Original Ottoman Turkish Text

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

Ey vücūdı nūr-ı çeşm-i devlet-i dünyā vü dīn
Bār-gāh-ı ḳadrüñe bir pāye çarḫ-ı heftümīn
Ḳurretü’l-‘ayn-ı cihāndur āftāb-ı ṭal‘atuñ
Çeşm-i bedden ṣaḳlasun her laḥẓa Rabbü’l-‘ālemīn
Rūḥ-ı ḳudsīler gelür diyü ṭavāf-ı kūyuña
Oldı cārūb işigüñde şeh-per-i Rūḥu’l-emīn
Çarḫ-ı gerdūn işigüñde ṣanki hindūdur ġulām
K’ayda bir kez ḫıdmetüñde yiñiler dāġ-ı cebīn
‘Arş-ı a‘ẓam ṣanki bir engüşteridür Ḫüsrevā
Ḫaṭṭı ism-i a‘ẓamuñ oldı aña naḳş-ı nigīn
Her kime sevgend iderse manṣıb-ı a‘lāya çarḫ
Ka‘be-i ‘ulyā ḳapuñ ḥaḳḳına ider hep yemīn
Hīc göstermez dime ḫurşīde nev‘-i iḥtiyāc
Ger fürūġ-ı māha mihr-i ṭal‘atuñ olsa żamīn
Ḥażret-i şeh-zāde sulṭān Aḥmed-i ‘ālī-nijād
Ḳıldı Ḥaḳ anı ḥabībi Muṣṭafā gibi güzīn
Gördigünce ol cüvān-baḫtuñ her işin çarḫ-ı pīr
‘An ṣamīmi’l-ḳalb idüp taḥsīn dir ṣad-āferīn
Bir gül-i gül-zār-ı devletdür cihān bāġında kim
Nükhet ü ḫoş-būlar ile ṭoldı hep rūy-ı zemīn
Gerçi bir nev-bāve-i bāġ-ı sa‘ādetdür henūz
Sāl-dīde şehler aña çāker olmışdur kemīn
Her ne söz kim söyler ol ‘ālī-güher fī’l-ḥāl olur
Gūş-vār-ı nev-‘arūs-ı dehre bir dürr-i s̱emīn
Reh-nümādur n’ire ‘azm iderse iḳbāl ü ẓafer
Ḳanda olursa sa‘ādet birle devletdür ḳarīn
Ḫüsrevā çābük-süvār-ı ḳadrüñe erzāndur
Ġāşiye-dār oldıyısa şöyle bu çarḫ-ı berīn
Bu şeker güftār u luṭf u cūd-ı bī-pāyān ile
Ḫar-megesdür sizden özge şāhlar bī-engübīn
‘Ayn-ı devletsin mu‘ayyen kāyināt içre k’olur
Tūtyā-yı ḫāk-i pāyuñ nūr-ı çeşm-i ḥūr-ı ‘īn
Dest-i sīm-efşānuñı görüp ḫayāl idüp didüm
Ṭaġılur ṣankim seḥer yiliyle berg-i yāsemīn
İşigüñe her gice yüz sürdügi besbellüdür
Hīc mehden zāyil olmaz şöyle bu ḫāk-i cebīn
Nerre-şīr-i bīşe-i gerdūn oḳından vehm ider
Dūşdükce bu kemān ebrūlara ḫışm ile çīn
İreli ẕerrāt-ı kevne nūr-ı rāyuñdan meded
Ḫırmen-i rāyuñda mihr ü māh olupdur ḫūşe-çīn
Gördi hergiz yire düşmez atduġuñ tīr-i seḥer
Düşdi ṣaḥrā-yı Ḫıṭāya vehm ile āhū-yı Çīn
Her kişi devrüñde yetişdi murādına tamām
Kār-ı mülk-i ‘ālem oldı devletüñde şöyle çīn
Sehv ile elfāẓ-ı gevher-bāruña öykünmegin
İpe dizildi gelür der-gāhuña dürr-i s̱emīn
İmrenür vālā-yı nīzeñden kim ide şaḫṣ-ı dehr
Lācverdī cübbe-i çarḫa ṭırāz-ı āstīn
İşigüñe günde yüzin sürdügiçün āftāb
Çār-ṭāḳ-ı çarḫ aña maḫṣūṣ olupdur şeh-nişīn
Bezm-i rūḥ-efzāña şāyed yetişem bir gün diyü
Kūşe-i ḫum-ḫānelerde çıḳarur mey erba‘īn
Bī-müḥābā dökmek içün ḫūn-ı a‘dāñı yire
Oldı tīġ-i āb-dāruñ şānı ṭab‘-ı āteşīn
Rub‘-ı meskūna ṣalaldan Ḫüsrevā sāyeñ şeref
Yetmiş iki millete ẕāt-ı şerīfüñdür mu‘īn
Göreli burc-ı şerefde ṭal‘atuñ mihrin Münīr
Didi el-ḥaḳ nūr-ı Aḥmed ẓāhir olmışdur hemīn
Ḥaḳ Te‘ālā devlet ile bir günin biñ eylesün
Her nitekim ola rūzı hefte vü māhı sinīn

