Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: Mef’ûlü Mefâ’îlü Mefâ’îlü Fe’ûlün

Şol hâl-i siyâhun ki yatur la’l-i ter üzre
Gûyâ ki megesdür ki konupdur şeker üzre
Cân virür iken yâr lebin agzuma sundı
Hızr irdi bana hîn-i hazerde sefer üzre
Ey kaşı kemân n’eydi eger geçmese câna
Gamzen okı geldükçe bu hûnîn ciger üzre
Kûyuna yüzüm basa gelüp gideyor agyâr
Yatur yüzi kim basa diyen kanı yir üzre
Şâhî ser-i teslîmi koyupdur işigünde
Şâhâ ne murâd eyler isen çeşm ü ser üzre

In English

1. That black mole of yours lying upon the fresh ruby lip is, you would say, a fly that has alighted upon sugar.

2. As I was giving up my soul, the beloved offered her lip to my mouth; Khidr reached me in the hour of danger, while I was on a journey.

3. O bow-browed one, what would it be if the arrow of your glance, each time it comes upon this bloody heart, did not pass into the soul?

4. Strangers come and go in your street, treading upon my face; who is there upon the earth who says, "His face lies on the ground, let him be trodden on"?

5. Şâhî has laid the head of submission at your threshold; O shah, whatever you wish is upon my eyes and my head.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

The five-couplet ghazal is written in the "mef'ûlü mefâ'îlü mefâ'îlü fe'ûlün" pattern. The redif is "üzre" (upon), and the rhyme is the "-er" sound in "ter, şeker, sefer, ciger, yir, ser"; "yir" in the fourth couplet only approaches this sound. Kılıç notes that the redif "üzre" is used in two ghazals of the divan; the other is Ghazal 135. In the edition the folio mark [51b] stands after the last couplet.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The opening couplet uses a familiar comparison of divan poetry: the black mole on the ruby lip is a fly that has alighted on sugar. The sweetness of the lip is expressed by sugar, the blackness and smallness of the mole by the fly. The attribute "ter" presents the lip as both fresh and moist.

The second couplet contains an allusion to Khidr (Hızır). In divan poetry Khidr is mentioned as the one who found the water of life and who reaches travellers in distress. The beloved's offering her lip to the lover's mouth as he gives up his soul is likened to the water of life being brought to one about to die. The expressions "hîn-i hazer" (the hour of danger) and "sefer üzre" (while on a journey) carry into the couplet Khidr's role as the helper who arrives on the road and in danger; the link between the lip and the water of life completes this allusion.

The third couplet is a simple complaint: each time the arrow of the glance touches the bloody heart it also passes into the soul. The fourth couplet is obscure. In the first line it is said that the strangers, coming and going in the beloved's street, tread upon the lover's face; the lover lies at the threshold with his face on the ground. The second line can be understood as "who is there upon the earth who says, 'his face lies on the ground, let him be trodden on'", that is, no one wished the lover to fall into this state, and the strangers trample him of their own accord. This reading is ours and is not certain.

In the closing couplet the poet says with the compound "ser-i teslîm" (head of submission) that he has laid his head at the beloved's threshold. "Çeşm ü ser üzre" (upon eye and head) is an idiom of obedience still alive today as "başım gözüm üstüne"; the redif "üzre" thus merges in the last couplet with an idiom of everyday speech. The addressee is called "Şâhâ" (O shah); since this address is also common for the beloved in divan poetry, it cannot be counted as a sign that the ghazal is directed at a particular ruler.

Bibliography

  • Filiz Kılıç (ed.), Şâhî Dîvânı (Şehzâde Bâyezîd), Ankara: T.C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı Kütüphaneler ve Yayımlar Genel Müdürlüğü, 2018, e-book pp. 113-114, ghazal no. 139 (Millet Library, Ali Emîrî Efendi, Manzum Eserler 225, fol. 51b); also p. 29 (refrains), https://ekitap.ktb.gov.tr/Eklenti/59394,sahi-divanipdf.pdf.

Online sources