An event was organized for the Turkish Whirling Dervishes in the newly opened Amphitheatre of the University where two thousand citizens attended to see the well-known Whirling Dervishes who performed their show that attracted the audience.
This event took place as part of the International Palestine Festival for Music and Dance that has been organized by the Popular Art Center in Ramallah, at the end of the show Dr. Nabel Alwi, Director of the Public Relations Department, stated his appreciation for the efforts of Turkish Whirling Dervishes Group and gave them the university plaque. The International Palestine Festival for Music and Dance was funded by the European Union, Paltel Group, Qattan Foundation and the Goethe Institute.
A Dervish is a Muslim religious man who is undergoing an apprenticeship of learning the profession that will bestow him with eternal livelihood. Whirling is one of the various methods, which is used by the Sufis (Islamic ascetics) to get closer to their revered Allah (God). The Whirling Dervishes perform near the Mevlevi a museum in Konya at the annual Mevlana festival. It is the largest festival in Turkey. The Mevlevi or Mevleviye is the most renowned Sufi order, which was founded by Celaleddin Mevlana Rumi in 1273 and most of the whirling Dervishes in Turkey come from this faith.
Whirling is one of the tools used by Sufis (Islamic mystics) to come closer to Allah, but it's not the only one. Different orders of Sufis apply different practices, including whirling, zikr, and others. The vast majority of whirling dervishes in Turkey trace their spiritual roots to Celaleddin Mevlâna Rumi, who founded the Mevlevi Sufi order in the 13th century. "Mevlâna" means "guide", or "master".