Alevî Geleneğe Mensup Ocak ve Gruplar Hakkında Yapılacak Araştırmalarda Dikkate Alınması Gerekli Bazı Hususlar
Authors: Üçer Cenksu 
Published: September 2023

First of all, it should be noted that the word "Ocak" in the title of our study refers to the traditional structure based on the Ocak system; the word Group, on the other hand, refers to the new structure that emerged with urbanization. In the past, the “Ocak”s and groups, each of which was known by the name of the Ocak to which they belonged, and today more often used the term Alevi, became a hot topic in the context of identity politics, especially in the 1990s, depending on the developments in our country and in the world. In this framework, there has been liveliness in social and cultural different fields about the subject, and this liveliness has been seen in academic studies. As a matter of fact, many researchers from different disciplines have published studies on the subject. In this context, a lot of research has been done, books have been written, articles have been published, journals have published special issues, and many national and international symposiums were organized. In this process, a new identity construction phenomenon has also been witnessed. Apart from the differences arising from the methodological differences and sensitivities of different disciplines, people’s participation in this process by attributing their personal stances to the Alevi tradition has caused confusion in almost every aspect of the tradition. Based on the fact of structuring different “Ocak”s, from acceptances related to the principles of faith to practices of worship; From manners and etiquettes (âdâb erkân) to some social institutional structures such as “dedelik”, fondness (düşkünlük), brotherhood (musâhiblik), when the differences that arise according to the new situation are added to the differences that traditionally exist among members of tradition in all fields the confusion about tradition has become more apparent. In this context, a number of issues should be taken into account in order to obtain healthy results in studies to be carried out on the “Ocak”s and groups belonging to the Alevi tradition, especially in field studies. It is useful to point out the following main points about these issues. A study about the Alevi-qualified tradition or its members, the “Ocak”s and groups, requires notion and methodology of different social sciences like Islamic theology, history of sects, Sufism, Sufi thought, Sufi history, Sufi literature, literature, history, history of religions, sociology, anthropology, phenomenology, and an interdisciplinary study. Every study should take into account that there is a Sufi and Sufi order (tariqat) life for the members of the Alevi tradition. At this point, the Alevi tradition should be compared with other Sufi schools that are their homogeneous counterparts. In addition, all studies should be carried out by taking into account the structuring of the “Ocak”s in the Alevi tradition. In this context, it should not be ignored that each Ocak is different from each other in terms of membership of the Sufi school and lineage, this difference leads to a different understanding, content, and practices, from the principles of faith to the life of worship, from manners and etiquettes such as cem and semah to some social institutional structures such as “dedelik”, fondness and brotherhood, from naming poems as “deyiş” and “nefes” to works on manners and etiquettes.