dervish
/'də:viʃ/
Definition
- Noun:
- A member of a Muslim religious order known for asceticism and ecstatic rituals: A dervish is an ascetic Muslim monk or friar, belonging to a Sufi order. They are particularly noted for their devotional practices, which often involve intense physical movements, chanting, or whirling to achieve a state of spiritual ecstasy and union with the Divine.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- The whirling dervish performed a mesmerizing ritual.
- He lived a simple life, much like a dervish, devoted to prayer and meditation.
Advanced Usage
- "Whirling dervish": This specific term refers to a member of the Mevlevi order of Sufism, famous for the ceremony, a ritual dance involving spinning.
- The ceremony of the whirling dervishes is a UNESCO-recognized cultural heritage.
- "Like a dervish": Used figuratively to describe someone moving or acting with frantic, uncontrolled, or spinning energy.
- She cleaned the house like a dervish before the guests arrived.
Variants and Related Words
- Dervishhood (n): The state or condition of being a dervish.
- Dervish-like (adj): Resembling or characteristic of a dervish, especially in terms of spinning or ecstatic movement.
Synonyms
- Fakir: A Muslim (or sometimes Hindu) ascetic who lives on alms.
- Sufi: A Muslim mystic who seeks direct personal experience of God; dervishes are typically Sufis.
- Ascetic: A person who practices severe self-discipline and abstains from indulgence, often for religious reasons.
Related Phrases
- To whirl like a dervish: To spin or move around rapidly and energetically.
- The leaves whirled like dervishes in the autumn wind.
Related Idioms
- A whirling dervish of activity: Describes a person who is a frenzy of busyness or action.
- During the festival preparations, the organizer was a whirling dervish of activity.
Noun
-
an ascetic Muslim monk; a member of an order noted for devotional exercises involving bodily movements
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