A Mystical Night at Aya Irini
Thanks to my aunt (the beautiful lady on the far right in the photo above), a founding member of Çaba (“Effort” in English), I was invited to a unique night of music and history on my April trip to Istanbul. It was to be the best break from all the stress of surrendering to the military training in a few days. As a non-profit organization, Çaba’s main objective is to mitigate the social and financial problems faced by Turkish people and promote the wonders of Turkey, trying to create an awareness towards such problems. In an effort to renovate two schools built for homeless blind children on the outskirts of Istanbul, the organization received permission from the government to use Aya Irini (Hagia Irene) as the venue to its fundraiser.
Aya Irini is a former Eastern Orthodox Church enclosed inside the walls of the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul. It is known to be the first church built by the Byzantine Empire in the 4th century and was taken over by the Ottoman Empire after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453. Although the church has not been functional for religious practices since then, it has been used as a warehouse and was finally converted into a museum in 1700s. Today Aya Irini is open only for special music performances and permitted museum visits.
Çaba’s event started around 8 p.m. Outside the church, guests were trying to stay warm with the complimentary coffee, pushing against the last few chilly Istanbul nights before the summer took over. The temperature was no different inside as the government prohibits the use of heaters inside historic landmarks. Despite the cold it was impossible not to get into the mystic of the venue and praise the genius of the performers. I was part of a unique night where people from all over the city gathered to meet under the roof of an Orthodox Church within the walls of a Muslim Palace shaken with the voices of Muslim, Jewish, Catholic and Buddhist singers. Below the huge cross depicted on the domed ceiling, we were taken to a journey of the peaceful past with the Turkish folk songs sang by Meyra, the instrumental genius of Antakya Medeniyetler Korosu and the calming circles of a Dervish.
Thanks to Ekin for the great photos.