Composer Râkım Elkutlu's Four Gufte Poets

It has been nearly three years since the publication of the third book in the Izmir Development Agency's People of Culture series, “Composer Hoca Mehmed Râkım Elkutlu: His Life and Music” has been published nearly three years ago. As is the case with every book, some complementary new information has been found after its publication. On the occasion of this short article, an opportunity has arisen to record this information. 

There were small but important gaps in the biographies of Ali Galib Pasha, Tokadizâde Şekib Bey, İsmail Hakkı Bıçakçıoğlu and Dr. Edhem Taşlıoğlu, the composers of five of Râkım Elkutlu's works, such as birth and death dates and grave locations. Ali Galib Pasha's grave was found in Rumelihisarı Cemetery in Istanbul; his death date is 1929. Dr. Edhem Taşlıoğlu lived between 1864 and 1939, which was determined from his tombstone in the Kokluca cemetery in İzmir. The tomb of Tokadizâde Şekib Bey, a poet whose name is associated with Izmir, is about to be lost due to neglect in Soğukkuyu. His life of suffering came to a tragic end,

“A sadness has come to the soul

From the pure power of lycâ-yı hilkat

My senses thinned with my anguish

I became a poet with my anguish!”

The poet of “anguish”, the owner of the verses, had a significant impact on his period, his poetry and world of thought have been studied; the last stop of this important man of art was left to oblivion like an orphaned grave. It is not possible to identify the grave by conducting research in the field or by searching the cemetery information system of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality, where detailed information is provided, because there is no record of it in the system. The grave of İsmail Hakkı Bıçakçıoğlu, the author of two of Elkutlu's hymns, in the Balçova cemetery has also not yet been identified in the relevant sources. This detail about Bıçakçıoğlu, one of the important poets and educators of Izmir, who wrote works on religion, philosophy and metaphysics, should be emphasized. As in the case of Tokadizâde Şekib Bey mentioned above, it is impossible to identify Bıçakçıoğlu's medfen from the cemetery information system since there is no record of it, but it is possible to find it with a personal and patient search. 

“I am the truth that fills my mind

I write in a simple style”

Like his expression in his verses, his grave, indicated by the modest tombstone in the family room, is a mere pile of earth.