malasay
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Journey to Siltie Zone
Since I heard about the unique relationship that exists
between the Harari and Siltie people few years back, I have always wanted to
know more about this special relationship amongst our two people. The few
articles that I have read over the internet or the agreements that were signed
between the
I knew Siltie Zone was in Southern People's
I reckoned it would be more interesting and education to
travel with friends, rather than going solo. Thus, I recruited two friends of
mine to accompany me in this journey. One was Teshome Berhane, and the other
was Mubarak Mohammed. Teshome is a Muslim with ancestral roots in both Tigray
and Walo. Both side of his family claim descent from Aw Abadir. He is writing
an extensive book about Imam Ahmed, and in the process is traveling all across
Mubarak is a friend of mine and belongs to the Somali
Shaikhash clan. In
Shawal Eid was on Friday October 19th. Therefore, we decided
to head to Worabe, the capital of Siltie Zone on Thursday October 18th to
observe how this holiday was celebrated in Siltie community. We headed out with
a car that was rented for us by Hajj Awal. However, due to network failure we
could not get a hold of the Siltie Zone officials to let them know that we were
coming to Worabe on that specific date. We decided to take a chance and head
there anyway since Teshome and Mubarak have already requested vacation time
from their respective work places. We drove south for about 4 hours and we
arrived in Worabe. Worabe is very close to Boutajira, for those who might be
familiar with that town. Worabe is a
Getting back to Siltie zone - the driver of the rental car
dropped us at a hotel, Riyad Hotel, around
Stay tuned until the next entry to find out what really
happened.
Last edited by malasay on
When we got to Mr.
Sani's office to our delight he was still in his office. I was happy to see 3
or 4 posters of Harar hanging on his wall, including a copy of the certificate
awarded by UNESCO registering Harar in the World Heritage list. Seeing those posters
of my city in this far away place made me feel at home. I knew then that we
were among our people. Mr. Sani was a down to earth, gentle and intelligent
person. He listened to us describing the reason why we came to Siltie Zone
attentively. We told him we came to document how Shawal Eid was celebrated in
Siltie Zone, as well as to explore the connection between the Harari and Siltie
people, and as such that we wanted to visit historic sites that might shed
light on this matter. He told us that he had no clue that we were coming to
Siltie Zone. I had also talked to the President of the
Nonetheless, Mr. Sani welcomed us graciously and with open
arms. Concerning the reasons we traveled to Siltie Zone, he told us that there
were no unique venues where Shawal Eid is celebrated in their region in masses
like it is done in Harar. He explained to us that Shawal Eid amongst the Siltie
people is a private family affair, where families gather together and receive
blessings/duas from their parents. He told us that he can arrange for us to
visit couple of households to see how a typical family celebrates Shawal Eid.
As to the historic sites, he gave us names of several sites that he will
arrange for us to visit. He told us that he will send a vehicle for us early in
the morning the next day to give us a tour of Siltie Zone. With that brief and
warm exchange we parted ways. We headed to our hotel and he went to his home.
Once we got to the hotel we ate our dinner at the
restaurant, watched the Al Jazeera channel to catch up with the world news,
discussed about our perception of Siltie Zone, as well as about our planned
tour the next day. In the process Teshome, Mubarak, and I were also getting to
know each other better. While we were chatting at the dinner table, Mr. Sani
and group of officials came to meet with us. We greeted and introduced one
another. They said "arhibu" and we all sat down, and discussed
further in detail about our planned tour during our stay in Siltie Zone. I
understood "arhibu" to mean similar to the arabic word
"itfadalu." However, with all that was going on, I forgot to ask the
meaning of the word. However, I liked how the word was used and sounded.
After arranging the schedule they bid as farewell and went
to their respective homes. We heard the azan shortly thereafter, and we headed
to the nearest masjid. The masjid was huge, and with a very large courtyard.
Like the rest of Werabai it was constructed within the last four years. We made
our abolition and performed our maghrib and isha prayers, and then headed back
to the hotel taking the long route. By the time we got to the hotel we were all
tired from the journey and the walk, and we decided to call it a night and hit
the sack.
What happened the next day? Insha'Allah the story will
continue tomorrow.
Ah, tomorrow. I was
starting to wonder when it would arrive, because tomorrow always brings another
tomorrow.
Back to the journey ...
We woke up early in the morning on Friday – the day of Shawl
Eid. Teshome went to the masjid by himself in the morning for the dawn prayers,
while Mubarak and I opted to pray in our respective hotel rooms.
Around
Br. Mohammed Yusuf, one of the people who came to meet us
with Mr. Sani the previous night at our hotel, arrived right after we finished
our breakfast. He told us that we were going to visit a family in Worabe to see
how a typical family celebrates Shawl Eid. We got into the vehicle with camera
on hand and headed south. After few minutes of driving we stopped by a house,
where a child of 9 or 10 was waiting for us anxiously. We got out of the
vehicle, and he led us into the house.
