01 Ajvatovica Islamic tradition pilgrimage in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Ajvatovica ( sr-cyrl, Ајватовица) is the largest

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

ic traditional, religious and cultural event in Europe. It is located near

Prusac Prusac ( sr-cyrl, Прусац) is a village in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is one of the oldest villages in the Skopaljska valley located in the upstream area of the Vrbas ...

, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was named after Ajvaz-dedo (''Grandfather Ajvaz''), a pious

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

working to enlighten the population and achieve progress in the area.

History of the Holy Site of Ajvatovica

Ajvaz-dedo was a

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

dervish who arrived in Akhisar (known today as

, Bosnia and Herzegovina) with the conquering Ottoman armies in 1463. The story of the rock dividing dates back to the legend of Ajvaz-dedo, an elderly man who prayed for water during a long period of drought that threatened the small mountain hamlet of

in 1510, during Ottoman rule. However, Ajvaz Dede found a powerful spring of water near the village on the mountain Šuljaga. The spring had been shut off by a rock 74 metres long and 30 metres wide, which obstructed the construction of a running water system. Ajvaz-dedo spent 40 days beseeching

Allah Allah (; ar, الله, translit=Allāh, ) is the common Arabic word for God. In the English language, the word generally refers to God in Islam. The word is thought to be derived by contraction from '' al- ilāh'', which means "the god", an ...

to split the rock. On the fortieth morning, following his prayers, Ajvaz Dede dreamt that two white rams collided and split the rock. When he awoke, he saw the rock split in half. Wooden pipes were placed along the newly formed canyon to take water into Prusac. Seeing it as a sign of God's miracle and blessing, people began going on pilgrimages to the place where the rock had split. In 1947, during the early years of communist Yugoslavia, thirteen people were convicted by the district court in Travnik for "participating in the unauthorized procession on the occasion of the religious holiday Ajvatovica, opposing state officials and violating the ban on flying religious flags." The thirteen individuals were also accused of assaulting two policemen who tried to break up the procession and threatening them with knives while on horseback. Following this incident, maintenance of the religious site was forbidden by the communist Yugoslav government until the tradition was renewed in June 1990. There are annual celebrations in Prusac to commemorate the event. It has become a large tourist and religious attraction called the "Days of Ajvatovica". The 500th anniversary of the event was commemorated in June 2010.

References

Islamic pilgrimages {{Islam-stub