![]() In the courtyard of the Atik Valide Mosque in the Uskudar neighbourhood of Istanbul a large plane tree grows on either side of the şardivan, the fountain where worshippers perform their ablutions before prayer. There are many well-known places connected to plane trees in Istanbul and Turkey. The sheikh no longer opposed Osman marrying his daughter and gave his blessing for Osman and Mal Hatun to be wed. When Osman told Sheikh Edebali of his dream, he interpreted it as a good omen of Osman’s honour and power and told Osman Allah would give him and his progeny sovereignty, and that his son would rule the whole world. In his dream Osman saw himself putting the ring on his finger, then he woke up. Resting between two sea and two continents it looked like a diamond set between two sapphires and two emeralds, a ring worthy of a great empire. Suddenly a great wind sprang up, turning the points of the leaves towards the great cities of the world, in particular Constantinople. Valleys glittered with sparkling mosque minarets ringing with prayer while bird populated the tree, its leaves in the shape of scimitars, and filled it with their melodies. ![]() Everywhere he looked streams and fountains flowed through gardens full of cypress trees and roses. In place of the moon a plane tree began to grow, spreading its branches wide enough to cast a shadow over the entire horizon, before covering the whole of the world.īeneath the tree Osman saw mountains carpeted with forests, rivers teeming with ships, verdant lands and fields bursting with crops. Osman dreamt he saw himself lying next to the Sheikh and watched as the full moon (symbolising Mal Hatun) rose up from the Sheikh’s chest high into the sky before sinking back into his body and disappearing. Just before morning prayers were called he fell asleep exhausted, holding the Koran in his hands. Being pious and highly respectful of this holy book he took it down and started to recite the sura (sure in Turkish), the chapters in the Koran. One night, cast down with melancholy, Osman was just about to go to sleep when he spied a Koran on a shelf. Unable to resist, he told the sheikh but Edebali refused to give his blessing due to the difference in their social positions. One day while visiting his lodge Osman accidently saw Mal Hatun, the sheikh’s daughter, and fell immediately and madly in love. He was being educated by a dervish called Sheikh Edebali, famous for his purity and wisdom. Plane trees have long been revered in Turkish culture, but in Ottomans times they took their importance from a dream Osman 1 (the first Ottoman Sultan) is said to have recounted when he was a young prince. Consequently, centuries after the person or event they symbolise has been forgotten, the tree stump still stands. Plane trees can live for hundreds of years, and even after they die the trunks are left in place and protected. In the past, whenever the Ottomans conquered new lands they planted a plane tree near water to seal their right to rule and even now a plane tree is planted when a major mosque is built. In Turkish tradition these trees represent greatness, permanency, superiority and sovereignty. It’s common to see giant Oriental plane trees (çinar ağaçı in Turkish) in the gardens of major mosque complexes and elsewhere in Turkey. However within those places and behind the words on the page, there’s a whole other world of meaning, expressed through the language of trees, flowers, Islamic and Ottoman symbols. Library shelves groan under the weight of academic studies and research papers while internet sites and tourist guides abound, providing large swathes of information explaining important events and grand occasions. ![]() Turkey has a long and rich history easily seen in thousands of mosques, fountains, palaces and graveyards throughout the country.
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