Organized by the Human and Irfan Foundation, 130 students from 10 countries are visiting Konya to understand the philosophy of sema whirling through cultural and artistic activities.
Students from countries including Canada, Norway, the United States and Australia visited historical sites in Istanbul and Konya, getting a chance to closely familiarize themselves with Turkish Islamic civilization.
Students receiving formal education experienced "turning of the wheel" (a movement during sema where one turns from right to left without lifting the right foot, leaning on the left foot) at the Sema Workshop of the Wisdom Civilization Research and Culture Center (IRFA) in Konya as part of the program.
At the Traditional Arts Workshops, students closely followed activities including lessons on "Adab-ı Muaşeret" (courtesy), "Meali Sema" (interpretative sema), and "Meşk" (practice).
Explaining philosophy of sema to foreign students
President of the Human and Wisdom Foundation board of trustees and Postnişin of the Istanbul Sufi Wisdom Square Meşk Community, Fatih Çıtlak, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that they hosted students receiving formal education from their countries for a 25-day program.
Çıtlak emphasized that these successful students came to Konya after Istanbul to gain insights into Turkish Islamic civilization.
"We said, 'Let's bring these children to this place where Seljuk and Ottoman harmonize, which has contributed to the spiritual development of civilization in the most beautiful way.' These children will not become dervishes in an hour, but we explained the discipline of sema. A human being consists of heart, soul, ego and mind. We said, 'Sema is a tremendous discipline to gather the heart, soul, ego, and mind in one place.'"
He added: "In fact, this is something our people needed. In the ceramic workshops, they will return to their countries with completed works, the purpose of making ceramics is not to create a work of art, but to gather the person in one place. A person who cannot gather their body, mind, and soul can never be educated, cannot distinguish right from wrong, we act with this philosophy, we try to convey this to our friends with our knowledge and what we see."
Çıtlak expressed that students were impressed by the program, stating: "When I looked at these children on the first day they came to Istanbul and a week later, they were very different, because they know how to listen, we serve with 45 volunteers without expecting any payment, it will establish a very important cultural and civilizational bond with our country, their teachers said: 'We came here to see your love. Because the Turkish nation has a unique love. It inspires all of us.' If we serve that, how happy are we?"
Sixteen-year-old American student Ameer Perkins stated that he experienced "turning of the wheel" at the sema workshop, saying: "I hadn't seen a sema ritual before. I think it would be better if I could work longer. It's my first time in Türkiye. The program is very full and going well."