Basralıdır. Abdullah mahdûmu olup tahsîl-i ilim için [4] Mısır’a gitdi. Meşâyih-i Mısriyye’den “eş-Şeyh Süleyman el-İskenderânî” âsitânesine muvâzabet ederek ondan ulûm-ı zâhire ve bâtıneyi ahzedip seyahate çıktı.
Esnâ-yı seyâhatinde Konya’da bir müddet oturdu. Amasya ve Sivas hükümdârı Hacı Kutlu Şâh’ın Konya’yı istilâsında Amasya’ya gelip yerleşti. Amasya hükümdarı Hacı Kutlu Şâhzâde Şâdgeldi padişah devrinde zâviye şeyhi olup Emir ve halktan büyük hürmetler gördü.
783’de Hacı Şâdgeldi Paşa’nın kazâen vefâtında Gümüş kasabasına gitdi. Orada yaptırdığı zâviyesinde mukîm ve zikr u ibâdetle meşgūl olduğu halde 787 hudûdunda dâr-ı kudse irtihâl etdi.
Âlim, sâlih, zâhid, mazınne-i kerâmet bir zât-ı sütûde-sîret idi. Halk arasında “Ahî İbrâhim Basrî” ve “Arap Şeyh” demekle meşhûr idi. Amasya ve havâlîsinde hulefâ ve dervişânı çok idi. Silsile-i meşâyihi yukarıda “Akşemseddîn Mehmed Bayrâmî” tercemesinde yazıldı. Hulefâsından biri Amasya’nın “Şeyh Şâdî” köyünde medfûn “eş-Şeyh Şehabeddîn [5] Şâdî Çelebi” dir.
In Modern English
He is from Basra. He was the son of Abdullah, and he went to Egypt to acquire learning. Remaining devoted to the lodge of the Egyptian sheikh "Sheikh Süleyman al-Iskenderânî," he received from him the outward and the inward sciences, and then set out on his travels.
During his travels he stayed for a time in Konya. When Hacı Kutlu Şâh, ruler of Amasya and Sivas, took Konya, he came to Amasya and settled there. During the rule of Şâdgeldi, son of Hacı Kutlu Şâh, ruler of Amasya, he became a zawiya sheikh and was greatly respected by the emirs and the people.
When Hacı Şâdgeldi Pasha died in 783 [1381], he went to the town of Gümüş. Living in the zawiya he had built there and occupied with remembrance of God (zikir) and worship, he passed to the next world around 787 [1385].
He was a learned, devout man who had withdrawn from the world, was believed to possess saintly miracles, and was admired for his character and conduct. Among the people he was known as "Ahî İbrâhim Basrî" and "Arap Şeyh" (the Arab Sheikh). He had many successors and dervishes in Amasya and its surroundings. His chain of sheikhs was written above, in the entry on "Akşemseddîn Mehmed Bayrâmî." One of his successors is "Sheikh Şehabeddîn Şâdî Çelebi," who is buried in the village of "Şeyh Şâdî" in Amasya.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- âsitâne: lodge, the seat of a sheikh
- muvâzabet: attending constantly, remaining attached
- ulûm-ı zâhire ve bâtıne: the outward sciences (those based on reason and transmitted tradition) and the inward (mystical) sciences
- istilâ: seizure, conquest
- kazâen: by the decree of fate
- dâr-ı kudse irtihâl: to die; literally "to migrate to the holy abode"
- mazınne-i kerâmet: believed to have saintly miracles
- zât-ı sütûde-sîret: a person whose character and conduct are praised
- hulefâ: successors (khalifas), students authorized by the sheikh
- silsile-i meşâyih: the chain linking sheikhs to one another
The Ruler Hacı Kutlu Şah and Konya
The Hacı Kutlu Şah mentioned in the text is the father of Şâdgeldi Pasha. According to research, when he was emir of Amasya, Sivas and Tokat were also under his rule, and at times Kayseri and Konya came under his administration as well. This agrees with Hüsameddin's account that Ahî İbrâhim came from Konya to Amasya after Kutlu Şah took Konya. While struggling with the Karamanids, Kutlu Şah was defeated and killed in 762 [1360-61]. The year in which Konya was taken is given neither in the text nor in the research we consulted, so the date of Ahî İbrâhim's arrival in Amasya cannot be determined; it can only be understood that it must have been before Kutlu Şah's death in 762.
The Death of Şâdgeldi Pasha
Hüsameddin describes Şâdgeldi's death as "kazâen" (by fate) and gives the year 783. According to research, Şâdgeldi Pasha lost a battle against Kadı Burhaneddin at Tokat in Ramadan 783 [1381] and was killed. Ahî İbrâhim's withdrawal to Gümüş coincides with this turbulent year in Amasya. Şâdgeldi's son Ahmed Pasha became emir, and the dynasty's rule lasted until 805 [1402-03]. The text does not say why the sheikh left the city. Although it would be possible to interpret his departure as a political reaction, that would be an unsourced interpretation.
The Name Ahî and Zawiyas
A study of the zawiyas of the Amasya region reports that the endowment records mention zawiyas bearing the name "Ahi," such as Ahi Saadeddin, Ahi Darphaneci, Ahi Yusuf and Ahi Ahmed, and that the 1576 survey shows these zawiyas receiving shares of village revenues. The zawiya Ahî İbrâhim founded in Gümüş is not mentioned in these records. Our searches found no reliable information on the name and location of this zawiya in Gümüş, or on whether it still stands today. No information on Ahî İbrâhim himself or on his successor Şâdî Çelebi was found in other sources.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 265–265. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies