Turkish Popular Mysticism in Bulgaria (On Materials from Four Türbes and Their Patrons) Cover Image
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Турски народен мистицизъм в България (По материали за четири тюрбета и техните патрони)
Turkish Popular Mysticism in Bulgaria (On Materials from Four Türbes and Their Patrons)

Author(s): Lyubomir Mikov
Subject(s): Anthropology
Published by: Институт за етнология и фолклористика с Етнографски музей при БАН

Summary/Abstract: The article dwells on the following türbes – of Malkoch Baba in the village of Burya, Sevlievo region, of Gazi (Ali) Baba near the village of Ryahovtsite, Sevlievo region, of Ayvaz Baba and Tahir Baba in the village of Skobelevo, Pavel Banya region and of Mustafa Efendi, Arda region. The presented data about the four türbes and their patrons, as well as the author’s commentary delineate the following main conclusions: First, the studied türbes expand the net of cult buildings, belonging to the late Sufi architecture in Bulgaria, because they were built in the 19th and 20th c. Two of them – the türbes Malkoch Baba and Gazi Baba – follow the heptagonal model, specific of the Sufi architecture in the Bulgarian lands, which is an example of continuity in the historic development of Sufi architecture in this country. Second, these türbes are founded as Bektaşi – they have Bektaşi origin and Bektaşi past, which is proven by the pointed analogues in connection to their structure, as well as to the oral and written data about their patrons. This also refers to the türbe in the village of Skobelevo, because it was founded by Kizilbashi – a community, which represents one of the two fractions of the Bektaşi order. For that reason the members of the Kizilbash community follow to a great extent its ideology, philosophy and religious practice. Third, the legends, beliefs and notions concerning the supernatural abilities of the patrons of the türbes enrich the miraculous register of the Shiite-Sufi tradition in Bulgaria, which has been preserved until today by Turkish popular Mysticism.

  • Issue Year: XXXII/2006
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 5-18
  • Page Count: 14
  • Language: Bulgarian