The Comparative Study of Zār Ceremony in Iran and Sudan

The present article is a comparative research between Zār ceremony in south of Iran (Hormozgan Province) and east Africa (Sudan). This research has been accomplished, based on the descriptive/exploratory methods, using library techniques and domain studies. People in these regions believe that human illnesses are caused by Jins or satanic winds which penetrate in human body causing physical and mental disorders. Thus by performing certain ceremonies these winds or whispers could be destroyed, curing the illness. The belief in these monsters among indigenous people is so strong that no one can make a crack on it. They are extremely firm in their beliefs so that they seek cure for illnesses only from the healing hands of old magicians and not from modern medical experts. The healers of these diseases, in Iran are called “Baba” and “Mama”. In Sudan, they are called “Sheikh” or “Sheikha”. Belief in jinni or conquering soul by jinni exists among different Muslim society cultures throughout the world with different names, but most researchers believe that the source and root of these beliefs lie in African communities. The Winds, as flow down from Africa to the Iranian coasts are combined with culture and myths and different stories so that even they change their former content and embrace an Islamic form. Among these changes are poems and prayers, traditions and manners, sacred and prohibited. Nonetheless they have not lost the sharp colorful African ceremonies.The people who are captured by these winds and then released are called “Ahl-E Hava“. After getting released from the jinni, Ahl-E Hava enter a new community and similar to their healer set up a new identity. In this new identity, they do not feel weakness and undertake new responsibilities. The masters of Ahl-E Hava are all Negro or black colored and have one or several Winds in the head, in other words they have been captured by the Winds several times. Zār is a ceremony which is remained from primitive tribes in western Africa and is performed as a healing ritual among women and earlier slaves. The study of Zār helps to understand the rituals and beliefs of this region. Zār is one of the spiritual rituals in this area which focuses on the fact that God is the only and the absolute power in the universe. Zār ceremony contains a rhythmic music based on Percussion instruments. An ecstasy music which accompanied by performing some other ceremonies such as dancing and sacrificing, causes the treatment of the illness. According to anthropology, the roots of Zār ceremony lies in east African traditions and by passage of time had spread through some regions in the Middle East and the Red Sea. This research is intended to investigate and study similarities and differences of this tradition in Africa (Sudan) and the path it has passed over the years to reach south of Iran (Hormozgan province). We try to investigate the process of the changes of this tradition from two different aspects, structure (form and content) as well as musical aspect.