Syncretic Kurds in Iran & Yazidis visting... Mecca

In the 19th century, Farahani wrote a book on his own pilgrimage to Mecca. A few uncommon accounts of Kurdish populations along the route are included in the work. It is remarkable to observe the syncretism among the Kurds (and others) in the present-day Iranian province of Alborz: 

One farsakh from Yangi Emâm there is a place by the name of Hashtgard, which is crown property. Its inhabitants are Kurds whose way of life is like that of the Naşiris. For the most part, they are highway robbers. There is a shrine in that village called the Emâmzâdeh Ja'far (after one of the descendants of Hazrat-e Musâ ebn-e Ja'far, peace be upon him). The people of that village, the village of Yangi Emâm, the surrounding villages, and the Kurds all have great faith in him. It is popularly thought that taking an oath [in his name] produces a result very quickly; in so far as possible, no one will swear by him. Some petty thefts which have occurred in the environs have [been resolved] by having the property immediately returned and given up if the people of Hashtgard have taken the trouble to have the inhabitants of the village swear by their emâmzadeh.

Farahani links particular tribes to his use of the Kurd-label. Determining whether the Kurds of Qazvin and other "unusual" places correspond to actual Kurdish tribes is enlightening. There is a correspondence between Farahani's use of the Kurd-label and contemporary usage in his instances because these tribes are still present and are self-described Kurds:

From the Qeshlâq guest-house one goes to the Kavandeh guest-house. It is four farsakhs. The road is red clay and is very muddy during the rainy season. All along this road between these two guest-houses dwell the "Goldsmith clansmen" of Qazvin, who are all highway robbers. Very stealthily and vilely, they engage in theft and kill the helpless. Every chance they get, by night and day, they come to the road as if begging; if they find two or three unarmed people, they rob them of their possessions. Also along this road is an area named Hajji Tappeh, which is the winter pasture for the Kurds of Qazvin. The people of Hajji Tappeh are also bandits and extremely wicked. They are usually mounted and armed. Every time they can, they separate ten or twelve riders from a caravan and rob them. Sometimes they also steal from the surrounding villages.

As for the Kavandeh guest-house, it is next to the village of Kavandeh, from which it derives its water supply. A garden planted with trees has been made in front of it. Its workers, horses, and rooms are like those of the other guest-houses. The village of Kavandeh does not have a qaleh. It is a very dirty village. About forty families live there. Its water is mostly river water that comes from Zardcheh Bostân. There is also a small qanât running through the middle of the village that provides enough water for the people's drinking water. This village was one of the wakf estates of Khomârtâsh. It is a wakf property for the Khiâbân mosque in Qazvin. Its inhabitants are Kurds of the Mâfi and Kubâr tribes. From the Kavandeh guest-house one goes four farsakhs to Qazvin. The road is smooth and level. It gets muddy during the rainy season, and it is extremely dry and dusty in summer. In the guest-houses along the way, nothing unusual was observed, except that food and drink were expensive for what one got. 

Past Kharzân, the road is constantly downhill in rolling country all the way to Pâchenâr. One and a half farsakhs after Kharzân, the post horses are left [behind] and one is compelled to go on foot. I sat for a while at a spring which flowed in the midst of the valley, and then, on horseback and by foot, after countless difficulties, I reached Pâchenâr. I traversed the route in seven hours. Pâchenâr village, which is by the road, consists of just one brick caravanserai and a post station. This caravanserai and post station are located on the bank of the Târom River. The Târom River flows from the Mollâ Ali valley and enters the Shah Rud River a little below the caravanserai.

The post station is a pleasant and attractive place with some willows and forest trees surrounding it. According to reports, Nâşer ol-Molk, during his first governorship of Gilân, had this post station constructed with sunbaked bricks, mud, and stone. Its construction is of good quality, and its horses are fine. The caravanserai is one of the constructions of Hajji Mohammad Hadi Tâjer Miânji. Pâchenâr is the winter pasture for the Chegni Kurds. At a distance of one maydân past the caravanserai, beside the road, there are about thirty small peasant houses to which the Kurds come in winter-time and in which they dwell. Pâchenâr is located low down in a valley. It is the first part of the land of Gilân. On the other side of the Kharzân pass, the weather is completely different. The soil, trees, shrubs, and steppe-land birds there are all different. There are some forest trees in the plains. About one maydân past Pâchenâr two or three rustic caravanserais of sun-baked brick and mud have been built by the road. Caravans usually stop at those caravanserais. Anyhow, I arrived in Pâchenâr three hours after sunrise, changed horses, and set out three hours before sunset. The road is rocky and generally passes along the left side of the mountain range. The Shah Rud River was visible to the right of the road, sometimes far off and sometimes close by. One farsakh past Pâchenâr one arrives at the Lowshân bridge.

Farahani uses his visit in Mecca as an opportunity to discuss the pilgrims' diversity. The pilgrimage from Ottoman Syria is a unique detail. From that direction, Yazidis were traveling to Mecca. Is this unexpected?

Every year from five hundred to fifteen hundred Syrian pilgrims come. They are Ottoman subjects. Most are of the Shafei rite. They also have [some] Khârejis and Yazidis. They come overland with the [ma]hmal of the Prophet. For years, Said Pasha has brought the [ma]hmal to Mecca in perfect order and regularity, [accompanied by] the amin-e sorreh, soldiers, and cannons. Enormous sums are given by the Ottoman government for this purpose. Since the Syrians are accompanying the [ma]hmal, they pay nothing for visas, tolls, etc. This year, due to it being the "Greater Pilgrimage," about 1,600 people had come.

Even without concrete historical proof, it shouldn't be shocking. For the primary reason that syncretic groups were historically categorized as "Muslim" by many Muslim authors. Another reason for obscurity in historical sources can be discovered by going back to the description of Hashtgard. In terms of various worldviews, Farahani's vocabulary was quite small. He did not have a specific name for the Hashtgardi religious congregation. He had the same issue as other writers of Islamicate history. Misrepresentation was coupled with a limited vocabulary.