’s basket as a gift.

There is another custom called Shahu Zamsani, in which the bride experiences the first Shab Chele at the husband’s house, meaning that this time the bride’s family must take the khanchas that will satisfy all the needs of the groom’s Shab Chele to their groom’s house.

Helping each other is one of the important features of Shah and Zamsan in Kurdistan

One of the good features of this celebration is helping one’s fellow man, which of course can be seen in all the ceremonies and rituals of the people of Kurdistan, so that if people in any neighborhood are financially weak, they are supported by their neighbors and provided with Shab Chele food. .

Also, on the night of Chale, the misunderstandings that some residents have towards each other disappear and are resolved through the mediation of the elders, and the gathering of relatives in a family where a member of that family has recently died is one of the other customs that are performed on the night of Yalda in Kurdistan.

Yalda night foods and fruits

It should be mentioned that the special food of Yalda night in the province is dolme and rice noodles; On this night, if the neighbors are willing, they give each other the food they have prepared, which is called “Hausa bowl”.

After eating fatty and heavy food on Yalda night, eating kalk toresh (sour melon) eases digestion, the main table items that are prepared a few months before Chele night in preparation for this “celebration” in Sanandaj.

For the rest of the night, you can also use a variety of snacks, the most common of which are walnuts, roasted wheat, roasted almonds, figs, dried berries, elderberry, sesame, anu, and qaisi, and colorful fruits such as watermelon, pomegranate, apple, pear, etc. ; Preparing and consuming watermelon in Kurdistan is one of the requirements of the Yalda night and it is a kind of farewell to the hot season and a welcome to winter, and people believe that eating watermelon on this night will prevent the effects of cold in winter and heatstroke in summer.

Yalda is a link for the new generation with the religion of the ancestors

In addition to a long-standing tradition, Yalda is a link for the new generation with the customs and rituals of the ancestors and makes a person dependent and attached to their rich and native culture and revives the authentic identity, and this feeling makes our young generation step forward with self-confidence and self-identity. Take it for construction and development.

The main philosophy and feature of Shabbat Chela is the gathering of families together, it is in these gatherings that many ambiguities are resolved, and especially nowadays when families rarely meet each other, it is a good opportunity to meet again.

The people of the culture-loving province of Kurdistan record this night in their memories and learn from Yalda that life is so short that one more minute of being together should be celebrated.

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