Minnet Eylemem - Ahmet Aslan

Minnet Eylemem is a poem written by 14th century Ozan Seyid Nesimi, an Azeri poet from Aleppo. As is often the case, the poet is highly critical of the society their living in and the words are very powerful.

Here, the Seyid Nesimi writes about evil: «My path leads me to the final destination, I am not a follower of the evil’s path”), poverty:  «Today I eat what I can find, tomorrow I am at the mercy of the creator» / “I have no desire for worldly possessions, it is the creator who provides for me, I am not indebted to his subjects». The poet draws a clear line between the divine (god) and the earth (people, rulers, the Sultan):  «I will not beg to the Sultan, the ruler of the earth»

In the 20th century, the poem was composed into a wonderful song by Feyzullah Çınar. Ahmet Aslan interprets the song with his soulful voice and his mastery on the guitar.  Listen to Ahmet Aslan’s live performance of Minnet Eylemem from 2017 at the Middle East Technical University in Ankara.