Lâdiklidir. Orada medfûn sâhibü’l-hâl Ahmed-i Kebîr er-Rifâ’î evlâd-ı kirâmından es-Seyyid Yûsuf Çelebizâde es-Seyyid Rüstem [265] Ağa’nın mahdûmu ve Çuhadâr şehriyârı es-Seyyid Yusûf Paşa’nın birâderidir. Amasya’da tahsîl-i ulûm edib 1043’de sadr-ı Rumeli Amasyalı Hocazâde Abdullah Efendi’den mülâzım ve ba’dehû müderris oldu.
Bir müddet Lâdik kadısı, ba’dehû Amasya’ya gelip müderrislikle devr-i medâris ederek 1070’te Kameriyye-i Tokat müderrisi ve buradan Tokat nâibi, 1079’da Çorum, 1082’de Çankırı kadısı, 1084’de Amasya’da Hüseyniyye müderrisliği ile mütekâ’id olduğu hâlde vefât etdi. Ulemâ-yı mevâliden, afîf bir zât-ı sütûde simât idi.
In Modern English
He was a native of Ladik. He was the son of Seyyid Rüstem Ağa, son of Seyyid Yûsuf Çelebi, of the venerable lineage of Ahmed-i Kebîr er-Rifâî, a man of spiritual states buried there, and the brother of Seyyid Yûsuf Pasha, the sultan's çuhadar. Having studied at Amasya, in 1043 [1633-34] he became a mülâzım (a candidate waiting his turn for a judgeship or professorship) of Hocazâde Abdullah Efendi of Amasya, kazasker of Rumeli, and then became a müderris.
For a time he was kadı of Ladik, then came to Amasya and served as müderris, going around the madrasas in turn. In 1070 [1659-60] he became müderris of the Kameriyye Madrasa at Tokat, from there nâib (deputy judge) of Tokat, in 1079 [1668-69] kadı of Çorum and in 1082 [1671-72] kadı of Çankırı; in 1084 [1673-74] he died at Amasya, retired with the Hüseyniyye professorship. He was one of the mevâlî (those who had reached the rank of great judgeships) scholars, a chaste man of praiseworthy character.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- medfûn: buried
- sâhibü'l-hâl: possessor of spiritual states and miracles (keramet)
- evlâd-ı kirâm: venerable lineage, descendants
- çuhadâr-ı şehriyârî: the palace ağa who looked after the sultan's clothing and served at his side
- sadr-ı Rumeli: the kazasker of Rumeli
- mülâzım: a candidate who, having received a license from a great scholar, awaited his turn in the ilmiye career
- devr-i medâris: to rise by going around the madrasas grade by grade
- nâib: deputy of a judge
- mütekâ'id: retired
- ulemâ-yı mevâlî: scholars who had reached the great judgeships (mevleviyet)
- afîf: chaste, pure; sütûde-simât: possessing praised qualities
Ladik and Seyyid Ahmed-i Kebîr
Hüsameddin links Ebûbekir Efendi's family to the lineage of Ahmed-i Kebîr er-Rifâî, who is believed to be buried at Ladik. This statement reflects a long-established belief at Ladik. In the cemetery at Ladik a square-plan tomb of cut stone and brick, containing seven sarcophagi, is known as the Tomb of Seyyid Ahmed-i Kebîr; in its architectural features it is regarded as belonging to the period of the Anatolian principalities. Local records note that, because of the respect felt in the town for this man, many people still bear the name Seyyid Ahmed today.
However, according to Mustafa Tahralı's encyclopedia entry, Seyyid Ahmed er-Rifâî, the founder of the Rifâî order, died on 22 Cemâziyelevvel 578 (23 September 1182) and was buried in Iraq near Wasit. For this reason it is thought that the person lying in the tomb at Ladik is not the founder of the order himself but one of his grandsons, successors (khalifas) or followers in Anatolia. Sadi Bayram suggests that the man at Ladik may be a Rifâî elder who lived in the thirteenth-fourteenth century, also called "Küçek Ahmed" in Anatolia, and relays waqf records showing that families said to descend from him spread around Amasya, Merzifon and Suluova. The epithet "sâhibü'l-hâl" used by Hüsameddin appears in the same form in the Arabic record of an Amasya author of the early nineteenth century relayed by Bayram. That Ebûbekir Efendi's family bore the title "Seyyid" relates to this claim of descent.
The Mülâzım of Hocazâde Abdullah Efendi
Hocazâde Abdullah Efendi, of whom Ebûbekir Efendi became a mülâzım in 1043, is a state scholar with a detailed biography in Şeyhî Mehmed Efendi's Vekâyi'u'l-Fuzalâ. Abdullah Efendi, the son of Hoca Ömer Efendi, tutor of Sultan Osman II, was born in 992 [1584], served in the kazaskerships of Anatolia and Rumeli, and in Zilhicce 1042 [June 1633] became kazasker of Rumeli. In 1044 he took part in the Revan campaign with Murad IV, on the return was appointed at his own request to the judgeship of Egypt, and died there in Zilkade 1045 [April 1636]. The date 1043 given by Hüsameddin falls in the years of Abdullah Efendi's Rumeli kazaskership, and his being referred to by the title "sadr-ı Rumeli" is in this respect consistent with Şeyhî's records. In Şeyhî's work many other scholars are also seen to have entered the profession as mülâzıms of Hocazâde Abdullah Efendi. Hüsameddin calls him "of Amasya"; in the source read, Abdullah Efendi's hometown is not stated.
Unknowns
No information was found in the sources read about Seyyid Yûsuf Pasha, the sultan's çuhadar, mentioned as Ebûbekir Efendi's brother. Silahdar Yûsuf Pasha, who lived in the same years and was at the head of the Cretan campaign, was a devshirme recruit born in the town of Vrana in Dalmatia and should not be confused with this man. No record could be reached in the sources read on the Kameriyye Madrasa at Tokat or the Hüseyniyye Madrasa at Amasya. No information about Ebûbekir Efendi himself was found in other sources.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 89. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
- Mustafa Tahralı, "Ahmed er-Rifâî", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/ahmed-er-rifai).
- Metin Menekşe, "17. Yüzyılda Osmanlı Devleti'nde Makbul iken Maktul Olan Bir Devlet Adamı: Kaptan-ı Derya Silahdâr Yusuf Paşa", Stratejik ve Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, 5/3 (2021), pp. 527-553.
Official sources
- "Seyyid Ahmed-i Kebir Türbesi", Samsun İl Kültür ve Turizm Müdürlüğü (samsun.ktb.gov.tr/TR-217385/seyyid-ahmed-i-kebir-turbesi.html).
Books
- Şeyhî Mehmed Efendi, Vekâyi'u'l-Fuzalâ: Şeyhî'nin Şakâ'ik Zeyli, ed. Ramazan Ekinci, Türkiye Yazma Eserler Kurumu Başkanlığı, İstanbul 2018, vol. 1, pp. 251-253 (biography of Hocazâde Abdullah Efendi).
Other sources
- Sadi Bayram, "Ladik ve Seyyid Ahmed-i Kebir Er-Rifai Hazretleri" (samsunarsivi.blogspot.com/2006/05/ladik-ve-seyyid-ahmed-i-kebir-er-rifai.html).