"Once upon a time, A Yezidi shepherd was bringing his flock home to the
mountain cave where he lived. Suddenly the sky was torn asunder by a blinding
flash of lightning whilst, almost simultaneously, there
followed such a roar of thunder as would have deafened a giant. The shepherd flung
himself down upon the bare rock, and hiding his face, prayed to the great Power of
Life and Death that he might be spared. Then, looking up, he saw an Angel
standing in the middle of the Heavens with an enormous spear in his hand.
"There followed another terrifying clap of thunder, and something was hurled from
the sky down onto the crags below. A great gust of wind arose and swept over the
mountain tops. The valley shook. Then all was
quiet again.
"Gradually recovering from his great shock the shepherd rose from the ground and
looked around. He saw that a huge cedar had been struck by the lightning and was
lying across a deep ravine.
"On the further bank lay a beautiful peacock badly hurt but still alive. The shepherd
crawled across the fallen tree trunk and took the dying bird in his arms. After
washing its wounds in a nearby stream, he carried it into the cave which was his
home. Without any thought of sleep he tended it throughout the long night. When
the morning came the peacock had completely recovered and spoke to the
shepherd in a human voice, saying: ' Be not afraid, man, you were kind to me in my
misfortune, so I will reward you and all your descendants. I am the Spirit of Evil
thrown out of heaven by my twin, the Spirit of Good. But I am not conquered. On
earth, as in Heaven, I shall continue the
struggle. Amongst men I shall spread sorrow and instill my poison in their hearts
so that the great conflict will be implanted within them. Teach your descendants to
accept Evil as you have accepted me. Be
compassionate towards evil both in yourselves and in others. Delight me with
songs. Placate me with prayers. Tend me as you have tended me last night.'
"So saying, the Angel Peacock, Melek Taus as we call him, spread his wings and
flew away over the inaccessible mountain-tops. That is why we Yezidi, the
descendants of that compassionate shepherd, sing hymns
to appease and glorify the Spirit of Evil to this very day. Our hymns are scorned by
the rest of the world. Both Christians and Muslims alike hate and persecute us.
They call us 'Muraddun'-- Infidels and Devil-Worshippers. Our priests, Qawasls,
travel secretly and do not wear priestly robes. They carry with them, hidden away
from Muslim and Christian eyes, the effigy of a peacock. When we pray, we do not
turn towards Mecca like the Muslims but towards the Polar Star, the
immovable source of light in darkness, the point of the axis round which the whole
universe resolves."