Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: fā‘ilātün fā‘ilātün fā‘ilātün fā‘ilün

Gözüm içinde görinen ṣanma merdümdür siyāh
Revzen-i dildür siyāh itmişdür anı dūd-ı āh
Dāne-i ḫālüñe meyl itdügümi ma‘ẕūr ṭut
Evvelā Ādemden oldı ḫod bilürsin bu günāh
Yaşlarum yir yüzin ister dūd-ı āhum gökleri
Küllinüñ maḳṣūdı sensin muḫtelifse n’ola rāh
La‘lüñ içdügüni bildük ḳanumı diyyet buyur
‘İlm-i ḳāḍī olsa bir işde ḫod istenmez güvāh
Ṣıḥḥat iste Ḥaḳdan ancaḳ derd-i ‘ışḳ ile Münīr
Eksük olmaz ḫod bilürsin saġ olan başda külāh

In English

1. Do not suppose that what shows black within my eye is the pupil; it is the window of the heart, and the smoke of sighs has blackened it.

2. Excuse my inclination toward the grain of your mole; you know well that this sin first came from Adam.

3. My tears seek the face of the earth, the smoke of my sighs the heavens; you are the aim of them all, and if their roads differ, that is no wonder.

4. We have learned that your ruby lip has drunk my blood; be pleased to pay its blood money; when the judge himself has knowledge of a matter, no witness is required.

5. Münîr, ask God for health only together with the pain of love; you know well that a cap is never lacking on a sound head.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

This is a five-couplet Turkish ghazal, the two hundred and forty-second of the Turkish ghazals in the edition (tg 242). The metre is "fā‘ilātün fā‘ilātün fā‘ilātün fā‘ilün". The ghazal has no redif (refrain word); the rhyme rests on "-āh": siyāh, āh, günāh, rāh, güvāh and külāh. Besides the Vatican and Vienna manuscripts (VT 155a, VY 130b), the ghazal is also found in the Pervâne Bey anthology (PB 514b); the edition shows no variant readings. It is not known for whom or when it was written.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

In the opening couplet the blackness of the pupil is explained by a new reason. The Kubbealtı Lugatı explains "merdüm" both as man, human being, and, together with words meaning eye, as the pupil of the eye; "revzen" is a window. The poet sees the pupil as the window of the heart and ascribes its blackness to the smoke of sighs. This is an example of hüsn-i talil (fanciful aetiology). There is also a likeness of sound between the rhymes "siyāh" (black) and "āh" (sigh).

In the second couplet the phrase "dāne-i ḫāl" is used. In its entry "dâne" the Kubbealtı explains this phrase as a mole on the body; "dâne" itself is seed, grain. The lover's inclination toward the mole is likened to the first sin committed by Adam. In listing the different accounts of what the forbidden fruit was, the TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi entry "Âdem" writes that in Jewish tradition it was also reported to be a fig or an ear of wheat. That the word "dāne" calls a grain to mind ties the couplet to this account (our observation). The appearance of the words "merdüm" (human being) and "Ādem" in two successive couplets may also be counted a congruence of images (tenasüp) (our observation).

In the third couplet tears and the smoke of sighs go in opposite directions: one to the earth, the other to the sky. This contrast (tezat) between earth and heaven is bound in the second line to the thought that all roads lead to the same aim, the beloved.

The fourth couplet is built like a scene in a court of law. Because of its red colour the ruby lip is held to have drunk the lover's blood; the lover demands blood money for it and says there is no need to bring witnesses, because the judge himself knows the case. The words "ḳan" (blood), "diyyet" (blood money), "ḳāḍī" (judge) and "güvāh" (witness) form a congruence of images from the field of law. As Ersoy's introduction notes, the poet is called "Münîrî-i Kâdî" (Münîrî the judge) in one anthology of response poems; it is striking how well these terms suit the pen of a judge (our observation).

In the couplet bearing the pen name (mahlas) the pain of love and health are asked for together; this is a contrast. The second line is a general statement with the air of a proverb: as long as the head is sound, a cap will be found. The Kubbealtı explains "külâh" as a headgear, usually pointed at the top, worn by people of every class. There is a closeness of meaning between the words "ṣıḥḥat" (health) and "saġ" (sound).

Bibliography

Primary sources

Academic studies

Books

  • Kubbealtı Lugatı (Misalli Büyük Türkçe Sözlük), entries "merdüm", "revzen", "dâne" and "külâh". https://lugatim.com/s/dâne

Online sources