Original Ottoman Turkish Text

Derâmed mûcib-i zevḳ u ṣafâdur
Derâmed mûris̱-i luṭf u ʿaṭâdur
Derâmed kişiyi baḫşende eyler
ʿAbûsuñ şeklini raḫşende eyler
ʿAṭâ itmese âbı ebre ʿummân
Nis̱âr itmezdi ʿâlem üzre bârân
Der-âmed gelmeye çün şaḫṣa vâfir
Ḳaçan ola ʿaṭâ vü cûda ḳâdir

In English

1. Income is the cause of pleasure and good cheer; income is what gives rise to kindness and gifts.

2. Income makes a man open-handed; it makes the frowning face shine.

3. Had the ocean not given water to the cloud, the rain would not scatter over the world.

4. So long as no abundant income comes to a person, when could he be able to give and be generous.

Literary and Historical Commentary

Structure of the Poem

The four couplets are in mesnevi form, each couplet rhyming within itself: safâ with ʿatâ, eyler with eyler, ʿummân with bârân, vâfir with kâdir. In the second couplet the redif (refrain word) "eyler" and the likeness of sound between "baḫşende" and "raḫşende" do the work of the rhyme. Latîfî gives this piece under the heading "Naẓm" (verse) and says that these are couplets describing income, "derâmed", as the source of generosity, the cause of good cheer, the means of ease and pleasure. Whether it was cut from a longer poem or consists of these four couplets alone cannot be told.

Meaning and Figures of Speech

In divan poetry money and gain are mostly mentioned to show the worthlessness of worldly goods; Siyâbî says the opposite and openly praises income. The first couplet builds a sentence of definition by repeating the word "derâmed" at the head of both lines: income breeds good cheer, income breeds kindness. The second couplet shows its effect on a person; whoever has money becomes open-handed, his frowning face brightens. The third couplet brings a proof from nature. Rain is formed from the water the ocean gives to the cloud; if the sea does not give, the cloud cannot scatter rain on the earth. Generosity too first needs an income. The last couplet draws the conclusion: how could a person without abundant income be able to give and be generous.

This chain of sea, cloud and rain is a likeness often used in divan poetry in praise of generous rulers; Siyâbî carries it over to a craftsman's common sense. These couplets, which say that the source of giving is labour and gain, give the impression of an unlettered master speaking from his own world.

Historical Context

Latîfî places the piece at the end of Siyâbî's entry. Kınalızâde and Hüsameddin do not quote these couplets. Siyâbî's other couplets are in this category, and his life is in the article Siyâbî: The Tailor Poet of Merzifon.

Bibliography

Online sources