In the photo: Tahir Pasha and Sultan Abdylhamit from the Turkish series about the life and work of the Sultan titled “Capital: Abdylhamid” (in the original Turkish: Payitaht: Abdülhamid).
21 Investigations after March 31 and the Yıldız ruins
2:10:02–2:11:06
Doğukan Oruç: Kazım Bey also had a seven-year-old son, Abdi, and he gave him to the Hoxha as an assistant. The little one was also questioned: “What did the Hoxha do?” The child told as much as he had seen and understood—the bones and other things. The Yenişehirli Hoxha burned bones and wrote signs on them. Hüseyin Rahmi beautifully describes such a practice in a novel: “On the ground were pieces of mats torn into threads, a skin that had lost its fur, large and small cans, things that looked like they had been collected in the trash; on the walls were the words ‘o mik, sama’, ‘o e verità’, ‘çifti Ali’ and writings like crow’s feet, squares and incomprehensible signs…” He was not describing the Hoxha from Yenişehir himself, but the burning of bones. Straw and twigs were lit, the bones were thrown into the fire and people tried to read something from the signs that appeared on them. This Hoxha did the same thing.
2:11:07–2:12:24
Doğukan Oruç: Everything came to light when, during a routine cleaning, wax figures, bones, leg bones of dead dogs and strange texts were found in the drawers of the imam of the chief rifleman’s office. The suspicion was raised: “Is this man trying to take the sultan’s life with these actions?” It is interesting that there is no interrogation of Tahir Pasha in any of the files. There is another case of weapons theft, where he is a very active figure, but again he is not questioned. In Yıldız we see people interested in occult practices and ilm-i havas gathered around Tahir; he provided them with every opportunity and the headache was used as an excuse. In fact, they were looking for treasure. The burning of the bones in Kazım Bey’s villa seems to be an excessive effort just for Tahir’s head. However, Tahir was never officially involved. The final report presented him as a sincere and naive person who had allowed them to do these things, and the case was closed.
2:12:25–2:13:53
Presenter: At that time, there were many cases where it was suspected that the sultan was being bewitched. In the Yavaşça Şahin neighborhood near Uzunçarşı, there lived a woman, Lusa Hoxha, who also appears in documents. People from the Palace would constantly go to her house. Apparently, the girl denounced her together with her husband: “My mother is doing such things.” It was said that the sultan’s shirts and underwear were sent to her. He thought: “Are they bewitching me?” and an investigation was opened. Those involved said that they had done it for his good and health. So, the suspicion was not completely unfounded; such practices circulated and Tahiri could gather figures of this type around him.
Doğukan Oruç: We shouldn’t be too surprised. Edith Durham traveled to Albania in the late 1890s and early 1900s, when travel there was still very difficult, and she writes that people—especially in Northern Albania—believed strongly in these practices and were interested in havas. Ahmet Mithat Efendi also describes the burning of bones and says that, for Albanians and Suliots, not believing the sign that appeared on the bone was almost like not believing the word of a prophet. Tahiri had brought this world of beliefs with him.
2:13:54–2:14:34
Presenter: How did the fate of power fall? Tahir Pasha ruled throughout the time of Abdylhamit. There is also the issue of a sword; let’s address that and then take questions from the viewers.
Doğukan Oruç: As we said, while leading the riflemen and doing various jobs, he rose through the ranks. In 1904, he became a müşir, the highest military rank, and lived in luxury. Everything fell apart, as expected, when Abdülhamit fell from the throne.
2:14:35–2:15:32
Doğukan Oruç: There is no need to explain the entire March 31st Incident here. A coalition of discontented people entered into a revolt that ended with the overthrow of Abdülhamid. On the very day of the overthrow, one of Mahmut Şevket Pasha’s measures was to arrest all the agallars and servants of the Yıldız Palace—with special emphasis on the riflemen. There were different types of agallars, but the riflemen were singled out separately. The “ruins of despotism,” the ruins of Yıldız, were very much embodied in them. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why so many negative narratives were created and spread about them, in addition to the actions they had taken: they were a completely Abdülhamidian institution and a symbol of the regime.
