Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī, or simply Rumi, was a 13th-century poet, Hanafi faqih (jurist), Islamic scholar, Maturidi theologian (mutakallim), and Sufi mystic originally from Greater Khorasan in Greater Iran.
Sufism is a mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic purification, spirituality, ritualism, and asceticism.
A tariqa is a religious order of Sufism, or specifically a concept for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices of such an order with the aim of seeking haqiqa, which translates as "ultimate truth".
The Mevlevi Order or Mawlawiyya is a Sufi order that originated in Konya, Turkey and which was founded by the followers of Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi, a 13th-century Persian poet, Sufi mystic, and theologian. The Mevlevis are also known as the "whirling dervishes" due to their famous practice of whirling while performing dhikr. Dervish is a common term for an initiate of the Sufi path; whirling is part of the formal sema ceremony and the participants are properly known as semazens.
Sama is a Sufi ceremony performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice dhikr. Sama means "listening", while dhikr means "remembrance". These performances often include singing, playing instruments, dancing, recitation of poetry and prayers, wearing symbolic attire, and other rituals. Sama is a particularly popular form of worship in Sufism.
Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity (tariqah), or more narrowly to a religious mendicant, who chose or accepted material poverty. The latter usage is found particularly in Persian and Turkish (derviş) as well as in Tamazight (Aderwic), corresponding to the Arabic term faqīr. Their focus is on the universal values of love and service, deserting the illusions of ego (nafs) to reach God. In most Sufi orders, a dervish is known to practice dhikr through physical exertions or religious practices to attain the ecstatic trance to reach God. Their most popular practice is Sama, which is associated with the 13th-century mystic Rumi. In folklore and with adherents of Sufism, dervishes are often credited with the ability to perform miracles and ascribed supernatural powers. Historically, the term Dervish has also been used more loosely, as the designation of various Islamic political movements or military entities.
The Naqshbandi order is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam named after Baha al-Din Naqshband. They trace their silsila to Prophet Muhammad through the first caliph Abu Bakr by the way of Ja'far al-Sadiq. The Naqshbandi Sufi order is most distinguished from other Sunni schools by the high level of importance they assign to the sharia, highlighted by major Naqshbandi scholars such as Ahmad Sirhindi and Shah Waliullah Dehlawi.
Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory. Its connection with the human body and fertility has caused it to be forbidden by some religions; for example, some branches of Christianity and Islam have prohibited dancing. Dance has formed a major element of worship in Hindu temples, with strictly formalized styles such as Bharatanatyam, which require skilled dancers and temple musicians. In the 20th century, sacred dance has been revived by choreographers such as Bernhard Wosien as a means of developing community spirit.
The Khalwati order is an Islamic Sufi brotherhood (tariqa). Along with the Naqshbandi, Qadiri, and Shadhili orders, it is among the most famous Sufi orders. The order takes its name from the Arabic word khalwa, meaning “method of withdrawal or isolation from the world for mystical purposes.”
Kudsi Erguner is a Turkish musician. He is considered a master of traditional Mevlevi Sufi music and is one of the best-known players of the Turkish ney flute.
Islamic cultures or Muslim cultures refers to the historic cultural practices that developed among the various peoples living in the Muslim world. These practices, while not always religious in nature, are generally influenced by aspects of Islam, particularly due to the religion serving as an effective conduit for the inter-mingling of people from different ethnic/national backgrounds in a way that enabled their cultures to come together on the basis of a common Muslim identity. The earliest forms of Muslim culture, from the Rashidun Caliphate to the Umayyad Caliphate and early Abbasid Caliphate, was predominantly based on the existing cultural practices of the Arabs, the Byzantines, and the Persians. However, as the Islamic empires expanded rapidly, Muslim culture was further influenced and assimilated much from the Iranic, South Asian, Caucasian, Turkic, Malay, Somali, Berber, and Indonesian cultures.
The Qadiriyya or the Qadiri order is a Sufi mystic order (tariqa) founded by followers of Shaiykh Syed Abdul Qadir Gilani Al-Hassani, who was a Hanbali scholar from Gilan, Iran.
Hadra is a collective supererogatory ritual performed by Sufi orders. It is often held on Thursday evenings after the night prayer, on Fridays after jumu'ah prayer or on Sunday evenings, and can also be celebrated on special Islamic festivals and at rites of passage. It may be held at home or in a mosque. The underlying term in Arabic literally means "Divine Presence" and the human experience of it is known as "Hudur".
Dynamic meditation is a form of meditation in which physical actions are involved. The term appeared in the early 1970s when Osho's descriptions of his "Rajneesh Dhyan Yoga," developed at meditation camps in the Indian mountains, were translated into English. His prototypical method is still named "Dynamic Meditation."
The Mevlâna Museum, in Konya, Turkey, started life as the dervish lodge (Tekke) of the Mevlevi order, better known as the whirling dervishes. It houses the mausoleum of Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, a Persian Sufi mystic.
Sufism has a history in India that has been evolving for over 1,000 years. The presence of Sufism has been a leading entity increasing the reaches of Islam throughout South Asia. Following the entrance of Islam in the early 8th century, Sufi mystic traditions became more visible during the 10th and 11th centuries of the Delhi Sultanate and after it to the rest of India. A conglomeration of four chronologically separate dynasties, the early Delhi Sultanate consisted of rulers from Turkic and Afghan lands. This Persian influence flooded South Asia with Islam, Sufi thought, syncretic values, literature, education, and entertainment that has created an enduring impact on the presence of Islam in India today. Sufi preachers, merchants and missionaries also settled in coastal Gujarat through maritime voyages and trade.
The Madrasa of Amir Sunqur Sa'di, also commonly known as the Mausoleum of (Sheikh) Hasan Sadaqa, is a medieval Mamluk-era madrasa structure and mausoleum in Cairo, Egypt. It was originally built between 1315 and 1321 CE by amir Sunqur Sa'di. Sunqur was forced to leave Egypt in his lifetime and was never buried there, but a sheikh known as Hasan Sadaqa was later buried in it and therefore the building is often known by his name. From the 17th century onward the complex was converted into Mevlevi Sufi lodge and is open today as the Mawlawiyya Museum or Museo Mevlevi.
Saʿdiyya (سعدية) or Jibawiyya (جباوية) is a Sufi tariqa and a family lineage of Syrian and Shafiʿi identity. It grew to prominence also in Ottoman Egypt, Turkey, and the Balkans and it is still active today. They are known for their distinctive rituals and their role in the social history of Damascus. Like many other tariqas, the Saʿdiyya is characterized by the practice of khawāriḳ al-ʿādāt such as healing, spectacles involving body piercing, and dawsa (trampling), for which they are best known; the sheikh would ride a horse over his dervishes, who were lying face down making a “living carpet” of men. They had a wide appeal among the middle and lower classes. The founder of Saʿdiyya was Saʿd al-Dīn al-Shaybānī al-Jibāwī, who took the tariqa from the Yūnisī and Rifaʽi lines, his dates remain uncertain, but he is thought to have died near Jibā, a few kilometers north of Damascus in 736/1335.
The wird is a regular litany and a mystical invocation practiced by murids, saliks and wasils in Islamic sufism.
