Whose real name was MĂ»sĂą and whose epithet was Merkez MuslihuddĂźn, Merkez Efendi was a major Sufi belonging to the SĂŒnbĂŒliyye branch of the Halvetiyye order. He was born in the village of Sarı Mahmudlu near Denizli; after completing his studies he entered the Sufi path and became a disciple of SĂŒnbĂŒl Sinan Efendi, sheikh of the Koca Mustafa PaĆa lodge, from whom he received his diploma (hilĂąfet). After serving as a guide at the hospice of the Hafsa Sultan complex in Manisa and elsewhere, he was appointed head of the Koca Mustafa PaĆa lodge in Istanbul following his master SĂŒnbĂŒl Efendi's death in 936 (1529). He died in 959 (1552) and was buried beside his lodge outside MevlĂąnĂąkapı; his tomb is one of Istanbul's important pilgrimage sites and gave its name to the district of Merkezefendi.