Mihri Hatun
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Mihri Hatun (also known as Lady Mihri and Mihri Khatun, Ottoman Turkish: مهری خاتون; "sun/light"; 1456/1460- c.1506), was an Ottoman poet. She was the daughter of a kadi (an Ottoman judge) and was born in Amasya.[1] According to sources she spent most of her life in and near Amasya, in Anatolia.[2] Documentation places her as a member of the literary circle of Şehzade Ahmed, the son of Sultan Bayezid II.[3] She is referred to as the "Sappho of the Ottomans".[4]
Poetry
Mihrî Hatun, first gained attention with her poetry, attracting the notice and favor of Şehzade Bayezid II, and became part of the circle of poets around him. She achieved her main fame within the literary environment of Bayezid II.[1] Lady Mihri's poems reveal an artist grounded in both Turkish and Persian literature, writing in such forms as the Gazel, as well as the recipient of a deep literary education.[2] Modern critics, such as Bernard Lewis describe her style as “retaining remarkable freshness and simplicity.”[3]
One of her more popular lines goes as follows:[5]
“At one glance
I love you
With a thousand hearts
Let the zealots think
Loving is sinful
Never mind
Let me burn in the hellfire
Of that sin.”
Another is:[6]
“My heart burns in flames of sorrow
Sparks and smoke rise turning to the sky
Within me the heart has taken fire like a candle
My body, whirling, is a lantern illuminated by your image.”