part five

In the letters I wrote to Asurali Zahiri of Kokand and Sirkpay Akay of the Kazaks, the following additional sentences was also present:

“The Russians will work toward having us forget our language, religion and our emotional capital (dastans) that excited us endlessly.   We must remain true to our reformed Islamic thoughts.   Today, I have a strange thought: I surmise I am representing the greatest sorrows of the Turks.   I suppose I and all our friends who had joined the Basmaci kept the last stages of this initiative, era, alive for our nation.   Perhaps, you, Yunus Can Haci and I may not see each other once again.   However, our nation must await a world-wide reconstruction.   This is my final word to you: you must resist the efforts to erase this history of struggles from the memory.   In two days, we are leaving for foreighn countries.   Hopefully, God will allow our children to meet each other, even if we can no longer.”

The following was written to someone from Baskurdistan:

“Today, I am happy about only one aspect: while our Suyundukov in Sherisebz; Ibrahim Ishakov at Kermine and Nurata were garrison commanders, they desired to join the Basmaci with their battalions.   Our battalions at Troysk Kazarma near Tashkent also fluttered to join us.   I calmed them.   I urged them not to be in a hurry.   Now, if our regiments, instead of I and Fethulkadir were forced to leave our country, it would have been a big problem to feed and house them in Iran or Afghanistan.   Besides, all those Ozbeks and Turkmen who were involved in our movement are leaving the country.   I recommended that those whose names were not prominent to remain in the country secretly.   I wrote letters in that context from here, in Askabad.   It is best for you to remain in the country, in accordance with the conditions, in order to continue our struggle for our nation for our religion, language and national existence.   To escape means only saving one’s life or to work in the diplomatic sense.   Those who cannot remain in our country must come to live in Turkistan and Eastern Turkistan.   When conditions are right, you must send the youth to Turkiye and European countries for education.”  



SEVEN WEEKS IN IRAN KHORASAN

Crossing over to Iran—
My wife Nefise was remaining in country, since she was due to give birth.   On 21 February we got under way with a Turkmen named Anne Mehmet serving as our guide toward the city of Meshed in Iran.   Two days earlier, we had sent some of our writings to Seng-I Sulak with a friend of Anne Mehmet.   We walked about five kilometers from Askabad with Abdulkadir, in order not to attract attention.   Our horses and belongings were to be awaiting there.   The weather was clear with a full moon.   We arrived at the Annau ruins.   The carved writings on the entrances of the mosque were perfectly readable, due to the rays of the moon.   I walked around Annau under the full moon, which has protected a civilization since centuries before Christ, thinking “this may be the last time I am looking at Turkistan.”   That night, we stayed at Kavdanli Village.   In the morning we crossed the village of Gendi Cesme, and arrived at Seng-I Sulak, meaning Deliktas in Iranian soil.   The population of Seng-I Sulak was entirely comprised of Turks.   We were the guests of Kurban Mehmet.   The border guard kept us for three days, until orders arrived from his commander in Mehmetabad.   I also received the writings there, which we sent two days prior to our departure from Askabad.   Kurban Mehmet and Iranian guards were very hospitable.

After the permission arrived, we stayed two more days.   We listened to narratives on Nadirsah and his son Riza Kulu.   The village of Silgen, where Nadir Sah was born, was near here.   Since the name of that village is written as Sigilan, it must be the plural of Cigil tribal name.   They must have arrived here during the time of Sultan Sencer and Karahanids.   They told us a recollection:  The Turkmen in this region, as they were plundering Kucan, Bucnurd and Meshed would not touch the Turks in the vicinity of Tesiktas and Siglen regarding them as nobility of the Turks.   The Iranians (Tat) and the Kurds would run away on horseback from those Turkmen, and their clothes would snag on the thorns of the shrubbery along the way.   Since they were afraid to look back, they would think a Turkmen caught them; so they would shout “you son of a dog, do not catch me” and cry.

They related the Turkish poems written after Nadir Sah had his sons eyes put out under the influence of his ministers’ intrigues.   They are telling these as a dastan.   When Nadir realized that what were attributed to his son were all lies, he had his ministers and other guilty parties executed at Kucan.   He had built a hillock from the bodies of the dead; he climbed on top and saw the burial site of Imam Riza at Meshed and decreed that all was done, and no one else be killed.   Despite that, the relations of those who were killed found an opportunity and killed Nadir Sah.   Nadir himself was from Silgen village, close to here, from the prominent Afsar people.   They are Sunnis.   As they related, every hillock and stream here has its own story and history.   In the hands of someone, we saw an old copy of an Istanbul newspaper.   They listened to the news, even though they were quite old, with pleasure.   They also had us tell them our battles with the Russians, and listened with rapt attention.   Especially the news we gave them about the death of General Enver was very astonishing to them.   They know the Kacars as the family that put an end to the Turkmen, meaning Nadir Sah’s dominance over Iran; they know the Kacars as Iranified Turks.   They also call those Tahranians speaking in Farsi as Kacars.   They were very disgruntled of the first ruler of the Kacars, Aga Muhammed Han, and call him Aqdasi Sah.   That means, they know him as the stableman of Nadir.   They have great respect for their own Beys, especially toward Zeberdest Han.   According to their beliefs, in Iran, and even in the world, the best rule, the Turkmen governance, was going to be established in Silgen which was the wintering quarters of Nadir.   According to their beliefs, Nadir was never a Shi’ite; he was an open Sunni.

We are the guests of Abbas Kulihan—
We arrived in Mehmedabad on 28 February.   The population was all Turks; Persian is spoken only by the merchants.   The commander here was an Azrbaijani by the name of Abbas Kulihan.   We are told that there are one hundred and six villages under the administration of Mehmedabad, and all were Turks.   We remained there for nine days, until permission arrived from Meshed.   Abbas Kulihan gave us many books on history, the collection of Mirza Mulhem, the large scale book of Taqi Han with the title Nasix ut-Tavarih.   He was pleased to be speaking with me on these works which he himself had also read.   Two telegrams of welcome arrived.   One was from the Commander-in-chief of the Eastern Army, Mir Penc; the other was from the War Minister, who two years later became Shah of Iran, Riza Han.   The Turkmen Kurban Mehmet, who had been our guide since Seng-I Solaq indicated: “Abbas Kulihan had shown you great respect; it would have been appropriate to give him something.”   I responded with: “if we were to provide bribery, would it not be seen as all he did was for money?   We are of the belief that whatever he did was the result of his regards.”   To that Kurban Mehmet asked our permission to relay our sweet words to him.   Reportedly, Abbas Kulihan responded with: “Lord, why did you have to say that?”   In short, we departed for Mehmedabad on 8 March and arrived in Kocan during the second day.

In the homeland of Imam Gazzali—
On the way, at the Allah-u Ekber Mountain pass, we were subjected to the severe winds as we had also read in the histories.   We dismounted and clung to the rocks along the way.   On 11 March, we arrived at the ruins of the famed city of Tus.   We visited the burial sites of Imam Gazzali and Firdevsi.   The ruined buildings on their burial sites could not be called mausoleum.   They were so modest; it was sufficient to look at their burial sites, whose works I had read and heard much about them, to understand these two grandees were not fully appreciated in their own country.  

Meshed—
On 12 March we arrived at Meshed and entered the Palace of Lagali.   We immediately made a tour of old art masterpieces; the mausoleums of Imam Riza and Harun Resid, Gevher-Sad mosque, and the mosque that was originally built by Alishir Navai, but the gilded dome was renewed by Nadir Sah for which reason the mosque is now named after him.   We also copied many of the incriptions carved on them.   Toward the evening, we met with the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Armies, Mir-Penc Huseyin Han and the Governor of Khorasan whose name I now forgot, and the representative of the Foreign Affairs.   Huseyin Han, a prince of the Kacar, and the civilian Governor had shown much respect.   They ordered their administrators to show us the historical monuments and libraries in Meshed.   On the 14th day of the month, Kurban Mehmed returned to his country, carrying many letters from us.   That day, I purchased many books; it became necessary to buy another horse to carry them to Kabul.   That day, we made acquaintance of the Afghan Consul Serdar Abdulaziz Han.   When we indicated that we were going to Kabul, he assured us that he was going to assign five to ten soldiers to accompany us, and that our security was guaranteed by the Afghan Government.   We were invited to dinner by that person and by the Governor several times.   The wife of the Governor was Russian.   He himself spoke Russian well.   That lady was happy that the discussions were taking place in Russian.  

That lady also reminded me that I had to change outfits.   We had new clothes made in the Iranian style and had pictures taken in the Old Iranian format.  

Hekimov—
The Soviet Counsul in Meshed, Kerim Hakimov, was a Tatar.  I knew him and his wife Hatice well, due to the struggles we were engaged between us in Russia.   I expected nothing but evil from both.    As soon as Hekimov learned of my presence in Meshed, he sent a man to the Lagali Palace letting me know he wanted to speak with me.   We did; he told me that he would aid me in any way he can in using the libraries in Meshed.   He also informed me that an Ozbek intellectual by the name of Sadullah Hoca Tursun would arrive in two days from Tashkent.  

Turkmen Cebbarberdi—
On 17 March, we had moved to a hotel-like place called Sehzade Huseyin Han.   A Turkmen by the name of Cebbarberdi contacted us.   When the English were in Turkmenistan during 1918, he had collaborated with them with the hope of gaining the independence of Turkmenistan with their aid.   The Russians had killed his friends.   He knew that he would also be killed, so he sought refuge in Iran.   He also brought an invitation from the English Counsul to speak with me.   I told him: “we have the intent to journey to Europe by way of India; therefore, I wished very much to speak with him.   However, I have business I need to discuss with the Soviet Representative in Kabul pertaining to my family.   Because of that, I cannot speak with any English politician before actually beginning the trip to Europe via India.   Cebbar Aga would arrive daily.   Since we thought that he would be reporting every word to his English chiefs, we did not utter a single word of criticism of the English policies.  

Communications with Riza Han—
On 19 March I sent two letters in Farsi to Riza Han who was de-facto ruler of the country as the Minister for war, via the Khorasan Army Commander of Iran.   First was introducing us and our aims in the future, the latter was more of a memorandum pointing to the necessity of Iran’s cooperation with Turkiye and Afghanistan to jointly work against the Communist invasion.   In the first letter I detailed what I did after the 1917 Revolution in Baskurdistan and Turkistan, how the Russians separated the property and food of those individuals who are not Russian from those of the Russians, and our relentless work against the Russian insistence of placing governments under a minority.  I also added that, “since 1920 the organization coordinating all those activities has been working secretly and managed the uprisings.    As for our aim, we intended to cross to Kabul from Meshed, thence to Eastern Bukhara to the Partizans under the administration of Haci Sami; to return to Kabul, to cross into Europe and return back to the East after a year.”    After recounting that I was a historian, that I published volumes in Turkish and in Russian on the history of Turkistan; that my friend Abdulkadir Cilkibay (later, Inan) was also an author, that we had pursued scholarly activities in addition to those of political ones and asked for his help to us so that we could use the Imam Riza Library in Meshed.   The second writing had the character of a report, addressed to “the exalted presence of the Islamic State of Iranian Government.”   In that piece, the details of the 1917-1922 struggles of Turkistan and Volga-Ural regions were detailed in statistics.    I narrated the decline of the population in five provinces from 8.084.700 to 5.029.512 in 1922, and the loss of property and wealth.   I also added: “the policies currently being followed by the Russians toward the imprisoned nations are the examples they will be following when they will rule over other Moslem countries.   I related how Professor Krjijanovski gave a presentation at the Tashkent Party Congress explaining that it was the Soviet aim to conquer all the river heads of all river systems emanating from Northern Iran and flowing into Russia.”   I also relayed what Suric stated at the same conference about the impossibility of solving the Russian Islamic problem without bringing the Soviet borders to Kabul and the Persian Gulf.   I explained that Iran, Turkiye and Afghanistan needed to concern themselves with the issues of Russian Islam as if that is their own private problems.   In that manner, the Western countries will also attach import to the matter as well.   I also explained that all the Moslem branch units in the East of Russia had joined together during August 1921 under the singular “Central Asian Moslem National and Commons Society Center” (in short, Turkistan National Union), and that I was the head of this union having been elected in the Bukhara Congress in 1921, and that both of us were representing this society today.   We believed that this society needs to have representation in Tahran and in Meshed, and that Iranian Government needs to have a Consulate in Tashkent as it does in Baku.   That the Turkistan National Union will send materials to Iran, Afghanistan and Turkiye in order to inform the conditions of the Moslems; that we were not expecting any physical help with the uprisings from any of the three countries named, only an understanding of ideas and interest in the case.   Since there will no longer a national school available to the Russian Moslems, it would be very appropriate for a primary and agriculcural school to be established in Meshed, to conduct classes in Turkish and in Farisi.   I told all this in sequence.   Nevertheless, after explaining the facts that the Soviets would want to exploit the differences between the Sunnis and the Shi’ites, suggestion was made that “the Shi’ites in Turkistan, especially Mirbaba in Bukhara and Seyid Ali Riza in Samarkand who was publishing the newspaper Sule-I Inqilab and Abdulcebbarov in Cizak who have been working in favor of the Soviets, with all their attendant organizations, need to be invited to have a heart, because they have high-regards especially for you.”    

In addition, I explained in that letter that a wireless communication organization between Turkiye, Iran and Afghanistan would be very beneficial; those individual Basmaci who have been leaving their country have the intention of becoming merchants in the Northern regions of Iran and Afghanistan, and that would only bring benefits to Iran.  

Arrival of the Turkish Consul in Meshed—
During the night of 17 March, we learned that the new Consular Officers Sami Bey, Tahsin and Feridun Beys representing the new Government established by General Mustafa Kemal in Ankara arrived.   Sami Bey was known as the Traveler of Great Desert, a member of the old Jeunes-Turcs and a member of the General Enver’s inner circle, sent for me as soon as he learned of my presence in Meshed, for us to meet at the home of Haci Kazim Rizayef of Azerbaijan.  

We ate dinner there as well, and we spoke from six in the afternoon until two in the morning, for eight hours with Sami Bey and his friends.   At the recommendation of Sami Bey, I penned short letters to Yusuf Akcura, Ziya Gokalp, Agaoglu Ahmet and Koprulu Fuat Bey explaining the latest developments in Turkistan, with the wish that they relay my high regards to General Gazi Mustafa Kemal.   That was because a courier would be leaving for Tahran during the second day.   The Counsular Offices settled at the home of the aforementioned Rizayef.   As members of the Consulate, Sami Bey, Feridun and Tahsin (Bac) Beys were staying at Rizayefs.   Feridun Bey (Kandemir) and I spoke quite a bit since; he later began writing in a slew of newspapers in Istanbul, on Turkistan matters, and published his memoirs of General Enver.   He had brought with him a complete collection of the Varlik newspaper he was publishing in Sarikamis with like minded friends.   Those newspapers and other books and publications were a very valuable resource for me to learn more about the Turkish Reform Movement and the conditions in Asia Minor that I had been following.    Abdulkadir and I read all of them from cover-to-cover.  

Tahsin Bey, prior to his arrival in Meshed was the Secretary of the Turkish Embassy in Moscow; as such, he knew of me well.   Later, he married Ataturk’s adoptive daughter Sabiha, and entered Ataturk’s entourage.

During Monday, 16 April, there was the flag-raising ceremony on the building where the Consulate was located.   Tahsin Bey and I performed the task by climbing on top of the roof.   This was a very pleasurable task for me, because Sami Bey had informed me that additional Consulates could be opened in Herat and Balkh with the permission of the Afghan Government.  

Sadullah Hoca—
On the twentieth day of the month, I spoke with Sadullah Hoca Tursun Hocayef, who arrived from Tashkent, as indicated by Hekimof.   Hekimof requested that that meeting take place in his own Consulate.   I indicated that I would speak with Tursun Hocayef only at the home of Rizayef, at the Turkish Consulate.   He agreed.   “Hoca” was a member of the wealthy Tashkent families who regarded themselves having descended from the Prophet and used the epithet.   He had a commercial house in Moscow.   He had entered the Communist Party as a “political convenience.”   He was a rare Moslem member who had not given-up his daily five prayers.   Since he spoke Russian, he has been serving as an intermediary between the government and the local population.   He was also an important member of the Turkistan Soviet Government.   This time, he was sent to Iran by the Soviet government in order to discuss the use of the river-waters that emanate from Iran and flow into Turkmenistan.   However, Sadullah Hoca told me that he was sent after Hekimof’s telegram arrived indicating my presence in Meshed; no specialists were present with him to discuss the contention of the water usage, nor was he handed any documentation.   He had brought letters from Rudzutak and Turar Riskulof, proposing that after I travel a bit, I ought to return.   I told him that I was definitely going to stay in the world of democracy, never to return to the Soviets, and that I had indicated all this in my letters to Lenin and Rudzutak written from Askabad on 19 February.   He remained in Meshed for over two weeks.   I spoke one last time with him on 7 April, again at the Turkish Consulate.   He had asked for that meeting.   Sadullah Hoca stated: “The Basmaci Movement is still in progress.   Haci Sami and others are still operating.   The Soviet Government believes that you will go to Afghanistan to regulate the rebellion from there.   They knew that the Turkish Government was going to send a Consul to Meshed.   Now that you reached here from Russia just at the time the Consul arrived, strengthens the thought that you were in close contact with Turkiye while you were at home and that Turkiye agreed to open the Meshed and Mezariserif Consulates at your behest.    They also heard that you had suggested the establishment of wireless telegraph between Ankara-Meshed-Mezarserif.   We, members of the Society (Sadullah himself was in contact with the Turkistan National Union Society) have other wishes about you.   We wish you health, perform valuable and favorable business for the homeland, and not to immeadiately cut your contacts with the Soviets.    Otherwise, we are afraid you might be subject to an assassination.   He suggested I speak with Hekimof.   He added that he had not yet told Hekimof and the Russians at Tashkent that I was never going to return to Russia.   I gave him a copy of the letter I wrote to Lenin from Askabad.

Precautions taken in order not to fall into the hands of Teymuris—
Turkmen Cebbar Aga indicated that the Teymuri Hezare who was living on our way to Afghanistan had a Bey by the name of Samsamuddevle who was sold to the Russians; his father Sucaal-Mulk is an Anglophile.   Therefore, the Soviets would not easily allow me to cross to Afghanistan but I would be caught and turned over to the Russians.   It would be better for me to travel by way of Duzdab-India to Kabul.   I was also thinking that Kerim Hekimof, who later became the Soviet Ambassador at Cidde, could do such a thing.   The next day I spoke with Hekimov at the Turkish Consulate.   He asked me if I was going to Afghanistan and that he wished to help me.   That meant, he wanted to prevent the possible attacks by tribes along the way, ostensibly in a brotherly manner.  In response, I told him: “thank you; I have the notion to remain here for a couple more months.   I found some very valuable historical sources; I must read and learn them.   I will let you know when the time arrives for our departure.”   I also let Sami Bey know of these talks, and asked that he contact the local military governor for them to increase my security.   He had done so.   He also contacted the Afghan Ambassador Abdulaziz Han and asked him to provide guards for me until we reached the Afghan border.   Representative of the Iranian Foreign Affairs (Kar Guzar) asked me to visit him, and indicated we needed to leave the hotel where we were staying and must move into the private home of one Haci Seyd Hasim.   The Afghan Ambassador indicated that we must not tell anyone of our departure date, keep our horses at a han [caravansaray] belongin to them outside the city, that we must not visit there at all but to appoint a man, and that we would be leaving Meshed with about ten men.   We took on a Kazak military deserter by the name of Abdulhalik Konusbay as a groom.   He took care of our horses until the day of our departure.  

Discovery of important works—
Thus we remained in Meshed for five weeks from 13 March to 20 April and spent a marvelous time.   While I was studying the works on the era of the Timurids and Nadir Sah, the two volume work published by Sani’ud-devlet about Meshed and environs became my guide.   The most wonderful work I have done in that direction was to investigate Ravza library, the central temple of Meshed, from top to bottom.   In that regard, I received the help of Consul Sami Bey.   I presented a paper to the French Asia Society on the important works I found there, a year later, upon arriving in Paris.   The most prominent of those was the famed Arab geographer’s work, which lived during the latter part of ninth and the early part of tenth centuries by the name of Ibn-al-Fakih, and the attached works by Ibn-I Fadlan and Ebudulaf who were travellers.   Fragments of these two travelers’ works were interspersed in the great volume of the Arab geographer Yakut Hamevi, therefore known to the Europeans.   However, it was also known that, from paraphrases found in other works but not included in Yakut’s volume, the travelogues of the two travelers were more detailed and comprehensive.   The Meshed copy I discovered contained the full-reproductions of both travelogues which were known not to have reached us up to that time.    The day after discovering that work, I invited Consul Sami Bey to the library, and obtained the permission of the library director to take it with me to the private home of Seyid Hasim in order to make full use of it.   Since I did not have a photograph camera, it became necessary to work day and night to copy it by hand.  There was no end to my happiness when I found that work.   I had a strange dream when I was a child.   Ostensibly, the Tsar Nikolai had gathered several people around him, and addressing me he stated: “these golden leaves are my present to you.”   Those leaves constituted an Arabic work on the history of the Bulgars and the Baskurt.   At that time, my father opined: “perhaps you will find an important work on the history of the Bulgars and the Baskurts.”   Now, I remembered my fathers’ words.   Later on, I worked on this Ibn-I Fadlan travelogue at University of Vienna as my doctoral dissertation.   When it was published by the German Oriental Society, I became an honorary member of that Society and several others in Europe.   Professor Minorsky published the travelogue of Ebudulaf.   Because of that discovery, I wrote the following into my diary: “perhaps Ibn-al-Faqih and Ibn-I Fadlan will provide a new direction to my life.”   In reality, that was so.   Now, the second printing of the Ibn-I Fadlan is issued.  

