Performing Sufi Disfiguration: Transformation of the self

Abstract

This article will examine how Sufi dervishes’ beliefs, values, and ritual performances relate to the idea of disfiguration as transformation into a kamil (mature) human being as well as how the performance shapes who they are and their relationship the material world. In conflict with the self, the dervish’s body longs for a performative intervention in order to search for a new manifestation of his/her human soul and the physical world. During Sufi ritual gatherings, it is possible to witness extreme acts of physical disfiguration of dervishes’ body parts. Piercing a skewer through the cheeks, eyes, abdomen, or throat is a common practice called burhan, meaning ‘shown proof’ (seeking to prove that the natural laws of the world may sometimes not be valid). With the act of piercing, the skewer becomes part of the dervishes’ body, and the dervish continues to dance with the inserted metal in his body. At first, the disfigured body seems non-human — simply raw material. Yet through a close look at the performance of the ritual as a whole, it is possible to witness that the dervish actually practices the act of skewering for spiritual growth. For dervishes, the act of disfiguration paves the way for the beautification of the nefs (soul) — a performance of the healing of the mind and body.