Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: Fā‘ilātün Fā‘ilātün Fā‘ilātün Fā‘ilün

Nice olsun ḥâl ʿâlemde ḳarar üzre s̱ebât
Kâyinâtuñ ḥâli çünki inḳılâb üstindedür
Ey göñül ṣal bu iḳâmet raḫtını ârâm içün
Çarḫ-ı bî-ârâmı gör ki ıżṭırâb üstindedür
Fırṣatı fevt eyleme bir ân teʿḫîr eyleme
Kim zamân sürʿatde vü devrân şitâb üstindedür

In English

1. How could any state in this world stay settled and lasting, when the condition of all beings is one of constant change?

2. O heart, cast off the baggage of settling down for the sake of rest; look at the restless wheel of heaven, ever in turmoil. ("Çarḫ-ı bî-ârâm", the wheel that never rests, is the turning sky; it stands for the fickleness of fate and time.)

3. Do not let the chance slip by, do not delay for a moment; for time runs swiftly and the age is in haste.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

The poem is a kıt‘a (fragment) of three couplets (beyit), written in the metre "fā‘ilātün fā‘ilātün fā‘ilātün fā‘ilün" of the remel family of aruz (quantitative metre). The metre is not stated in the biographical anthology; it has been deduced from the scansion of the couplets. The kıt‘a is a short verse form in which only the even lines rhyme, without an opening rhyming couplet and usually without a pen name; here too the first line does not join the rhyme. The even lines carry the redif (refrain word) "üstindedür" and the rhyme "-âb" in the words inḳılâb, ıżṭırâb and şitâb. The poem appears only in Latîfî's biographical anthology (tezkire), under the heading "Ḳıṭʿa lehu" (a kıt‘a of his). Latîfî writes that Müeyyedzâde had a bent for poetry and from time to time composed "rubâʿîden ve ḳıṭʿadan baʿżı laṭîf beytler", some fine couplets in the form of quatrains and fragments; he gives this kıt‘a right after that remark. To whom and when it was written is not known.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The subject of the kıt‘a is the changeableness of the world and the value of the moment. The first couplet opens with a general judgement: since the state of all beings is forever changing, no condition in the world can last. There is a clear antithesis (tezat) between "ḳarar" and "s̱ebât" (stability, permanence) and "inḳılâb" (upheaval). The second couplet turns this judgement on the heart and thinks of it as a traveller. The heart has settled somewhere for the sake of rest and set down its load; the poet advises it to throw that load off, that is, to give up the wish for permanence. His reason is the wheel of heaven: the sky turns without pause and is in constant turmoil. Setting "ârâm" (rest, stillness) beside "bî-ârâm" (restless) sharpens the contrast between the rest the heart seeks and the unrest of the world. A congruence of images (tenasüp) suggesting a journey is also set up between "iḳâmet" (residence) and "raḫt" (baggage).

The third couplet draws the conclusion: one must not miss the chance or put anything off, because time and the age are hurrying past. There is a congruence of images among the words chance, moment, time, speed and şitâb (haste), and with these words the couplet itself gains a quick movement. The thought of the kıt‘a is akin to the couplets "İçelüm içelüm şarâb içelüm", which the anthologies give in the same entry for Müeyyedzâde: in both the transience of the world becomes a call to seize the moment. The kıt‘a, however, does not speak of wine and gives its counsel in more general terms.

Bibliography

Online sources