The Demystifıcation Of The Mystical Symbiosis: $$b Factionalism Among The Descendants Of Rûmî At TheTurn Of The Twentieth Century

This study delves into the intra-tarīqa schism that erupted in 1910 following thedismissal of ‘Abdülhalîm Çelebi and the subsequent appointment of Veled Çelebi asthe pōst-nişīn of the Konya Mevlânâ Lodge. This factional rivalry, which has so faronly been addressed descriptively in the available literature, warrants an in-depthanalysis within its proper historical context. The central government’s appointmentof Veled Çelebi was the end product of a prolonged and cumulative processin the nineteenth century, during which the intricate interplay between the stateapparatus and Sufi orders underwent a crucial reorientation. This transformativeprocess ultimately reconfigured the prevailing power dynamics, decisively shiftingthe balance in favor of the increasingly centralized and bureaucratized Ottomanadministrative structure. In other words, the modern state formation deterioratedthe traditional mystical autonomy. Nevertheless, the appointment procedure didnot operate smoothly. Unprecedented complications brought the state apparatus tothe brink of a perilous societal crisis in Konya. The supposedly arbitrary decisionto replace ‘Abdülhalîm Çelebi with Veled Çelebi was protested first by those occupyingeminent positions within the Mevlevî order. It then escalated into a relativelylarge-scale popular anti-government demonstration staged by various social segmentsinclusive of artisans, merchants, scholars (‘ulemā), and the gentry (eşrāf ). It is particularlynoteworthy that this discordant faction framed its discursive strategy inthe orbit of the libertarian principles promised by the proclamation of the SecondConstitutional Monarchy. Thus, this study prioritizes a bottom-up perspective overa state-centered approach, which often obscures individual agency.