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In Mandaeism, the lofani, laufani,[1] or laufania (Classical Mandaic: ࡋࡀࡅࡐࡀࡍࡉࡀ[2]) is a type of ritual meal commemorating the dead.[3] It is etymologically related to the word laufa ("spiritual communion"), since lofani meals symbolize the connection of the souls of the living and the dead. The meal sometimes contains sacrificed sheep or dove meat.[4]
The lofani is a minor ritual meal which does not require the presence of a priest.[5]: 232 It is distinct from the zidqa brikha and dukrana, which are two other types of ritual meal offered for the dead.[4]
During Abu al-Haris, a day of remembrance commemorating the drowned people of Noah's flood (on the first day of the 6th Mandaean month Sarṭana), grains and cereals are eaten as part of a special lofani.[6]: 17
Gallery
[edit]Lofani being prepared by Mandaean laypeople in Ahvaz, Iran:
See also
[edit]- Sacred food as offering
- Dukrana
- Eucharist
- Holy Qurbana in Syriac Christianity
- Koliva
- Laufa
- Zidqa brika
References
[edit]- ^ Crangle, E., Nasoraia, B. (2010). "Soul Food: The Mandaean Laufani". ARAM Periodical, 22, 97-132.
- ^ Al Saadi, Qais (2012). Nhura: English-Mandaic/Mandaic-Mandaic Dictionary. First Edition, Drabsha.
- ^ Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2002). The Mandaeans: ancient texts and modern people. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-515385-5. OCLC 65198443.
- ^ a b Drower, Ethel Stefana. 1937. The Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran. Oxford At The Clarendon Press.
- ^ Drower, E. S. (1956). Water into wine: a study of ritual idiom in the Middle East. London: John Murray.
- ^ Häberl, Charles (2022). The Book of Kings and the Explanations of This World: A Universal History from the Late Sasanian Empire. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press. ISBN 978-1-80085-627-1.
External links
[edit]
- Lofani in Ahvaz, part 1
- Lofani in Ahvaz, part 2
- Lofani in Ahvaz, part 3
- Lofani/Dokhrani (ritual meal for the dead): Lay Mandaeans in Iran (unedited clips and photographs)
- Lofani/Dokhrani (ritual meal for the dead): as performed and explained by Tarmida Khaldoon Majid Abdullah
