Whirling Dervishes
The Order of the Whirling Dervishes is just one of the branches of the Islamic tradition of Sufi. Contrary to popular belief, the goal of the whirling is not to lose consciousness or to fall into a state of ecstasy, but revolve in harmony with nature.
The largest festival in Turkey is the annual Mevlâna Festival in Konya, Turkey which takes place in mid-December. The festival features numerous performances of the semâ including the whirling ceremony which is performed by theWhirling Dervishes.
It is believed that the majority of whirling dervishes in Turkey can trace their spiritual roots right back to the 13th Century, to the Celaleddin Mevlâna Rumi, who founded the Mevlevi Sufi order. Whirling is just one of the tools used by these Islamic mystics to elp them feel closer to Allah, but it's not the only one.
They wear long, white robes with full skirts, over black cloaks, which they remove before the start of the ceremony to symbolize their deliverance from the cares and attachments of this world. They also wear very tall, conical felt hats.
The Semâ (Whirling Ritual) begins by chanting a prayer to and then a kettledrum sounds, followed by musical improvisation on a flute made f reed called a ney.
Then the master bows, and leads the dervishes in a circle. As they pass the master they bow to each other. After three circles, the dervishes drop their black cloaks and in turn, with arms folded across their chests, they approach the master, bow, kiss his hand, then begin to spin. Throughout the whirling, the dervishes are supposed to relinquish their earthly life and be reborn. When they open their arms, the dervishes hold their right hands palm-up, to receive the blessings of heaven and their left hands palm-down to transfer the blessings to earth.
This web site is for sale
Please our web designer
with your enquiry.