Zharapazan – a chanting ritual whose main participants are children and young people
Zharapazan - belongs to the genre of ritual songs. Zharapazan is recited during fasting in the evening and after eating saresi in the morning.
Zharapazan, which is sung in different regions of Kazakhstan, is different. In some regions it is also sung in the form of verses.
It is a chanting ritual, the main participants of which are children and young people. During the singing of the feast (auyzashar), they approach the yurts and sing a special song that combines praises to the Almighty, the saints, the owners of the house, and all those who hold Oraza. The owners of the yurt, in their turn, rewarded the young singers with sweets, baursaks, shelpeks and other treats. Sometimes they could give the children small gifts.
Texts about how the house and its owner were praised can be seen in the article on zharapazan by the folklorist scholar A. Toishan and in the work of M. Gabdulin. Performed differently in different regions of Kazakhstan. In some regions it is performed in the form of poems.
