In the country where I study there are some colleagues of Kurdish origins who follow Yezidism. According to my knowledge, it is a sect which believes in Allaah The Almighty. However, they glorify the cursed Iblees and consider him the peacock of angels until now. They do not perform any religious obligation which is known in our Islamic religion. Because of being colleagues, they often invite us to their homes in order to have food, tea, etc. As Muslims, we feel embarrassed because they are not from the People of the Book and it is unlawful for us to eat their food. At the same time, we do not like to hurt their feelings by rejecting their frequent invitations. Please advise. It would be great if you could enlighten us more about this sect.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam,  is His slave and Messenger.

Yezidism is a deviant sect which emerged in 132 A.H. in the wake of the collapse of the Umayyad Dynasty. At its beginning, it was a political movement in the frame of loving Yazeed ibn Mu‘aawiyah. Then, it became a ‘Adawiyyan sect which was attributed to ‘Adiyy ibn Musaafir Al-Umawi. It deviated until it reached the state of glorifying Yazeed ibn Mu‘aawiyah and Iblees whom they call Taawoos Malak “Peacock Angel”.

Some of its most important beliefs are: disapproval of cursing Yazeed in particular, disapproval of cursing in general to the extent that they contested the cursing of Iblees in the Quran and blotted out every word cursing Satan or seeking refuge with Allaah The Almighty from him. They glorified Iblees because they regard him as the first monotheist since he did not prostrate to anyone but Allaah The Almighty and was the hero of rebellion and disobedience. They had a book called “The Black Book”. In their testimony of faith, they say “I testify Allaah is One and Sultan Yazeed is the beloved of Allaah.” They fast three days every year which coincide with the birthday of Yazeed ibn Mu‘aawiyah. They pray at the night of the fifteenth of Sha‘baan and claim that such a prayer serves as a compensation for the prayer of the whole year.

They also believe that ‘Adiyy ibn Musaafir will be responsible for reckoning people on the Day of Resurrection. He will lead his group to Paradise. They frequent the tombs and shrines such as the shrine of Shaykh ‘Adiyy. They permit polygamy up to six wives. They prohibit many kinds of food. They have special festivals like Al-Marba‘aaniyyah, Al-Qurbaan and Al-Jamaa‘ah. They have a night which they call “The Black Night” where they turn off lights and regard prohibited things and alcoholic drinks as permissible. They respect Christianity and have adopted baptism from it. They have Magian and idolatrous beliefs and raise Yazeed to the rank of divinity. This sect is spread in Syria, Turkey, Iran, Russia and Iraq. They have communities in some European countries. Their language is Kurdish and their books are written in Kurdish.

It is impermissible to eat the animals that they slaughter because they are not from the People of the Book. It is permissible to eat other kinds of their food. It is permissible to eat in their utensils unless it is known that there is impurity on them or they are made of gold and silver. It is stated in Al-Mawsoo‘ah: “With regard to their utensils, Abu Al-Khattaab said that their ruling is like the ruling of the utensils of the People of the Book that it is permissible to use them unless their impurity becomes certain.”

It should be known that you should shun those colleagues for the sake of Allaah until they repent to Allaah The Almighty. You should also refuse to accept their gifts, invitations and visits unless there is a religious benefit such as calling them to Islam or clarifying their disbelief to them.

Allaah Knows best.