Orthodoxy and Mystical Monism in Ottoman Sufism: Molla Ilāhī’s Commentary on Bedreddin’s Wāridāt

This paper examines Molla ʿAbdullāh Ilāhī’s (d. 1491) commentary on the Wāridāt of Bedreddin of Simavna (d. 1420), a Sufi jurist and rebel accused of heterodoxy. Focusing on waḥdat al-wujūd (Unity of Being), this study argues that while both reflect a shared mystical monism, Ilāhī places primacy on the "Muhammadan Truth" (ḥaqīqa muḥammadiyya) and rejects Bedreddin’s skepticism regarding the afterlife by grounding his analysis in the Qur’an and Sunna. In keeping with the 2026 AAR theme “Future/s,” Ilāhī’s commentary represents a pivotal reshaping of a heterodox text to conform to the Naqshbandi Order’s Orthodox Sunnism. A student of ʿUbaydullāh Aḥrār, Ilāhī became a foundational figure in spreading this order upon returning to his—and Bedreddin’s—home region of Rumelia. By analyzing the Kashf al-Wāridāt, this paper reveals how mystical monism was strategically reframed to suit an emerging Sunni orthodoxy that dominated the future of Ottoman Sufism.