İbrahim Hakkı Erzurumi

İbrahim Hakkı Erzurumi (18 May 1703 - 22 June 1780), a popular sufi saint of Turkey from Erzurum in eastern Anatolia - mystic, poet, author, astronomer, physicist, psychologist, sociologist and Islamic scholar. He was a Turkish Sufi philosopher and encyclopedist.

Life and Works

Having lost his mother and later his father at an early age, İbrahim Hakkı was raised by his uncle who educated him for a while. He met the Ottoman Sultan Mahmut I at Constantinople in 1747. He returned to Erzurum, and was continuously interested in religious and scientific matters. Having written fifteen books in the Manzum and regular styles, and a great number of Turkish, Arabic, and Persian amongst İbrahim Hakkı's most important works are the Divan and Marifetname.

In 1756 he published his work Marifetname (Book of Gnosis) which was a compilation and commentary on astronomy, mathematics, anatomy, psychology, philosophy, and Islamic mysticism. It is famous for containing the first treatment of post-Copernican astronomy by a Muslim scholar ('ālim).Marifetname contains tasawwuf knowledge along with a wide range of general scientific and encyclopedic knowledge. Completed in 1757, the book was written in the language of the layman. According to the author, it was compiled from 400 books. It is a first in the explanation of observational astronomy of the solar system by a scholar in a book.

He died in Aydinlar/Tillo of Siirt Province.

Theology

Core to Erzurumi's philosophy is that self-examination is absolutely necessary as part of the process of discovery of Allah: "Allah has revealed in His Divine Books, and has sent His prophets as guides to help lead us back to heedfulness. Only those who are able to wake up and rediscover that which is holy within themselves, can come close to our Creator, which is perfection." He is widely quoted for saying, "If we take a step towards Allah, He will come running to meet us." Which is derived from a hadith qudsi.