Truth Gallery

Persian Dervish - Paris Exhibition

Persian Dervish at the Paris Exposition in 1900. Dervish or Darvesh in Persian usually refers to a person who is a seeker of the truth i.e. universal truth'. Within the Islamic tradition such people are often known as Sufis, Sufi, people of the way or mystics and they come from every strata of society; here monetary considerations are inapplicable since the situation is that of a deep personal inner spiritual longing. There are in existence a number Sufi Orders many of which bear the name of a great saint and within these orders various practices have continued over the centuries in order to assist generations of seekers whose desire is to be brought to reality itself. It is said that the number of ways to reality/truth exceeds the number of grains of sand on the beach. It may be noted that this infinite number of ways to truth can even start at a point beyond religion, ultimately the truth is an univeral quality."

© Mary Evans Picture Library 2015 - https://copyrighthub.org/s0/hub1/creation/maryevans/MaryEvansPictureID/10269924

Woman is displeased by her portrait photograph

A woman criticises a photographer after viewing the portrait he has captured of her. She believes he has manipulated her appearance, changing the shape of her nose and the size of her mouth. The photographer is stood patiently beside his camera as he confidently knows he has not altered her appearance. Date: circa 1855

© Mary Evans Picture Library

Wandering Dervish - Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sahin (Sajahin) a Wandering Dervish from Bosnia and Herzegovina. Dervish or Darvesh in Persian usually refers to a person who is a seeker of the truth i.e. universal truth. Within the Islamic tradition such people are often known as Sufis, Sufi, people of the way or mystics and they come from every strata of society; here monetary considerations are inapplicable since the situation is that of a deep personal inner spiritual longing. There are in existence a number Sufi Orders many of which bear the name of a great saint and within these orders various practices have continued over the centuries in order to assist generations of seekers whose desire is to be brought to reality itself. It is said that the number of ways to reality/truth exceeds the number of grains of sand on the beach. It may be noted that this infinite number of ways to truth can even start at a point beyond religion, ultimately the truth is an universal quality. Date: circa 1910s

© Mary Evans / Grenville Collins Postcard Collection