Tuesday, 18 February 2025

Seljukian Star Engraved in Anatolia

We can see the first examples of the eight-pointed star pattern in Anatolia, which is frequently encountered in architectural works from the Anatolian Seljuk period to the present, in Konya Beyşehir Kubadabad Palace and Alaeddin Mansion in Konya (1156-1192), which is thought to have been built between 1235 and 1236. 



This motif was used in almost all works of that period in Konya, which has been the capital city for many years. It is possible to see this pattern on the tiles exhibited in the historical Karatay Madrasa. Eight-pointed Star and Double-Headed Eagle motifs inherited from the Anatolian Seljuk State to the present day have also found their place in the logos of Konya Metropolitan Municipality, Selçuklu Municipality, Meram and Karatay Municipalities. In the octagonal star pattern, two equal-sized squares refer to two different worlds. One of these squares refers to the material world we live in, and the other to the spiritual one, thereafter. The eight-pointed star has been mentioned in this manner in traditional Sufism beliefs such as Bektashism, Naqshbandi, Yesevism and Qadiriyya.


Over time, it has been accepted that each end of the eight-pointed star symbolizes a virtue, one of the basic principles of Islam. These virtues in many sources are compassion, patience, honesty, keeping secrets, loyalty, humility, generosity and gratitude. It is stated that Seljuks adopted these basic principles in the land they own. 


Another meaning of the eight-pointed star is victory. The eight corners, which include four main directions and four intermediate directions, also mean that victory will be achieved in all directions, in all works undertaken.


The meaning of the number eight


The eight-pointed star also contains the secrets of the number eight in terminology. The branch of science called “EBCED Account” in Turkish-Islamic culture and “numerology” in Europe has attracted the attention of many scientists throughout history. The number has been seen by mankind as an element of harmony between the Creator and the world since the early stages of history. Muhyiddin Ibn’ul Arabi, the author of Fusûsu’l-Hikem, one of the most annotated works in our history of thought, made deep inferences by mentioning the wisdom of numbers. Fusûsu’l-Hikem, which is not a mysticism book in its classical sense, is an original work that aims to base a discipline that Westerners call theosophy and Islamic philosophers call ilm-i divine or marifetullah. 


In the New World Magazine, in his article called “The Mystery of Numbers” Prof.Dr. Kadir Özköse revealed his approach to the mystery of numbers, which he found out in the work of Prof. Dr. Annemarie Schimmel’s Signs of God on Earth - The Phenomenological Approach to Islam-(translated by Ekrem Demirli, Kabalcı Publishing, İstanbul 2004). After emphasizing the importance of certain numbers in Islamic culture, he reveals in what ways the number eight is attributed to the following determinations:


- It is the number of eternal happiness, perfection and eternity in the history of religions.


- The heaven is carried by eight angels: “Angel (s) are on its edges. On that day eight (angels) carry the heaven above them.” (Surah Al-haqqah, 17).



- For this reason, octagonal fountains in the courtyards of mosques are a reminder of Divine Heaven. 


- The fact that Heaven has eight gates, one more than Hell, means that Allah’s mercy is more than torment. 


- Gardens around a shrine are specially arranged in an octagonal shape to remind the heaven. 


- However, each of the books named Gülistan (Rose Garden) or Baharistan (Spring Garden), one of the known works of Turkish Literature, consists of eight chapters each reminding the ideal garden form.