The intimate Life of an Ottoman Statesman
.............
He was so scrupulous in his dress that he only wore qar-
ments sanctioned by religious law-various cotton stuffs, and
those silken weaves and other splendid stuffs not forbidden by
the seriat. And he was so clean and neat and elegant and re-
fined, that he was famous among the veziers-his skirts were
cleaner than the collars of his peers. ln fact the late Sultan Mu-
rad used to say, "Ahmed. you are cleaner than me. and you are
without fear or care: may God make your face white (i.e.. keep
you pure and free from shame) in both worlds and vouchsafe
you the bliss of both abodes." Then Murad Khan would intone
these verses:
Pak-adama yok sozum asla
Hiz-i napake gunde bin lanet
I have nothing to say against the one with clean skirts.
A thousand curses a day on the unclean catamite.
He would look the little sword-bearer Mustafa in the face and
say, "What do you think about this poem Mustafa?" and the
sword-bearer would turn red in the cheeks from embarrass-
ment. Then he would present Melek and the sword-bearer each
with a sable robe of honor.
Indeed, Melek Pasha was clean skirted (i.e.. chaste) in every
respect, and was pure in every respect. He was very upright and
pious, learned in religious sciences and active in carrying out
religious prescriptions; he was virtuous and abstinent, a perlect
gazi and brave vizier, the likes of Asaf son of Barakhya (the vi-
zier of Sulaiman). He used to say, -From my childhood I have not
been inclined to mingling with children and indulging in games
and levity." Still, he was very skilled in archery, which is a sun-
net of the Prophet, and in such sports as javelin throwing,
swordplay, mace, and spear, and among his peers only ipsir Pasha
and Seydi Ahmed Pasha could rival him in horsemanship and cavalry
exercises. Being a strong and courageous champion,
he was also unexcelled in wrestling, familiar with seventy
branches of that science: very few champions could bring his
back to the ground. But sometimes he would have nice wrestling
matches with his wife Kaya Sultan for the propagation of
the species. In the end he would overcome Kaya Sultan and bring
her down. He engaged in this sort of "-greatest cihad" forty-eight
times a year--he did not indulge overmuch in sexual intercourse.
In sum, we are not acquainted with any vizier, from the
time of Sultan Ahmed Khan to that of Sultan Murad Khan IV,
who was so innocent and pure, so enlightened and so coura-
geous. To be sure, Koca Bostancl and Koca Musa Pasha and
Koca Kenan Pasha also has a reputation for innocence-God
have mercy on them all.
As for Melek Pasha, he never took a single step without per-
forming his ablutions. Even when he engaged in sexual inter-
course, he would immediately perform ablutions, then do the
nighttime supererogatory prayers. He spent the capital of his
precious life in the "fast of David." His associates and compan-
ions were always the ulema, the pious seyhs, the dervishes, the
weak and the poor. Among the preachers he was especially fond
of Veli Efendi and Erdebili-zade. Attar's Pend-name was always
on his tongue: he had gotten all its verses by heart. He read a
good many books on the science of grammar, and was without
equal in the science of canon law. Particularly the laws of inher-
itance. He had by heart over 800 problems of the seriat and over
1,000 prophetic Hadiths. Because he was inclined to the dervish
path, he had on the tip of his tongue several thousand verses of
the noble Mesnevi of Mevlana (Rumi) and the Manevi of Ibrahim
Gulseni, plus Persian and Turkish odes and mystical ghazels
that he could recite at appropriate occasions.
In the science of calligraphy he (illustrated the Hadith,
"the best) script is what is legible." Still, he had been authorized
by Sultan Murad IV to draw the illustrious tugra, and under his
tutelage he learned to draw it in a manner that rivaled the pens
of Bihzad and Mani. Koca Nisanci Ankebut Ahmed Pasha,
Nasuh-Pasa-zade, Omer Bey, and our head of chancellery Ginayi
Efendi-all stood agape at Melek's tugra.
In the early mornings he used to recite the litany of God's
beautiful names in his private cell. On Monday evenings (Sun-
day nights) he pertormed 40,000 noble invocations together
with his aghas of the interior, and on Friday evenings (Thursday
nights) he would recite the noble ihlas (Koran. sure 112) 12,000
times. Even now, due to a vakf of 12,000 goldpieces that he sent
from Baghdad, every Monday and Friday evening 40,000 invoca-
tions of the Prophet and 40,000 recitations of the noble ihlas are
performed in accordance with his former practice in the small
room and the large room of his private harem. This is a grand
and wonderful pious establishment.
