The Peacock Angel

According to the Yazidi, God is much like Khaos from Greek Mythology. Creation was his work, but he does not preside over it. Instead, seven great beings (the term used to define them is usually translated as "angel/archangel") rule the universe, and the highest of them all is Tawûsê Melek (Melek Taus, also reffered as Shaytan/Shaitan), the Peacock Angel.

The legend goes, God created Melek Taus from his own Ronahî ("illumination"), and the other angels came after. God ordered the Peacock Angel to not bow before other living beings. Then God ordered the other angels to bring him Ax ("dirt") from Erd ("earth"), and from it he build the body of Adam. Then the first human received his life from God's breath, and God ordered the angels to bow before the first man. All did, except for Melek Taus. As God questioned him, the Peacock Angel merely stated that he was ordered to not bow, ence he did not do so. God answered this by praising him and making him the leader of all angels and the ruler of the world. Yes, its a very strange story.

Being God's representative on Earth, the Peacock Angel appearently comes down to Earth on every first Wednesday of April. His worship is often seen as a way of praising the creator deity, as he could have made Tawûsê Melek bow before Adam, but did not do so, thus favouring free will. Yazidis believe that mankind, the descendents of Adam, are not tempted into evil like christians and muslims believe, but that morality is a choice, that every person has the potential to become good or evil. They praise Melek specially because he made the choice that was more morally apropriate.

Most important of all, however, is that the Yazidi religion does not have a concept of Hell. The Peacock Angel extinguished the fires of Hell with his tears, ence people either reincarnate or go to Heaven. This is most defenitely an improvement compared to abrahamic theology.

Besides Melek, there are the other six archangels: Sêx Adî, his companion Sêx Hasan, and a group bizarrely named "The Four Mysteries", composed of Shamsadin, Fakhradin, Sajadin and Naserdin. Little seems to be known of these angels outside of the Yazidi faith however, thus Melek is more widely known. As mentioned before, Melek is depicted as a peacock, ence his title, although this seems to be a relatively recent trait, as originally he was depicted as a bird like a bustard, which are native to the area where the religion first appeared. Nonetheless, the Yazidi have incorporated the image of the peafowl as a symbol of their archangel very much, to the point of a refusal to wear blue, which is the natural colour of the peacock.

The Peacock Angel, above everything, is identified as Satan. This is because his alternative name, Shaytan/Shaitan, is also commonly used to reffer to Iblis, the Satan figure of the islamic faith, and because his story is very similar to Iblis', only that his refusal to bow to Adam made him a hero, not a villain. Because of this, the Yazidi people have been horribly mistreated by muslims across the ages, whose extremism towards the native faiths of the Middle East has been a major factor for the extinction of entire cultures and religions. Nowadays, Yazidis still exist, but their continued existence is uncertain, as muslims grow more violent and extremistic by the second.

For as much as christians complain about being persecuted by "satanists", it is the real satanists who are being persecuted, while christians enjoy a golden age of opression towards every other living being. So, next time you see a christian or muslim complaining about "persecution", remind them of the plight on the Yazidis.