Ashâb-ı Kehf Call text

CALL TEXT OF THE INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM OF ASHÂB-I KEHF (COMPANIONS OF CAVE-SEVEN SLEEPERS) AND LICE

Ashâb-ı Kehf (Companions of Cave-Seven Sleepers) incident is an accepted issue in Islam as well as in other religions. The fact that the 18th Sura of the Quran is called "Al-Kahf" and the part between the 9th and 26th verses of Surat al-Kahf describing this event clearly shows the importance of the issue. According to these verses, some young people believed in the existence and unity of Allah (The Almighty God) and opposed the idolatry belief of their people. These young people, who wanted to avoid being stoned to death and forced conversion, took shelter in a cave with their dogs, fell asleep there and woke up 309 years later. Thinking that they only slept for a day or half a day in the cave, these young people gave silver money to their friend and sent him to the city to buy food. The public became aware of the situation on the occasion of this young man who went to the city.

In the Quran, there is no clear information about the number of Companions and the cave where they took refuge. However, there are allegedly thirty three different caves in history records of different countries ranging from Spain, Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Afghanistan, Eastern Turkestan and Turkey. Four of these are in Turkey; located in towns named Selçuk (Ephesus) in Izmir, Tarsus in Mersin, Afşin in Kahramanmaraş and Lice in Diyarbakır.

Although various scientific studies have been conducted in other parts of Turkey on Ashâb-ı Kehf and the caves which they stayed in, there are no extensive studies on the Ashâb-ı Kehf located in Lice district of Diyarbakir. However, according to some experts the Ashâb-ı Kehf Cave here, fits very well with the characteristics indicated by the Quran. For example, in the 17th verse of Surat al-Kahf, "(Oh My Messenger! If you were there) And you would have seen the sun, as it rose, inclining away from their cave to the right, and as it set, declining away from them to the left, (thus) they would sleep in a corner of the cave (without being disturbed by the sunlight).” In accordance with the description in the 17th verse of Surat al-Kahf, the sun hits the right of the cave as it rises, the light does not enter the cave and enters and exits the cave when the sun sets.

It is known that since ancient times, there has been a settled life in the Lice region where the Ashâb-ı Kehf Cave is located. Assyrian inscriptions found in Lice shed light on 7000s BC. According to historical sources, states such as Huri-Mitannis, Assyrians, Urartians, Medes, Persians, Macedonians, Parthians, Eastern Rome (Byzantine) ruled in the region in the pre-Islamic period. The region came under Muslim rule during Khalifa Omar period. In the following years, the region remained under the rule of Muslim states such as Umayyad, Abbasid, Merwanid, Great Seljuk, Artuqid, Ayyubi, Anatolian Seljuk, Aqqoyunlu and Safavid. It came under Ottoman rule in 1517 and has been located within the borders of Diyarbakır province until today with different administrative status.

In this symposium, in addition to the incident of Ashâb-ı Kehf mentioned in the Qur'an, it is aimed to bring together scientific and academic research related to Ashâb-ı Kehf, especially within the borders of the district of Lice, and reveal the place of the Lice in history from different aspects. In addition, it is aimed to promote the region and make it a part of faith tourism.

Possible topics that can be presented in the symposium in the context of the main theme Ashâb-ı Kehf and Lice are as follows:

Ashâb-ı Kehf (Companions of the Cave-Seven Sleepers):

Ashâb-ı Kehf in the Holy Quran

Ashâb-ı Kehf in other divine religions

Ashâb-ı Kehf in history sources

Ashâb-ı Kehf in the world

Ashâb-ı Kehf in Turkey

Ashâb-ı Kehf in Lice

Lice in History

Political history

Urban History

Economic History

Biographical History

Education History

Socio-Cultural Structure:

Daily life

Scientific Life

Religion / Faith

Language and Literature

Art / Craft

Architecture (Civil / Religious)

Economic Structure:

Tourism / Faith tourism

Agriculture and Livestock

Trade and Industry

Geographical Structure:

Physical geography

Space Design

Urbanization and Earthquake

IMPORTANT DATES

Acceptance of Abstracts: 15 November 2020 - 15 January 2021

Announcement of Accepted Abstracts: 20 January 2021

Deadline for sending the Full Papers: May 1, 2021

Announcement of the Accepted Full Papers: 10 May 2021

Symposium Days: 26-28 May 2021

CONTACT

Dr. Abdusselam ERTEKİN, licesempozyumu2021@gmail.com

Res. Asst. Abdullah CENGİZ, licesempozyumu2021@gmail.com