18 June, Konya
Mevlana Otel 70TL (breakfast included) (usual price 90TL)
Konya is perhaps best known as the home of the Mevlâna
Museum, former lodge and headquarters of the whirling dervishes. Rumi was “one of the world’s
great mystic philosophers”, and his “poetry and religious writings, mostly in
Persian, the literary language of the day, are among the most beloved and
respected in the Islamic world”. After Rumi’s death in 1273, his son organised
his followers into a brotherhood called the Mevlevi or whirling dervishes. The Mevlâna
is part museum and part mausoleum, containing the bodies of Rumi, his father,
also a well-known scholar and teacher, and numerous others. We particularly
admired the collection of hand-printed Qurans, some over 800 years old; some
decorated in gold; one so tiny, approximately 7cm in diameter, its calligrapher
went blind producing it. Also on display is a casket containing strands of
Mohammed’s beard; there are holes in the display case so you can smell the hair’s
scent of roses.
Konya Mevlâna Museum
Konya Mevlâna Museum
Konya Mevlâna Museum
Konya Mevlâna Museum
Konya Mevlâna Museum
Konya Mevlâna Museum
Konya graveyard
Konya graveyard