2:15:33–2:17:13
Doğukan Oruç: When the Action Army was approaching and the Palace began to empty, a very significant episode occurred, which also became the reason for Tahir Pasha’s conviction in the military court. They were Tahir Pasha, a younger fellow villager named Tahir the Little, and a rifleman named Halil—the only rifleman executed after the event. The three of them appeared before the sultan and said: “Let us open fire. Don’t abdicate your throne smiling. Let us fight ourselves. We have soldiers under our command; we can bring others and join other forces.” The riflemen were only about three hundred, but they had acquaintances and connections and were even thinking of joining the Second Division. They tried hard to convince the sultan to fight.
They were not doing it just for Abdylhamit’s good; it was also for their own salvation, because they would fall with him. A mytesarif of Abdylhamit’s time could remain mytesarif and find a way to adapt to the new system. If you were not a Palace spy or a rifleman, you could continue your life; but the rifleman had nothing more to do. Therefore, they were among the only ones—perhaps the only group—who actively encouraged Abdylhamit to resist. This was Tahir Pasha’s main crime, and he did not deny it at the military court: “Yes, I tried to persuade Hakan.” According to an account by Ismail Qemali, he said: “Did you think I would behave differently?” Here we see the loyalty to the benefactor, especially strong in Tahir because of their personal relationship.
2:17:14–2:18:56
Doğukan Oruç: Tahiri was not executed. He was sentenced to six years of exile in Midilli, but he did not finish his sentence. The process was tragic. First, in Harbiye Square, he was publicly stripped of all his military ranks and insignia. He was held in the cells of the Military School. A man who studied there at the time says that the young cadets pushed and humiliated him with malice; at one point his pants even fell off. After these difficult experiences, he was tried and sent to Midilli.
We know almost nothing about what he did there. He was completely neglected and does not appear in the documents. Only one yearbook, in a section on the events of the financial year and under the title “The Ruins of the Period of Despotism,” mentions a few figures: “Tahir Aga, dismissed from the chief of the rifle corps”—he had now changed from Pasha to Aga—“died in the place of exile when his fate came.” He died there.
22 The Internment in Midilli and the Story of the Lost Sword
2:18:57–2:19:50
Doğukan Oruç: Tahiri was about sixty-one or sixty-two years old and never left Midilli again. Before his death, there was another interesting issue: the lost sword.
Presenter: Today it may sound strange to call Midilli a place of exile. But Midilli at that time was a place of punishment and imprisonment in a fortress. For a man in Tahir Pasha’s position—from the sultan’s side in Istanbul to there—it was a great punishment. If we were exiled to Lesbos today, we would probably go willingly: “I cry, I go,” as in the song. Back then, Bursa was also called exile; Kemaleddin Efendi, the son of Gazi Osman Pasha, “lived in exile” in Bursa. Even later, the Fisherman of Halicarnassus was sent as a prisoner to Bodrum, because Bodrum was a deserted place at that time.
2:19:51–2:21:22
Doğukan Oruç: After the fall of the Hakan, Topkapı, palaces, historical works and inventories were searched. Missing items were found. One was a sword that our documents attribute only to “Sultan Suleiman”, while foreign texts attribute it to Kanun Sultan Suleiman. It could have belonged to him or to a later Suleiman. The palace asked: “Is there any correspondence for this sword from the time of the former Hakan, Abdülhamit?” The documents revealed that Abdülhamit had given it to Tahir Pasha. Tahir was still alive in Midilli, so they asked him: “Hakan gave you the sword of Kanun Sultan Suleiman; where is it?” From the answer we learn that, in his last years, he lived near a tekke whose name appears in the transcript as Ebu Cüda. He said: “There is a room in my house dedicated to weapons.” He had a private collection, a small arsenal full of weapons. “It must be there; where else could it be?” They searched the house, but the sword did not come out.
2:21:23–2:22:37
Doğukan Oruç: His marriages are also interesting. Tahir Pasha had two wives at the same time. The first wife was a local woman and was most likely his early marriage. Later he married Cenân Hanêmi. She later became the wife of Bahaeddin Şakiri. So, he was married to both Abdylhamit’s most loyal man and one of the regime’s biggest opponents; we can say that he understood politics.
Yahya Kemal tells a story about the internment of Bahaeddin Şakir in Erzincan. Since he was a doctor, he was brought in for a check-up and a romantic relationship began between him and Cenân. Tahiri found out, had Bahaeddin beaten badly and then, as if that weren’t enough, he had him deported. This is a story that is circulating; Cenân and Bahaeddin later married. When the sword was searched for, the first wife had died and Cenân Hanêmi was left. She said: “I don’t know anything either.” They suspected that she had taken it, but they found nothing. Even today, the sword is missing.
