Sheikha Sunbul gives a smile as she leads the woman to sit and transition between types of worship. Two women help another who has become wrapped up in her worship to find her place sitting. The throes of ecstasy remain with her even as she sits. The murmured prayers all in Arabic, the casual chatting is in Kurdish.
The prayer for individual sheikhs continues. The female mullah is seen here in tight focus, moving her hands through the prayer. Several women, including the Sheikha, seem to be whispering or mouthing the words along with the mullah as well as giving the traditional response to the call.
The prayer for individual sheikhs continues, naming Sheikh Abdulrahman, an important leader in the history of the Talabani Tekiye and the Qadiri Order. A young woman learns how to move through the prayers, her mother beside her, demonstrating.
One daff, with transparent plastic where traditionally a stretched animal skin would be, allows the viewer to see the singers and other prayer-leaders through the instrument itself. Below the daff is the prayer notebook, open.
Though the women’s room for worship is a simple long rectangle with no alcove for the daff and tapl players, the percussionists tend to congregate at the far side of the worship circle. The tapl is played sitting down, the drum braced against some cushions. The daff can be played standing or sitting as the worshipper desires. While the speech is not entirely clear, the language shifts from Kurdish to Arabic.
Different singers take the lead at different times. Here, the woman playing the tapl begins to lead a prayer. The Sheikha drinks from the juice distributed as part of the mawlood, a special celebration in honor of the Prophet that can be called at various time throughout the year.
The Sheikha moves from calling on God to the sung prayers. The daff and tapl begin to sound. The song here differs from that in the male worship: it is communally sung, not individually. All women sing; they share the song.
