Come, come again, whoever you are, come! Heathen, fire worshipper or idolatrous, come! Come even if you broke your penitence a hundred times, Ours is the portal of hope, come as you are." Mevlana who is also known as Rumi, was a philosopher and mystic of Islam, but not a Muslim of the orthodox type. His doctrine advocates unlimited tolerance, positive reasoning, goodness, charity and awareness through love. To him and to his disciples all religions are more or less truth. Looking with the same eye on Muslim, Jew and Christian alike, his peaceful and tolerant teaching has appealed to men of all sects and creeds. Mevlana was born on 30 September 1207 in Balkh in present day Afghanistan. He died on 17 December 1273 in Konya in present day Turkey. He was laid to rest beside his father and over his remains a splendid shrine was erected. The 13th century Mevlana Mausoleum with its mosque, dance hall, dervish living quarters, school and tombs of some leaders of the Mevlevi Order continues to this day to draw pilgrims from all parts of the Muslim and non-Muslim world.Whirling Dervishes The "dance" of the Whirling Dervishes is called Sema. Sema is a part of the inspiration of Mevlana as well as part of the Turkish custom, history, beliefs and culture. Sema represents a mystical journey of man?s spiritual ascent through mind and love to "Perfect." Turning towards the truth, his growth through love, desert his ego, find the truth and arrive to the "Perfect," then he return from this spiritual journey as a man who reached maturity and a greater perfection, so as to love and to be of service to the whole of creation, to all creatures without discrimination of believes, races, es and nations.
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MEVLANA NAME : Mevlânâ Celaleddin-i Rumi - Mövlana Cəlaləddini Rumi - Mevlana Dželaludin Rumi - Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi - Jalal ad-Din Rumi - Dschalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi - Dschalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi - Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi - Jalāl-ad-Dīn Rūmī - Yalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi - Ĝalal-ed-din Mohammad Rumi -- Jalal Ud Din Rumi - Gialal al-Din Rumi - Celaleddîn Rûmî - Dzsalál ad-Dín Rúmí - Jalaluddin Muhammad Rumi - Jalal ad-Din Rumi - Dżalal ad-Din Rumi, Dżalaluddin Rumi, Dżalal ad-Din Balchi, Maulana Rumi, Mevlana - Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi - 'Mawlānā Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī - Mowlana Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi Rumi - Džaláluddín Rúmí - Džálál ad-Dín Rúmí, Muhammad Džaláluddín, Chodávendegár, Mauláná Chodávendegár - Djalalu'd-Din Rumi - Jalal al-din Rumi, eller Jalâluddîn Mohammad-i Balkhî - Jelaleddin Rumy
CAN AKIN - MEVLANA
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MEVLANA CELALEDDIN-I RUMI
800th anniversary of the birth of Mevlana Celaleddin-i Belhi-Rumi
(Maulana Jalal-ud-Din Balkhi Rumi), poet and philosopher (1207-1273)
"Eminent philosopher and mystical poet of Islam, Rumi advocated tolerance, reason and access to knowledge through love. His mystical relationship with Islam produced masterpieces that have marked Islamic culture and religious beliefs, well beyond the borders of Turkey. His work and thought remain universally relevant today."Above text is taken from UNESCO's official website announcing that 2007 is declared as Rumi Year. 2007 is the 800th anniversary of Rumis birth and until today his thoughts and poems, written in the "Mesnevi" and "Divan-i Kebir" in Persian language, are for many humans, not only for muslim people very important.
Central topic of Mevlanas teachings is the love, which he understood as main power of the universe. Because of God´s love the universe exists at all, humans must learn to love God, so they will learn to love everything what is God´s creation, thus as humans, nature and all things.
"For the lovers of God is God alone the source of sorrow and joy. It is the wages of their work and to be really rich." (From the Mesnevi of Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi)
In the last year 1,5 million visitors and pilgrims flowed to the mausoleum of Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi, which is today one of Turkeys most visited museums. 200000 visitors came from foreign countries, especiallay from Iran, where Mevlana is very famous. From every part of the world humans visited the mystical poet, many of them speaking "Dua" (asking prayers) at his tomb.
After Mevlanas death on December 17 in the year 1273 the mausoleum was established over which today rises up the "Kubbe-i-Hadra" (the Green dome), it became the symbol of Konya.
Rumi was buried near his father in the rose garden of the Seljuk palace. Later altogether 55 family members and companion or highranking Mevlevi-Derwishs like Selaheddin Zerkub and Husamedin Çelebi found their last peace at the mausoleum, beside Mevlana his son Sultan Veled. The "Tekke" was built, a building for meetings and studies, the Sema hall for mystical dance and small cells for meditation practice like "Zikr" (thinking of God).
Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi was born in the year 1207 in Balkh in the Persian region Horasan (today Afghanistan). His father was the respected scholar Bahaeddin Veled, who left the city with his familiy because of the forthcoming Mongol invasion.
After travelling through different areas and a longer stay in Karaman, finally they came 1228 to Konya, which was the capital of the Rum Seljuk under the powerful Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat. After the death of the father Rumi became also a respected theological scholar. But the meeting and special friendship with Shemseddin Tabrisi, a dervish of the calendar order he met 1244 in Konya, brought him on the mystic way.
The Sufi Derwishorder of the Mevlevis, which was founded after Mevlanas death, got large influence during the time of the Turkish Seljuk and later in the Ottoman empire. The order was closed, when the new Turkish Republic was established at the beginning of the 20. century. Today exists in many countries, even in Europe and America small private groups, which are following the thoughts of Mevlana and partly continuing mystic practices.
The ritual of "Sema", the mystic dance of turning Mevlevi dervishs found its origin in an inspiration of Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi, but received its form after his death. Accompanied by the sounds of the flute "Ney" and other instruments, the whirling dervish is turning like in trance around his own axis, the right hand upward to be ready to receice God´s beneficence and the left hand downward to the earth. It symbols the mankind with their connection between heaven and earth.
The day of death Mevlana Celaleddin Rumis on December 17 in the year 1273 is named as "Seb-i-Arus", what means literally translated "wedding night". For the inhabitants of Konya at that time Mevlanas death was a drastic event. Sheikh Sadreddin Konevi, another mystic master from Konya, who should speak the last prayer for Mevlana, fell in faint because of sadness. To Rumis funeral came numerous representatives of all groups and religions, also Christians and Jews. Despite of the muslim funeral they were reading from the old and new testament and described the character of Mevlana as equal with Moses and Jesus. Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi had designated the death as typical for the sufis as "wedding", a kind of still more intensive mental combination with God. In the Divan the following statement is contained: "When you see my funeral don´t say: What for a separation. It is time for me to meet the lover…"
There is every year a festival week in Konya in December with exhibitans, concerts and performance of the whirling dervish dance "Sema" at the Mevlana cultural center (Mevlana Kültür Merkezi).
In 2006 more than 70000 visitors from many different countries came to see the performances. Like every year December 17 was a special day, where hundreds of people came together in the afternoon at the tomb of Mevlana to speak "Dua".
In the Mevlana year 2007, which was declared by UNESCO after an initiative of the countries Turkey, Egypt and Afghanistan, will be world-wide cultural and informative events about Mevlans philosophy.
Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi will be for every time a good example, because of his tolerance, love and good relation to his fellows.
CAN AKIN
