Anda di halaman 1dari 7

The Poems of Mulhid Vadeti

Mulhid Vahdeti was clearly a Hurufi poet, but we can also assume that he was a Hamzevi, for
thereason that the Hamzevis themselves were most probably Hurufi influenced and, like
Vahdeti, putimmense emphasis onvahdet-i vucud,and had conspicuous Shii inclinations.

The core idea in Vahdetis poetry (as hismahlasboldly proclaims) was the concept ofvahdetivucud, which was a particular sign of the Hamzevi inspiration.Vahdet-i vucudis a complex
conceptthat in direct extension to its most basic meaning unity of being teaches that life
is a temporaryseparation from God, and that after death man will be reunited with its source,
i.e. God. This is, inactual fact, the most recurring theme in Vahdetis verses, together with the
Hurufi knowledge aboutthe hidden meaning of letters and numbers through which the
essence of the world can beunraveled.

Melamikutbsalso understoodvahdet-i vucudto mean mans embodiment of the Divine, and


thatby the time of Vahdetis generation the Melamis have clearly adopted Hurufi concepts to
expressthis. Nevertheless there are noticeable differences between the poetry of the
generation of Olaneyh and Ahmet Sarban and that of dris Muhtefi. While they all express
the same theme of radicalvahdet-i vucudthrough their poetry, they express it in a different
way. Olan eyh and AhmetSarban use more conventional Sufi terminology to express their
understanding ofvahdet-i vucud,whereas dris Muhtefi has completely embraced the
language of the Hurufis to express the sameconcept. For instance Ahmet Sarban states,
Thekibla is man, and Olan eyh says, There can beno place like Man for the
manifestation of Gods essence, while dris Muhtefi proclaims in clearHurufi expression, The
Seven Lines are the Mother of the Book (fatiha). They are the visibletestimony from God.
The progression in Melami poetry towards the use of Hurufi terminology is a clear indicator of
theincreasing Hurufi influence. This gives us even more reason to classify our poet as a
Hamzevi, as hebelonged to the same generation as dris Muhtefi, who more than just
adopting Hurufi terminologyand concepts, also makes clear reference to Fazlullah Astarabadi
in one of his poems. Since the predominant theme in Mulhid Vahdetis Divan isvahdet-i
vucud, it will also make sense tobegin our analysis with it. Probably the most demonstrative
example ofvahdet-i vucudamongVahdetis verses is the following poem:

1. Although

the body of a lover at the sight of the beloved gets lost,He lives on in the
spiritual world forever.
2. When a drop reaches the sea, its body becomes invisible.It is no more a drop, but
becomes the seven seas.
3. The drop is truly water. When separated from water, it becomes a drop.When it draws
towards the water, it becomes water again.
4. The soul of the lover is a drop from the sea of the light of divinity.When it reaches its
beloved, it looses the body.
5. When a moth thats in love throws itself into the candle,It becomes fire and one with its

beloved.

On the surface this looks like an archetypical Sufi poem. In fact, it reminds one more of the
earlyMelami poetry which, while putting a lot emphasis onvahdet-i vucudand mans divine
statusthrough it, had not yet been as deeply influenced by Hurufism. In this poem Vahdeti is
talking aboutthe ultimate source, Allah, who is seen at the moment of death when the soul
leaves the body and isunited with the source in the sea of the light of divinity. Even so
Hurufis, like anyone else, couldnot deny the reality of death, and therefore they too believed
that death was a brief intervalbetween divinity in this world and divinity in the next, barring
that in the next life all the divinesouls are united with the source of all. As everything
manifested itself through the Divine command kun! (be), in a reversal of this everything
must come back to that source. Everything is one, asVahdeti says:

The drop is truly water.


When separated from water it becomes a drop.
When it draws towards the water,
it becomes water again.

It is interesting to note that here he makes a distinction between reaching the sea and
reaching thebeloved. When the soul reaches the source, the body only becomes imperceptible
(verse 2), butwhen the soul reaches the beloved, it looses the body (verse 4) it becomes
lost at the sight of thebeloved (verse 1). If the beloved and the source (God) are separate
entities, then who is thebeloved? One possible explanation for this dilemma is that the
beloved is none other than FazlullahAstarabadi. At the sight of Fazlullah the body is lost in
the sense that former concepts about thebody are lost, and its true significance recognized.

