Saints and Tombs of Muğla

Hudayi Salih Dede

Founder of the Muğla Mevlevî lodge and a Mevlevî sheikh. He received his first Qur'anic education from his father, spent time in Egypt, then settled in Muğla and entered the service of Seyyid Kemâleddin, joining the Mevlevî order under his guidance. With the permission of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror he began serving as sheikh at Seyyid Kemâleddin's lodge, teaching the Mathnawi and writing treatises, thereby rooting the Mevlevî order in Muğla. He died in 1480-1481 (AH 885) aged ninety and was buried in the tomb within the courtyard of the Şahidi Mosque, at the foot of Seyyid Kemâleddin's grave. His son was the famous mystic-poet Şâhidî İbrâhim Dede.

Sheikh Sayyid Kemaleddin

A sayyid and one of the eminent Mevlevî sheikhs who lived in the era of Bayezid I and Sultan Mehmed I (14th-15th centuries). He founded a royally endowed lodge in Muğla (Camikebir) that became the center where the foundations of the Mevlevî order in Muğla were laid. He took Hüdâyî Salih Dede into his service and sent him to Persia for education; after his death Hüdâyî Efendi became sheikh at this lodge. He is remembered as a blessed man of learning and wisdom. His grave lies in the courtyard of today's Şahidi Mosque, just west of the tomb; Evliya Çelebi described it as an open-topped shrine within a four-sided wall.

Şuhudi Efendi

A Mevlevî sheikh and poet from Muğla. Son (by one account the spiritual son) of the famous mystic-poet Şâhidî İbrâhim Dede, he received his first education from his father. After his father he served as postnishin at the Muğla Mevlevî lodge (today's Şahidi Mosque) for over forty years, playing an active role in spreading the Mevlevî order in Muğla. He died in 1591-1592 (AH 1000). He is buried in the tomb within the Şahidi Mosque courtyard; scholars debate whether the grave beside his father Hüdâyî Efendi belongs to Şâhidî Efendi or to Şuhûdî Efendi, and since Şâhidî himself is buried in the Afyon-Karahisar Mevlevî lodge, many researchers state this grave belongs to Şuhûdî Efendi.

Sheikh Bedreddin of Bukhara

A saint whose tomb is in the village of Şenköy in Milas, known locally as the 'Horasan Eri' (Hero of Khorasan). Sources present him as a successor (halife) of Şeyh Muhammed Buhârî who died in Bursa; by another account he is regarded as a son-in-law of Bayezid I. According to tradition he came to the region with his soldiers and, martyred during battle, was buried here. He is venerated locally as a great figure, with prayers and votive offerings made at his tomb. NOTE: The tomb structure's inscription bears the date 1549-50 (AH 956); this conflicts with the 'son-in-law of Bayezid I' tradition, and the figure's identity and exact death date are not certain in the sources (a maqam — the traditions about the grave's certainty are disputed). The tomb is in the Şenköy cemetery, 27 km from Milas.

Husameddin Efendi

A scholar who was the son of the Muğla Mevlevî sheikh Şâhidî İbrâhim Dede and who served as a mudarris (professor) and sheikh. In his work 'Tuhfe-i Hüsâmî', written in 1585 (AH 993), he stated that his father was İbrâhim, who used the pen-name Şâhidî. He had a large mosque bearing his own name (also recorded as Müftüler Mosque) built in the Ayazkıyı neighborhood of the Ula district of Muğla, and served as professor and sheikh at the lodge adjoining the mosque in accordance with the order from which he took his Sufi learning (whether Mevlevî or Qâdirî is disputed). After his death he was buried in the tomb built to the south of his mosque. His death is after 1585; the exact year is uncertain in the sources.

Shahidi Ibrahim Dede

Shaykh (Mevlevi)

A Mevlevî sheikh and poet; the author of the Tuhfe-i Şâhidî , taught for centuries in the teaching of Persian. He was born in 1470 at Muğla, the son of the sheikh of a mevlevîhâne. He received his first religious education from his father, whom he lost at the age of ten. He first turned to a craft, but abandoned it and returned to study, attending the medreses of Istanbul and Bursa. Finally embracing the dervish path, he attached himself to various Mevlevî sheikhs, and at last entered the service of Divane Mehmed Çelebi of Afyon. After his master's death he took over the leadership of the Muğla mevlevîhâne, where he spent the remainder of his life teaching and writing. He died in 1550. His Works — 1. Tuhfe-i Şâhidî. A Persian-Turkish rhyming dictionary. 2. Gülşen-i Esrâr. It contains biography and Mevlevî teachings. 3. Gülşen-i Vahdet. A didactic poem of 491 couplets. 4. Dîvan. It contains more than 100 poems. He also has commentaries, a mevlid, and various mystical treatises emphasising Mevlevî doctrine and the Islamic sciences. His Tomb and Complex — He was buried near his sheikh's grave, at Karahisar.