In English

1. O prince, whose being is the light of the eye of the fortune of the world and of the faith, the seventh heaven is no more than a step to the pavilion of your lofty worth. ("Çarḫ-ı heftümīn" in its dictionary sense is the seventh sphere, that is, the highest storey in the old picture of the heavens. In the Vatican manuscript the line reads "dünyā-yı dīn".)

2. Your face, shining like the sun, is the delight of the world's eye; may the Lord of the worlds hide it every moment from the evil eye. ("Ḳurretü'l-‘ayn" in its dictionary sense means the delight of the eye, that is, what gladdens a person most.)

3. Because the holy spirits come to circle your street as pilgrims, the great pinion of the Trusted Spirit, that is, Gabriel, has become a broom at your threshold.

4. The turning sphere is like an Indian slave at your threshold; once a month, in your service, it renews the brand on its forehead. (The crescent moon, born anew each month, is likened to the brand set on a slave's forehead.)

5. O sovereign, the highest Throne of God is like a ring; the writing of your greatest name has become the engraving on its seal stone. (The phrase "İsm-i a‘ẓam" is also used for the greatest name of God; the poet links it to the prince's name. The prince's name, Ahmed, is one of the Prophet's names.)

6. Whenever the sphere swears to grant someone the highest office, it always swears by the right of your door, which is a lofty Kaaba.

7. If the sun of your face stood surety for the moon's brightness, the moon would show no need of any kind for the sun; do not say this cannot be. (The moon takes its light from the sun; once the prince's face stands surety for it, it no longer depends on the sun. The word "dime", "do not say", in the line adds an emphasis like "do not be surprised at this".)

8. God made His Highness the nobly born Prince Sultan Ahmed chosen, like His beloved Mustafa, that is, the Prophet.

9. Whenever the aged sphere sees each deed of this prince of youthful fortune, it praises him from the bottom of its heart and says "a hundred bravos". ("Cüvān-baḫt", of youthful fortune, and "çarḫ-ı pīr", the aged sphere, form a contrast.)

10. He is a rose of the rose garden of fortune in the garden of the world; the face of the earth has been filled from end to end with his sweet scents.

11. True, he is still an early fruit of the garden of felicity; yet kings who have seen many years have become his humblest servants. ("Nev-bāve" is an early fruit, "sāl-dīde" one who has seen many years, aged.)

12. Every word spoken by that prince of lofty essence at once becomes a precious pearl, an earring for the ear of the new bride of the age. ("‘Ālī-güher" in its dictionary sense means of lofty essence, noble; the words "güher" (jewel), "dürr" (pearl) and "gūş-vār" (earring) form a congruence of images (tenasüp).)

13. Wherever he turns, good fortune and victory show him the way; wherever he is, felicity and power are his companions.

14. O sovereign, if this lofty sphere has become the bearer of the saddle-cloth for the nimble horseman of your worth, that is cheap for it, and fitting. ("Ġāşiye-dār" in its dictionary sense is the servant who carries the saddle-cloth of the ruler's horse. "Erzān" means both cheap and fitting.)

