Perspectives on Turkish Sufism

Turkish Islam, that is, Islam in its specific form shaped within Turkey's historical, social and cultural tradition, has been the subject of heated debates in recent years. Alevism, in particular, appears to be a battlefield of fierce debate. These discussions seem to be dominated by a view that does not take into account concrete historical contexts. The symbolic names of both Alevism and Turkish Islam are today's Kemalist or "Turkish-Islamic Synthesizer" etc. In line with their ideological preferences, they are mythologized within a straightforward historical continuity fiction. Ahmet Yaşar Ocak's compilation in your hand exemplifies a historiographical approach that considers concrete contexts above all else. The articles in the collection contain important contributions that depict the specific character of Turkish Islam and especially its heterodox tradition. The dimensions of the interaction between orthodox and heterodox Islamic cultures in the historical geography of Anatolia are also brought to our attention in this context. Ahmet Yaşar Ocak, who exhibits the adaptability of Heterodox Folk Islam to different cultures, the dominance of its Sufi-mystical character and its Mahdi character, specifically addresses four important figures of Turkish Islam: Ahmet-i Yesevi, Mevlana Celaleddin-i Rumi, Yunus Emre, Hacı Bektaş. -ı Veli.
(From the Promotional Bulletin)



Number of Pages: 264

Year of Print: 2016


Language: Turkish
Publisher: İletişim Publishing

First Print Year: 2008

Language Turkish