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Fu Frederick De Jong

Fu Frederick De Jong

The icono graphy of Bektashiism A sufvey of themesand symbolism in clerical costume,liturgrcal rbjecrs and pictorial art fu FrederickDe Jong.

l. HrsronrcAI-pRoLEGoMENA theological orientation of Bektashiism in a later period.probably as the resultof the incorporationof Ever since the beginning of the Turkish conquest elementsof gulat teachinginto the svstemof the and settlement of in the eleventhcentury, the Bektashisectr8. proportion of the region's Sunnrpopulation to it; Shi.r For seeminglyadminisrrative purposes, population the Bektashi has been difficult to establish for anv was treated 1. as a .ir7/i order by the Ottoman penod of its history The Shi'r segmenthas often been administration.According to Bektashitradition. this qualified as heterodox, presumably in differentiation order under Sersem Ah Sultán (d. 977i1569_70) from the orthodox or Sunnr segmentof the popula_ 2. became a separate centralized organisation which tion In present-day , the various controlleda netuork of rr,Àkcsover the Empirere.To concerned,the Tahtacrs,the the Abdals3. eepnis, the what degree the rise oÍ' the can be Bektashis.and the broad massof Alevis who do not attributedto its links*'ith the Janissarisis a matterstill belongto any of the groups mentionedare normallv open for investigation:0.Its fate in 1g26.when the referredto by the genericterm Krztlbagl.b).thoserrho order uas suppressedÍollowing the destructionof the do not belongto thesesects. The terms most widelv Janissarisztin that year.is normally attributedto the usedby the membersof the sectsto refer to themselves connectionbetween both entities22.This view. how_ are Alevi (Aliyán) or Caferi. The first rerm Dotnts to ever, has been challenged recently and alternative. their belief in the of the Aii. This more complex explanationshave been advanced2i. convictionis the cornerstoneof the Alevi beliefsystems About two decadeslater, around 1g50,the Bektashis and makes these sects stand out as present_dav could manifestthemselves again; tekkeswererebuilt or representativesof the gulat traditions in islamr. Th; restored, and the order went through a moderate term Caferi refers to the presumed conformitv of revival in the following decades.recovóring part of its religious belief and practice with the mezheboi the glory but neverregaining its past prominence2a. Imam Ja'far al-Sàdiqó,to whom one of the most InsideBektashiism. a situationof protractedconflict important textsin useamong the Alevi sectsin Turkev existed.and in fact still exists,between its two bran_ and elsewhereT,the Buyruk!, is attributed. ches:the Mticerred or Babagánbranch and the The Anatolian Shi'rteswere persecutedin the earlv eelebi or Sofiyán branch2s.The former knows the vow of sixteenthcenturye; the Ottoman authonties perceiveá celibacy for its clerus, as is indicated by its name them as an internal threat to the stability of the Empire (mticerred:celibate), while a de facto prohibition becauseof the numerousindications of their lovaitv to againstunmarried existsin the latter. the of the Safavid state,Sháh Ismà.rlio. óne The Qelebi branch is led by rhe presumeddescen_ effect of these persecutionsseems to have been that dants of Hacr Bektagand Kadrncrk Ana, also known Alevi functioned increasinglywithin the frame_ as Fatima Bácr or Fatima Nuriye, the daughterof work of the Bektashiorder 1 1. one of the notablesof an Oghuz trrbe26.According to an The origins of the Bektashiorder are obscure12 and accountin one of the versionsof the Vilay,et_Namehof our knowledge of its history is fragmentaryr3. Hacr Hacr Bektag-rVeli, Kadrncrk Ana became pregnant Bektag-rVeli, the supposedfounder of the orderra. is after having drunk from the water with which Hacr thought to have beena descendentof the Imam M[sá Bektag had performed his ablutions and which con_ al-Kàzim, through M[sà's son Ibráhrm1s.His birth tained somedrops of blood from his nose2 7. The heads date and the date of his death are uncertain but have of the Qelebibranch claim to be descendantsfrom been computed from chronograms the as 6461124gand two childrenshe bore later28. 738113371ó.In the writingsattributed ro Hacr Bektag According to Bektashitradition, the introduction of which have come down to us, nothing suggestsShr.a celibacyfor bahas,goes back to Balim Sultàn6.925t leaningsl?.This would seemto point io a shift in the 1519)2e.This innovation is held to mark the hiitoricai

Manuscripts of the 4 (1989) Ter ! Lugt Press.Donkerstee g 1g,2312 HA Leiden. Netherlands. 1g89 ISSN0920-0401 MANUSCRIPTSOF THE MIDDLE EAST4 (I989) beginning of the Miicerred branch, which became the ding the Twelve , his daughter Fátima, and his dominant branch of Bektashiism known as the wife Khadr.ja,presided over by the Imam . Muham- Bektashi order. The subsequentheads of the order, mad then proceededto ask about the nature of the with the of (grandfather),resided in curious gathering and was told that this was the the central dergah of the order near Kirqehir. The Assemblyof the Forty. When he replied by observing candidatesfor this supremeleadership position were that there were only 39 personspresent, it was pointed normally selectedby an electoralcollege of'unmarried out to him that their number was forty becauseof the members of the order with the rank of Dede (see spiritual presenceof Selmàn-i Pàk (Fáris-r),the aid and below. note 76) and confirmed in office by imperial companion of the Imam AII (seebelow). Thereafter, took a grape from the table in front of him, ferman3o. Ah After the closureof the tekkesand the prohibition of pressedit, and began to fill the glasseson the table the sufi orders in Turkey in 1925, Bektashiismcon- with its juice from which those presentdrankar. Then, tinued to be adhered to by a sizeable number of intoxicated. the party rose and started to dance, people3l and liturgical meetingscontinue to be held moving around in a circlewith eachof the participants semi-clandestinelyin private homes till the present turning simultaneouslyaround his own axis.The main daytt. Outside Turkey, Bektashi communities still liturgical gatheringsof the Bektashisand the Alevis are exist in the countriesof southeasternEurope33 and in basically dramatic re-enactments of the Krklar theU.S.A.3a. nteclisiaz. On theseoccasions both sexesare presentand mix to a considerabledegree. Rakr or winea3and food are perfor- 2. Tgp CoNTEXT oF THE ICoNOcRAPHY: ELEMENTSoF ceremoniouslyconsumed and dancesare DocMA AND Rlrunl3s med. With someBektashi groups, a live white roosteris brought in at a certainpoint in the ritual to be blessed Bektashiismis not a single consistentand codified by the celebratingBaba. The animal is subsequently cosmologicalsystem with a fixed setof religiouspracti- sacrificedoutside the meetinghall and preparedto be practice this ces. Nevertheless.the various clusters of beliefs and eaten later. The Bektashi groups who precious practiceswhich have made up Bektashiismat different custom considerthe white roosteras the most placesand times have severalelements in common3ó' animal for . which they refer ro as Cebrail level. Theseelements are largely sharedwith Alevi Islam and kurharu.the sacrificeof . On the symbolic perceived point either to their common roots or to a cultural the sacrificeof the rooster. indeed.seems to be himselfaa. osmosisbetween these gulat sects3r. as the sacriÍiceof the Archangel Gabriel sacrificeof a One of the centraldogmas in Bektashiismis that the With the Babagán branch, however,the ritual. Imam A1ï was a manifestationof the Divine on earth' rooster is not part of the standard liturgical symbol for The evidenceproviding the basisfor this beliefis found Nevertheless.the idea of the rooster as a found a concrete in the Bektashi/Alevi version of the mirac and the the ArchangelGabriel has sometimes interconnectedstory of the Assembly of the Forty expressionin Bektashiart (seebelow). (Krklar meclisi)38.These traditions are relatedand on Additional evidence for the Divinity of Ah was After recordin numerousnefès (hymns) and in lhe Bu,-ruk3e' provided by the events surrounding his death. his sons Various versions with minor variations exist which having predictedhis own death, he informed come to contain essentiallythe following account: Hasan and Htiseyin that a veiled man would load During the mirac. the the house after his death. This stranger would for burial. He requestedGod to remove the veils between them so Ah's corpseon a cameland lead it away instructed that His Prophet might not only hear Him but also see prohibited his sons lrom intervening, and ask him Him. This requestwas granted: the veilswere removed them not to follow