2:22:38–2:23:53
Doğukan Oruç: Abdülhamit had a habit of distributing very important items to his relatives. He had also given the sword of his father, Abdülmecid, to a man from the secret police, Fehim Pasha. If I am not mistaken, that sword was found again, but they also searched for it for a long time: “Where is it?” and it turned out that he had given it to Fehim. There is another episode in the memoirs of Ali Vasıb Efendi. He writes: “I went to the Metropolitan Museum and they told me that they had the sword of Sultan Murat. I thought it belonged to some ancestor, Murat IV. I approached and saw that it was the sword of my grandfather, Murat V. I touched the mosque: we do not have this sword—how did it get here?” Within thirty or forty years, the items could have ended up in the Metropolitan. Perhaps even today there are many things lost that we are not aware of, because the number of works was very large.
The Kanuni thus lost his sword. Tahir Pasha and Cenân Hanêmi are the usual suspects—and, because of the interesting relationship, Bahaeddin Şakiri as well. Perhaps Cenân hid it and, after he married, the item passed to Bahaeddin; but we do not know this.
2:23:54–2:24:18
Doğukan Oruç: The Albanian rifleman Tahir Pasha died in 1911. His life was turbulent: from shepherd he rose to the rank of müşir and from müşir he fell back to nothing. He is an extraordinary man—quite a figure for a movie, a very interesting guy.
Presenter: Professor, if you wish, now let’s take some questions from the viewers.
23 Viewers’ Questions
2:24:19–2:25:21
Host: Let’s close the conversation with some questions from the viewers. There were comments in the live chat that I couldn’t read; the topic was exciting and we got lost in the conversation. İlker Kalkan, Merve Görgülü, Levoncan, Brillahiel, Olcı Elif Erkan—it seems that three of them joined together. Some are related “from Yıldız Palace to Abdylhamit’s Beşiktaş”. We thank the users Batuhan Bey, Oğuz Coşkun and Dinç Deniz for subscribing to our channel. Mr. Mesut Kobal also sent 44 liras “Super Thanks”; we thank him for his support. Let’s mention them so that we don’t remain indebted. We will take more questions if there are any. In the meantime, someone wrote: “As a Tosk, I am proud of Professor Doğukan.” I will tell you later who made the comment.
Doğukan Oruç: Okay, it must be someone we know.
24 The double-headed eagle, intelligence and the image of the Albanian
2:25:22–2:26:32
Presenter: A viewer stopped at the symbol. We are talking about Albania and I put the double-headed eagle. We were corrected: “In the Ottoman period, this was not the accepted symbol of the Albanians.” I don’t know if there is anything to add. Did the Albanians use the double-headed eagle in the Ottoman period?
Doğukan Oruç: In the late Ottoman period, yes. I wrote about Don Aladro Kastrioti and he used the double-headed eagle. In the classical period the issue is more complicated: you can’t expect a single “Albanian” symbol, because before the Ottoman conquest there were principalities, not Albanian national consciousness in the modern sense; then there were regional units and family coats of arms. But the double-headed eagle was used early on and for many years. It was also used in many other countries—Serbia has the same motif. I don’t want to make any dangerous assertions without going into more detail.
Host: Someone recommended the show with the words “the show Dua Lipa watches.” Good deal.
2:26:33–2:27:24
Presenter: There is also a special comment: “Since Ottoman times there has been a continuity of groups in the establishment of MIT; Circassians and Albanians occupied a large place in the Turkish intelligentsia.” What do you think?
Doğukan Oruç: When you think about it, it’s close to the truth. These groups come to the fore quite a bit in the intelligence activity. We don’t see any very developed intelligence activity in the riflemen. They are used more directly: “Deal with this person; do this; bring that person in.” But they were also used as an alternative to other structures. In the Ottoman state we see a preference for Albanians and Circassians in some jobs; intelligence may have been one of them.
2:27:25–2:28:22
Presenter: One comment says: “Albanians and Cretans are very similar to the people of the Black Sea.” I agree to some extent. When I traveled to Kosovo, several things reminded me of that region: the constant food and drink, the mountain roads like the Kuşlar Hoca road or the roads of Montenegro. It’s as if geography adds a kind of nervousness to people, raises the anger quotient.
