Sacrifice for the sake of God, roast for the sake of the jar

The term 'tarikat' (Sufi order) is rooted in Sufism and means 'the path.' The goal on this path is to reach God, to grasp the consciousness of attaining Him, and to lead a life in accordance with this. The starting point and immutable law of this path is to turn away from the worldly, not to be deceived by it, to be content with little, to practice contentment, and to distance oneself from the consciousness of pleasure. In religious terminology, the equivalent of this is 'zuhd' (asceticism); the bitter truth is that one of those who have forgotten asceticism today is the Sufi orders themselves. In this respect, most of these orders are in betrayal of their own history; we know this from their lives, their experiences, and their motorcades.

Speaking of motorcades, Cübbeli Ahmet, who has become a community unto himself, lashed out at critics of Sufi leaders in a speech, saying: 'Oh, he got into a Mercedes, he got into a jeep... You scoundrels! What is it to you where a man gets in or out?' These words are also a document of betrayal, a case of the claimant discarding their own claim like trash. We cannot know if the style he uses reveals his identity, but as Cemil Meriç said, 'Your style is your identity.'

As for the 'what is it to you' part, there is certainly a side to the matter that concerns us. A human being is a witness to the age they live in; witnessing requires speaking out with both its rights and wrongs, and we are responsible for our testimony. On the other hand, life is shaped by the influence created by different segments of society; nothing is independent or separate from anything else anymore. Since interaction is inevitable, everyone has a say about everything that affects their life. The legitimacy of speech derives its power from here. 

The issue is not just the decay created by official vehicles. We see this decay almost everywhere religion is institutionalized, especially in Sufi orders, and that is what is truly grave. For although the roots of this decay go back to the early periods of Islamic history, the 'merchant' religious politics could never be prevented. When we say 'merchant,' we must elaborate; we are talking about powers that want to seize dominance in politics, economy, and power relations and use religion for this purpose. These are called merchants; they buy and sell religion. Although they appear to wear religious attire, when we scratch the surface a little, different uniforms emerge from under that clothing. Those who are scholars when speaking suddenly turn into bosses, landlords, and capitalists when living. While prayer books sit in front of them, their minds are on bank transactions, the interests of their companies, and their cash registers. What they say binds them, but what they live binds the truth. The Quran on the tips of the spears was also supposedly opened in the name of God, but the end of the road led to a sultanate. Muawiyah became the Caliph, and Yazid became the prince. 

The rest is well known. It is fair to say that the spears at Siffin never came down; those spears were raised for the privileged classes, the wealthy, and the powerful in different periods of history and now. They built their religion, their creed, and their belief, and furthermore, turned it into an official religious ideology. It reached a point where believers lived under a kind of oligarchy in the name of religion. Those with turbans and those with ties joined forces and mutually protected this order. Because the existence of one was possible only with the other. 

The folk song 'Sacrifice for the sake of God, roast for the sake of the jar,' which we listen to from the beautiful voice of Hüseyin Turan, describes exactly this order. The true masters of that order supposedly believe with their tongues; but their qibla is their stomach, their pleasure, and their ego. They live intertwined with so many idols in a world of temples they have not named.They try to justify this by interpreting it with hadiths and verses as they see fit. You would think that if it weren't for religious texts, they would live like dervishes, spending their lives with one morsel and one cloak. Yet, if they wanted to see, there are verses and hadiths about living in justice and solidarity. Surahs like Hud, Al-Baqarah, and At-Tawbah are concerned with these values. For example, Al-Baqarah 219 says, 'They ask you what they should spend. Say: The excess.' If capitalism has not captured your soul, the limit of your needs is clear. The rest is to be distributed. If you are looking for a ruling from religion to live in humility, this verse alone is enough. As long as you want it. 

Of course, the world life and its ornaments might be what you want. However, even if you take it today, your share in the hereafter will be fire. It is not I who says this, but the Quran. Surah Hud explains that what such people produce in the world goes to waste and that their deeds will be invalid. Naturally, the religion of the oligarchy does not tell these things; it has been this way since the days of the sultanate. 

As we enter another holiday, I wanted to remind you of the religious world created by the ideology of sultanate. I hope the world of faith rids itself of this ideology and adopts a belief and life focused on freedom, solidarity, justice, and sharing as its guide. With this awareness, I wish you a happy holiday.