The answer arriving from Tahran—
We spent the greater part of our time in Meshed organizing the information I collected in order to inform Turkiye on the condition of the Moslems in Russia.   At the same time, we were preparing copies of the twenty-six page memorandum written at the Bidene village of Samarkand on 23 July 1922 under the title “Social Revolution in the East and the duties of the Eastern Reformist Intellectuals against Recidivism.”   Previously, a summary of that work was sent to Ankara and to Mustafa Cokayoglu via Kabul.   Finally, it was complete on 15 April.   Meanwhile, the answer we have been impatiently expecting from Tahran arrived.   Riza Han was inviting us to Tahran in order to discuss the details of the issues presented in my writings.   Also, an article appeared in the newspaper Asr-I Bistum, meaning, the Twentieth Century, which was close to the Government, announcing the arrival of myself and Abdulkadir in Iran from Turkistan and that we were in contact with the Iranian Government.   We were very happy to see that, because I had sensed from the telegram that had reached me at Mehmedabad had stated “Welcome, all help will be rendered” indicated that there was someone in the entourage of Riza Han who knew me, and would understand the issues we were representing.   Seyid Hasan Takizade, who was originally from Tebriz, was the Iran’s Governor of Meshed during 1921.   He was representing Iran in Moscow during 1922.   The primary support expressed in the telegram, and the interest in our writing and the reason for the appearance of the news of our arrival in the Asr-I Bistum was this Takizade and his entourage.   A year later I met this esteemed gentleman in Berlin.   He served as a member of the Government in Iran; Ambassador to London and later Speaker of the Iranian Senate.   Now, he is a member of the Sadr-I Esraf-I Iran [roughly: chair of the prominent personages of Iran]; he is alive.   May God not let us experience his absence.   I wrote to Tahran in gratitude, that it was necessary for me to journey to Kabul; if I could return to the East after the European trip, I would definitely visit Tahran. 

The reports sent to Turkiye—
The writing I produced for the Turkish Foreign Ministry, per the advice of Consul Sami Bey, was quite lengthy.   I sent copies of that writing to Yusuf Akcura, Rauf (Orbay), Agaoglu Ahmed and Ismail Suphi Beys.   We attached to that long letter a report on the activities of General Enver in Turkistan, and also copies of the aforementioned “Social Revolution in the East.”  In that writing, as it was suggested to the Iranian Government, the problems of the Russian Moslems were a matter that concerns Turkiye, Iran and Afghanistan at the same rate.  

In that report, I mentioned the suggestions I made to the Iranian and Afghan Governments and the necessity of writing a common policy against the Communists.   In addition, it contained commentary on the death of General Enver for the Turks of Central Asia, and how that constitutes an important turning point for Turkiye and Turkish history; that the writings of Serif Bey on the Sarikamis events and his like against General Enver caused saddening; that Muhtar Bey’s continuing with the old diplomacy at the Moscow Embassy is faulty, and that the intervention was received with irony among the very realist political circles of the Soviets, and that nobody was going to be deceived through those means in today’s Russia.  

That report was written in a mélange of Central Asian Turk dialects, with an effort to make it sound more like Ottoman, was carefully read by General Gazi Mustafa Kemal.   I learned that fact from the mouth of Ataturk himself during 1930.  Those writings are now in the archives of Turkish Foreign Ministry.   During 1927, as Professor of Turk History at Istanbul University, I presented my lithographed course texts to Ahmet Hikmet Muftuoglu.   He wrote back: “The language of these lessons are now in Turkish of this locality, and they are read easily and tastefuly.   However, I had carefully read the reports you had sent from Meshed, written in Central Asian dialect, despite the difficulties in ‘decoding’ them.   In those reports, you had laid out the events before us truthfully and sincerely, and outlined your valuable thoughts for the future of Turkiye.   Even if you had not produced any scholarly work in your life, and left only those reports to us as a legacy, they would have been sufficient to immortalize your memoirs in our country.   However, those writings represent the latest chapter of the Turkish History.   Now, you have defined the oldest Turkish eras in these lessons you have published, and utilized the works found in the Turkish libraries for this result.   Let God grant you to the occasion to fill the two thousand year gap between those the oldest and the latest eras.”

The memorandum entitled ‘Social Revolution or possibility of Recidivism against the Duties of Eastern Revolutionary Intellectuals’ considers the struggle between Capitalism and Communism around the world, and the future of that struggle.   “That includes those who are being educated in the East, who are generally socialist, on the side of the social justice and reform.   What could they do under the current conditions of communism becoming a tool of imperialism and the creation of colonies, after having lost its original purity of the time of Marx and represented by Troksy in our time, is the focus.   The primary principle advanced is that Socialism will never be defeated.   However, since Russia and Germany were defeated during the First World War, in addition to their civil wars following, Socialism took a wrong turn.    That would lead to the weak and exploited nations to live under very difficult conditions at the hands of the Communists-Socialists.   It was also stressed that the Asian countries, which at the present are in a semi-colonial status, must not become the tools of great imperialist countries.

The Russian intelligentsia that has been worn-out from the World War and the civil war realized that they could not compete against the capitalist nations that are still standing, nor could they recover what they have lost.   Because of that, when the extreme poverty is spread across the world and the Russian populations lead that spreading, they believe they can pull alongside the advanced countries, and even get ahead of them.   For that result, they believe that Russia must concentrate all of her power, will and wealth in the hands of a dictatorial regime.   

The continued plunder of Germany will increase the economic crisis in the West, and Bolshevism will benefit from that.   When the Second and the Third Internationals lose their prominence in the agenda, dominating Europe will become a national goal for the Germans.    However, socialism, meaning communism, left in the hands of an imperialist nation will turn into a tool to gain the weak Asian and African communities by every kind of lies and false promises.   Those Asian and African nations will remain the source of raw materials and market for produced goods and after the realization of world socialism the local and African proletariat will remain weak.   They believe they will join in with the nationalist, middle and small bourgeois against the Western proletariat who will be dominating them to establish socialism.   Therefore, the local socialists and communists that are emerging, or made to emerge, in the Eastern colonies of the Russians will never gain the trust of the Western proletariat.   They will never be allowed to independently develop socialism in their own countries; they will all be used as fire-tongs; a new layer of ‘revolutionaries’ will be elevated above them, and the old will be destroyed.   Since the Western proletariat believes that after the world social revolution is realized, the Easterners whose countries provide the raw materials will always remain their prisoners, Russians take Europe as the center for the understanding of world history or the political, economic and social aspects and reference the Eastern countries only as reconquarable.   The theses of Lenin on the ‘nationalism and issues pertaining to colonialism’ which he presented to the Third International, and have them approve, provides the bases of the entire policies in this regard.  

The revolutionary Eastern intellectuals, under such difficult circumstances will collaborate with nationalist Easterners.   All the while, they may join forces with non-communist Western nations, in order to benefit from their help, for the sake of the future of their countries.   Even under those conditions, it will be necessary for the Eastern revolutionary socialists to continue their struggle against the recidivists in their own countries, which will be supported by the Western Imperialists.   They must also work with all their might to strengthen the middle class.   That means, even while the Eastern Revolutionaries are fighting the Russian Imperialist Communism, in their own countries they must side with revolution.   That is because, if the Easterners can take appropriate precautions in time, they can avoid the danger of becoming the prisoners of Western proletariat.   The future of the strata making their living by the labor of their hands is bright; because, the masks covering the face of the technical developments of the capitasts era are torn.   We must send our offspring to Europe to learn the techniques; however, we must learn the economics and politics from the Bolsheviks from whom we must protect ourselves.   Especially, taking advantage of the opportunities, in the sphere of intelligence, there is much to learn from them.”  

The above memorandum was duplicated with Sahpirograph and distributed to the Moslem Communists who were collaborating with us, at the time when the Soviets were semi-victorious against the Polish and were able to move their armies to Turkistan under the command of Kamenev and Budyoniy, and when the battles became very intractable.   It proved very useful in concentrating the wide-spread ideas and to illuminate some dark-spots and a copy was sent to Hasim Saik who was in Kabul as the Bukhara Representative.  

After we left Russia, we wrote several copies.    Despite the fact that it was in Central Asian Turkish, we distributed several copies beyond the governments of Iran, Afghanistan and Turkiye, to the following liberal intellectuals who were not socialists: Emin Resulzade of Azerbaijan, who was then in Istanbul; Mirza Abdulvahid, representing the Bukhara youth in Berlin; Azimbek of the Kazaks; Fuat Toktar of the Tatars; Islambey Hudayarhanof, Alimerdan Topcibasi, Mustafa Cokayev in Paris; Poet Muhammed Ikbal in Lahor; Seyid Hasan Taqizade in Tahran.   Emin Resulzade published that writing in the journal Yeni Kafkasya (N. 16 & 17 & 18) which he began to issue after moving to Istanbul.   However, since it was not translated into English or into Russian, it did not create a wide-spread reaction.   On the other hand, the effects it created in Turkiye were important.  

Another task I undertook in Meshed was to investigate Ravda, Gevhersad Mosque and the mosque that was constructed by Alishir Navaii, and later took on the name Nadir Sah Mosque from the perspective of history of art, to the extent I could understand at the time, and copied their inscriptions.    After my arrival in Turkiye, I published those in Encyclopedia of Islam and elsewhere.  

The Azerbaijanis in Meshed—
There were many Azerbaijanis in Meshed.   Among them, we spoke often with Haci Kazim Rizayev; Mirza Ibrahim Tagiyev; Poet Esadullah Zavarzade and Mecid Efendiyev; Pharmacist Gulam Kolsuz and Gulam Riza.   They helped me to see the manuscripts in private hands.   Pharmacist Gulam, a lover of Turkish history, brought a copy of Kelile and Dimne which was translated from Persian to Turkish for Emir Kanber Ali bin Kopek Qusci.   He was the vezir of Ubeydullah Han, from the Qaracin uruk, Qaucin Branch.   In the introduction of this work, it is written that at the time of Ubeydullah Han, Turkish was valued more than Persian.   Aside from that, they brought many very rare collections of poems in Persian and in Turkish allowing me to learn.   All these Azerbaijanis were nationalists and intellectuals.   Many were from Caucasian Azerbaijan.   The Azerbaijani Mahmed Hasan Baharli, who was a vanguard among the Turks of Russia in pursuing independence, had written a book entitled Azerbaycan, combining the geography, history and ethnography.   While I was in Samarkand, I had heard that book was published in Baku during 1921.   Kolsuz Gulam brought me that very book.   That was because, I had written a similar volume on Baskurdistan and Autonomous Turkistan Republic combining the geography and statistics.   We were only able to publish a large-scale map of Baskurdistan showing the cantons in 1920.  

Among those Azerbaijanis, someone belonging to the Karakoyun uruk was busy writing the the Azerbaijan and Turkish history.   I saw this person once more in Tahran during 1956.   He has sons studying at the university.   On 5 April, we were the guests of someone belonging to the Bayat Branch.   He brought us works on the Turks of Iraq.   A portion of it was the printed work of Dr. Fahreddin Sevket, and some manuscripts written by others.   I thus learned that the Bayats, who are the prime branch among the Shi’ite Red Heads, were living in the region of Diyarbakir when Temur arrived.   There, they were called Bayavut.    Later, Temur had the majority of them placed in the region of Bagdad as his own military force.   The Safavids placed them in the regions of Mazendaran, Rey and Khorasan as their own military units.   Originally, they had arrived with Hulagu.   That means, they were Bayavuts, considering themselves a Branch of the Mongols.   At a feast, Esadullah Zevvarzade recited some of his own poems.   They were good.   He and other gentlemen asked me many questions concerning history.   The answers I provided occupy quite a bit of space in my memory.   For example, what is the origin of Cengiz Han; why do Russians refer to us Azerbaijanis as Tatar?   I responded with: “Cengiz Han, as Professor Bartold determines, is from Kara Tatars.   According to the Chinese records, the ancestors of Cengiz lived to the West of the Chinese Geat Wall.   They called themselves Kara Tatar and Sato.   Another name they adopted was Cumuk.   They moved from Western Turkistan to the East.   The ancestors of Cengiz regarded themselves from the same roots as the Gokturk, from the Branches that emerged from Ergenekon.   Later on, they went toward the East, perhaps due to internal wars, and dominated the Mongol Branches living on the banks of Kerulen and Onen Rivers, acquired their languages over time.   That is much like the Hungarian Kings, who were originally Turks, who later acquired the Hungarian (Ugur) language.   However, during the rise of the Cengiz, those Kara Tatars living in Kansi spoke Turkish.   Those arriving in the West, in Asia Minor, during the time of Cengiz’s sons, and along the Danube River, were all speaking in Turkish.   That is perhaps they belonged to the Branches from Inner Asia when they arrived in Azerbaijan.   The Arlats, who administered Seki and Noha were a Tatar Branch.   Much like the Volga Bulgars, because they became mixed with Alci Tatar, they called themselves Kazan Tatar; and those Turkish Branches in the Crimea took the name Crimean Tatar.  

From Meshed to Herat—
Finally, during midnight of 20 April, we left Meshed and moved to the palace where our horses were.   We travelled at speed for about seventy kilometers to prevent the word of our departure reaching the Russians in time, and became the guests of the Kaymakam [Provincial District Administrator].   The Afghan guards were with us.   In the morning, a man dressed in Turkmen clothes, perfectly armed and riding the best of the Turkmen horses passed us at speed and continued on at a place called Turuk.   We thought he was a man of the Suca-el-Mulk who was sold to the Russians as well as the English.   This man travelling fast definitely let the Teymurids know of our pending arrival.   We slept uncomfortably at Hayrabad.   The second day we arrived at Turbet-i-cam, and met with Sevket-ul Devle, who was the Kaymakam.   Apparently, the Governor of Meshed had let him know we were going to pass through here.   In the morning, he assigned two of his soldiers to accompany us.   He also directed that: “if there is any indication of an assault by the Teymurids onto you, return here immediately.”   We had not yet travelled five kilometers from Turbet-I-cam, armed cavalrymen of the Teymuri came after us.   We reached a small village of five to ten houses, and we told them that we had forgotten our belongings at the place of the Kaymakam.   We returned to Turbet in the company of our Afghan and Iranian guards.   We remained there that night.   The next day, the Kaymakam provided a few more soldiers as guards.   On 24 April, we arrived at Kafir Kale, which is an Afghan border castle.  

A Turkish Officer was passing through, by the name of Kel Fehmi, who at one time was with the Basmachi in Eastern Bukhara; he was now visiting with the Border Guard Commander Colonel Muhammed Emin, on his way back to Turkiye.   We obtained fresh news of the activities of Haci Sami.   Haci Sami had heard that I was on my way to Kabul.   On 26 April, we stopped over at a Turkmen Yamut village near Saray Cerxe and arrived at Herat.  


VII
Five Months in
AFGHANISTAN

Scepter of Temur era in Herat—
The Kabul Government Foreign Affairs official placed us in a building named Carbag.   He informed us that we could leave for Kabul immediately, if we so chose.   However, we stayed here for five weeks, in order to see the monuments in this city that served as a capital for one of the greatest periods of Turkish history.    The Governor as well as the local scholar by the name of Salahattin Selcuki, who told us he was descended from the Seljuks, rendered us serious help in exploring this city and the environs.   Every day, I visited the Timurid Herat, just outside the walls of the Old Herat, and investigated every structure.   I also made a map of old and Timurid Herat.   To stress the fact that the Timurid structures were much neglected, it will suffice to mention that nobody knew the burial site of great Turkish poet Ali Sir Navaii who led the cultural life of Herat during the latter half of the 15th century, and had the greatest influence on the development of this city.    Alishir in his work entitled Vaqfiye clearly noted how far apart the medrese and mosques and the soup kitchens were.   Since it was recorded in other sources the specific location where he was buried, it was easy for me to determine the place of his mouseleum.    I measured the surrounding structures, where the foundations were visible.   There was a headstone where the records indicated.   But, according to the gentleman who was a keeper of the vineyards in the vicinity, that headstone was brought in later, and the site was called as “Sah-I Gariban” [roughly: ruler of the strangers, disowned] by the dwellers of Herat.   In the old days, there was the tradition of lighting candles; later on, the stones were dismantled [perhaps by the pilgrims?]   In that manner, I fixed the location of his burial site and learned that he was known as the ruler of the outcast.   In addition, I also visited a village five kilometers north, known as Gazirgah, containing prosperous burial sites, as well as the buildings Alisir had constructed at a village known as Ebul Velid.   I recorded many of the inscriptions therein.   The results of these five weeks of archeological investigations, and the site-plans I recorded, I later published in the Islam Ansiklopedisi which was being published in Istanbul, under the entry Herat.  

Manuscripts in Herat—
During the time of the Timurids, there were many libraries in Herat.   The wealth of those were recorded in and provided historical sources for the books written by Abdulrahman Cami, Mirxond, Xondemir and Muiniddin Esfezar.   However, today there is no public library as it exists in Meshed.   I saw some manuscripts being held by private hands, with the aid of the author of the Ittifak-I Islam newspaper, aforementioned Salahattin Selcuki, and the Undersecretary Besir Ahmed Han, and those remained safe in nooks and crannies, in the buildings surrounding the Great Mosque of Herat, and Gazirgah.   There were no historical works besides the Vesilet’us-sef’a’at about the burial sites of Herat.   However, in one the manuscripts on Islamic law, I discovered the remnants of an original Eastern Iranian language, “Khorezmi,” which disappeared at the beginning of the 13th century during the invasion of Cengiz and left in place Turkish.   This was just as important discovery as Ibn-Fadlan in Meshed.   That was because no works were left behind in that language.   I found more excellent copies of that cannon-law volume in Istanbul and published it in Germany during 1927 in the journal Islamica.   I published the dictionary written in Korezm in that language, during 1951 among the Istanbul University publications and dedicated it to the Twenty-second Interntional Congress of the Orientalists.   I worked with the German Iranist W. Henning, who is today in University of California, and others, on the remnants of that language in other volumes.   Later on, many scholars worked on that language in Russia.  

Russian couriers in Herat—
While we were staying at the Carbak Palace in Herat, two Russian couriers arrived.   They wanted to speak with us by creating an occasion.   They were pursuing Abdulhalik, who was working as our groom, to discover information about us, when we were going to leave for Kabul.   I told all this to the Governor of Herat, and requested that we be transferred to another location.   They did so.   However, the Afghan Foreign Affairs Official also realized that even though as couriers they could leave for Kabul anytime they chose, they were finding excuses not to and wished to remain in Herat until we departed.   As a result, we acted as if we sold our horses, and transferred them to another location.   The Governor and the Foreign Affairs Official let us know that they had appointed several guard-soldiers to accompany us to Kabul.

Hezarecat—
Finally we left for Kabul on 28 May via Hezarecat.   On 30 May, we reached in the village of Kerrux.   Since I knew that the last Ferghana ruler Hudayar Han had died here, I attempted to find his burial site; however, the accompanying soldiers did not wish to stop.   I was very sorry for that.   During my second visit to Afghanistan, I was able to investigate that site thoroughly.   The mausolea of the Han, his Chief Minister and Seyhulislam were well built, and ornate with inscriptions.   I was able to copy all those insciptions.   When I was conducting research in Ferghana during 1913, I had published in 1914 the information I collected from the officers who were still alive of Hudayar Han’s court under the title “The Last Days of Hudayar Han.”   I did not notice any of his sons or gradsons visiting his magnificent mausoleum.   

On 4 June, we entered the country of the Gur, who had played such an important part in the history of Afghanistan and India.   As of late, as a result of my my personal investigations, and the Japanese scholar Enoki, it is understood that the origins of this tribe goes back to the Turks and the Ephtalites.   However, we were not able to establish contact with them on this route.   When the Ozbek Ruler Sayibaq Han invaded here, he had an inscription carved on a stone; an English Officer saw it.   When we asked about it, we were not able to discern any information.   On 5 June, we recorded many Turkish geographical names around there.   After crossing the Tasbulak location, we arrived in the main capital of the Gur of the Old, Ahengeran-Firozkoh.   There are many ruins there, but the soldiers accompanying us stated that if we were to leave the caravansaray to investigate them, we might be attacked by the Gur.   For that reason, we must obtain permission from Kabul, and obtain additional guards.   At the coffee-house, when I spoke with the local Gur, I found someone who knew the history of Mirhond well.   According to him, Ahengeran is the name of the inner castle of the old city of Firuzko.   They also told us stories that the workshop of the legendary Kave mentioned in the dastan Sahname was here.   In the Province of Gur comprised of twelve thousand houses, the real Gur people constituted seventy-five hundred of them.   From Herat to here, we had not encountered a traveler or a caravan on the road.   From Ahengeran, when we arrived at Bedgah, we encountered our old friend Ali Riza Bey.   He was a prisoner of war in Russia, and became the director of the Military Academy established by the Young Bukharans.   In his entourage, he had his wife Meryem Hanim, daughter of the famed scholar of the Kazan Turks, Ubeydullah Bubi, some Basmaci, and a Tumen Tatar from Western Siberia by the name of Ahmed Canbak.   They were taking the black horse mounted by General Enver, named Sultan, in their tow.   In the middle of the mountain, we remained together for a while.   They told us the latest events in Turkistan, and described the Kabul environment.   They were returning to Turkiye via Iran.   Later on, we spoke many times in Turkiye.  He and his wife resided in a building given to them by General Fevzi, and died there.   Ali Riza Bey was a Turkish Officer who had left Bukhara with General Enver and was with him throughout his adventures.   Here, the Iranified Mongols, Bisuut Mongols, Bayat and Katagan Turk remnants were living between the mountains.   We saw a couple of them.   The Shi’ite Hazara was in a war with the Suleyman-Xil Afghans who had arrived from the border of India for the high pastures.   Form those Hazara, a haci [pilgrim] and his two sons were accompanying Ali Riza.   Now, they accompanied us.   They were Turkophiles.  

On 14 June, after leaving the station of Ak Ziyaret and arrived at Lersek, we encountered the Turkish Officer Halil Bey who had participated in the General Enver events, along with Mirza Muhiddin of Ferghana who was also in the entourage of General Enver and their friends.   They too were going to Turkiye via Iran.   There, we remained among the Bisuut Mongol Hazara for several hours.   They were calling themselves Turk.   They told us that “we are Turks; Chaghatay brought us here,”   meaning, they were referencing the son of Cengiz, Chaghatay.   They complained about the bad treatment they were receiving from the Afghans.   These Bisuuts were speaking Turkish until several generations.   An old man from Derbis repeated several Turkish words he could recall; they were Chaghatay: for example, “gazgan,” instead of “kazan.”   They were spread into branches such as Isentimur, Devletbay, Derbisli, Qaptasu, and comprised of some twelve thousand homes.   Just like the Kazak Turks, they regarded themselves as descended from a companion of the Prophet, Sa’d Vaqas.  

