the Book and Roses: Sufi Women, Visibility, Zikir in Contemporary Istanbul

Is Sufism only a world of poetry, miniature paintings and music and is the repetitive act of chanting 'the most beautiful names of God' an exclusive male matter?The Book and the Roses presents a study of how Sufi women in contemporary Istanbul practice the repetitive zikir prayer and how the seek legitimacy for their activities. The study is based on fieldwork in the 1990s and is focused on one of the many small groups that lately have seen the light of day within the Turkish Muslim movement.Contents:-Encountering Sufism in contemporary Istanbul: introductionI. Access, visibility, and mobility: Islam in Turkey after 1983.- Islam as a lived practice-Out of the fieldII. Gönenli's group: Sufi women constructing rooms of their own.-From a circle of friends to an established endowment-Modern ve Dindar: the life and legends of the HocaIII. "Get exuberant with zikir": women in command of commemorative prayers.-Performing zikir at the Vakıf Merkezi-A Friday afternoon at the Vakıf MerkeziIV Political Sufism and Spiritual Islam-Epilogue