Çatalhöyük and the Whirling…
There is so much to say about yesterday.
I know that things I’m part of sink in quicker and a little deeper than experiences I have where I am mainly an observer, but my dream last night shows me that one of the two extraordinary experiences we had has reached a little deeper already.
Theo had wanted to visit Catalhoyuk in Southern Turkey since he fully decided he was coming on this trip and yesterday we actually managed to go there.
Every time we go somewhere new it’s like watching something that has only been two dimensional so far, suddenly becoming real… With all the awkward questions of: where is it actually? …which bus do we need to take? (…of the forty or so in the bus station that turns out to be 300 yards away from where the map said it was!) …how much is it to get there (five times more than the Lonely Planet guide said it was) …and how far is it to walk through the blistering heat when it turns out it’s in the middle of nowhere and the bus only gets you to Cumra (fifteen kilometres away)? …all of this thrown in to the mystery and magnificence that, in this case, is the experience itself.
Catalhoyuk (pronounced Chatalhoyk if you ever come here 🙂 is an archaeological site where a town of between 5000 and 8000 people lived over 9000 years ago… It’s the oldest discovery of Neolithic life so far. The people who lived in this town lived there for over 1000 years, and then they built their new town just a few hundred yards away…
The archaeologists have discovered no signs of hierarchy, no signs of gender inequality, no signs of war, or of governance and if they had gods they were nature based and goddess inspired. The most significant thing for me though, was that they buried their dead under the floors of their houses. Literally living with their ancestors…
The truth is I can see no reason why not…we don’t know how they did it exactly (there were some cool drawings of vultures and headless people so they might have laid the main part of the body out for the vultures to pick clean but kept the head/skull which in some cases they painted and moved with them through the layers of house building …total speculation here though there though!) …but the desire to keep the people we love close is one I really understand…not sure what the Daily Mail would say about burying grandad under the floor of the flat in London but it made me think.
There was a lot about the way they built their homes and structured their lives that was interesting and unusual but what has stayed with me is the small child buried in the floor of the house, buried with beads and precious things…kept close.
…and then, after we’d made it back on the various taxis and buses, and through the heat of the wide and rather beautiful streets of Konya, we had to decide if we were up for another experience (two in one day!) The hostel had said to go to one of the museum/cultural centres over the other side of town – ‘you should go!’ …so why not?
We had no idea what to expect but it turned out to be a Sufi ceremony…we were in a beautiful building inside a round wooden lined room, beautifully lit with four rows of people seated …a hush settled as the robed musicians moved into place, (only slightly marred by the over zealous techie guy crashing about as he moved equipment and checked levels – they have them the world over it turns out 🙂
The singing was strange and haunting, the flute ethereal and wide, representing the calling into existence of all things according to the thoughtful translation on the screens cleverly placed at intervals on the first floor… Eight men then walked out into the centre of the stage in the same dark robes and tall hats as the musicians.
Telling it how I saw it, the old man holding the ceremonial space reminded me of Master Oogway in the Kung Fu Panda films, gently swaying to the music and radiating well being and gentle trust and whilst that may not sound very profound I really saw the wise old tortoise in him…the theme of our ceremony was listening and I love listening to Master Oogway…
The ceremony was full of slow deliberation, and in several parts, explained by the translation…we watched and listened and then the musicians and three other voices all joined in with our solitary singer as six of the men took off their black robes to reveal the white traditional dresses of Sufi dervishes. We were about to see whirling dervishes!
It actually was incredible – the whirling was full of devotion and quiet personal rapture… their white skirts swirled to the powerful sounds of the four men singing and their arms slowly raised as they continued to whirl and whirl…
…and, I have to say, there was no small amount of skill involved! They had their eyes closed and didn’t bump into each other once, or fall over…human beings are capable of some extraordinary things and whirling is definitely one of them!
We didn’t understand the full significance of what we had seen, but we all felt a little different as we walked out into the warm night air. Touched by our day…
…as I lie here now, in my very hot dormitory contemplating the journey to Erzurum on an overnight sleeper (without beds because they were all booked!) I am wondering if I should make the effort to go and visit Rumi’s shrine… I looked up where it was on the internet and the first quote I saw was this:
‘Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.”
… and I love to walk so I’m going 🙂
We will be out of touch for a few days as we travel the 900 or so miles to Tbilisi but we will be back in touch soon 🙂 …and thanks so much for taking the time to read these posts and write comments – it really does feel like you are with us!
What a wonderful day … I’ve been watching videos of Catalhoyuk discoveries … fascinating – safe easy travelling & Love to you all <3
Love you darling sister. Following avidly. Hope Rumi’s shrine was worth the walk xxx
reading your posts is like a delicious banquet friends have lovingly prepared… I try not to gobble the dishes, but savour every course (well words in your case) …. I’m loving your adventures xxx
Wow! What an amazing day…. Two experiences, both profound in their own (very different) ways. I’d love to see the whirling…. And I’m so glad that you saw it.
I hope the next stage if the journey goes easily and that you are blessed with helpful, kind people along the way. Looking forward to hearing the next stories.
Good morning to you intrepid travellers and very best wishes for a Beautiful, Fun, Awe-inspiring, Gentle, Easy, Sunny, Gastronomically Satisfying, Spiritual, Fulfilling, Blessed and (of course) Happy Birthday to you Shan!! Much love is winging its way to you
Hope you had a whirling dervish of a birthday. Oodles. ❤️
So glad you enjoyed Turkey, Cappadocia was amazing when I visited. The whirling dervishes were great too. I hope Rumi’s shrine was Sacred too. Interestenly I heard about a sacred burial here that goes on in colorado that involves the vultures taking your body from the top of the mountain when it’s dead of course. I think it’s chopped into pieces first.
Love reading your writing