Doğukan Oruç: It could be. It is an interesting observation. There are also similarities in speech: the k/ç sound transitions of the Black Sea coast are also found in Albanian; letters written with k are pronounced close to ç. But, to understand the “Albanian head”, we need to look at something more fundamental. We can rightly say that nationalisms and nations, as modern collective identities, were formed at a certain stage in history. But this does not mean that people did not see themselves as communities before.
2:28:23–2:29:30
Doğukan Oruç: Think about the Albanian reality: you are in the Balkan Peninsula and no one around you speaks the same language. You don’t even get along with the people in the south—the Greeks—while the others are Slavs. Their religions differ, but they can get along with each other; you don’t get along with anyone. It’s a kind of endless situation of “the Georgian who doesn’t know the language.” Others can join in by saying: “This one is not of my religion, but I feel that he is a little like me.” Albanians remain a tight group among themselves. For this reason, the Albanian-Slavic clash goes back much further than the 19th century. Even in old folklore motifs, Slavs are mentioned as enemies, without necessarily being modern nationalism. Isolation may have fostered stubbornness, resentment, and withdrawal within; when isolation opens up, these may be softened.
2:29:31–2:30:55
Presenter: In Istanbul folklore, it was said that the Albanian wore a long cape so that someone would step on it and find a reason for trouble. There was also a riddle: “Who is the shortest in an environment, but looks the tallest?” The answer: the Albanian—out of pride and boasting.
Doğukan Oruç: If you read the writings of Gelibolulu Mustafa Âliu, you will see that the classical Ottoman elite mocked every nation with puns. But when it comes to the Albanians, he invests with particular fervor in humiliating them. Perhaps this was related to the rivalry between the devshirme cliques within the Palace and to his Slavic origin: “Will our people or them advance?” He jokes about other peoples for fun; when he talks about the Albanians, he inevitably concludes: “They are not trusted and are not entrusted with trusts; they should not be taken into state service.” He says that for trivial reasons they lock themselves in their towers and shoot each other, or that eating onions has turned their brains into onions. It is a whole story about boasting and boasting.
2:30:56–2:32:42
Doğukan Oruç: The Albanian-Slavic tension continued even within the Palace premises. In Kosovo, we had with us a Macedonian acquaintance, a bit older, who could not accept that the people around him spoke Albanian. He thought he could get along with them by speaking Macedonian. At one point he said something in Slavic, then in Turkish “oturun, oturun”—“sit down”. The men in front of him were Kosovars, many of them from the KLA; as soon as they heard Slavic, they immediately tensed up. This still continues. Of course, political developments, Kosovo, the KLA and the Serbian wars deepened it further; but the history is much older. You cannot present it only as a 19th century invention, as if Albanians and Slavs quarreled over nationalism. They understood early on that they were very different from each other, first of all through language. Even the mountainous geography, where you have to constantly clash to survive, started the conflict early. Some national disputes may indeed have formed in the 19th century; but this has a more ancient history.
2:32:43–2:34:09
Presenter: We were asked if Albanians, beyond military units, had any special path to the highest positions in the state. Was Gelibolulu Âliu’s advice listened to, or was the Ottoman system not biased? On the contrary, was there a preference for officials to be Albanians?
Doğukan Oruç: I don’t think there was any great preference. At the higher levels, when a suitable Albanian emerged, he could also become a grand vizier; there was no rule that he shouldn’t be. Even in the classical period we find examples. Lütfi Pasha, married to Kanuni’s sister and then exiled to Dimetoka, is an example from his time. Towards the end of Abdylhamit’s reign we have Avlonyalı Ferid Pasha. So, there is no particular period of “excellence”; Albanians were taken into service at different times when they were needed. Ferid Pasha of Vlora, perhaps, was used in the end to somehow close his eyes to Balkan affairs. In the classical period there was no such concern. The Gelibolulu Âliu project—“don’t give these people jobs”—did not take root. Nor did any opposite project—“let the posts always be ours”—become a practice. There was a constant turnover.
Presenter: A question was asked about food, but I didn’t understand it. If they explain it more clearly, let’s ask it again. In the meantime, I have a personal question.
2:34:10–2:34:59
Presenter: As someone who knows the region, it has struck me that among Christian Albanians, Catholicism is as widespread as Orthodoxy. This is not seen much among other Balkan peoples, leaving aside the Croats. Why? Is it related to the proximity and relations with Italy?
Doğukan Oruç: The activity of the Catholic Church there dates back to very early times, especially among the northern tribes. When the Ottomans entered, the invasion progressed from south to north; the southern areas, Gjirokastra, Berat and others, were taken earlier.