the veiled man or to predicted events took and Muhammad found himself face to face with the questions. When, indeed, the them- Imam Ah. During his miraculous nocturnal ascentto piace, Hasan and Huseyin could not restrain find out who the Throne, Muhammad had met a lion on his way selvesand eventually ran after the man to they insisted and had thrown a ring in the animal's mouth to he was. When they caught up with him, lifted his distract and silencehim. Later, at a certain moment upon knowing his identity. Then, the stranger himself, miracu- during the Assembly of the Forty, Ah suddenlytook veil and showed his face: it was Ali graveas. this sàme ring out of his mouth and gave it back to lously carrying his own body to the manifestation Mutrammadao. Since Ali is believed to have been the risala,i.e. In order to gain accessto this event, Mulrammad of on earth, he is held to be the sahib-i Muhammad is had to belittle himself before the door of the house of the originator of the Qur'án, while mouthpieceof his daughter Fátima where the meeting was in pro- referred to as the natiq-i risala, i.e. the relationship, gress. When he was eventually admitted, after an- Ali. A different way of formulating this () aspect nouncing himself not as the Prophet but as the poor found in gulat texts, is that the exoteric with Muhammad, one (at-J'akir),he saw a gathering of 39 people, inclu- of the Divine came into the world FREDERICKDE JONG.THE ICONOGRAPHYOF BEKTASHIISM

while in its esoteric() aspect the Divine is identical location of the letters and their hidden meaningshas with Ali. In other words: Muhammad and Ah are gained accessto a cosmos in which all of reality is both manifestationsof the same Divine reality. In this manifest:he knows God in accordancewith the tradi- way, Allàh, Mubammad and Alï form a sort of 'man 'arffi 'arafa tion nafsahufa-qad rabbahu, (He (referred to in Alevi Islam as the tigler) manifesting who knows himselfknows his Lord)s2. one and the sameTruth (ftaqíqa), and thought of as a Becausethese signs of the Divine are found in the miraculous unity4ó. In everyday speech,the presence human face,it is held sacrilegiousto touch the ground of this idea of miraculousunity becomes clearfrom the with one'sface in as the Sunnïsdo. In fact. each fact that the names Mulrammad and Ah are never human being is a and each human face is a used separatelybut are always pronounced as one mihrap, whlle the mihrap is the face (the vech-ikamal: name: Muhammedali. Similarly, in the salawaÍformu- the faceof perfection)of one'smiirSit.In him the outer las in which are said by Bektashisat the end of signs of perfection are matched by inner perfection. certain , the part 'w,a-'ala al-í Muhammacl (and. For his disciples. therefore, he is the kible, which is on the relativesof Muhammad) is understood 'ala as,w^a- normally locatedmore preciselyas the site betweenhis Alí-Muhammad (and on Alimuhammed), i.e. on eyebrows. For this reason, Bektashis equal ritual Muhammad and Ah as the same manifestationof and prayer (.namaz)with paying visits to one's miirsit, as identical with the Divine, the ultimate Truth. the involving niyaz (seebelow, note 83). At the sametime. hakikatal. God is everywhere,in every animate and inanimate To go through the gateway of hakikat, i.e. to expe- being. Such and similar beliefsare found frequentlyin riencethis Truth from the inside, one has first to pass Bektashi writings, notably in the poetical ne/ès through the three gatesof iat, ,ser tarikat and marifetas. (hymns),and clearlydemonstrate the pantheisticworld These stages are related to the four basic cosmic view which is so characteristicof the central tradition elements,water (Seriat), air (tarikat), fire (marifët) and in Bektashiisms3. earth (hakikat), and to the four levels (ervàh) of being Concerning the , the Bektashi view is the in Man: mineral (.ruh-i r:ismani), vegetable (ruh-i common Shiite belief: Alï was the rightful Caliph and nebati), animal (ruh-i haywaní) and human (ruh-i his rightful successorsare the Imams recognized by insani).When all four ervàh are annihiiatedand repla- Shirsm. The three Sunnrcaliphs preceding Ah ced by the ruh-i safi (the pure spirit) the srage of the and the Umayyad pretenders,particularly Mu.áwiya Perfect Man (insant kàmit) has been reached.In order and Yazrd, are cursed (teherrà)saon whatever occa_ to reachthis stageand to go through the Four Gates, sion presentsitselfss. one needsa guide, a miirsit. who himself has reached The killing of Hriseyinat Kerbela is commemorated perfection,the stageof insan-tkàmilae. yearly with a ten or twelve-dayperiod of and The potential for perfection present is in every mourningsó.In the eyesof many Bektashisand Alevis. human being, sinceGod (Muhammad-Alï) is present the Sunnr are in a sensethe spiritual heirs of in every human being. The Qur'ánic passagescited in those who are responsiblefor the killing of Hiiseyin support of this beliefare the ones which are usedto the and have becomecarriers of a sort of original in sameeffect in some of the mystical traditions in Sunnr consequence.For this reason it is sometimesdeemed Islam, namely 53:9 ('fa-kana qab,, Qur'àn qav)saynaw, better by Bektashisand Alevis to limit interactionwith adna': and He (i.e. God) was a small distance(from) Sunnï Muslims as much as possible. the two bows or closerso),and eur'án 50:16 ('v,a- The people of the house of the prophet. the eht_i nahnu aqrab ilayhi min habl al-wartd: We are nearer to beyt, Ío the contrary, are reveredand venerated.In the him (i.e. Man) than his jugular vein). In addition, most prevalentBektashi conception, the ehl-i beyt are Bektashi tracts also refer to (,laqacl eur'án 95:3 restricted to Mutrammad, All, Fàtima, their sons khalaqna al-insan ahsani fi taqw,rm'..We have indeed Hasan and Hiiseyin, and the nine later Imams. createdMan in the best of forms), notably in support Mulrammad, All, Fátima, Hasan and Hriseyin are of the belief that the signs of the Divine presencein collectively referred to as the Five (hesler). The eht_i Man are outwardly manifestin the shapesof a number be1'tare venerated(rcvellà)s- in daily conversationas of Arabic letters(the best of forms, becausethey were well as in the setting of the tekke. Tevellà and,teheruà used to write down the Revelation) found in the are obligationsimposed upon the Bektashiat the time human faceand in the human body. Moreover, certain of his initiation. parts of the face and the body are identified with the In addition, Bektashis revere the ondórt ma,sumu ehl-i beyt (see below) who were equallv the best of pàk, the Fourteen Pure Innocents, and the onyedi forms.as are the lettersof theirnuràr. By subsrituting kemerhest, the Seventeen Girded Ones. The former these letters for numbers according to fixed rules, group consistsof children of Imams martyred in their another level of hidden meaningsis openedup point- childhoodss,who are consideredas specialmanifesta- ing towards the Divine presencein Man and under- tions of God. The latter group are the companionsof scoringthe unity of Allàh, Mulrammad and Alïsl (see Ali who were initiated by himsq. The first of these below, section 4, for examples).He who knows the seventeenwas Selmán-iPàk, who is also consideredas l0 MANUSCRIPTSOF THE N,IlDDLEEAST 4 (r989) being one of the family of the Prophet in accordance in the tekke.In addition, someof thesesymbols may 'Selman with the Prophetic tradition saying is of us, also be found in the architecture of a tekke, examples the ahl al-hayt' (Salmanminna ahl al-bayt)60.He was of which are mentioned below. an aid and companion of Ali in the world and is Most characteristicis the headgear,the so-called believedto be his helper in the hereafter,as is the case Hiiseyní tac. It is made of felt and has twelve with the Archangel Gabriel. The besler,Selmàn and segments,symbolizing . Rarer are Gabriel are collectivelyreferred to as yediler(the Seven). the seven-sidedand the four-sidedtac.In the caseof In Bektashipoetry and prose,numerous indications the latter, the four sectionsare said to symbolizethe can be found testifyingto the belief that Hacr Bektag-r Four Gateways. The seven-sidedrac symboiizesthe Veli was Ali (i.e. God) in a different guiseó1.Numer- ,vedilermentioned above. In all cases,a button or knob ous miracleswere performed by him, of which many standsin the centerof the top, symbolizingthe unity of are on record in the Vilayet-Nameh. One of the best Alláh, Muhammad and Alïóe. When not worn. the tac known and most frequently related miraclesconcerns is placed on a kavukluk. Thts can be a stand but is Hacr Bektag-r Veli's struggle with the of normally a shelf, hung on the wall. specificallyde- R[m, who tried to prevent him from