YUNUS EMRE

We know little about the life of Yunus Emre because the sources available to us are precious, scant and uncertain. Almost every significant thing about his life must be drawn from his poems.  

The empire of the great Seljuk Turks, established in Khorassan by the mid-eleventh century, had already expanded its borders to the lands of Anatolia. The Byzantine empire which ruled Anatolia launched the Crusades to preserve its borders against the threat of these Seljuk Turks. The armies of the Crusades were defeated in their battles against them, and the Seljuk Turks established precedence over the Byzantines by conquering Anatolia. Yet shortly afterwards, the empire of the great Seljuk Turks collapsed as the Anatolian state of the Seljuk Turks was formed, while the Crusades still continued. And so not only did Anatolia itself fall into ruin from the ravages of war, but the Anatolian state of the Seljuk Turks was also seriously weakened in spite of their major victory over the armies of the Crusades. (more…)

HACI BEKTASI VELI

Haji Bektashi Veli, united the Christian residents of Anatolia and Turkoman migrants with their educational and developmental activities and played an important role in the formation of cultural unity and central authority in Anatolia. Some holy men migrated to Anatolia, settled on mountains and empty crossroads and opened dervish lodges there. These institutions settled on empty land gradually became centers for culture, development and religious thought. In this manner, religious congregations spread everywhere, rules of morals, good breeding, attitudes and beliefs reached a high standard, knowledge and science were both produced and spread in these centers. The administration encouraged such holy men to settle in villages, and their educational activities gave them some privileges. As a result, even in the most desolate places in Anatolia, dervish lodges emerged, and with the effect of the education they provided, a common cultural structure began to form. (more…)

MEVLANA CELALEDDIN RUMI (1207-1273)

Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi is an Anatolian holy man who gave hope and inspiration to humanity. Mevlana was born in 1207 in Khorasan, and died in 1273 in Konya. He took his first lessons from his father Bahaeddin Veled, who was known as “sultan of scholars”. While he was studying Sufism he met Ahi Sems Tebrizi, and after this meeting his own ideas began to emerge. It is his poems about Sufism, however, for which he is chiefly remembered, respected and admired today. (more…)

Ahmet Yasevi (1093-1166) was born in the town of Sayram in western Turkistan and educated and lived in the towns of Yesi and Bukhara. He is the author of Divan-i Hikmet (Book of Wisdom). Although he knew Arabic and Persian languages, he wrote in Turkish. He followed the line of Ebu Hanife in terms of religion. He also strove to transform the system of “folk piety” which existed among Turks in villages as well as among nomads as a way of religious life into a model for Turkish Sufism. He was successful in merging ancient Turkish wisdom with Islamic concepts. (more…)

TARHAN B. UZLUG EL-FARABI

Muhammad ibn Tarhan ibn Uzlug el-Farabi, also known as Alpharabius or Avensar in medieval Latin texts, born 878 in Turkistan, died 950, one of the most brilliant and famed of Muslim philosophers; also know as the second teacher, (Aristotle being the first). He was of Turkish origin. Farabi’s father was in the Turkish bodyguard of the caliph, and his life was spent in Baghdad and Aleppo.

Farabi, al: Encyclopedia Britannica, 1980 edition, Vol.4, p.51. (more…)

EBU MANSUR MATURIDI

The three architects of Turk-Islamic thought are Maturidi, Farabi and Yesevi and they all converge on mysticism in their approach to the “God-human relationship”. Because the religious beliefs and practices of Turks before Islam had so many mystic characteristics, it is necessary to seek the roots of Turkish Sufism, otherwise also known as Turkish mysticism or “folk piety”, in the ancient beliefs of the Turks. This power penetrated into the Turkish thought life so much that it is possible to see its influence in every stage of Turk-Islamic thought. (more…)

Yasar Kemal is the pen name of the Turkish writer Kemal Sadık Gökçeli (born 1923, Adana). When he was five, Kemal lost his father, and had to shoulder the responsibility of providing a living for his family. From early ages onwards, he took up various jobs; he was a cotton plant worker, a night watchman, a tractor operator, and a library clerk. The library job probably had much influence on his future career in literature, as it provided him ample opportunity to read, and fed his interest in literature. In the 1940s, Kemal discovered the journal Çığ, which was published in Adana, and this became his official initiation into the world of literature. During these years, he built up an immense interest towards folk literature, and traveled through countless villages to collect tales and stories. In 1943, he published these in his first book Ağıtlar. (more…)

The novelist, reporter and politician Yakup Kadri Karaosmanoglu was born in Cairo, in 1889. In the beginning of 1908, he met the Fecr-i Ati group and stepped into the world of literature; subsequently in the initial years of his literary career this group would have great impact on him. Throughout his career as a writer, Karaosmanoglu wrote in a rich assortment of literary styles, which changed according to the conditions of his day. Due to his fluent command of the French language, his education in law, and his writings in the contemporary newspaper Ikdam, he became one of the prominent figures of the War Independence, and in 1921, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk invited him to Ankara. Following this, he traveled all over Anatolia, and witnessed the lives of people first hand. After the Declaration of the Republic, he was elected as a representative to the National Assembly (1931-1934). Karaosmanoglu died on 13 December 1974 in Ankara. (more…)

Peyami Safa was born on April 2nd, 1899 in Istanbul, and died on June 15th, 1961 in the same city. His father Ismail Safa Bey was one of the popular poets of the era. His uncle Ahmet Vefa was a poet, his other uncle Ali Kamil Akyüz was a writer, his elder brother Ilhami Safa was a reporter, and his cousin Behçet Kami was a writer and reporter. His father Ismail Safa Bey died in Sivas while the little Peyami was only two years old. Following this, Safa returned to Istanbul with his mother. Another major event in Safa’s life was the bone marrow disease that he suffered when he was eight. During this illness, there was question of amputating his arm, however Safa’s insistence prevented this. Following intensive treatment he was saved from the amputation. However, it would seem that the psychological effects of this disease have never ceased to haunt him. Safa has forever lived with the dread that his disease would one day repeat. (more…)

Omer Zulfu Livaneli Born in Ilgin, Turkey in 1946, O.Z. Livaneli is one of the most outstanding figures in the cultural, artistic and political life of Turkey. He achieved prominence and success not only as a writer and a musician but also as a film director. His books, compositions and films brought him national and international acclaim, and more than 30 international awards.  Livaneli’s latest novel “Leyla’s House” was published in Turkey in May 2006 and as of today it is in its 42 nd edition. His third novel “Bliss”, published in 2002 in Turkey, made 39 editions, and became almost a cult work and has been recently adapted to cinema. In 2005, “Bliss” was published in Greece and Sweden, and in 2006, it was published in France by Gallimard and in the United States by St.Martin’s Press. (more…)