Kirmasti’s Book Titled el-Vajiz and Its Analysis

Numerous scholars were trained in every branch of Islamic sciences in the Ottoman state. One of them is Yûsuf b. Huseyin el-Kirmasti, who lived during the reigns of Fatih Sultan Mehmet and Bayezid II. Information about his life is scarce and limited. He was a prolific and versatile scholar who spent his life in Bursa and Istanbul, which became the capitals of the Ottomans. Kirmasti did not go to science centers such as Khorasan, Damascus and Egypt; instead, like Molla Husrev, he received all his education in Bursa and Istanbul, which served as the capitals of the Ottoman state. Having begun his education at home with his father Fakih Huseyin, Kirmasti took lessons from the prominent scholars of the time, especially Hocazâde Muslihuddin Efendi, the tutor of Fatih Sultan Mehmed. Kirmasti taught in Ottoman madrasahs and Sahn-ı Semân (a higher order madrasah) and became a judge in Bursa. He was appointed to Istanbul in order to benefit more from him due to his successful and qualified judgeship in Bursa. Although he worked as a judge in Bursa and Istanbul, he never stayed away from teaching and continued his teaching activities. Owing to his committment to truth and right, he received Bayezid II's appreciation and praise. Although it is known that Kirmasti, who spent his life as a professor, trained many students, there is no other name in the sources other than Mevlâ Shu'ayb et-Turâbî among the people who became students of his. Although Kemalpashazâde, who was an Ottoman sheikh and historian, is mentioned as one of his students in some studies conducted today, there is no information to confirm this in classical sources. Having begun writing books at a young age, Kirmasti became a versatile scholar who wrote works in many fields such as rhetoric, fiqh, fiqh method, qalam, logic and debate. This work named al-Veciz, which is considered as the concise version of Zübdetü'l-vusul on the fiqh method include ûlu'l-ahkâm, Zubdetu'l-vusûl to ilmi'l-usûl, al-Vajîz fi usûli'l-fiqh and al-Medâriku'l-asliyye ile'l-makâsıdi'l-feriyye. All of these four works, which were referred to in the sources in the relevant literature on the Fiqh Method were published. This study examines his work called al-Vajîz, which he wrote on the subject of fiqh. It is seen that Kirmasti wrote his works in a systematic way, possibly for educational purposes, written for their benefit in the educational process. Kirmasti wrote his works on method of fiqh using the mixed/memzûc method. Gelenbevî İsmâil Efendi, who is mostly known for his works in the fields of mathematics and logic, had Reisulkurra Abdullah Eyyubi, a recitation and grammar scholar, read and study al-Vacîz. Sacaklızâde Mehmed Efendi speaks highly of al-Vajîz in his Tertibu'l-ulûm. The fact that he had his students read and study Kirmasti's works on usûl-i fiqh and praised it, rather than the famous works of the great scholars of the Ottoman Empire on Hanafi method proves his success in this field. However, Kirmasti's referred to topics related to method of fiqh under the titles of mersad (observation), fasl (section/period), maqsad (purpose) and bab (topic). Although he pointed to the methodological views of the Shafi'i sect while treating the subjects in al-Wajiz, he adhered to the method of the Hanafi sect and based himself on the Hanafi method.