coming to their signed to carry the tac (piate 2). Around the neck, lands from Khurasán. He solvedthis problem by going dervishes and babus wear the teslim tay, lhe stone of to Rum transformedas a doveó2.Later, after changing surrender,to symbolizethe merger of human indivi- into a human being again,he was met by one of them, duality in the Eternal Truth?o. OnIy bahas wear a t Karaca Ahmed Sultán, who rode a lion and used similar. but much larger stone,named palihenkl , on snakesas whipsó3.Thereupon, Hact Bektagmounted a the girdle. This stone is sometimes enamelled and rock (a wall, according to another tradition) and inlaid with gold and (semi-)precious stones72. ordered it to move, which happenedimmediately. In The girdle, worn by dervishesand babas alike, is this way, Hacr Bektag demonstrated his superiority often woven in colors and patterns reflectingthe style over Karaca Ahmed Sultán. who could only exercise of the region of its maker or its bearer. The girdle control over animatebeings, while he demonstratedhis should go around the waist seventimes, symbolizing capacity to rule the inanimate world as well. the yediler. Attached to the girdle is the cilbend, a Apart from some Hurufi influencedtreatises on the leather case embroidered or dyed with characteristic requirementsof the Four Gatewaysu4,Bektashi texts Bektaghi symbols. The kamberiye ts worn over the in generalare relativelysilent on points of socialethics. girdle. This consists of a plaited rope, normally of Nevertheless.Bektashis and Alevis have a common three stringsof wool with a stonein the shapeand size conceptionconcerning the minimal moral requirements of a small egg at its end. It symbolizesthe lead-ropeof necessaryfor the maintenanceof an ordered society. Ah's mount Dnldril. which was carried around the These requirements are imposed upon the initiate waist by Alt's groom Kamber when Drildril was during the initiation ceremonywhen the baba invokes unriddenT3.Unmarried babasdistinguishedthemselves 'eline, him: diline, beline sag ol' (be master of your from the married ones by the pierced earlobe of the hand, your tongue.your loins/seed)ós.In this invoca- right ear. In the hole, a variety of earrings,sometimes tion. the basicsof Bektashi/Aleviethics are summari- in the shape of a teslim /d5v,was wornTa. Ideally, zed: do not take what is not yours, do not speak however, a silver decoration in the shape of a horse- untruthful or defiling words, do not commit adultery. shoe was carried as a sign of servitudesimilar to the An infringement of thesemoral preceptsmay lead to servitudeof Diildril ?s. sanctions, varying from penitence to (temporary) Dervishes as well as babas also wear a sort of excommunicationand to the penalty of deathóÓ. sleevelessvest, a haydariye,with the armholesshaped 'a.vn like the letter (for Alí). Only babas,however, wear two strings of sevencrystal beads along the fronts of 3. SvMeoI-tsMIN CLERIcALcosruME AND LITURGICAL their haydaru),e.These beads, which symbolize the OBJECTS ondórt ma'sumu pak, are made of the transparant necefi tas. The outfit is normally completed with a Both married as well as unmarried dervishesand backscratcher(plate 3), a walking or restingstick and a babasof the Mr.icerredbranch of BektashiismÓ7wore rosary (tesbihlof forty-one beadsTó.These items may the sameclerical costume (plate 1) which nowadaysis be decoratedwith Bektashisymbols as is normally also seenonly in the tekkes in Yugoslavia and in the tekke the case with the tebers (axes), nefrs (horns), incense in the U.S.A. Many parts of this costume have a burners,letter openersand keSkills(begging bowls) of symbolic dimension since they refer to elements of Bektashiprovenance. This makes it possibleto distin- Bektashi teaching.For this reason,the religious garb guish betweensuch items of Bektashiorigin and simi- of the dervishesand the babasshould be discussedas lar items used by adherentsof other sÍf orders. part of the iconography of the sect.This is also the The keskiil can be made of a gourd or a large casewith the liturgical objects used in the me.vdan68 coconut. or can be carvedout of wood. It was normal- and for some of the common householdobjects in use ly attached to a chain worn around the neck or the FREDERICK DE JONG.THE ICONOGRAPHYOF BEKTASHIISM lt

shoulder, or was directly attached to the belt77. The Imams, Ah and his sons Hasan and Hiiseyin, and the nefir is usually made from the horn of a bull or a cow. namesof Muhammad aná Fátima, in various combi- In the tekkes, this instrument was used to call the nations,decorate the Bektashiliturgical and household dervishes to the refectory?8. Nowadays, it is only objects, such as the taht, Íeber, candle stand. letter found hanging as a wall decoration (seeplate 4). This opener, walking cane, cilbend, kavukluk and mtitekka is also the casewith the teber,whichused to be carried (muín: seebelow, the additional notes to plate 4). Such as a weapon by dervishesand babasin their wander_ objectsin their turn may be found decoratingthe walls ings, and, in some tekkes.by the rehberlq during the of tiirbes (see plate 4), where murals of Bektashi initiation ceremonyso.The teber has sometim., t..n symbols sometimesalso decorate the walls88. The identifiedas a symbol for Ab[ Muslim Khurasánr,the ceilingsof circular tiirhesare often divided into twelve avenger of Hiiseyin's martyrdom8l. This symbolic segments(by painting or stucco-work)suggesting the meaning, however,has not been retained in Bektashi Hiiseyni tac turned inside out8e. In the caseof hepta_ tradition, although it is used in Bektashicalligraphies gonal tiirbeseo.the construction seemsto contain a as a calligraphicelements2. symbolic referenceto the .vediler.In some tekkesÍhe The hall or room in a Bektashi tekke where liturgical wood panelledceiling of the mevdancontains a twelve_ meetingsare held, the meydan,is normally dominated segmentedround center pieceer.On the whole. the by the so-calledtahu Muhammacl(Throne of Muham_ symboliccontent of the architectureof Bektashi tekkes mad). This is a wooden structure consisting of ihree seems to be limited: form and layout seem to be steps (plate 4) on which twelve candles,symbolizing determinedby building conventionsand functionality. the Twelve Imams, are arranged in rows of four. An Usually, tombstonesin tíirbesas well as in cemeteries additional candle with three wtcks known as birlik can be identified easilyas Bektashi becausethe upper (the E'ragr candleof Unity) or kanun grrag (Íhe candle part is shapedas a Htisey,niÍace2. of the Law), or an oil lamp with the same number of wicks (plate 5), is placedon the first step of the Íaltt or on the floor in front of it. 4. Tgg PICTORIAL REPRESENTATIONoF BELIEF: Aiso in front of Íhe taht lies a teslim tcr,v,sometimes COLOR. SHAPEAND MEANING referred to as meydanía;t. This stone is usually made of marble from a quarry near Hacrbektag(kóy). At the The imagesand the objectspointing towards episo- beginningof a ritual meeting,all those taking part in des and elementsof Bektashitradition and cosmology the ceremony make a nivaz on this stone, one in a were exclusivelyproduced by the Mricerred branchq3. sequenceof ni-r-azes to be made on this occasions3.The In the caseof the images,they were normally found first one of this sequence is made on the threshold of decoratingthe walls of tilrbesof Bektashisaints and of the door to the nte"vdan which is a symbol for Ah, in the tekke, notably in the meydan where most of the accordance with ,ana the Prophetic hadts: maclínat liturgical meetingswere heldea.Several of the symbols al-'ilm v'a A17,, babuha:I am the city of knowledgeand found in this pictorial art were also found on objects Alr is itsgate's+. with a decorativeor a practical function outside the Along the walls, I"he nteydan is normally covered liturgical context. At present,these images and objects with sheepskins. Twelve of thesesheepskins are named are preservedin a number of museumsin Turkeyes. after various Bektashi saints who are associatedwith Others are in private hands or still decoratethe walls particular functions performed to be in the tekke by of tekkes(plate 7) in Yugoslavia and Greece.A num- designatedpersons 8 s. A number of framed pictures ber of imagesof Bektashiprovenance and examplesof normally decorate the walls of the mevdanso. have been publishedqó. In conjunction, During the muhabbel as well as in a certain stageof thesepublished and unpublishedimages have allowed the initiation ceremony rakr or serbetis drunk from me to determine which themes occur the most fre- a container (haw,41. This may be a plain enamelled quently in Bektashi pictorial art. At the same time, kitchen bowl, but also a superbly engraved piece