HJirok @48h Neukölln

Addressing nature poetically, Hani Mojtahedy created HJirok; a mythical maternal water spirit and a guardian of nature's secrets living beneath the waterfalls of the Zagros Mountains, singing about the self-inflicted apocalypse, inviting us to listen, and awaiting the return of those who will accept her gifts of life and fertility.

How can we listen to mythical creatures? To the water running through the city?  

Hani Mojtahedy weaves the water guardian spirit from stories told by her ancestors, in response to socio-ecological devastation in the land between two rivers: the Euphrates and the Tigris, where water has become a scarcity. The network of rivers that once gave life to all living beings is drying out, and the parched lands are deserted by their inhabitants while others strive for survival.  

Hjirok calls on us to reflect on the cyclical relationship between all living things and  still waits in her element, among waterfalls, for mankind to return to her and accept her gifts in their intrinsic meaning instead of choosing exploitation. It is not too late, she sings.

In 2021 and 2022 Hani Mojtahedy traveled to Iraqi Kurdistan to find back to the roots of the transcendental sounds of the Kurdish region. In Hawraman, close to the Iranian border, Hani send her voice onto a journey across the frontiers of time and space. In the valley of HJirok, sacred ground for the Êzîdî/Yazidis, they gathered extensive field recordings, lending their ear to the soundscape of wind, mountains and the living beings crossing through.