Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi aka Khayrunnisaa Gulfem Sultana
One of many princesses of the Ottoman sultanate's harem, Gulfem was an avid student of sacred knowledge in her brother's court.
At the age of twelve, she surpassed all the tutors the harem had to offer; by the age of fifteen, she was offering her brother political advice on how to negotiate the tensions between themselves and the Persian Safavid empire.
Gulfem had a great talent for poetry in particular, penning lyrical stanzas and witty sonnets in Farsi, Arabic, and Turkish alike. At times deeply religious and spiritual, at others cutting and sardonic, Gulfem's words were robustly enjoyed - but only within the harem walls. As a member of the royal blood rather than a jaariyah (slave girl), it was prohibited for her to mingle with the male masters of her art, to attend poetic salons freely, or even to publish her works and distribute them in her own name.
Frustrated by the lack of opportunity she had to share her writings, Gulfem realized that deception was her only option. She adopted the pen name Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi, an homage to her maternal grandfather, a respected 'aalim of Baghdad.
Unencumbered by the burdens of a feminine name, Gulfem's poetry became famed across the Ottoman empire and beyond. Such was her popularity that her works were compiled, published, and sold widely - referred to in shorthand as 'Shamsuddins.'
The true identity of the great poet Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi remained unknown and would have vanished from memory if not for one mere note recorded in the annals of history by Gulfem's loyal scribe and handmaiden, Hatice Begum.
...
If solitude is the succor of women and of saints,
Whence wisdom is found, honour preserved, and Divine Pleasure obtained
Should not the Sultan and his Viziers embrace the silence of the harem's walls for themselves?
- Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi, "Political Advice."
...
Wisdom, like youth and faith and the blossoms along the Bosphorus, oft withers as swiftly as it blooms.
...
Hands outstretched in supplication,
Begging for another morsel, another moment of munificence -
Who is the beggar, and who the benefactor?
...
If the proof for murder lies in the garnet drops upon the blade,
How then do we seek justice for the female minds sacrificed at the altar
...
In gardens of reverence,
The weeping of scholars perfumes their beards -
Love and tears more fragrant than jasmine and frankincence.
...
Verily, a vale of beauty unveiled is the likeness of the Greatest Beauty unveiled.
One of many princesses of the Ottoman sultanate's harem, Gulfem was an avid student of sacred knowledge in her brother's court.
At the age of twelve, she surpassed all the tutors the harem had to offer; by the age of fifteen, she was offering her brother political advice on how to negotiate the tensions between themselves and the Persian Safavid empire.
Gulfem had a great talent for poetry in particular, penning lyrical stanzas and witty sonnets in Farsi, Arabic, and Turkish alike. At times deeply religious and spiritual, at others cutting and sardonic, Gulfem's words were robustly enjoyed - but only within the harem walls. As a member of the royal blood rather than a jaariyah (slave girl), it was prohibited for her to mingle with the male masters of her art, to attend poetic salons freely, or even to publish her works and distribute them in her own name.
Frustrated by the lack of opportunity she had to share her writings, Gulfem realized that deception was her only option. She adopted the pen name Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi, an homage to her maternal grandfather, a respected 'aalim of Baghdad.
Unencumbered by the burdens of a feminine name, Gulfem's poetry became famed across the Ottoman empire and beyond. Such was her popularity that her works were compiled, published, and sold widely - referred to in shorthand as 'Shamsuddins.'
The true identity of the great poet Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi remained unknown and would have vanished from memory if not for one mere note recorded in the annals of history by Gulfem's loyal scribe and handmaiden, Hatice Begum.
...
If solitude is the succor of women and of saints,
Whence wisdom is found, honour preserved, and Divine Pleasure obtained
Should not the Sultan and his Viziers embrace the silence of the harem's walls for themselves?
- Abu Bakr Shamsuddin alBaghdadi, "Political Advice."
...
Wisdom, like youth and faith and the blossoms along the Bosphorus, oft withers as swiftly as it blooms.
...
Hands outstretched in supplication,
Begging for another morsel, another moment of munificence -
Who is the beggar, and who the benefactor?
...
If the proof for murder lies in the garnet drops upon the blade,
How then do we seek justice for the female minds sacrificed at the altar
...
In gardens of reverence,
The weeping of scholars perfumes their beards -
Love and tears more fragrant than jasmine and frankincence.
...
Verily, a vale of beauty unveiled is the likeness of the Greatest Beauty unveiled.