HADRAT MUSTAFA FEYZI EFFENDI OF TEKIRDAGH (1851-1926) Translated from Dr. Abdullatif Duygulu (http://www.dervisan.com) Hadrat Mustafa Feyzî Effendi of Tekirdagh is the 36th link in the golden chain of lineage of the Gumush-khanewi Dargah. He became postnishin after Hadrat Omar Ziyauddin Daghistani. a. His Education Hadrat Mustafa Feyzi Effendi was born in the Kiliçlar Village of Tekirdag, Turkey in 1267 H/1851 CE. His father, Emrullah Agha was a farmer. Mustafa Feyzi Effendi had his first schooling in his town. In 1285 H/1868 CE he went to Istanbul to attend Bayazid Madrasa where his elder brother Mehmed Tâhir Effendi was an instructor. He completed his education in 1300/1882, and became eligible to teach in Madrasa in the following year. 
On Rajab 5, 1301, he had his first instruction at Bayazid Mosque. He had
his first students graduate in1316/1898. Meanwhile he progressed in the
academia. He became an assistant professor in 1887, and a full professor
in 1907. He was appointed to Shahzadebashi Ismâil Pasha Madrasa. Later,
he was awarded the Fourth Osmanî and the Fourth Majidî badges. In 1910,
he was appointed to teach classes in the presence of Ottoman Sultans. He
maintained this duty until the last of such classes were held in 1919. (1)
b. His Services in Tasawwuf Mustafa Feyzî Effendi became a disciple of Grand Shaikh Ahmed Ziyauddîn Gumush-khanewi. He completed his progress under the supervision of Hadrat Gumush-khanewi and became one of his deputies authorized to guide in tariqa. After the death of Omar Ziyauddîn Effendi 1921, Mustafa Feyzî Effendi became the postnishin at the Gumush-khanewi Dargah. He maintained that title until November 30, 1925, which marks the banning of dargahs, tekkes and other dervish loges in Turkey. Mustafa Feyzi Effendi taught ahadith at Yeni Cami. He had 24 khalwets throughout his life. As the fourth deputy of Hadrat Gumush-khanewi, he served for five years as the spiritual guide, and raised many students including ten scholars who were authorized to be spiritual guides. He had Ramuz-ul Ahadith discourses covering the entire book once a year. In his last khalwet, he authorized Hasib (Yardimci) Effendi of Serez, Abdul'aziz (Bekkine) Effendi of Kazan, and Mehmed Zahid (Kotku) Effendi of Bursa. The guidance duty was carried out through these personages to this day. Hasib Effendi served from 1926 to 1949; Abdul'aziz Effendi, 1949 t0 1952; Mehmed Zahid Effendi, 1952 to 1980. During the time of Mehmed Zahid Kotku Effendi, the activities of the Dargah spread all over the country and the Dargah became known with the name of Mehmed Zahid Effendi's mosque as Iskenderpasha Jamâ'ah. The activities of the Dargah spread worldwide from Canada to Australia, from Sudan to Middle Asia during the time of his successor Prof. Dr. Mahmud Es'ad Cosan (1980-2001). The guidance duty is carried out by Muharrem Nureddin Cosan at the present. * * * Mustafa Feyzî Effendi was like an ocean of acquired and spiritual knowledge. He was distinguished with his excellent code of conduct. He had medium height and a somehow round body. His beard was mostly white; his face, illuminated. He would do dhikr and payers in plenty. The following lines are a description of his purpose in life: (2) Basta devlet, dilde himmet, elde firsat var iken, c. His Death Mustafa Feyzî Effendi passed away on Muharrem 23, 1345 (August 1, 1926) when he was seventy-five years old. His grave is in the grave yard of Suleymaniye Mosque in a section where other shaikhs of the Gumush-khanewi Dargah were buried. The epitaph on his grave reads the following: (3) Tekfurdâğî Mustafa Feyzi, d. An Anecdote from Prof. Yusuf Ziya Binatli Mustafa Feyzî Effendi had the Jajal attribute manifested on him. Prof. Yusuf Ziya Binatli, the son of Shaikh Omar Ziyauddin Daghistanî, told the following event: Sometimes I would request Mehmed Zahid Effendi take me to the minaret so I would call for the prayer. He took me to the minaret several times. To the right of the minaret's qibla side was a facing window of the residence of Mustafa Feyzi Effendi, who had become the shaikh of the tekke after my father died in 1921. When we were up in the minaret, Mehmed Effendi would ask me to duck so that Shaikh Effendi would not see me there. We would then walk down the minaret after he recited the adhan. I very much enjoyed the great vista looking out in all directions from the minaret. Once I asked Mehmed Effendi, "Let me call the adhan!" He said, "All right." That time he ducked in the minaret. I started, "Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar!" The Shaikh Effendi noticed me through his window and asked: "What are you doing?" I responded, "I am calling the adhan!" He asked, "Have you become 'aqil baligh [sane and mature to be responsible for carrying out religious duties]?" I said, "Yes, I have!" but I had no idea what those words meant. If he had asked in a negative question form, my response would have been "No, I haven't." He said, "All right, then. Go ahead." When I completed the adhan, I looked at Mehmed Effendi: he was trembling. (4) e. Memories from Abdul'aziz Bekkine Effendi 
Abdul'aziz Effendi was taken to Mustafa Feyzî Effendi by his close friend
Mehmed Zâhid Kotku Effendi. At that time, the Gumush-khanewi Dargah was
across from the Governor's office, next to the Fatma sultan Mosque in Istanbul.
Abdul'aziz Effendi, along with Hasib and Mehmed Zahid Effendis, attended
the last khalwet by Mustafa Feyzî Effendi in 1926 and received the authorization
in guidance as a deputy. Abdul'aziz Effendi described his experience: When Mustafa Feyzî Effendi informed us that there would be a khalwet, all who wanted to take part brought a tanned skin with a fur on. I brought one for me, too. Shaikh Effendi was at the door, letting the disciples enter one by one. When it was my turn to enter the room, he told me to bring a bed. It was because I was very thin and weak. I felt so sad. I went and brought my bed. I kept telling to myself that while everybody was with a tanned skin, I was with a bed. When I was entering the room, Shaikh Mustafa Feyzî Effendi whispered: "Son, If Almighty Allah wills, He will grant His blessings on a tanned skin as well as on a bed." While we were in the retreat, there was a day that I wanted to say poems all the time. If I had written everything that came to my mind, it would have filled pages. I put my hand over my mouth to prevent myself from speaking. However, these words came out: Jamalullàh nûrudur, nûr-u jamâlin yâ Rasûlallah! "O Messenger of Allah! The light from your beauty is from the light of beauty of Allah!" Right at that moment, Mustafa Feyzî Effendi entered the room and whispered me, "Swallow, swallow, swallow!" From then on, no words came out of my mouth. There was a physician who was in the retreat with us. He thought that the lentil soup for iftar and 21 raisins for the suhur was too little food for a person. He also had a thought that the Shaikh Effendi was probably having a feast of food while the disciples in retreat were eating very little. Having those thoughts, the physician had a terrible dream that night. In the dream the Shaikh Effendi slapped his face. In the morning his face had the mark of the slap. That day, Mustafa Feyzî Effendi dismissed him from the retreat. (5) * * * Abdul'aziz Effendi told the following: At the Dargah, there were two close friends attending the same madrasa. They always wanted to offer their Friday Prayer at the mosque where their shaikh Mustafa Feyzî Effendi prayed. Shaikh Mustafa Feyzî Effendi would attend either Bayazid Mosque or Ayasofya (St. Sophia) Mosque. These two friends would leave the madrasa at Çarshikapi, come to the Bayazid Mosque first. Before entering, they would lift the heavy curtain door and smell the air inside. If they detect the smell of their shaikh, they would enter the mosque; otherwise, they would go to Ayasofya Mosque. The two friends that Abdul'aziz Effendi mentioned were Mehmed Zahid Kotku Effendi and Abdul'aziz Effendi himself. The smell they sought was the characteristic smell of the Prophet which was also manifested on Mustafa Feyzî Effendi. (6) f. A Hymn Mehmed Zahid Kotku reported that the following poem of Niyazî-i Misrî was chanted by Mustafa Feyzî Effendi during a circle of dhikr: (7) Ey derde derman isteyen, g. Relocation of His Grave 
