Non-stop whirling and Sufi music in Yalova

Organized by the Traditional Turkish Music Research and Promotion Society (TÜMATA), the international event "16 Day 16 Night Sema" has kicked off in Yalova's Termal district. The event welcomes nearly 100 people from Bulgaria, New Zealand, Iran, Australia, Switzerland and Israel as well as Turkey. Those who attend the event, which is held at Rasim Mutlu Cultural Center, will join in the whirling of sema accompanied by Sufi music. Although the music and whirling dervishes change, the sema continues non-stop. Speaking to journalists, the founder of the group, assistant professor Rahmi Oruç Güvenç, said that they will hold this event for 16 days as the book "Ariflerin Menkıbeleri" (Legends of The Wise Men) refers to Mevlana as whirling for 16 days.Offering insights into the organization, Güvenç said, "A mawlavi sheik named Akif Çelebi embraced a mawlavi vision 350 years after Mevlana's death. According to this vision, the sema that we practice today emerged. So we can say that there was a sema ritual inherited from the time of Mevlana. However, the ritual completely changed after Akif Çelebi." Fifteen years ago, Güvenç and a group of his friends from Switzerland had the idea to re-create the sema that was performed during the time of Mevlana. "At that time, 40 people came together and whirled for three days and nights in a hall. Although the whirling dervishes and the musicians change, the sema and the music never stopped. We were very pleased about it," added Güvenç.

Saying that the event brought many people from different countries together, Güvenç continued, "There are nearly 100 people here. In the upcoming months this number might rise and we can gather 200 or 300 people. People continue to come from various countries including Bulgaria, New Zealand, Iran, Australia, Switzerland and Israel." Assistant Professor Güven said that people from 66 countries have joined their sema so far. He said that they want to organize a nine days and nine nights sema next year and his dream is to organize a 114 day 114 nigh sema event in the following years.