25 Religion, Catholicism, Islamization and regional differences
2:35:00–2:36:41
Doğukan Oruç: Shkodra was taken by Sultan Mehmet only in 1479; Skanderbeg’s war also took place mainly in the north and he made an alliance with Venice. Therefore, the north became a suitable terrain for the clergy and the activity of the Catholic Church. Later, Islamization followed the same line: penetration was more difficult in the north. The Church, when it wanted to act, preferred the north.
From time to time, bishops or envoys were sent from Rome to survey the terrain: “Can there be any uprising from the Albanians?” Robert Elsie has translated some of the reports they sent to Rome: “There are still Catholics here; what do you think and what can be done against the Sultan?” These are important texts for Albanian history of the 16th and 17th centuries, because few other people write about the situation there. In the later period, as you said, Italy was opposite and had influence. Perhaps the last sixty or seventy years of Ottoman rule in Albania were a battle for influence: Austria from the north, Italy from across the sea. In the end, the Italians would become the rulers of Albania for a time. The course of conquest and Islamization created the space in which all of this took place.
2:36:42–2:37:43
Presenter: So, those who remained Catholic were later in the conquest, while the others were more Orthodox. Today, it is even discussed that, for the first time, the majority of the population of Albania may have gone from Muslim to non-Muslim. The national history of Albania was usually written as the history of a people with a Muslim majority; the figures always came out to be over fifty percent.
Doğukan Oruç: I saw that data too. The percentage of those who directly answer “Muslim” has fallen below fifty, but if you add the Bektashis—who are now counted separately—it passes fifty again. In modern censuses, for the first time the answer “Muslim” to the question “What religion do you belong to?” fell below half. But one must also ask how much religion is practiced, given Albania’s recent history.
2:37:44–2:39:06
Presenter: Religion can have meaning as an identity, not necessarily as a dense practice. In many cases “we are Muslims” means: “We are expecting guests for Eid”; “we are Christians” means: “We have Easter and Christmas.” Albanians do not seem like people who often come into conflict with each other over this difference; they have a sense of unity and friendly relations.
Doğukan Oruç: It is like this today and there is such a vein in history as well, but it must be treated with nuance; not everything was always roses. Vaso Pasha said something like: “Don’t call yourself Turk; some of you say ‘I am Turkish’, some ‘I am Latin’. Be brothers and treat each other well.” If there were no problems at all, there would be no need for the nationalist intervention “be brothers”. Religion also varies by region: that of Albanians in Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia has different characters.
2:39:07–2:39:42
Doğukan Oruç: However, there was more tolerance among different religions, especially when the awareness of kinship was preserved. Cevdet Pasha tells comical episodes from the inspection of Shkodra. It was surprising that some tribes had remained Catholic in the mountains, while their cousins had come down to the city about two hundred years earlier and had become Muslims. When the highlanders came down, they would hug and kiss: “Ah, our brothers!” After two centuries, they remembered that they were from the same tribe, the same clan, even though their paths had diverged. Such ties created a more tolerant attitude towards each other.
Presenter: I understand. It turned out wonderfully, professor. Let’s ask the last question.
26 Final questions, recommended resources, and closing
2:39:43–2:40:44
Presenter: The questions are a bit narrow. Someone asks if Albanians had an influence on the Palace cuisine. You might not know, because it’s a very specialized issue—perhaps the question was related to a specific cuisine.
Doğukan Oruç: If I knew, I would answer, but something like that has not caught my attention. I only know one thing that is not related to the contents of the kitchen: the sultan also distributed food from the Palace kitchen and, at one point, ordered it to be distributed to the riflemen. There was a problem there too: they were setting aside portions for themselves and so on, and it was requested that the matter be fixed. These men were a problem in every job—very interesting figures. Albanians must have influenced Istanbul, like any other group; but I have not studied how much the Palace retained those influences. It should be investigated.
2:40:45–2:41:54
Presenter: Thank you very much. It was an excellent show, very rich and I enjoyed it immensely.
Doğukan Oruç: I thank you too.
Presenter: Let’s wait again. Since we found you and as if almost three hours of conversation weren’t enough, let’s ask for some recommendations for sources. If you send us three or four titles on these topics, we will add them as a comment. Dear viewers, definitely read the professor’s thesis; but it would be nice to have some suggestions for Albanian geography.
