Dervish

Dervish

Beneath the Earth we sit quietly

Hushed in this hollowed-out cavern

Facing the empty central circle

And shiver in the dimly-lit space

Anticipating the Dervish ceremony to come

Until four figures enter, heads bowed

Black-cloaked, hats like tombstones

Devout, focused

They begin to play their instruments

Improvising, building to steady, hypnotic rhythm

Calming, clearing the very air around them

Until the semazen themselves arrive

Arms at first criss-crossed

To testify the unity of God

And intone the Qu’ranic eulogy to the Prophet

Their delicate first movements

Salaaming carefully and exactly

Performing the mystic sufic rite

Describing the spiritual journey

Towards perfection

And of man’s submission of ego

Annihilation of self to his revered God

And ascension towards an ecstasy

The very rapture of being

Then the black cloaks cast aside

Revealing the ego-shrouds

The white skirts of Mevlana

And, slowly, the turning itself begins

Revolving right to left around the heart

Turning ever-faster into whirling

Like the blood around the body

And the protons in the atom

And their own steady orbit around the space

Arms now spread widely open

One hand pointed up towards the sky

The other back down to Earth

Connecting God with Man

Eyes closed in concentration

Heads inclined upon their shoulders

In the spirit, in the moment

Submerged in love

The spinning circulation

Frenzied for a while, then finished

Before returning silently to their cells

For further contemplation

And quiet meditation

Copyright Andy Fawthrop 2013