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THE ZAR REVISITED PT I: History of the Zar
by Meira - The Joyful Dancer 2/6/96
Despite the fact that the Zar, which is the trance ceremony of North Africa and the middle east is technically prohibited by Islam, it continues to be an essential part of these cultures. Since I've been fortunate to find some new information on the Zar, I wanted to take another look at this phenomenon. The Zar is best described as a "healing cult" which uses drumming and dancing in its ceremonies. It also functions as a sharing of knowledge and charitable society among the women of these very patriarchal cultures. Most leaders of Zar are women, and most participants are women. Many writers have noted that while the majority of the possessing spirits are male, those possessed are generally female. This is not to say that the men do not contribute to zar ceremonies: they may help with drumming, the slaughter of ritual animals, or may themselves be a husband or relative required to make offerings to the possessing spirit. In fact, it is perhaps an unfortunate trend that in cultures where the zar becomes more visible, there is more of a tendency for men to co-opt the ceremonies, and for men to become zar leaders.
Susan Kenyon notes that there has actually been a proliferation of cult groups in the Republic of Sudan, and a dramatic increase in the types of demands made of the cult. She attributes this in part to a poor economic situation which encourages men to go outside of the country for work, leaving women as de facto heads of households, with all the resulting stresses. The Zar ceremonies were well-established in the Sudan by the 1820's. They were outlawed by Shari'a law in 1983, but instead of decreasing the ceremonies actually appear to have increased. These ceremonies provide a unique form of relief to women in strict patriarchal societies. Islam itself has always believed in the existence of "spirits", which it calls "jinn. In addition, the zar has been officially banned in the Sudan since 1992, but the drums still beat on - possibly, Kenyon says, because of the support of the wives of influential men.
Zar, in the sense of possession, is usually, though not exclusively, inherited. It is also contagious and may strike at any time. Diriye Abdullahi, a native of Somalia, says that the zar is basically a dance of spirits, or a religious dance - kind of leftover from the old African deities, a variant of what we describe in the west as "voodoo". The old African deities were headed by two figures; Azuzar (the male, assoc. with Osiris) and Ausitu (the female, known in the west as Isis). Ausitu (or Aysitu in Somalia) is still celebrated and given offerings by pregnant women so that she will provide them with a safe birth. He describes it as a ritual dance which is mostly observed by women, especially older women. This corresponds to the practice of older African religions, in which older women were the priestesses. He maintains that younger women, especially unmarried women, are not generally thought to be "worthy of a visit by the spirit of Zar, who chooses domicile or re! ! si! dence in the person who is his choice."
Diriye did not think it sacrilegious for adults to dance the zar, even if not possessed. In Egypt, he adds, it is mostly danced by the people who live in villages southern areas which were least exposed to the constant invaders that came over the centuries from Greece, Rome, and the Middle East, culminating in the Muslim Arabs. He adds that the largest number of practitioners are today found in the Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia - places which have traditions which have disappeared today in Egypt. The zar today is practiced more as a relaxation and as spiritual healing for stressed or troubled persons. The sacrificial animal may or may not be a part of this modern ceremony.
THE ZAR REVISITED Part II: