Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: fâilâtün feilâtün feilâtün feilün (remel). The commentary says nothing of the metre; we identified the pattern.

Bezm-i vasla irelüm gül gibi hurrem olalum
Rezm-i gamda niçe bir nâleye hem-dem olalum
Sadr-ı meyhânede rindân ile bezm eyleyüben
Taht-ı Kâvûsa geçüp işret ile Cem olalum
Halvetine bizi nâ-mahrem ider zâhidi gör
Duhter-i rezle varup biz dahi mahrem olalum
Yâr cevr itmek ile nâm ü nişân buldı-y-ısa
Cevr çekmeklük ile biz de müsellem olalum
Uyma iğvâsına ol dîv rakîbüñ ‘Avnî
Ol perî yüzlüye meyl eyleyüp âdem olalum

In English

1. Let us reach the gathering of union and be merry as roses; how long shall we be companions to moaning in the battle of grief?

2. Setting up a gathering with the rinds in the place of honour of the tavern, let us mount the throne of Kâvus and become Cem by drinking.

3. Look at that ascetic, he counts us as strangers to the privacy (of the grape's daughter); let us go and become intimates of the grape's daughter ourselves.

4. If the beloved has won name and fame by doing cruelty, let us become renowned by suffering cruelty.

5. O Avnî, do not follow the temptation of that demon (devil) of a rival; let us incline to that fairy-faced one and be men (be Adam).

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

Like the previous ghazal, this is an invitation built in the first person plural; the redif "olalum" (let us be) proposes a new transformation to the company in every couplet: to be roses, to be Cem, to be intimates, to be renowned, to be men. The rhyme is the "-em" sound of the words "hurrem, hem-dem, Cem, mahrem, müsellem, âdem". The metre is again mahbun remel, though here the first foot is "fâilâtün".

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The opening couplet sets two words face to face: "bezm" (gathering for pleasure) and "rezm" (battle). The gathering of union is the place for blooming like a rose, the battle of grief the place for moaning. The pair bezm and rezm is also a favourite contrast of Ottoman court culture; the ruler was expected to be a man of both feast and war.

The second couplet uses the names of two kings from Persian mythology. According to Doğan's explanation, Kâvus (Kay Kâvus) was the second king of the Kayanid dynasty and the grandson of Kay Qubad, and in poetry is a symbol of splendour; Cem is the legendary king believed to have discovered wine. The place of honour in the tavern becomes the throne of Kâvus, and every rind drinking there becomes a Cem. The third couplet rests on an old name for wine, "duhter-i rez", the grape's daughter: the grape is the mother and the wine made from it her daughter, and drinking in secret was described as "being alone with the grape's daughter". The ascetic has counted us as strangers (nâ-mahrem) to this daughter; we shall become her intimates, that is, her close kin. Doğan notes that the word "halvet" also means the person one meets in secret, so that the line hints that the ascetic meets the grape's daughter in private, that is, drinks in secret.

The fourth couplet compares the fame of beloved and lover: if the beloved won fame by doing cruelty, the lover will become renowned by enduring it. The story of Adam and Iblis lies behind the last couplet. The rival is a demon, that is, the devil, and his temptation must not be followed; "âdem olmak" means both to be human, to become a decent man, and to be Adam, the first man. Doğan connects the couplet to the interpretation of the story of the forbidden fruit as sexual desire and says the poet presents turning to the fairy-faced beauty as a way of contemplating divine beauty; this is the commentary's Sufi reading.

Bibliography

  • Fâtih Sultan Mehmed (Avnî), Fâtih Dîvânı ve Şerhi / Dīwān of Sultan Mehmed II with Commentary, ed. Muhammet Nur Doğan, English trans. Michael D. Sheridan, 3rd ed., Istanbul: Türkiye Yazma Eserler Kurumu Başkanlığı, 2023, poem 54, pp. 405-407 (manuscript: Millet, Ali Emîrî Manzum 305, fol. 17b). https://ekitap.yek.gov.tr/urun/fatih-divani-ve-serhi--ucuncu-baski-_794.aspx

Online sources