Race with the Russian couriers—
While we were leaving for Kabul, the Russian couriers caught up with us on 17 June at a place called Cavkul.   One of them was Russian, the other, an Armenian by the name of Karapet.   They also had two or three Russian soldiers with them.   They had long pistols and maps to their hands.   They began speaking directly in Russian with us.   We spent the night in the same palace with them.   The Armenian was speaking knowledgeably about the fates of Generals Enver and Cemal.   Even though they were feigning not to know who I was, from their speech they were making it clear that they knew very well.   In the morning, with Abdulkadir and Abdulhalik, we thought how we could separate ourselves from them.   I told them “I will find a way; you travel at all times looking at me.   You can do what I tell you by my gesture and do it without talking.”  On the way, I also told the Afghan soldiers that it was necessary for us to separate from these Russians.   After leaving Carkul, and crossing a pass, we followed the river flowing toward Gazne.   After we crossed a location known as Curleyis, the road following the deep waterbed became very narrow.   From the other end, I noticed that a sheep-herd was coming toward us on the side of the mountain.   Whan I saw that, I told the Russians: “let us race.”   I told Abdulkadir and Abdulhalik to go on ahead, since their horses were not as good as mine.   Right behind me, there were two Afghan soldiers, and behind them, the Russians.    I stated in Russian: “now we race,” and moved ahead at maximum speed.   Meanwhile, the sheep-herd and the caravan of donkeys had approached us.   When I noticed that Abdulkadir and Abdulhalik passed that caravan, I crossed between the rocks and the sheep on the left at maximum speed.   The two Russian couriers who were following were running at speed as well.   However, they could not cross the path between the rocks and the sheep-herd, and fell among the sheep and the donkeys.    In addition to throwing several sheep and donkeys into the river, they also tumbled down into the river with their horses.   The loads on the donkeys, the wheat, and barley were also spilled.   Even though the Russians did not die, they were left under the hooves of the horses, way down the river.   I shouted at them in Russian: “you can no longer catch Validov; you have wasted your time since Herat” and whipped my horse.   Along with the Afghans, we moved fast.   After spending a little time in Hestru, we continued on our way through the night.   We arrived in Kabul on 18 June at eleven o’clock.

They hosted us at a building known as the Old Treasury.   Three days later, an Ozbek employed by the Soviet Embassy saw me and told me the fate of the Russians.   They had accounted the events as: “Validov ambushed us.   He proposed a race, and threw us down the precipice, then ran away.”   The clothes of the poor Russians were all torn, and arrived at the Embassy, wounded and covered in blood.   I also learned in Kabul that that Armenian was the one of those who killed General Cemal in Tibilisi.  

Kabul—
As soon as we arrived in the city, we searched for the Bukharan Ambassador Hasim Saik and the former Bukhara Government Head Osman Hoca and their friends.   We found them, and immediately went to the Afghan Foreign Ministry and the Turkish Embassy.   Ambassador General Fahri called me “mucahit” [fighter for a sacred cause or ideal] lifted and kissed me.   On 22 June we spoke with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Veli Muhammed Hand as well as the Minister of Education Feyiz Muhammed Han.   I had spoken with both when they had visited Moscow during 1919.   We had given a feast to their honor and spoke of the future of the Islamic world in my room.   They invited me to eat with them at the Foreign Ministry, and stated that I could remain in Kabul as long as I wished; even permanently.   In addition, Veli Muhammed Han also asked me to help him in reviving the scholarly life in Afghanistan, and to organize projects for the purpose.  

General Fahrettin—
On the twenty-third day of the same month, General Fahri gave a feast at the Embassy, and in summary, stated: “when I was the commander in Medina, I was crying that the Islamic nations could not get along.   After I arrived in Kabul, I again told the newspaper reporters.   I stated that I arrived in your country in order to wash the tears from my eyes, and to rest my aching eyes.   Unfortunately, these eyes are still teary.   You are a historian; you write it into your notebook ‘General Fahri states that Islamic nations will not unite, union of Islam will not take place.’”   I responded with: “what you proposed in Medina and sought to pursue in Kabul, that union of Islam, was devoid of a base.   The union among the Islamic nations must be established not only on religious feelings, but also on the bases of economic benefits.   What is more important than a union around religion is the idea of nationality we are learning from the Europeans.    However, it is not correct to base it upon fanaticism.   That would make especially the shovenistic Iranians suspicious.   Firdevsi had grafted that idea onto them, but their vanity is unhealthy.   They wish to graft it onto the Afghans as well.   The most important business for us to learn in the world today are the social revolutions and recidivism movements fighting each other, and to determine our course.    Respect for the laws of every nation, countering aggressions must be the principle pillars of the policies of the Turkish nation.   I wrote all this a year ago while in Samarkand, and sent it here to the Bukharan Ambassador Hasim Saik.   I recommend you take a look at it.”   I added that: “after spending some time in Europe, I intend to visit Turkiye and, if necessary to return to Kabul.”

On 24 June, General Fahri, his aide-de-camps, secretary, doctor and adviser Vasfi Bey returned our visit.   Such an act by a Turkish stateman is appreciation, because they knew me as a mucahit.   Two days later, we saw General Fahrettin once more, but under curious conditions: there was a fire in a building on the other side of the river which was next to the palace where we were staying.   Abdulhalik woke me.  Along with Abdulkadir, we took hold of the buckets present in our palace, and went to the fire.   After taking water and climbing the roof of the house, we saw our General who was busy putting-out the same fire.   I told him: “praise be, two Turks, one from Asia Minor, the other from Central Asia putting out a fire in Afghanistan.”   The Afghan crew that was like a firefighter group had not yet arrived, but the people were there; they were providing the General and us with water.   The General responded: “thus, wherever there is an event, Turks are ready there.”   We laughed.   Later, the firefighter group arrived; the fire was extinguished.  

Haci Sami leaving Turkistan—
In the morning, Osman Hoca let us know that Haci Sami had left Eastern Bukhara and arrived in the city of Hanabad in Afghanistan.   We spoke with General Fahri, and requested that Ismail hakki Bey, who earlier was a Liaison Officer in the entourage of General Enver, to be sent to Hanabad to gather information.   Haci Sami was wounded in the knee.   On 26 June 1923, a letter arrived from Haci Sami.   He stated that he had great difficulty mounting a horse, and intended to return to Turkiye for medical attention.   On 30 June, Osman Hoca and I wrote back to him, asked him not to leave Northern Afghanistan (Hanabad), and we would relay our thoughts to him via Ismail Hakki brother; that we were in discussions with Afghan Government and added: “you are a revolutionary; we are certain you will not be disappointed under difficult conditions.   We will struggle on the path of this holy independence.   Let us carry on that path with faith.”

A couple days later, those who left the country along with Haci Sami, individual letters arrived from Turabbek, Mamurbek, Sadrettin Han, Mustafa Sakuli, Arif Kerimi, and the members of the Baskurt Army whom I had left with Turabbek, namely Eyyup, Islam, Varis, Heybetullah, Ibrahim, and the Turkmen intellectual Ahmet Nafiz in addition to the new Turkish Officiers Sabri Efendi, Nafi Efendi, Yusuf Ziya Efendi and others.   They did not know what they were going to do, asking what to do, where to go, how to earn a living.

That day, one of the worst and biggest and calamitous events of our history was taking place.   That was because the Turks of Central Asia had never before surrendered their destiny to the enemy unconditionally in this manner.   Now, they will be just like a flock of sheep.   Russians will apply any policy they choose.   Nobody will be able to say anything, or complain, and a serious uprising will not be able to be sustained in the near future.  

Our plans with Abdulkadir and I also will change.   We had not thought of the Haci Sami Movement to dissolve this quickly.   According to the plans we made in Ashkabad, we would journey to Iran, Afghanistan thence to Eastern Bukhara to Haci Sami.   Later, if necessary, we would collect our families and return to Kabul.   Now that Haci Sami, the leader of the Basmaci of that day having left the country, all plans changed.   The Afghan Government was not in favor of all these Basmaci leadership to arrive in Kabul.   All of them leaving via Iran to Turkiye meant the end of the independence movement.   That, we did not want.

Decisions we made for our future activities—
During 26-28 June, as the President of the Turkistan National Union [TNU], I invited Osman Hoca, Hasim Saik, Mirza Isamettin and others, and stated that we needed to talk in detail as to what we were going to do and take some decisions.   We talked for three days.    Our destiny took the shape in the direction it has now, during those three days.   Accordingly the following actions needed to be taken:  

1.    Since Haci Sami has left Turkistan, it is necessary for the committee representing TNU outside the country to be restructured and strengthened.   The coordination of matters is desired and needed to be completed in Kabul, Turkiye and France.

2.    Determination of the main ideological statements of the TNU, and publication of a journal to carry them.   Since Zeki Velidi is the Head of the general organization both inside and outside the country, Abdulhamid Arifoglu will be the Kabul Branch Head; Osman Hoca in Turkiye and Mustafa Cokayoglu the European Branch Heads.   Hasim Saik, if the Afghan Government permits, will be sent to Japan.   I was to establish the General Headquarters of the TNU in Berlin, after speaking with Mustafa Cokayev; or, if Istanbul were to be relived of the military occupation, to live there.    I was to occupy myself with scholarship, to write and publish a history of Turkistan national struggle; produce publications in foreign languages and acquaint the world with the issues of Turkistan.   It was also decided that Abdulkadir were to be with me, for him to travel to Russia either secretly or openly and return to either Berlin or Istanbul; my possible visit of Kabul in one year; publishing a journal in Istanbul with Osman Hoca and Abdulkadir, were all decided.   Sadreddin Han and Turabbek were to remain in Meshed and present themselves as the representatives of the Turkistan Society to the Iranian government; Mustafa Sakuli and Arif Kerimi were to arrive in Kabul, if the Afghan government permits, to work with Arifov, the entourage of Haci Sami to be attached to him.   They were to accompany him if he were to cross over to Iran, stay in Iran or cross over to Turkiye.   Most importantly, Osman Hoca, Abdulkadir and I were to cross over to India with the permission of the English Government, to invite Sadreddin Han from Peshawar, Turabbek and Abdulhamid Arif who at the time was at Citral, in order to determine their operational plans closely.

These were the decisions taken.   We let Haci Sami know of all this via Ismail Hakki.   A portion of these plans could not be carried our due to want of financing or the opposition of the English Government in India; except, the general outlines were realized.   Osman Hoca and Mirza Isameddin had some monetary resources left over from the Bukhara Government.   They left for India on 10 August.   Since I and Abdulkadir were intending to visit Europe, we applied to the Afghan Governmnet for financial assistance.   The Prime Minister Muhammed Veli Han definetly promised to render such aid.   Later, via Osman Hoca, who was acquainted with the English, applied to the English Representation in Kabul for permission to travel to Europe via India.   We also indicated that we wished to consult with our friends in Peshawar.   The English Representation welcomed our application, and indicated that they will write all this to the English Indian Government in Simla.   Since we were not aware that the Ankara Government was settling in Istanbul as well, we did not ask for a visa to stop over in Istanbul from General Fahri.   That was a mistake.   On 1 July, Osman Hoca, Hasim Saik and Mirza Ussam went to Baginan and spoke with Muhammed Veli Han, the Foreign Affairs Minister on what we were planning to undertake.  

The writings we prepared for the Afghan Government—
Muhammed Veli Han, addressing me, requested that I write our plans for Turkistan and our thoughts on the educational aspects of Afghanistan, in order to be presented to “Ala Hazret,” meaning King Emanullah Han.   He also added that if four of us who arrived in Afghanistan were to stay here and concern ourselves with Afghan educational matters, they would be very happy.  

I prepared those reports in a few days.   With the help of Osman Hoca and Hasim Saik, we translated them into Farisi.   On 17 July, Abdulkadir and I went to Bagman and saw our friend Feyz Muhammed Han, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and presented him the said reports.   Those writings were received with very positive impressions.   What I wrote for Emanullah Han occupied five large pages, on the Turkistan-Afghanistan relations.   The following is the summary:

“The features of close relations between Afghanistan and the now imprisoned Moslem Turkistan people are known.   However, the direction those relations are taking since the 1917 Russian Revolution deserves deeper learning and description.   Until today, the freedom of Afghanistan depended on the competition between the Russians and the English.   However, if one day that competition ends, and Afghanistan remains alone, what would be the the relations between imperialist Russia and Afghanistan?   Invasion is Russia’s only aim.   In order to prepare for that eventuality, Russia is already taking precautions:

1.    First of all, Russians desire to create a nationality dispute in Afghanistan.   They will support an extreme Afghan nationalism.   A Russian arriving as the Russian Ambassador in your Court having already stated: ‘we Russians expanded our country basing ourselves on our nationalism and continue doing so.   You, too, can only survive basing yourselves on the Afghan elements and forcing others to accept that fact you can remain alive’ is the demonstration of that policy.   However, what they are speaking among the Hazara is different.   They have already gained the leader of the Teymuri Hazara, Samsam-ussaltana, who is in Behriz.   On the way to Kabul from Meshed, only the precautions taken by your Consul Abdulaziz Han, together with the Iranian Government, by providing Afghan and Iranian soldiers, we were able to prevent an attempt our being taken prisoner by the Russians.   In order to occupy the Northern portions of Khorasan and Afghanistan already populated by the Turkish elements, they mean to tell the Ozbek and Turkmen Communists ‘half of your nation is left in Afghanistan and Iran; it is your national problem to join them together.’   In the journal Voyennaya Mysl [Russian Defense Policy], year 1919, on pages third and fourth, there are matters to be read by your Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  
2.    The invasion and occupation of the Northern portions of Afghanistan are sometimes presented as a matter of Soviet economic policy.   I was informed of what Epstein, Michaelov and Suriz stated at the Tashkent Communist Party center during December 1922, in front of the Moslem Communists without hesitation.   They had stated: ‘the Afghans do not wish to see the increase of Turks (Ozbek, Turkmen) elements in Northern Afghanistan.   They are afraid of the Russians, as much as the Turks.   However, it is necessary to occupy Afghanistan all the way to Kabul, and have an ignorant ruler like the Emir of Bukhara to govern it.   That is imperative for the economic development of Turkistan.’   That means, they wish to inculcate enmity toward the Afghans among the Turks under their administration, while advancing the Russian policy of occupying Northern Afghanistan ostensibly according to the economic policies of the Soviet Union for the affluence of Turkistan.   For that purpose, their mentioning your Excellency’s name in some Russian newspapers as ‘the Peter the Great of Afghanistan’ is nothing but a fraud.   At some point, the Russians will come to you with a ‘water proposal’ in order to take the waters of all rivers, including Heri-rud and the left arms of Amudarya, under their influence.   The writings in the journal ‘Turkistan Economy’ being published in Tashkent, and other serials on this topic talk about opening a canal starting at your border, to pour their waters to the Caspian Sea via Merv, to water the Karakum Desert, are worthy of attention.   The fact that the Russian thoughts on controlling the waters of the rivers flowing in Khorasan and Northern Afghanistan and the Professors Rosenkampf and Krjijanovski’s economic plans concerning the development plans of Southern Russia based on the resources found in Afghanistan and Iran, such as the rivers, are important matters to learn concerning the future of your country.

What, one may wonder, can be done against those plans, which also involve the fate of Turkistan?   Allow me to express my thoughts:

1.    India may attain her independence some day.   If the Russian and English competition ends in Central Asia, it would be the most important objective to create a third competitive factor rather than remaining alone with the Russians.   The reason for Afghanistan and Turkistan losing their economic position in the world balance is due to the trade routes sliding into the seas.   Today, it would be appropriate to search for a solution to revive that road which crosses Central Asia, for example by negotiating with the United States and Japan, to build railroads and car routes from China to Iran.   It would be helpful to describe the profits to be derived from this activity both to Japan as well as the United States and the Central Asian Branches and sending a delegation to them, by adding representatives form Turkistan.  

It is possible that United States and Japan may not wish to compete with Russia and England because of Central Asia.   Unfortunately, they already have an issue because of Manchuria.   However, I am thinking far into the future.   They may choose to revive the historical Silk Road that connects Western Asia to Central Asia, with all the profits they may derive from that big project instead of fighting over Manchuria.
 
2.    If a third power is not introduced into the mix, and Russians and the English remain where they are, Afghanistan cannot remain as a tampon state.   It will be necessary to choose one of two powers.   In that case, it will be necessary to choose the side of the English.   That is because, if the Russians construct a large canal from Amudarya to the Caspian Sea, they will be able to place millions of Russian immigrants along that canal and the upper reaches of Amudarya.   They are resolved to repeat what they did during the time of the Tsars, of placing Russian immigrants in the Curcan and Astrabad regions of Iran, which they were forced to halt due to the 1917 Revolution.   If such a scenario develops, Afghanistan will have to cooperate with England or with the independent India that will replace her.   We never had any contact with the English.   That is because they never wish to see another Islamic state being established in Central Asia next to Afghanistan.   However, their domination of India cannot continue against the Indian national movement.   Since they regarded their presence in India as temporary, they could not settle the English there as they did in America, New Zealand and Australia.   The English will utilize an opportunist policy until they leave India.   From that perspective, if a third power does not arrive in Central Asia via China, it would be appropriate to think about collaborating with England or India which will be replacing her.   It would be suitable to come to an agreement with England to build a railroad connecting Quetta to Kosk via Herat.   That would aid a rapid economic development of Afghanistan, Khorasan and Iran.    In general, it is important to import transportation technology into Afghanistan.   Otherwise, you will remain tied to Peshawar and Quetta in India in the smallest matter of steel.  
Nothing will come out of a mutual Islamic understanding in Central Asia, in the form of a Pan-Islamic movement.   That is because: all unions that do not have an economic base will only remain in words.   However, if Turkiye, Iran and Afghanistan were to be tied to each other economically and culturally against Russia, in unison, it will be a realistic solution.   In my opinion, Afghanistan and Iran need to concentrate their economic development in the Northern regions, next to Russia.   The goal of building railroads from Turkiye to Iran across Northern Iran to Kizil Arvat Russian railroad station; railroad from India via Herat to Kuska as well as highways, need to be the aims of this triumvirate of nations.   In that case, Tebriz, Rey, Tus, Herat, Balkh, Gazne will regain their true nature of being the central point of Islamic civilization.   In that regard, I wrote to all three nations my opinions as a manifesto.   Since I was completely sincere in what I wrote, there is nothing I hid from anyone.   It is necessary to avoid the national shovenism which the Russians are systematically advocating.   In that case, Islam will benefit for all three nations.   In each of those nations, the rights of all tribal rights must be recognized, schools must be opened for the Ozbek, Turkmen and Tajiks in their own languages in Afghanistan, and in serving in the armed forces they must not be treated differently than the Afghans.   In that regard, the contents of chapters 24, 25 and 26 as described in the Seljuk vezir Nizamulmuk’s Siyasetname must be kept in mind.  

3.    It is an error to expect a revolution in the Eastern policies of Russia.   The policies Soviets inherited from the Tsarists will develop in the same direction and will culminate on the bases of Marxism.   I wrote a piece under the title ‘Social Revolution in the East’ while I was in Samarkand during the last year (1922) and had sent it to Hasim Saik Bey.   Now, I provided a copy to Muhammed Veli Han.    In our country, since we leaned on the communist intellectuals, that pamphlet was written for them.   It had positive effects.   In that work, since you are a revolutionary and intellectual ruler, I had touched upon matters that may to attract your attention.   Our real enemy is the Russian communist-imperialism and the rotting recidivism found amongst our midst.  

4.    It is time to establish a wireless connection among all three nations, and to combine intelligence operations.   Russians and the English possess strong intelligence organizations.”

In addition to that presentation, on 5 July 1923, written in Kabul, I wrote a short letter to Muhammed Veli Han, the Minister of Foreign Affairs:   
“I prepared in writing, at your request, what I had indicated to your Excellency orally, for presentation to Ala Hazret.   However, I thought about all for a period of one week, and now I am submitting it.   I have a few words I would like add to you.   I fear what I wrote may sound like giving advice to Ala Hazret.   I am attaching great import to this matter of inviting the United States and Japan to Central Asia.   Back in 1918, when the Japanese and American military forces arrived in Siberia as a result of the removal of the Tsarist government, we had sent my friend Talha Resul to the American and Japanese commanders, and members of our Tashkent Branch of our National Committee, Mustafa Sakul, Arif Kerimi and Sadreddin Han to the Japanese Representation that was opened in Gulca.   Now, if your High Government approves, we wish to send Hasim Sayik to Japan for him to work toward these goals.   During the past month, since my arrival in Kabul, I endeavored to learn what has been done to understand Russian policies in your country.   I reviewed all the newspapers and journals since the death of Emir Habibullah.   I also spoke with individuals you suggested in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; however, the impressions I gained is very troublesome.   Some newspaper clippings have been sent from your embassy in Moscow, and from your Tashkent consulate.   However, newspapers and journals containing such articles must be brought as a whole, and a collection must be established at the library of the Foreign Ministry.   Zarya Vostoka, published in Tbilisi, is important.   For the past five years, Russian immigrants in Europe have been publishing and the researches done by European countries on Russia are being issued as books and journals.   I recommend a compilation of all.   Now, as Haci Sami is leaving Eastern Bukhara, the aforementioned Mustafa Sakul, Arif Kerimi and Sadreddin Han are with him.   Mustafa Sakul and Arif Kerimi are Tatars who had completed their university educations in Russian institutions.   Mustafa also knows a bit of French.   If you were to employ them, they can be helpful in following the Russian publications.  Sadreddin Han knows Persian well, and is a scholar from Tashkent.   He and Abdulhamid Arifov from Bukhara can help you follow all the publications emanating from Turkistan.   I am greatful to Ala Hazret and to you for the care and respect shown me in your country.   I am indeed certain that the positive impressions left on Your Excellency, Feyz Muhammed and Serdar Abdurresul Han of our talks in Russia will serv as a guarantee of our future good relations between us.  

At the end of my letter, I must repeat that the destiny problems of Turkistan and Afghanistan are not matters that can be solved by half measures.    Talking with Japan and the United States must be taken seriously and if they do not take the proposal seriously the first time, this issue must be repeatedly brought to their attention.   This is all I know.   Deep respects and greetings of brotherhood.”   
    Ahmed Zeki Velidi, 15 July 1923


A strange happenstance—
We were writing this portion of my memoirs with my dear son Subidey at Uludag, during the nights, where we were due to the occasion of winter sports.   We read the following news in the Istanbul newspapers dated 4 February 1966: “a Japanese scholarly delegation will arrive in Istanbul in order to research the old Silk Road stretching from Western Asia to Far East via Central Asia.   The Japanese scholarly delegation will begin their work in Istanbul on 9 February.   The delegation will investigate historical remnants, customs, and commercial conditions along the way following the route from Ankara, Kayseri, Aleppo, Beirut, Damascus, Hamadan, Tahran, and Afghanistan on the way to Japan.   The delegation is headed by the well-known author K. Fukuda and contains faculty member of the Tokyo University, K. Nagassawa; from Aichi University, S. Suzuki; from Hagasusia P. Company, K. Fujiu’ara; from the world’s largest newspaper, Asahi Shimbun, author M Takagi; and the television specialist from the same newspaper, M. Yoshikawa.”  

I had presented a paper to the RCD [the former Regional Development for Cooperation organization] Congress meeting in Tahran during March of 1965, stressing that the contemporary development of Turkiye-Iran and Afghanistan was closely connected to the revitalization of this old Silk Road.   It was published in the journal Turk Yurdu, May 1965, Volume 4, No. 5.   The English version appeared in the first issue of RCD Bulletin published in Tahran; but was not included in Afganistan RCD.  