of theseimages appear to contain referencesto elements brasscraftsmanship. Sometimes,a cup in the shapeof of belief which are shared by all Bektashis,thus ex- a Hiseyni /ac is used for ladling and drinking. Similar plaining the frequencywith which theseimages occur. cups with matching plates in the shapeof a teslim tasr In a sense,the imagesepitomize the centralelements are found. These were probably used primarily as of Bektashiteaching. They confront the Bektashiwith coffeecups. some of the essentialsof Bektashi belief. Thus, these A particularly nice exampleof a hav,dis reproduced symbols derive their force from their feedback to this here (plate 6). It has an inscription around the edge belief,i.e. they are important sincethey stand for what which is an invocation for divine blessingand salvation is important in the Bektashibelief-system which, in its of Mulrammad, Fátima and the Twelve Imams, all turn, retainsits importanceby dint of the force of the mentionedby names?.In Sunnr Islam this invocation symbolseT. is reservedfor the Prophet Muhammad exclusively. Most of the Bektashi images presentedbelow can Frequently, the calligraphednames of the first three also be found on the walls of the communal litursical t2 MANUSCRIPTSOF THE MIDDLE EAST4 íI989) meeting place (cem evi) in an Alevi village and even in legendarytwo-pointed sword, Dhu'l-Fiqár, as an inte- private homes. In all these different contexts, their gral elementof the calligraphy.In this plate, the alif as function would seemto be multiple: viz. esthetical,as well as Íhe ya' have the shapeof a two-pointed sword decoration, social, as a (semi-) public statement of which is also carried on the back of the camel. In religiousidentity, and psychological,as a visual repre- Bektashi iconography, the letÍer ya'in the name Ah sentationof the essentialsof Bektashi/Alevibelief. almost always has the shape of Dhu'l-Fiqár. In this The imagesmay be divided broadly into, three cate- shapeit occursas well in calligraphicrenderings of the gories: purely figurative, purely calligraphic, and human face, where it often representsthe moustache, compositions containing both figurative and calli- as e.g.in the plate reproducedhere (plate 9). The plate graphic elements.The techniques of execution are: itself expressesthe belief, mentioned above, that each painting upon paper, wood or glass,fretwork, embroi- human being is a mosqueand that eachhuman face is dery (rare), and bits of straw glued to a wooden base a mihrap. (very rare). Dhu'l-Fiqár is also visible in the fretwork in the The number of imagesand objectswhich has survi- shape of the Hr.iseynitac, containing the names of the ved to the presentis surprisinglysmall, considering the besler(plate l0). This sword was obtained by Muham- importance of Bektashiismand the large number of mad as booty from the battle of Badr and presentedto Bektashitekkes in the . Much of this Allroo. In early Twelver Shr'ism, the issue of who part of the sect'sheritage must have been lost in or possessedthis sword becamepart of the larger issueof shortly after the suppressionof 1826,later during the claims for divinely sanctionedauthority. Eventually, Russian-Turkishand the Balkan Wars and in the First Dhu'l-Fiqár becamethe ultimate Alid symbol,depicted World War. The prohibition of the sÍf orders and the in Shï'a iconography everywhere.For Bektashisand closureof the tekkesin Turkey in 1925could only have Alevis, the sword is the symbolic representationof acceleratedthis loss. These eventsexplain, at least in AII's supremepower. He alone is associatedwith the part, why some of the most important examplesof legendarysword, as is made explicit in the formula /a Bektashi pictorial art are found in areas not much fata illa Ah, lA safi illa Dhu'l-Fiqar: there is no hero affected by these wars and other events, such as like Ali, there is no sword like Dhu'l-Fiqár. This Kosova in Yugoslaviaand Thessaliain Greece,where formula is pronounced,among other occasions,during Bektashiismis a living force till the present-day,thus the initiation ceremonyby the initiate and seemsto be protecting these images lrom disappearanceand de- the Bektashi equivalent of the Sunnr sehadetror.The q struction 8. text is found in the form of framed calligraphy hanging Many Bektashi images consist of two halves, one on the walls of tekkes, engraved on tebers and on being the mirror imageof the other. This characteristic liturgical objects,and as a monumental inscription on constitutes a symbolic referenceto the zuhir (exoteric) Bektashishrines 102. and the batin (esoteric)aspects of being. When the Apart from the symbolic representation of the name of Ah is written as a mirror image(cf. plate 8), it Twelve Imams in the twelve segmentsof the Hilseyni is nothing lessthan a statementof the central credo of tac, we f,nd their namesin compositecalligraphiesl03 Bektashiism:Al7" ': Ali Allahdtr: Ah is God. This and also engraved in liturgical objects hke I"hehawd plate cohtains also an allusion to the belief that Ali shown above. Much rarer is the physical representa- (i.e.God) manifestshimself in the human face,namely, tion of the Imams. In the tableau reproduced here 'avns 'a1,n the faces in the of AIT: the shape of the (plate I l), made of strips of straw glued to a wooden foilows the contours of the human eye, while the eyes base,the Imams are dressedas Bektashibabas with the are identifiedwith the Imam Hasan (the right eye)and Htiseyni tac and the teslim tay. They carry tebers, the Imam Hriseyin(the left eye).The centerpiece is the apart from the two in front who carry a Turkish Bektashi teslint tast: the symbol of the abandonment banner. The tableau contains a supplication for help of human individuality in the Eternal Truth which is (madaQ from the Divine Trinity (Alláh, Muhammad the unity of Alláh, Mulrammad and Ali. The sameidea and Ali) in the upper half of the circle and invokes the of Alï and Muhammad being one and identical with names of Fàtima, Hasan and Hriseyin in the lower God is hidden in the numerical value of the letters half. It contains the familiar Bektashi symbols of the forming thesenames: their sum is 202,a number which Hiiseyni tac, the teslim taSt,Dhu'l-Fiqár and the lions, is equal to the sum of the letters ra' and áa' forming who symbolizeAli. In addition, it containsthe equally the word rabb, i.e. Lord, i.e. Godee. Calligraphically, familiar numeric symbols in the lower half of the the unity of Muhammad and Ali is also expressedin circle: the three starlike circlesbetween the two letters the elementcrowning, as it were, the two alifi: boÍh (ilcler). The two small circles placed slightly higher 'a1,n 1,a' namesare written intertwined, Íhe being identical on the left and the right, but still within the alif of the with the ha'. invocation ya', add up to five (beSler),while the two Apart from a pictorial representationof the tradi- starlikecircles outside lhe ya'add up to seven(yediler). tion of Ah carrying his own corpseto his graveand his In the original, the lions are painted gold, a sub- metamorphosisas a lion, this plate also depicts Ali's stancewhich is sometimesconsidered as svmbolic for FREDERÍCKDE JONG.THE ICONOGRAPHY la OF BEKTASHIISM I -')

Ali in accordancewith a tradition in which Hriseyin mentionedabove, is depictedhere (plate l5) in a purely said at the beginning 'Ah of the battle of Kerbela: was figurative composition which is customary for this the gold, Fàtima was the silver, I am the son of the themerr2.In this plate,the figurestanding behind the gold and the silver. My father was the sun, my mother wall is Griveng , Hacr Bektag-rVeli's aid and was the moon. I am the son of the sun and the moon companion, who was to him what Kamber was to The sun and the moon in the tableau derive All113. GrivengAbdal has his hands in the so-called their symbolic meaning from this traditionros. position of dara durmak,i.e. the position one assumes, The sun and the moon are also found in the calligra- among others, when standing in the (middle o0 the phy representing perfection the in the face of the meydantla. The masonic implements on the wall Bektashibaba (plate 12).It containsthe invocation'ya behind Hacr Bektaqpoint towards the incorporation of Muhammad-All and thus conveys the idea of the Akhi elementsin Bektashiismlls. presenceof the Divine in the vech-i kamá\. Here. the Color symbolism seemsto be very limited in Bek- letter ya' stands for the eyebrows as well as for the tashiism and none of the Bektashi texts known to me cheekbones (since the name of Ali can be read upside contain specific references to colors apart from the down and in its mirror image).In this plate, the seven- color red, which is associatedwith some of the