In observance of the 748th anniversary of the death of Mevlâna Jalaluddin Rumi, Seb-i Arus (the “Wedding Night”) ceremonies were held in Konya.  Mevlâna Jalaluddin Rumi, also known as Jalal ad-Din al-Rumi, is venerated as a Sufi poet and a great mystic and philosopher of the Turkish and Islamic world.

This year marked the 84th ceremony, which was held with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Themed as the “Time of Wisdom”, the observances started on December 7, with the visit to the Tomb Shrine of Shams-e Tabrizi and the Time of Wisdom March.

Within the scope of the Seb-i Arus ceremonies, numerous exhibitions, conferences and concerts were organized, and Masnavi trainings were provided in English.

The ceremonies concluded on December 17 with the Sema programme, attended by Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.

This year’s closing ceremony included a Quran recitation, a performance of Sufi music, and a Masnavi discussion.

Seb-i Arus: The Wedding Night

For the Mevleviyeh, the night of Rumi’s urs is called Seb-i Arus or, in Turkish, the “Wedding Night”. Seb-i Arus takes place on the night of December 17, the anniversary of Rumi’s death. The name, “Wedding Night”, reflects Rumi’s perspective on death as “an eternal wedding with God”. Rumi considered God the “greatest love” and the day that he would be reunited with the Creator as “the most blessed day – a wedding night”. For Rumi, the essence of man is a divine gem, and death is the time when man returns to his truth and his essence, to God.

Held since 1937, this annual observance is called The International Reunion Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony, also referred to as Seb-i Arus.

The Mevlevi Semâ Ceremony, held within the scope of the Seb-i Arus ceremonies, was proclaimed a masterpiece by UNESCO in 2005 and was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008. UNESCO also declared 2007, the 800th anniversary of Rumi’s birth, as the “International Year of Rumi”.