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For the 262nd consecutive year, a light mechanism designed by Ibrahim Hakki Hazretleri directed the sun's first rays to illuminate the resting place of his teacher, Ismail Fakirullah Hazretleri, in the Tillo district of Siirt.
Tied to the equinox, the annual phenomenon drew Siirt residents and out-of-province visitors who gathered in the district square after morning prayers for a program organized by the Tillo District Governor’s Office under the Siirt Governorship.
The program opened with a Quran recitation, followed by a hymn performance and a multimedia presentation. Participants watched the 6:20 a.m. sunrise alignment—which lasted about five minutes—on an onsite venue screen while citizens recorded the moment on mobile phones.
Addressing the gathering, Siirt Governor Kemal Kizilkaya noted that Ibrahim Hakki Hazretleri, raised in this land, stood out as an exceptional figure blending knowledge with wisdom and reason with the heart.
The event takes place every year during the equinoxes and is a great legacy that has survived to this day. Kizilkaya described the light mechanism as a token of the deep loyalty Ibrahim Hakki Hazretleri felt toward his teacher Ismail Fakirullah Hazretleri.
He said it was not merely an engineering marvel but also a tangible expression of respect, devotion, and loyalty. "The fact that the sun's first rays reach Ismail Fakirullah Hazretleri's tomb at sunrise shows us that science and faith, reason and wisdom, and humanity and nature can come together in harmony."
Kizilkaya went on to say that the event is not only a celestial phenomenon but also a powerful legacy of knowledge and wisdom extending from the past into the future. He noted that this ancient heritage must be properly preserved and passed on to future generations.
The program was attended by local officials, judicial and security authorities, representatives of public institutions and civil society organizations, and members of the public.
Deeply saddened by the death of his teacher Ismail Fakirullah in 1734, Ibrahim Hakki Hazretleri reportedly asked what use a sun that did not rise over his teacher's bedside would be, and set out in search of a solution.
He built a tomb with a tower beside it for his teacher, along with a stone wall on a hill approximately three kilometers from Tillo.
Each year during the equinoxes, the first rays of the rising sun pass through a window in the middle of the wall, reflect off a mirror in the tower, and, through the refraction of light, travel back through the window to the tomb, ultimately reaching the head of Ismail Fakirullah Hazretleri's grave.
During a restoration in the 1960s, the window's position was altered, making it impossible to observe the mechanism. In 2011, thanks to work carried out by scientists from various universities, a new window was opened, allowing the phenomenon to be observed once again.
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