In Classical Turkish poetry, the beauty of nature is one of the most significant sources of metaphors, serving both as a medium for poets to showcase their artistry and as a means to express their emotions influenced by this beauty. Poets have extensively explored many flowers they observe in nature in terms of their fragrance, color, shape, demeanor, and appearance, composing countless verses filled with delicate similes and imaginative imagery. Flowers such as “the rose, tulip, narcissus, and hyacinth” are frequently used as elements of simile and allusion in Classical Turkish poetry. Among these, the violet is one of the flowers that holds a central place in the poets’ aesthetic thoughts and imagination. It is often used in metaphors related to love. The violet is a flower that appears in contrasting comparisons in poetry. In this sense, it finds its place both in verses that depict the beauty of the beloved and in those that associate it with darkness and mourning. At times, the violet has been a remedy for the weary souls of the sick; at other times, it has been presented as wine in goblets; and sometimes, it has blended with the musk scent of the beloved’s hair, intoxicating lovers. This paper evaluates the nesîb section of Revânî’s Benefşe redifli kaside, one of the significant poets of his era in Classical Turkish poetry. The analysis focuses on the 23-couplet nesîb section, examining the original imagery and ideas embedded within the real and metaphorical meanings of the verses.
Benefşe, Revânî, Classical Turkish Poetry, Qasida