Original Ottoman Turkish Text
Metre: Mefāʿīlün mefāʿīlün mefāʿīlün mefāʿīlün
Ṭabīʿīler ne rütbe söylese maʿḳūl ü müstaḥsen
Ŝebāt pāyıma viremez tezelzül müʾminim billāh
Baña ancaḳ virir ʿilm-i yaḳīn ol ḳavl-i aḳdes kim
Ola ʿunvānı ḳāle Allāhu veyā ḳāle rasūlullāh
In English
1. However reasonable and pleasing the words of the naturalists may be, they cannot shake the foot of my steadfastness; by God, I am a believer.
2. Certain knowledge is given me only by that holiest word whose heading is "God said" or "the Messenger of God said".
Literary and Historical Commentary
Here the divan's criticism of naturalism turns into a declaration of faith. The "tabîîler", naturalists, that is, thinkers who explain being by nature alone, may according to the poet speak "makûl ve müstahsen", reasonable and pleasing words; the poet does not deny this. But these words cannot make the foot of his faith slip: "mü'minim billâh", by God, I am a believer.
The source of knowledge is named openly: "ilm-i yakîn", certain knowledge, comes only from words that begin "kâle'llâh" or "kâle Resûlullâh", God said or the Prophet said. In the kalâm tradition revelation and sound report are counted among the sources of certain knowledge; the poet sets this principle as a point of support against the rationalist naturalists. The second wording the copyist noted for the last line looks like a mocking variant saying that those who speak by quoting poetry cannot attain this certainty.
Bibliography
- Havva Tok Yıldız, Merzifonlu İbrâhîm Cûdî Dîvânı (İnceleme-Metin-Sözlük) [1b-43a], Master's thesis, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Samsun 2017, p. 126 (poem no. 176; manuscript fol. ). http://libra.omu.edu.tr/tezler/116853.pdf
Online sources
