Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: Fâ’ilâtün Fâ’ilâtün Fâ’ilâtün Fâ’ilün

Çok zemândur görmedüm n’eyler ki cânânum benüm
Gönlümün eglencesi ol şâh-ı hûbânum benüm
Gözlerüm nergis gibi yollardadur lutf it yetiş
Bâg-ı ‘ömrüm hâsılı serv-i hırâmânum benüm
Cümle nazm ehli gulâmundur bu şîrîn nutk ile
Mülk-i nazmun Hüsrevisin ey güzel hânum benüm
‘Asker-i hicrân tâlân itmesün dil mülkini
Rahm kıl ben bendene ey şâh-ı devrânum benüm
Şâhînün budur du’âsı devlet ile haşre dek
Müstedâm ol dünyede devletlü sultânum benüm

In English

1. I have not seen my beloved for a long time, I wonder what he is doing; that shah of the beauties of mine, the delight of my heart.

2. My eyes are left on the roads like the narcissus, be kind, come quickly; fruit of the garden of my life, my swaying cypress.

3. With this sweet speech of yours all the people of poetry are your slaves; O my lovely khan, you are the Hüsrev of the realm of poetry.

4. Let not the army of separation plunder the realm of the heart; O shah of the age, have pity on me, your servant.

5. This is Şâhî's prayer: O my fortunate sultan, may you endure in the world in good fortune until the Day of Resurrection.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

The five-couplet ghazal is written in the "fâ'ilâtün fâ'ilâtün fâ'ilâtün fâ'ilün" pattern. The redif (refrain word) is "benüm" (my, of mine), and the rhyme is the "-ân" sound in "cânân, hûbân, hırâmân, hân, devrân, sultân" followed by the suffix "-um". Kılıç counts the ghazal among the ten with the redif "benüm"; in footnote 73 it appears as "96", because in this part of the edition the numbers in the introduction are one less than those of the text. In the edition the folio mark 36b stands at the end of the third couplet.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The opening couplet begins by asking after someone: "I have not seen him for a long time, what is he doing". This plain opening, close to everyday speech, contrasts with the courtly forms of address in the rest of the ghazal. In the second couplet the eyes are likened to the narcissus. In divan poetry the narcissus, with its yellow centre, is imagined as an eye that stays open; "to be left on the roads" means never taking one's eyes off the road while waiting for someone. The length of the waiting is thus conveyed through the narcissus that always stands open by the roadside.

In the third couplet the beloved is the Hüsrev of "mülk-i nazm", the realm of poetry, and all poets are his slaves. When "Hüsrev" and "şîrîn nutk" (sweet speech) stand side by side, the story of Hüsrev and Şîrîn comes to mind; the word "şîrîn" is used both in the sense of "sweet" and in a way that recalls Şîrîn, the heroine of the story. This comes close to a double entendre (tevriye). In the fourth couplet the metaphors "'asker-i hicrân" (army of separation) and "dil mülki" (realm of the heart) liken separation to the plundering of a country. The last couplet closes the ghazal with a prayer.

Historical Context

Kılıç does not mention this ghazal. Nevertheless, three signs in the poem suggest that it may have been addressed to a ruler, most probably Süleyman. The beloved is praised as ruler of the realm of poetry; Süleyman was a padishah who wrote poetry under the pen name Muhibbî. The closing couplet is an open prayer wishing a sultan fortune until the Day of Resurrection; when Kılıç counts the second ghazal of the divan as dedicated to Süleyman, he too draws attention to its prayer that his shadow should not be lacking until the Resurrection. The words "I have not seen him for a long time" in the opening couplet are close in mood to the ghazal with the redif "göresim geldi seni" (I long to see you), which Kılıç believes expresses the wish to see his father (cited in the introduction as "G157"). These connections are our reading; the poem contains no name or date.

Bibliography

  • Filiz Kılıç (ed.), Şâhî Dîvânı (Şehzâde Bâyezîd), Ankara: T.C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı Kütüphaneler ve Yayımlar Genel Müdürlüğü, 2018, e-book p. 94, ghazal no. 97 (Millet Library, Ali Emîrî Efendi, Manzum Eserler 225, fol. 36b); also p. 29 (footnote 73: ghazals with the redif "benüm"), p. 33 (the wish to see his father, "G157") and p. 36 (dedication of the second ghazal to Süleyman), https://ekitap.ktb.gov.tr/Eklenti/59394,sahi-divanipdf.pdf.
  • "Muhibbî", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (cross-reference entry: the pen name used by Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent in his poems; see Süleyman I), https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/muhibbi.

Online sources