The issue of hedonism and virtue has been discussed since the early days of Ancient Greek philosophy. This debate, which dates back to the 5th century BC, is usually shaped around ‘whether the ultimate goal is pleasure or virtue’. This issue, which was evaluated by philosophers such as Democritus and Plato, turns into a moral theory with Epicurus. In fact, according to Epicurus, virtue is ultimately pleasure and pleasure is necessary for virtue. This subject, which was also addressed by Eastern thinkers, is embodied in the rubai of Omar Khayyam. Khayyam's ideas, which were close to Epicurean hedonism, were frequently studied by Iranian and Ottoman poets in the following centuries. It is possible to see the traces of this hedonism and Khayyam from the pioneers of Classical Turkish literature in Anatolia. In the classical poetic tradition, the debate on pleasure and virtue is mostly shaped around the conflict between ‘rint and ascetic’. This subject, which matured in Khayyam with the beloved and wine, is much loved by poets and is treated by poets of all persuasions. In fact, Khayyam's influence is so great that even in poems written centuries later, the similarity to his discourse is immediately recognisable. In this study, examples of Khayyam's rubais and 16th-century lyrics that are in line with Epicurus' hedonism will be presented. Thus, it will be reflected how Ottoman poets defended pleasure against virtue.

Epicurus, hedonism, Omar Khayyam, rint and ascetic