Sarajevo
The Mevlevi zawiya of Sarajevo was founded in 1462 by Isa Bey Ishaković, the Ottoman governor regarded as the founder of the city, which makes it one of the…
The Mevlevi zawiya of Sarajevo was founded in 1462 by Isa Bey Ishaković, the Ottoman governor regarded as the founder of the city, which makes it one of the very first Islamic foundations in Sarajevo. It belonged to the Mevlevi order, the followers of Jalal al-Din Rumi, and for centuries it stood on the bank of the Miljacka at Bentbaša. The zawiya was burned during Prince Eugene of Savoy's raid in 1697, rebuilt in 1781 by the governor Vedžihi Pasha, and finally demolished in 1957. A new zawiya was built on the hillside below the Yellow Fortress and opened in 2013, and it again holds regular gatherings for reading Rumi's Masnavi. It is a steep but short walk from the old town.