My recommendations on educational matters and the response of Amanullah Han—
In the report I presented separately on 15 July:

1.    I presented the fact that it was necessary to establish an Afghan scholarly and archeological society, in parallel with the French Archeological Expedition which was at that moment working in Kabul, along with the Afghan National Library.   Since I had brought with me, for those purposes, volumes on the history of Iran and Afghanistan published in Russian, but I had not taken along works on the Islamic geography by Arabic scholars.   I had thought that I would find them in the Kabul Central Library.   After arriving in Kabul, let alone the works of Western Orientalists, I discovered that there was not a Kabul Central Library.   Those manuscripts that belonged to the Palace were kept in a room of the Kabul Central Military Command, which let the rain water in on them and expressed my anxiety over these conditions.   I proposed that a course be opened immediately to train the Afghans who would work in the aforementioned new scholarly society and the library.

2.    The establishment of a university comprised of five schools.   For the purpose, inviting scholars from the outside and Turkiye, to found a high level course to train university faculty members.   A) Law and Politics  B) Economics and commerce  C) Natural Sciences and Mathematics  D) Language and History  E) Medicine and Anatomy.   The proposal for this university was quite long.   Personally, I promised to provide help for the establishment of the scholarly societies, libraries and the university whether or not I was in Kabul, especially in the acquisition of books.

These proposals received such enthusiastic approval that Feyiz Muhammed Han, who was administering the Ministry of Education, gathered the Education Council on 19 July at the Palace of the Ruler Emanullah Han.   From the Afghans, Mevlana Abdulvasi; Officials of the Ministry of Education; teachers of the War Academy and Security; Head of the Pashto Society, Abdurrahman; Ambassador to London, Abdulhadi Han in addition to Feyiz Muhammed Han as well as the Chief of the French Archeological Expedition, Monsieur Facher, along with four French scholars constituting his entourage; one German Professor; Vasfi Mentes Bey of the Turkish Embassy; Bukharan Ambassador Hasim Saik and I were invited.   Feyz Muhammed Han, who was presiding, first read the report he himself had written, and explained that it would be best to start this project with the establishment of a Middle School.   For that school, the educational program prepared by the teachers of the aforementioned school was perused.   However, Feyz Han indicated that they did not have the teachers and books necessary to keep such a school in operation, and indicated sorrowfully that they were of the opinion of teaching even the Tajik youth in Pashto (meaning, Afghan).   I indicated that it would be most appropriate to teach the classes in Afghan to the Afghan students; in Farsi to the Tajik and Turkish to the Ozbek and the Turkmen.   They did not want to see that.   On 21 July, I once again went to Bagman to speak with Feyz Muhammed Han who wanted to speak with me.   He was very sincere.   He confessed that his country had remained very backward, and their dreams were wery wide, that he would remain Minister of Education and asked me to become his Deputy.   That day we ate a bulgur lunch at the Foreign Affairs Villa with Veli Muhammed Han.   They spoke of their memories about us during their visit to Russia.   Feyz Muhammed Han indicated that they spoke quite a bit with a General who was the Deputy Head of the Russian General Staff in Tashkent, and showed me the sentence that General wrote in the day-book of Feyz Muhammed Han, in Russian, “I wish to speak with my close friend Feyz Muhammed Han in Kabul, soon.”   That was even though there was no talk between the Afghan Delegation and the Russian General Staff about the latter’s visit to Kabul.   So, the Afghan side regarded the words of the Russian General as arrogance, as if he was stating that “we will invade your country, and talk to you.”  

On 23 July 1923, I obtained passports for myself and Abdulkadir from the Bukharan Embassy for our journey to India and Europe.   Our photographs stuck to our passports were so ugly that we were worried how we were going to show them to other countries.   Thus, we became citizens of the Bukharan People’s Republic which existed only in words.  

The Kurban Bayrami began on 25 July 1923.   The Ruler Emir Emanullah Han served as the imam, and after the prayers he climbed the pulpit and delivered his sermon.   He spoke in Farisi.   Among what he said, he related a poem: “when it comes to Islam, it has no defects in itself; whatever shortcomings are detected, that is because of our Islamness.”   His Grandfather Abdurrahman Han had also repeated the same poem.   After that, he spoke in Turkish and stated, in the field of politics “I am not only working for the Afghan Nation.   I pray to God for the prosperity of the Turks, Iranians and Turkistanis whose representatives are among us today.”   Thus he beautifully replied to the long report I had written and submitted.

Hasim Saik and my little finger—
On 29 July, we received many letters from our friends in Hanabad, from Haci Sami.   Ismail Hakki Bey, who was sent there, brought them.   Since the Afghan Government had not given permission for them to arrive in Kabul, Haci Sami, along with his entourage of thirty-five individuals, were on their way to Turkiye via Herat and Meshed.   Especially the letters of Sadreddin Han and Mustafa Sakuli were very bitter.   Hasim Saik was the one who was most sorry.   Hasim was a Bukharan “donme” [convert to Islam from Judaism] but was assimilated into Turkism and a poet friend.   He had written the “tezkere” [biographies and prominent works] of Bukharan poets of late.   He also had his own “divan” [a volume of collected poems].   He had gone to Turkiye with the Young Bukharans, and studied at Darul-muallimin [Teacher Training College].   In 1918, while he was returning to his country under very convoluted conditions via Baku, he brught with him Milli Tetebbular journal, Mahmud Kasgari’s Divan-u Lugat-it Turk, and Dede Korkut, which were very important discoveries for the Turkistan educated.    It must have been because he stated that he had learned French at the Teacher’s College, they made him Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Bukharan Government which was established during 1920.   Since he was extremely cowardly and feared everything without cause, all he learned via the Foreign Affairs channel scared him.   When he realized that events were getting dicey, he chose to be an Ambassador instead of Minister, and ran to Kabul.   Now that Haci Sami and his friends were leaving the country, he was completely perplexed.   That day, we went to see Veli Muhammed Han.   He told the Minister of Foreign Affairs his reaction with his tears.   On the way he kept repeating that he was going to commit suicide.   After arriving home, he talked about bad dreams and that he had seen Feyzullah.   Finally he went to his room and lay down on his bed.   I went to his side and consoled him.   It turned out that his pistol was cocked.   I wanted to take it away, he did not let go of it.   Osman Hoca and Haci Isamedding were also with us in the room.   Then, the pistol went off; my little finger was shattered a second time after the war, which was at the end of the barrel.   We immediately called the Turkish doctor Munir Bey and he arrived.   Ismail Hakki Bey would always run everywhere when needed.   That day, the head of the Ferghana fighters Sir Mehmed (Blind Sirmed) had arrived in Kabul with his entourage.   When he heard that I was wounded, he cried and stated that his arrival in Kabul was a bad omen.   Half of my finger was detached, and was tied to the remainder; and the doctor took us to the hospital.   I was anesthetized, put under, and they took out the scattered bone fragments, and stitched it back together.   That finger was causing me torment, because it was wounded a second time.   Since 1918, in armed struggles, I found myself under fire many times, during those five years.   But I was never wounded in a manner that would threaten my life.   Once, in the Ural Mountains, the Soviet machine gun riddled the saddlebag under me and the maps inside; my horse was killed.   My calf was hit lightly.   I mounted another horse, and continued fighting with that wound.   At another occasion, at a place called Kana, the same poor little finger was wounded.   Thus, I completed that long struggle with two little finger wounds.   However, my friend Hasim Saik was very grateful to me for being wounded for him; he was happy that he avoided death.   Three days later, I saw Hasim Saik in his home once more.   According to what Haci Husamettin told me, he was drinking continuously, and speaking of suicide once again.   Since I was his friend, I told him everything.   He would not take offence.   That time, I told him: “you are a remnant from the lineage of Moses and Harun [Aaron the Just]; how would you find the courage to commit suicide; you tore my little finger for naught.   If you had begun to drink ten days earlier, my finger would have remained unhurt.”   He grabbed my hand and kissed it.   After we left Afghanistan, he remained in Kabul.   He could not go to Japan.   He was appointed a Counselor at the Ministry of Education and a Professor at the University.   Finally, he left behind a large library on Turkistan and passed away at Kabul during 1961.  

Sirmemet Bek—
He was born in Ferghana, was mobilized in 1915 by the Tsarist Government to serve in the War-Front duties, and was sent with his cohort to the Polish Front.   When he returned in 1917, he could no longer endure the atrocities committed by the Bolsheviks in Ferghana, raised the standard of rebellion with his friends and fought against the Russians for years.   His story is long; he had written those, in the form of his memoirs and sent them to me.   

After it became impossible to continue the fighting in Ferghana, he left his country with the aim of joining General Enver, and to cross over to Afghanistan.   The Afghan Government placed him, along with his brother Nur Mehmed and their entourage, in the same palace with us.   Back in 1920, I had sent a member of the Baskurdistan Government, an intellectual by the name of Ildirhan Mutin, to remain with Sir Mehmed in Ferghana.   He had served as a secretary in Russian as well as a teacher in military matters.   The first time I saw Sir Mehmed, he immediately told me: “it was a very good deed that you sent me Ildirhan; now it is our fate to join together in Kabul.”   Even though he was not a literate man, he was a patriot.   His leader and his military adviser was “Rumalaq” named round stones.   The Afghan Government required him to visit the Russian Embassy to ask for permission to return.   He went twice, and cried that: “Afghans forced me to go to the Russians and disgraced me.”   While I was leaving Afghanistan, he remained in Kabul with his entourage.   Finally, his brother was in jail for a few years during the Second World War; now both of them are in Turkiye.   While I was in Kabul, I took him to see General Fahri.   The General came to visit us in return the second day.   After the General left, Sir Mehmet stated: “As there are differences between individuals, I now understand that there are similar differences between nations.   The personal visit of a High Official representing Turkiye was my greatest award at the end of our struggles.   Otherwise, I regarded myself thrown to the deepest levels of hell when the Afghans sent me to the Russians.   I arrived from Russia; it was not necessary to arrive in Kabul in order to beg the Russians.   The General thus washed my wound.”  

Other business I undertook in Kabul—
Another important task undertaken in Kabul was to peruse the printed Turkish materials brought by the Embassy staff, including Yeni Mecmua collection, works by Ziya Gokalp, Fuat Koprulu, discussions among the Turkish philosophers on Ottomanism, Turkishness and Islamism “Tuzukat.”   Likewise, I also studied the Afghan publications.   In addition, starting on 3 July, my occupation was to study the manuscripts haphazardly collected in the Kabul Central Command, visiting the monuments around the city, especially those belonging to Babur Mirza and his sons, and Bagram ruins and carefully collecting their inscriptions into my notebooks.   Among the manuscripts, the most important were: a copy of Resideddin’s Cami’ut Tevarix containing excellent miniatures, copied during the lifetime of the author; Temur’s Tuzukat, in various copies; the great Cami’al Vathaiq containing very valuable documents on the economic history of Turkistan during the 14th-16th centuries, which, unfortunately, was lost later; works on the history of Kashgar and Kashmir; and documents pertaining to the last century Afghan rulers.    Also, on the way to the English Embassy, I spoke with the representative of the Indian Ahmedi.   They provided the printed copies of all works on their sect.    An Ahmedi doctor by the name of Fazil Kerim requested that we visit Qadiyan Township, the center of the Qadiyan, and indicated he was prepared to provide the expenses of that trip.   He indicated that they were descended from the Mirza of the Babur.   There were two individuals whom I regarded close, beside the poet Abdurresul Han who thought clearly and open-mindedly and Feyz Muhammed Han.   One of them was Abdulhadi Han, who was the Ambassador to London; the second was the Afghanistan’s Bukhara Ambassador Serdar Abdurresul Han.   Abdurresul Han and I were in Berlin during 1924-1925.   Abdurresul Han was very Islamic, but was very open minded and realistic, he wrote a kaside [eulogy] for me, and read it to the guests who were assembled at his home at his request.   During that gathering, I told him, in a jocular manner, of the encounter with Doctor Fazil Kerim and his invitation for me to visit Qadiyan and his offer to pay for the travel expenses.   I asked him “shall I accept the money against the travel expenses?”   His response was: “of course accept it; it is a hair from the swine” and caused the Afghans present laugh.   There were several other pleasant occasions in Kabul.   I used to tell them that, even if it is a few kilometers long, the construction of a railroad would be important to introduce transportation technology to Afghanistan, and the necessity of building highways.  

My final talk with the Minister of Foreign Affairs—
On Thursday 20 September 1923, I spoke with Foreign Minister Muhammed Veli Han one last time.   This time, they provided funds for our travel to Paris.   Muhammed Veli Han was not an Afghan by origin; he was from the Dervaz Beylik [roughly: principality] of the Pamirs.   Their language is a different dialect of Farsi.   Even though these Tajik Beys had many a time passed themselves off as the decendants of Alexander the Great, in reality are descended from the Karluk Branch of the Turks.   In the Arab sources, there are many clear records to that fact.    Muhammed Veli Han requested that I conduct research to their origins and their old history.   I responded with: “if I were to retun to Kabul, God willing, I will busy myself with these problems and histories.”    He countered with: “that is why I wish to see you back here.  In addition, for you to see through your proposals you made concerning the educational system, as soon as your business in Europe is concluded.   I wholeheartedly desire that and Ala Hazret (meaning the Emir) also wishes that.”   A few days earlier, Veli Muhammed Han had provided three thousand Rupies for our European travel; today, he provided that much more in the name of Ala Hazret.    During March, just as we were leaving Askabad for Iran, we had drawn from the Turkistan National Union treasury Bukhara Tenges equal to nine hundred and fifty Rubles.  All of our subsequent expenditures were met by the Afghan Government.   Now, Muhammed Veli Han suggested that, if we needed, while we were in Europe, for us to see Mahmud Tarzi, the Ambassador in Paris.   That means, the Afghan Government regarded us their own sons during that European trip.   Thus, we were deeply grateful. 

Muhammed Han then stated: “We fully regard you as Afghans.   We wish your trip to be a short one.   Promise me you will return here.   I can inform you now that you will be added to the Highest Officials of the Ala Hazret.   He liked the contents and your sincerity displayed in your writings.”   I responded with: “I am thankful and grateful of your acceptance of me into your family, and the compliments by Ala Hazret.   It would have been an honorable task to establish a university, a scholarly library and society of scholarly organizations.  However, I cannot promise that I will.   That is because; there still is Turkiye in front of us.   What I can say to all three countries is from Hoca Hafiz: “we did not arrive here for grandeur and office.   Perhaps we arrived due to the terrible events that happened to our homeland, as a refugee.”    While I was taking my leave, I attempted to kiss his hand.   He embraced and kissed me.   Thus we separated in an amicable fashion.  

The same day, on the afternoon of 20 September 1923, I was invited to the working-session of the Education Ministry’s Scholarly Commission; the program of the Teacher Education program was being considered for establishment in Kabul.    The proposed program contained tasks that were more suitable to high-schools or even universities.   Upon my suggestion, only two tasks were assigned to that school:
1.    Expansion of knowledge provided in primary schools;
2.    Teaching methods in primary schools, pedagogy.

Feyz Muhammed Han told me: “this is a good resolution; with your help, we were able to reach a practical solution.”   At the end of that session, we said our goodbyes, since we were leaving in two day’s time. 

My letter to Haci Sami—
Haci Sami’s letter, which he wrote as he was leaving Hanabad for Meshed, was very pessimistic.   He was wounded and could not continue on, but he wanted the movement to continue.   The following is what I apparently wrote him on 22 September, sent via the Meshed Consulate: “In your last letter addressed to me and His Excellency General Fahrettin, you had complained of the Bukharans and especially the negative attitude of the Lakay.   During the winter of 1921 in Bukhara, when you were exuberantly and with certitude encouraging General Enver to join this movement, I had indicated that you were very optimistic and we needed to be realistic without mixing emotions into the process.   Today, I must repeat the same words, as you are very pessimistic in your letter.   The Basmaci Movement continued on for six years.   Their proportion of success will be different now, compared to the time when Russia was busy in other fronts.   I had written about that matter in my letter that I had sent last February from Askabad via Maca.   It is normal for Russians to use a moderate policy toward the Basmaci who are not under your command, and use greater severity against the Laqays and the Qarluk who are.   They will tell the population that ‘our enemy is not you the Basmaci, but those who follow General Sami,’ and attempt to isolate the population from you.    It would have been best for you to wait in Afghanistan or Iran until your wounds healed, and not to give up on this matter.   This movement cannot live unless it is supported by fighters who are on the outside.   You and the late General believed that you were going to immediately succeed.   I had told the General that our generation may not succeed; but we must continue with the uprising knowing that.   Some day, the problem of Central Asia will become a question of the world.   Our efforts today will provide a basis for that future date.   The death of General Enver for the cause of Turkistan revived the spirit of freedom; your actions became a new initiative on that path.

All this is also true for India.   The earlier Sepoy Rebellion and the Tippu Sultan’s actions constitute the bases of the Indian Liberation movement.   When the uprising of the Tippu Sultan met with failure, his subjects attempted to kill him.   According to what Ali Sevket Bey is telling us here is, since the relations between your brother Esref Bey and Mustafa Kemal turned sour during the Turkish War of Independence, you might not be allowed to enter Turkiye.   It is best for you to remain in Central Asia.   If you were to leave, the population of Turkistan will state: “Caliph Sultan’s men took a look at that, they could not succeed, and they left.”   According to what Counsul General Sami Bey told us in Meshed, someone by the name of Serif Bey of Turkiye wrote a negative work against General Enver and you.   They will not be hospitable toward you.   It will be a shame for you to leave the Turkistan Struggle.   The Afghan Government will not allow you to remain in Hanabad indefinitely.   I do not know if a duty may be conferred upon you at the Meshed Consulate.   I had suggested to Ali Riza Bey to remain there.   However, I do not think the Russians will allow you to remain in Khorasan.   In my opinion, would it not be best for you and Ali Riza Bey to establish a Tahran based commercial organization, to trade across Khorasan, Afghanistan and Turkistan?   Abdulhamid, Turab Bek and Mamur Bek would work with you and earn their keep.   Our Baskurts would also make their living alongside you.   With such an organization, you could save the refugees from extreme powerty, and keep the spirit of independence alive.   I, Fethulkadir and Osman Hoca will work toward keeping this movement active in the scholarly sphere.   I am writing the history of this movement; I have in my possession many documents.    I intend to sit and write them for publication in Turkish, and work toward their dissemination in English.   If you were to take everyone who was involved in the Turkistan struggle helter-skelter to Turkiye, if you were not allowed in, you will leave them in a wretched condition.   Your organization will also disappear.   We must know that Turkistan struggle is a long-term matter, and act accordingly.   Osman Hoca and Mirza Isameddin left for Istanbul on the fifteenth day of the previous month via India.   Hasim Saik Bey may be going to Japan.   I and Fethulkadir will leave for Peshawar in two days; from there, God willing to either Paris or Berlin.    With deep respects and greetings.
  Saturday, 22 September 1923.

Abdulhalik Konisbay—
Our groom Abdulhalik was the person who was the most depressed to see that our departure day was approaching.   He regards that as if he is being left alone in the midst of a desert, and sometimes crying.   He had accompanied us since Meshed, and we had grown used to his sincerity and fidelity.   Thus it was difficult for us to leave him behind.   However, we could not find the finances for a third traveler.   Since he thought that he could not get used to the Afghans, we recommended that he journey to Turkiye.   We applied to the Embassy, and requested that the General and Ali Sevket Efendi, the imam of the Embassy, to look into that solution.   They accepted.   Abdulhalik is a Kazak of the Tabin Uruk; they live around the Teren Ozbek station in the Sirdarya basin.   He was conscripted into the Red Army when the local mobilization orders were issued by the Soviets.   Since he had studied Russian at the elementary school, and knew that language well, he had many assignments and along the way became a member of the Communist Party.   Later, when the commander of the Red Army unit where he was assigned at the Iranian Border insulted him, he ran away to Iran.   He worked at a medrese in Meshed.   There, he entered the Shi’ite sect.   From there, he was hired by a wealthy Iranian to work in his own household.   Since Abdulhalik was handsome and had the typical Turkish physiognomy, his employer began announcing his love for Abdulhalik.   Sometimes, the employer would even write poems to him.   Abdulhalik did not understand those poems, and would insult his employer.   One night, his boss entered Abdulhalik’s bedroom bare-feet and began openly flirting.   Our Kazak beat him up badly, took his own clothes and left.   Now he had the idea of going to other countries, but afraid of Russia, it transpired that we arrived and helped him.   On the day we were leaving Kabul, we went to see Ali Sevket Bey, and requested that he personally employ Abdulhalik; he agreed.  

I knew Ali Sevket Efendi well.   In addition to French and Persian, he had learned Urdu, and he was working on philosophical works, especially Indian philosophy.   Together we discussed quite a bit the fate of the Islamic world.   However, my Afghan friend Serdar Abdurresul Han one day told me: “according to my observations from afar, this Ali Sevket is in a tight relationship with the Bahai.”   On the other hand, Ali Sevket was showing himself as a candidate for Islamic reformer.   According to his ideas, in the future only those principles will remain in the Islamic world which will not be contrary to the Western Civilization, cleansed of superstition and in consonance with knowledge; thoughts on the jinn, devil and the angels will change; they will look at all this through the prism of laws of nature.   Even though life will be entirely Western, Islam will live on as a perfect, religious precept.   Possibly, music will enter the mosques.   I had written a pamphlet of twenty pages on these issues as a result of our talks, along with our Afghan friends who liked to discuss this topic.   I have not been able to publish it to this day.   Abdulhalik was listening in to our discussions with Ali Sevket Bey.   After we sold our horses, he was left alone and did not have any other occupation than speaking with individuals of all backgrounds.   Since he also spoke Persian, he would join in the discussions, appropriate or not, ongoing with the Afghans and Ahmedis.   On the day we were leaving Kabul, we sent Abdulhalik to Ali Sevket Bey, along with our belongings we could not take with us.   When we arrived in Istanbul during June of 1925, after spending two years in Europe, this Abdulhalik searched and found us.   Ali Sevket Efendi had brought him to Istanbul, gave him lessons on religion and philosophy; finally confessed that he was a Bahai, and made Abdulhalik a Bahai.   He had read their publications, and he made the sect his own.   Over time, Abdulhalik observed that Ali Sevket Bey was hypocritical and an unbeliever who pretends to be a Muslim, that Bahaism is not a religion but was something like being a mason which he also learned from Ali Sevket Bey.   Finally he addressed Ali Sevket Bey with: “since you are one of the masters of Bahaism, why did you use the Embassy of the homeland to portray yoursef a specialist in Islam?   In that case, you are a spy working for some other country.   Who were you spying for?   The Bahai do not have a state; you could not be a spy for them.”   That caused a collision between them.   Later on Abdulhalik told him: “take away your Bahaism.   From now on, whatever my own Kazaks believe, so do I; I am a Sunni and Hanefi,” and left his employer.   We rented a house at Sishane, Abdulhalik worked for me.   He provided the comforts; he cooked my meals, took care of my clothes, and did all the errands and the printing business.   He had supervised the construction of my bookshelves, in sum, he was my major-domo.   He would sometimes bubble over with enthusiasm and state: “if necessary, I will die for you; a war should have broken-out by now, and I would have been dead.”   In that, the poor man was right.    He wanted to return to Turkistan and to fight for her independence.   However, at this time, that was an impossible wish.   He would sing in Kazak that openly displayed what was in his heart.   He did not at all like to be a servant to anyone.   He had songs about that as well.  