maior pointed star does actually representthe sun. Together eventsin the history of Alid Islamlró. Therefor.. ih. with the crescent,the unity of Muhammad and Ah, i.e. color has strong emotionalconnotations, making it the of God, is symbolized.The spot where thesesymbols symbol of Bektashi/Aleviidentitylr?. For this reasonit are located, between the eyebrows of the milrSit, is is also mentionedas the color symbolizingAh and the 18. held to be the site of the krble, as mentioned above. ehl-i beytt This is brought out in the calligraphyin The associationof the sun with the Divine and thus the shapeof a lion (plate 16).Here, the five-toedpaws with Alï is not unusual among some of the Alevi sects in the color red symbolize Íhe beSler.In the original, in eastern Anatolial0ó. In mainstream Bektashiism, red is also the color of the outer rim of the tongue of however, we find a modified version of this belief. This the lion. This tongue contains the text 'Muhammacl versionitself might be consideredas a reformulationin rasul Allah' (Muhammad is the Prophet of God), and Bektashi terms of the conception of al-nur al-muham- thus contains a hidden reference to the Bektashi madí of the central tradition in Islamic :Alï dogma that Muhammad was the natiq, the spokesman is the sourceof the Divine lighltor which manifested of Ali. This belief in the identity of God and 'His Ali Íinds itself in Hacr Bektag-rVeli. Hence, light' in eur'án a calligraphicexpression in the face of the lion. which 24:35(mathal"' nurihi ka-mishkatfha misbah:'His light is made up of the namesAlláh and Ah, the name Alláh is like a niche in which is a lamp') is understood to significantly framed by the name of Ali. The whole mean the light of Alï. This idea is expressedin the calligraphyllq contains an Arabic text. of which a calligraphyof the name of Hacr Bektag-rVeli, preceded transliterationin modern Turkish is given at the bot- 'Hiinkár 108 'Afi by the Hazretl' in the shape of tom of the plate, with the meaning son of Ab[ an oil-lamp (seeplate 13). Tálib, the victorious lion of God, Prince of the Belie- The background of the calligraphyis green,a color vers, may God bless his face, may God be satisfied normally seenas symbolizingparadisel0s and usually with him.' The contradiction between the explicit associated'withthe Prophet'sfamily. At the sametime, Sunnr conceptionscontained in this formula and the however,the color greenis sometimestaken to be the Bektashi/Aleviconception of A1ï as God are not per- coior of the Imam Hasan exclusively,evoking his ceivedas such by Bektashis:God can be nothing but death by poison, as red is taken to be the color of the satisfied with Himself, being the lion of God and Imam Hiiseyin, symbolizing his martyrdomlro. The identical with God is thought of as one of Ah's colors of the small teslim la,reshanging from the beaks mysteries.As the corporal manifestation of God on of the doves in plate 14 (red for the dove on the left earth, he is necessarilythe Prince of the Believers.and and green on the right) should be understood as a the blessingof Ah's face is the blessingon Man's face, reference to the two Imams Hasan and Hriseyin and sinceMan's face manifestsAlláh as wellr2o. their intimate connection and perhaps identity with In a slightly differentway than is the casein plates9 Hacr Bektag-r Veli. In this representationthe two and 12, the name of Alï follows the contours of the Imams seem to be revealing themselvesthrough the eyebrowsand the nose (the leÍter ya'forming the base mouth of Hacr Bektag,who is representedhere in the of the nose and not ending in a Dhu'l-Fiqàr shaped calligraphy of his name in the shape of a dove (ya moustache) in the drawing of the perfect Man in -i Hact Bektast Veli qaddasaAltahu sirrahu'. O. plate 17. The lam on the lower side of the chestis the [his]Majesty the Saint Hacr Bekta$,may God blesshis sign of all possibleexistencer2l, the letler ha'written 11 1. secret)facing a cypress symbolizing immortality over the belly standsfor the unity of Mulrammad and The calligraphyalso refersto the tradition accordingto Alï (by dint of its numerical value: 2). It is appropri- which Hacr Bekta$came to Rum in the appearanceof ately crossed by the large alíf written over the belly a dove. which is the symbol of Divine unity122,thus constitu- His meetingwith Karaca Ahmed Sultàn, which was ting a calligraphical representation of the iicler. t4 MANUSCRIPTSOF THE MIDDLE EAST4 (I989)

On a very concrete level, the plate refers to the Bektag-rVeli and is a visual echo of the belief in their doctrine of the four elements(air, water, fire, earth) identity as expressed in a famous nefes known by and to the corresponding levels of being (mineral, Bektashisthe world over. The essentiallines of this vegetable,animal, human)rz:, in addition to a full nefesrunl30'. representationof the forms of animal life (in the air, in Aslan olup yol íistiindeoturan the water and on land). Between the legs, a female Engur SerbetiniKrrklara ezen figure representingEve is visibler2a,and a white cock, Kendi cenazesinkendi gótiiren which is the symbolic representationof the Archangel Htinkàr Hau Bektas Ali kendidir (see Gabriel above). He vrhosat upon the road as a lion In the figure of the Perfect Man, the names of He vtho squeezedthe grapeiuice.f'or the Forty- and Fátima are written as one word, from Mulrammad He vrho conductedhis own funeral the arms and to the feet. The names the hands through The SovereignHact BektaSis Ali hintself of Hasan and Hiiseyin are written on the left and on the right side of the chest. Apart from the letters alif. dat and mím (the sign of Muhammad and of the NOTES Perfect Man)l2s, making up the name Adam, the lamalif and the two letters nun sÏand in the area of the * The University of Utrecht (The Netherlands)' genitals. The first mentioned letter, the lamalif, is a I wish to expressmy gratitude to Martha Dukas for her allusion to the symbol of procreationand an Qur'ánic helpful commentson an earlierversion of this article' verse 6:59 ('He has the keys of the unseen.No one Most technical terms of Arabic or Persian origin have knows them exceptHim')r26. The letter nun standsfor been spelledin accordancewith modern Turkish orthogra- the stellar constellationof Scorpio (.Akrep).symboli- phy. Names of have beentransliterated in accordance zing sexual instinct, which is also symbolizedby the with the system used in the Encyclopaediaof Islam. An serpent on the left. The feet stand for the stellar exceptionhas beenmade for the name Husayn, for which a constellation of Pisces (Hut), symbolizing primary modified versionof modern Turkish orthography (Htiseyin) forms of existence.To the lion a similar meaning is has been adopted. I For a descriptionof the conquest,see e'g' S. Vryonis, attributed: Leo (Eser)standing for predatory instincts The Decline of Medieval Hellenism ín AsiQ Minor and the located in the hearÍrz1. By locating the signs of the Processof Islamization .from the Eleventh through the L-iJ- in Man, Bektashi teachingdoes not cast Man Zodtac teenthCentur-y,, Berkeley etc. 1971.chapter 2' the macrocosm,but rather as a microcosm reflecting 2 Cf. Vryonis,op. cit..37l. For more data on the hetero- In presentsthe cosmosas a projection of Man128. dox groups,see e.g. M.F. Kópnilti, Ies orígínesde I'Empire similar reproductionsof the PerfectMan, the serpent ottoman, Paris 1935, 114 ff. (Mainly based upon Agrkpa- extendsbetween the legsat the site of the genitalsand gazàde'sTavárïh-i Al-i'Osmàn.) does not lie in the background as is the casein this 3 Cf. LM. Eri$en & K. Samancrgrl, Hau Bektas Veli. picture. The picture, therefore, would seem to be a Bektasilik ve Alevilík Taríhi, n.p. []: Ay Yaytnevi probably recent bowdlerized version of an ancient 1966,95ff. Frequently,the Yezrdis,the Ahl-i Haqq and the motif. Nusayris are also qualified as Ktztlbag. a Kztlbag, which literally meansredheads, was Control of the sexual instincts is part of the edeb The term for the first supporters of the Safavids in the era of (discipline)required of the Bektashi/Alevi.The three used Sháh Ismá'rl's father. Haydar (d. 1a88);cf. A. Gólprnarlt, make up this word, in the Arabic script, letterswhich 'Krztlbag', Íslam Ansiklopedisi,vi, 789-95' They wore red the head (alifl, the shoulder follow the contours of headgearin commemoration of the blood-soakedheadgear are also the (dal), and the curve of the chin @a)' They of the partisansof A1ï in the battle of Siffïn.Other explana- - first letters of the words el, dil and bel. The term edeb tions exist, however; cf. M. Eró2, Tíirki.ve'de Alevílik thereforesummarizes Bektashi/Alevi ethics, as contai- Bektêtsílík,Istanbul 19'77,88. Seealso R'M. Savory,'Krzrl- 'eline, ned in