Vahdeti then concludes this poem with the common Sufi image of the moth so attracted to the
lightof the fire and ends up annihilating itself in that fire symbolic of the lover whose love for
Godcauses him to annihilate his self in God. For Hurufis no sacrifice of the self is needed,
since the self isdivine. Therefore throwing the self into the fire could present many meanings.
Perhaps Vahdetiuses this to symbolize his becoming a follower of Fazlullah, which in the
Ottoman Empire wouldentail severe repercussions, and that this act was similar to throwing
ones self into the fire.Although, of course, the benefit of recognizing Hurufi claims meant
understanding ones fullpotential as divine.

There are also poems, which probably constitute the majority of hisvahdet-i vucudpoetry, in
whichVahdeti extols man, not only his soul, but also the physical body, and in particular the
face. One ofthese, with unquestionable Hurufi notions, is the following:

1. Open

your eyes with surprise, look at your face, see your Lord.You are the mirror of the
light from the beauty of the praise of God.

2. In

you is the essence of eternity, in you are the eternal attributes,In you is the
indisputable proof and the Sultans might.
3. To show the way to divinity, from the Mercy of God,Came into existence 32 lines as the
equivalent of the 32 points.
4. Towards your face the prostration was ordered, I too turn my prayer towards it.The one
who obeyed turned into an angel, the disobedient into a devil.
5. Your features are the revealed light of eternity.Your face is the Kabah; in it the Quran
was revealed.

This poem opens with Vahdeti telling the reader to look for the proof of his divinity in his own
face,where he will see his Lord (verse 1). In accordance with Hurufi belief, Vahdeti holds man
to be ofutmost importance, and this can be found in the human face. The real meaning of
eternity and theeternal attributes (verse 2) within man is once again a reference to mans
divinity, becauseaccording to normative Islamic teachings everything will ultimately vanish
except the countenanceof God, who is the only absolute and everlasting entity. The eternal
attributes are the ninety-ninenames of God, which of course are divine, and augment mans
divine status. In line 2, Vahdeti writesthe same thing that triggered the persecution of the
Hamzevis in Bosnia and the Hurufis in Persia he proclaims that one who has comprehended
his divinity is not only entitled to spiritual power butto political power as well, that such an
individual is the real sultan. The 32 letters mentioned inverse 3 either elude to the Persian
alphabet (which could in turn signify Fazlullahs book, the Javidannamah) or to the human
face. Either interpretation would fit, since they are complimentary,and they both show the
way to divinity. In line 4 Vahdeti could mean anyones face, whoevertakes his advice and
sees his lord in his own face, or he could mean Fazlullah, who was the first toreveal the secret
of the Divine on man, and who initiated the cycle of divinity. If he means hereFazlullah, then
anyone who accepts Fazlullahs words becomes divine, but one who refuses toacknowledge
this message because of a refusal to acknowledge mans divinity is equivalent to theeytan
who refused to prostrate to Adam when God ordered him to do so. By comparing the
humanface to the Kabah, and by stating that in it the Quran was revealed, Vahdeti alludes to
the Huruficoncept of the seven lines that mark the human face, which are said to be the
seven verses of theopening chapter of the Quran (Fatiha), and theFatihain turn is said to be
a summary of the entireQuran.

Another part of the Divan consists of praise-poems (medihiyya), mostly celebrating Fazlullah
orImam Ali. In this particular poem Vahdeti refers to both of them, and possibly as one
person, or asparts of the same entity:

1. In

Alis hand are dagger, arrow, and double-edged sword,Feather, word and speech, line
and letter.
2. When people turn more hostile than dogs,Ali, the Lion of God, becomes a refuge for the
poor.
3. While he, Oh heart! revives the dead at every moment,My soul ascends the heavens.
4. Thanks be to God, now, Oh Vahdeti!Fazlullah and Ali speak through your mouth.