In closing, I want to say this about the program. During Ramadan, we have increased it and do a live broadcast every week; normally we do it about every two weeks. In the “Bu Bize” series, I want to talk about the story without rushing. Two or three hours is no problem: as much as the guest requires and as much as the topic requires. I think this also has another educational value. Viewers sometimes complain: “How can I watch a three-hour program?” You can follow it from iftar to suhoor or from suhoor to iftar; that’s how the time passes. You can watch it in parts. I ask viewers to set timestamps for the topics; I will also try to add them, so that they can click on the topics and continue more easily. There should also be such a format, because not everything ends in thirty, forty or fifty minutes.
2:41:55–2:43:03
Presenter: Which of these episodes would we end with in a short program? How many more things did you have to show?
Doğukan Oruç: For example, how Tahir Pasha tried to cover up the case when weapons were being stolen from the arsenal… If you go into detail, the events never end.
Presenter: You’re right. People long for history shows with the length and comfort of Tarihin Arka Odası, where you can see a topic without rushing. Our attention spans have become very short and we constantly see compressed things. But shows that you can listen to calmly, not only about history but about any topic that interests us, are exactly what we’re looking for. And viewers, don’t blame us: just like the sandwiches were eaten in Tarihin Arka Odası, we also drink tea, coffee and enjoy various pleasures during the broadcast from time to time. Otherwise, after two and a half hours, our eyes would close; we need them to stay more alert.
2:43:04–2:44:20
Presenter: In the comments they ask: “Shouldn’t we include Ferdi Tayfuri?” May Allah have abundant mercy on brother Ferdi. From this I understand that they follow us on Twitter: “We are still wounded, still wounded.” Twitter followers come out immediately—someone wrote “Leninist, Albanian academic” and so on. I was very pleased; thank you for coming.
Dogukan Oruc: Faleminderit juve.
Presenter: We recommend the professor’s Twitter account and his thesis to the viewers. Find the articles, especially the one about Buddhism, and read them; it’s very beautiful. It takes you mentally to alternative universes: “What would an Ottoman Buddhism look like? Not Buddha, but ‘Hazreti Şakyamuni’…” We will slowly create that world. It also makes you think in this regard. Thank you again. I know I’m forgetting something: as always, it’s important for viewers to like and share the video and, especially, write comments. These are the words I have to say as a YouTuber. See you in the next broadcast.
2:44:21–2:44:55
Presenter: We might have a video this weekend, maybe not—it depends on the workload. Next week, again on Wednesday at 8:30 PM, we hope to be with Professor Harun Korkmaz. When we mentioned Tarihin Arka Odası, he was one of the names that came to mind. We’ll talk about Turkish music with him; I’m announcing him now. Let’s thank the professor once again. Stand by the truth, stand by the law, and be healthy, gentlemen.
27 Book presentation / trailer
2:44:56–2:45:57
Trailer voice: Mysticism is man’s desire to go beyond his limited existence. It is the search for a truth that is known with the heart, felt with intuition, and understood through experience. This book brings together many mystical traditions: from the silent meditations of the East to the esoteric secrets of the West, from the ecstasy of the Sufis to the numerical mysteries of the Kabbalah, from Indian philosophy to New Age rituals. Traditions that seem distant from each other have a single goal: man’s effort to understand himself, the universe, and absolute truth. The book attempts to present the wealth of thousands of years of mystical thought in an understandable and systematic way, through 200 basic concepts. Mysticism in a Few Minutes is both an ideal resource for those who are interested in mystical thought but do not know where to start, and a guide for those who want a short but powerful journey into the universal language of mysticism. Mysticism in a Few Minutes was published by Kronik Kitap.
2:46:16–2:47:20
Trailer voice, repeat: Mysticism is man’s desire to go beyond his limited existence. It is the search for a truth that is known with the heart, felt with intuition, and understood through experience. This book brings together many mystical traditions: from the silent meditations of the East to the esoteric secrets of the West, from the ecstasy of the Sufis to the numerical mysteries of the Kabbalah, from Indian philosophy to New Age rituals. Traditions that seem distant from each other have a single goal: man’s effort to understand himself, the universe, and absolute truth. The book attempts to present the wealth of thousands of years of mystical thought in an understandable and systematic way, through 200 basic concepts. Mysticism in a Few Minutes is both an ideal resource for those interested in mystical thought but do not know where to start, and a guide for those who want a short but powerful journey into the universal language of mysticism. Mysticism emerged from Kronik Kitap in a few minutes.
