Kebzeh: The Very Basics

Kebzeh is a spiritual tradition that originated in the Caucasus mountains many centuries ago. While Kebzeh isn't necessarily a religion per se, it could be made into one (or several!), according to N. America's leading Kebzeh elder, practitioner and teacher, Murat Yagan, of Vernon, British Columbia.



For the purposes of our learning and practice, and in harmony with the teachings of Murat and his former student (and my teacher) Ya'qub Ibn Yusuf, we shall relate to Kebzeh not as a religion in the conventional sense. Rather, we will regard Kebzeh as a spritual tradition that could potentially shed light on any enduring religion practiced sensitively and with an open heart.

Trinity of Kebzeh
While not to be understood in the Christian sense of the Trinity necessarily describing entities that are "divine," parallels to Christianity are certainly visible in the the following Kebzeh conceptualization of trinity:


 * The Essence = The Father


 * The Witness = The Son


 * The Milieu of Love = The Holy Spirit

The Essence is the innermost. You are the Witness. Love is the Bridge. In other words, it's all you!

This is a central precept of the Kebzeh tradition, which emanates from its Sufi origins. Namely, this entails relating to divinity as an essentially human quality. The Abrahamic religions--Judaism, Christianity, and Islam--conventionally relate to God as an entity external to and separate from ourselves, often depicted as an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent "being." Contrast this to Kebzeh and essential Sufism, which acknowledges God as the essential quality characterizing the human species, as manifest through the Homo Sapiens spirit.

Allahu Akhbar: God is... Greater?
Allahu Akhbar is short for Akhbarumin, which means "greater than". In Sufism, it's not "God is Great," rather "God is Greater." But greater than what? So now finish the sentence. That's the challenge!

Kana'at
Kana'at is an Ottoman Turkish word for acknowledging that what you have is all that you need. In turn, and perhaps paradoxically, instead of restricting you to remain permanently anchored in what you now have, kana'at opens you to actually having more. In Judaism, this is the Rabbinic equivalent of

איזה עשיר? השמח בחלקו. "Having" could relate to the spiritual qualities of expanding human awareness of God, as well as material things that could potentially propel that effort along.

Humbleness, Gratitude, and Love
In essential Sufism, as reflected in the Kebzeh tradition, the completing human being exists in a state of humbleness, gratitude, and love, where:


 * Humbleness leads to Gratitude


 * Gratitude leads to Love


 * Love leads to Trust

The trick is to be happy with your lot, but at the same time, to always expect more! Does this sound paradoxical? Evolving to this state of being requires practice, known in Kebzeh as chili work, roughly the Jewish equivalent of תשובה (teshuva).

Vocabulary

 * Sahib = חבר (friend)
 * Sohbet = a spiritual discussion amongst friends
 * Fakir Allah = a poor person of God; an old word for a Sufi
 * Dervish = the Persian word for a Fakir Allah
 * Bagdadi = school of Sufi thought, marked by pride taken in piety.
 * Nishapuri = another school of Sufi thought, marked by pride in not being proud.
 * Makam = place, מקום
 * Baqa = subsistence
 * Fana = annihilation
 * Marja = God within (Kebzeh term)
 * Melami - A major stream in Sufism, characterized by deep inner engagement with the Spirit, while maintaining a modest, unassuming external appearance. See The Melami Path for further detail.
 * Mevlevi = literally, People of Rumi. Very institutionally oriented, i.e. buy property for holding events
 * Bektashi = no mosques, i.e., non-institutional

This section was compiled from notes taken at a Sohbet that took place on October 30, 2006, in Jerusalem, under the leadership of Ya'qub Ibn Yusuf.