by Geoff | Dec 12, 2019 | Art, Essaouira, Marabout, Morocco, Regraga, Shrine, Sufi, Zaouia
At dawn, the spirits are lit. Listen to the whispers of the waves Beautiful music, beautiful banner To Sidi Mogdoul I’m heading Great is the joy of Essaouira; Beautiful girls, venerable old men, All are hurrying in the middle of the paths … Some paintings...
by Geoff | Dec 10, 2019 | Essaouira, Marabout, Morocco, Regraga, Shrine, Sufi, Zaouia
The first and starting zaouia of the annual Regraga pilgrimage ( Daour ) is found at Akermoud, a small town to the north of Essaouira. The zaouia contains the catafalque of Sidi Abdellah ou Hmad, a Marabout saint. The Regrega tribe leaders are the descendants of...
by Geoff | Dec 7, 2019 | Essaouira, Marabout, Morocco, Shrine, Sufi
For the first time whilst visiting shrines in the Chiadme region I had come across stalls selling items either as souvenirs or for consumption at the shrine as part of a ritual. The shrine was in a small village called Sidi Abdeljalil some 3 kilometres from Talmest...
by Geoff | Dec 5, 2019 | Aisha Qandisha, Gnaoua, Hamadcha, Meknes, Morocco, Shrine, Sufi, Zaouia
You know that you have arrived at the correct destination when the hotel proprietor seriously enquires whether you would like to sacrifice a sheep the following day in the grotto of Lalla Aisha. I had arrived at possibly the strangest place yet on my travels...
by Geoff | Dec 3, 2019 | Gnaoua, Marabout, Morocco, Shrine, Sufi, Zaouia
Article taken from here Entering the Sufi Spiritual World of North Africa Sufi Brotherhoods and Trance Ceremonies in the Maghreb This zawiya is in Souk Ahras in East of Algeria, sometimes people call the zawiya a marabout – they really mean the saint....
by Geoff | Dec 1, 2019 | Cemetery, Dâr Damânah, Emily Keene, Morocco, Ouezzane, Tangier
Several weeks ago I wrote a blog post regarding Emily Keane, the Sharifa of Ouezzane, an English woman who, in a remarkable story, married one of the most powerful and spiritual men in Morocco. The post can be read here. Her husband was the Sharif of Ouezzane, ...
by Geoff | Nov 26, 2019 | Marabout, Morocco, Shrine, Sufi
Had Dra is famous for its Sunday souk, one of the largest in Morocco. It is also locally renowned for the zaouia of Sidi Ali Ben Mâachou, a part of a fascinating mosque and madrassa complex where the 40 day Regraga pilgrimage comes to an end every spring time....
by Geoff | Nov 25, 2019 | Essaouira, Marabout, Shrine, Zaouia
The annual pilgrimage around the locality of Essaouira every spring is called ‘ Regraga’, a name which also describes the group of Chorfa ( a darija word denoting noble religious leaders descending from the Prophet Mohamed otherwise known as Sharif ) who...
by Geoff | Nov 23, 2019 | Essaouira, Marabout, Morocco, Shrine, Sufi
I Am He Whom I Love I am He whom I love, and He whom I love is I: We are two spirits dwelling in one body. If thou seest me, thou seest Him, And if thou seest Him, thou seest us both. Hussein Ibn Mansur Al Hallaj On the bus recently from Casablanca I was...
by Geoff | Nov 23, 2019 | Essaouira, Marabout, Morocco, Shrine, Sufi, Zaouia
Below is a series of photographs documenting the zaouia and mausoleum of sufi Sidi Abdellah ben Ouasmine located in el Hanchane, a small town in Essaouira Province. Sidi Abdellah ben Ouasmin is the grandson of Sidi Ouasmin, the Sultan of Regraga, found near... 