Every year on the first day of Ramazan he would open his
treasury, and his servants would remove whatever valuable ear-
ments and vessels and weapons and other precious items there
were, and pile them up like mountains. Then he would "auc-
tion" these goods off among his 345 interior aghas. Thus, for
example, he would sell a suit of armor for 1,000 invocations: a
sword for 50,000: a sable fur for a complete Koran recital: a
coral prayer bead for 2,000 invocations: a jeweled musket for a
Koran recital. His treasurer would keep a record of the number
of invocations and Koran recitals each person committed himself
for. Then on Monday and Friday evenings his marshals of the
interior service would make a public announcement, and every-
one would come and carry out his obligations. These evenings,
were like the Night of Power. Everyone eating musky sweet-
meats of pistachios and almonds, drinking fruit syrups, and re-
citing prayers. In this fashion his treasury was completely
emptied of weapons and other items: but by the following year,
by God's command, it was even fuller than before.
Whenever he went off to a provincial post, in order that the
seven or eight precious hours not be wasted while traversing the
stages of the journey, he would assemble all his interior aghas
and they would ride together as a body in the mountains or
deserts or orchards, reciting aloud with a single voice the sure
of Victory (sure 48) or the Muavvizeteyn (sures 113 and 114),
causing the mountains and the valleys to resound.
After Koran recitations, to acquaint his interior aghas and
his conscripts (levend) with the arts of warfare, he would line
them up against one another to play forty or fifty rounds of
jereed, or to show their skill in swordplay and archery or to fire
guns from horseback in the Egyptian manner. Afterwards the
marshals would stop these exercises, so as not to tire the horses,
and they would enter camp in good order.
He had a great fondness for horses, especially Arab steeds
of good pedigree, such as Cilfidan, Mainek, Tarifi, Seylavi, Keb-
ise, Mahmudi, Musafaha, Havara, Muhre, and Mehrani; and he
liked to have seventy or eighty of them put through their paces
in his presence, under the awning of his tent pavilion.
Before marrying Kaya Sultan he had 700 purchased slave
boys, for the most part Circassian and Abkhazian and Georgian
gulams. He did not use to purchase Ukrainian gulams, con-
sidering them degenerate and ill-mannered. If he received one
as a gift he accepted him, but then gave him away to one of
his agas.
He was also very fond of hunting, and used to ride out for
picnics, playing all sorts of pieces on his military band accord-
ing to the regulation of the viziers. When he returned from these
excursions he would donate the greater part of the game right
and left as largesse to the dervishes before he reached home.
Never did he accept bribes or allow others to accept them,
nor did he get posts by means of bribery. Rather, he accepted
dismissal from office. Of course, he did use to send some of the
specialties of the regions he was governing, or some thorough-
bred horses, as gifts (piskes) to the imperial stirrup and to the
viziers and deputies.
ln this fashion, there was hardly a lofty post in the Ottoman
empire that he did not occupy. First, in the year 1048 (1638),
below Baghdad, he was appointed commander-in-chief with the
province of Diyarbekir. He was governor of Diyarbekir four times;
of Anatolia province four times; of Ozu four times; of Erzurum
two times. He was deputy governor of Aleppo two times; of Dam-
ascus two times: and of Sivas one time. Once he commanded
troops going to Crete and went as far as Menefse castle. Once each
he was commander (muhafiz) of-Tenedos, governor of Bosnia.
lieutenant-commander of the Transylvania campaign, and gover-
nor of Baghdad. In 1060 (1650) he served as grand vizier for a
year and a half. During his vizierate he sent reinforcements to
Deli Huseyin Pasha on Crete, allowing him to conquer Retimo,
Selina, and seven other strong fortresses. He was dismissed
from the grant vizierate in 1060 ( 1651). Once he was deputy
grand vizier for Koprulu. In sum, he held all the posts of this
perishing realm and administered justice in this world. He lived
for seventy-seven years. Finally, in the year ----, on the
---- day of the month of -----, in conformity with the noble
rescript: "Return to your Lord"(Koran. 12:50), Melek was awarded
as his portion of the unperishing realm the post of the loftiest
paradise, and he proceeded to the side of God without retinue and
without servants- may God have mercy on his soul.
SCANNED FROM:
The intimate Life of an Ottoman Statesman
Melek Ahmet Pasha (1588-1662)
As portrayed in Evliya Celebi's Book of Travels
Translation by Robery Dankoff
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder