‘Allahı Zikr Edilim’ (Let Us Do Zikr for Allah): The Sabbatian Appropriation of the Sufi Practice of Zikr as Religious Renewal

Abstract

This article introduces the idea of religious renewal as it was manifested in the ritual practices of the Sabbatian Maʾaminim of Salonica – followers of Shabbtai Tzvi who converted from Judaism to Islam during the 1680s, in the footsteps of their Messiah. The religious renewal of the Maʾaminim is demonstrated by the appropriation of the Sufi-Muslim practice, known as zikr, as part of their ritual singing. The appropriation of zikr practices by the Maʾaminim is understood in the context of the rise of this practice throughout all of Ottoman Muslim society, specifically as part of ilahi singing, demonstrating religious innovation in Ottoman culture at the beginning of the modern era.