Hello everybody,

could you please tell me when the most important alevi holidays are and what you celebrate on them (what the occasion is). For exemple, for christans the most important holidays are Christmast and Easter. Do you have any specific meals on these celebrations, etc? And do you celebrate bayriams?

Thank you very much

The most important Alevi "holidays" exclusively (Notice, Alevism is not recognized by the state. So the rituels have only spiritiual meaning for Alevi people) are the day after the fasting for 12 caliphs and soup of Asure.
And yes, we do celebrate the bayram, Kurban Bayrami.
Regarding the Ramadan, it's not relevant to Alevism, however, since we're living in Sunni majority country, people gather together and sort of celebrate it.

Thank you very much for the reply. And as a date of the calnedar, when is this holiday? when is the day after the fasting for the 12 caliphs?

Well,
The day-after the fasting of 12 Caliphs is not a big ceremony at all. Alevi families distribute home-baked bread to other Alevi families in their neighbourhood.. And if there's a Cemevi (Alevi temple) they attend to the religious rituels
This fasting thing is regulated by Islamic Calendar. And since the days in Islamic calendar doesn't correspond accurately to the Christian Calendar, each year this ceremony is held on a different day/month..

By the way, how did you happen to know about Alevism? It's so little known out of Turkey

. And as a date of the calnedar, when is this holiday? when is the day after the fasting for the 12 caliphs?
It's not a celebration..(aim) mourn over the bloodbath of kerbela...
CALENDAR(The first month of the Mohammedan year)..

You're quite right, izmirli! :blush: :wink:

i think We need it, maybe Hz ali birthday or Yavuz Sultan Selim died day :)

Thank you very much for your replies.
By the way, when is the first month of the Mohammedan year, this year?

I am interested in religions and i like to read about different religions and cultures and that is how i came across Alevism. I alos found out that there are Alevis in my country (bulgaria) but they belong to various branches of alevism and i dont know anyone of them. I also found out that in bulgaria is the tomb of Demir Baba - a famous dervish who lived during the XVIth century.

Best regards to all,

Islamic Calendar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_calendar)
Islamic New Year (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_New_Year)

In Balkan countries, there're many people of Alevi faith. Mainstream Islamic thought considers the Alevi faith as heretics. That's why they don't display their identities freely.
I had neighbours emigrating from Bulgaria to Turkey, to my surprise I found out that a fine minority of them are Alevis/Bektasis.
If you go a deep search in your home country, you may find out more about Alevi presence in Bulgaria...

Yes, it is true - there are Alevi people in Bulgaria. I even found out the regions they live in. But very few people in Bulgaria are aware of their existence.

I am surprised that mainstream Islam considers Alevism heretic. I consider Alevism a separate religion. Am I right?

It's still disputed whether Alevism is a separate religion. I, myself, consider it so, but many consider it as a branch of Islam.

Who consider Alevism as branch of islam - alevi people or sunnis in turkey?

Some Sunnis and some Alevis considers it as part of Islam, whereas some of them don't...

By the way, when is the first month of the Mohammedan year, this year?

31 january -12 february(2006)


I am surprised that mainstream Islam considers Alevism heretic. I consider Alevism a separate religion. Am I right?
alevis fast not during ramadan...
alevis do not go to mosques.and so an...
as a result ,alevis allage that by regarding Alevism as a culture rather than as a religion....

since you say that Alevism is a culture rather than a religion - what are the principles of this culture or way of life? What do Alevis do in everyday life that distinguishes them from let's say Sunnis (apart from not fasting during ramadan and not going to msques)? Or maybe i should ask - what are Alevi values?

actually ,I don't mind(culture or belief)..
but alevi culture has been profoundly influenced by humanism and universalism...according to alevi theology(or culture) , the greatest holy book to be read is a human being
alevis' values
1-humanism(essence of human rights)
2-music(folk music)
3-equality(man and women )
4-no dogma's

While the Sunnis follow the four caliphs , Uthman, Abu Bakr ,Omar and Ali, the Alevis follow only , Ali ibn Abi Talib.

Alevism is a panteist belief. Mind your considerations in panteist context.

which pantheism?

-Naturalistic pantheism?
-Biblical pantheism?
-Classical pantheism?.. or Islamic Pantheistic doctrine?

i was about to ask the same question as i was reading about pantheism:) And if it is Islamic panthesim - which one :
- Indigenous Sufism - Syncretisitic: Merges doctrines and concepts from Islam with local religious beliefs and practices ranging from Eastern to Western to local "folk" micro-religions. Very diverse and found predominantly in non-Islamic countries, east and west.
- Hadith Sufism - Traditional: Islam with an emphesis on orthodox forms of Islamic spirituality and mysticism. Essentially orthodox and found predominantly as a subculture within Islamic countries. Sunni or Shia.
- Quranic Sufism - Quranic: Stresses Islamic practice as given in the Quran including prophetism and does not accept the later Hadiths from tradition as equally inspired. Considered non-orthodox or a form of neo-orthodox and found primarily in the west. Influenced by the western Protestant concept of reformation and restoration as applied to Islam. Neither Sunni nor Shia as both are forms of Hadith.

Syncretisitic, I think. Alevism merges several believes nearby regions, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Shamanism, Maniheism..etc..

The death of Yavuz Sultan Selim is the biggest holiday for me.
:biggrin:

The death of Yavuz Sultan Selim is the biggest holiday for me.
:biggrin:
Is it Sultan Selim the first whom you are referring to?
I mean Selim the first who reigned in the early 16th century?
We as Alawites have our own reasons to hate him?
why do you Anatolian Alevis hate him ?

Is it Sultan Selim the first whom you are referring to?
I mean Selim the first who reigned in the early 16th century?
We as Alawites have our own reasons to hate him?
why do you Anatolian Alevis hate him ?

We have our reasons to hate from him as well.

Because he has let murdered almost 750.000 Anatolian Alevis.Therefore,we hate from him.In the early of 16th centuries,it's been thought that %90 of Anatolian people were in belief of Alevism.