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.
In addition to swaying, bending, and head-banging, worshippers often whirl, as in Turkish and other traditional depictions of Sufis lost in prayer. Here, we see many different kinds of worship in one frame.
At this distance, it’s easy to see the repair work that has been done on the daff with tape, the turquoise prayer beads strung around one woman’s wrist, the clear rhythm the tapl player provides as she sings and how she balances the tapl against cushions. The woman sings, “The children of the Prophet, my life, and my religion.”
The men begin to line up for prayers. Some men gesture for another to join them, making space for him between them. The mullah emphasizes, “We should believe in no god except God and Muhammad as his prophet.”
Cushions and fabric balance the tapl. The skin of the tapl is actually a little punctured, but still it booms with each tap of the sticks. This prayer describes a beauty dressed in various types of Kurdish clothes.