the phrase diline, beline sahib olmak' (to Básh',812, v,243. control one'shand, one'stongue and one'sloinslsperm The pejorativesense the term Ktzrlbaghas in present-day (seeabove, section 2). Turkey (but not e.g. among the Alevi Turks in Bulgaria) is last ofrecent date,perhaps as recentas the beginningofthe l9th At the same time, however, it is the dot of the 'Le I. Mélikoff, problème Krzrlbag',Turcica vi letter, the ba', that contains the most compact repre- century; cf. (197s),49. sentationof what is the most central idea in Bektashi 5 I.e. the traditions which attribute supra-human or doctrine: that AIT is God. This is the dot of the ba', in Divine qualities to the Imam Ali. On the early gulat and on 'ana nuqtat al-ba', I am accordancewith AIT's saying the problemsconcerning the meaning of the term, which is 'The the dot of the ba'.i.e.the first dot of the revelatioill2e, used by disapproving outsidersonly. seeW' al-, which containsall the secretsof the universeand gives Developmentof the Term in Muslim Literaturewith meaning to the universesince it givesmeaning to the Special Referenceto the Kaysániyya', A. Dietrich (ed.)' letters, which allow for an understanding and a Akten des vií. Kongressesftir Arahistik und Islamwissen' universe.This dot, however, also schaft,Góttingen 1976[Abh. der Akad. d' Wiss. in Góttin- penetration of the 'Ghulát', symbolizesthe belief in Ah's in Hacr genl,295-319; cf. M.G.S. Hodgson, E12,1i,1093ff. FREDERICKDE JONG.THE ICONOGRAPHYOF BEKTASHIISM t5

1ó Other present-dayrepresentatives of gulat traditions are Birge, 34 f. Other dateshave come down to us: cf. A. the Shabakand the Kà'kà'iyya (in ), the Ahl-i Haqq or Gólprnarh, Vilàyet-llàme. Manàktbl Hilnkár Hau BektàS_t Ali-Iláhis (in , Iraq and Turkey), the Yezidis (in Turkey, Velí. Ístanbul: inkrláp Kitabevi 1958, p.xx (mentions the Iraq and ), and the Nusayris (in Turkey and Syria). year 66911270-71as the year of Hacr Bektas'sdeath). See ó 'Hacr Cf. B. Noyan, Bektag-rVeli ve Sosyal Drizen', A.C. Ulusoy, Htinkàr Haa BektaS Velí ve Aletí-Bekta$í Tilrk Folklor Arastrmalan xixlll, no.220 (Kasrm 1967), yolu, Hacrbektag1980, 62 ff., for a discussionof the various 4570. opinions concerningthe date of Hacr Bektag'sdeath. 7 17 Seebelow. note 33. Of these writings known as the Makalat. various 8 Imam-t Ca/èr Bu1'rugu.istanbul : Ayyrldrz Kitabevi editions exist in Ottoman Turkish as well as in modern (n.d.) has nothing to do with the text in useamong the Alevi Turkish. A relativelywell-executed edition is the one by S. sects.The Alevi Buyruk, together with a number of variants Aytekin, which was published in Ankara: Emek Basrm_ found in manuscriptsin privatepossession in variousparts Yayrnevi 1954. It contains an introduction of seventeen of Turkey, was published by S. Aytekin under this title pagesand a glossary. t8 (Buyruk). Ankara: Emek Basrm-Yayrnevi1958. A substan- For a comprehensivediscussion of this and related 'Recherches tially different version of the Buyruk is mentionedby Z.Y. issues,see I. Mélikoff, sur les 'Londra composantesdu Togan, ve Tahrandaki islami yazmalardan bazi- syncrétismeBektachi-Alevl', Studia Turcologicttmentoriae larrna dair', Islam Tetkikleri (1959- EnstitilsilDergisi, iii/l-2 Alerii Bombacidiceta, Naples 1982[: Istituto Universitario 1960). 152. This text seems to be the western Turkish Orientale. Seminario di Studi Asiatici. SeriesMinor xixl. version of Tawakkull's Safwat al-\afa. 379-39s. 'Der e H. Sohrweide, Sieg der Safaviden in re Persien und A. Sirri (Dede Baba), Al-Risala al-Ahmadil'1-a./ï seine Riickwirkungen auf die Schiiten Anatoliens im 16. Ta'ríkh al-Tarrqa al-Bekta;hiyya, Cairo 1959,27. Jahrhundert', Der Islam 4l (1965), 152 and passim. Seealso 20 On the nature of these links, see Birge, 46 ff. 'The and C.H. Imber, persecutionof the Ottoman Shi'itesaccor- l4 ff., and also Uzuncargrh,i, 150. ding to the miihimme defterleri, 1565-1585',Der Islam 56 2r The classiccontemporary account of the suppression (1979).24s-213. of the Bektashiorder and the destructionof the Janissarisis 1o Cf. R.M. Savory, Iran under the Safavids,Cambridge found in Mehmed Es'ad Efendr. Uss-iZà,fer. istanbul 1243. etc., 1980, 40. On the problem of the historical relations 22 Cf . e.g. Birge, 77. 'Bektaschiklóster between Safavi Islam, the guldt sects and related move- 23 S. Faroqhi, in Anatolien vor 1826- ments, see M.M. Mazzaoti, The Origins of the Safawids. Fragestellungenund Quellenprobleme',Der Islam liti (1976) i St'ism, $ufism, and the Gulat, Wiesbaden 1972 [: Frei- l, 43 ff. burger Islamstudien,Band IIII. 'a Birge, 78 ff. t 1 'Le Cf. Mélikoff, probleme Krzrlbag',52. 2s M.T. Oytan, Bektasitígin Í7yi)zti. Dibi, KóSesí, Yt)zt) 12 On this problem, see e.g. Keuprulu Zadé Mehmed t'eAstart Nedir?, istanbul 1918,348f . 'Les Fuad Bey [M. Fuad Kóprnhi], origines du Bekta- 2ó The classicstatement of the claims of the leadersof chisme.Essai sur le developpementhistorique de I'hetéro- the Qelebi branch for supremacy is Ahmed Cemáleddin doxie musulmaneen Asie Mineure', Actes du congresinler- Efendi, M[idafa'a, istanbul 1326. The authority of the nationql d'histoiredes ... 1923,Paris 1925,x. sec- supreme leaders ol the branch was strengthened 'Un Qelebi tion, 391-411,and the recent article by I. Mélikoff, considerablyin the courseof the 18th century; cf. Faroqhi, 'Bektaschiklóster', ordre de dervichescolonisateurs: Les Bektashis.Leur róle 4l f. The Qelebi branch itself has a socialet leurs rapports avecles premierssultans ottomans', number of sub-branches,of which the most important are Mémorial'Ómer LAtf Barkan, Paris 1980 [: Bibliothèque the Hridadatlilerand the Mrirselliler;see ErigenlSamancrgrl. de I'Institut frangaisd'etudes anatoliennes d'Istanbul xxviiil, I 14.and Ulusol. 69 ff. 149-t5t. 2r Cf. E. Gross, Das Vílajetnamedes Haggt Bektasch.Eín r3 A recent contribution to our knowledgeof the history tiirkisches Derwíschevangelium,Leipzig 1927 l: Tiirkische is S. Faroqhi, Der Bektaschi-Ordenin Anatolien (vom spàÍen BibliothekNo. 251,46 and ll5 f. JtinJzehntenJahrhundert bis 1826),Vienna 1981 [: Wiener 28 Seee.g.I.Z. Eyriboglu,Biitiin YónleriyleBektasilik - Zeitschrift fiir die Kunde des Morgenlandes, Sonderband 2). Alevilik, istanbul: Yeni Kitabevi 1980,142.This book 'The Qrgr Seealso F. De Jong, Takrya of Abd Alláh al-Mag[á- is probably the most comprehensiverecent work in Turkish wirr (QayghusuzSultán) in Cairo. A historical sketch and on the subject. a description of Arabic and Ottoman Turkish materials 2e Eriqen/Samancrgrl,115 f.; Ulusoy,72 ff. relative to the history of the Bektashi taktya and order 30 The institution of this practice is ascribedto Sersem preservedat Leiden University Library', Turcicaxiii (1981), Ali Sultán (d. 91111569-70);see A. Sirri (Dede Baba), aÀ 242-260. Mudhakkíra al-Tafsïriyya li-Sharh al-Tartqa al- Alí1-va al- 1a For the basic positions concerningthis problem, see Bektashíyya,Cairo 1949, I 1. J.K. Birge, The BektashiOrder of Dervishes,London 1937, 3t In 1952,the number of Bektashisin Turkey was put 40 ff. (Hacr Bektagdid found the order); I.H. Uzuncargrh, at about 30,000; Cahíers de I'Orient contemporain xxvi Osmanlí Devleti TeSkílàtmdanKapukulu Ocaklarr, 2 vols., (1952),251.But compareNoyan, 4570, who givesan es- Ankara 1943144[: Tirk Tarih Kurumu Yayrnlanndan.viii timate of thirteenmillion for the total number of Caferisin Seri. No. l2l, i, 148; and F.W. Hasluck, and Turkey. Seealso A. Gókalp, Têtesrouges et bouchesnoires, Islam under the , Oxford 1929,488-493(Hacr Bektas Paris 1980,14, who estimatestheir number at ten million. 'L'Ordre did not found the order). 32 I. Mélikoff, des Bektagiaprès 1826',Turcica 1s Rifat Efendi, 'dr ill-mekqsit fi dafï iil-mafasid, r50983). 170. Ístanbul 129311876. 181. 33 The Bektashi order was suppressedin , as l6 MANUSCRIPTSOF THE MIDDLE EAST4 íI989)

