Daliyat al-Karmil, Ussifiya

Today we took a class field trip to the Druze villages of Daliyat al-Carmel and Ussifiya (the name of the latter village come from the Arabic word "3waasif" meaning "winds" because in the winter it gets windy). We were guided by a young Druze woman named Duaa, who is a student at Haifa University and friends with our professor David Mendelsohn. She is a secular Druze, and explained to us what she could about her culture and religion. However, because she is secular ("jaahileh" meaning "ignorant" in the feminine), she couldn't tell us everything. At age 15, Druze youth decide whether they will lead a secular or religious life. If they choose the religious life, they are allowed access to the holy books. However, if they choose a secular path, they can no longer have access to the texts.

The Druze split off from Islam in the 11th century, and if you ask a Druze whether they consider themselves Muslim, it depends on what country you are in. In Israel, the Druze will say they are not Muslim. But if you went to Syria or Lebanon, they might say yes. For more information on the Druze culture and religion, see this link on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Druze.

The Druze religion is interesting because although they believe in one god like in Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, they also believe in reincarnation, and that the number of Druze in the world always stays the same (around 1.5 million). A person cannot become a Druze; you must be born into the religion, and both parents must be Druze in order for the children to also be considered Druze.

In the khilweh, the Druze house of worship, men and women pray on separate sides, but a man says the prayers for the men and a woman leads prayers for the women. 

 

The decoration on this house is based on an archaeological ruin that told historians an ancient Jewish community used to live here.

 

The entrance to the khilweh, the Druze house of worship. It's usually not very decorated because in the past, when Druze were persecuted, they wanted to be able to pray without outsiders knowing where they were going.

The Druze star and flag.