Round & round & round...

After nearly 2 decades on the road, I have become a little jaded. It's somewhat of a challenge for me to get excited about seeing another mosque or cathedral or fort or whatever. At the end of the day, it's just another church, etc. I do my best to find things unique to a country, things you can't find other places. One of these unique experiences comes in the form of a religious ceremony in Turkey. It is performed by the Sufi order of Islam. More specifically the Mevlevi faith, better known as the Whirling Dervishes.

Although the group was founded in Konye (also in Turkey), it is in Istanbul that it's the easiest to see. There are plenty of tourists performances around the city for anywhere from 30 to 45 Lira. Likely the nicest facility, Galata Mevlevihanesi, near Taksim, was closed when i visited. And the alternatives, like the one at Haçıpaşa, is just too touristy for me. So, being a stickler for details, I set off in search of an authentic ceremony. It took me the better part of the afternoon, but I finally found what I was looking for.

The ceremony, traditionally performed on Mondays, is AWESOME!! The tourist show is about 50 minutes as they take out all the Muslimy stuff so people can take their pictures of the spinning dancers and go home. But being a real Mevlevi Mosque. I was in for the 2 hour+ full spectacular. It starts with the Naat and Taksim. The Naat is the beginning of the ceremony where they sing praise for the Prophet Mohammed. Followed by the Taksim, a lone reed flute plays signifying our separation from God. The dervishes enter, clad in black, a symbol of the grave. More chanting and singing. The dervishes walk in a circle, bowing to each other. A part of the ceremony called Devr-i Veled. They kneel. Before breaking free of the black cloaks to reveal white cloak underneath. More singing, chanting and music. Then, one by one, with blessing from the Sheikh (like a priest) they begin to spin... and spin... and spin... only counterclockwise. Their right palms facing upwards to God and the left towards the Earth. The spinning invokes a type of euphoric meditative state. The semazen are said to be mediums. There are 4 "sessions" of spinning, each representing love, peace and unity, to God. After they have finished There is a concluding prayer, recitation from the Holy Qu'ran (the Muslim Bible). And the ceremony is finished with lots of handshakes and kisses. While I have seen this before, it's still one of my favourite experiences in the world.

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Being in an actual semahane (ritual hall), I hadn't planned on taking pictures. But then i saw a local woman on the upper floor (women only) doing it. Even then it had to be all James Bond-ish. Hence the less than perfect framing and focus of my shots. And while I'm sure anyone reading this would love to know where the Semahane is, I can't tell you. Just let this be an encouragement that, regardless of the rumours, there is a free, actual Sema ceremony in Istanbul. It is difficult to find information on it, and the building is difficult to find, but for those determined enough, it's out there waiting. Failing that, the tourist shows are the next best thing. This is something not to be missed on any visit to Turkey. While the Blue Mosque is nice and the Grand Bazaar is, well, grand, in my opinion, the Whirling Dervishes are the single most impressive display to witness anywhere in Turkey!