Ka’b b. Zuhayr’s Qasidat al-Burda is a highly acclaimed na’t that has enjoyed immense popularity within Islamic culture, holding a prominent place particularly in the tradition of translation and commentary. Following the established practices in Arabic and Persian literatures, the tradition of exegesis on Qasidat al-Burda eventually emerged within Turkish literature, yielding a diverse corpus of works. Among these is the treatise penned by Üsküdârî Mustafa Isâmuddîn Efendi, a distinguished figure in the eighteenth-century Ottoman scholarly milieu. This study examines Isâmuddîn Efendi’s work titled Aksa’l-Müfâd fî Tercemeti’ş-Şerhayn ve Künhü’l-Murâd fî Beyâni Bânet Su’âd. Evaluated through the lens of the translation and commentary tradition in Classical Turkish literature, the work constitutes a Turkish commentary compilation on Ka’b b. Zuhayr’s Qasidat al-Burda. The paper first introduces the two manuscript copies of the work preserved in the Istanbul University Nadir Eserler Kütüphanesi, and subsequently offers a detailed analysis of its thematic content and hermeneutical method. By synthesizing the commentaries of Jalâl al-Dîn al-Suyûtî, Ibn Hishâm, and al-Kâzerûnî, Isâmuddîn Efendi constructed an annotated compilation that harmoniously complements the lexical, syntactic, and semantic dimensions of the text. Consequently, this study demonstrates that the commentator’s work is remarkably detailed, achieving a comprehensive and enriched textual identity by incorporating his own earlier commentary.
Ottoman literature, Üsküdârî Mustafa Isâmuddîn Efendi, Qasidat al-Burda, commentary, translation, Aksa’l-Müfâd fî Tercemeti’ş-Şerhayn ve Künhü’l-Murâd fî Beyâni Bânet Su’âd.