The ritual of the whirling dervishes represents a profound intersection of movement, identity, and spirituality. Through the repetitive and continuous whirling, the dervish enters a state of transcendence, where the body becomes a vessel for divine affection. This act, though seemingly excessive, is a purposeful journey towards detachment from the self, allowing the individual to merge with a greater whole.

n their symbolic attire, black robes shedding worldly concerns and white skirts embodying purity, the dervishes engage in an act of anonymity yet this is not a suppression of identity, but rather a dissolution of it, creating space for a collective spiritual experience.

Within this framework, the whirling dervish ritual forms a unique perspective on carnivals that mirrors the contradictions present in the concept: restraint as a form of pleasure, anonymity by unmasking, and excessiveness leading to a moment of enlightenment. In Eternal Whirl, these symbolic garments and movements are brought into the artwork to evoke the ritual’s essence.