Whirling Your Way To Enlightenment

By Leo Gura - November 12, 2018

There are more techniques to get enlightened than most people imagine. Case in point: Turkey’s traditional Whirling Dervishes. Many Western tourists know of this odd-looking ritual, but how many of them know that this is a legit enlightenment technique? Developed by none other than the great Persian mystic Rumi.

Whirling is not just a hokey ritual but a form of active meditation. The spinning is designed to shut off the egoic monkey mind and produce states of ecstatic trance.

Read more about Sufi Whirling Dervishes on Wikipedia.

The symbolism of the ritual is pretty interesting too. The dancer wears a tall thick camel hair hat which represents the tombstone of the ego. The dancer’s white skirt represents the shroud of the ego which must be cast off (sound familiar?). The taking off of the black cloak prior to whirling represents spiritual rebirth into the Truth. The crossing of the arms represents the number one, for the nondual unity of God. The whirling is done around the center of the heart, which represents unconditional love for reality. And mantras are mentally recited while whirling to further still the monkey mind.

If you decide to give whirling a try at home, watch out that you don’t hit anything, or fall down, or faint from dizziness. This can be a physically dangerous technique. You can easily crack your head open. Best to do it out on a grassy field.

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