Tespih

It is often seen in Turkey. Particularly men carry them,  they finger the string of beads while drinking tea and chatting. Originally prayer beads, Muslims use the Tesbih to recite Allah’s name with every bead that passes through their fingers. Nowadays, Tespihs are also used as accessories, decoration or, in most cases to occupy the hands. The word Tespih originates from the word Süpah, which means ‘reciting the glory of God’. It is an aid to keep count of prayers. In the beginning of the Islam, believers used small stones which later developed into a Tespih. The Christian pilgrims probably adopted the Tespih from the Muslims and introduced the rosary in Christianity. A Tespih is composed of 99 beads, representing the 99 names of Allah. The string is used to praise Allah as follows: 33 times the word ‘Süpannalah’ is spoken, which means ‘Praise be to God’. Then ‘Elhümdullilah’ is repeated 33 times, meaning ‘Glory be to God’. For the final 33 beads ‘Allahu Akbar’ is repeated which means ‘God is most great’. After these repetitions a final prayer is said, bringing the total number of prayers to one hundred. In the Koran the Prophet Mohammed said: ‘Whoever completes a hundred, by telling these beads, all his sins shall be forgiven.’ Some Tespihs have 33 beads.  They are used in the same way but are more manageable.”