TASBİH ( PRAYER BEADS )

Tasbih, a worship tool, is an array of beads lined on a string to determine the number of repetitive utterances of god praising. It is thought that since utterances of praising should be precise not more or less, tasbihs are created. Tasbihs are usually made up of 33, or multiples of 33, beads aligned on a string. There can be 99, 500, 1000 and rarely 5000 beads on a tasbih. Tasbih sections are beads which are separated with different forms of beads to distinguish the 33 sections, decorative elements such as fringe and imame, which combines the two end of the tasbih. Beads should be at same sizes and close to each other. Tasbih beads can be made from precious and semi-precious stones such as seeds, amber, agate, turquoise, lapis, onyx and other materials such as tooth, horns and bones, pearls, coral reefs and mother-of-pearl are used. Also, beads are made from trees such as ebony, juniper, rose, gum, sandal and buxus. In the field of diplomacy, which is seen as an art in the Ottoman Empire since the 17th century, only the quality of the material does not increase; Engraving, engraving, inlaid on openings, openwork techniques, artistic values are also included in the adornments. Special stones such as Jet (lignite) and meerschaum are also used to decorate the tasbih.