Marabout

A marabout (also Marabou or marabout ) is in Morocco and West Africa, an Islamic saint, mostly from the tradition of Sufism ( Islamic mysticism ).

The word is from the Arabic term Murabit (Arabic مرابط, DMG Murabit ) derived which forms the active participle to the noun Ribat. This in turn is a short form of the Qur'an ( 8:60 ) used expression Ribat al - chail that identifies the " contraction of the horses " for the fight against the infidels. The term Murabit is also based on the name of the Almoravid dynasty.

Through the mediation of the Portuguese and the Spanish marabuto morabito the term already appears in travel accounts from the 17th century. The grave site of a marabout himself is sometimes called so. Some of these tombs are considered holy places.

Marabouts in Morocco

To the tombs of famous, nationally revered personalities Sufi centers exist primarily in Morocco; called zawiya them in the Islamic East they are called chânkah, in Turkish Tekke. You can see the plants at the whitewashed with lime domed ( qubba ). Some Zawiyas in Morocco house near the tomb is also a library in which the data collected by local saint and his followers manuscripts are kept from all fields of Islamic sciences. The most famous Zawiya in south-eastern Morocco is the Zawiya, founded in 1575 Nasiriyah Order in Tamagrūt, south of Zagora ( Morocco). In the Atlas Mountains, the az- Zawiya al - ʿ Ayyāschīya is in Sīdī Hamza through their extensive library, the founder Abū al - ʿ Sālim Ayyāschī had created in the 17th century, is known. The total holdings of the library is the first time in 2009 in a carefully compiled, arranged according to thematic areas of Islamic sciences catalog in four volumes have been published. Even whole clan can own maraboutischen character, such as the Moorish Kunta in Mauritania and Mali, whose head resided from the famous family al - Baqqai between 1830 and 1894 in Timbuktu and a great spiritual, but also political influence over the Moors and the Tuareg exercised.

At the top of Zawiya is a direct descendant of the Marabout, who manages the income and distributed among the other members of the Maraboutfamilie. Marabouts, both men and women can be; The former is called in general sidi (from: saiyidi = sir ) or Mulai (from: maulaya = sir ), holy women lead the Berber title Lalla (Lady ).

In addition to the saints whose historical existence has been handed down, there are marabouts, whose origin is not detectable; they are often anonymous or bear fanciful names: Sidi al - Muchfi: ( = the hidden one ), Sidi Qadi al - Hajja ( = of the needs - the seeker - met), Bou Schta ' (from: Abu Schita '): the rain donor derived from Schita ': Winter, ie the rainy season. Their shrines are simple, fenced with stones plants without dome. Fabled unhistorical, and certainly is the grave of the Prophet's companions ( sidi sahbi ) in Kairouan and the grave of the Prophet's companions also revered as Abu Lubaba in Gabes.

The cult of the seven saints of Marrakech is based on historical figures.

Basically, you can assume are that North African place names that start with Sidi (as Sidi Bel Abbes ) due to male marabouts, whose cult is still alive or already faded today. Female saint be addressed by Lalla (local name Lalla Takerkoust ).

Marabouts in West Africa

In traditional hierarchical social structure in Mauritania ( see ethnic groups in Mauritania ) form marabouts next to the warriors ( Hassan ) one of the two upper classes of Bidhan.

In Senegal, originated in the 20th century, a new class of marabouts who operated in addition to their religious activity at the political level. Examples of these " political marabouts " Amadou Bamba are, the founder of Muridiyya, Babakar Sy, the inside of the Sy - Tidschaniyya the Dahiratoul Moustarchidina whale Moustarchidaty founded in 1927, Ibrahim Baye Niass and Serigne Saliou Mbacké, the fifth caliph of the Muridiyya. Through the development of hereditary caliphates in Muridiyya and Tidschaniyya other marabouts were marginalized. They are usually active only in secondary functions within these brotherhoods.

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