The term “bedouin” (pronounced BED-oo-win) refers to nomadic tribesmen who move from place to place in the Middle East, locating seasonal, green pastures for their flocks. These pastoralists live in tents, not moving so much anymore, considering the modern reality of private property ownership and international borders. The Bible refers to the shift of housing from cave-dwelling to tent-dwelling, along with the domestication of animals as early as Genesis 4:20.
Later, patriarchs such as Abram pitched his tent between Bethel and Ai, building an altar to the Lord (Gen. 12:8). No doubt his tent was woven from goats’ hair, even as bedouin tents of today. In rainy seasons, the tent would become impermeable and waterproof. Divine specifications for the Tabernacle’s covering dictated a goats’ hair tent, as well (Ex. 26:7).
So from Biblical times to today, tents provide shelter from the rain and from the wind. The front of the tent usually stays open and propped up by poles. A breeze passes through when part of the back side is lifted up and hooked in place. The long sides are staked to the ground.
While bedouin frequently reside in desolate desert areas, they possess a keen culture of what is allowed and what is forbidden when it comes to their “house of hair” as it is known in Arabic. Much of this I learned up close and personal from my archaeologist husband-to-be who lived with the bedouin for a time. Upon several occasions, I was a welcomed guest.
Here are some bedouin-tent customs you might not know:
No one just walks up to a bedouin tent. You are invited. The space outside one’s tent may appear to be community property, but strolling there could be viewed as trespassing, sort of like a stranger stretching out on your backyard lounge chair, or a guest helping himself to an item in your refrigerator.
You just don’t do it.
If you happen to be in the vicinity, walk a very wide circumference around the tent in order to be viewed at a distance from the open side. The tent’s open side faces east.
So that means: Never sneak up from the back! Never poke your head around the corner! Never invite yourself for a visit! (That’s pushing the hospitality idea a little too far….)
When approaching a tent, the women’s side is located on the right and the men’s side is on the left. Beckoned by someone from the tent, a guest enters on the left side of the front, never the right. Naturally, this presupposes that all guests are men, which would be correct.
I mean, what lady in her right mind would leave her multitudinous responsibilities simply to stroll around the desert? In my case, I was in the company and protection of a man and a non-bedouin woman, therefore qualified to enter the men’s side. I could also visit the women’s side if invited, but a man could not.
The wife cooked in her side and handed food on a round, brass tray across the partition curtain stretched between the men’s and women’s section. This partition, made of the same goats’ hair material, was high enough to not directly see over, maybe six feet high. The men had a fire on their side, also, and made tea or coffee for their guests.
Into such a setting, Abraham entertained angels (Gen. 18:1-15) and the Lord overheard Sarah laugh at the thought of giving birth later in life… even though He never spoke directly with her.
It all happened in the bedouin tent. More customs regarding the tent later… for now, I have some fresh dates to eat! Let’s make our homes, be they humble or grand, places of hospitality for those who need a life-lifting word from the Lord.
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