Sufi whirling

The practice of Sufi whirling (or Sufi spinning), (Arabic: رقص سماع) is a twirling meditation that originated among Sufis, which is still practiced by the Dervishes of the Mevlevi order. It is a symbolic ritual through which dervishes (also called semazens) aim to reach the "perfect" (kemal). They try to desert their nafs, egos or personal [bad] desires by listening [to their master and sufi music] , thinking [about God] and whirling which resembles the rotation of other beings such as electrons and planets of the micro- and macrocosmosFact|date=May 2007.

As explained by Sufis:

In the symbolism of the Sema ritual, the semazen's camel's hair hat (sikke) represents the tombstone of the ego; his wide, white skirt represents the ego's shroud. By removing his black cloak, he is spiritually reborn to the truth. At the beginning of the Sema, by holding his arms crosswise, the semazen appears to represent the number one, thus testifying to God's unity. While whirling, his arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky, ready to receive God's beneficence; his left hand, upon which his eyes are fastened, is turned toward the earth. The semazen conveys God's spiritual gift to those who are witnessing the Sema. Revolving from right to left around the heart, the semazen embraces all humanity with love. The human being has been created with love in order to love. Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi says, "All loves are a bridge to Divine love. Yet, those who have not had a taste of it do not know!" [ [http://www.whirlingdervishes.org/whirlingdervishes.htm New Page 1 ] ]

Whirling & Kiyana:Self-Recognition and beyond: Perpetual & Vital Kiyana Exercises"Infinity respiration, eye exercises, body discipline,symmetric and asymmetric movements by the method of divided attention"

“Kiyana” means the origin, applies to the vital movements that are the source of all corporeal movements and athletic exercises which appeared in ancient Persia and were called “Yega” (the derivative of the Persian word “Yeganegi” which means unity) in a sense of unity of body, mind and spirit; recently it has been called “Kiyana”, the portion of these movements from ancient Persia that went to far east was called “Yoga” and what arrived to Persia a portion of it was selected and is called “Varzish baastaani” (ancient athletic).

References

External links

* [http://www.whirling121.com/E2%20workshop.htm: Mystic, Euphoric Sama Dance, Perpetual Kiyana Excersises]
* [http://www.konyasema.org/ The Mevlevi Sema Ceremony Organization]
* [http://www.mevlana.net/sema.htm The Mevlevi Sema Ceremony]
* [http://www.dankphotos.com/whirling/index.shtml DankPhotos.com: Whirling Dervishes: The Search for Spirituality|Pictures from a Sema]
* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=62dyZYZ7haE Naqshbandi dervishes practicing Sema]