'La were all denominationsin that country: seeA. Popovic, (Qur'àn 76:21) equally as a referenceto rakr (there is no communauté musulmane d'Albanie dans la période post- drink more pure than strong rakt, as the argument runs). 14 'Krzrlbag', 'Recherches', ottomane', Zeitschríft fiir Balkanologie xixl2 (1983), 199 f. Cf. Melikoff, 62 ff.; idem, Bektashicommunities and tekkesexist in Bulgaria(Qelebi 384; and J.-P. Roux, Les traditions des nomades de la branch),Greece (Celebi branch), and Yugoslavia(Miicerred Turquie méridionale,Paris 1970[: Bibliothèque archéologi- 'Islamic branch). For details, see F. De Jong, Sects in que et historiquede I'Institut frangaisd'archeologie d'Istan- Southeastern Europe' (in preparation). In, Egypt, the bul, xxiv], 257 (for this practiceamong the Tahtacrs). Bektashi order was much involved with the Court until as This part of the Bektashi/Alevi tradition has come 'Aspects 1952;cf . F. De Jong, of the Political Involvement down to us in nefes only; see e.g. S.N. Ergun, Bektasi of Sufi Orders in 20th-CenturyEgypt (1907-1970)',in G.R. $airleri ve Nefesleri,3 vols., istanbul 1955,iii, 35. Warburg and U.M. Kupferschmidt(ed.), Islam, Nationalism aó See Eyi.iboglu, 237 tr. and Radicalismin Egypt and the Sudan,New York 1983, 193 4? Cf. Eró2,34. f. The order ceasedto exist on Egyptian soil in 1965. In a8 For an explanation of these stages,see e.g. Birge, southeastern Europe, Alevi communities are nowadays 102tr. found in Bulgaria only. nn Op. cit.96 ff. on the doctrine of the milrsít. 34 s0 Xh. Kallajxhi, Bektashizmi dhe Teqeja Shqíptare In R. Bell, The Qur'an. Translated wíth ct critícal n'Amerike, New York 1964. re-arrangementof the Surahs, Edinburgh 19602, 540, the 'Till 3s For this article, I definethe term iconographyas: the translationof this versereads: he was two bow-lengths 'small traditional or conventionalimages and symbols associated off or nearer'. Qab is normally translatedas distance' 'short 'ala with or referringto (a) religiousand/or legendarysubject(s). or span'. The expression qab qav'sayn has the 3ó 'quite 'very Apart from the publications mentioned in the follow- meaningof near' or close'.Qattsayn is the dual ing notes, the reader is referred to my forthcoming book form of qaws, i.e. bow, arch. According to the Bektashi 'Islamic Sectsin SoutheasternEurope' for a more detailed interpretationof the verse,the two bows are the eyebrows 'small discussionof Alevi and Bektashibelief and ritual practicein and the distance' refers to the spacein between. generaland in the areamentioned in the title of the book in s1 This part of Bektashi teaching is normally looked particular. upon as the Hurufi segmentin Bektashiism;cf. Birge, 148ff. 'Recherches 37 On this problem, see Mélikoff, sur les s2 Cf. Birge, 150 and Eyiiboglu, 213 tr. for additional composantes',passim. information on the strikingly humanistic anthropology of 38 Other terms referring to this occasion are Krklar Bektashiism. gecesi (the Night of the Forty) and Krklar soJrau (the s3 Birge, 288 ff., Erigen/Samancrgrl,137 ff. Banquetof the Forty). sa Teberuà(litt.: a standing aloof, a withdrawing) has 'considering 3e The edition of Íhe Buyruk mentioned in note 8 gives also the connotation of with deep disgust',in two versions of the events of the Krklar meclisi: cf. p. 7 f., additionto'continuously cursing'. and 155 ff. ss Normally, the curse is pronounced in Arabic'.'la' 'ala 'alay- a0 The Imam Ah was also known as al-haydar(the lion) Ailah muqatilï(n) al-Imam al-Husayn', or'la'nat and as asad Altaii al-ghalib (the victorious lion of God). hi(m)', especiallywhen the occasionis a ritual context. In Bektashis tend to understand these names as referencesto adciition,curses in Turkish are pronounced,e.g. laneÍ Yezide Alï's metamorphosis into a lion as related tn the mirac or variants thereof. account mentionedhere. só The length of the fasting period differs between the 4t A Tahtacr version of the story, recorded by K. various Bektashicommunities. A detaileddescription of the Ozbayrt, Tahtaalar ve Yóríikler, Paris 1972 Í: Biblio- Muharrem fastingand the following Agura celebrationsin a thèque archéologiqueet historique de I'Institut franqais Bektashicommunity in southeasternEurope may be found 'Islamic d'archéologied'Istanbul, xviiil, 47, mentions that Mulram- in my Sectsin SoutheasternEurope' (seenote 33 mad was admitted after he had produced the grape. In an above). The other holidays celebratedby Bektashis are: 'Les Alevi nefes,mentioned by E. Borel, poetesKizil Bach et Nevruz (21122March: celebratedas Ah's birthday, i.e. the leur musique',Revue des études islamiques 1946, 109,181, it coming of God into the world), Hidrellez (6/7 May), and is Selman-iPàk and not AII who passesthe grape. Kurban Bayram (10 Dhu'l-Hijja); cf. Oytan, 410 f. 'Krztlbaq', a' Mélikoff, 64. The liturgical meeting of the sr The term tevellá(litt.: taking a friend) has the conno- 'paying Bektashisof the Babagànbranch has little in common with tation, or perhapsthe meaning, of hommage' and 'cultivating the sometimesvery elaborateand detailedre-enactments of or cherishing love' (for the ehl-i beyt). the events of the Kuklqr meclisi of some of the Alevi sects. 58 For a list of their names,see Oytan, 305 f. Many of the elementsof ritual, however,are justified by the tn Op. cií.,306 ff. for their names. 'Selman statementthat this was the way things were done during the ó0 SeeL. Massignon, Pak et les premicesspiri- Assemblyof the Forty. Further detailsmay be found in my tuelles de l'Islam iranien', Y. Moubarac (ed.), Opera forthcoming study mentionedin note 33. Minora,3 vols.,Bayrut 1963,i, 453 ff. a3 ór Alevis and Bektashis do not recognizesunnt ' See e.g. S.N. Ergun, Bektasi $aírleri, istanbul 1930, concerning the prohibition of alcoholic beverages.The 57. In the Vilàyet-Nàme(Gross, 149 tr.), Hacr Bektag-rVeli versesof the Qur'án on wine drinking and its prohibition performs his own burial rites, veiled, and unknown and are believedto be later additions,inserted by the enemiesof invisible to those present. After the funeral, one of his the partisans of the ehl-i beyt. At the same time, a Qur'ánic disciplesgoes with the strangerfor some distanceand asks justification is found for the consumption of rah, by reading him to lift his veil and to show his identity: it is Hacr the term kawthar in sura 108 as a synonym for this drink, Bektaq-rVeli himself. Here, the duplication of the events 'pure and by understandingthe drink' to be given by God following the passingaway of Ah points towards the belief FREDERICKDE JONG.THE ICONOGRAPHYOF BEKTASHIISM 11 that Hacr Bektaqwas a manifestationof Ali in a different longer worn, is seenas a symbol of servitudein present-day guise. It is also an expression of the beltef tanasuh, i.e. Bektashiism. metempsychosis;cf. Birge, 129ff. 7ó This number refers to the forty-one who participated ó2 For an analysis of this theme, see P.N. Boratav, in the Ktrklar meclisi. The use of a tesbih of 99 beads. 'Vestiges oluz dans la tradition bektagi', Akten des vier- consisting of three groups of thirty-three, separatedby two undzwanzigsten internaÍionalen OrienÍalisten-Kongresses beads in the shape of a Híiseyni tac, and one large bead at 'Zur (Mtnchen 1957),Wiesbaden 1959, 382-385; 9., Yola, the end, is also known; cf. Birge, 254. Ornithophanieim Viláyet Nàme des Hággi Bekta5',in H.G. 7? The Bektashi order was not a mendicant order, and Majer (red.), IslemkundlicheAbhandlungen f: H.J. Kissling begging was very restricted and bound to strict rules; cf. Festschriftl,Miinchen 1974, 125-129. Brown, 185,and Birge,236. ó3 Gólprnarh, Vilàyet-l{àme,18,20,91.In another ver- ?8 Birge,235. sion of the event (cf. Gross, 36, 80f.), the is named 7e Each muhip has a or guide who directs him and Mahmud Hairan. superviseshim and, in a sense,prepares him for guidance by óa SeeBirge. 102 ff. the míirSitor spiritual guide. In the initiation ceremony,the ós Erigen/Samanctgtl,57. candidate is conducted into the meydan by the rehber, 'Bektági 66 Cf. B. Noyan, ve Alevi'lerde hukuk drizeni sometimescarrying a teber. 'The (dtigkr.inltik)', I. (Jluslararafl Tiirk Folklor Kongresi Bildiri- 80 On this ceremony, see H. Ringgren, initiation leri. ív Cilt. Gelenek-Gr)renekve inanqlar, Ankara 1976, ceremonyof the Bektashis',C.J. Bleeker(ed.), Studies in the 189ff. History of Religions, vol.x. Initiation, Leiden 1965, 202-208. ó7 The term dervish is normally used by Bektashis to 8t I. Melikoff, , le porte-hachedu Khorasan refer to a rank and not to a wandering (mendicant) mystic. dans la tradition ëpique turco-iranienne,Paris 1962,68. The degrees in Bektashiism are in ascending order'. talip 82 For an example,see Birge, illustration no.6. Cf. Birge, (candidate for initiation), muhip (initiated member), dervish 233, for the commentaryon this plate; he has not noted that (performing a task during the ritual), baba (can initiate and the word haqq (Truï.h) constitutes an integral calligraphic give guidance), dede (elects the Dede Baba), and Dede Baba element of each of the tebers (the supreme head of the Miicerred branch). Only the 83 A niyaz is a prosternation,somewhat similar to the Mticerred branch has a monastictradition; cf. Birge, 162ff. sujud posrtion in the sunnísaldt ritual. The floor, however, is ó8 Bektashis use the term meydar to denote the place touched with the hands only. Theseare held in a distinctly where the liturgical meeting is held. Such a meeting is prescribedposition, in such a way that a pattern of three customarilyreferred to as muhabbet.Among the Alevi sects, kissescan be completedon, or in the air slightly above, the however, the use of the term cem is more frequent, while the fingertips. room or the building where the cemisheld is known as cem 8a Reverencefor the threshold is also found among the eví. Tahtacrs and all other Alevis, cf. Roux, Traditíons, 121 ff. 6e The lower part insideof the twelve-segmentedand the 8s SeeOytan, 201 f. seven-segmentedlaces is usually divided into four sections, 8ó This is not the case,however, in Bulgaria, where the symbolizing the Four Gateways. Often, a piece of green tekkeshavevirtually beendismantled and liturgicalmeetings cloth is bound around it. are held semi-clandestinely.A similar situation prevails in 7o Cf. J.P. Brown, The Darvishesor Oriental , Turkey. 