center news

Hu Bismillah Er Rahman Er Rahim Salaam Aliekum! Precious Ones of Allah; Insh'allah, day by day we are close to unity. May Allah's grace shine in your love, your sincerity, your willingness, and your inspiration of truth in our work. This is the schedule we are working on with each circle: After the symposium, I will share with the classes in Marin and San Francisco on Monday and Wednesday nights. We are planning to hold a zikr in Santa Rosa on Tuesday night March 31st. The three following weekends, I will travel to Eugene, Portland and Seattle to do zikr workshops, on Saturday with a public zikr Saturday night and Sema training with semazens on Sunday. Friday night, April 10, insh'allah, we will have a zikr and initiation of Salih and Gulshen as Ateshbaz in Portland. I am still discussing these plans with the center leaders and when we have confirmed the schedule, we will post the exact times and places. Insh'allah, the time is ripe to share with others the message we are carrying among us. The message is a little bit more love. Sincerely, Your Friend Postneshin Jelaluddin Loras

seattle We meet Monday nights, 7:15, starting zikr at 7:30, at the Ballard Odd Fellows Hall, 1706 NW Market St. People are encouraged to leave their stuff (any kind of baggage) in the dining room outside the turn space, and enter. Hafizullah typically leads the zikr, and often Alfredo plays saz or bendir and I play bendir. Semazens are encouraged to turn in the center of the circle. After the first of the year, the group decided to meet and rent the hall for free turning. Starting with Marla's birthday, people bring the music which to them is sacred, and we turn together in the weeks before we start the class. This year we began the class with a practice Sema at the beginning of February. Throughout the year, we practice Sema once a month, with zikr followed by turn technique on the other weeks, and free turning once a month. After the class, we meet in the dining room for tea and discuss any business or news that needs attention. The new students walk through the ceremony with us when we practice Sema to begin to internalize the different movements and feeling of the ceremony. Acting as Semazen Bashi I also describe as we go through the ceremony what the Postneshin is doing: where he stands, moves and bows. Our technique classes are focussed on the new students, but active semazens attend regularly to refine and polish, and we all seem to learn something.

portland This year in Portland, we took a shorter break after Sema, and kicked off with a public Zikr in mid-January. Other structural changes this year include a public Zikr offered every month (join us on March 15 or April 12, call for other dates), and more music, poetry, zikr, and teachings in our weekly classes. We've come to recognize that teaching the turn is one of several teachings we value, not the only teaching, and we're working to expand what we share in our community. Several from our circle shared turning, music, and poetry at a Unitarian church service in February, It was very beautiful, and very well received. We've been active in learning ilahis, and have been fortunate to have had two singing workshops with Latif Bolat and a drumming workshop with Alfredo Gormezano. This year has been filled with many blessings for us, especially the many old and new friends sharing of themselves in our circle. We are very excited about gathering with our far-flung Mevlevi community for the Sufism Symposium and the Mevlevi Family Camp and Retreat. We meet every Sunday night at 7:00pm at the Sellwood Masonic Temple in Portland at 7126 SE Milwaukie. Please contact Jabbara at 503-331-1222 or Gulshen or Salih at 503-297-3640 for further information. All are welcome! Peace, love, and blessings from Portland, Salih.

san francisco We would like to extend a warm invitation for all to join us for Ayin-I-Jem, zikr and turn practice every Wednesday night from 8-10pm at the Community Music Center, 544 Capp Street in San Francisco. Combining music, poetry and prayers, we have an ongoing spiritual practice which includes the whirling dance and turn practice, led by teachers and semazens of the Mevlevi Order. Beginning with a special evening of music and zikr with Latif Bolat on February 4th, arranged by Shakina Reinhertz, we now have different guests leading zikr, playing music and/or sharing poetry each week. On February 18th Hazur Coughlin was our guest musician with Real La Palme reading poetry and Aysha, his wife, as one of our drummers. The baraka was wonderful and we have other events planned that promise to be just as fulfilling. For information about our meetings or to lead part of the zikr or create a special poetry portion of the evening, please call Susan at 415-647-5245 or Hilal at 415-566-8165. Musicians, please join us any Wednesday. marin county Turn practice will begin on the second and fourth Mondays of the month beginning in April. Please join us at our Semahana for turn and zikr. 781 Bolinas Road in Fairfax. All welcome. Information: 415-485-1573

sonoma county

Turn practice and refinement

Gatherings meet on the 2nd, 4th, and 5th Saturdays 5:30-6:45pm at the UnitedMethodist Church, 500 Main St. in Sebastopol across from Safeway. We meetand practice the Turn before the Dances of Universal Peace. All levels arewelcome including beginners who have never turned before and Semazens whohave turned for years. Each class begins with the basics before moving onto a brief zikr and sharing of poetry and then some free-form turning. Asmall donation is requested but not required. Proceeds go towards rentingthe space with surplus going to the Mevlevi Order of America. We are planninga Public Zikr with Postneshin Jelaluddin Loras on Tuesday, March 31st at7:30pm at Alpine Hall in Santa Rosa:

5380 St. Helena Rd. For more information, please call Fatima (707) 763-4383.