All the family members got up and welcomed us warmly. We
exchanged salaams and sat down. The house was a large hut house. The parents
were sitting a bit toward the center of the house. The men were seated to the
right of the parents while facing them, and the women were seated on the left
side of the parents.
Whenever a family member came in from outside, he or she
would kiss the parents affectionately and present a gift to them. A gift was
brought to the parents even on behalf of small children, and the parents made
dua to their children and grandchildren. We learned that the dua of the parents
to their children was the centerpiece of the Shawl Eid celebration in Siltie
Zone. In this family we visited, whenever the parents made dua some of the
family members stood up, bent themselves while raising both their hands in
supplication format and saying ameen.
I said to myself, this is a community that really grasped
the worth of a parent’s prayer. Insha’Allah these people are destined to
greatness in our nation.
The family wanted us to eat with them the special meal that
was prepared for Shawal Eid, but but that fatira!! We kindly declined and told
them we had just eaten our breakfast. Shortly thereafter we bid each other
farewell, and headed back north.
Mr. Mohammed Yusuf told us that Mr. Sani would also join us
in our next trip. What a pleasant surprise! We picked Mr. Sani up and headed
towards Mitto, which was about 32 km east of Worabe. Mitto is renowned for its
farm. Everywhere we looked there was luscious greenery and farms. In the way to
Mitto we learned that Mr. Mohammed Yusuf was the head of Dalocha Werada, which
included Mitto. Talk about gracious hosts!
We saw many young families with their children in the street
dressed up and heading towards their parents house on foot or horses to
celebrate Shawal Eid. One such couple flagged our vehicle, and Mr. Sani was
kind enough to give them a ride. This gave us more opportunity to ask questions
about this unique festivity that we were witnessing in Siltie Zone. This couple
told us that they were heading to the residence of the husband’s parents first,
and then to that of wife’s.
After some distance, the couple disembarked and we bid them
farewell and continued with our journey to Mitto. In the way we saw a majestic
looking lady riding a horse. I wanted to ask the driver to stop the car so I
could to videotape the lady on the horse. However, I thought I would be able to
see such things and I let it go. That proved to be a mistake. Henceforth, I saw
no lady on a horseback during our stay in Siltie Zone. Shucks!
We finally arrived to Mitto. We went to the residence of
Azmach Jabir Imam Hussein. There was a large group of people there engaged in
doing zikr and praising the Prophet (SAW). When we came they all greeted us
with warmth and open arms. The residence was quiet a large hut. Everybody there
was a close relative of Azmach Jabir and their extended families. Azmach Jabir
claimed descent from Aw Abadir.
They performed the zikr in both Amharic and Siltie
languages, accompanied with drumbeats that sounded a lot familiar to that of
Harar. The atmosphere of the Shawal Eid celebration in this compound was much
closer to that of Harar. After observing and recording the event in Mitto for a
while, we were invited to have lunch with a family near by.
The main dish was a delicious kitfo served with various
types of cottage cheese. We ate our lunch, and it was coffee time. I am not a
coffee person, but I do drink coffee on occasions. I find the taste of coffee
to be bitter, and can only handle it with lots of sugar and cream. Even if
there is no cream, it gotta have lots of sugar! The coffee that was served to
us was unique. It had salt and butter in it. I wanted to be a gracious guest
and tried to drink the coffee. I took one sip and had difficulty taking a
second one. I excused myself and told them I was not familiar with drinking
coffee with salt and butter. They told me not to worry, and offered me honey
with water. Sugar sugar sugar!! Yes! (Disclaimer: this is not an advertisement
for sugar).
After we had conversation with our generous hosts for a
while, it was time to head back to Worabe. We bid the family that treated us so
kindly farewell, and headed back to the hotel. Mr. Sani and Mr. Mohammed Yusuf
told us that Mr. Mohammed Nur would come for us later in the afternoon to show
us some of the historic places that we wanted to see. Mr. Mohammed Nur is an
advisor to Mr. Sani. With that we bid each other farewell and the 3 of us
headed to our respective hotel rooms to get some rest and to be refreshed for
the afternoon adventure.
Insha’Allah will be continued soon.
Mr. Mohammed Nur
arrived later in the afternoon and we headed south and then eastward for about
50 km towards Oumnan, in Azernet Berbere Woreda. Our final destination was the
ancient mosque and shrine of Haji Aliye, who is considered to be the father of
the Siltie people. The road was rugged and ascended upward a winding mountain,
which made it seem as if we traveled for much more than 100 km.