'ala London 1968',180 f. The teslim tast is either made from a 87 The engraving reads: Allahumma sallt al-Musta- kind of alabasterquarried near Hacrbektag(kóy), or from fci Muhammed wa'l-Murtada Alt wa'l-Niswàn Fatima wa'l- 'ala the transparant necef raq,a crystal which supposedlycomes Sibtayn al-Hasan wa'l-Husayn wa-salh Zayn al-Àbidtn from al-, the town where the shrine of the Imam Ali is wa-'ala al-Baqir Muhammad wa'l-Sadiq Jafar, al-Kazim located. Musa wa'l-Rida Alt wa'l-Taqt Muhammad wa'l-Baqí Alt 11 'ala Palihenkswith sevencorners are also known; op. cit., v'a'l-Zakr al-Askarr al-Hasan wa-sallt Imam Muham- 116. mad-i Mahà. ?2 Some particularly beautiful examplesare preservedin tt E.g. in the Bektashitilrbe of Ali Baba near Svidovica, 'Hacrbektag the HacrbektaqMiizesi; see A. Tagdelen, Veli east of Strumica (Yugoslavia). Dergáhi ve Mr.izesi',Tilrkiyemiz,28 (Haziran 1979),20. The 8e Examplesare the tilrbesoï Demir Baba near Razgrad dergàhwas openedas a museum h 1964.On its holdings, in Bulgaria, and of SersemAli Baba in Tetovo (Yugosla- 'Das see A. Tagdelen & A. Stmer, Hactbektas Milzesi Rehberi. via). SeeF. Babinger, Bektaschi-KlosterDemir Baba', Ankara 1976. Mitteilungen des Semínarsfilr Orientalische Sprachen xxxiv ?3 'Les Cf. Oytan, 261 (the text of prayer no.9). (1931), 1-10; and G. Palikru5eva& K. Tomovski, 7a The piercingof the ear usedto take placeeither on the tekkés en Macédoine aux xviii' et xix' siècles'.Atti del threshold of the shrine of Balim Sultán in the tekke cf Hacr Secondo Congresso InÍernazionale di Arte Turca (Yenezia Bektag-rVeli near Kirgehir or in the tekke in Kerbela. The 1963),Naples 1965,203-211, for a generaldescription of the operation was also performed in the tekke of Ali Sultán architectureof theseestablishments. (Krzrl Deli ) near Dimetoka. It was part of the no E.g. the tíirbesof Krdemli Baba near Nova Zagora, of ceremony (mticerrediqràri) of the celibate babas. Akyazrh Sultan near Balóik and of Ali Baba in Kralevo The last baba who went through this ceremony in the central (near Malák Izvor, south of Harmanli), all in Bulgaria. On 'A tekke it Hacrbektaqwas Baba Kazim (d. l98l) of Diakova the tilrbe of Krdemli Baba, see M. Kiel, Monument of (Yugoslavia). early Ottoman Architecturein Bulgaria.The BektagiTekke 7s Cf. Birge.70, where it is said that it was worn'in of Krdemli Baba Sultanat Kalugerevo-NovaZagora', Belle- memory of Dtildril'. The horseshoeearring, although no tenxxxvf 137(1973),45-60. On the tekke of Akyazrh Sultan, MAn-USCRIPTSOF THE MIDDLE EAST4 ( t9tt9)

seeTeketo Akyazàlà Baba. Pateboditel,Tolbuhin: Okrázhen 10óCf. Mélikotr, 'Recherches'. ,Varna 3g5. istoricheski Muzei, n.d., and S. Eyice, ile Balgtk tor Cf. _ Birge, 185, for the prayer said at the lighting of arasindaAkyazrh Sultan Tekkesi', BelleÍenxxivll24 (1967), the candles('The light of Muhammad is born from Ali;). 551-600.The ttirbe of Alï Baba near Harmanli has not yet 108 . See Birge, 36, for the story which explainshow ihe been the object of scholarlystudy. Hilnkar (persian: nt Khunkar, *.uning sovereign, E.g. in the tekkes in Kanatlar and in Kièevo in lord) cameto be attachedto the name of Hacr Bektas-rvéti. Yugoslavia. tu,n R Paret, Symbolik tle.s Islam, SIuï.gart lóSg e2 Tombstones ^ [: with the so-called Ethemi tac (four Symbolik der ReligionenIIl, 46. segments)and the elifi tac (shapedlike a Bishop'smitre) are rr0 Lassy.8ó. also found. On thesedifferent types, I I I seeBirge, 37, 46 f., 2lj, Cf. Hasluck, 226.The birds themselvescan probablv 248,250,261,284.The tombstonesof female Bektashishave also be understood as symbols of the immortality of the no tac but a decoration of sculptured leavesand flowers on ; cf. Mélikoff,Abu Mustim.63. the upper part instead. I r2 In the picture, Hacr e3 Bektag-rVeli and GrivencAbdal Also the greater part of Bektashi writings has been wear the elifi tac, which is the earliestform of the Bektashi produced by babas of the Mricerred branch. This seemsto lac. seenote 92. suggestthat the monasticismcharacteristic of this branch of tt3 Ulusoy,50 ff. Bektashiismmust have been decisivefor 1r'r this intellectual Jn this position, the right toe is placed upon the left production. toe. ea Meetings for the ceremony of I I s 'Futuwwa baSokutmak (cf. Birge, SeeG.G. Arnakis, traditions in the Otto_ 170 ft-.)and part of the liturgical celebrations on rhe occa_ man Empire. Ahis, Bektashidervishes and craftsmen'.Jour_ sions of Agura, Nevruz, and Hidrellez are sometimesheld nalofl{ear EasternSrudies xii (1953),232-247; cf. Mélikoff. more privately, e.g. in the house of the baha. or more Krzrlbaq,53 f ., idem,Abu Muslim,65,79, 'Akhi'. and F. Taeschner. publicly, dependingupon local circumstancesand tradition. in E1r, i. 323. es Small, but important collections preserved I t 6 . are in the Alid lslam: all groups who trace themselvesback to Istanbul Belediye Miizesi, in the Divan Edebiyáti Mrizesi, the early partisansof Ali. in the Ethnographical Museum in I 1r Ankara. and in the With certain Alevi sects,women wear a red shawl HacrbektagMrizesi (cf. note 72, above). coveringtheir hair during the liturgical gatherings.In some eó In Birge's book, mentioned throughout these foot- Bektashilodges, male memberssometimes wear red woolen notes, and in M. Aksel, Tíirklerde yazr_ Diní Resimler. knitted skullcaps.This, however,is not an establishedrule Resim,istanbul 1967 Elif Yayrnlan. [: No. 2l]. for religious attire. I have also met bahaswho had a red, e7 For a theoretical elaboration of these ideas. see C. instead of the regular green. piece of cloth around their mc. Geertz, 'Ethos, World View, and the Analysis of Sacred but this is an exceptionrather than the rule. Symbols', in C. Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures, New I18 Cf. Paret.46. York 1973,126-141. rre . The composition was made by Turgut Reqadi Baba e8 On the tekkes in Yugoslavia, see Nimetallah . (Istanbul),who is the only remaining Bektashibaba produ_ Yugoslavyada BektagiTekkeleri, Cevren (pristinë. iv no. I I cing Bektashiart (object and images)in the classicaLtradi_ Sept. | 976).57-67. tion. In Greece,outside Western Thrace, r20 Bektashiismhas come Based upon the oral explanation given by Turgut to an end in 1974with the death of Baba Seit.the last head RegadiBaba. of the tekke of Durbali Sultan near Farsala in Thessalia. r21 Cf. Birge,244. The Greek authorities refusedto admit a successor.Since "' Op. cit.,l4 (apudyirànï). rzt the death of Baba Seit, the tekke has rapidly fallen into a Op.tir.. l17 ff. state of dilapidation. Most liturgical r2a objects have been The numericalvalue of the Arabic lettersof the name stolenfrom its premisesand the framed images and calligra_ Adam (alif, dAl and mtm) is forry-five. The letters of the phieshanging in the t[irbesarc being destroyedby moisiure name of Eve, when written Hàwáh (ha,, atif. waw, alif, ha'). and insects. On the tekke, see e.g. ',Teké" G. Thoma, have a numerical value of twenty-one.Their total ii sixty_ Dourbali Soultan. Tó Arvanitikó Monastíri 'Ena Fársalon. six, which equalsthe numerical value of rabb (ra' and,ba\. Istoriko Ktísma tis Thessalías.Volos 1966. i.e. Lord (: God). This ee compuration is used in the Qelebi On theseHurufi elements,see note 51. branch and in various Alevi 100 sectsto demonstratethe neces_ F.W. Schwartzlose,Die Wa.ffender alten Araber au,s sity of in order to attain perfection. ihrenDichtern dargestellt, Leipzig 1886, I2s 'L'Homme 152;cf. I Goldziher. Cf. L. Massignon, parfait en Islam', Era_ MuhammadanischeStudien, ii, 359,365, (Halle lg90) for nos Jahrbuchxv (1947),300. further data and references. 12óCf. Birge,240. 101 Birge,188. 121Ibid. tot E.g. on the shrine of Demir Baba r28 near Razsrad in For an enumeration of the location of the signs of Bulgaria. the Zodiac in Man, see 103 G. Jacob, Die Bektaschijje in ihrem Seee.g. illustration No. l4 in Birge. Verhàltniszu verwandtenErscheinungen, Abhandlungen der ro4 Cf. I. Lassy, The Muharram my.sÍeriesamong the philosophisch-philologischenKlasse der kónislich Bavri- A:erbeijan .s of Caucasia. Helsini