Thirty some years after Mustafa Feyzî Effendi died in 1926, an interesting
phenomenon was observed. Mehmed Zahid Kotku RhA described it as follows:
"When the roads of Istanbul were widened and the tombs of Ottoman Sultans were cleared of other graves, the grave of our beloved khawaja, a professor at the Bayazid Mosque Madrasa, the postnishin of Gumush-khanewi Dargah, Hajji Mustafa Feyzî Effendi of Takirdagh was located between the Suleymaniye Mosque and the tomb of Qanûnî Sultan Sulayman. There were about ten graves there. Upon the instruction of the Prime Minister Menderes, these graves were moved to the empty area. We were requested to be observers while the graves were opened and the bones were carried in special bags. "When it was the turn for Mustafa Feyzî Effendi's grave, those who were present there witnessed an extraordinary phenomenon. Despite the thirty some years that had passed, not even one hair of his beard was changed. He looked as though he had just been buried. We observed that the earth does not dissolve the body of true scholars. May Almighty Allah bless him." (8) 
Grave of Mustafa Feyzi Effendi Rh.A in Suleymaniye Mosque Graveyard h. Recommendations by Mustafa Feyzî Effendi "My recommendation for myself and for my brothers: 1. Do not consider yourself some important person (overcome your ego). 2. Keep your pledges. 3. Be content with what you have. 4. Trust in Allah . 5. Correct your creed so it complies with the Ahl-i Sunnah wal Jama'ah. 6. Do not be concerned with the disagreements that occurred among the companions of the Prophet. Have a positive opinion about them all. 7. Wish well for the Muslim rulers, their helpers and fair administrators. Help them do good things. 8. Help Muslims against the disbelievers. 9. Abandon false accusations and claims. 10. Carry out good deeds that have been ordered. 11. Do not take anything of this world for your nafs unless it is halal. 12. Spend your wealth and belongings in the way of Allah. 13. Avoid over-interacting with the youth. 14. Avoid those who are involved in evil. 15. Uphold the consciousness of Allah in this life. 16. Have good intentions all the time, for the intention is the essence of our deeds--as indicated by our beloved Prophet. 17. Keep your dhikr by heart as you walk as well as sit. 18. Offer voluntary prayers. 19. Finally, repeat this dhikr: "Subhànallàhi wa bihamdihî adede khalqihî wa ridà nafsihî wa zinete arshihî wa midâde kelimâtihî, kullemâ dhekerehudh-dhâkirîn wa ghafele an dhikrihil-ghàfilûn. -- I glorify and praise Almighty Allah in the number of His creation, as He is pleased with, as much as the weight of His throne, in the multitude of His words, as much as the dhikr of those who remember Him, and as much as the negligence of those who are negligent of Him." (9) Notes: (1) Dr. Irfan Gündüz, Gümüshànevî Ahmed Ziyâüddîn KS, s. 153, Seha Nesriyat, Istanbul 1984. (2) Mehmed Zâhid Kotku, Tezkiretül-Evliyâ addendum, (M. Cemil Solakoğlu, Gümüşhaneli Hazret-i Ahmed Ziyâüddin) s. 323, Bahar Yayınevi, Istanbul 1975. (3) Dr. Irfan Gündüz, Gümüshànevî Ahmed Ziyâüddîn KS, s. 154, Seha Nesriyat, Istanbul 1984. (4) Dr. Metin Erkaya, Anilarla Mehmed Zâhid Kotku Rh.A, s. 119, Seha Yayinevi, Istanbul, 1996. (5) Prof. Osman N. Çatakli, Haci Hasib Efendi ve Haci Aziz Efendi, s. 43, Istanbul 2001. (6) Ibid, s. 52 (7) Mehmed Zâhid Kotku, Tasavvufî Ahlâk, c. 2, s. 32, Seha Nesriyat, Istanbul 1979. (8) Mehmed Zâhid Kotku, Hadislerle Nasihatler, c. 2, s. 32, Seha Nesriyat, Istanbul 1985. (9) Prof. Osman N. Çatakli, Haci Hasib Efendi ve Haci Aziz Efendi, s. 140, Istanbul 2001.
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