Islamic Dancing (Continued)

C. Religious Dancing of the Sufi Muslims

Sufis were Muslims who tried to connect with God through experiences such as dance, music, prayer, poetry, meditation, fasting, and some even through pain of self-flagellation (beating oneself). Their founder was Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, a poet and mystic who lived from 1207 - 1273. Sufis brought Islam to the common person in many of the areas that had been conquered or whose rulers had been converted. It was especially popular with both literate and illiterate people in Turkey, Persia, India, and North Africa. Sufis preached that there could be a personal and direct relationship with God, not just through studying of written works and through scholarship.

 

One form of Sufi dance ritual was popular in Turkey. The dancers were later called "Whirling Dervishes" and their ritual is called Sema. The Sema Ceremony is whirling in a religious "trance". It is explained and photographed at: "Sema A Spiritual Journey". The Sema ceremony (whirling ceremony) is also described and illustrated. This type of "religious dancing" is not common outside of Turkey and the Sufi sects. Today it has become more commercialized and is presented before audiences, but its original purpose was to bring the dancer in closer contact with God, like a type of meditation, a religious experience.

• See a complete explanation of the Sema Ritual and history. It began with the inspiration of Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi, poet and mystic (1207-1273) and was influenced by Turkish customs and culture. It is an attempt to experience a religious sense through music.
• Mevlana is a Muslim order that got its rites, moral code and discipline from the mystical path first shown by Mevlana, whom the Mevlevi regarded as their spiritual leader. The basic characteristics of the order were its unusual rites, in which freedom of thought was encouraged within the framework of Islamic belief. It was an approach entirely free of fanaticism, and expressed itself in a synthesis of spiritual love attained by a combination of music and dance. Both music and dance were considered the basic requirements for the attainment of the ultimate spiritual devotion and ecstasy.

 

Sufi Dances in Art:

A Gathering of Sufis, Persian 19th century miniature [From Serving the Guest: A Sufi Cookbook and Art Gallery , Copyright 1999, 2000 Kathleen Seidel]	Another Gathering of Sufis, Mughal Indian miniature, 1595 [From Serving the Guest: A Sufi Cookbook and Art Gallery , Copyright 1999, 2000 Kathleen Seidel]
A Gathering of Dervishes - India, 17th century [From Serving the Guest: A Sufi Cookbook and Art Gallery , Copyright 1999, 2000 Kathleen Seidel]	Miniature painting showing sufi trance dancing. [Unknown soource]

Sufi dancers - from Cultural Acedemy site

 

Some deeply religious Sufi masters were looked upon as possessing a "divine touch" which allowed them to heal the sick and do other miraculous work. Some were looked upon as saints and holy men. After their deaths, many Sufis would visit the tombs of saints and "touch" the saints' powers. Visitors would bring offerings such as food, small gifts, or money.

Many Muslims objected to the Sufis and to these rituals. To them, the practices went against the Qur'an. A religious movement known as the "Wahhabi" seized control of Saudi Arabia in the early 20th century. One of their first measures was to destroy the tombs of the Sufi masters. As a result, Sufism is completely absent in Saudi Arabia today.

 

 

D. Sometimes "Forbidden" Dances

An Egyptian woman (below) is performing a sword dance for an audience. This and belly dancing may be "forbidden dances" in fundamentalist countries, unless they are only performed in front of other women. In medieval court dancing in Persia, slave women, non-Muslims, were trained to dance and entertain, but this type of dancing would not be acceptible for a Muslim woman. Women who were "professional dancers" were looked down on, and even outlawed at one point in Egypt at coffee houses. Since the owners lost money at the coffee houses, boys dressed as women were hired to dance!

Learn more about this style of dancing, sometimes called belly dancing:   In fundamental groups (as in Iran today) certain types of dancing are prohibited. For a discussion on dance which is sometimes part of the religious rituals (sufi dancing and whirling dervishes) and sometimes forbidden officially, see "Islamic Prohibitions and the Dancers of Persia." [This is a long and difficult article, but very interesting.] The article also continues with "Trance Dancing and the Cult of the Zar" and "Berber Dances of Morocco and Tunisia" and has some conclusions that should be read, especially to break the stereotypes of "belly dancing" as shown in the West. See "The Origins of Oriental Dance" by Karol Harding from the Creative Anachronisms organization. The history of the "Belly Dance" (which grew from ancient fertility cults thousands of years ago), gypsie dances, trance dancing, Sufi whirling dance, and several other Middle Eastern dances (which influenced flamenco dancing in Spain, for example) are described in this informative article. She also discusses Persian Dancing and how it has been forbidden in modern Iran by its fundamentalist leadership. Costume and make up for dancers during the medieval period are also described, but unfortunately there are few images. See an image of a Persian Mutrube image [early 18th century]   More information about the Ghawazee from ancient Egypt through the Middle Ages and into modern times is found at See "MEDIEVAL EGYPT AND THE GHAWAZEE" (scroll more than halfway down) to read foreigners' descriptions of costume and dance. This site has some graphics that are good. Many dancers were gypsies; there were times of acceptance and rejection. Elizabeth Mourat (dance scholar) has categorized these dances into six types: religious dances, non-religious festival dances, banquet dances, harem dances (done only before the rich husband of a haram - or group of wives), combat dances, and street dances. The men's "cane dance" (the oldest martial arts/dance in Egypt) is described and pictured. See Folk Dances of North Africa and the Middle East to see women's folk dances by an American dancer in beautiful costumes. Veil and Drum WWW Home Page [Mid-East Newsletter for Medieval times studies] This newsletter has some interesting information (such as The Ghawazee -or "dance girls of Egypt"- by Rachelle). See a nice antique lithograph by David Roberts of Ghawazee dancers. Debunking myths answers some misunderstandings, stereotypes, and questions about Middle Eastern dances.

Go to Part One: Middle Eastern Music

Go to Page Two: Were Music and Dance Sinful?

Go to Page Three: Secular (non-religious) Music

Go to Page Four: Musical Instruments (1) for string instruments

Go to Page Five: Musical Instruments (2) for wind & percussion instruments

Go to Page Six: Dance (Introduction and Folk Dances)

You are here at Page Seven: Religious Dancing of the Sufi Muslims