I. Who are Alevis? What is Alevism?

I have personally heard or read all of the following statements about Alevis and Alevism:

"An Alevi is any Muslim who loves the family of the Prophet Muhammed."

"An Alevi is simply any democratic, tolerant, human rights-promoting, modern-thinking person, whatever his religious background."

"An Alevi is a filthy, immoral person who is so far from religion that he must first become a Christian before he can become a Muslim."

"Alevism is the original, true essence of Islam."

"Alevism is a heterodox sect within Islam."

"Alevism is the most authentic expression of Turkish Anatolian Islam."

"Alevism is a philosophy, a 'way of life.'"

"Alevism is pure sufism."

"Alevism is pure Shiism."

"Alevism is simply Sunni Islam with an extra emphasis on Ali."

"Alevism is so syncretistic that it can't be counted as Islam at all."

"Alevism is an alternative to orthodox Islam."

"Alevism is an example of the classic Marxist struggle by an oppressed minority."

"Alevism is a mixture of the best elements of Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Manichaeism, Zoroastrianism, Shamanism, and 20th century humanism."

Four Blind Men and the Elephant

All of these opinions are debated today by Turkish and foreign scholars, researchers, and writers. To be sure. not all of these scholars, researchers and writers are objective. In the fascinating social and political climate of today's Turkey, many writers are using Alevis and Alevism as tools to put forth their own ideological agenda.

Actually, the various approaches to Alevism today remind me of the story of the four blind men who encountered an elephant for the first time. Each tried to describe his impression of the elephant to his friends by holding onto one part of the elephant. The first blind man. holding onto the elephant's trunk said. "It's a large, flexible hose." The second, running his hands over the elephant's ears, declared, "No, 1 beg to differ, it is much more like a floppy, thick blanket." The third, wrapping his arms around a leg, cried out, "I'm sorry, gentlemen, but you are mistaken. This thing called an elephant is a very large, ancient tree. I can't even reach all the way around it." The fourth, running his hands along the elephant's body, yelled out. "You men don't know what you're talking about! This elephant is so broad and tall, it's more like a house than anything you've described!"

1,earning about the nature of today's Alevism is much like (lie elephant and the blind men. You may receive as many opinions as the number of persons you ask. It all depends on the perspective of the person with whom you are speaking.