Light and Sama as a Common Language of Sacred Architecture: A Comparative Reading Inspired by Rumi's Mysticism
Shabnam Golkarian
Khazar Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences October 15, 2026 DOI: 10.5782/2223-2621.1605 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative interpretive comparative case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Five sacred buildings from three religious traditions: Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque and Sancaklar Mosque (Islamic), the Church of Light and Notre Dame du Haut (Christian), and Borobudur Buddhist temple (Eastern) |
| Topics | Mysticism |
| Key findings | Argues that light symbolizes divine presence and the disclosure of meaning across Islamic, Christian, and Eastern sacred architecture, and that circular or spiral paths function as metaphors for the spiritual journey toward unity. The authors contend this conceptual convergence can provide a basis for interpreting architecture as a language of peace, unity, and interfaith dialogue. |
Abstract
In the tradition of Islamic mysticism, light symbolizes the singular divine truth and circular motion expresses the human journey from multiplicity toward unity. In Rumi's thought, these two elements are not merely sensory phenomena but ontological structures of the spiritual journey, where light corresponds to presence and awareness, and sama represents the return to the center of truth. This article aims to explain the role of these two concepts in shaping the spatial expression of sacred architecture and examines how light and circular movement, rooted in Islamic mysticism and especially in Rumi's teachings, appear as a ``shared spiritual language'' in the architecture of different religions. The main problem addressed is the lack of comparative studies that analyze these two symbols together across Islamic, Christian and Eastern traditions. The central research question asks how light and rotation are consciously or unconsciously reflected in sacred architecture and what role they play in users' spiritual experience. The research adopts a qualitative, interpretive and comparative approach and analyzes five case studies from three religious traditions: Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque and Sancaklar Mosque (Islamic), the Church of Light and Notre Dame du Haut (Christian), and Borobudur Buddhist temple (Eastern). The findings indicate that light in all three traditions symbolizes divine presence and the disclosure of meaning, and circular or spiral paths function as metaphors for the spiritual journey toward unity. This conceptual convergence suggests that light and rotation can provide a basis for interpreting architecture as a language of peace, unity, and interfaith dialogue.
Comparable studies
Other case reports and case series on mysticism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The vidente phenomenon in third world traditional healing: An amazonian example Urban healer don Hilde and his patients in Pucallpa, Peru | 1984 | Case study | |
| In the Pause and Listening to the Little People Folk healer (White Bear) | 2011 | Qualitative case study | |
| The Bad Seed: Mystical Experience and Time Travel in the Treatment of Psychopathy A psychopathic personality | 2023 | Case study | n = 1 |
| Safavid Twelver Lettrism Between Sunnism and Shiʿism, Mysticism and Science: Rajab al-Bursī vs. Maḥmūd Dihdār Two Twelver Shi'i lettrists, al-Ḥāfiẓ Rajab al-Bursī and Maḥmūd Dihdār Shīrāzī | 2023 | Comparative case study | |
| Newer substances and their effects: A case report 36-year-old woman immigrant from South America | 2016 | Case study | n = 1 |