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Magical Representation of Hopes and Dreams: the Talismanic Shirts of Murad III
Abstract
Despite the existence of a rich collection of texts written on talismans and magic in Ottoman Turkish, these texts have not been studied in depth yet. A few recent studies on the topic present basic information about material artifacts, seals with the names of preeminent Sufis such as Abdu’l-kadir Geylani and Ahmed el-Rufa‘i, talismanic caps, shirts, skullcaps, and healing rods, without providing a deep analysis of the use of the talisman and magic among Ottoman Sufis or the relationships of these practices to wider trends in Ottoman culture. The present study examines the talismanic shirts prepared for the Ottoman sultans, in particular the shirts of Murad III (r. 1574-1595) who was a devoted disciple to a Halveti master. After a brief introduction to the talismanic shirts prepared for the Ottoman sultans, the motifs, symbols, and Divine words in the talismanic shirts produced for Murad III are analyzed. What kind of results would we encounter if we read his shirts in a conversation with the texts he commissioned, as well as with his dream accounts that he sent to his spiritual master in letter form? Were his shirts mainly meant to function to protect or bring him good luck, or were they loaded with a deeper meaning reflecting the expectations and hopes of the sultan’s subjects? The study discusses heavily loaded symbols on Sultan Murad’s shirts and his response to the expectations carried by these symbols. Since Murad was a devout Halveti disciple, a close reading of his talismanic shirts and the symbols on them will assist us to better understand the relationship between Sufism and occult sciences in Ottoman culture.
Discipline
Religious Studies/Theology
Geographic Area
Ottoman Empire
Sub Area
13th-18th Centuries