Niksarlıdır. Oranın müftüsü el-Hâc Ali Efendi bin Ahmed Efendi’nin mahdûmudur. Pederi küçük yaşında vefât eylediğinden amcasıyla Amasya‘ya gelip fâzıl-ı meşhûr Şeyhzâde es-Seyyid el-Hâc Abdullah Vecîh Efendi’nin halka-i tedrîsinde ikmâl-i tahsîl etdi.
Ders-i âm olduğu esnâda üstâz-ı müşârün-ileyhin dâmâdı ve irtihâlinde inhilâl eden Ayas Ağa Medresesi müderrisi olarak fevkalâde iştihâr etdi. Üstâdının [201] mevki-i müstesnâsını tutdu. Akrân ve emsâlinin inkırâzıyla riyâset-i ulemâyı fazl ve irfânıyla ihrâz etdi.
Birkaç defa Amasya müftülüğüne nasbı mukarrer olduğu halde her defasında vâki’ olan teklifi reddedip tedrîs ve ifâdeden fâriğ olmadı. Gümüşlüzâde câmi-i şerîfinde “Beyzâvî Tefsîri”ni tedrîs ederek 1257 senesi cumâdelâhiresinde dâr-ı naîme irtihâl etdi. Gâyet fâzıl, fakîh, muhakkik, ulûm-i akliyye ve nakliyyede mâhir, vâiz, müfessir, sâlih, zâhid bir zât-ı kerîm idi. Kemâl-i ittikâsından mu’tekad-ı enâm olup halk enfâs-ı şerîfesinden istişfâ ederdi.
In Modern English
He is from Niksar. He is the son of Hacı Ali Efendi, müftü of that town, who was the son of Ahmed Efendi. Since his father died when he was young, he came to Amasya with his uncle and completed his studies in the teaching circle of the renowned scholar Şeyhzâde Seyyid Hacı Abdullah Vecîh Efendi.
While he was a ders-i âm he became the son-in-law of the aforementioned teacher; as müderris of the Ayas Ağa Madrasa, vacated by his teacher's death, he became greatly renowned. He took his teacher's distinguished place. When his peers and equals had passed away, he attained the headship of the scholars through his learning and maturity.
Although his appointment to the müftü post of Amasya was decided several times, each time he refused the offer and never gave up teaching and instruction. Teaching the "Beyzâvî Commentary" in the Gümüşlüzâde mosque, he died in the month of Cemaziyelâhir 1257 [1841]. He was a man of great learning, a jurist, a deep researcher, a master of the rational and transmitted sciences, a preacher, a commentator, good, detached from worldly desire, and generous. Because of his great piety people believed in him, and they sought healing from his blessed breath.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mahdûm: son
- halka-i tedrîs: teaching circle, the group of students gathered around a teacher
- ders-i âm: one who has received the authority to give public lessons
- üstâz-ı müşârün-ileyh: the aforementioned teacher
- dâmâd: son-in-law
- inhilâl: falling vacant
- akrân ve emsâl: peers and equals
- inkırâz: disappearing, dying out
- riyâset-i ulemâ: headship of the scholars
- tedrîs ve ifâde: teaching and instruction
- mu'tekad-ı enâm: one whom the people respect and believe in
- enfâs-ı şerîfe: blessed breaths
- istişfâ: seeking healing
The Ayas Ağa Madrasa
The Ayas Ağa Complex stands in the Şamlar quarter of Amasya; it is a small complex built in the late fifteenth century by Ayas Ağa, one of the chief gatekeepers of Bayezid II's reign, and consists of a mosque, a madrasa and a primary school. Hüsameddin reports that the complex, which has no inscription, was built in 900 [1494-95]. It is said that on its site earlier stood the Şamlar Mosque, a charity of the Danishmendid emir Melik Gazi. The madrasa is also known as Medrese-i Ayasiyye, Küçük Kapı Ağası and Küçük Ağa; it consists of nine cells around the courtyard north of the mosque and a section thought to have been the lecture hall. Its mosque is still open for worship. A study based on the records of the Meşîhat archive counts the "Küçük Ağa (Ayas Ağa)" madrasa among those teaching in Amasya in the twentieth century. The madrasa in the text is this building.
The Gümüşlü Mosque and the Beyzâvî Commentary
The Gümüşlüzâde mosque where the müderris taught is probably today's Gümüşlü Mosque; this is inferred from the similarity of the names and is not stated outright in the source. A study of the Gümüşlü Mosque describes it as the earliest dated Ottoman work in Amasya and notes that it has moved away from its original state through large-scale repairs, yet remains in use. The Beyzâvî Commentary he taught is the work of Kâdî Beyzâvî (d. 685/1286) titled Envârü't-tenzîl ve esrârü't-te'vîl.
No information was found in other sources about Müftizâde İsmâil Efendi, his teacher Abdullah Vecîh Efendi, or his father the müftü of Niksar.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 324–325. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies