Classical Turkish poetry is based on universal and rich symbolism and possesses a language woven with meanings. Throughout centuries of development, almost every element of life has found its counterpart in this poetry through symbols and meanings. This study provides a brief overview of classical literature through the motif of birds, which is the subject of many symbols and meanings in classical literature, and analyzes this motif specifically in the Divan of the 16th-century poet Kara Çelebi Muhyîddin Mehmed Hicrî. In literature, birds are fundamental allegorical elements representing liberation from physical boundaries, the soul, and the quest for divine love and truth.

In classical Turkish poetry, mythological and spiritual birds such as the simurg/anka (truth, unattainability), hümâ (fortune, state, happiness), and hüdhüd (guidance, wisdom) are explored, as well as the central motif of classical poetry, the contrast between the nightingale and the rose (the faithful lover and the proud beloved). The tutî (parrot) symbolizes sweet words and mimicry, the kebûter (pigeon) symbolizes messenger, and the şeh-baz (falcon/hawk) symbolizes superior spirit and wisdom.

This study of Hicrî’s Divan examines the poet’s adherence to deep-rooted classical conventions. Ultimately, Hicrî’s poems prove how strongly the bird symbolism of classical Turkish poetry continued into the 16th century and how the poet, with his scholarly knowledge, was fully masterful in this rich world of meaning. Birds are not merely decorative elements for Hicrî, but also a spiritual language that expresses complex human states such as love, longing, and spiritual quest.

Classical Turkish poetry, Poet Hicri, birds, mythology, nightingale and rose