Sheikh Shams ad-Din (Şêşims), the Sun

Sheikh Shams ad-Din, known in Kurmanji as Şêşims, is one of the seven Holy Beings of the Yezidi Heptad and one of its most fundamental theological symbols. His name means 'sun of the religion', and he is identified directly with the Sun as the source of light and life and as the divine light of God; he is correspondingly associated with fire, the sun's earthly counterpart, and his shrine at Lalish is the place at whose doorway Yezidis swear their most solemn oaths and before which a bull is sacrificed during the Feast of the Assembly. On the earthly plane he is reckoned the eldest of the four sons of the prince Êzdîna Mîr, who ruled the community before Sheikh Adi's arrival, and he is the eponymous ancestor of the Şemsanî branch of the sheikh caste. With his brother Fexredîn, who personifies the Moon, he forms a complementary solar–lunar pair among the group known as the Four Mysteries.

Domains

• the sun and divine light
• oaths and fire

Powers

• to pour out light and life upon the world as the sun

Epithets

• ŞêşimsPhilip G. Kreyenbroek and Khalil Jindy Rashow, 'God and Sheikh Adi are Perfect: Sacred Poems and Religious Narratives from the Yezidi Tradition', Harrassowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden, 2005. (secondary)

Relations

• sibling: Sheikh Fakhr ad-Din (Fexredîn), the MoonŞêşims, the Sun, and Fexredîn, the Moon, are two of the four sons of Êzdîna Mîr counted among the Four Mysteries; they form a complementary solar–lunar pair.Philip G. Kreyenbroek, 'Yezidism: Its Background, Observances and Textual Tradition', Edwin Mellen Press, 1995. (secondary)
• subordinate to: Tawûsî Melek, the Peacock AngelAs a member of the Heptad he serves under its chief, the Peacock Angel.Christine Allison, 'Yazidis i. General', Encyclopaedia Iranica, 2004. (secondary)

Sources

• Sheikh Shams ad-Din (Şêşims) is a member of the Yezidi Heptad identified with the Sun and divine light, ancestor of the Şemsanî sheikhs, and one of the four sons of Êzdîna Mîr.: Christine Allison, 'Yazidis i. General', Encyclopaedia Iranica, 2004. (secondary); Philip G. Kreyenbroek and Khalil Jindy Rashow, 'God and Sheikh Adi are Perfect: Sacred Poems and Religious Narratives from the Yezidi Tradition', Harrassowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden, 2005. (secondary)