Two 15th Century Ottoman Sufî Mysteries- An Historiographical Essay Part I: What Happened to Eşrefoğlu?

Abstract

Abdullah son of Esref, better known as Esrefoglu, is a majör figure of the cultural landscape of 15* century Ottoman Turkey. At his death he left a small divan of mystical poems, a much favored prose work on the prerequisites for a mystically life, and a shorter treatise on the beginning stages of "the path". Other works have been mentioned-but none satisfactorily accounted for. His life story is only sketchily known, mainly from a 17th century hagiographical work. Previously overlooked sources cast a shadow over the end of the poet sheikh's life and raise questions about the general reliability of the widely received tradition. This historiographic essay attempts to explain the mystery of the end of his life. Reviewing the modern scholarly (and popular) literature on Esrefoglu's life and work, it also explores reasons why writers, past and present, have been reluctant to confront certain 15th century realities.