One day, Cafer Seyid Ahmed of Crimea and Yusuf Akcora bey arrived together.   We were talking: “the Arab Tabari stated that there are no slaves among the Turks.   Plano Carpini, as respresentative of the Pope, travelling in Mongolia and William of Rubruck, representing the French King also second that.   The traveler Pallas had said something similar about the Kazak and the Baskurt during the eighteenth century.”   At that point I mentioned Abdulhalik’s words against being a servant; they liked that idea.   In sum, Abdulhalik regarded himself very happy in our milieu.   His only goal was to go to pilgrimage, as he understood Islam among the Kazaks.   Unfortunately, he contracted cancer.    He was a person apart.   He had taken on several religions, became a Communist, but remained faithful to the religion, traditions and customs of the Kazaks.   That suggest the strength of the Kazak religion, traditions and customs are stronger than communism, Shi’ism and Bahaism.  

I surmise, regardless of the severity of the Russian policies to russify the Turks of Central Asia, they will remain true to the path of their forefathers in national character.   Due to the moral quality of his character, Abdulhalik’s story would serve well as a theme for a Central Asian novel.  

Ceremony and the Emir of Bukhara—
On 5 August, the Afghanistan Independence Day was celebrated at the summer headquarters of the Ruler and the Government at Pagman.   The weather was beautiful.   An old elephant, given the name “Conqueror” because it served well Abdurrahman Han in defeating his enemies, constituted the central piece of the ceremony.   The old Conqueror was wondering around the celebration square.   Upon reaching the presence of the ruler, Amanullah Han, he turned right just like a human as a sign of repect, stretched out his trunk and placed it in front on the ground.   He kneeled.    At that moment, tears came down his eyes.    Upon seeing the elephant crying, everyone present stated that he was remembering the Amanullah’s Grandfather, Emir Abdurrahman Han.   It must have been an emotional moment.   The Emir of Bukhara, Alim Han, had taken his place around this ceremonial square, along with his retinue.   All were in their Bukharan uniforms.   My friend Abdulkadir stated to me: “he is the last ruler of Turkistan; go and greet the Emir.”   I told him: “during 1918, when we sent him our ambassador Abdullah Ilyas, he pronounced that ‘whoever lives in Moscow, we are bound to that Russian by treaty.   Even if that person abrogates the treaty, I will remain loyal to him.’    He thus regarded the Soviets as the successor of the Tsar, and himself as the subject, regarding us rebels, having the Lakay attack General Enver.   I will not shake his hand.   From this Mangit lineage, there has not been anyone else besides Prince Abdulmelik whose hand can be shaken.   If they had a modicum of sense, they would have followed Hekim Kusbegi.   He was the only statesman of this family.   If Sadreddin Ayni was present here in this ceremony, would he have given his hand to the Emir?”

I had stated that I wrote and sent a poem in Persian.   In it, what is referenced as “donkey driver” was the Tsar; the “donkey” itself, the Emir.

I also related a poem by Sadreddin Ayni: “in the fire orchard of our revolution, the world of the tyrant burnt down like kindling.   Do not say the world is burnt; say that the wild grass burnt and the world is cleansed.   In reality, he is a pustle; the Russian Bolsheviks replacing him are the cancer.   And it was the Emir who brought that cancer to his own country.   The Kur’an, referencing that type of Emir, states: ‘When God wishes to destroy a land, he will allow it to be dominated by a despot (in Russian, ears), and those will bring on the cause the destruction.’    He is the clear example.   He did not want us, nor did he want Enver; why would I extend my hand to him?”

The feast of Abdurresul Han—
On the day we were to leave, in the morning a letter arrived from Abdurresul Han, requesting an audience before we left.   I arrived before noon.   There was nobody else present at the feast.   There were many dishes.   After the meal, two of his friends arrived.   He told me that he was happy to have the honor of representing Afghanistan at the time of the Revolution, and during the period of General Enver’s arrival, but he was also equally sorry to see me leave without observing the positive results of the movement.   He added that he wanted to see me in Afghanistan permanently.   He wrote the poem by Mevlana Rumi: “you will rise to the level of a prophet in the eyes of the congregation, if you were to continue performing a task in the service of your homeland” and other poems in my diary.   He also stated that: “what you spoke in Kabul in the sphere of politics and education, especially about the Teacher’s College, was very much liked by the higher echelons of the State.   Just like Veli Muhammed Han, I would request you return here.    Han introduced me to his guests.   He told them: “when I arrived in Bukhara as the Ambassador, the relations among the Bukharans was disarranged.   The Russians were taking advantage of that.   I was pessimistic as well.   But, Zeki Bey and the Kazak Moslems arrived, reconciled them by mediation, and they established the joint National Union Society.   Upon the proposal of the Turkish Representatives, Zeki Bey was elected President.   The entire Samarkand Province revolted.   There was union there.   Zeki Bey toured all the villages of Samarkand and Bukhara and visited the Basmaci; he obtained beneficial results.”

One of the guests of the Han told me that he knew me well in absentia, and had heard a lot of good things about me.   He stated that he was in favor of the establishment of a democratic government in Afghanistan.   He further stated: “You are a person who has learned the Tsar, the Kerenski Government and the Soviets by working with them.   What caused democracy to not succeed there?   If the Soviets were to be eliminated, will there be democracy in Turkistan?   Can democracy be applied to Afghanistan, and how?”

I told him: “Democracy does not have a single recipe.   The purpose of democracy is to provide the nations and communities the right to apply their choices to their lives without barriers.   That type of a nation is multicultural, but possesses a primary requirement: the tradition of shouldering the responsibilities jointly within the nation and community.   Among the English, and the Americans, Sweden and Norway, this is so.   One party is brought to power to govern and the others help them.   That approach does not exist in Russia.   According to what is described by Ibn-Rusta, Russians did not have social trust even in the tenth century.   Even when they were going to the bathroom, they had to unsheathe their weapons and be prepared to defend themselves against an attack.  Otherwise, they could be easily killed.   Thus, in 1917 they established good democratic parties.   Then, the Bolshevik party emerged and declared that they were not satisfied with the decision of the majority, and destroyed all the other parties and established a dictatorial regime unseen throughout history.   Ibn Fadlan, who travelled during the Tenth century, stated that the Oghuz who lived on the Western side of Khorezm have a tradition of consultations; even then a disgraceful person may emerge to erase all the decisions taken by the majority.    Among the Bulgars, the decision of the Padisah is valid, and indicated it was possible to live among them comfortably.   The task of responsibility sharing in the affairs of state is not only a matter of civilization, but also an issue of good manners and custom.   The Baskurt, to which I belong, in terms of material civilization, is below that of the Russians.   However, when it comes to affairs of state, the feeling of joint responsibility is the order of the day; there, a fully democratic regime can be applied.  It is also possible for the Kazak and the Turkmen.    The level of civilization is high among the Bukharans.   On the other hand, they are used to obey the despotic orders.   What can be observed among the old Baskurt, the common action of their partisan groups, was never experienced by the Bukharans.   When the Kazak, Baskurt and the Ozbek are independent, it will be possible to apply socialism to pasturing, watering, mining operations and in transportation; but general socialism that will destroy personal initiative and self determination, never.   When it comes to Afghanistan, you know it best.   Since you are a neighbor of the Russians who only wish to saw seeds of discord from within, if political parties are established and a free press becomes operational to criticize the Government, they can be bought by the Russians.   Free radio cannot exist [for the same reason].   You can organize the laborers on the bases of nationality.   The national labor unions were established in Azerbaijan during 1918-1919; can they also be founded in Afghanistan?   The days referenced by the poet Am’aq, who observed the time of the Karahanid, of the Karluk and Oghuz mischief-making, ten years of cruelty by a Ruler is preferable to two days of instigation by the common people, may arrive.   Perhaps the best solution for Afghanistan is constitutional monarchy.   But, you will know that best.”  

That person, who was a guest, wrote down most of what I said.   When the time for prayers arrived, Abdurresul Han wanted me to be the imam.   I stated that I have never been a prayer leader, and I did not even know the parayers well.   After the namaz, he prayed for me beautifully.   He also pressed a few gold coins into my hand with the statement: “they may be of use along the way.”

Thus, I received a good sendoff from Afghanistan.   Abdurresul Han was a Germanophile.   He arrived in Berlin during the winter of 1924, in order to have his son enter school there.   Once again, we engaged in good conversation.    In general, Afghans are patriotic humans.   They are aware of the Russian danger, and they appreciate those who fight them.



VIII
INDIA --TURKIYE

Peshawar—
We left Kabul on 24 September 1923 toward India via an automobile.   Our groom Abdulhalik was there to see us off, with his tears.   With that car, we reached the famed Khyber Pass via Celalabad.   This pass is like the Cungar Pass in Central Asia.   Whenever the Turks boiled over in Turkili, they would cross it as they did many times.     It was welcoming the conquering Turks.   Now, we were thinking that the English Border and Customs Officers were going to inspect our belongings like the Bolsheviks in Russia did.   I had left the papers I regarded as “secret” to General Fahri with the request that he bring them out for me.   Twenty years later, during the war, when I heard that the Nazis were inspecting my belongings and papers while I was away at Hotel Adlon in Berlin, I had left my papers similarly to our Berlin Ambassador Saffet Arikan Bey.   He brought them to Istanbul.   Both of our Ambassadors brought out my papers.    I am able to write these memoirs with the aid of the papers General Fahri brought out.   In sum, Abdulkadir and I remained in India from 25 September until 1 November, for a duration of five weeks.After India became two independent states, I visited Pakistan three times, and India once during 1964.   For a month, I visited the cultural centers of India as a guest of Nehru and the Indian Government.   I held talks with the scholarly and political leaders.   I perused the contents of their valuable libraries and discovered important sources pertaining to the Turkish cultural history.   However, the India I visited during 1923 was very different.   The English were the real owners and they gave us permission to travel under very tight conditions.   There was no possibility of visiting the addresses given to us by our Afghan and Indian friends.   Nevertheless after we arrived at the Khyber Pass, we were prepared to open our suitcases to show the customs officials.   Instead, they asked: “what is inside?”   We responded with: “clothes, books and papers.”   When they asked: “is there anything else to declare?”   We responded with: “we have one pistol; shall we show it?”   Their answer was: “no; if you had brought two truckloads, we would have asked to see them.   Welcome; continue on your journey.”    As it was clear, even when India was a colony, it was completely different than Turkistan under Russian rule.   In Peshawar, we stated at a hotel with a name that starts with the letter D.   I never thought that I would someday visit India.   But, I did.

In the morning, the Governor sent for us.   He told me: “we are awaiting instructions on the conditions of your travel in India from Simla.   You will stay here for several days.”   In return I asked him: “via our Kabul Embassy we had notified you that we were going to gather with Osman Hoca who arrived from Kabul; Abdulhamid Arifov from Chitral; and Sadreddin Han, Turabbek and Mustafa Sakuli from Meshed.   Where are they and how can we speak with them about the problems of our own country?”   That governor’s answer was: “I do not know their addresses.   I will not permit you to gather here.   In general, in our country we had voted the socialists to power.   The head of the Labor Party and Prime Minister Mr. McDonald [sic. First time in office 22 January 1924 – 4 November 1924] is determined to have better relations with the Soviets.   We cannot allow India to become a base for political movements against Soviet Union.   You must know this.”     His superior behavior made me angry.   He began asking me questions looking at a sheet of paper.   I responded with: “I, too, am a representative of an honorable nation.   You are speaking by turning your back to me, stretching your legs on a table.   I cannot answer your questions.   If you so wish, you can send us back to Afghanistan.”   He responded with “as you wish.”   He was speaking in Persian.   I stated “Huda Hafiz-I suma.”   We left and went to the hotel.   I was extremely unhappy.   Their spies were following us.   We wanted to eat somewhere.   An undercover officer approached us and stated: “your meal is waiting for you at your hotel.”   I responded with: “I will not eat the meal you are offering.   We will buy our bread from the market.   Our meals are not included at the hotel.”    In sum, the conditions were bad.   Just about at that time, I saw one of the Bukharans.   We spoke a little.    He introduced us to a Tatar imam by the name of Habibirrahman Bulgari.   He invited us to his home.   I thought he was one of the spies of the Bukharan who was following us, and arrived in his home.   He represented himself as a man serving the Emir of Bukhara.   He lent us the White Russian newspapers he had with him.   Later, he took us to the home of another person in the service of the Bukharan Emir, by the name of Mirbedelov.   I knew that person since 1914 as the translator of the Bukhara Emir.   He was certainly in the service of the English more than the Bukharan Emir.   He gave me a letter from the Baskurt lawyer Sahiahmedov, with whom we worked at the beginning of the 1917 Revolution.   After the Russian rule descended on Turkistan, he went to Manchuriya via Siberia; he knew that I was in Kabul.   This was a surprise for me.   That is because; Sahiahmedov fought seriously against me and autonomy at the 1917 Turkistan congresses.   Now, he wrote this letter confessing that I was right, and listing excuses.   On the other hand, by the hand of Sahiahmedov, a communication channel would open to contact the Baskurt soldiers and officers who went to the Far East during the Kolchak regime of 1919, especially with Colonel Alimcan Tagan.   Since the English definitely did not want the Baskurdistan and Turkistan national organizations contacting each other, or the outside world, continuing their policy in Siberia during 1918 and 1919, I did not mail the letters from Peshawar via the English Post.   I gave them to the Italian ship on its way to the Far East from Bombay.    Mirbedelov and Gerey Toksaba knew as well as the men of the Bukharan Emir, that the English Policy deeply desired the keep the Russian imprisoned Moslems under white or red Russian control.  

Haydar Hoca Mirbedelov is not related to the Ozbek General Mirbedelov who lives in Samarkand.   The epithet “Hoca” is generally attributed to the descendents of the Prophpet; our Haydar Hoca adapted it in order to give him the honor of becoming a “seyyid.”    That is because; in reality he is the son of a Kazan merchant.   During 1913, when I was in Bukhara, he gave me the lineage of his family.   At that time, he was publishing a newspaper with the title Buhara-I Serif in Tajik (sometimes in Ozbek).   Now, he welcomed me as an old friend.   Even though he was managing the financial affairs of the Emir, he had deep grievances against him.   He gave me some works written in “liberalish” style; among them the Moslem philosopher Muhammed Iqbal’s newly published work Peyam-I Masriqi (Messsage of the Easterner).   I had learned many of the poems by this great poet and philosopher when I was in Bukhara, from my friends Mirza Abdulkadir and Ekabirsah.   However, they were not printed and fragmentary.  

Hasim Saik and a poem of Ebulfadl—
Hasim Saik has journeyed all the way to Istanbul to receive an education, and served to bring progress to Afghanistan; yet he had an indistinct personality.    When he saw a Turk, he would speak like a Turk; if he were to meet an Iranian, he would imitate that.   He was intended as our representative to the Far East.   However, a day before we left Kabul, he went to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and stated that if he were to find a “quti layemut” [roughly: ‘sinecure’] here, he would not chase after the Turkistan Independence Struggle.   Feyz Muhammed Han told me that.   I became very angry, and just before we left, I wrote the following poem in his notebook by Ebuldadl-I Allami, the writer of Ekber Sah:  “Those who are not aware of the world, also do not know themselves/ instead of skill and virtue, they chase disgraceful topics/ when they reach the mind, they become a poisoning smoke (casting darkness to ideas)/ when they approach the candle, they become the wind to extinguish it.”

A Bukharan by the name of Gerey Toksaba, from the entourage of the Emir, gave me a letter sent by Hasim Saik.   Poor man, he was sad because of this poem.   He again stressed that fact in his letter to me received in Ankara during 1926.  

The execution of Evhadi—
I told Mirbeledof that I wanted to speak with some of the local scholars and men of ideas.   He told us that we needed to obtain permission from the police for the purpose.   After we returned to the hotel, we asked the police; they did not permit it.   Mirbeledof gave me some newspapers several French newspapers and journals.   That night, we read them at the hotel, as well as the Russian newspapers lent us by Habib-u Rahman.   Two of the items we learned from those newspapers were important for me: First one was in the Posledniye Novosti newspaper published by Meliukov in Paris, the execution of Colonel Evhadi Ismurzin in Moscow, after he was tried, who was the former War Minister of the Baskurdistan Government.   He was accused of participating as a commander in the Turkistan uprising in the entourage of the “Famed Validov.”   This was very bitter news for me.   Evhadi was a Baskurt whom I have known since we were children, and the son of a Russian teacher.   Like his brother Suleyman, he had studied in the Tasrist Military School and had graduated as an officer.   Like their father, they were raised as nationalists.   Evhadi had served as a commander in our army, and after I had been appointed Head of our Government, he became the War Commissar.   We fought together in the battles around Samarkand.    During July 1922 I had left Evhadi and his friends at a village near the headwaters of the Senzar River.   They were going to journey to Bukhara to join General Enver.   I had then journeyed to Tashkent to participate in the secret Seventh Meeting of the Turkistan Congress.   At that time, the Russians poured into all of the creeks, and surrounded the forces in which Evhadi was also serving.   When his horse stumbled over a sone and they fell on the ground, Russians caught him and took him to Tashkent.   He was immediately sent to Moscow, tried and killed.

The second bit of news pertained to the new government established by the English Labor Party and their possible coming to terms with the Soviets.   This was a brand-new piece of news for me.   That is because, I knew England as a country of Conservatives and Liberals, meaning bourgeois and capitalists.   What I knew about English Labor Party indicated it was a very opportunist institution; this news was upsetting all that I learned over the years, while I was living in Russia.   Instead of an open conflict, I thought of conditions developing into a “cold war” and a shooting war never taking place.   In my work “Social Revolution in the East” which my friend Hasim Saik in Kabul has been working on to translate into Farsi, I had regarded England and the Western world as pure bourgeois-capitalist states that would never come to terms with Bolsheviks.   That late afternoon, I wrote into my diary: “that means, we are going to a Europe much different than we had imagined.   That means, the issues of social revolution and recidivism are not going to be resolved by a war with weapons; they can go on at length by two sided talks and enter into dead-ends.”  

Sir Olaf Caroe—
On 27 September, two bureaucrats arrived from the vilayet [provincial administration; ruled over by a governor], and stated: “you did not wish to speak with the Governor.   Perhaps you will speak with another official.”   I responded: “if he does not turn his back to me, we will talk.”   A little later, we went to the vilayet and we were welcomed.   In a room of the vilayet, we were introduced to an elegantly dressed English Officer speaking Farsi.   He stated: “welcome; I hope you'll get better soon.   The Governor apologizes.   We English stretch our legs and sit without ceremony when we are in the presence of friends.   If we do not wish to speak with someone, we will politely utter a few words.   The Governor made a lot of statements to you.   If you would like, we can continue.”   I responded: “with pleasure; anyway, we are not going to remain in your country; we are temporary guests.”   The Officer: “I surmise what offended you is our not permitting you to speak with your friends.   But the Governor explained the reasoning.   There are big changes in England.   Yet, we let Viceroy Lord Reeding know of the circumstances.   You might stay here for a few days.”   He picked-up the papers from a file containing the information on my life and activities, which they had collected, reading them aloud and asking me to verify each item.    In that context, he asked me about our struggle with Admiral Kolchak and General Dutov; also about the declaration I made as reported by Pravda during 1919 concerning the general politics; my attitude at the Baku Eastern Congress of 1920 and the policies I had followed among some groups at Bukhara.   From those, I was astonished to discover that the English Government saw it valuable to collect information on me with care.   In addition, I thus discovered that some of the individuals who approached and spoke with me at Baku and Bukhara were members of the English Intelligence Service.   When I was sent to England for six months by the Istanbul University Literature Faculty during 1954, I learned from Sir Olaf Caroe the identity of the Officer who showed so much interest in me.   It transpired that Sir Olaf Caroe was at the time held an important post at Lord Reeding’s Cabinet, and was interested in our Turkistan matters.   At that time, he collected the information which he placed in his very interesting book entitled Soviet Empire and the Turks of Central Asia published in 1953.   Perhaps it was he who questioned me, because at the time he was seconded to the Governor of Peshawar.   However, the other Officer knew Farsi well.  

Even though it was not possible to speak with the natives openly, I went to the libraries and studied the works that were of interest to me.   I discovered with amazement that my Indian trip was of concern to the English Government more than I imagined in the answer received from Lord Reeding.   The instructions on my trip comprised of fourteen items, and arrived from Simla by airplane.   We were ordered to travel to Bombay directly.   Al the permissions we had requested to speak with poet Muhammed Iqbal living in Lahore, the Historian Sulayman Nedvi in Bombay via the Peshawar Governor were denied item-by-item.   On the way to Bombay, we could only stay at Ecmir and tour the facilities belonging to the Cesti sect.

The wedding of the Chaghatay—
Our train remained at Lahore perhaps half a day.   I requested permission form the Station Police Chief to speak with Iqbal by providing his address.   The request was denied as was permission to tour the city.   When we left Lahore, as a pure coincidence, we were at the same carriage with the descendents of the Chaghatay who had ruled this country for centuries.   None spoke Turkish.   They were speaking in Urdu.   Some knew Farsi.   We spoke quite a bit with them, and collected some information as to where they live.   In the 1881 census there were 23,593 Chaghatay in Delhi and Rawalpindi regions; and there were 12,147 Barlas during the same year.   The procession we encountered belonged to a wedding among the Chaghatay and the Argun.   After arriving in Ecmir, their carriages were separated from our train.   The young ones were still having fun.  

Between Lahore and Bombay, the train remained in Ecmir for half a day.   This is the cradle of the Cisti sect, after emigrating from the Cust Township of Ferghana.   From among them, Lutfullah Cust became famous in Turkistan during the 16th century.   We wanted to visit the mausoleums of their Seyhs.   We were told the train was about to leave.   We could not leave the station; only saw two mausoleums.   