The poem commences by talking about Ali, with all his remarkable attributes, who is a refuge

forthe poor and who protects them from wickedness. Then in verse 3 Vahdeti bestows on Ali
asuperhuman, possibly divine, attribute he revives the dead every moment. While Ali is
revivingthe dead, the poets soul is ascending to heaven. This could be interpreted as Ali
reviving him fromignorance (which is death), and taking him to heaven. The soul ascending
to heaven could symbolizeVahdeti slowly rising to his true identity as Divine, as he is being
taught how to decipher secrets, byAli. The concluding verse actually reinforces this
explanation, since after the he has acquired theknowledge from Ali, and from Fazlullah,
Vahdeti himself has become as divine as they are, and hebecomes the spokesperson for the
same message that Fazlullah and Ali proclaimed before him. IfFazlullah and Ali are both
physically gone from this world, then they have once again merged withtheir source, and in
reality there is no difference between Fazlullah and Ali. This would yet againprove another
link between Vahdeti and the Hamzevis, since they proclaimed the same secret, thesecret of
mans divinity, which through direct implication entitled theirkutbsto be sultans of theseen
as well as the unseen worlds.

In addition the poem shows that Vahdeti had deep veneration for Imam Ali and the twelve
Imams.Mulhid Vahdeti dedicated many of his verses to the twelve Imams, and in one writes:

1. Come,

heart, with the intention to take the road to NecefLike the sun to prostrate
ourselves to the castle of the Shah of Necef
2. The fields of heaven, the lotus tree, the Ar and the heavenly treeProstrate themselves to
the palms and grass of Necef
3. With the naked sword the sun conquered the skyEven though it is married to the light of
the moon of Necef
4. The Mountain of Kef and heavenly spheres, Jerusalem and SinaiSearch for refuge in the
dust around the house of Necef
5. Vahdeti, the sun and moon, night and day rise and fallGuide mark for jinns and men is the
bright light pointing to Necef.

As mentioned above, we know that Vahdeti visited the shrines of the Imams, which would
definitelylead us to believe that he was most probably a Shii, just like the Melamis. But unlike
normative Shiis, Vahdeti circuitously attributes divinity to Imam Ali (verse 2):

The fields of heaven, the lote tree, the Ar and the heavenly tree
Prostrate themselves to the palms and grass of Necef

The fields of heaven might be referring to humanity, and there is reference to


ProphetMuhammad, through mention of the lote tree, the heavenly tree beyond which is God,
and beyondwhich none can pass. Finally the Divine Throne (Ar), is a clear reference to God.
So everyone andeverything prostrates to Imam Alis shrine, which could be taken to imply
his not only his divinitybut his superiority over everyone, including Prophet Muhammad, as
well. This could also be anallusion to Fazlullahs theory of the three cycles of existence. Imam

Ali, who started the secondcycle (that ofvelayet), which is superior to the first that was
closed by Prophet Muhammad(nubuvvet), is by inference, superior.

The next group of poems we will examine can be called love poetry. Some of this poetry full
ofgraphic descriptions of the beloved that it would make us believe that Vahdeti was referring
toworldly desires. But we have to remember that for him the beautiful object of his love is not
just amirror of the Divine, but the very face of God. If we were created based on this concept,
then thereis nothing in God that wouldnt be in man.

1. You

have captured my heart, oh you covered up cypress.My bloody tears are boiling.
2. The cup of your love made me completely drunk,So let it be! A lover must be drunk and
unreasonable.
3. Know, before the water of life will not bowThe one, who had a drink from the glass of your
lips.
4. My bones will be scattered all over the earth,But my heart and my soul will not forget
your love.
5. Your face gives light to the moon and the sun,To the stars it is a pearl in the earring.

This poem is very much like a typical love poem of the period, and does not even necessarily
soundlike a mystical poem. Vahdeti could be talking about any beautiful person that might
have capturedhis glance, or even an imaginary beloved, just to make clear the power of the
divine human face. Butthis might also be addressed to Fazlullah Astarabadi. There are some
ambiguous verses that ifinterpreted another way, allude to him as the beloved. Fazlullah, the
covered up cypress, whosedivinity was disguised from the lover by the lovers own
ignorance, has now revealed himself byteaching the lover how to decipher the hidden beauty
of the human face. Upon recognizing theDivine, the lovers bloody tears being boiling. This
knowledge then makes him appear drunk(outlandish like a heretic) to both society and
the orthodox religious establishment. The water oflife, if brought in connection to a previous
poem, could mean the source of all divinity God. So thelover is persistent, and tells
theulemathat he will not bow before God; he does not have to bowbefore God, because he
heard Fazlullahs teachings (the glass of his lips), which have taught himthat he is God.
Then the last line of the poem would simply mean that the divine face of Fazlullah isthe
source of light for the sun and moon.

