Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Ḥadîs̱-i ʿaḳl olmaz ʿışḳa maḳbûl
Sözi geçmez olıcaḳ ḳâżî maʿzûl

In English

1. The word of reason finds no acceptance with love; once a judge is dismissed, his word no longer carries weight.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

Âşık Çelebi gives this couplet with the words "Bu beyt daḫı anuñdur", this couplet too is his, after the couplets he quotes from Kâmî's Yûsuf u Züleyhâ. Its two lines rhyme with each other in "maḳbûl / maʿzûl"; this is the form of a mesnevi couplet. It is therefore very probable that the couplet was taken from the lost Yûsuf u Züleyhâ, but Âşık Çelebi does not say so explicitly; the observation is ours. The couplet is absent from manuscript F of Âşık Çelebi's edition. The edition of the tezkire does not indicate the metre. In which section of the mesnevi it stood is unknown.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The couplet presents one of the oppositions most often treated in divan poetry and mystical literature, the conflict of reason and love, through a courtroom scene. Reason is likened to a judge. While in office the judge's ruling holds, but once dismissed, however rightly he speaks, he is not heeded. Where love reigns, reason is like such a dismissed judge, and love does not accept its word. The word "ḥadîs̱" in the first line means "word, report"; since the same word is used for the sayings of the Prophet, it subtly suggests the weight of reason's word. Despite this weight, reason's ruling is void in the court of love. The comparison is built as an illustrative simile (teşbih-i temsil): an abstract judgement is supported by a concrete example taken from daily life.

Another interesting aspect of the couplet is its link with the poet's life. According to Âşık Çelebi, Kâmî was himself a judge, having served in Arkadiye and other places in Rumelia. That someone who knew how a dismissed judge's word ceases to count should choose this comparison suggests that he carried into poetry an observation from the world of his own profession. This connection is our interpretation. In the context of the Joseph story the couplet would also suit a section describing how Zuleikha lost her reason and her reputation for the sake of love.

Historical Context

According to Âşık Çelebi, Kâmî is Mehmed Çelebi, nephew of Şeyh Cemâl; he obtained his candidacy from Müftü Ali Çelebi, served as a judge and died in 952 (1545-46). His Yûsuf u Züleyhâ was lost after his death, and this couplet may be one of the few fragments surviving from the work. Whether this person is the same as the Kâmî mentioned by Hüseyin Hüsâmeddin Yasar in Prince Ahmed's Amasya circle is not certain. The details are in the article Kâmî (Prince Ahmed's Circle).

Bibliography

Online sources