Суфийский ритуал Сама: Медитация, танец и духовное преображение.

Sufi ceremony performed as part of the meditation and prayer

Sama (Sema; Persian, Urdu and سَماع) is a Sufi ceremony performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice dhikr. Sama means "listening", while dhikr means "remembrance". These performances often include singing, playing instruments, dancing, recitation of poetry and prayers, wearing symbolic attire, and other rituals. Sama is a particularly popular form of worship in Sufism. In 2005, UNESCO confirmed the "Mevlevi Sama Ceremony" of Iran as one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

The term sama stems from the root verb meaning acceptance by tradition, from which are derived the words سَمْع (sam‘un) and اِسْتِمَاع (’istimā‘un, listening), often paired with نَقْل (naqlun) and تَقْلِيد (taqlīdun, tradition). It may have been in use since the tenth century to refer to a type of dhikr (remembrance of God), a ceremony used by various Sufi orders, particularly the Chishti order of the sub continent. It often involves prayer, song and dance. An alternative etymology for Sema may be the Greek σῆμα sêma, which means tomb, significant or signal (e. g., semantics, polysemy).

The origination of Sama in the Mevlevi Order of Sufis is credited to Rumi, Sufi master and creator of the Mevlevis. The story of the creation of this unique form of dhikr is that Rumi was walking through the town marketplace one day when he heard the rhythmic hammering of the goldbeaters. It is believed that Rumi heard the dhikr, لا إله إلا الله "la ilaha ilallah" or in English, "There is no god but Allah" in the apprentices beating of the gold and was so entranced in happiness he stretched out both of his arms and started spinning in a circle (sufi whirling). With that the practice of Sama and the dervishes of the Mevlevi order were born. Similarly, Abu Sa`id, (357 A. H.) (967 C. E.) was born in Mayhana, a town near Sarakhs, in Iran, bordering Turkmenistan. He is noted for establishing a rule for conduct in the khanaqah and also for the introduction of music (sama'), poetry and dance, as part of the Sufi collective devotional ritual of dhikr.

The Whirling Dervishes of the Mevlevi order are probably the best known practitioners of Sama. Mevlevi practitioners of sema are adult initiates into the order, which historically only meant men. Participants move as a group in a circle while also turning each individually. Art is "self expression" and Sama is "selfless expression" an experience of "fanaa". Fanaa (Arabic: فناء‎ fanāʾ ) in Sufism is the "passing away" or "annihilation" of the self.

Sema is prominent in the ceremonies of the Alevi community of Turkey and the closely related Bektashi Order. The most common forms of Alevi sema include kirklar semahı (sema of the forty) and turnalar semahı (crane sema). They are performed by both male and female teenagers, often in mixed groups, and participants turn facing each other in pairs or small groups and do not necessarily whirl as individuals. Many cemevleri (Alevi meetinghouses) have organized sema groups that perform at events such as the annual Hacı Bektaş Veli Festival.

In Egypt, the Mevlevi form of Sama is known as tannoura and has been adopted (with some modifications) by other Sufi orders as well. It is also performed as a folk and concert dance.

The Sama represents a mystical journey of man's spiritual ascent through mind and love to perfection. Turning towards the truth, the follower grows through love, deserts his ego, finds the truth and arrives at perfection. He then returns from this spiritual journey as a man who has reached maturity and a greater perfection, so as to love and to be of service to the whole of creation. Rumi has said in reference to Sama', "For them it is the Sama' of this world and the other. Even more for the circle of dancers within the Sama' who turn and have in their midst, their own Ka'aba." This relates Sama' to the pilgrimage to Mecca, in that both are intended to bring all who are involved closer to God.

Sama emphasizes singing, but also includes the playing of instruments, particularly for introductions and accompaniments. However, only instruments which are symbolic and not considered profane are used. The most common of these are the tambourine, bells, and flute. It often includes the singing of hymns, called qawl and bayt. Poetry is often included in the ceremony as well, because while it is inadequate by itself, it works together with aid in spiritual contemplation. Any poetry, even the erotic, can be applied to God, and thus used for this ceremony. However, the listener's heart must first be pure, or the dancing components of sama' will make these people full of lust instead of love for God. Additionally, being in love with a person rather than with God clouds a person's mind when they are listening to erotic poetry. The immediate goal of sama' is to reach wajd, which is a trance like state of ecstasy. Physically, this state may include various and unexpected movements, agitation, and all types of dancing. Sometimes, the experience of wajd becomes so strong that fainting or even, in extreme circumstances, death, occurs.

Participants in sama are expected to remain silent and still, and controlled throughout the ceremony, unless wajd occurs. Opponents find music a heretical innovation or bidah and associate it with infidelity. They compare the physical sensations experienced by a person in the state of wajd to a state of physical drunkenness, and therefore do not condone it.