ISTANBUL
Daily tours will start on Sunday from Istanbul’s holy district of Eyup, which hosts the tomb of one of the Prophet Mohammed's companions, to the central Konya province, home of 13th-century Muslim scholar Mevlana Jelaluddin al-Rumi.
Eyup municipality aims to make the two sacred sites closer to Muslims by organizing free tours via a high-speed train which links the two provinces. Starting from March 15 to July 15, those who want to join these tours need to be ready at 05:30 am local time (0330GMT) every day in the Eyup district.
Stressing the importance of spiritual tours in order to create cultural awareness, Eyup mayor Remzi Aydin invited residents of all ages to take part in the journey.
The tomb of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, a companion of the Prophet Mohammed, is one of the most sacred places in Istanbul, while Konya is described as "the center of Mevlevis," sometimes known in English as Sufis.
Sufis follow a school of thought in Islam by the Muslim scholar Rumi, who was born in 1207 in Afghanistan and died in 1273 in Konya.
Each year during mid-December, thousands of people gather in Konya to see performances of whirling dervishes on the anniversary of Rumi's death. Turkey’s president and prime minister also attend these ceremonies.
