Students Explore Turkish Islamic Heritage in Konya

Students from 10 countries, including Canada, Norway, the USA and Australia, visited historical sites in Istanbul and Konya, and had the opportunity to get to know Turkish Islamic civilization closely.

As part of the program, the students experienced 'çark atma' (a movement during the Sema where, while turning from right to left, the right foot is not lifted from its place, and using the left foot, the body is turned back from left to right to its original position) at the Sema Workshop of the Irfan Civilization Research and Culture Center in Konya.

In the Traditional Arts Workshops, the students closely followed the activities, and they attended the 'Etiquette' class as well as the 'Meaning of Sema' and 'Meşk' programs conducted here.

Fatih Çıtlak, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Human and Irfan Foundation, stated that they hosted students who receive formal education in their countries as part of a 25-day program.

Çıtlak said, "We thought of bringing the students to this place where the Seljuk and Ottoman cultures are blended and which spiritually contributes to the most beautiful development of civilization. In the tile workshops, they will return to their countries with the works they have completed. The purpose of making tiles is not to create a piece of art. It is to gather the person in one place. A person who cannot gather their body, mind, and soul can never be educated and cannot distinguish between right and wrong. We operate with this philosophy. We try to convey this to our friends with our knowledge and observations."