A Brief History of The Struggle Between Gonabadi Dervishes and the Islamic Republic of Iran (2005 - 2018)

Year 2021, Volume: 5 Issue: 2, 337 - 359, 31.12.2021

Oral Toğa

https://doi.org/10.33201/iranian.962499

Abstract

The Gonabadi Sufi Order is one of the three main branches of the Nimatullahi Sufi order that was originated by Shah Nimatullahi Wali in the 14th and 15th centuries. The Dervishes, the best known of its followers, assert that they believe in peace, security, and equality and avoid violence and politics. The constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran is officially based on the "Twelver Shia" and only recognizes a small minority as a religion officially. In spite of this, even though they describe themselves as the "Twelver Shia", they reject the principal foundations of the Islamic Republic of Iran's official religion. As a result, dervishes were declared as "heretics" by the state. After the Revolution, especially after 1995, systematic attacks have intensified on members of the order and their Hosseiniyeh, where they performed their religious rituals. The Hosseiniyeh in Kerman was the first place to be attacked; the Hosseiniyehs in Qom, Tehran, Karaj, and Borujerd were also attacked and destroyed. Eventually, the scale of the attacks was expanded to the tombs of the prominent figures of the Gonabadi order. These conflicts increased in intensity after 2005, in Ahmadinejad's presidency, and caused social outrages that resulted in death at various times. In this study, the background of these fierce conflicts will be examined and the history of the conflict will be conveyed. The events that led the dervishes, who define themselves peaceful at every opportunity, to such violent conflicts with the state will be perused. In addition, the reasons why the state sees these dervishes as an internal enemy will be examined.

Keywords

Iran, the Gonabadi Dervishes, Sufism, Shia, the Nimatullahi Order

Gonabadi Dervişleri ve İran İslam Cumhuriyeti Arasındaki Çatışmaların Kısa Tarihi (2005 - 2018)

Abstract

Gonabadi Dervişleri, Şah Nimetullahi Veli tarafından 14 ile 15. yüzyıllarda kurulmuş Nimetullahi Tarikatının üç ana kolundan birisidir. Halk arasında “Dervişler” olarak bilinen Gonabadiler kendilerini barışa, güvenliğe ve eşitliğe inanan, şiddet ve siyasetten uzak bir grup şeklinde tanımlamaktadırlar. Her ne kadar kendilerini On İki İmam Şia’sından tanımlasalar da İran İslam Cumhuriyeti’nin politik temellerini teşkil eden ve anayasasında da bulunan temel unsurları reddetmektedirler. Bu sebeple Dervişler devlet tarafından “sapkın” ilan edilmiştir. Devrim’den sonra, özellikle de 1995 sonrası gelişen süreçte bu grubun mensuplarına ve dini ibadetlerini gerçekleştirdikleri Hüseyniyelerine sistematik saldırılar yoğunlaşmıştır. İlk saldırı Kirman’daki Hüseyniyede gerçekleşmiş, ardından Kum, Tahran, Kerec ve Burucerd’teki Hüseyniyeleri saldırıya uğrayarak yıkılmıştır. En sonunda saldırıların ölçeği Gonabadi Dervişlerinin önemli isimlerinin mezarlarına kadar genişleyerek bu mezarlara saldırılar gerçekleşmiştir. Ahmedinejad’ın cumhurbaşkanı olduğu 2005 yılı ve sonrasında Gonabadiler üzerindeki baskı artmış ve gerilim yıldan yıla tırmanmıştır. 2005 ile 2018 yılları arasında yaşanan irili ufaklı birçok olay neticesinde çok sayıda derviş tutuklanmıştır. 2018 yılında yaşanan olaylar bu tırmanışın zirve noktası olmuştur. Bu çalışmada, bu şiddetli çatışmaların arka planı incelenecek ve çatışmanın tarihi aktarılacaktır. Kendilerini her fırsatta barışçıl olarak niteleyen Dervişlerin devletle neden sorunlar yaşadığı ve devletin de Dervişleri neden bir “iç düşman” olarak nitelendirdiği detaylıca irdelenecektir.

Keywords

İran, Gonabadi Dervişleri, Sufizm, Şia, Nimetullahi Tarikatı

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