15. Beside this sugared speech, this kindness and boundless generosity, kings other than you are honeyless wasps. ("Ḫar-meges" in its dictionary sense means wasp, "engübīn" honey; the wasp makes no honey.)

16. You are plainly the eye of fortune within creation, its very self; so much so that the collyrium made from the dust of your feet becomes the light of the eyes of the large-eyed houris. ("‘Ayn" means both eye and the very self, the essence of a thing; "tūtyā" is the collyrium applied to the eyes.)

17. Seeing and imagining your silver-scattering hand, I said: it is as if jasmine petals were scattered by the dawn wind. (The silver coins scattered by the generous hand are likened to white jasmine petals blown by the wind.)

18. It is plain that every night the moon rubs its face on your threshold; that is why this trace of earth on its forehead never leaves it. (The marks on the moon's face are explained as the trace of earth left from rubbing its face on the threshold.)

19. The male lion of the forest of the sky fears your arrow whenever, in anger, a frown falls upon these bow-shaped brows. (The lion of the sky is the sign of Leo; the knitted brow is likened to a drawn bow. The Vatican manuscript has "idüp" for "ider".)

20. Ever since help reached the atoms of being from the light of your judgement, the sun and moon have become gleaners at the threshing floor of your judgement. ("Rāy" means judgement, counsel; "ḫūşe-çīn" is one who gathers the ears left after the harvest.)

21. The gazelle of China saw that the dawn arrow you shoot never falls to the ground; in fear it fled into the desert of Khitai. (Khitai, Hıta, in its dictionary sense is a region of northern China and Central Asia; the gazelle of China is the musk deer. "Tīr-i seḥer" can be understood as an arrow shot at dawn, and can also be read as the dawn prayer, which divan poetry likens to an arrow.)

22. In your reign everyone has fully attained his desire; the affairs of the realm of the world have thus been gathered and set in order under your rule. (The word "çīn" at the end of the line puns on the name "Çīn", China, in the previous couplet. In Persian it means in its dictionary sense "gatherer" and "fold, wrinkle"; its meaning here is not certain.)

23. Because the precious pearl mistakenly imitated your jewel-scattering words, it comes to your court strung on a thread. (The pearl's being strung on a thread is imagined as a culprit being bound and brought before the ruler.)

24. The person of the age envies the lofty banner on your lance; it wishes to make it the cuff embroidery of the lapis-blue robe of the sky. ("Vālā" in its dictionary sense means both lofty and a fine silk cloth; "ṭırāz" is the embroidered ornament at the end of a sleeve. The sky is likened to a lapis-blue robe.)

25. Because the sun rubs its face on your threshold every day, the four-arched dome of the sky has become a royal balcony reserved for it. ("Çār-ṭāḳ" is a four-arched structure, "şeh-nişīn" a balcony projecting from a building.)

26. Saying "Perhaps one day I shall reach your soul-enlivening gathering", the wine keeps a forty-day retreat in the corners of the tavern jars. ("Erba‘īn" in its dictionary sense is a forty-day retreat into seclusion; the wine's ageing in the jar is likened to such a retreat.)

27. So as to spill the blood of your enemies on the ground without hesitation, the glory of your tempered, gleaming sword has become a fiery nature. ("Āb-dār", watered, gleaming, and "āteşīn", fiery, form a contrast. The Vatican manuscript has "ṭab‘-ı" for "tīġ-i".)

28. O sovereign, since your shadow cast honour upon the inhabited quarter of the earth, your noble person has been the helper of the seventy-two nations. ("Yetmiş iki millet", seventy-two nations, in its dictionary sense is an expression for all religious communities, all peoples. In the Vatican manuscript this couplet stands in 24th place.)

29. Ever since Münîr saw the sun of your face in the house of its exaltation, he has said, "Truly the light of Ahmed has now appeared". ("Burc-ı şeref" in its dictionary sense is the sign in which a planet is at its strongest. "Nūr-ı Aḥmed" describes both the light of the Prophet and the radiance of Prince Ahmed.)

