at home and only visit the centre from time to time whenever they need advice for important matters of life, which they can receive from the head of the centre, Sheikh Efendi. It is unknown how many people would consider themselves as being a member of or as belonging to a Sufi Order. People who are interested in Sufism or are practicing can come and go whenever they wish. "Come whoever you are...", as Rumi's saying expresses the motto of his Order of the Whirling Dervishes, the Sufi Centre Rabbaniyya also welcomes its guest under the same premise every weekend. It is not common for a small group or a Sufi Order in general to operate a membership list, or any type of registration of members. There are small groups or individuals in all areas of Berlin who meet in private to pray or meditate together. Governance Eşref Goekcimen was born in Mersin, Turkey, in 1964. Being a direct descendant of advisors to the Ottoman Sultans, he and his sisters and brother were raised by his parents in the tradition of Islamic beliefs. The family moved to Berlin in 1972. During his adolescence he frequently visited many libraries and mosques where he could study old works of religious literature. In 1995 he met the last Grandsheikh of the Naqshbandi silsila, Grandsheikh Nazim al Rabbani. He began to study Nazim's teachings and accepted him as his teacher and joined the Naqshbandiyya. The silsila (or golden chain) of the Naqshbandi tradition can be traced back through all grandsheikhs to Muhammed, who in Islam is regarded as the last and hence the seal of the prophets. Grandsheikh Nazim Al Rabbani is a descendant of the bloodline of Mohammed himself. He authorized Sheikh Eşref Efendi in 1996 to serve as a spiritual guide and advisor in the tradition of the Naqshbandi tariqa. As is custom in the tradition, Efendi began delivering (spiritual addresses) in Berlin and quickly a community of people gathered around him. In 1998 he took off to Bosnia with some of his students to offer reconstructing and humanitarian aid after the war in Bosnia. In a joint effort they helped with the reconstruction of the burial site of Sari Saltuk (also known as Baba Sari Saltik or Saltuk Baba), a 13th-century saint. Today he is known as Sheikh Eşref Efendi and founder of the Sufi Centre Berlin (Europäische Mitte für interspirituelle