Dancing Dervishes

Banjara:

..wondefully evocative description......[not plaigiarizing t but borrowing half of his words]

Azure:

[If that is so, then the Islamic world has got a great utility to take over the hearts of many non-Islamic Sufi aspirants. A great way to promote the Islamic cause...]

Have you run out of causes to promote? Which one would you rather promote: peace, humanism, compassion or love/ union with divine? I would prefer to promote liberation of mind.

Bahais, moonies, rastafarians....all talk of love and union with the divine.....

Azure # 5

``If that is so, then the Islamic world has got a great utility to take over the hearts of many non-Islamic Sufi aspirants. A great way to promote the Islamic cause... ``

you are absolutely right. Mian Mir and Moeen Uddin Chishti had christians, hindues and sikhs as their followers. These saints preached love and goodness towards the mankind - the eternal message of all religions.

dostji

...nahiN ....the stones concert (underway now) is expected to draw upwards of 450,000 and is being billed as the largest paid concert...in aid of SARS...

...the hunch referred to a small (impromptu) meeting at the baithak this evening in honour of a visiting chowkie...have invited a couple of TO chowkies...if you were in town you would have been part of the gathering too...

...t

temporal:
``...have a hunch Banjaara might want to see it tonight...``

Is it part of the mega concert with Rolling Stones tonight?

#3 by nazarhayatkhan:

I think the Sufi saints of the South Asia were freely open to all faiths and gender.

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If that is so, then the Islamic world has got a great utility to take over the hearts of many non-Islamic Sufi aspirants. A great way to promote the Islamic cause... and furthermore it would purify the image of Islam that has been so distorted nowadays. I remember reading somewhere that Sufism looked cool to the westerners, and they adopted it as a fashion.

It seems the true Love does win afterall. Down with all the baseless sectarian violence, terrorism in the name of Jihad and all that. It is only in the power of Love for God and humanity that the true meaning of a better, safer and peaceful world can be found.

By the way, Banjaara jee, it would have been nice if you named the article the Whirling Dervishes, since that sounds more appropriate and is a more commonly used term. It felt really good reading it though, and I wish I was a part of this beautiful ceremony.

Banjaara

...wonderfully evocative description that transported me there...

dost

...check out Barakah...it is hard to find and has no conventional story line or dialogues, actors etc...it has an excellent segment on whirling dervishes...

...if you cannot find it in ottawa you can look forward to the labour day;)...have a hunch Banjaara might want to see it tonight...

...t

I have been told, and now by you, there is nothing like witnessing a ceremony like this.

Banjara

Thanks. I needed to know it. Dance, devotion, spirituality is fine.

Is the place open to people from every religion? Do the Sufis also believe in purdah and segregation of women? Please clarify these confusions in me.

I think the Sufi saints of the South Asia were freely open to all faiths and gender.

Banjaara:
Wow! What a description! I felt I was almost there partaking the blissful union of the dervishes with the Almighty. And I am surprised that these performances have not been commercialised.
BTW is the separation of women in purdah practiced in Turkish mosques as well?