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COMMENTARIES ON THE MESNEVI |
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- Commentary by Sudi: Sudi Efendi (d. 1595), who was originally from Bosnia, wrote commentaries on the Mesnevi of Rumi and the Divan of Hafiz. His Mesnevi commentary has not been published.
- Commentary by Sham'i: This Mesnevi commentary, which was started during the reign of Sultan Murad III, took a long time to be completed. The commentator began the commentary on the sixth book of the Mesnevi in 1600 but it is not known when he finished it. This Mesnevi commentary,which was favored by Esrar Dede, has not been published.
- Commentary by Ahmed Rusuhi Ismail Dede: Ismail Dede was a shaykh of the Bayrami order in Ankara. Due to his admiration of Rumi, he entered the Mevlevi order and was appointed the shaykh of the Kulekapisi Mevlevi Lodge in Istanbul. He passed away in 1631 and is buried in the garden of the Mevlevi lodge where he had served as shaykh. This commentary is seen as the best Turkish commentary, and its author therefore is called the "Revered Commentator." The famous English orientalist R. A. Nicholson used Ismail Dede's commentary extensively while writing his own commentary on the Mesnevi in English. Since Ismail Dede was a great scholar and a shaykh who practiced what he preached, for centuries his commentary has been a great help for those trying to understand the difficult verses in the Mesnevi. Unfortunately, since he used a language full of Arabic and Persian words, not everyone can make use of his commentary today. The "Revered Commentator" was deeply influenced by Muhy al-Din Ibn al-Arabi and Ibn al-Farid. His com-mentary was published both in Egypt and in Istanbul (1872). In addition to writing a commentary on the six volumes of the Mesnevi, Ismail Dede wrote a commentary on a fabricated seventh volume for some unknown reason. But the commentary on this fabricated seventh volume is not printed. Prof. Furuzanfar of Tehran University has proven empirically that this seventh volume has nothing to do with Rumi.l5 The fact that some Mevlevi shaykhs have written commentaries to this fabricated seventh book of the Mesnevi (for example, Ferruh Efendi d. 1840, Mevlevi Shaykh of Tokat, Hafiz Mehmed Emin Efendi, Shakir Mehmet Efendi d. 1836) believing that this book was written by Rumi should be considered as a sign of their deep reverence for Rumi and their attachment to Rumi from their hearts. If they had examined this book impartially, they never would have accepted it as Rumi's. When they heard Rumi's name, they immediately accepted this seventh book because of their love for Rumi and became blind to the flaws in this fabricated volume. Like the "Revered Commentator," they smelled the thorns of a rose garden thinking that they were roses.
- Commentary by Abdulmajid Sivasi: Abdulmajid of Sivas (d. 1639), who was a prominent Sufi of the Khalwatiyyah order during the seventeenth century, wrote a commentary on only a portion of the first book of the Mesnevi. This incomplete commentary has not been published.
- Commentary by Sari Abdullah Efendi: San Abdullah Efendi (d. 1660), who was a Bayrami shaykh, wrote a commentary on the first book of the Mesnevi. His commentary was print edition five volumes (Istanbul, 1871) and was entitled Cevahir-i Bevahir-i Mesnevi (Pearls from the oceans of the Mesnevi). The Turkish National Library would have gained a Sufi masterpiece if San Abdullah Efendi, who was a learned person and a true lover of God, had been able to complete his commentary.
- Commentary by Bursali Ismail Hakki: This great saint (d. 1725) of Bursa wrote a well known, ten-volume commentary on the Qur'an entitled Rub al-Bayan (The Spirit of Proclamation), making extensive use of the Mesnevi. In his Mesnevi commentary, he completed only up to couplet 738 of the first book. His commentary is printed in two volumes in Istanbul.
- Commentary by Shaykh Murad Buhari: Shaykh Murad Buhari (d. 1848) wrote a commentary on all six books of the Mesnevi. This commentary, which has not been published, is now preserved in the manuscripts section of the Istanbul University Library.
- Commentary by Abidin Pasha: Abidin Pasha (d. 1907; wrote a commentary on the first books of the Mesnevi which was printed in six volumes in Istanbul.
- Commentary by Ahmed Avni Konuk: Ahmed Avni Konuk (d. 1938) was a prominent commentator on the Mesnevi of our time. He has written a commentary on Fusus al-Hikam as well as a very comprehensive and well prepared commentary on the Mesnevi. A manuscript of this very valuable commentary, which has not been published yet, can be found in the library of the Konya Mevlaiia Museum and another manuscript in Koca Ragip Pasha Library in Istanbul.
- Commentary by Kenan Rufai: Kenan Rufai (d. 1950), a well-known Rufai shaykh, wrote a commentary on the first book of the Mesnevi which was revised by his eminent disciples and published in 1973 in Istanbul under the title Serhli Mesnevi-i serif. This commentary is the most widely read commentary to date. The couplets have been translated by additional phrases to help the reader to understand the material better. The style used is especially elegant. Unfortunately, like the commentaries by Sari Abdullah Efendi and Abidin Pasha, this commentary is only on the first book of the Mesnevi.
- Commentary by Taliir al-Mevlevi: Tahir Olgun (Tahir al-Mevlevi) (d. 1951), a prominent figure within the Mevlevi community, wrote a commentary on the first four books and some of the fifth book of the Mesnevi)
- Commentary by Abdulbaki Gölpinarli: Abdulbaki Gölpinarli (d. 1960), a well-known scholar who wrote countless books and a complete translation and commentary of the Mesnevi. This commentary has been published by the Turkish
Ministry of Culture in six volumes. Abdulbaki Gölpinarli, whom I had known very closely, was a member of the Shi'ite-Jafari creed, and, as in many of his books, in his the Mesnevi commentary hè promotcd his creed.
In the abovc list I have included thirteen known Turkish commentarics on the Mesnevi. These are the known ones. Only Gou knows hpw many more have been left to collect dust on the shelf or have been burnt or othcrwise destroyed by neglcct. l could not conclude this section without including the following opinion of Prof. Furuzanfar on the commentators and commen-taries on the Mesnevi:
Since it is difficult to understand the secrets and subtleties of the Mesnevi, scholars and Sufis have made a lot of efïbrt to explain the Mesnevfs somewhat complex parts and have written Arabic, Persian, or Turkish commentarics eirfier on the whole Mesnevi or parts of it. Tliis is a criricism of all of the Cörr.rnen-taries: The commentators use their own knowledge and under-standing to explain and analyze Rumi's views. Some of them even refer to philosophical books to explain parts of the Mesnevi and use philosophical methods. Instead of all this endeavor, if " tfiyiiadi explained that Mesnevi by carefully studying Mesnevi itself, they could have written better commentaries."
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