Map

The Otman Baba Tekke in Haskovo is one of the oldest and most important temples of the Bulgarian Alevi Muslims. It is the resting place of the Alevi saint and miracle worker Otman Baba. The mausoleum is located in the village of Teketo, Haskovo municipality, which was formerly called Otman Baba Tekkesi. The Teke is a heptagonal stone building with a rectangular antechamber. It is 11 meters high and a has a 7.2-meter dome. It is made of white sandstone and has a marble portal. In 1970, Otman Baba Tekke was declared a monument of culture of local importance and in 1976 it was restored. In 1993, the interior of the tomb was decorated with murals, painted by the local artist Alexander Terziev.

Otman Baba was a 15th-century dervish who traveled throughout the Ottoman Empire, acquiring a following among heterodox Muslims in Bulgaria that has developed into his veneration as a saint. After Otman Baba's death, a pilgrimage complex grew around his grave The tomb was built around 1507 under the rule of Sultan Bayazid II. It used to be a part of a larger religious complex, but today only the central building survives.

Pilgrims from all over the world come to the holy place to pray and make sacrifices for health and prosperity, or to cleanse from sin and misfortune. It is customary to leave gifts at the tomb. Christians worship Saint Demetrios at the site. The dervishes worshiped as saints and miracle workers in Bulgaria are also known under Christian names - Demir Baba (St. George) near Isperih, Otman Baba (St. Demetrios) near Haskovo, Kademli Baba (Holy Prophet Elijah) near Nova Zagora, Akyazili Baba (St. Athanasius) near Balchik, Sarah Saltuk (St. Nicholas) on Cape Kaliakra. This is probably because some of the Alevi identify the 12 Apostles of Christ with the 12 Imams, as well as the Apostle Paul with Imam Ali.

Today the Bulgarian Alevi (which are part of the Shiite Muslim community) are between 60 and 100 thousand people who live mainly in the Ludogorie and the Eastern Rhodopes. They are followers of Imam Ali - the cousin and son-in-law of Mohammed. Alevi differ from the Sunni Turks mostly in their perception that the Qur'an contains apparent (Ẓāhir) and secret (Bāṭin) knowledge. "The Qur'an has an outer face and hidden depth, clear and secret, the secret meaning in its turn hides another secret meaning, it is a depth in the depth, similar to the heavenly spheres, each of which contains the next within itself, and so - seven secret meanings," says one of the Prorhet's oral verses. Apparent knowledge reaches men through the prophets, and the esoteric - through impeccable imams endowed with holiness. The first is the calling of Mohammed, and the second - of Ali Ibn Talib.

- Direct visit
- Classroom activity: Examine the shared values and syncretic spiritual practices of diverse religious communities as a basis for tolerance and interfaith dialogue. This could take the form of a discussion and a homework assignment. The topic could also be expanded to a research project encompassing two lessons and two homework assignments. For detailed instructions, refer to Research Project. (https://bit.ly/2vWgylU)