Mevlevi Sema Ceremony

Mevleviye sema ceremony was originally a round dance played by the male followers of Islam Mawlawi in cult service in the evening at Fridays. The basic acts only comprise ceaseless whirling. It's astounding that every whirling span lasts for 30 to 60 minutes.

The Mevleviye is an ascetic Sufi order founded in 1273 in Konya， from where it gradually spread throughout the Ottoman Empire. Today， the Mevleviye can be found in many Turkish communities throughout the world， but the most active and famous centres of the order’s activity are in Konya and Istanbul.

托缽僧舞本是伊斯蘭教毛拉維教派的男信徒們每周五晚在禮拜儀式上跳的圓舞，基本動作很簡單，就是無休止地旋轉，但每次旋轉的時間卻長達30到60分鐘，令人瞠目。

Mevlevi是蘇菲派的苦行修士會，于1273年在康尼亞創立，并從那里傳遍奧特曼帝國。今天，全世界許多土耳其社區仍有蘇菲派苦行修士，其中最為活躍和著名的地方仍是康尼亞和伊斯坦布爾。

The Mevleviye are renowned for their whirling dances. At their dancing ceremonies， or Sema， a particular musical repertoire is played. Based on four sections of both vocal and instrumental compositions， it is performed by at least one singer， a flute-player， called neyzen， a kettledrummer and a cymbal player. The earliest musical pieces originated from the middle of the 16th century， which combined the tradition of Persian and Turkey music. The musical repertoire was expanded gradually and took shape prior to the early 20th century.

Dancers used to receive 1，001 days of reclusive training within the mevlevi-houses (mevlevihane)， where they learned about ethics， codes of behavior and beliefs by practicing prayer， religious music， poetry and dance. After this training， they remained members of the order but returned to their work and families.

蘇菲派苦行修士以其圈舞著稱。在舞蹈儀式（Sema）上，每次都要演奏“阿音”，它是特別的保留曲目。音樂包括四個部分，器樂部分是對比的節奏型，至少由一名歌手、一名長笛演奏者、一名定音鼓鼓手和一名鐃鈸手來表演。最早的音樂作品發源于十六世紀中期，結合了波斯和土耳其音樂的傳統。保留曲目被不斷擴展，在20世紀早期之前形成雛形。

舞蹈者將在一處修道院中接受1001天的隱居式的訓練，在那里通過祈禱、宗教音樂、詩歌和舞蹈，學習倫理觀、行為準則和信仰。訓練之后，他們仍是教會中的一員。回到他們的工作和家庭中后，則將世俗生活與靈性結合在一起。

Following a recommended fast of several hours， the whirlers begin to rotate on their left feet in short twists， using the right foot to drive their bodies around the left foot. The body of the whirler is meant to be supple， with eyes open but unfocused so that images become blurred and flowing. As a result of secularization policies， all mevlevihane were closed in 1925.The Turkish government began to allow performances again， though only in public， in the 1950s， restrictions were eased in the 1990s. Some private groups are re-establishing the original spiritual and intimate character of the Sema ceremony.

在數小時的禁食后，旋轉者開始以左腳為支撐，用右腳作為動力腿做短暫的旋轉。旋轉者的身體應該是柔順的，眼睛睜開但不能聚焦，以免視線模糊、流動。舞蹈儀式在巨大圓形的房間舉行。1925年還俗政策的結果是所有的修士會教堂被關閉。許多教眾在私人聚會中仍保留了他們的傳統。30年后，土耳其政府又開始允許這種表演，但只能在公共場合舉行。上世紀90年代后，約束松懈，私人團體再度出現，這些私立團體希望能重建原有的精神和該舞蹈儀式的隱秘特色。

Links:

鏈接：

Bridging over Europe and Asia and influenced by both culture of the East and the West， Turkey is endowed with unique charm. \"King of Dance--'fire of heat'\" was once a metaphor of Istanbul (a famous Turkey city). Viewing it is like taking a walk in that city where you can experience the crash and merging of the two cultures.

土耳其地跨歐亞，受東西方文明的影響，讓它魅力獨具。來自土耳其的《舞之王“熱情之火”》，曾被比喻成伊斯坦布爾（土耳其著名城市）。看這場舞蹈，就如同行走于那座城市，隨時能感受到東西方文化的碰撞與交融。

Mevleviye dancers whirled composedly over and over again. A dozen of dancers clad in fluorescent clothes led the viewers into the lithe and graceful kingdom of dance…then， ancient fairy tale， religious rites and modern cultural collision unfold one by one. During the two-hour performance， the troupe spares no effort to demonstrate the merging process of the culture of Persia， Arab， Byzantium， Osman， China and the West.

\"Fire of heat\" is delicate， exquisite and nimble. It is worth mentioning of its masterpiece -- the \"belly dance\". Led by the heroine， dancers wave their bodies， emitting sex appeal， lively rhyme and aesthetic feeling.

在表演期間，托缽僧們沉著自若又生生不息的旋轉，十余位舞者身著熒光舞衣，帶領觀眾進入曼妙的舞蹈王國……隨后，古老的神話故事、宗教儀式，現代的文化碰撞，一一展開。在兩個小時的表演中，主創人員將全力展現波斯、阿拉伯、拜占庭、奧斯曼、中國文化和西方文明的融合過程。

“熱情之火”精致細膩，緊湊靈活。其中最值得一提的，當然是其拿手好戲———“肚皮舞”。在宛如舞神的女主演帶領下，眾多舞者一起舞動她們的身體，既性感又極富生命韻律，給人健康的美感。