Mawlana's Relations with the Akhīs

Abstract

It is known that there were akhīs in Konya before Bahā al-Din Walad's arrival in Anatolia with his family after 1220 and his decision to settle in Konya. This Akhī structure was influenced by the Arab futuwwa and Persian chivalry, synthesized with the Turkish national culture and transformed into its own unique form. The legendary architect of this transformation is Akhī Evrān. Organized exclusively among tradesmen, the Akhīs came from various social strata and belonged to various orders representing all branches and tendencies of Sufism in Anatolia, especially Mawlawism and Bektashism. Therefore, they had a very significant role in the harmonization of the religious life of Anatolian settlements. There is asceticism that we see in the Hanafī tradition on the basis of this social role. Bahā al-Din Walad and his son Jalal al-Din Rūmī, who were disciples of N. Kubrā, had a more independent Sufi life, partly in line with the madrasa tradition. After his father's death, Jalal al-Dīn, who had been under the edify of Sayyid Burhan al-Dīn Tirmidhī, experienced a real change when he met Shams al-Tabrizī in 1244. Leaving aside the troubles of Shams' comings and goings and Damascus journeys, Mawlānā transforms into a person who spends his time in samā and dawrān, singing with a Sufi understanding based on love. In this process, it is quite normal for Mawlānā Jalal al-Dīn to have relations with the akhīs, especially those living in Konya. When we take into account the information in the sources, it is possible to say that these relations were often friendly and sometimes controversial, depending on the course of events. As a matter of fact, one of his two closest disciples, Najm al-Dīn Zarqūb, was a goldsmith, while Husam al-Din Chalabi who was nicknamed Akhī Turkoglu because of his father, was someone who grew up and lived within the akhī tradition. However, we can say that the akhīs were in favor of a regular religious life based on reason with the understanding of asceticism they adopted, and that they distanced themselves from Sufism's dhikr forms, especially sama and dawran. On the other hand, during the war of succession between the sons of Kaykhusraw II, the akhīs and Mawlānā were on opposite sides. While the akhīs supported ‘Izz ad-Din Kaykaus in cooperation with the Turkmens against the Mongol invasion, Mawlānā supported Kilij Arslan IV, who was proclaimed Sultan in Konya with Mongol support. This political stance sometimes made the relations between the parties contentious and controversial. In this paper, Mawlānā's relations with the akhīs will be discussed within the framework of political and social developments in the 13th century.

Affiliated Institutions

• Suleyman Demirel University KZ

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