ABDĀL, QARA ŠEMSĪ

 

ABDĀL, QARA ŠEMSĪ (1244-1303/1828-86), a Turkish poet who also wrote poetry in Persian. He was born in Konya. As his family was poor, he did not receive a systematic education. He entered the convent of Mawlānā Jalāl-al-dīn Rūmī and became the disciple of Emir Şah Kaygusuz, the keeper of the mausoleum (türbedar). After completing his studies with the Emir Şah, he took the pen name Abdāl; previously he had used Šemʿī, Nūrī, Šemsī and Nīāzī as pen-names. He went to Crete and became the shaikh of the Mawlavī convent in Hanya. He died there on 23 Ḏu’l-ḥeǰǰa 1303/22 September 1886.

Abdāl’s Persian and Turkish poems were published by his son ʿĀref under the title Toḥfat al-maṯnawī ʿalā ḥobb al-Ḥaydarī ve dīwāṇča-ye Qara Šemsī (Istanbul, 1305/1887-88). The first part contains his Persian poems, in praise of the Prophet (naʿt), the four caliphs, and the saints. The work ends with the events of Karbalā, a condemnation of Yazīd, an elegy for the martyrs of Karbalā, supplications, and prayers.

Bibliography:

Qara Šemsī, Dīwāṇča, intro. S. Nüzhet Ergun, Türk şâirleri, Istanbul, n.d., pp. 162-70.

(T. Yazici)

Originally Published: December 15, 1982

Last Updated: July 15, 2011

This article is available in print.
Vol. I, Fasc. 2, p. 174

Cite this entry:

T. Yazici, “Abdal, Qara Semsi,” Encyclopædia Iranica, I/2, p. 174; an updated version is available online at http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/abdal-qara-semsi-1828-86-turkish-poet-who-also-wrote-in-persian (accessed on 17 January 2014).