Ahilik Ahlakı

LABOR, WORK AND THE CONCEPT OF PROFESSION AS A SOTERIOLOGICAL TOOL IN AKHISM

In different periods of history and in different cultures, different values have been attributed to the concepts of work and labor. In the modern world, the concept of work has gained a different meaning in line with the global dominance of the capitalist economy and its ideology, i.e. the consumerist paradigm. The main problematic of this article to ponder the questions these few questions: What is the meaning of job, or in other words, the meaning of work/labor? Why does man work? What is the purpose of the job? Is a job just a labor performed to earn money in return? Is the best job/work the highest paying job/work? Is the value of a work/job determined by the money it earns? What does the profession/job bring to people other than the financial return? The aim of the article is to try to answer these questions from the perspective of Akhism. One of the main hypotheses of the study is that with the disappearance of this institution, the paradigm it advocates is on the verge of disappearing, and in today's world, the capitalist paradigm and its final version, the ideology of consumerism, have taken its place. In order to see this break clearly, the subject of work/profession is emphasized in the modern world and especially in Western culture, based on the analyzes allocated to the subject of job/work. Then, the understanding of profession in Akhism, which is the main subject of the article, is discussed. Thus, the second hypothesis that this understanding adds a dimension to the profession/job that is not available in other cultures has been tested. As a result, contrary to the secular point of view of the Akhism paradigm, which separates work/job from other religious activities, it has never adopted this duality and systematically tried to prevent it.
After the historical adventures of the concepts of work, labor and job are outlined, the situation in today's world can be seen more clearly. In the ancient Greek culture, working and especially farming, which was an expression of obedience to God, started to be seen as worthless because it did not leave time to think about virtue, together with thinkers like Aristotle. Such "corvee" work was thought to be done by slaves. The opinion that the work is about slaves and therefore the citizens of the noble/rich or Greek city states should not engage in such activities negatively affected the concept of work. In Christianity, it has been believed for centuries that work is the punishment for original sin. While the professions of the clergy were accepted as acceptable because they obeyed the call of God, other occupations were evaluated as worldly affairs and despised. With the Protestantism movement in the 16th century, the belief that every Christian is a clergyman and therefore there is no distinction between religious and worldly occupations emerged. However, since the salvation of man was predetermined by the belief of the Protestants in destiny, what a person did, did not have the power to change the divine decision made from time immemorial. Success in the profession and moral attitude were not made with the hope of future salvation, but were perceived as signs of being one of God's chosen ones. In Western societies, which have become increasingly insensitive to religious discourses with the industrial revolution, the purpose of working has begun to be limited to earning financial gain. In the next stage, the secularization process led individuals who broke away from religious paradigms to produce a work telos on the axis of their own selves. Thus, personal success, satisfaction and happiness have become the sole aim of the modern secular individual.
In the paradigm of Akhism, which is one of the most important institutions of Turkish-Islamic culture, everything that people do is considered as a deed. According to this understanding, there is no distinction between religious and worldly affairs. It will appear as the postmortem acquis of everything that man does. That is why it is said that "the world is the field of the hereafter". The specific aspect of Akhism is that it has built a system that equates the concept of profession with worship. The archetype of every profession is a prophet. The archetype of every virtue is also a prophet. Prophets, on the other hand, are people who convey the truth to people and guide them on the path that leads to salvation. Thus, the concept of profession in the thought of Akhism includes being busy in a field of labor and developing and progressing in this field, but also, perhaps primarily, evolving morally. In the final analysis, Akhism has suggested that there is only one way that lead people to salvation and that the profession/job/work is one of the means on this way.
Keywords: History of Religions, Akhism, Profession, Work, Soteriology.