Aydınlıdır. Alî mahdûmu olup Amasya’da Cum’a ve Müfessir Ahmed Efendilerden ikmâl-i tahsîl etdikten sonra bir müddet ders-i âm oldu. 972’de üstâdı Cum’a Efendi’nin vefâtı üzerine İstanbul’a gidip orada Sultân Bâyezîd Câmiinde tedrîs-i ulûma başladı.
973 rebîülâhirinde Atîk Alî Paşa Medresesi müderrisliği mahlûl oldukda imtihân açıldı. Kırk akçe müderrislikten munfasıl olan efendilerle beraber bu imtihâna girdi. Sadreyn-i fâzıleyn Hâmid ve Pervîz Efendiler’in huzûrunda Vefâ Câmiinde imtihân edildi.
Bu mu’azzam imtihânda kazanan altı müderrisden biri oldu. Birinci olan Ankaralı Zekeriyâ Efendi Atîk Alî Paşa [378] müderris olup buna da Yenişehir’de vâki’ Süleyman Paşa Müderrisliği verildi. 978’de bu medreseden ma’zûlen İstanbul’a gelip 979 senesi cumâdelûlâsında Zeytûnîzâde Alî Efendi yerine Trabzon Müftüsü oldu.
985 senesi zilhiccesinde azledilip 986 saferinde Bursa’da Sultân Murâd Müderrisi oldu. 987 senesi şevvalinde Kıbrıs Müftülüğü’ne ta’yîn edildiği hâlde kabûl etmediğinden yerinde kaldı. 988 senesi şevvâlinde Edirne’de Sultân Bâyezîd Müderrisliği’ne terfî’ edildi.
989 senesi şa’bânında Amasya fetvâsından azledilen Küçük Mahmûd Efendi yerine Amasya Müftüsü ve Sultân Bâyezîd Müderrisi olarak vatanına geldi. Yedi yıl kadar Amasya’da tedrîs ve iftâdan sonra 996 senesi muharreminde ba’zı ulemâyı gücendirdiğinden dolayı şikâyetlerle azledildi.
Bundan sonra Mehmed Paşa Medresesi ile tekâ’üd edilip sekiz yıl kadar tefsîr ve hadîs-i şerîf tedrîsâtı ile iştiğâl ederek 1003 senesi zilhiccesinde dâr-ı bekâya rihlet etdi. Fâzıl, vakûr, sâlih, sâfî-füâd idi. [379]
In Modern English
He was from Aydın. He was the son of Alî. After completing his studies in Amasya with Cum'a Efendi and Müfessir Ahmed Efendi, he gave public lessons for a time. In 972 [1564-65], on the death of his teacher Cum'a Efendi, he went to Istanbul and began teaching at the Sultan Bâyezîd Mosque there.
In Rebîülâhir 973 [1565], when the professorship at the Atîk Alî Pasha Madrasa fell vacant, an examination was opened. He sat for it together with gentlemen who had left professorships of forty akçe. He was examined at the Vefâ Mosque in the presence of the two learned kazaskers, Hâmid and Pervîz Efendi.
He was one of the six professors who won in this great examination. The first place went to Ankaralı Zekeriyâ Efendi, who became professor of the Atîk Alî Pasha Madrasa; to him was given the professorship of the Süleyman Pasha Madrasa at Yenişehir. In 978 [1570-71] he was dismissed from this madrasa and came to Istanbul, and in Cumâdelûlâ 979 he became Mufti of Trabzon in place of Zeytûnîzâde Alî Efendi.
Dismissed in Zilhicce 985, in Safer 986 he became professor of the Sultan Murâd Madrasa in Bursa. In Şevval 987 he was appointed Mufti of Cyprus, but because he did not accept he stayed where he was. In Şevval 988 he was promoted to the professorship of the Sultan Bâyezîd Madrasa in Edirne.
In Şa'bân 989, in place of Küçük Mahmûd Efendi, who had been dismissed from the muftiship of Amasya, he came to his home town as Mufti of Amasya and professor of the Sultan Bâyezîd Madrasa. After teaching and giving fatwas in Amasya for about seven years, he was dismissed in Muharrem 996 after complaints, because he had offended some scholars.
After this he was retired on the establishment of the Mehmed Pasha Madrasa, and for about eight years he devoted himself to teaching Qur'anic exegesis and hadith, and died in Zilhicce 1003 [1595]. He was learned, dignified, pious and pure of heart.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- ders-i âm: one who gave public lessons, regarded as a teaching scholar
- tedrîs-i ulûm: teaching the sciences
- mahlûl: fallen vacant
- munfasıl: separated, having left a post
- sadreyn-i fâzıleyn: the two learned sadrs, that is, the two kazaskers
- ma'zûlen: having been dismissed
- müfti: the official who issues fatwas
- terfî': promotion
- fetvâ: an answer to a religious question; Amasya fetvası: the muftiship of Amasya
- tekâ'üd: retirement
- tefsîr: Qur'anic exegesis
- hadîs-i şerîf: the sayings of the Prophet
- vakûr: dignified
- sâfî-füâd: pure of heart
The Steps of a Professor's Career
The entry records a long chain of posts of a member of the learned class, with year and month. Ayâs Efendi first trained in Amasya beside his teachers, then went to Istanbul. In 973 [1565] he placed among the first six in the examination for the Atîk Alî Pasha Madrasa; first place went not to him but to Ankaralı Zekeriyâ Efendi, and he was given the Süleyman Pasha Madrasa at Yenişehir. Then come the muftiship of Trabzon, the Sultan Murâd Madrasa in Bursa, the Sultan Bâyezîd Madrasa in Edirne, and finally the muftiship of Amasya together with the professorship at the Sultan Bâyezîd Madrasa. The Atîk Alî Pasha Madrasa in Istanbul is part of the complex founded at Çemberlitaş together with a mosque, a soup kitchen, a school and a library. The complex is foremost among Atik Ali Pasha's charitable works.
No records were found in the sources read for Hâmid and Pervîz Efendi, who held the examination, or for Zekeriyâ Efendi, Zeytûnîzâde Alî Efendi or Küçük Mahmûd Efendi; what is known of these people lies only in Hüsameddin.
The Muftiship in Amasya and the Sultan Bâyezîd Madrasa
Ayâs Efendi's last post in Amasya was both the muftiship and the professorship of the Sultan Bâyezîd Madrasa. The Sultan Bâyezîd Complex was built by Prince Ahmed, governor of Amasya, in the name of his father Bayezid II; it consists of a mosque, a madrasa, a soup-kitchen building and a fountain, and its architect was Şemseddin Ahmed. The U-shaped madrasa lies to the west of the mosque; it is made up of domed porticoes and student rooms surrounding a wide inner garden. Evliya Çelebi calls this madrasa, under the name "Sultâniye Madrasa", the best preserved of the madrasas. The building has been used as a public library since 1922.
That Hüsameddin says "from Aydın" yet speaks of Amasya as his "homeland" seems contradictory at first sight. What can be inferred is that, because Ayâs Efendi was trained in Amasya and lived there for years, the city was regarded as his home; this inference cites no source. His teacher Cum'a Efendi appears in entry 433 as the teacher of Ehlî Mehmed Efendi too; it is probable that they are the same man, but this is an inference.
The Mehmed Pasha Madrasa
The location of the Mehmed Pasha Madrasa, on whose establishment Ayâs Efendi was retired, is not stated in the text. No information on this madrasa was found in the sources read. Hüsameddin says that in the eight years after retirement he turned to teaching Qur'anic exegesis and hadith; this could not be confirmed in another source.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 378-379. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Official sources