Bombay—
At Bombay, we stayed at Hotel Sahcihan, visited the museums, libraries, Royal Asiatic Society, book markets.   We perused the books published in Bombay and Rawakisur since the beginning of the 19th century and bought many of them.   From that perspective, our Bombay trip was very beneficial to my teaching life in Istanbul.   Wherever I went, I was followed by Farsi speaking detectives.   At one time, I entered into a covered bazar, mixed in with the crowd and disappeared from the view of the detectives.   By showing the address in my hand to the driver, I arrived at the Action Committee of the Indian Moslems.   I found the person recommended by Afghan Abdurresul Han at his room, and handed him the letter to my hand.   Suleyman Nadvi whom I was looking for was living in another city.   We talked at length.   I had no business to conduct against the English in India.   Despite all that, they were attaching great import not to have contacts between the Indian “Ahrar” [liberal] and the supporters of “Hilafe” [supporters of Caliph] as well as Central and South Moslem tribes and the revolutionaries.   Dr. Anisari with whom I was speaking knew all this very well; he warned me so as not to get me into trouble, and suggested that I cross over to another building via another door, and then take a taxi.   On the way, I changed taxis, and arrived at the Sahcihan Hotel nand found my friend Abdulkadir in a tizzy, almost crying.   That was because the English Police searched for me everywhere in the city and pressured Abdulkadir very much.   During those days, the Indian Revolutionaries Sevket Ali and Muhammed Ali were released from prison, and there were demonstrations in the streets.   When they arrived across Sahcihan Hotel, they greeted some of their own men from within their car.   The owner of the Hotel asked me if I wanted to be introduced.   I responded: “let us not make the English anxious; let it pass.”  

Foundation stones of my future library—
I bought plenty of books from Bombay booksellers.   Among them were the great scholar and philosopher of the Babur period, Nimetullah Veli Dihlev’s Huccetullah al Baliga named philosophical work; works of El Biruni published in Leipzig; most of the Indian Islamic historians’ “mystics and poets” collections, Mihac Cuzecani, Bayhaqi, Serafeddin Yezdi’s and Islamic Mystics’ works; historical volumes in the Bibliotheca Indica, Vassaf, Khondemir; Abdulhaq Dihlevi and Husrev Dihlevi’s and Prince Darasukuh’s works.   At that time even though I did not know English, since I had decided that I was going to learn it, availing myself of this opportunity I bought the English translations of El Biruni and Cuzecani, as well as Elliott’s works.

Especially at the old “Melikul-kuttab Mirza Muhammed Sirazi”s shop, I bought whatever I could find under a cover of dust.   Bartold always complained that he could never get hold of these.   In sum, I was transitioning from armed fighting to scholarly history.  Thus I established the foundations of my library at Meshed, Kabul and Bombay.   That was because we had money, and we would be able to take the books in crates all the way to Istanbul easily.   In the establishment of this library, even the Chief of the Ferghana Basmaci Kor Sirmet Bey participated by presenting me with a copy of Mirxond’s Ravdat-us-Safa.   Even though listing the names of books in a memoir is a superfluous business, I did so because it shows what I was thinking while I was buying them, and the direction of my scholarly life was taking in Iran, Afghanistan and in India.   I apologize from those who might be reading this work.

Muhammed Ikbal [Iqbal]—
I spent my time in Bombay reading the works of poet Muhammed Ikbal.   When I visited the “Center for Caliphate” of the Indian Moslems, I was given different poems.   What Mirbedelof presented me at Peshawar, Ikbal composed as an answer to Goethe’s “East-West Diwan.”   The German philosopher and poet reflected the thoughts of Eastern allies.   Ikbal, in his work, reflects the thoughts of Goethe, Nietzsche, Hegel, Tolstoy, Karl Marx and the like with the same skill and cultural level.   Ikbal took the Islamic Word as a whole, and spoke of their problems.   He remained loyal to Bukhara, Tabriz and Konya, since Islam in India carries the spirit of masters who rose from those three cities.   In his poem praising Turkiye under the guidance of Mustafa Kemal who won a victory against the Westerners, he stated: “We the Moslems of the World had joined the world under the direction of an illiterate leader (the Prophet); even though we had not weapons in our heands, we hunted many quarries.   Now, even though we hold many weapons, we have fallen into the hands of our quarries.”   After that, addressing Mustafa Kemal, he stated: “wherever your horse can go, run there; until today, we have fooled ourselves that we have ostensibly been taking precautions.   As a result, we lost everything.   Now, run, let us take back what we lost.”

Since “Mustafa” is also the name of our Prophet, Ikbal is using that name in dual meaning, and mentioning him along with Mevlana Rumi who he regards as his greatest spiritual guide, expecting his inspiration from Turkiye: “The Turk sapling, despite her long-suffering under the European lightning, spread-out roots and formed fruits.   As Prophet Muhammed Mustafa had reached maturity as a result of harassment by his enemy Ebuleheb, the Mustafa of the Turks (Mustafa Kemal) also reached maturity as a result of his fight with the Europeans.   Do not measure my poetry with the standards of Indians and the Persians, because the essence of this poetry is derived from the tears falling during midnight.  Come, Rumi seyh (Celaleddin Rumi), let me bring a wine of words from his wine-jar, which is fresher than the grape-wine.”  

At that time, I entered a mosque in Bombay.   I discovered that there was a sign on the wall which read: “zinde bad Mustafa Kemal [roughly: living wind, Mustafa Kemal].”   To the left of the mihrab [niche indicating the direction to be taken during prayers], there were two rahle [bookrest], one had a Kur’an, the other a copy of Mesnevi [a long poem by Celaleddin Rumi].    That meant, the Moslems of India regarded Mustafa Kemal their own hero.   Among the poems of Ikbal, there were beautiful ones that would excite those from Turkistan.   Among them: “the saz [traditional Turkish stringed musical instrument] of Temur was broken, but the melody still lives; that harmony will some day reappear on the stage from another saz of Samarkand.”  

Ikbal is an Indian, but with his spirit and culture, he is very tightly bound with the Turks.   He stated: “even though I am a son of India, the kohl of my eyes are from the clean soil of Bukhara, Kabul and Tebriz.”   Like the Bukhara Seyhs do, Ikbal had deep respect; in Kabul, toward Babur, Humayun, Cihangir, Seyh Feyzullah Kabili; in Tebriz, among the Seyhs, Sems Tebrizi and regarded the soil of all these three cities as kohl.   Those who constituted the biggest cultural revolutions in the history of India are the Turks, starting with Mahmud of Gazne.   Ikbal regards that another deluge would arise from Turkistan, but he believes that it would evolve into Mevlana and Sems Tebrizi movements once again: “I fear that from the soil of Samarkand, another storm of Cengiz, and overflow of Hulagu will emanate; Mutrip, bring a gazel [ode] and couplet from Celaleddin Rumi, and let them wrap themselves around Sems Tebrizi and fan the flames.”     Ikbal regards the Turks as a source of excitement, and likes to use use such classic terms as “the beauty of the Turk will derail even the devout.”   Ikbal’s poems such as those would immediately place them into my memory.   As such, my days in Bombay were spent as “days of Ikbal.”  

While we were in Russia, we regarded the League of Nations as an authority that would protect the weak, and give them refuge.   Ikbal, on the other hand, criticized that institution as “a place where the shrewd thieves gathered in order to divide the loot.”   If I could see him in Lahore, I was going to talk with him on similar topics.   I hoped that the struggle in Turkistan excited him.   If we could have talked he might have produced some poems that would rekindle the Turkistan struggle.   But the English did not permit that.  

The future of India-Turkistan relations—
Our five weeks of travel in India, provided me with the opportunity to reconsider some of the different aspects of our struggle.   What I learned there gave me the opportunity to write my thoughts on the joint aims of Turkistan and India in my book published in Egypt during 1929 under the title Bugunku Turkistan ve yakin mazisi [Today’s Turkistan and her recent past], Pp. 668-675.  

During our talks in Kabul, we discussed the fact that the Russian proposed plans to open large canals from Amudarya, Sirdarya, Cu and Ile rivers would water the deserts of Karakum, Kizilkum, and Moyonkum; that would attract tens of millions of individuals to those areas, and increase the populations of Eastern Iran, Afghanistan and India.   On the other hand, in order to stop the waves of Slavic immigration, it is necessary for the Central and Southern Asian states to cooperate.   I had reflected on these issues in the aforementioned book.   Sir Olaf Caroe, who was the assistant to Viceroy Lord Reeding and Minister of Foreign Affairs while we were in India, made wide-scale use of my ideas expressed in my aforementioned book pertaining to the future relations between Turkistan and India in his Soviet Empire and the Turks of Central Asia which he published in 1953.   When I attended the Congress of Orientalists held in Delhi during 1964, my ideas reflected in the work of Sir Olaf Caroe had already attracted the attention of the elders of India as well as Nehru, and they had the original translated from Turkish and read the details.   This also let to my being invited to the lectern, after the long speech by Nehru, to respond to him at the same congress.   After my response was completed, Nehru rose, along with everyone at the dais, and shook my hand and stated: “we knew of your works for a long time via your friends present here.”   My ideas on the future relations between India and Turkistan had even greater effect on the Pakistan Moslems.   I heard that personally from Professor Muhammed Safi as well as The President of Pakistan, Iskender Mirza, during the graduation ceremony (Convocation) of the Lahore University.    Besides, Indians definitely read every work published on the affairs of the East and on Moslems.   During 1964, when I was visiting the city of Patna, the educated Moslem ladies there had acquainted themselves with my ideas via Olaf Caroe’s work.   They insistently encouraged me to have my memoirs translated and published in Urdu.  

While we were in Bombay, the individuals I spoke with at the “Committee on Caliphate” stated: “if General Enver had succeeded, that would have resulted in different conditions.   However, his reaching the rank of Martyrdom during his personal participation, had lent a holy air to the affair which affected the Indian Moslems.   They also told us that they had learned of the feast given to honor Mevlevi Bereketullah, one of the oldest members of the Committee on Caliphate, in Baskurdistan, and the speeches supporting the independence of India, after Bereketullah moved to Paris and wrote them down.   In sum, we left India after our short visit with good impressions, despite the barriers placed in our way by the English.  

While I was in India, I had copied many beautiful poems by local poets in Persian into my notebook.   Unfortunately, I had not written down the names of the poets.   I obtained a copy of El-Biruni’s book on India, written in Arabic, published in Europe, through the bookseller Mirza Muhammed Sirazi.   Even though it contains topics which are beyond my comprehension, I am reading that book.   At the same bookseller Sirazi, I read the first half of the book by El-Biruni with the title “Qanun Mas’udi” in a manuscript form.   In that book, this great scholar of Turkistan had discussed the revolution of the Earth around the sun.  

The plans of our future scholarly work—
On Thursday, 1 November at Eleven o’clock, we left Bombay on board Lloyd Triestino with the destination Beirut via Suez Canal.   On board, the sailors were providing us with plentiful Italian wine.   The food was good.   My friend Fethulkadir (Abdulkadir), who enjoyed emptying the round bottles wrapped in wickerwork, was in a good frame of mind.   He drank for days on end.   If I had not requested from the sailors not to be so free with their generosity, our friend may not have been cognizant of our crossing Aden, Portsaid and Izmir, and may have opened his eyes only in Istanbul.   We spent the ensuing 27 days of sea-travel making plans for our future academic studies.   My primary field of interest was history; Fethulkadir’s was language and ethnography.   Since it was decided at our Kabul Meeting of 26-28 June that I was going to devote myself to scholarship, I began making a schedule of plans.   Since that plan regulated my life for the next forty-three years, I will make a survey of it in my memoirs.   Since my scholarly field of interest encompassed Central and Western Asia, in general the contemporary and past political and cultural life of Russian Islam, and that since I did not know where I was going to live, I constituted a portable library that could easily be transported without disturbing the placement of the books.   Thus I made my study plans, giving priority to those topics that began with contemporary issues.   The library was going to be comprised of wooden boxes with lids, one meter wide, and accommodate one or two rows of books.   Today I have in excess of one hundred boxes in my home.   At that time, my plan was for eighteen boxes.   These boxes were to acquire box numbers, and the books, a book number.   Now, during this sea-voyage, I had eighty-six volumes and many pamphlets.   Scholarly communications, research materials, folio, quarto, octavo were going to be placed in VIIIth, IXth, and Xth boxes.   Box number Eight will contain correspondence with some scholars, and their short writings.   Since I did not know where I was going to reside, the entire library and papers are going to be kept in Istanbul.   For that purpose, it is necessary to rent space in a concrete building to preserve my library.   During our trip of Iran and Afghanistan whatever materials we collected on Chaghatay literature, we placed them in box X, section 9, volume 11 during this trip; it amounted to 1206 pages.   Of those, 78 pages are systematic index.   This Bombay-Istanbul trip allowed me to   organize my scholarly work for the past forty-three years without fail.  

Bundle culture—
Since my library is going to be mobile, it will consist of such boxes.   That is because of the “bundle culture” that was placed into my mind from my earliest days.   All possessions of nomads are mobile.   All clothes, underwear are placed in bundles, then in wooden boxes.   If they have books, so are they.   The bundles and boxes are loaded onto the backs of horses and oxen.   Rugs, the skeleton of the tent, felt walls, the tent crown are loaded on the the backs of camels.   Even though my family has not been going to the high pastures for the past century, all the bundles at home are still kept in wooden boxes.   After I reached the age of seventy, I began to place my library into permanent cabinets.   My mother-in-law, wife of a Dobruca Nogay, even though she is eighty-six years old, maintains all her possessions in bundles and suitcases; as if we are going to migrate tomorrow.  Two of my aged friends, Professor Paul Kable in the West, and Professor Muhammed Safi in the East (Pakistan) adopted my library system maintained in boxes.   That means, the traditions of nomads do not easily leave the cognizance even after generations, and civilized individuals can also accept them.   The huge libraries of philosopher Farabi [d. 950] and the 15th century Turkish scholar Husameddin of Siginak along the banks of Sirdarya were thus transported in bundles and boxes.  

Zibunnisa—
I was very happy to have obtained the books we did at Meshed, Herat, Kabul, Peshawar and Bombay, regarding them as a blessing.   I would handle them one at a time, caressing.   Among them there was a lithographed volume entitled Divan-I Maxfi.   This was the collection of poems by the Princess Zibunni, and it was given to me by my beloved friend, the old Afghanistan Ambassador in Bukhara, Abdurresul Han who often read to me from it with love and sometimes even with excitement.   Zibunnisa is a prominent member of the Temur family who had ruled India.   The loves she experienced in the fields of sciences, literature, mysticism and political events can constitute scenarios for novels and movies.   She is the daughter of the last great emperor Evregzib (1658-1707) [Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb] of the Babur’s family.   She memorized the Kur’an at the age of seven.   Her father appointed a scholarly Ozbek woman teacher to her by the name of Miyabay during the year 1640.   That teacher taught her Farisi, Arabic, astronomy and algebra.   Even at the age of fourteen, she began writing commentary on the Kur’an, showing her understanding.   Like her grandfather Babur’s daughter Gulbeden, Zibunnisa was also a poet.   She was influenced by Ekber Mirza, meaning she followed the route of religious tolerance; advance the thinking to bring together Islamic and Indian teachings.   She believed that the Indians would accept Islam faster through that approach, and shared her Uncle Prince Darasukuh’s thoughts on the subject.   It is said that she liked to read, besides the Kur’an, the Book of the Holy, The works of Indan philosopher Bramanatra, Muhiddin ibn Arabi and the works of Celaleddin Rumi.   This diwan, printed in lithograph, only contains her poems in Farsi.   However, Zibunnisa also wrote poetry in Turkish and Arabic.   She engaged in verbal competition with a poet by the name of Nasir Ali.   Abdurresul Han had mentioned those poems.   Some of her poems were included in her uncle Darasukuh’s collection.   She had the mastery of embroidery, just like Darasukuh.   Some of her images are in private hands, in addition to one showing her reading the Kur’an.   Her father had a villa built for her in his Delhi Palace named “Arsin Tavus.”   She had written and ornately adorned exquisite works there.   However, Earthly blessings did not satisfy her.   Every year, she would send scores of poor people to perform the hajj; she would entertain herself with gardening and sports.    She would keep a sportsman poet by the name of Imami nearby.   She was first in swordplay.   Her grandfather Emperor Cihansah was going to have her marry Darasukuh’s son Suleyman.   However, her father Evregzib was an extreme zealot and did not like Darasukuh and his son.   For those reasons, he prevented that marriage.   With that, he had his daughter’s life filled with tragedies.   There were many others who wanted to marry her, but Zibunnisa wanted to speak with her suitors personally.   From that aspect, she was just like Kutulun, the daughter of Kaydu Han, of the Cengiz lineage.   It is possible that Zibunnisa knew of Kutulun from history.    Mirza Faruk, son of Sah Abbas the Second, the ruler of the Safavids had seen her poetry and an image of her and fell in love with Zibunnisa.   He arrived in Delhi with the intent of marrying her.   There were verbal competitions and discussions between them.   When Zibunnisa realized her own culture was higher, she declined to marry him.   Faruk Mirza returned to Iran.   Later on, because her name was mixed in with political matters, and when it was heard that she was communicating with her uncle Darasukuh who had revolted, her father imprisoned her at the Salimcar castle.   The poems she wrote in the palace where she was imprisoned made her famous.   After the rebellion was pacified, her father released Zibunnisa.   Thereafter she occupied herself with science and arts, lived in Lahore and died of ailments at the age of fifty during 1689.   Zibunnisa’s poetry was read at the gatherings of the pious, and the audience would reach ecstacy from those poems.   In the diwan to my hand I liked the following poems: “in appearance I am a Leyla; but spiritually, I am more like Mecnun.   Only modesty is chaining my foot, and prevents me from journeying into the desert.”    “You are a princess among the world of beauty.   All the beautiful are in the need of kissing your feet.   At least do not allow the blood of the innocent to spill, do not pour oil on the flame of the cruel Haccac [etremely cruel governor of Iraq at the time of Islam rising].”   She liked to dance.   “Dance in front of your intimates as well as the strangers; but, know not to fall into the hands of the men while doing so.   Do not let go of the source of love from your hand.   Continue to dance among the drunker lovers.”   Zibunnisa also knew that the tradition of ruling Turk women appearing with an open face, without a veil in ceremonial rooms also applied to her and wrote: “remove the veil from your beautiful face according to the ceremony of the rulers.    Show your face to your subjects and provide solace to them.”     Zibunnisa loved the Prophet Muhammad, and her biggest ambition was to visit Kabe [Prophet’s burial site].   However, being a Princess, she could not move about as she liked.   Her nat [natural-spirit style poem] she stated for the Prophet [Nebi] is very beautiful.   My friend Abdulkadir was asleep; I fell into sleep reading her “nat-I nebi.”  

Homeland of our Prophet, Hicaz—
On the morning of Wednesday, 7 November, we were scheduled to reach the Hadramut shores of Hijaz.   I woke early.   Below, on the deck, the Arab laborers who were returning home form Bombay were playing cards.   One of them, with a good voice, reciting the Kur’an, and later, “Nat-I Nebi,” woke me.    In those poems, based on the Busiri ‘kaside’ [eulogy] that I knew well in my youth, it is stated: “you, the community of Moslems!   By the Grace of God, we are leaning on our religion which is a column that will not tumble or shaken.   All of us, under the surety of the Prophet, who is the auspicious father and beneficial husband, the children will not be left orphan and the women will not become widow.”   Several of the Rabas re-read those two lines several times.   Their faith and their trust in our Prophet were so strong.   Even though a portion of the Turks have been under the Russian yoke since the 16th century, they have been able to maintain their identity due to Islam.   Now, what will happen to them?   Even Zibunnisa had stated in her poetry, alluding to the family lineage of the Babur: “They have been grateful to the Prophet for allowing them to remain as the dominant element in a crowd of Mazdeans.”   Now, we are arriving at the homeland of our Prophet whom I love.   Those pilgrims arriving in Hijaz by way of India during the 17th century, when they saw the Hadramut Mountains, would repeat “God is great.”   I did that, too.   All the events I lived through during the recent years were streaming like a movie before my eyes.   My heart was filled with compassion.   I prepared to perform namaz.   We always turned to the Kible [direction of Mecca] toward the South.   Now, it was in the North.   That made me curious.   I accompanied the Arabs on the deck and performed two rekats [roughly: sections] of morning namaz.   Following, I wrote this “poem” into my diary: “we genuflected many a time looking South, my God/ looking toward the North, if I were to prostrate myself once, will it suffice?/ My nation and homeland is suffering untold pains.  If you do not intercede, will they all come to an end by themselves, my God?”

Abdulkadir was still asleep.   When we approached the Port of Aden, I woke him.   We had arrived at the homeland of Veysulkarani [Üveys-i Karni], to Yemen.   He was a contemporary of Muhammad, and deeply believed in him; but, he could not go visit him, which caused him a deep spiritual pain.   I used to hear the Chaghatay poems describing all that from the mouths of the Dervish every market day.   Several of those were still in my memory.   But, Abdulkadir knew them much better.   When we arrived at the port, I wanted to step on the ground of Veysulqarani’s homeland.   This place now had become world’s transit point; the English police did not allow it.   I asked the Arab policeman who was under the command of the English: “where is Veysulqarani’s village Yemen?”   He did not know.  

The greatness of illiterate Muhammad is not based on miracles.   He was an ordinary person who showed the right path to humanity.   He was a mature person who stated that, in every battle he fought, even though he believed of his victory, he had not received any sign from the invisible world in such matters.   The religion he practiced had become the laws of the state in Medina and he stated: “if the Polytheists kill you, you kill all of them” (II 491, 9.5 IX, 88.90 IV).   In parallel, he spoke of the necessity to have full trust in Islam he specified “there is no forcing in religion” (256 II).   “Your religion belongs to you, mine belongs to me” (6 CIX).   The persons who understood that one of these ststements did not cancel out others were understood by the descendent of Cengiz, Olcayto [1304 to 1316] and Yavuz Sultan Selim [1465–1520].   According to the understanding of Olcayto, the dictum “kill all the Polytheists; kill them wherever you find them” was stated for the commanders and statesman at large battles.   “Live with the infidel, there is no forcing in religion” was received by the lawgiver Prophet during peace time.   That is just like the Kazak and Kirgiz praising their alp [hero] Iset: “when Iset sees the enemy, he will make his horse play [in battle run]; when there is peace, Iset stays at home and makes cheese.”