30. May God Most High, with fortune, make one of his days a thousand; so that his day may be a week and his month years.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

The poem is a Turkish kaside (qasida) of thirty couplets and is numbered Kaside 26 in the edition. The kaside is a verse form in which every couplet carries the same rhyme, usually written in praise of a ruler. The metre is "fâ‘ilâtün fâ‘ilâtün fâ‘ilâtün fâ‘ilün". There is no redif (refrain word); the rhyme rests on an "n" following a long "ī" (dīn, heftümīn, ‘ālemīn, emīn, cebīn, nigīn …). Ersoy counts this kaside among the examples of the rhyme type Münîrî uses most, in which a long vowel precedes the rhyme letter. The poem is found in the Vatican (VT 53b) and Vienna (VY 36a) manuscripts. The heading in the edition, "Der-medḥ-i Sulṭān Aḥmed edāmallāhü ‘ömrehū", means "In praise of Sultan Ahmed, may God make his life last"; in the Vienna manuscript the heading is shorter.

The kaside has no introductory section opening with a description of nature or another subject; from the first couplet the poem addresses the patron directly. Couplets 1-7 describe the prince's loftiness with images of the heavens: the seventh heaven is a step to his pavilion, Gabriel's wing a broom at his threshold, the Throne a ring on which his name is engraved. In couplet 8 the patron is named openly as "Ḥażret-i şeh-zāde sulṭān Aḥmed", and from here a long section of praise begins that runs to couplet 28. Couplet 29 is the one in which the pen name (mahlas) "Münīr" appears; couplet 30 is the prayer.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

Two families of images stand out across the kaside. The first is the heavenly bodies: the sphere, the sun, the moon, the sign of Leo and the Throne are shown as beings serving at the prince's threshold. The poet finds fanciful reasons for the known features of these bodies; this is called hüsn-i talil (poetic aetiology). In couplet 4 the crescent moon, born anew each month, is explained as the brand on a slave's forehead; in couplet 18 the marks on the moon's face as earth left from rubbing its face on the threshold; in couplet 25 the dome of the sky as a royal balcony, the reward for the sun's daily coming to the threshold. In couplet 26 the ageing of wine in the jar is likened to the forty-day retreat of a dervish waiting to be admitted to the gathering. The second family of images is the garden: the prince is the rose of the rose garden of fortune (10) and the early fruit of the garden of felicity (11).

Münîrî's favourite play on names is present here too. Since the prince's name, Ahmed, is one of the Prophet's names, in couplet 8 God has made him chosen "ḥabībi Muṣṭafā gibi", like His beloved, the Prophet; in couplet 29 too the phrase "nūr-ı Aḥmed" describes the light of the Prophet together with the radiance of the prince. "Cüvān-baḫt" (of youthful fortune) and "çarḫ-ı pīr" (the aged sphere) in couplet 9, and "āb-dār" (tempered with water) and "āteşīn" (fiery) in couplet 27, are examples of contrast. In couplet 12 a congruence of images (tenasüp) is built between speech, pearl and earring; in couplet 16 between eye, collyrium and the light of the eye. The word "‘ayn" in couplet 16 carries both the meaning of eye and that of the very self of a thing. The rhyme words of couplets 21 and 22, "Çīn" and "çīn", are written alike; the first is the name of a country, while the meaning of the second is not certain. In couplet 15 the description of other rulers as "honeyless wasps" is a sharp example of the contrast built with sugared speech and generosity.

According to Ersoy, this kaside is a nazire (response poem) to a kaside of Ahmed Paşa written in the same metre and with the "-īn" rhyme. Ersoy notes that the influence of Ahmed Paşa and Atâyî is prominent in Münîrî's Turkish kasides. Which kaside of Ahmed Paşa served as the model is not separately named in the introduction.

Historical Context

The recipient of the kaside is clear from the heading and from the name in couplet 8: the patron is Prince Ahmed, son of Bayezid II. Ersoy says that seven of the twenty-nine kasides in the divan were written for Prince Ahmed; in the edition the kasides numbered 22-28 carry headings in his name. Prince Ahmed was governor of the Amasya province between 1481 and 1511; Münîrî served for a time as his chancellor (nişancı). In the poem the prince is presented as a young prince to whom aged rulers have become servants (9, 11). But there is no information in the heading, the text or the sources on the year or occasion of the kaside's composition.

Bibliography

Online sources