"I have not come for a cause.
My calling is Love.
The Friend’s (God’s) home is hearts.
I have come to build hearts.”
Who is Yunus Emre?
Yunus Emre is a Turkish Muslim mystic and poet who lived in Anatolia in the 13th century during the collapse of the Turkish Seljuk Empire and the first years of the newly founded Turkish Ottoman Empire. After spending many years at the presence of his spiritual teacher, Taptuk Emre, he traveled through Anatolia and the neighboring countries. Yunus is known for his humanistic values and for his divine love poems, dedicated to God whom he refers to as “The Beloved” or “The Friend”. Humanism is a system of thought which exalts man in his relations with God, nature; and society. Yunus believes that God is immanent in the universe. All matter is imbued with spirit or consciousness, and acquires higher values only through love. Yunus is the cornerstone of what is referred to as “Anatolian Humanism”.
Yunus’s humanism is revealed in such a beautiful and powerful way in poetry which led some thinkers to suggest that "Yunus" is not a single man but actually a school of thought.
Yunus and his teacher Taptuk are believed to come from the Yesevi tradition. Ahmet Yesevi lived in the 12th century in Turkistan andi played a very important role in spreading True Islam amongst Turks, and thus, made great contributions to provide unity among the Turks by explaining them the true teachings of the Qur’an. He enriched Turkish language with the spirit of love and wisdom.
Divan-ı Hikmet is one of the literary heritages of Turkic nations that reached the present days, written in a simple language and syllabic standard of Turkish Folk Literature. Yesevi’s most valuable gift to Turkish culture has been to remove all superstitious and corrupted ideas from Islam and to allow it to shine in its pure Truth.
Yunus Emre was a very well educated man and he was fluent in Arabic and Persian languages, which were the official languages of his period. At a time when the Turkish language was highly discriminated against, Yunus turned his face towards common people and composed his poems in their spoken tongue, Turkish, which was also his mother tongue. Continuing the Yesevi tradition, he implicitly explained the most profound and perplexing truths to people in their own language, making it easy for them to understand what he conveyed in his poems. Yunus breathed the spirit of Truth to Turkish language. Unfortunately, regardless of the many Muslim philosophers who were able to spread the essence of the Quran during the Turkish Seljuk Empire and the first decades of the Ottoman Empire, the knowledge gradually began to decline. Quran’s Islam was dominated and taken over by the teachings of "the Umayyad (fabricated) Islam”.
Yunus' philosophy, metaphysics and humanism is examined in various symposiums and conferences on a regular basis both in Turkiye and abroad. UNESCO named Yunus Emre one of the main cultural figures of world, and dedicated 1991 as "The International Yunus Emre Year". His work has been translated into several languages.
Several authors point out that many idioms in everyday Turkish language today are actually verses from his poetry. Yunus’s works consist of a Dîvan (his collected poetry) and a didactic work called the Risâlat an-Nushiyya (Treatise of Advice).
Let me call, my Lord, on Thee
With the mountains and the rocks, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee. At the dawn with birds that fly, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee. With the fish under waters, with the gazelle in the deserts, as a wandering dervish, uttering Ya HU, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee. With ʿĪsā (Jesus) raised on high, With Mūsā (Moses) on Sinai, With the rod that he holds by, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee. With Ayyūb, much longing for Love With Ya‘qūb (Jacob) shedding many a tear With Muhammad, loved so dear, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee. With thankful praises to God With the Quran's "Say: God is One", Always calling for the One, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee. I have come to know this world, left behind all its tales, with a clear head, on bare feet, Let me Call, my Lord, on Thee. With many tongues, Yunus croons, Singing with doves and nightingales, With the Truth’s most loving servants, Let me call, my Lord, on Thee.
A Single Word
A single word brightens the face of the one, Who knows the essence of words. A single word, ripened in silence, causes all actions to flow. War is cut short by a word, and a word heals the wounds, A word changes poison into butter and honey. Let a word mature inside yourself. Replace all the wicked ones. Let a word be uttered through wisdom, do not speak empty words. Oh brothers and sisters, Come and listen to us. A kind of word can reduce money and riches to dust. Know when to speak a word and when not to speak at all. A single word turns worlds of hell into eight paradises. Follow the path of Truth. Don’t be fooled by what you already know. Reflect before you speak. A foolish mouth can wound your soul. Yunus, be vigilant when you say a word now. A word can deviate you from Truth. It is the word ‘I’ that separates you from God.