As such Islam became a lovable national religion for the Turks.  Other distinct features of the Prophet’s greatness are seen in morals and politics.   The positive aspects he preached: single God, loyalty, fidelity, friendship, intelligent courage, thoughtfulness, discipline, moderation and joy.   From the negative perspective, to scare the the people with: other Gods, lying, fickleness, insincerity, fearfulness, gluttony, anger, hypocrisy.   The reason for the Busiri “Qaside” and the stories concerning Hazret-I Ali to be translated, read quite a bit and memorized during the times of the Karahanids, Chaghatay, Timurids and Ozbeks is due to the Prophet’s character being very suitable for the Turks.   After removing whatever caused discord and disunion, and knew that he would follow the policy of establishing a world state and after the Sasanids, he realized the time of Byzantium would come.    He also developed the distict characters, after the four Caliphs, such as Muaviye, Abdurrahman bin Avf, Ebuzer Gufari, Halid-ibn Velid.  

The Turks have always been active in history; there has never been another religion that suited them better than that of Muhammed.   After trying-out most other religions, Turks stopped at Islam.   I believe, their henceforth existence in the middle of Asia will be possible via Islam.   For those reasons, after approaching the shores of Yemen, until we crossed Suze Canal, I kept remembering what I read about the life of the Prophet.   Upon reaching Cidde, a desire for me to visit Kabe in the future and the Prophet’s burial, was awakened.  

Shores of Mediterrranean—
We remained in a hotel at Port Said.   I would have liked to visit Egypt, but our money was scarce and my Bukhara passport was complicated.   Upon arriving in Beirut, we entered the city.   When I saw that the education and research was primarily involved Christian Missionaries, I happily realized my efforts during 1908-1909 to reach here would have been a waste.   I scrutinized the American complex where I wanted to study fifteen years ago; I obtained a schedule of courses.   I went to the booksellers, bought history books in Arabic and the works of Arabic thinkers such as Emir Sekib Arslan and Muhammed Ali Kurd describing the contemporary conditions of the Moslems; those I had seen in India.   We arrived in Izmir on 24 November and spoke with General Halil, the brother-in-law of General Enver, and Ismail Seripov, the Commander of our Baskurt Second Cavalry Regiment.   This Officer was one I greatly admired.    When we enacted peace with the Soviets during March 1919, he had not crossed over to the side of the Reds, and was one of our officers who remained among the Whites.   They were together with Sahibek Ozbekov and Resid Huseyinov in the Army of Denikin.   Sahibek was wounded and died in a Crimean hospital.   Resid was in Istanbul.   Ismail wrote a report on the Baskurdistan National Movement and the Baskurt Army as requested by Recep Peker Bey, from the entourage of General Mustafa Kemal.   He gave me copies.   In the present work, great benefits were derived from them.   He also told me that Resid Huseyinov was showing a great deal of enmity toward me, portraying me to anyone who would listen as a socialist and enemy of religion.   This Resid was a son of Gani Bay Huseyinov, a millionaire Tatar of Orenburg.   With his brother Abdurrahman, they became Officers in the Tsarist Army; they joined the Baskurt Army to use that institution in order to regain their millions confiscated by the Soviets.   Some of their real estate was returned to them; however, since we were following socialism, they became our life enemies, and they crossed over to the side of the White Russian Generals.   When we made peace with the Soviets during March 1919, Abdurrahman left our Army and went directly to the Commander of the First Red Army.   He was imprisoned there.   Red Army Command never gave any information to us about those who separated themselves from our mass.   We never learned what happened to Abdurrahman Huseyinov.   In that wealthy Huseyinov family, there was a millionaire missionary molla by the name of Veli Molla.   He was a Monarchist, a severe opponent of anything to do with renewal.   For long years he published a very recidivist journal in Orenburg that carried the title Din ve Maiset [Religion and Life].   These Huseyinovs were among the capitalist Tatars in our country.   Gani Bey, on the other hand, was a very progressive thinker.  

Three days later we arrived in Istanbul.   The Port Police Chief did not allow us to disembark since we did not have a visa.   When we were in Kabul during August, Istanbul still had not been liberated.   To our thinking, a visa issued by the Kabul Ambassador of Ankara Government may have caused the Allied Administration to have us disembark in Istabul.   We had not obtained a visa. 

At the Port of Istanbul—
Since General Halil wired to Istanbul from Izmir, to General Enver’s aide-de-camp Muhittin Bey, who had returned from Kabul to Turkiye, was waiting for us at the landing.   He indicated that since we did not have a visa, we had to apply to Ankara in person.   He also brought with him copies of the newpaper Vakit that carried his serialized account of the Turkistan independence movement.   We wrote a petition to the Foreign Ministry in Ankara, letters to Yusuf Akcora, Agaoglu Ahmet, and Ziya Gokalp indicating we were on our way to France, and requested permission for us to stay for a few days in Istanbul.   Since I was fed-up with the negative attitude of the Port Police Chief, I went to the vilayet [office of the Governor] without permission, and saw the representative of Foreign Ministry, Dr. Adnan Adivar.   I requested permission to stay in Istanbul for a few days.   Adnan Bey specified that “this business is in the jurisdiction of Ankara.   They may think that the Kabul Ambassador may not have issued a visa” and indicated I had to return to the ship.   He accompanied me to the office of the police chief.   The Bukharan Minister of Treasury Nasir Mahdum Hekimoglu and Ayit Mehmet of the Kazaks, who had arrived in Istanbul before us, met us either at our ship or at the port police department.   I gave my boxes full of books to Nasir Mahdum, and asked him to have library boxes constructed according to my specifications.   I requested of Ayit Mehmet to label each book to enter those boxes, and to keep an index.    While I was in Europe for the next eighteen months, I was sending the all books I found to Nasir Mahdum; he was having Ayit Mehmet place them into the boxes.  When I arrived in Istanbul during the summer of 1925, I discovered that my library was comprised of eleven boxes, which made me happy.   Even though four days had passed in the port of Istanbul, since we had not received an answer from Ankara, we sadly left on our way to France via Izmir by ship.   There, we were the guests of General Halil for a few days.   He had with him members of General Enver entourage, Sukru Bey Yenibahceli, Dr. Ali Haydar Bey (now in Bursa, Dr. Haydar Oner) and others.   The General gave us excellent feasts, reminded us of our time with him in Moscow and the days of Turkistan independence struggle.   Meanwhile, our permission to stay arrived from Ankara.   But, since we had already obtained a visa from the French Consulate, we left for Marseille via a tramp steamer.   We arrived there on 20 December.   We had with us a very valuable Bukhara rug.   Since the customs required a tax more than we could afford to pay, we had to sell it to the captain of the ship that brought us a recduced amount.   That man had a deep interest in the arts of the East.   I also had a ney [flute] with me, and I was playing it in our cabin.   That captain, even though I was not playing it masterfully, liked to listen.   He knew that I had another ney, and asked for it.   I presented it to him.   He was very happy.  



IX
EIGHTEEN MONTHS I SPENT IN EUROPE

Paris and Mahmud Tarzi—
In Izmir I had obtained the address of a small hotel located on a street of Saint Germain in Paris, managed by a Jewish person from Turkiye.   We went there.   I had purchased a detailed plan of Paris while in Marseille.   Despite the fact that I had a severe cold, we visited the famous quarters of the city by tramway and bus.   Even though I had read about and saw movies on Paris, I did not acquire an impression other than the width and orderliness of Champs Elysees.    That night, I took a medicine to make me perspire.   I awoke in a pool of perspiration that had penetrated through my pillow to the matress.   I was completely healthy.   While I was shaving, the wife of the Jewish manager was telling her husband in Russian: “what did this man do; piss into the bed, or pour water into it?”   The owner of the hotel responded: “he is an Asiatic; he perspired and ruined the bed; but, bravo, he had completely cured himself.”  

On 22 December we dressed and went to the Afghan Embassy.   The great thinker and author of Afghanistan, Ambassador Mahmud Han Tarzi greeted and embraced me.   That was because we had earlier corresponded without ceremony via the Afghanistan Ambassador Abdurresul Han.   He stated: “you must change your clothes; dress well and walk accordingly.   This is a land of infidels.”   He brought out a new suit of clothes from his own wardrobe: “Emir Inayetullah Han (the king before Amanulah Han) had this made for me due to the wedding.   It was a tad short, so I had not worn it.”  I told him that because the suit I was wearing was made in Meshed in the usual Iranian style, and was wrinkled, the woman owner of the hotel called me Asiatic.   We laughed.   When Mahmut Han Tarzi visited Istanbul during 1928, we had taken a trip on the water [Bosphorus] facing the Hotel Tarabya.   He joked: “what you are wearing is very nice; now, nobody can call you an Asiatic.”   In truth, what we were wearing in Paris was very formless.

I had been reading the newspaper Mahmud Han Tarzi had been publishing in Kabul, with the title Sirac ul-Axbar, during 1913-1914 continuously.   Since he was the father-in-law of Inayetullah and Amanullah Hans, he influence in his country was great.   He held us for lunch.   He cussed out the English for not allowing us to talk with Muhammed Ikbal in Lahore, as well as Muhammed Ali and Sevket Ali in Bombay.   He made us very happy by telling us that he would meet our expenses in Paris, and to buy books, and help us with our Berlin trip.  

Grandson of the last Ferghana Ruler—
Islambek Hudayarhanov, the grandson of the last Ferghana ruler Hudayar Han, was the diplomatic secretary at the Embassy.   Since he knew that I knew his father, and I had been a guest at their Tashkent home during 1913, he stated: “when I saw you, I was as happy as seeing my father,” and showed respect.   He helped me with my application to the League of Nations in acquiring a “Stateless” passport, a visa for Germany and other matters.   The Ambassador objected: “why are you acquiring a stateless passport, is Afghanistan not your homeland?  Let us issue you Afghan passports.”   Islambek interjected: “it is beneficial for them to carry stateless passports for their political activities in support of Turkistan.”   He was very much interested in initiatives concerning Turkistan.   However, his official post at the Embassy prevented him from taking an open position.

Mustafa Cokayoglu—
From the Embassy, we went to see Mustafa Cokayoglu.   Even though there were no connections between them, Islambek helped us find Cokayoglu who was living outside the city at a place called Nogent sur Marne.    I had read certain things about this Nogent.   When the Russian Army had arrived in Paris during 1812, the Baskurt military units, as part of the Russian Army, were bivouacked in this Nogent.   In the past, I had read a letter written by an imam of the Baskurt Army about Paris and Nogent that he had sent to Baskurdistan.   Mustafa was a friend I had met during my 1913 Ferghana trip; he was a student at the Tashkent Highschool, and later when he was studying at the Petersburg University.   His father was a Kazak of the Sirdarya Kipcak uruk.   While he was serving at the Khokand Government with the rank of daxoh, when the Russian Army occupied all that territory, he had entered the service of General Peroviski, learned Russian and became a translator.   He was from a family who were warm toward the Ozbek elders during the time of the Khokand; during the time of the Russians, they were friendly with the Russian notables.   However, since he was one of the Kazaks who were included in the Khokand Government, their memories of independence were even fresher.   Because of that, in the 1916 Duma Fraction, when I represented Ufa, and Mustafa represented Sirdarya Province, he always stood with me even though he was a Kadet.   He participated in the Khokand autonomy movement during the 1917 revolution.   When Khokand was invaded by the Soviets at the beginning of 1918, Mustafa escaped to Tashent and stayed at the home of a Russian Officer.   Later, he had his wife escape; they arrived at our home at Yormati via Turgay and finally arriving in Orenburg.   Now he was going to be our host.   Her name was Marya Yakorlevna, and sice she was our guest at the Times location, we had good relations.   Immediately they stated: “would it not have been better if you had sought us before you went to the Afghans?”    Mustafa and I spoke for three days.   Mustafa was not in a good financial state.   He was eking out his living by writing articles for the newspapers of Milyukov and Kerensky.   When we were leaving for Germany, we left the dresses we brought form Turkistan to Mustafa.   He sold them and spent the proceeds.   Possibly he sold them to a museum.

Sadri Maksudi Bey—
It transpired that Sadri Maksudi Bey was living in Nogent, at a street close to Mustafa.   On the 24th day of the month, Abdulkadir and I went to see him.   His daughters, who today have important positions in Turkiye, Adile and Naile, were high school students.   His wife, Kamile Hanim, who today is living in Turkiye along with her children and grandchildren, prepared us the food of our homeland before Sadri Bey returned home.   We spoke of the conditions in Russia.   They had arrived here via Petrograd and Helsingfors.   Since Sadri Bey was a Kadet Party Member, some help was arriving via that channel.   Kamile Hanim did not forget that we had clashed with Sadri Bey while in Russia.   She immediately stated: “you fluttered and bustled, and then what happened?   Struggling against the Russians is not a game.   Since your elder [Sadri] knew that, he did not follow you.   Look, you followed us all the way here.”   A little later Sadri Bey arrived.   He did not attempt to reproach us.   He was looking at us as a new and fresh source of news from Russian and Turkistan.   We ate the evening meal together as well.   Sadri Bey stated that we needed to contact Ali Merdan Topcubasi, to determine what can be done in Europe.   That was what we wanted.

Ali Merdan Topcubasi—
On 26 December, we telephoned Ali Merdan Bey, and went to see him outside the city at a place called St. Cloud.   In Europe’s big cities, as long as one has a plan of the city to hand, one does not waste time searching, as is the case in the East, in finding a house.   Lovable Ali Merdan Bey opened the door as if he knew that precise minute of our arrival.   We embraced and talked.   Since we had defended the same idea during the 1917 Moscow Cogress of the Russian Moslems, and a little later at the Russian State Congress, we had warmed-up toward each other.    I regarded Ali Merdan Bey like my father and his wife like my mother.   Both of their daughters and their son Ali Ekber, whom I had known since his student days at Petersburg, were present.   This family was altogether well known to me since I knew the history of their Borcali (Boruc Oglu) tribe, Ali Merdan Bey, who has a bright spot in the independence movement of Russian Moslems, and his father the Professor of Persian, Mirza Cafer Topcubasi at the Petersburg University.   Our talks were in the family setting and very sweet.   Since their house was below the railroad line, every train passing made a noise.   Since our talks were very serious and sincere, I was not even hearing the train noises.   Ali Merdan Bey cried, stating: “I grew old.   I will perhaps die without seeing my homeland once more.   I am leaving the business of Russian Moslems to Emin Resulzade and you.”

We consulted Ali Merdan Bey about what needed to be done in Europe.   When I indicated: “now that I am Europe, I want to benefit from scholarly aspects most,” he responded: “you are still young.  Scholarship is not running away.   You have just arrived from the strongest center of Turkish Islamic world, after difficult struggles.   Think of all these events first.   Speak with the Georgians, Ukrainians.   Let me also speak with Maksudof.”  

During the night of the 28 December, at the home of Mustafa Bey, I spoke with an enlightened Moslem from the Lezgi of the Caucasus, a graduate of Petrograd University Oriental Faculty as well as a Lawyer, by the name of Israfil.   He had arrived from Istanbul.   His wife was also a Russian and a rabid Kadet, just like Mustafa’s wife.   That Kadet milieu had left an abhorrent impression on me.   Milyukov had a conference [delivering a talk] that night; we went altogether.   It transpired that Milyukov knew of me in absentia.   The hall was completely full, with no place to sit.   Milyukov wanted to provide places on either side of the podium for us to stand where he was seated.   Ostensibly we were going to stand either side of him, just like candles next to the priest in front of a church altar.   I did not go.   Mustafa did, and stood next to him.   During his speech, Milyukov pointed to him and stated “Our inorodets [outsider]” complimenting him.   After the conference, I criticised Mustafa in a friendly manner: “you should not have done it; why did you have Milyukov refer to you as inorodets?   You are a son of Turkistan, owner of a country.   The Russians are the inorodets there, compared to us.   You represent Turkistan here.”     I spoke with Sadri Bey on 20 and 22 January.  On 24 January, we again met at Sadri Bey’s home with Ali Merdan Bey, his son Ali Ekber, Mustafa Cokay and Abdulkadir; we talked quite a bit.   Ali Merdan Bey suggested the publication of a political journal.   Sadri Maksudi stated: “give an interview in a journal addressing the League of Nations.   Write that piece to address the Islamic World, Russian emigrants and Europeans, explaining the problems of Turkistan.”   That night, at the home of Mustafa we talked until the small hours of the morning with an Officer by the name of Nikolay Nikolovic Xan Yomudsky, who is the son of a converted [into Christianity] Turkmen Officer named Xan –Yomudsky.   Amazingly, he was also a Kadet.   Despite the fact that Xan-Yomudsky was a Christian, he was a Turkmen nationalist.  Besides, this Xan-Yomudsky was protected by a Russian General when he was a very small poor child (actually, taken by force).   He was educated as a Christian.   However, he never forgot that he is a Turkmen; he stated to me that every time he looked at the mirror, he was reminded of his Turkmenness.   I knew him sice 1913.   We had talked many times in Tashkent and Petersburg.  

Contacts with the Russian Émigré political organizations—
During the first week of January, I spoke several times with Shulgin, one of the Ukrainian Chiefs and Ramishvili the leader of the Georgians.   Ramishvili invited us to a dinner with only his Gerogian and Caucasian friends.   We spoke at length and comprehensively.   Perhaps that was the most beneficial and sincere talks we held in Paris.   Everyone wanted to learn if a revolt in Central Asia could live and whether or not another Central Asian uprising was possible.   I presented all the naked facts and indicated that even though the Basmaci Groups were still operating, they will disperse soon and that is also the assessment of the Turkistan National Union as well.   That meeting took place during 12 January and Ali Merdan Topcibasi was not invited.   He took umbrage at that.   He invited his other Georgian friends and had me speak with them as well.  

French scholars—
Meanwhile, I was contacting the French scholars in Paris.   I especially visited Paul Pelliott several times who had conducted excavations in Turkistan.   His wife was Russian.   Pelliot also spoke good Russian.   He gave me copies of his own publications and presented me to the English Archeologist Sir Aurel Stein who at that moment was visiting Paris.   Both of them regarded me their close friend until their death.   Later on, when I was studying at the University of Vienna, Sir Aurel Stein used to travel from London specifically to visit me in Vienna.   Sometimes he would stop over on his way to India; he would always inquire if my finances were in order and would render aid.   He was originally a Hungarian Jewish man who had converted into Christianity.    He was one of the most courteous individuals in the world.   The number of letters I received from him is countless, and is preserved in my library.   He had a house and a library at Srinagar.   He was thinking of employing me at that library.   According to him, I would also be able to work on the Central Asian political issues there.   His suggestions were very serious, and to my observation, sincere.   I think that because he would repeat his suggestions whenever he visited me in Vienna while I was studying there.   When in 1932 there was a disagreement between the entourage of Ataturk and myself on the reasons for the spread of the Turks throughout history, which forced me to move to Europe from Turkiye, he stated: “If you had gone to Srinagar, this would not have happened.” 

Another was Gabriel Ferrand.   He was a Governor in Indo-China, knows Farisi and Arabic.   He was busily translating into French the Arabic geographical works.   He invited me to his home.   He proposed that we jointly publish the works by Ibn al-Faqih, Ibn-Fadlan and Ebu-Dulaf that I had discovered in Meshed.   I had mentioned the samples of the old Khorezm language I discovered to the Iranist Professor Gothiot.   He insisted that I leave him a sample.   However, I had left all the notes I had made in Herat among my books in Istanbul.   Professor J. Deny planned to work on Mahmud Kasgari with me.   In sum, if I were to comply with the wishes of Pelliot, Ferrand, Gouthiot and Deny, I needed to stay in Paris and join the French milieu.   But, I explained that I had some political business I needed to attend, therefore I could not immediately start any such project, and apologized by stating that I needed to spend some time travelling in Europe and I would communicate with them. 

Another scholar I spoke with was E. Blochet, the Director of Eastern Materials of the French National Library.   Monsieur Deny invited me to his house near the Pantheon, where Napoleon is buried.   He stated: “see what kind of wines the French have” and had me taste from several bottles.   With Monsieur Deny, we spoke mostly on Kasgarli Mahmut.   Since he was born and completed his education there, his Russian was perfect.   We remained friends with him until his death in 1961.

There is also the Frenchman Joseph Castagne who had lived in Russia.   I knew him from Tashkent.   He used to teach French in Orenburg and Tashkent highschools.   He had works on the archeology of Kazakistan.   I had read his volume published under the title “Step Archeology.”   Since it was published in Russian and in French, that work helped me learn French.   He liked the Baskurts and the Kazaks.   Now, he was publishing papers on Turkistan in the French publications emanating from France.    On the Basmaci, he was the only one to publish a book in all of Europe.   Since he regarded me a walking library and source, he would approach me at every opportunity to obtain information.  

Then, there were also the Social Democrat Seyhul-Islamzade Ekber and SR engineer Abbaskuli Atamabelikov.   Since they were socialists, they were acting differently than Ali Merdan Bey, and were encouraging me to create a socialist front among the emigres from Russia.   In reponse I indicated that without taking a poll of all the emigres in Europe I was not going to prefer one direction, and in our country Socialism can become a principle in the party programs after divesting ourselves from the Russian yoke.  

There were two Russian scholars, Minorsky and Brutskus.   I knew the first from Russia.   His wife was the daughter of the Turcology Professor Vasili Dmitrievic Smirnov, whom I knew from Petersburg, and they were showing me closeness because of that.    Later on, this Minorsky got involved in wide-scale scholarly activities in London and in Cambridge.   He was scholarly but a very narrow Russian nationalist.   Brutskus was a Jewish scholar.   He was working on the history of the Hazars.

However, the person I met with most and benefited from in Paris was the Iranian scholar Mirza Muhammed Han Qazvini.   He was working especially on Cengiz Han and his descendents.   At his home, I met and spoke several times with Muhammed Farugi, who later became the Prime Minister of Iran, and Sir Dennison Ross, the Director of the Eastern Languages School in London.   We were all speaking in Farisi, because I did not yet know English.   As a result of our repeated contacts, they introduced me to many Orientalists in Europe.  All three gentlemen became my very close friends until they left this world, and whenever I had financial difficulties, they always rendered help.   Sir Denison Ross was inviting me to London, to publish the geography book by Ibn-ul Faqih that I had discovered in Meshed.   For that, he had also arranged for Professor of Farisi at Cambridge University, E. Browne, to invite me as well.   Professor Browne also sent a separate letter inviting me to work with him on the Turkish and Iranian texts brought back from Eastern Turkistan by Sir Aurel Stein.   In sum, the pathways were open for my scholarly work both in Paris as well as in London.   All these contacts took place during a seven week period, at a head spinning speed.  

