Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: mefā‘ilün fe‘ilātün mefā‘ilün fe‘ilün

Muḥammed-i ‘Arabī kim Resūl-i ekmeldür
Taḳarrüb ile ḳamu enbiyādan efḍaldür
Ḳalan resūllerün ḳavmineydi da‘veti çün
Nübüvvetiyile bu ins ü cāna mürseldür
Kim anı medḥ ide çün medḥidür anuñ levlāk
Defātir-i dü cihān midḥatinde mücmeldür
‘Adū-yı bī-baṣar aña muḫālif olsa ne ṭañ
Saḥīḥi egri görürler şular ki aḥveldür
Egerçi ḫatm idi Yūsuf'da ḥüsn i‘cāzı
Bu ḥüsn-i ḫulḳ ile cümlesinden ecmeldür
Eyā mu‘īn-i beşer raḥm ḳıl fütādelere
Şefā‘at āyeti şānuñda çünki münzeldür
Ḳapuñ gedāsı durur ‘Adli anı redd itme
K'aña muḥabbet-i ālüñ delīl-i a‘deldür

In English

1. Muhammad the Arab, who is the most perfect of the prophets, is superior to all the prophets in nearness to God.

2. The call of the other prophets was only to their own peoples; he, by his prophethood, was sent to all humankind and to the jinn.

3. Who could praise him, when his praise is "levlâk"? The ledgers of the two worlds remain only a brief summary in praising him. ("Levlâk" alludes to the saying, often cited in divan poetry, "Had it not been for you, I would not have created the heavens"; it expresses the idea that the Prophet is praised by God Himself.)

4. Is it any wonder if the sightless enemy opposes him? Those who are cross-eyed see what is straight as crooked.

5. Although the miracle of beauty had reached its end in Joseph, he, with this beauty of character, is more beautiful than them all. (The prophet Joseph is the emblem of beauty of face; the superiority of the Prophet Muhammad is tied to beauty of character, "hüsn-i hulk".)

6. O helper of humankind, have mercy on the fallen, for the verse of intercession was revealed in your honour.

7. Adlî is a beggar at your door; do not turn him away, for the love he bears for your family (your descendants and household) is the most just (the most sound) proof.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

A na‘t is a poem written in praise of the Prophet Muhammad; in divans it follows the münacat and the tevhid. Adlî's na‘t is a seven-couplet poem in ghazal form. The metre is the "mefâ‘ilün fe‘ilâtün mefâ‘ilün fe‘ilün" pattern of the müctes family of aruz (quantitative metre). The redif (refrain word) is the suffix "-dür" ("is"); the rhyme is built on the sound "-el": ekmel (most perfect), efdal (most excellent), mürsel (sent), mücmel (summarised), ahvel (cross-eyed), ecmel (most beautiful), münzel (revealed), a‘del (most just). All the rhyme words are Arabic; ekmel, efdal, ecmel and a‘del are superlative adjectives meaning "the most", and they lend the poem a weight suited to the language of praise.

Its title in the edition is "Fî Na‘t-ı Seyyidi'l-enâm ‘Aleyhi't-tahiyyeti ve's-selâm", that is, "On the praise of the lord of humankind (the Prophet Muhammad)". The poem stands third in the edition and is found in the OR, T, M1 and M2 manuscripts; it is absent from İBB because the opening leaves of that manuscript are missing. The manuscript variants consist only of two small readings in T. There is no record of to whom or when it was written.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The first two couplets of the na‘t describe the place of the Prophet Muhammad among the other prophets. The second couplet says that the other prophets were sent only to their own peoples, while Muhammad was sent to "ins ü cân", that is, to humankind and the jinn. This is the poem's expression of the belief that his prophethood is universal. In the third couplet the poet says that human beings are not equal to this praise, because it is God who truly praises the Prophet. This reference through the word "levlâk" is among the allusions most often used in divan na‘ts. That the ledgers of the two worlds remain "mücmel", brief and summarised, in praising him expresses through hyperbole the boundlessness of the praise.

In the fourth couplet those who oppose him are "bî-basar", blind; and those who are not blind are cross-eyed and see what is straight as crooked. A fact concerning the eye, the way a squinting eye sees a thing doubled and crooked, is presented as the cause of denial; this is an example of fanciful aetiology (hüsn-i ta‘lîl). The fifth couplet uses one of the well-known allusions of divan poetry: the prophet Joseph is the ultimate point of beauty. Through a play on words between "hüsn" (beauty) and "hüsn-i hulk" (beauty of character), Adlî ties Muhammad's beauty to his character and holds him superior even to Joseph. The rhyme word ecmel (most beautiful) completes this comparison.

The last two couplets form the section of the na‘t devoted to prayer and the plea for intercession. In the sixth couplet mercy is asked for the "fütâde", those who have fallen and are left helpless. In the couplet bearing the pen name (mahlas) the poet calls himself a "gedâ" (beggar) at the Prophet's door, which recalls the words "gedâlık baña yaraşur" ("beggary befits me") in the münacat, the first poem of the divan. The rhyme word "a‘del" (most just) and the pen name "Adlî" come from the same root; here too the poet links his pen name to the idea of justice. Presenting love for the Prophet's family, that is, his descendants, as grounds for intercession is a thought frequently met in the na‘t tradition.

In the edition the na‘t follows the münacat and the tevhid and so completes the religious opening section of the divan. The sources quoted in Bayram's introduction emphasise Bayezid's piety, his interest in Sufism and his charitable works; it is also noted that, because of the attention he paid to worship and charity during his reign, he came to be known as "Bâyezîd-i Velî" (Bayezid the Saint). This information does not indicate when the poem was written.

Bibliography

  • Yavuz Bayram (ed.), Adlî Dîvânı (Dîvân-ı Sultân Bâyezîd-i Sânî), Ankara: Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı Yay., 2018, p. 41, poem no. 3; introduction pp. 23-24 (Bayezid's piety and the name "Bâyezîd-i Velî"), pp. 30-32 (description of the manuscripts). ekitap.ktb.gov.tr