''Hüsn ü Aşk'' (literally: ''Beauty and Love'') is the

magnum opus A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...

of Turkish Mevlevî

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

. ''Hüsn ü Aşk'' consists of 2101 verses and is an allegory of major themes in

Sufi Islam Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...

. ''Hüsn ü Aşk'' tells the tale of two lovers, ''Hüsn'' (lit. "Beauty") and ''Aşk'' ("Love"). According to the story, ''Hüsn'' and ''Aşk'' were born on the same night to the same

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, meaning ...

. Eventually they fall for each other but when ''Aşk'' intends to ask for her hand in marriage from elders of the clan, he is ridiculed by the elders and asked to bring ''kimyâ'' ("chemistry") from the land of ''Kalb'' ("Heart") if he intends to be with ''Hüsn''. As a result of this request, ''Aşk'' sets for a journey to the land of Kalb along with his servant ''Gayret'' ("perseverance"). ''Aşk'' and ''Gayret'' encounter many obstacles during their journey and face numerous dangers. In the end, all the trials ''Aşk'' had to go through were due to his belief that ''Hüsn'' was a different person than himself when actually ''Aşk'' and ''Hüsn'' are one and the same. All of the names used in the story, including the names of characters and places, are

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

terms. The story is full of

symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: Arts * Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism ** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries ** Russian sy ...

and is meant to be taken, not for its literal meaning but rather, for its symbolic and esoteric meaning; one's journey towards

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

, where one sees at the end that he himself is actually a reflection of God, hence is one with God because there is no

being In metaphysics, ontology is the philosophical study of being, as well as related concepts such as existence, becoming, and reality. Ontology addresses questions like how entities are grouped into categories and which of these entities exis ...

other than God.

Translation

* ''Beauty and Love'', trans. by Victoria Rowe Holbrook, Modern Language Association of America (2005)

References

Sufi literature Turkish poetry {{sufism-stub