Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock
The Al-Aqsa Mosque... the home of prophets, the first kiblah of Muslims and the symbolic stopover of the Miraj journey that is a place of worship...This place of worship which is one of the lasting symbols in our minds has unfortunately been mistaken with the Qubbat-us Sakhra (The Mosque of Omar) which is located right beside it.  The magnificent golden yellow dome of the Qubbat us Sakhra has...

The First Kibla of Muslims: Al-Aqsa Mosque
The Al-Aqsa Mosque is the first kiblah (direction that is prayed to) of Muslims and one of the three places of worship considered most sacred. In Aramaic, the Al-Aqsa Mosque is referred to as Beth Makdesha, in Hebrew Beth Ha-Miqdash and Arabic Bait-ul Maqdis, meaning "Sacred house." These names have remained with it since its establishment was later used to encompass the entire city. The name Al...

Works about Prophet Muhammad in Turkish Religious Music
Turkish music is divided into two categories, vocal or instrumental. Vocal music is further divided into a) religious music and b) non-religious music. The development of the musical form in the Islamic world belongs more to the Ottomans than any other state. Created on the themes of Allah and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) within the framework of the Sufi understanding, religious music is comprised of ...

Sufism and Hadith
In its general meaning mysticism is the name of “a person’s taking a stand against the world and searching for the truth within himself.” In a sense, it is the common aspect of all belief systems and philosophical schools. Together with differences of attitude, there is a mystical understanding in all systems. Sufism is the name of the path to attaining Islamic spiritual life an...

Prophetic Love and Its Social Reflections
The human is a being that questions his raison d’etre, which makes him special and distinguishes him from other beings. When attributing meanings to his world, he tries to explain where his own existence fits in and who and what he is. Religion and religious values occupy an important place in the search for answers to the questions of: “Who am I?” “What are the basic values that make me?” “And w...

The Consideration of Prophet and Sunna within Mawlana Thought
Maulana, who took the fine morality of Prophet Muhammad as his measure, attempted to show in all his works the paths of virtue and skill. When we look at the works of Maulana, in particular the Masnavi we see that he examines the blessing inherent in the sending of a prophet by Allah. In this respect, he likens life in this world to a dungeon and emphasizes that the prophets are the only people w...

Hadith in the pages of the Mathnawi
Listen to the reed flute, its song of separation:   Mawlana Mawlana's Mathnawi shares the internal journey of man and his spiritual evolution through verses from the Holy Qur'an and hadith through various talmih (referencing) involving stories and tales. Talmih is the art of stating one's point in a suggestive fashion, between words and by not revealing it clearly. It recall...

Discovering the Code of Cinema in a Prophetic Anecdote
The miracles bestowed upon the prophets as divine endowments are instruments of test both for themselves and for the people who are subject to divine revelation, and through its contents beacons the horizon to the mankind. The rod given to Moses carries a message for the Pharaoh and his devotees. Besides; the rod which brought forth water from where it struck has inspired people for such works as...

Using Abstractions to Depict the Prophet in Cinema
Interview with film critic İhsan Kabil -Perhaps the first thing that comes to mind on the subject of "Prophets and the Cinema" are films about Jesus. What do you have to say about the approach of Western cinema to Jesus? Ever since the time of silent movies, cinema has approached Jesus' life in a very serious manner. American directors, in particular, depicted Jesus' life and put it on the scree...

"Can our Prophet be Depicted?"
Interview with Turkish film director, screenwriter and producer Mesut Uçakan -How do you evaluate the cinema potential in the Islamic world and how do you find films on the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)? We all know that a serious cinema sector has not developed in the Islamic world and that our dear brothers have not succeeded in this area. We should be one of the most advanced countries in this world...

"The Message is a Materialistic Film"
-Why aren't Muslims able to sufficiently reflect their heritage of faith and cultural values on the cinema screen? Western cinema, on the other hand, is quite comfortable with Christianity, the church and even Jesus... We can say that we are unable to successfully use the cinema not only in the area of religion, but in any area. We are a country that has lived a great rupture in the area of cul...

Will the Islamic World Produce Another "Message"?
A festival by the name Muslimfest has been held in Canada since 2004. The cinema section of the festival is sending a message to all directors who consider themselves liable to convey the Islamic values to the “global” context by making a movie. The deadline for applications is July 28th. Last year no one from Turkey participated in the festival, whereas this year, the only participant is the ama...