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Azərbaycan folkloru  və milli-mədəni müxtəliflik 
 
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with her beloved at last, but she was overwhelmed with the sadness of goodbye. Fatil, the festive 
yellow sweet bread, was broken over the bride’s head in hopes that her new family will always have 
food. The Quran, as a prominent holy book of today
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, was lifted over her head. Her brother-in-law 
tied and untied a red ribbon around the bride’s waist three times.
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 She was given a round fatil with 
butter and honey, filling the hole the middle, to take to her new home. Then the bride took courage 
and left, carried away by the crowd. The road was teasingly blocked several times, and the 
neighbors demanded a toll from the newlyweds to let them pass.  
As the party reached the groom’s gate, a sheep qurbun (sacrifice) was sacrificed at the 
threshold. Through it, the groom’s father was thanking God for the son’s hamrah (spouse, meaning 
the one sharing the same path.) In the quiet yard, the wedding couple danced gently once together. 
Previously charged with expectation, the boisterous atmosphere turned thoughtful, almost 
meditative. And in the end the groom led his bride to the wedding chamber inside his father’s 
house. Only the groom’s relatives and the filmmaking friend were allowed to linger for a few 
moments. Behind the closed door, the bride put her honey-covered finger into the mouths of her 
new family members. This is to ensure sweet relationships.
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During the next wedding in the summer 2013, the bride was also accompanied from her home 
to the groom’s. It happened when it was still light. When the groom’s men came to pick her up, the 
breaking of fatil took place as well as the tying of a red string three times around her waist. Before 
leaving home the bride walked around the old-fashioned oil lamp three times. Two candles in 
copper candleholders shaped as birds were given to the couple to light their bedroom. The wedding 
custom of ‘three rounds’ was originally performed around the fire. In Altai it is still done that way, 
but fat is also poured into the flames ensuring warmth and love represented by the family hearth.
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A departure of a loved one is another significant occasion for drawing together. 
In 2013, during the month of Ramazon, three sudden deaths happened in Lahij. A younger 
brother of the storeowner drowned in the Caspian Sea; a father committed suicide; and another 
father’s heart suddenly stopped, leaving behind a bedridden wife and two daughters. Three quite 
different tragedies, but the customary response was very similar and the group participation was 
intense. The traditions handling the event of death and grief worked like a well-oiled machine. Each 
part knew its time, place and function. Even though an unexpected blow overwhelmed many hearts, 
there was comfort in acting according to the customary routine. 
Nəzər Mehlim, a master coppersmith, contributes his gift of stone carving to comfort the 
bereaved families. Upon receiving the sad news, he makes a burial stone right there and then, for 
free. He shared “Helping one another is a must, each needs to do what they can, that is what it 
means to be a man”. The plots in the local cemetery are not sold; they are available for all former 
inhabitants of Lahij. Many stressful worries of how to pay and how to proceed with the painful 
process are thus taken care of by the community. The former status of the person does not make 
difference. He or she is a community member if they simply lived in Lahij. Their status, where they 
originally came from, what language they spoke does not make any difference. Even a person, who 
left this world through suicide is allowed a proper burial in Lahij.  
People customarily greet the relatives of the departed: Xudo rəhmət sozı! (May merciful God 
grant rest). Similar to other religions, Islam forbids and condemns the premature ending of one’s 
life, since it is seen as a gift from God. Muslims are unsure where the individual who ended his or 
her life will be in the life to come. This becomes apparent when they avoid the customary phrase. 
Instead they solve the situation by replacing it with: Xudo sabır tı! (May God give you patience and 
endurance) or Xudo təssəli tı! (May God comfort you). 
                                                            
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 Throughout changing religions in Caucasus Albania it could have been Avesta, Tovrat or Injil in the distant past. 
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 Mary Boyce explained the ritual of Zoroastrian initiation, from Sasanian time, was done through tying and 
untying a cord three times around the waist of a believer. The responsibility passed on was for the right thoughts, words 
and deeds (Boyce 1987, p. 258-259; Boyce, 1992, p.84-85). 
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 This ‘sweet’ custom existed among other Caucasus people in Azerbaijan as well. 
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 This ancient ritual belonged to Irano-Turkic cultural complex. Zoroastrian Parsis in India practiced it until 17
th 
century and the neighboring Iranian Zoroastrians until recent times. 

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Azərbaycan folkloru  və milli-mədəni müxtəliflik 
 
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When a mullah learns that someone has left this world, he first makes an announcement from 
the mosque over the intercom. All can hear, even if in the fields or mountain pastures. All men 
immediately drop whatever they are involved in and speedily rally around the bereaved family. 
After some silent time, they bury the departed one in the cemetery and pray for the eternal rest of 
the soul.  
The process of parting with a loved one takes three days. The women’s time to go to the 
house of mourning is at 10 o’clock in the morning. Women dress soberly in dark colors, wear clean 
socks and carry handkerchiefs to wipe their tears. The neighbors come out of their homes and join 
one another on the streets like little streams flowing together. Upon reaching the house they become 
one strong river. The customary greeting is: Şohri vinı! (May you yet see happiness!) 
The women hug and kiss the relatives welcoming them. Then they proceed upstairs to the 
biggest rooms and veranda. Blankets, mattresses, sheets, and pillows to sit on cover the floors. Not 
many words are uttered. All the women sit down on the floor, side by side, trying to fit everyone in. 
Then one chosen, experienced, gifted woman singer starts to lead in singing a mərsiyə (tragic 
lament). Women in one coordinated movement use their right hand to slap their right thigh in a 
common rhythm, as if they share a heartbeat. It is a simple but meaningful expression of belonging 
and sharing with one another in a time of intense pain. While experiencing the impact of 
‘togetherness’, one realizes that perhaps those meaningful moments shared together are what 
creates the essence of a close-knit community.  
As women were leaving girls poured therapeutic rose water on the mourners’ hands from a 
copper jug called gülob (flower water). The final words of future hope resounded around the 
courtyard and on the streets Şohri vinı! (May you see happiness yet!) 
Conclusion: Lahij as a mountain sanctuary has kept some characteristics of old Iranian and 
Turkic lands. Lahijans claim Shia Islam for their present religious identity 
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, simultaneously some 
signs of residual ancient Zoroastrian thought and rituals remain. The traditional values were 
observed through participation in community weddings and bereavement. Authenticity is what sets 
Lahij apart from an impersonal contemporary urban style. The spontaneous participation is lived 
out in the warmth of private homes and courtyards of Lahij. It is through drawing together that the 
reward of belonging to a close-knit community can be understood.  
 
 
Summary 
 
The cultural landscape of Lahij has preserved old language, trades, crafts, and a way of life in a 
mountainous setting. As such it represents a living heritage of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Iran. The traditional 
Eastern values including reciprocity are best observed by participating in the life cycle events of the caring 
community. The drawing together to share both joy and grief is called ‘togetherness.’ In light of rapid loss of 
authenticity in our contemporary, urbanized, fast-paced life, sharing in one another’s key events is a relevant 
theme to consider. 
 
Xülasə 
 
Lahıcın mədəni landşaftı özündə yerli xalqın dil, xalq sənətləri, məişət və adət-ənənlərini birləşdirir. 
Burada Azərbaycan,  İran və Türkiyəyə  məxsus mədəni irsini görmək olar. Bu məqalədə gündəlik həyatın 
əsas hadisələri gedişində insanların arasındakı sevinc və  kədər hisslərinin bölüşdürülməsi kimi dəyərlərin 
itirilməsi problemi araşdırılmışdır. 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
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 From an interview and personal correspondence with muellim Dadash Aliev. 

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