Sometimes, sitting still with your eyes closed only makes your thoughts louder. The more you try to look inward, the more stifled you may feel. It is a reminder that seated meditation does not work for everyone. The Persian Sufi tradition took a different path long ago. It turned, made sound and breathed together to journey inward.
Sama: A practice of emptying out through turning
Sama refers to a ritual in Sufism, the mystical tradition of Islam, in which practitioners move their bodies while listening to music and poetry to draw closer to God. The Mevlevi order, which follows the 13th-century Persian poet Jalal al-Din Rumi, placed sama at the center of its practice. Practitioners turn endlessly counterclockwise around one foot as an axis, moving toward a state in which the ego grows faint. Known as sema in Turkey, the Mevlevi Sema ceremony was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008.
The turning may look like a dazzling spectacle, but in practice it is an extremely simple repetition. One palm faces the sky and the other faces the ground. The gesture represents letting whatever is received from above flow onward unchanged. After a few turns, there is no room left to hold on to thoughts. That is usually when the mind begins to quiet.
Zikr: A practice of remembering through sound
Zikr means remembrance or recollection in Arabic. It is a signature Sufi meditation practice in which practitioners repeatedly chant the name of God or a short prayer aloud, occupying a place similar to mantras in the Hindu tradition or Buddhist incantations. Combined with breathing techniques refined over centuries, it became a core practice of Sufi orders.
Repetition is not boredom but a passageway. When the same sound is made again and again, the vocal cords, chest and abdomen vibrate together. The experience is less about hearing a sound than becoming the sound itself. It has long been said that immersion deepens when the practice is combined with turning.
Two hours in Mapo: Encountering the true self through dance and sound
A workshop offering hands-on experience of both practices will be held Saturday, Sept. 12, from 4 to 6 p.m. at Ras Yoga & Indian Dance in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Titled 'Encountering the True Self Through Dance and Sound,' the two-hour session will feature Sama spinning meditation followed by Zikr using breath and sound.
Find the meditation that suits you first
The program includes a seven-type meditation profile assessment. Developed by the LHS Personal Type Research Institute under the name 'Seven Atma,' the assessment examines whether participants primarily identify with thought, emotion or the physical body, then guides them toward a practice suited to their individual disposition. The institute describes it as a transpersonal meditation type assessment. Afterward, participants will spend time discovering their own personal mantra accompanied by the sound of singing bowls.
Two guides whose work spans India and Persia
Nao and Nuri will lead the workshop. Nao is director of the LHS Personal Type Research Institute and completed doctoral coursework in philosophy at Banaras Hindu University in India. Nao has practiced a range of meditation traditions, including Sufism, Vipassana, Zen and Tantra, for more than 20 years. Nuri is director of Ras Indian Dance and a dancer who studied Sufi dance and meditation culture firsthand in Iran and Turkey. Nuri is also a translator of Persian poetry who rendered Rumi's 『The Sun Poetry Collection』 into Korean.
There is little to bring. Comfortable clothing that allows easy movement is enough, and a wide, long skirt can help when turning. The two-hour session is open to anyone seeking to confirm a sense of self through the body and sound, beyond understanding oneself through the mind alone.
[Encountering the True Self Through Dance and Sound] — Persian Sufi Meditation Workshop
📅 Sept. 12 (Saturday), 4–6 p.m.
📍 Ras Yoga & Indian Dance, fourth floor, 49 Dokmak-ro 7-gil, Mapo-gu
💳 Fee: 50,000 won (Hana Bank 287-910107-06-007
🧘 Led by | Nao × Nuri
Tea and snacks provided