Spinning Towards Divinity
As Hakan — a dervish-in-training in Sinan Ünel's The Cry of the Reed — learns, everything is made of atoms, and like atoms, everything revolves. There are the orbits of the planets within solar systems, the spinning of our planet on its axis, the cycle of blood throughout the body, and orbits of protons and electrons at the atomic level. These are all unconscious and natural rotations, and whirling dervishes (members of the Sufi sect of Islam who worship through ecstatic dance) try to consciously simulate these revolutions, by spinning as a way of worshipping God and demonstrating the connectedness of all things.
During their ritual dances, dervishes spin first on their own — with arms folded to their chests — then slowly stretch their arms outward. As they turn, they move in a group, counter-clockwise. The right palm faces up, and the left palm faces down to convey the beneficence of God being received through the right palm, into the heart, and out through the left palm to be shared with all. The dervishes spin for hours until they enter a state of ecstasy and purity, where the heart is only conscious of God, and all present are invited to share in divine love.
The Sema Ritual was inspired by the teachings of Sufi poet Mawlana Jalal-ad-Din Muhammad Rumi (1207-1273AD). Divine love is the foundation of Sufism, a religion known for its mysticism and openness, and with his poetry Rumi expressed the divine ecstasy dervishes aim to achieve. The main order of dervishes, the Mevlevi Sufi Order in Turkey, are direct followers of Rumi; by spreading his teachings they aim to share the idea that all religious and spiritual paths are essentially the “Way of Love.”
The ultimate responsibility of a dervish is to train for the ability to receive this sacred Love from God and share it with the congregation. Mevlevi Dervishes must sacrifice everything and practice virtues of humility and self-sacrifice. The sacred Festival of Rumi takes place on December 17, the anniversary of Rumi's death more than 800 years ago, and is still celebrated today. Boston has its own Sufi organization: The Sufi Order International of Greater Boston/A Constellation of Lights. If whirling interests you, or for more information about Sufism, visit their website at gardenlight.org.
— Jared Craig