ABSTRACT
The pious young people who make up the subject of this research are alternating between the world they feel belong to or they belong to and the world they live in, the world they are forced to live in, and they are unable to make a choice between the two, and they are displaying oscillations in limbo. This study focuses on the impact of religious values which reflect upon the daily life practices of the young male students between the age of 20-25 who study in university and define themselves as pious and live under the umbrella of a religious community/association. Hypothetically, the impact of religious values in terms of behavior, belonging, attitude, worship in the daily lives of twenty pious young men who study in university in Istanbul and stay in the dorm of ‘Çilehane İlmi Araştırmalar Derneği’ (Çilehane Association for Scientific Research) which declares its aim as ‘to train young who are socially beneficial and aware of their own religion’ will be investigated. Methodologically, the study follows the ideographic approach, and in practice, it conducts a field research. The research which conducts identity analysis through interviews, tries to make the similar of the mentality analysis by the way of a direct research and observation which was made by Ülgener by benefiting from statements in the texts of literature and ethics. The research is two-staged: at the first, it is tried to discover the panorama of the mental world of the pious young men; at the second, through the relevant factors, the places in which the religion become visible and do not visible are shown. In the conceptualization that can be defined as ‘staying in limbo’, the individuals are trapped between the identity they feel belonged to, and the identity that the reality they live in offers. The religion is practiced individually in the congregation, the conflict between their behaviours and attitudes arises, and the small public is prioritized. Besides, in the study, malleable typologies were discovered that live the identity they feel belonged to in their private spheres.