True Knowledge
True knowledge is knowing one’s Self in Heart and Soul, If you do not know yourself, Then all your reading has missed its call. What is the purpose of reading all those books? If it is not to know God, the Truth If you read but you don’t know, All your efforts are just a barren toil. Do not boast of reading, mastering science and prayer If you can’t see God in men, any learning is of no avail. The Holy Book’s true essence is found in alphabet’s first letter, aleph* If you fail to know this, All your learning is otiose. Oh preacher you keep talking, Reading from one end to another You utter the letter, aleph Tell me if you know the meaning. Yunus Emre says, hey hodja* Go on a thousand pilgrimages if you want But if asked, I’ll tell you. The highest is to enter a Heart.
All Beings
We dived into the sea of self-realization, and observed the being. Both worlds, seen and unseen, we witnessed in all beings. The night and the day, seven stars in the sky, the word inscribed in divine intelligence, We witnessed in all beings. Mount Sinai, where Moses ascended high, the celestial shrine, the holy sound of Israfel's horn, we witnessed in all beings. Torah and Psalms, Gospel and Quran, and the truth imbedded in them, we witnessed in all beings. The glorious appearing heavens, with all its angels, and the seventy thousand veils, we witnessed in all beings. The seven layers of the earth and the skies, all the mountains and the seas, the Hell and the Paradise we witnessed in all beings. These words of Yunus are the truth, all beings said they are. Truth is everywhere you inquire we witnessed in all beings.
The Denier of Truth Is Blind
Those who know how to be truly human, found everything in being nothing, while those who looked proudly from above, will be pushed down the ladder. A heart that feels superior, will in time lose its way, what is within will emanate, to your outer display. The white bearded grand man, does not see the state he's in. He needn't waste money going to Holy Land, if it’s a heart that he has broken. The one who is deaf does not hear the words, takes daylight to be the night. The denier of Truth is blind, even if the whole universe is in light. The heart is the throne of God, God manifested in the heart, if you devastate it, whomever you may be, in both worlds you shall be in misery. Whatever you want for yourself, want the same for others too. If there is any truth in the Four Holy Books, it is this truth. Those who came before us are all gone, those who once landed here migrated one by one. The one who hears the Truth of God, is the one who drank Love's wine. May Yunus not stray from the path, nor get on his high horse, what does a grave mean or the path to paradise?
Oneness
O Beloved, what is this affliction that has no remedy? What is this injury, where no wound appears? My estranged heart is never weary of love. It falls in love and never returns to me. It does return to give lots of advice, and a heart in love is never tired of love. The one who thinks of himself in no lover. The one who doesn't leave his person can never find the Beloved. In the marketplace of Love, the persons are sold. I put myself up for sale each day, But never have a buyer! The lover pays no attention to worldly rewards, Free of fear of this earth and the next. And the lover has a heavenly joy in this world, that nobody knows of. The minaret announces that a lover has died- What dies is the body, lovers do not die. Mister, if you a lover, walk your path properly. Heads go astray for love and their blood is not queried. The field of the sages is higher than the highest heavens. The wooden sticks are swung, yet the ball doesn’t appear. Yunus merged into this Oneness and disappeared. And his mind can no longer reason turning back.
Oneness of God
To find joy on the path of Truth, move from outer forms to the one true being. So as not to be deprived of this path do not dwell on illusions. There are many wonders on this path, Do not fall for them The real wonder is when you see that All is the manifestation of the face of the Friend (God). To reach the path of the Friend, Tie the robe of love around yourself To see God in everything Go beyond your ego through discipline. From the world of names and forms to the city of Love, You shall pass through three hundred seas, And reach to seven hells. Burn in these seven hells Turn into ashes in each one. If you wish to find your true Self, Leave all the false selves there. Truth is the city of God and it has seven gates If you can pass through them and see the Oneness of God, You will be able to see the various manifestations of His power. At the first gate of Truth stands someone And tells you to come inside, Only through surrender real peace is to be found At the second gate, you shall see two lions Who have scared many away. Fear not and persevere. At the third gate stand three dragons They will make their moves But you should not turn back. At the fourth gate are four great sages/guides. This statement is a sign for you If you wish to understand You must be the witness. At the fifth gate are five spirits Trying to sell you seemingly precious things You must not buy any and keep going. At the sixth gate you will see a beauty Who calls you strongly You must not be deceived And keep going. If you fall for this beauty You will be deceived And will fall short of Truth.
"Mouth speaks, ear listens.
Heart speaks, universe listens.”