82 chapter 2
Kınalızade then proceeds to analyze craftsmanship (sına ’at), yet in a broad
sense, one that seems to include commerce and agriculture. Craftsmanship,
he argues, can be divided into three categories, namely noble (şerif ), middle
or neutral, and inferior. Noble crafts are those conducted by human reason
(nefs-i natıka) rather than the body, and they are subdivided into three main
types: the “art of leadership” (san’at-ı vizaret), which has to do with the well-
being of the community and pertains to the mind; the art of the literati, scribes,
and judges, which pertain to virtue, knowledge of manners (edeb), eloquence,
medicine, mathematics, and so forth; and the art of the soldiery (sipahilik).42
As for the inferior arts, they are also divided into three categories. Trades such
as hoarding, witchcraft, libelling, and pimping, which are opposed to the righ-
teous ways of living, are the professions of mischief-makers and evil-doers;
others, such as singing and buffoonery, are not opposed to the right way of
living but only to the virtue and generosity of the spirit; finally, professions
such as sweepers, tanners, or cuppers, the crafts of the lowest, only produce
bodily disgust in themselves; however, they cause no damage to the mind so
cannot be considered improper. On the contrary, since everybody must make
a living, it is necessary that these strata (i.e. the lowest) occupy themselves
with such professions in order not to damage the world order (nizam-ı alem);
if everybody followed only the noble professions, the world order would be
destroyed (cf. also K368, 412). Finally, the middle or neutral crafts can be
divided into those indispensable, such as agriculture, and those that are not
always necessary, such as the profession of the goldsmith. Here, Kınalızade
notes that (again in İnalcık’s words) “a craftsman should endeavor to make
the best product possible without being content merely to earn his livelihood.
While it [is] necessary, he [adds], to please the consumer since his satisfaction
and prayers are the source of prosperity and salvation in this world and here-
after, it is a waste of time to be too meticulous making luxury goods. It is far
better for a Muslim to spend his time in prayers” or charity (K337).
As for keeping hold of wealth, doing so must neither deprive the members of
the household of their means of subsistence, nor be at the expense of religious
duties, nor lead to avarice. Kınalızade warns against meanness, but stresses
that expenses must be kept lower than the income; it is not sinful to keep
one’s wealth hidden, he says, provided the canonical alms have been extracted.
He also gives specific advice concerning how one should invest one’s wealth
42 İnalcık (1994a, 44) sums it up as follows: “The professions of ulema, bureaucrats and sol-
diers are based in spiritual qualities such as reason, rhetoric and valor respectively and
thus make up the noble professions”, which is not very accurate. At any rate, the absence
of the ulema in the text is puzzling.