Saints and Tombs of Siirt

Shaykh Muhammad al-Hazin

A 19th-century Naqshbandi shaykh, known for sermons at Siirt's Great Mosque, notably a forty-day exegesis of Surat al-Ikhlas. Born in 1816 in Fersaf (Dereyamaç) village of Siirt, he died there in 1891 and was buried, per his will, in the upper part of the village. His tomb lies on the Siirt-Tillo road about 7 km from the center. (Sources: Siirt Solidarity Foundation (SİDAV); Siirt Haberci/local records)

Ibrāhīm Ḥaqqī of Erzurum

Shaykh

A Sufi, scholar and poet; the author of the Mârifetnâme , which brought the religious sciences and the natural sciences of his age together in a single book. He was born on 2 Muharram 1115 (18 May 1703) in the district of Hasankale in Erzurum. His father was Derviş Osman Efendi and his mother Şerife Hanîfe Hanım, daughter of Dede Mahmud. At the age of nine he was taken to Tillo by his uncle Ali; there he was brought up under the guidance of İsmâil Fakīrullah, the renowned spiritual master of the day, and, taking up residence in the cell built for İsmâil Fakīrullah's father, learned knowledge and gnosis from him. After losing his father he returned to Erzurum in 1132 (1720) and studied Arabic and Persian with Hâzık Mehmed Efendi, the mufti of Erzurum; this second period of study is understood to have lasted eight years. In 1160 (1747) he went to Istanbul for the first time. He met Sultan Mahmud I and won his interest and esteem; he was permitted to work in the palace library, and it was there that his interest in the new astronomy began. In 1168 (1755) he went to Istanbul a second time. Going to Tillo for the third time in 1177 (1763), İbrâhim Hakkı settled there permanently; he passed the remainder of his life training students and writing his works. He died on 19 Jumada II 1194 (22 June 1780). Despite his testament he was buried in the tomb of his sheikh. His Circle of Influence — After settling in Tillo he trained students to the end of his life. The true path of his influence, however, is his books: at a time when an ornate language was in use he wrote the greater part of his works in a relatively plain Turkish, and expressed his wide knowledge of Sufism in good order and in an intelligible style, which made the Mârifetnâme a book open to the reader outside the madrasa as well. His Poetry and Sufi Line — He is held to have belonged to the Nakşibendî order; in the Mârifetnâme he describes this order as "the path preferred by the most select of the saints" . In his works he gives wide place to Sufi themes such as gnosis (mârifet), fenâ, bekā, love, sainthood and trust in God. His concern with science lies not outside this line but within it: drawing on Kâtib Çelebi's Cihannümâ he took an interest in the new astronomy and presented Copernican astronomy in the Mârifetnâme ; he also had wide knowledge of meteorology, medicine, anatomy, physiology and psychology. He expounds the process of development, handed down from the Muslim thinkers, that runs from the four elements to the mineral, the plant, the animal and man. He states that no scientific advance can contradict the truth that God created and governs the universe; for him what matters from the standpoint of religion is the acceptance of the belief that the world was created by God. His Works — 1. Mârifetnâme (1170/1757). His most important work; an encyclopaedic study of the religious and non-religious sciences. It presents traditional astronomy together with the newer astronomical models and devotes extensive sections to philosophy, anatomy and psychology. Editions were printed at Bulak (1251, 1280), Kazan (1261) and Istanbul (1284); the simplified versions by Turgut Ulusoy and Faruk Meyan were published in 1980. 2. Dîvân (1168/1755). It contains the İlâhînâme section, made up of 366 ghazals. 3. İnsâniyye. A voluminous work written under the title Mecmûatü'l-insâniyye fî ma'rifeti'l-vahdâniyye . 4. Tertîbü'l-ulûm (1165/1752). A work in verse proposing a programme of education. He also wrote Mecmûatü'l-irfâniyye , Mecmûatü'l-meânî , Urvetü'l-İslâm and Hey'etü'l-İslâm . His Tomb and Complex — The tomb of İsmâil Fakīrullah was built by İbrâhim Hakkı himself, and its plan is likewise his. The domed tomb is about 40 m² and rests on an octagonal base. İbrâhim Hakkı, despite his testament, was buried beside his sheikh in this tomb he had himself built. Commemorative activities are held at the tomb every year between 18 May and 22 June.

Ismāʿīl Faqīrullāh

Shaykh

A Sufi who lived at Tillo in Siirt, and the master of İbrâhim Hakkı of Erzurum. His given name was İsmâil. He was born on 5 Receb 1067 (19 April 1657) in the village of Tillo in Siirt (today the district of Aydınlar). What is known of his life rests on the Mârifetnâme of İbrâhim Hakkı of Erzurum. His grandfather Abdülcemal and his father Kasım — said to descend from Abbas, the Prophet's uncle — both taught as müderris at Tillo. His father saw personally to his education; at the age of twenty-four he completed his studies and began teaching in the medrese. When his father died he became imam and preacher of the mosque at Tillo. İbrâhim Hakkı notes that he generally spoke Arabic. Scrupulous in fulfilling the commands of religion, fond of doing his own work and of living by the labour of his hands in the fields, Fakîrullah underwent a spiritual change at the age of forty that turned him more fully towards the inner life. After returning from the pilgrimage he fell one night into a disused well while on his way to the mosque for the night prayer; through the spiritual states granted to him there he passed eight years in ecstasy and absorption. Foremost among the disciples who gathered around him were Molla Osman Hüsnü, the father of İbrâhim Hakkı, and Molla Muhammed. İbrâhim Hakkı attended his gatherings from childhood alongside his father, witnessing his virtues and religious life at close hand and coming under his influence. In his last years he spent his time chiefly in conversation with his disciple and successor İbrâhim Hakkı. As his fame spread, many statesmen came to visit him or wrote to him, and his help and spiritual aid were even sought for the resolution of social and political matters. İbrâhim Hakkı gives a detailed account of the modest life and character of the master he described as a "perfect guide". Known for long periods of contemplation, Fakîrullah entered absorption again in 1147 (1734). Coming to himself one Friday evening, he gathered his family and disciples, made his testament and then died. His funeral prayer was led by his eldest son Abdülkadir. His Tomb and Complex — In the tomb built where he was buried, the sun's rays used on 21 March and 23 September to enter through a window of 40 × 40 centimetres and, passing through a prism in the dome, to illuminate the head of the cenotaph; the source records that this arrangement is out of order today. Many were later educated at the lodge built at Tillo by İbrâhim Hakkı. Fakîrullah's tomb has been continuously visited, especially by the people of the region, since it was built, and his personal effects have been preserved to our own time.