Description

Qālišuyān rituals of Mašhad-e Ardehāl in Kāšān

© 2010 by the Research Center of ICHHTO

Qālišuyān rituals are practised in Iran to honour the memory of Soltān Ali, a holy figure among the people of Kāšān and Fin. According to legend, he was martyred, and his body found and carried in a carpet to a stream, where it was washed and buried by the people of Fin and Xāve. Today, Soltān Ali mausoleum is the site of a ritual where a carpet is washed in the holy stream by a huge gathering. It takes place on the nearest Friday to the seventeenth day of the month of Mehr, according to the solar-agricultural calendar. In the morning, people of Xāve gather at the mausoleum to sprinkle rosewater on the carpet. Having completed the wrapping rituals, they deliver it to the people of Fin outside, who rinse the carpet in running water, and sprinkle rosewater drops with neatly cut and beautifully decorated wooden sticks. The carpet is then returned to the mausoleum. People of Kāšān contribute a prayer-carpet and the people of Našalg celebrate their ritual the following Friday. These communities maintain oral transmission of the procedures, but also recreate the tradition by adding new and festive elements.

Documents

• Nomination form: English|French
• Consent of communities - Scroll (3 m) bearing original signature of community members : English/Persian
• Consent of communities - video showing community members signing the consent scroll: Persian
• Consent of communities: English/Persian
• ICH inventory: English/Persian

Decision 7.COM 11.17

The Committee (…) decides that [this element] satisfies the criteria for inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, as follows:

• R.1: Qālišuyān rituals provide a sense of identity to the people of Mašhad-e Ardehāl and neighbouring communities, each of which has specific roles during their performance, transmitted from generation to generation;
• R.2: The inscription of Qālišuyān rituals on the Representative List could contribute to greater visibility of the intangible heritage and awareness of its significance by encouraging dialogue and cooperation among different communities, groups and individuals;
• R.3: The proposed safeguarding measures aim at awareness raising regarding the temporal and spatial features of the Qālišuyān providing the ground for active participation of the local community and guaranteeing the recreation of the element in response to the changing requirements of its surroundings;
• R.4: Numerous individuals and concerned groups and institutions participated in the preparation of the nomination file, and gave their free, prior and informed consent for the inscription;
• R.5: Qālišuyān rituals are included in the Iranian National Intangible Cultural Heritage List, administered by the Directorate for Inscription, Preservation and Revitalization of Intangible and Natural Heritages and updated with the help of local communities.

Inscribes the Qālišuyān rituals of Mašhad-e Ardehāl in Kāšān on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

© ICHHTO, 2012

These videos (and many more) can also be consulted through the UNESCO Archives Multimedia website