Lauren Booth – Islamic Heritage – Jewish Ottomans

			salam alayka my parents finds you well and blessed. Welcome back to my series and today we continue
exploring the Asian side of Istanbul with a beautiful village called Quiz Gundlach. A place of
colorful houses are beautiful coffee shops and and really important piece of the Ottoman social
puzzle. So when I was researching for today's video, I thought it was all going to be on one
particular theme which has to do with multiculturalism and the Ottoman social puzzle but actually I
discovered something really dynamic and exciting and I can't wait to show it to you Bismillah let's
explore because ganja.
		

			So there are two Orthodox churches here in cause Good joke, and there were Jewish communities here
from the 1300s when or Han Bay arrived, he befriended them and looked after them. And the first
recorded grave a Jewish person here and because ganja was actually around the 1600s, but it has got
one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in Istanbul here today. The Inquisition was a powerful office
set up within the Catholic Church to root out and punish what it considered heresy against Christian
doctrine. It lasted 300 years, inflicting a severity of tortures and persecution upon Jews and
Muslims, who thrive together for five centuries in Spain and Portugal. In 1492, the king of Spain
		

			made the Alhambra decree and what did that do it expelled all of the Jews living in Spain and
Portugal from those lands Bay is it the second had an immediate response. He called upon the Turkish
Navy to go from the Bosphorus and collect all of the Jews that had been expelled and bring them here
to Istanbul. Subhanallah many settled in because Ghandruk and he went further, he stated that these
people were voluntary migrants, which meant they had rights as citizens and could become Ottomans.
No one was allowed to refuse some shelter or a stay in their city, the Ottoman Sultan practiced
Islamic tolerance for people of the book, while socially seeing the benefit of the refugees as a
		

			blessing not a burden on the state. What a lesson to Europe today.
		

			Because good joke is the first Jewish settlement in the Asian part of Istanbul. It's even referred
to as a Jewish village by 17th century sources, ottomans applied the nationality system wherever
they conquered. This means that there was no policy to turn people into Muslims, everyone continued
with his or her own language and religion freely. Therefore, they continued their traditions in the
same way, and that's kept them alive until today. Although many of the synagogues former members
have relocated within Istanbul, the synagogue is visited on the weekends. It's known that because
God joke was accepted as the last stop, for reaching the holy land by the European Jews, and those
		

			who could not go to the promised land for any reason made it a will to settle there and die and be
buried there. The Ottomans multicultural and non discrimination mentality kept many different
cultures alive an attitude ingrained in the laws of the time, many cultures live together
peacefully, and the Ottoman Empire was able to preserve itself with an inclusive sense of
nationality. Today, Jewish and Turkish families still live together forming a cultural mosaic in the
stunning village.
		

			So this is the surprise I wanted to share with you. This is the Bustan of cars ganja and what is a
Bustan? Well, it's an urban garden. And for 700 years, the Ottomans were excellent at feeding their
inhabitants with hundreds of farms, agricultural centers like this in the city. Subhanallah the
agricultural experts in medieval Istanbul knew this stuff. They had a mastery of how to use the
space around them and
		

			really, really good understanding of the seasons. And did you know you probably didn't know boss
Dan's gardens like this. We're the third biggest employer of the Ottoman State for cities underneath
what was number one coffee shops and barbers.
		

			When you come to assemble, and you go to a park or if you're blessed to come to the spa, Stan, never
stop at the first here. Because these places tend to go up and up and up and get more glorious, the
higher you go. They just don't stop Subhanallah it's a bit of a climb. But I made a mistake for many
months. I was just going Okay, a couple of tiers not as grand as as London parks and then all the
good stuff. They're really spectacular stuff happens high up in the hills, and that's the story of
Istanbul. Mashallah. So, like most of the urban gardens here in Istanbul, this one was threatened
with closure this time just 10 years ago, when the local council wants to build a primary school
		

			here and their neighbors in the neighborhood the people of this community they rallied together and
they started a campaign saying don't take our breath don't take our gardens and they won. And today
this is a beautiful hub where people meet the children can play and it's the center of a traditional
and distinctive community Mashallah.
		

			All right, Mashallah.
		

			All eight of you, eight of you
		

			always respect my women who can do this Masha Allah may Allah bless you. So anyway, enjoy your day.
Take care. I hope you've enjoyed today's video and walking around because God joked with me and
learning more about the beautiful legacy of the Muslims Subhana Allah if you like this, then make
sure to subscribe to my channel. Don't forget to leave comments and tell me where you want me to
visit next. Let's all keep applauding the beauty of our deen and our Islamic heritage. Salam Alaikum