The next poem might also be considered a love poem, but it is very obviously talking about
God asthe beloved.

1. Hidden

in every heart, clear to the eye You areIn all these mirrors visible You are
2. I saw You in your completeness in my heart and eyeIn every particle the cosmos, in every
drop the sea You are
3. I saw beauty and tenderness and recognized your faceThe exalted Firdevs and elevated
Ar You are
4. To show Fazlullah to the AksIn ever face the polished mirror You are
5. The lofty Kabah who day and night angelsAnd heavens with stars circumambulate You

are
6. Soul, if you are Adams father, hear what I will say:Sum of all Gods names You are
7. Oh Vahdeti, if you reached the unity of TruthThe light of Ehad and Vahid at once You are

While Vahdeti describes God, in the very first line he nevertheless makes it clear that he is not
justa Sufi, but a Hurufi. The opening of the sentence (hidden in the heart) is a very
commonexpression among Sufis, especially since it refers to a saying of the Prophet. But
when Vahdeti goeson to say that God is perceptible to the eye, he clearly crosses the
boundary between normativemysticism and Hurufism. Verses two and three refer to his
concept ofvahdet-i vucud everythingis God and God is everything. In verse four Fazlullah,
the physical manifestation of the divine onearth, came to guide the lovers (aks) by revealing
himself to them. But who is the You, if it is notFazlullah and it does not seem to be God? It
is the poet himself, who knew that he had divinityinside of him, but did not realize, until he
reached the unity of Truth that he is the ultimatedivinity, that he is the One (Vahid) and the
Unique (Ehad).

To end with, there are a small group of the poems in Vahdetis Divan that are satirical
poemscriticizing theulemaclass:

1. With

this my dispute, the ulema were not satisfied.Ulema, say I, but think not that I talk
about knowers.
2. I talk about the ignorant who have seized the ulema-title,That is, a hoard, who elevated
themselves with the villains of their time.
3. How can someone discuss a matter, that he doesnt know,Even more so, if his mind and
reason are weak,
4. What can this ignoramus know, who doesnt understand the essenceand attributes of
God.
5. How can an ignorant devil be a follower of the Prophets?

Since theulema were utilized and sponsored by the Ottoman State to develop an orthodox
systemthat would be supportive of the general interests of the empire, theulemawere aware
that the onlypurpose for their existence was the legal interpretations that they had created.
Naturally they werethe bitterest enemies of nonconformist religious movements, which
threatened their existence.

Accordingly, it is not surprising to find the level of antagonism and animosity against
theulema one finds in Vahdetis poetry. But Vahdeti not only ridicules theulema, but also
their employers, thestate authorities, whom he calls the villains of their time. The first line
of the last couplet is areference to Hurufism, which theulema abhorred. Vahdeti says that
theulema do not understandthe essence and attributes of God, because they refuse to
recognize these in themselves. Thesecond line of the last verse is also a direct Hurufi
teaching. By describing theulema as devils, hecompares them to the eytan, who also
refused to recognize the divinity of man.

In accordance with the time in which Vahdeti lived, states Ili, these satirical poems could
bereferring to the Bosnian Mullah Bali Efendi and his representative Hasan Kafi al-Akhisari (d.
1619CE), who distinguished themselves in the persecution of heretical sects at the end of the
16thcentury. If this is true then that would be again a link between Mulhid Vahdeti and the
Hamzevis,since the work of uprooting the Hamzevis was entrusted primarily to Bali Efendi of
Sarajevo, thesupreme kadi of Bosnia. After interrogation the Hamzevis of the Tuzla region,
Bali Efendi, (as Atairecords it) performed the valuable service of causing, with arterysevering sword of the Shariah,the heads of twelve of the misguided to roll. He was aided in
the task by Hasan Kafi of Akhisar(Prusac), possibly the greatest scholar of the Islamic
sciences produced by Bosnia in the Ottomanperiod.

Anda mungkin juga menyukai