58 chapter 1
works of fifteenth-century authors, as seen above, and it would acquire a much
more important place in subsequent centuries.
Justice is combined with a whole array of other virtues, the most prominent
of which are generosity and clemency. This reflection of the neo-Aristotelian
theory of the soul had been fully elaborated previously by another new-
comer from Amasya, Ahmed bin Hüsameddin Amasi, at the beginning of the
fifteenth century, but it was to become most widely seen in the works of
Bayezid II’s eulogists at the turn of the sixteenth century and with Kınalızade
Ali Çelebi in the middle of that century, as will be seen in the next chapter. At
any rate, the central idea underpinning all fifteenth-century authors is that the
ruler has a moral duty to strive for perfection; it is ethics, rather than power,
mystic charisma, or (yet) obedience to rules, that was said to secure a ruler
and the welfare of his state and subject. Eulogies of the Ottoman dynasty dur-
ing this period still emphasized the justice and piety of its rulers, rather than
divine favor. Let us take Ahmedi, for instance: Orhan was equitable and a dis-
penser of justice (munsıfıdı Orhan u dadger), his justice (adl) being so excellent
that the justice of Caliph Ömer (Umar) was forgotten; he established mosques
and public kitchens; he was a true believer and loved people of knowledge
(v. 68ff.). His son Süleyman Pasha had all the qualities of leadership (şart-ı
serverlik): courage (şeca’at), generosity (sehavet), administrative and ruling
abilities (hem siyaset hem riyaset ehlidi), good judgment, and military ability
(v. 94ff.). On the other hand, Ahmedi’s and Şeyhoğlu’s emphasis on laws can-
not be ignored, especially as it is an element almost totally absent in previous
literature and one which was to take a central place in the writings of later
authors. It is important to remark here that a loathing of innovation, at least
in principle, was something that these authors shared with the gazi opposi-
tion (as seen in the works of Aşıkpaşazade and Yazıcıoğlu). Innovation and the
long-lasting debate around it would acquire a central place in Ottoman public
discourse from the mid-sixteenth century onwards.
A slightly different tone dominates Sinan Pasha’s work, permeated as it is
with his bitterness over Mehmed II’s behavior against him and with his mys-
tic vision. For one thing, whereas Ahmedi’s and Şeyhoğlu’s works are struc-
tured around the personality of the sultan and his obligations vis-à-vis God
and his subjects, Sinan Pasha seems to envisage a larger image of society, it-
self part of the cosmos. In his work there is a place for individual and social
morality, the role of the “vain sciences” (T134ff: ulumi’l-gayri’n-nafıa, a chap-
ter actually stressing the importance of the Sharia and simple, pure faith as
opposed to excessive philosophical explanation; cf. also T322ff ), and glimpses
of the Hereafter, the “friends of God” (T754ff ), and especially the concealed ones
(T770ff ), pointing to the Sufi doctrine of the “pole” (kutb). If there is a general