More than mustache: What Kakais and Druze won’t shave off
Shafaq News
Though separated by borders and ethnic backgrounds, Iraq’s Kakai community and Syria’s Druze minority mirror each other in remarkable ways — not just in their shared preference for secrecy and sacred traditions, but in how they embody cultural resilience through symbolic expression and ritual fidelity.
From the unshaven mustache that conveys sacred vows, to the refusal to accept converts or publicize doctrine, both groups have developed spiritual systems designed to survive under suspicion, silence, and siege.
Guarding Faith Through Silence
For the Kakais — also known as Ahl-e Haqq or People of the Truth — secrecy is both a theological principle and a means of protection. As Kakai elder Ako Shaweis told the Kurdish Foundation of Paris, “Our rituals have always been kept secret… These rituals are intended for God, not for humans.”
For communities long subjected to marginalization, discretion is not about retreating from society but preserving the sanctity of belief. “The more hidden and concealed the religious ceremonies are, the more acceptable they become,” he noted, emphasizing a spiritual tradition where privacy deepens one’s connection to the divine.
For the Druze, the practice is institutionalized. Only a select religious elite, the Uqqal (Knowers), are allowed to access the group’s sacred texts (Al-Hikmah Al-sharifah) or participate in religious services. Conversion into or out of the faith is strictly prohibited. Like the Kakais, Druze communities preserve a tight boundary between insiders and outsiders.
Both groups maintain reverence for sacred sites. Kakais in Iraq and Iran visit the shrine of Sultan Ishaq, while the Druze make pilgrimages to sites like the maqam of Prophet Habil near Damascus or Nabi Shuayb in Palestine. These visits are often deeply personal, but they also reflect collective ties to landscape and memory — further linking identity to sacred geography.
Parallel Paths of Devotion
Among the most visible expressions of faith for both groups is the mustache — not as fashion, but as a sacred symbol. In Kakai belief, it is a covenant. “The thick, long mustache isn’t just a social custom,” explains Kakai scholar Khurshid Al-Kakai to Shafaq News. “It’s part of the spiritual commitment and religious oath that ties the individual to his community and faith.
This symbolic role finds a striking echo among Syria’s Druze, where the mustache also historically signified discipline, wisdom, and spiritual maturity. Although less rigidly observed today, it remains a potent cultural marker — particularly for religious elders and community leaders.
This shared symbolism was thrust into the spotlight during recent unrest in Suwayda, where reports emerged of Druze men being forcibly shaved under threat. Abbas Al-Kakai, a prominent figure in Iraq’s Kakai community, condemned the incidents. “To violate the mustache is to insult an entire identity,” he told Shafaq News. “It symbolizes dignity, faith, and a sacred vow. These acts are unacceptable — they are not just violence, but symbolic erasure.”
A Mutual Struggle for Recognition
What makes the Kakai-Druze parallel compelling is not only their rituals or symbols but the logic beneath them: survival without assimilation. Whether in the Qalate hills of Halabja or the mountain shrines of Jabal Al-Druze, both groups navigate their identities through a careful balance of concealment and assertion.
Neither community seeks to proselytize. Instead, they ask for space — for recognition of their traditions, and constitutional acknowledgment of their distinct identities.
In a region plagued by fragmentation, the Kakais and Druze remind us of another path — one that guards the soul of a people not through force, but through fidelity. Their shared story is not only one of survival, but of quiet defiance in the face of being forgotten.
