Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Metre: Mefâ'îlün Mefâ'îlün Mefâ'îlün Mefâ'îlün

‘Ayârın cevher-i nazmun bilen sarrâf-ı mâhirdür
Senâyî ma’nî-i hâssı ne bilsün degme bir ‘âmmî

In English

1. Only a skilled money-changer knows the assay of the jewel of verse; Senâyî, how should any common ignoramus know a refined meaning?

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

The couplet is a closing couplet (makta) in which the poet's pen name (mahlas) appears, that is, the last couplet of a lost ghazal (gazel). Because the first line does not rhyme, the ghazal's rhyme can only be guessed from the word "‘âmmî" at the end of the second line; whether it had a refrain word (redif) is unknown. Kınalızâde gives the couplet as the fourth example in the entry on Senâyî, with the word "Velehû". The edition does not indicate the metre; the lines fit the hezec pattern of four mefâ'îlün, and this identification is ours. To whom and when it was said is unknown.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

The couplet speaks about poetry itself. The poet likens poetry to a jewel, and the person who understands poetry to a money-changer who knows the assay of gold and precious stones. "‘Ayâr" is the degree of purity of a metal, which only a knowledgeable money-changer can measure. The harmony between the words "cevher" (jewel), "‘ayâr" (assay) and "sarrâf" (money-changer) is an example of congruence of images (tenasüp). In the second line "ma‘nî-i hâs", the refined, special meaning, is set against "‘âmmî", the ordinary, ignorant person. The opposition of "hâs" (select) and "‘âm" (common) adds antithesis (tezat) to the couplet. "Degme" in old Turkish means "every, any"; "degme bir ‘âmmî" is any ordinary person who happens along.

The poet's addressing himself in pen-name couplets is common in divan poetry. Here Senâyî finds a kind of consolation against those who do not know the worth of his poetry: only those fit for it understand its meaning.

Historical Context

The couplet draws particular attention when read together with Âşık Çelebi's harsh verdict on the poet. Âşık Çelebi writes that Senâyî's townsmen praised him excessively, that his name resounded like an empty drum and that only a dry echo remained; he also quotes an Arabic couplet implying that he was merely a "weigher of verse". This couplet of Senâyî's can be read as the voice of a poet aware of such criticism; but there is no record showing that it was written as an answer to Âşık Çelebi's words. For Senâyî's life, see the article Senâyî Mehmed Efendi (of Manisa).

Bibliography

Online sources