Eventually we arrived at the administrative office of
Azernet Berbere Woreda. Mr. Behredin Mussa, who is an official of the Woreda,
accompanied us in our remaining journey towards Oumnan along with several of
his companions. The scenery as we were approaching Oumnan was truly majestic
and breath taking. It had open fields with green grasses and tall trees that
were spread spaciously. A majestic mountain stands towering over us in a
distance. We were told Oumnan was located right at the foot of the mountain.
We drove for a while, and all of a sudden our vehicle
stopped. No, we did not reach our final destination. There was muddy water that
lay on our path. We went out to inspect whether our vehicle would be able to
pass through it or not. We determined that it would be impossible for the
vehicle to pass through the mud without getting stuck. So we decided to complete
the rest of our journey by foot.
About ten of us were heading towards Oumnan by foot, as more
and more people started to join us along the way out of curiosity. At the end,
perhaps there was 20 of us or more.
Who was Hajj Aliye?
Hajj Aliye was one of Imam Ahmed’s generals who were sent to
this region along with 600 soldiers to pacify it. Usually the Imam’s armies
settled in mountainous areas to be able to better defend their positions. As we
approached nearer and nearer to the mountain, I couldn’t help but feel as if we
were in the army of the Imam. Armed with a video camera and pens, instead of
swords and shields, we passed through a valley that had beautiful streams all
around it. They say a pen is mightier than a sword, Insha’Allah we shall see if
that should hold true in this case. Teshome will be publishing his book about
Imam Ahmed pretty soon.
I would like to say few words about the special video camera
I was carrying with me. It was a cannon XL2. It is a real beauty. However, its
true beauty does not emanate from its brand, but rather from the fact that it
was purchased through the generous donation of the Harari and Siltie
communities in
Now back to the story …
As we were crossing through the valley, we had to cross over
streams at several locations. At couple of the locations, it was barely two
logs of trees that lay over the stream. I had my dress shoes on, since I didn’t
think we were going to walk on foot. It was a mistake. Now I had to walk across
tree logs to reach the shrine of Hajj Aliye. I gave the video camera to a
seasoned tree crosser, as I walked tittering over the log.
Teshome was walking briskly and was ahead of us quiet a
distance. Mubarak was not too far ahead of my group. Our guides kept telling us
we were getting close, whenever we asked how far we had to walk. But we kept on
walking and walking and walking.
Finally we reached our destination. We were standing in
Oumnan. It was here that the heroic malasays, Hajj Aliye and his companions,
camped and made their livings. The shrine of Hajj Aliye was a simple place,
surrounded with the beauty and majesty of the mountain that was embracing it.
An elder person with knowledge about the history of Hajj
Aliye and his companions was brought for us to interview on location. He
informed us that Hajj Aliye originated from Harar, and that he had the
following children:
1. Dilapa 2. Abecho 3. Aleqero 4. semeredin 5. Gensilti 6.
Oyotte and others
It was starting to get dark as we were interviewing the man.
We wrapped our interview and started heading towards our vehicle in total
darkness. The only light we were relying on was that of the moon and our mobile
phones. And yes, we had to cross over the streams with couple of logs placed
over them again – this time in darkness.
After walking for quiet a while, we made it to the vehicle.
However, our hosts informed us that there was an elderly person in the area
whom we should consider interviewing. He was deemed to be knowledgeable in
history. We were more than happy to oblige. After driving for few minutes we
arrived at his place of residence. His name was Imam Aliye. He was between the
ages of 80 to 90.
The hut was dim with couple of lanterns fighting against the
darkness. The family welcomed as graciously as we have experienced all over
Siltie Zone. During our entire journey we have not encountered a single person
who was not kind to us. Imam Aliye asked his family to serve us tea and bread.
We declined so as not to burden them, but he insisted and we eventually
accepted the family’s offer.
Imam Aliye is the descendant of Hajj Aliye, who in turn is
the descendant of Aw Abadir. I learned something very valuable from br. Teshome
during this trip. He would ask the people that he interviewed, up to how many
generations they could count? and he would ask them to actually count. He did
the same with Imam Aliye. The ancestors of Imam Aliye are as follows:
Imam Aliye
Ibn Imam Hamid
Ibn Ibrahim
Ibn Imam Umer
Ibn Bushra
Ibn Imam Mohammed
Ibn Imam Khedir
Ibn Azmach Aleqero
Ibn Hajj Aliye
After a while, we completed out interview with Imam Aliye,
and started to head back towards Worabe. However, not so fast said Mr. Behredin
Mussa, the Azernet Berbere Woreda official, and his companions. You cannot
leave without having dinner with us, they insisted. After our original
resistance, we once again obliged so as to not disappoint our hosts.
After having a delicious candle light dinner at a
restaurant, this time we really started to head back towards Worabe. Mubarak
and Teshome fell asleep in the way back, while Mohammed Nur, the driver, and I
listened to the radio as we were inching closer and closer to Worabe.
Ultimately we reached our hotel and called it a night.
Now I need to call it a night, too. It is