Dervise

or Dervish, (dair'veez.) [Pers., poor.] A name given to various Mohammedan priests or monks, of which there are many sects, distinguished by the different forms and colors of their raiment (Fig. 257). They usually reside in conventual communities, under an elder who bears the title of sheik, and resemble in many respects the monks of Christen dom. Dancing in a frenzied whirling manner is one of their religious ceremonies, and subjection of the body to painful tortures another. [s. 279] IMG:p0308_0.jpg:Gravür