LIVING QURAN OF TURKISH ALEVIS IN THE CONDITIONS OF MODERN SOCIETY

Abstract

Alevis are a heterogenic group which in Turkey identifies itself with Turkish (and Kurdish) ethnicity. Their religious tradition consists of elements of pre-Islamic Turkish culture, Zoroastrianism, Sunni and Shiah Islam (including various Sufi movements), Christianity and even Judaism. Nowadays all their sacred texts gained a written form although they have been passed to new generations in oral way. Among the most respected of those texts we can find poems called duvaz, written by great Alevi poets of 13th–17th centuries. They are recited during religious ceremonies (Tur. cem). A very interesting question is the attitude of Alevis towards the Quran which is believed to have been fabricated by the opponents of Imam Ali. However, Alevis very often talk about a Living Quran (Tur. Canlı Kuran) – zakir, a man who recites during ceremonies duvazs and other prayers. If zakir is the Living Quran his recitations naturally gain the status of the words of the Quran. The Quran is not only the message of God but also a canon of religious and a law rules, it has also status of unchangeable text. The content of duvazs is neither so complete nor unchangeable. Last years many changes were determined by modernization and urbanization of the traditional, rural societies. The institution of zakir changes all along and slips out of the former rules. Oral or lecto-oral knowledge transition must give place to the mass printing and Internet culture. Even today the texts of the prayers and duvazs are being modified in the process of oral transition and even in printed versions due to the fact that they are very imprecise. This does not help to come up with some canon of religious knowledge. Quite opposite: many new versions of the old texts are created. But Alevis still talk about the Living Quran and believe that its contemporary content is identical with the one from centuries ago. In this article the texts recited by zakir during one of the cem ceremonies are analysed to point out their elements describing Alevi doctrine and to explain how their main topics are taught to the participants of the ceremony.