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When
history meshes with multi ethnic venture Jerusalem’s legacy tells an
amazing story; and when compassion rests in a crucible of
philanthropy with enduring benefit the story of Suleiman The
Magnificent’s Russian spouse’s endowment is evoked.
It is a
well known fact that the Ottoman Caliphate governed wide expanses of
territory spanning Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Parts of Eastern Europe,
the Arabian Peninsula as well as parts of North Africa. The
magnificent world and venture of the Ottomans endured for about
seven centuries. From the sixteenth century until the First World
War the city of Jerusalem was within the political patrimony of the
Ottoman Islamic Caliphate.
Suleiman The Magnificent’s Russian wife, “Roxilana” made a
charitable endowment in the year 1551 which would feed the needy and
the seekers of knowledge in Jerusalem for several centuries. The
mentioned endowment’s name is “Takiyat Khaski Sultan”.
Various properties in various parts of Palestine became a Waqf
(Inalienable Endowment) in order to provide continual financing for
the Takiyat Khaski Sultan.
In
practical terms, the income from these endowments would be used to
maintain the “Takiyat Khaski Sultan”. But what did this “Takiya”
actually entail? Or, rather, how can we go about describing it?
This
Takiya has two ovens, a place for ritual ablution (mutawada’)
made of stone, a kitchen, over and above a room housing a tomb. The
tomb is said to be that of a Sheikh Sa’d Eddin Rasafi.
The
father of the present writer related that the Takiyat Khaski
Sultan continued to distribute food to the poor in Jerusalem up
until the 20th century. He further relates that some of
the food distributed was a form of cooked wheat.
But why
would the Russian wife of Suleiman The Magnificent (or Suleiman al-Qanuni
as the Ottoman Caliph is known to Arabs and Muslims) make such an
endowment? Probably out of a piously motivated action of charity.
Moreover, many persons of wealth and influence are keen on
communicating an image of benevolence and social compassion. That
Roxilana’s charitable action was in Jerusalem is indicative of her
piety as well as the stature of Jerusalem in the hearts of the elite
of the Ottoman Caliphate.
Al-sadaqa al-jariya
is one of three things that benefit a Muslim after he parts with
life. This is what the Prophet Muhammad taught. What is al-sadaqa
al-jariya? It is an act of charity whose benefits continue after
a person passes away. Many, many Muslims have made vast amounts of
charitable contributions over 14 centuries out of a belief in the
divine reward of al-Sadaqa al-jariya: e.g. water fountains
for pedestrians, contributing to educational projects and places of
heath care…etc.
In an
age when ethnic warfare and racial discrimination continues to
menace the stability of world civilization the story of Roxilana’s
endowment is a memory of hope and endearment.
November 15, 1999
References:
Nijm, Raif. 1st ed. 1983. Kunuz Al-Quds. A
Publication of Al-Al-bait Foundation.
Mr.
Khaled Nusseibeh is a translator and writer. He currently manages
the Ubada Center for Writing and Translation Services in Amman. Born
in Amman in 1961, he obtained his BA and MA from Columbia and
Princeton Universities, respectively. Mr. Nusseibeh, who originates
from Jerusalem, specialized in Near Eastern Studies with a focus on
Islamic thought and studies
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