An Underexplored Author and a Famous Ode: Ispartalı Zeynelābidin Bey and His Translation of Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr’s Qasīdah al-Burdah Titled Hadīqa-i Samaratu’l-Fuʾād

One of the most widely commented upon and translated works of Islamic literature is Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr’s (d. 24/645?) Qasīdah al-Burdah, also known as Bānat Suʿād [Suʿād has departed] due to its opening words. Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr presented this poem to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in person and rec...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ömer Said Güler
Format: Article
Language:Arabic
Published: Istanbul University Press 2023-06-01
Series:Darulfunun Ilahiyat
Subjects:
Online Access:https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/648F9BB4601548C5BBB659FB8089FF43
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Summary:One of the most widely commented upon and translated works of Islamic literature is Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr’s (d. 24/645?) Qasīdah al-Burdah, also known as Bānat Suʿād [Suʿād has departed] due to its opening words. Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr presented this poem to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in person and received his praise and benevolence, and this poem has been highly regarded for its spiritual and literary value by all Islamic states. It remained a prominent text in literary circles during the Ottoman period, consistently being translated and commented upon in Turkish. In this regard, Qasīdah al-Burdah had started to being the subject of the translation and commentary tradition in Turkish and managed to maintain its place of interest without being neglected until the final years of the Empire and even into Türkiye’s Republican Period. This study introduces Ispartalı Zeynelābidin Bey’s 1928 prose translation of Qasīdah al-Burdah, which he titled Hadīqa-i Samaratu’l-Fuʾād [garden of the fruit of the heart], the first and only printed Turkish translation of the ode in Arabic script, and publishes the text in order to make it available within the relevant literature. Additionally, the study attempts to present the biography of a prolific but lesser-known writer who lived through both the Ottoman and Republican periods through his interesting autobiography titled Ben Kimim? [Who Am I?].
ISSN:2651-5083