Sufizm
by traveloturc
Sufism is a way of life in which a deeper identity is discovered and lived. This deeper identity, or essential Self, is beyond the already known personality and is in harmony with everything that exists. It has abilities of awareness, action, creativity, and love that are far beyond those of the superficial personality. Eventually it is understood that these abilities belong to a greater Being that we each individualize in our own unique way while never being separate from it. The essential Self is an objective reality, but it cannot be known in a state of sleep, any more than the ordinary facts of reality can be known in a dream. In the Sufi tradition it is written that the absolute Spirit said And I breathed My Spirit into humanity. We are each enlivened by this in-breath. The essential Self, the soul, can be understood as this individualization of Spirit. The soul, however, is such a fine and subtle energy that it can be obscured by coarser energies of our existence, the energies of thought, desire, instinct, and sensation. These are the veils over the essential Self, the substances of intoxication that numb us to our essential Self.
If your thought is a rose,
you are a rose garden;
if it is a thorn,
you are fuel for the bath stove.
Rumi, Mathnawi (Mesnevi), II, 278
The most famous building here ...
by Arkeolog
The most famous building here is the Green Mausoleum of Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi, the great Turkish philosopher and poet. He is the founder of the sect of Whirling Dervishes, the seminary that was attached to the mausoleum. It has been converted into a museum housing Mevlana's works, and accoutrements related to his sect. Every year in December, ceremonies are held in Konya or the commemoration of Mevlana and the Whirling Dervishes. In this Dervish Festival, the 'Sema' dance is performed by men dressed in white robes, whirling and rotating around the floor. This dance, in which the dancer with the great love of God is believed to attain divine unity, is an event well worth seeing. Konya Mevlevi Convent
The orginal building was constructed in 1274 by the Selçuks, and was expanded and restored later by the Ottomand. Is consists of a cortyard with fountain, a room for chanting the Quoran, a mausoleum, meting room, a mosque, rooms for the dervishes, a kitchen, classroom and a hall for veligious ceremonies. In the cortyard there exist the tombs of Sinan Pasha, Fatma Hatun, Hürrem Pasha and Mehmet Bey. It was converted into a museum in 1927.
Konya is a religious city
by mikelisaanna
Konya is one of the more religious and conservative large cities in Turkey. As a result, you will see most Turkish women in Konya wearing headscarves and covering their arms and legs. We had no problems - we just dressed a little more conservatively while we were in Konya, with our knees and shoulders covered. You will be expected to dress appropriately (headscarves for women, knees and shoulders covered for both sexes) if you enter the Mevlana museum or any of the historic mosques in Konya.
You also won't see as much drinking of alcoholic beverages while you are in Konya. You can get a beer in hotel bars and some restaurants, but Konya is certainly not the city that you would take a road trip to if you want to really party.
Although they are more conservative, we found the people of Konya to be friendly, and we enjoyed our visit to the city.
Hadja Nasreddin
by Kuznetsov_Sergey
We passed by Aksehir on our way from Konya to Pamukkale. After having lunch in a restaurant I saw a monument to Nasreddin and I took photos which you can see here.
Nasreddin (in Turkish "Nasreddin Hoca") was a legendary satirical sufi figure who lived during the Middle Ages (around 13th century), in Aksehir, and later in Konya, under the Seljuq rule. He was a populist philosopher and wise man, remembered for his funny stories and anecdotes.
Nasreddin lived in Anatolia. He was born in Hortu Village in Sivrihisar, Eskiehir in the 13th century, then settled in Aksehir, and later in Konya, where he died.
If you go inside a mosque you...
by silvia-m.b
If you go inside a mosque you have to take off your shoes. At the entrance of each one there are places to leave your shoes or plastic bags to take them with you. The worst is smell...stink everywhere!!!
Hadja Nasreddin at Aksehir
Konya - Bazaar
“Kirazlibahche” restaurant
“Sema” - whirling dervishes dance
