Tickets

Bringing children to the whirling dervishes

Children of any age may attend the ceremony at Kasımpaşa Mevlevihanesi; there is no minimum age. But the hall is silent for the whole hour, with no applause and no phones, so it suits children who can sit still and quiet for that long. Hodjapasha and the AKM do not admit children under 7.

Checked against its sources on .

Several whirling dervishes in white tennure skirts and camel felt hats turning in the hall at Kasımpaşa Mevlevihanesi
The white tennure and the camel-felt sikke, the hat that gives this site its colours.

Is it right for your child?

The honest test is the silence. The ceremony runs for about an hour without a break, most of it slow, and the only sounds are the music and the dervishes' soft footsteps. There is no clapping, no talking and no screens. Children who can sit through a school assembly or a concert usually love it; the turning white skirts are hypnotic. Babies and toddlers are harder, and guests have mentioned crying children breaking the spell for everyone.

How to prepare them

  • Tell them what they will see. A hymn, a flute, a slow walk, then the turning, four times. Knowing that the turning comes later makes the wait easier. The order.
  • Give them something to watch for. The moment the black cloaks fall; the right hand turned up and the left turned down; the leader walking among the turning dervishes.
  • Sit near the floor if you can. Children see more from the front.
  • Plan an exit. Sit near the end of a row, and step out quietly if you need to.
  • Use the exhibitions. The lodge's small exhibitions are open before and after, and the dervish costumes are a good way in.

Other venues

If your children are under 7, note that Hodjapasha and the AKM's Sema evening do not admit them. Dinner shows with a dervish act are noisier and more forgiving, though they are not a ceremony. Every option, compared.

Questions people ask

Is there an age limit for the whirling dervish ceremony?
Not at Kasımpaşa Mevlevihanesi. Hodjapasha and the AKM's Sema evening admit children aged 7 and over.
Is the whirling dervish ceremony good for kids?
For children who can sit quietly for an hour and are curious, yes: the turning is mesmerising. For toddlers and restless younger children the silence is hard, and a crying child carries across the hall.
Do children pay?
On this site every seat is the same price, adult or child.

Sources