39 Haci Bektas Stock Photos, High-Res Pictures, and Images - Getty Images

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An Alevi man is tries to come out of a hole while his wife watches in Hacibektash, 15 August 2005. According to a spiritual belief, if someone is innocent he will be able to get outside the hole in the rock, if not he will not. The hamlet was named after Haci Bektas Veli, who lived between 1248 and 1337, founder of the Bektashi sect and of the Alevis -- an offshoot of Shiite Islam. He is revered as a manifestation of Ali, the last of the first four Caliphs and the son-in-law of the prophet Mohammed. Haci Bektas Veli, a humanist philospher, fled religious conflict in his native Central Asia, settled and lived and is buried here. The town of 8,000 has become a mecca of sorts for the progressive Alevis and its population multiplies by 10 or 15 during religious holidays and the summer pilgrimage season. AFP PHOTO / TARIK TINAZAY Get premium, high resolution news photos at getty