On 22 January 1924, a White Russian, Mayer, a leader of the SR Party, invited me to a restaurant.   That invitation was made prior to the death of Lenin; but on the day of the meeting, Lenin was dead.   I was asked for my opinion, as to what was going to happen, who was going to head the government.    Without hesitation, I indicated that Rykhov would become the Head of Government, but the de facto governmental administration will pass into the hands of Stalin who had control of the Party; that will conflict with Trotsky.   There were also two gentlemen publishing the journal of the Social Democrats at the meeting.   Everyone regarded my comment on Rykhov as strange.   After a few days passed and everyone heard that Rykhov became the head of government, I was asked: “how did you know Rykhov was the one?   Lenin had even closer friends?”   I responded with: “that was only a guess and a feeling.   It has only been ten months since I left Russia, and my imporessions are still fresh.   However, the predictions of those who have left Russia two or three years ago are becoming incorrect.   After a while, mine will, too.”  

Even though I did not know French well, I also went to the meetings of scholarly associations, Asia Society and the French Geographical Society meetings.   On January XX [unreadable] our compatriot Sadri Maksudi Bey delivered a paper on the Oguz and Uygur at the Asia Society.   I respected my compatriot.   He arrived at this conference in a tuxedo as if he was attending a ball.   The tip of his white handkerchief was visible from his left pocket.   He was perspiring and was using the handkerchief on his right hand to wipe his face.   Possibly, he was feeling as if he was facing an examination panel.   On the other hand, all those attending had arrived in their daily outfits.   Among those present, Monsieur Deny stated that the change of R ~ Z in Turkish had been recorded one hundred years ago.   Meaning, this conference did not bring anything new to scholarship; however, I enjoyed seeing a compatriot delivering such a paper at the high level Asia Society.   Afterward, when Sadri Bey took me to a restaurant, I congratulated him.   Among the Tatars, the news circulated that Sadri Bey was a Professor at Sorbonne.   I went to his class on 22 January.   There were seven individuals listening.   I was the seventh.   It transpired that this was one of those elective classes devoted to the Slavistics, designed by the émigré Russians; as such, it was not part of the Sorbonne curriculum.   On 8 February, I delivered a paper to the same Asia Society on the “new manuscripts discovered in Meshed and Kabul.”  I had written that paper in Russian.   Professor Deny read it in French translation.   Since that paper contained references and information on the travelogue of Ibn Fadlan who had journeyed to Bukhara, Khorezm, and Bulgar one thousand years prior to our day; a work on the history of Herat; the settlements established by Temur on the canals built on Zarafsan River by Temur; manuscripts with miniatures in Kabul; Farisi collections of poems that had remained unknown to that day, questions were posed by Monsieur Ferraud, Pelliot, Carra de Vaux, Blochet, Benvist and Bovvet who asked repeated questions.   Deny acted as my translator.   Discussions lasted for an hour and a half.   Mr. Ferrand stated: “we have labored and tired our friend with our questions.  Henceforth, we can talk with him individually.”   I was applauded enthusiastically.   Later on, the summary of that paper was published in the Journal Asqiatique helped me to enter and gather interest in the world of European Orientalists.   With my friend Abdulkadir, we made notes from Arabic and Persian Manuscripts that are only found in the Paris National Library.    An Arabic geographer, Serif Idrisi’s work on Central Southern and Eastern Asia sections were of interest to me; and the manuscripts were in Paris; I hand-copied the sections that interested me.    They are still handy for my work.   In sum, the interest and trust shown in me by Mr. Pelliot, Deny, Ferrand, Sir Denison Ross, Blochet, Mirza Muhammad Qazvini made my trip from Russia to Europe caused this trip to turn into an Eastern expedition.  

While we were in Paris, Sir Denison Ross arrived twice.   During his last trip, while we were having diner at the home of M.M. Muhammed Han, he asked me: “in the history of Islam, which words of wisdom attracted your attention?”   I suppose, it was a kind of an exam.   In response, I wrote statements of wisdom from the Prophet, El-Biruni, Ibn Miskeveyh, Celaleddin Rumi, Cami and Navai and handed them to him.   He may have been planning on writing a work on that topic.   He asked the reason for increasing the value of “desire” in the statement attributed to the Prophet: “all actions are tied to the desires.   If the desire is there, the high intentions of reaching God or small private matters such as obtaining the love of a woman, will reach their goals.”   I replied: “the object is to value the self determination of the humans.   The Bolsheviks are attempting to break the free-will of the millions, in order to subjugate them, make them pliable to the Bolshevik will, that is the reason for the Moslems there fighting against it.”   He liked that very much.   He published that idea in the journal Asia published in London.   When he arrived in Istabul as the English Cultural Attache, we spoke often.

On 10 February, Victor Chernov, Agriculture Minister of the Kerensky Government and a leader of the SR Party, invited me to a café.  There were members of the SR’s there as well.   Chernov had heard about the paper I delivered to the Asia Society two days earlier, and wanted to obtain information.   Afterward, he stated: “I understand the French Orientalists may take you away from our political milieu.”   Those talks were very sincere.   In general, while I was speaking with such individuals, I understood that among the Russian emigres in Europe no specific realization had developed about Soviet Russia, or any policies to be followed against them.   However, ten months earlier, while we were in Russia, we were convinced that the free world already had determined the main lines of their polices concerning Russia.   We will see what we are going to observe in Berlin.  

Other business in Paris—
On 13 February, we obtained a visa from the Germans.   On that day, Ali Merdan Bey invited us to his home for diner and talks, and since they were also in Paris, Sadri Maksudi, Mustafa Cokayoglu and two of his Azerbaijani friends.   We were going to determine what we could do in Europe.   Abdulkadir and I arrived a little early.   Cokayoglu and Sadri Maksudi Bey arrived a little later.   During our talks after dinner, these two individuals, as if they had coordinated their words ahead of time, stated: “ we are not in favor of burning our ships” and explained that they did not embrace the independence idea, and that they woud work for a democratic Russia, and defend the legal rights of the Moslems within that framework.   Ali Mersan Bey: “apparently, we will not be fully working together.   Despite that, that, too, is an idea.   Moreover, that idea was defended in the Moscow Congress by your friends.    Apparently, the time of establishing a joint Committee of Russian Moslems has not yet arrived.”   Cokayoglu attempted to soften the idea he had stated, but at a moment, a harsh verbal confrontation took place between Sadri Maksudi Bey and Ali Merdan Bey.   The discussions ended there.   We took our leave and left.   In the metro, we did not say a word to each other.   While we were reaching the metro station where we were going to separate from Sadri Bey and Mustafa, I addressed Sadri Bey: “regardless of the differences of opinions we may hold, all four of as as well as Ali Merdan Bey, we are members of the same family.   I have high regards for both of you.   When you convened the 1906 congress and while you were in the Duma, I was a child of sixteen years of age.   I knew you only from the newspapers.   You are our elders, and I respect you; you must be certain of that.”   Sadri Bey did not lift his eyes that were focued of the floor and did not utter a single word.   That was because, not only I had advanced the idea of a territorial autonomy in the past, but my insisting on it now was an unforgivable sin according to him.   That caused the idea of publishing a strong journal becoming derailed.  

That night I sat down and wrote letters to my friends in Kabul, Meshed and Istanbul, outlining what I spoke with the members of the White Russian politicians, Europeans and Russian Moslem émigré intelectuals.

Our life in Berlin—
On 15 February, on our way from Paris to Berlin, it became necessary to change trains in Brussels.   I had purchased a lot of books in Paris, and the Orientalists have also given me their publications as presents.   We did not have Belgian currency to give to a porter.   Abdulkadir and I were barely able to carry them.   Someone greeted us in Russian.   It turned out that he was a Russian Officer assigned to the Third Baskurt Regiment by the name of Demidov.   We embraced, kissed and talked.   He helped us carry our belongings.  He had escaped Soviet Russia and caught his breath in Belgium.   That was yet another time I had observed the struggle against the Soviets taking place without the division of nationality.   First Lieutenant Demidov left us crying; later on, he always wrote letters.  

Upon arriving in Berlin the next morning, I discovered that I had forgotten the German I learned in Russia.   After Abdulkadir and I took our possessions to checkroom for baggage, the difficulty we encountered finding the toilettes I can never forget.   At any rate, with all the German I could muster, we found the “city trains” and got underway to the Rheinickendorfer Station.   Our friend, the Kazak intellectual Azimbek was going to wait for us there.   He had provided a good plan, and we arrived at the moment he had stated.   He took us to the rooms he had rented for us with our belongings.   This was the house at Rheinickedorfer Strasse No. 102.   As we have gotten used to in Russia, and because we did not have much money, we were staying at the home of a poor family.   Every member of this family named Schlickeisen was unemployed.   They were receiving a little amount of money in the form of unemployment insurance.   They were able to provide only four of five brickets of coal to warm our room.   The married daughters, when they arrived to visit their parents, brought their own meals.   That was because the lady of the house could not provide a bite to them.   Despite that, all their rooms contained many books.   Almost all of the works of all German poets were accounted.   During the extreme powerty days of Moscow in 1919, because the Russians did not have any wood, they would burn the books in the houses, in their stoves.   That or selling the property of their ancestors was not the way here.   The newspaper they read was Worwarst, meaning it was the labor party organ.   Despite their impoverishment, they were going to the distant live-theater located in this laborer’s quarter of the city.   Our first order of business was to visit the student dormitories purchased for the Turkistan Government, and visiting the Ethnography Museum managed by Monsieur von Le Coq and Muller, Prussian State Library, especially the Eastern Section, and the chiefs of the left SR Party.   The Eastern Club that had opened here became the place for speaking with the Turks from Turkiye and Azerbaijan.   I was asked to deliver talks there.   Azimbek knew Berlin well; he showed us around.   We were reminiscing about our good impressions of our cooperation in Baskurdistan and Kazakistan, and were happy that we are once again together.  

Since I was thinking of writing my memoirs some day, I began checking and indexing the documents to hand.   At the same time, I busied myself with reading the publications of the White Russians issued outside Russia.   I also read the Soviet press since we left Russia (March 1923).   That was because, while I was checking the extant documents, I realized I began forgetting some of the names.   Then I wrote down the names of hundreds of individuals since 1917 from among the Baskurt, Tatar, Ozbek, Kazak, Kirgiz, Turkmen, Bukharan and Khivans, noting their personalities, their Branches, villages, where they studied, what type of duties they performed within the national movement.   Today, these individuals who were nationalists and officers are almost completely eradicated.   The resultant short biographies which I augmented from the knowledge of the students and authors in Berlin are so important, if I had the time, publishing that collection as a stand-alone book would have been worthwhile.   In addition, there were many notes I had made prior to my leaving our country, listing names of individuals, events dates without any organization so as to make it deliberately useless for the Russians if those fell into their hands.   Now, I wrote down all I could remember, the names of individuals and localities mentioned in this work.   Now, what I am writing today in these memoirs is based on the documentation I had organized in Berlin at that time.   We were even acquiring the press output from Turkistan via the students.   In that regard, the first congress of the Kazak and Kirgiz scholars took place in Orenburg on 18 June 1924.   In addition to the information contained in the newspapers, there was a letter from Ahmed Baytursun to Azimbek.   The list of scholars published in the newspapers and the attached short letter contained the words: “from all of us to all of you, greetings.”   In the attached newspaper clipping, the names listed were: Alihan Bukeyhanov, Nezir Turekulov, Hahil Dostmuhammed, Muhtar Avezoglu, Ahmed Baytursun, Seyfullah Sadivakkas (Seken), from the Kirgiz, Isanli Arabayoglu, and at the end of the list, Miryakup Dulat was mentioned.   That was the very first authentic greetings reaching me from my country.   Later on, none of those were left alive.   During the summer months of 1924, I spoke with the majority of Moslem and Russian writers arriving from Russia.   Among them were the Tatar intellectuals Ayaz Ishaki, Fuat Toktarov, Omer Teregulov were foremost.   Teregulov had escaped from Ufa, had stayed in Far East, was in the Japhanese sphere, and then arrived in Paris then Berlin.  

Kincekev Boyar—
One of those whom I met here was German origin Russian aristocrat Emanoyel Emanoyelovic Borel.   He was living in Wensdorf.   I spoke several times with him, the last time in August.   He only had his wife with him.   He belonged to a family known to us as the Kincekev boyar, which had exploited our village and the neighboring villages and owned a large farm.   They probably had several thousand hectares, most of which they confiscated from our village.   Father of my grandfather, Velid, was always in court with Borel’s grandfather because of this usurpation.   They acquired a large part of the land via inheritance from a Russian land owner by the name of Kindekov.   Now I learned that the origin of these Kindiakov was derived from a Mirza lineage converted to Christianity.   In reality, this family was referenced as Kincek or Kincekov Boyar by our Baskurts.   Kincek was a well known Turk branch way back, living in the vicinity of Bukhara and Kashgar.   The headquarters of this Borel family was five kilometers away from us in a Russian village named Petrovski, and our Baskurts still call it Kincekev.   The Kinceks also lived in the Urals during the 11th century.  

Now I learned from Emanoyel Borel, that the estate handed to them comprised of twenty five thousand five hundred hectares.   Most of it was the forests to the East of the Yigen River.   The eldest son of Emanoyel lived in the East of the estate at a place called Qalgaya which I knew well since my childhood.   They had acquired the estate from their mother’s side, who was a member of the Kindiakov boyars, and their son-in-law Timasav boyars.    This Timasev was also a Tatar Mirza family, just like the Kindeks.   Timasev became a millionaire during the time of Alexander II.   Timasev’s main estate was at a place called Tasli, near Orenburg, and had four thousand five hundred hectares.   One of the daughters of this Timasev became the daughter-in-law of a notable of Orenburg, Graf Musin-Puskin.   And that daughter’s share of the inheritance passed to the Musin-Puskin from the Kindiakov boyars.   Borel had purchased the Timasev estate from Musin-Puskin during 1900.   The Borel family was one of the German families brought from Germany by the order of Catherine II [9 July 1762 – 17 November 1796] and placed in the Saritav (Saratov) province, and their main estate was in Saritav province.   Emanoyel Emanoyelovic Borel became the head of the Saratov stock market.   He held the entire wealth of the Saritav province; they would only arrive at our neighborhood ranch to drink kimiz during the summer.   He indicated that between the Buce and Makar villages near ours, there was excellent Portland cement in a mountain called Maksim.   He intended to take on the partnership of the heirs of Graf Ignatiyev, who was earlier the Istanbul Ambassador of Russia, then the Governor of Orenburg, and establish a factory very close to our village to employ several thousand laborers.   They had allocated five million rubles for the purspose.   The cement to be used in the canal building for Turkistan agriculture was going to be supplied from there.   There was also an adjacent estate to the Borel’s, belonging to a Russian Boyar by the name of “Yigenbasi Boyari.”    It was owned by a Russian by the name of Melnikov, comprised of six thousand hectares, all of which did belong to the ancestors of our village, Kuzen.   My ancestor Velid was also in the court with that person.   Due to that connection, Borel went there and learned the issues concerning land ownership.   It was then decided that the yayla and kislak (summer and winter quarters) in the Irendik region of Eastern Baskurdistan was the property of our village.   Even though the inheritance rights were not taken away from my family, which was the reason for the Irendik estate to be taken away from us.  [sic]  This is all I was able to learn from Borel concerning my family.

Over time, the enmity between the Borels and my family subsided since the courts always sided with them.   Some of those Borel’s would come and be guests of my father.   If the animals of our village would cross into Borel lands, they would immediately be confiscated and punished.   Only our animals escaped that fate.   I asked the reasoning behand that to Borel Boyar.   He stated: “lands to the north of your village, to the tune of eight thousand hectares, was confiscated form your ancestors by my grandfather who was the son-in-law of Governor General Dashkov.   This confiscation became the law in the year of 1892.   Borel was telling me all this in minute detail.   At one time, this Borel had arrived in our house with foreigners who did not know any Russian.   I can recall from my memory that all their horses were black and fat.   It turned out that this Borel family was in contact with the Prussian royal family.   Someone by the name of Ahmet from a neighboring village was taking his mares to Germany by train, and making kimiz for them.    It transpired that that kimiz was being made in the farm of the German royal family in the South of Germany, and the guests Borel brought us who did not know any Russian were the notable friends from Germany.   Now the great exploiter Borel family escaped from Russia, and all their acquiaintances were wiped out of existence as a result of the revolution, and they were left destitude.   

Meanwhile, Abdulkadir and my financial conditions deteriorated.    Mahmud Tarzi was in no hurry to send aid from Paris.   We were living by obtaining loans from various people.   Abdulkadir is a very self-sacrificing friend.   At the house where we were staying, I noticed that the butter he served me was white and the one he was eating was yellowish.   I then understood that the white was butter and the yellowish one was clarified fat.   Since the latter was much less costly Abdulkadir was giving me the good one, and eating the fat.  So, I told him: “do not do this henceforth; whatever we are going to see let us do it together.”   All that meant was that our conditions were not that much better than those of our old neigbors, the Borels.   Whenever I visited their house, Borel would offer me tea boiled in the copper teakettle known as “bakirca.”   They could not stop talking of their old memories.

Taqizade—
While I was in Berlin, another person I met was the Iranian intellectual Seyit Hasan Taqizade and the Azerbaijani Kasimzade.   Taqizadeh is from an ulama family of Tebriz.  He is ten to twelve years older than I.   His wife is German.   She is just as likeable as he, and now both are living in Tahran.   In their home on Leibniz Strasse, Taqizade had an excellent library.   This library from which I had borrowed books and benefited is today a part of the Iranian Senate Library in which he is also a member.   Mirza Muhammed Qazvini in Paris and Taqizade in Berlin are the individuals who had connected me with the Iranian intellectuals.   Whenever I still journey to Tahran, I visit Seyit Hasan Taqizade and his wife in their home, and the mausoleum of Mirza Muhiddin Han at Rey.   That was the beginning of our fourty three years of friendship with him.   During 1957-1958, both of us were visiting Professors at Columbia University of New York.   Whenever they journey from Tahran to Europe, they honor our home.   Huseyin Aka Kasimzade was an author who studied and lived in Germany.   He published a journal entitled Iransehr.   We had arguments over his fraudulent alteration of history, due to his Persophilia tendencies, and his creations, to show mythical Iranian rulers as true, and as if the Turk families that ruled Iran forced the Azerbaijan Turks to speak Turkish.   However, we always remained friends.   Until the end of his life he did not deprive me of his publications and letters.  

The Orientalists we met in Berlin—
There were important men among those I met in Berlin.   Among the, foremost are Professor Edward Sachau, Theodor Noldeke, Johannes Mordmann, F.W.K. Muller, von Le Coq and Joseph Marquart.   At one time, the Director of the Eastern Branch of Prussian State Library, Professor Weil, had tasked me with the duty of preparing a catalog of Eastern manuscripts brought back from Eastern Turkistan by Professor Martin Hartmann and others.   The contents of many in that batch were undetermined.   He was paying me a certain amount every month for that effort.   Since he was Jewish, when the State of Israel was founded, he moved there.   I invited him to the XXII Orientalists Congress during 1951 meeting at Istanbul, by sending him the travel expenses.   In sum, while in Berlin, I had been the beneficiary of his good acts.   He also introduced me to the aforementioned great Orientalists.   Professor Sachau was a great scholar who had introduced El-Biruni to the world.   Even in the summer, he would arrive at the State Library wearing a fox-fur coat.   I spoke with him in Arabic.   One day, I asked for an appointment, and went to his house.   He was working on the canon law of the Shafii sect, preparing a book.   I told him that my father had brought back, on his way home from performing Hajj, a hand-copied portion of an autograph by Biruni on Central Asian and Indian geography, which is extant in the Fatih Library in Istanbul.   I relayed to him some of Biruni’s interesting ideas that I could recall.   He stated: “if I had the means, I would immediately go to Istanbul.”   He was devoted to El-Biruni.   To the old F.W.K Muller, who had conducted digs in Turkistan, who had studied works written in Turkish, Uyghur, Sogdian and other languages, I showed some of my notes on the canon-law book I discovered in Herat during 1923 written in and in the language of Khorezm.   He told me: “if you go to Istanbul, look for similar canon-law works.”   I also had the same idea.   Two years after that talk, I published my first work on the Iranian language with the aid of my friend Professor Witek, in the journal Islamica published in Leipzig.   In that connection, I often corresponded with F.W.K. Muller after I arrived in Turkiye.   He used to especially ask me if I recognized a geographical name found in the documents discovered during the excavations.   He also would regularly send me his own publications.  

Ernest von Le Coq was the Director of the German Ethnography Museum.   As to his origins, he was descended from the French political refugees who escaped from France during the French Revolution.    He had excavations in Eastern Turkistan, and by splicing together what he brought back in terms of art and architectural fragments, he created a living museum of the Uyghur civilization.   He also brought back many Uyghur language works written in the Arabic alphabet.   Even though he knew Turkish, he could not speak it.   He spoke a little Russian.   He wished that I would stay in Berlin and help him with the study of the Manuscripts.   Once he took me to his home and showed me works which were not placed in the museum.   One of them was a historical pamphlet written in a mixture of Uyghur and Arabic letters on the history of Cengiz Han.  

Johanness Mordmann had in the past lived in Istanbul, and was a Professor at Istanbul University during World War I, he spoke, read an wrote well in Turkish.   Just like Professor Weil, he, too, wanted me to stay in Germany and work in the Prussian Library.   He was old, just like Sachau and Noldeke.   Whenever he spoke with me, he would mix-in Chaghatay into Ottoman Turkish.   Mordmann gave me copies of his works, especially off-prints of his articles published in the German Islam Encyclopedia.   Professor Noldeke, compared to Mormann had a tiny physique.   He had published texts pertaining to the Ottoman history, and a grand volume of the Sasanid period of Iranian history.   The Lithuanian Professor Yakub Sinkevic was describing this Noldeke as a great German intellect.   I learned that was so only afterward.   Once I asked him: “I read the review of your book by Professor Mednikov, pertaining to Prophet Mohammed.   You believe in the divine inspiration of the Prophet and regard him so; it that true?”   He replied: “yes, approximately so.   That is because, we learn of Mohammed’s life from historical sources written fifty years after his death.   We cannot doubt that he was truthful and sincere.   That is not the case for other prophets.   For example, whether or not Jesus existed as a person is still under debate.   If the existence of other prophets is believed, then one can believe that Mohammed existed as a prophet; except, he lived in a society with lower cultural strata.”   Noldeke was living somewhat distant from Berlin; he presented me with copies of his publications on Ottoman history and the life of our Prophet when I visited him again.  

According to what F.W.K Muller told me, Professor Marquart was originally a Catholic Priest; his specialty was classical languages, old Iran Pahlavi language and Assyrian language.   After the Gok-Turk inscriptions were found in Mongolia during 1892, he studied Turkish, and published a big volume on the Kipchak history.   Professor Weil told him about me and my discovery of Ibn Fadlan travelogue in Meshed.   Since, during those days he was busy having his volume printed on the Northern countries, based on Arab records, especially on the news of Ibn Fadlan, he indicated to Professor Weil that he definitely wanted to see me.   I made an appointment to see him at his home.   When I discovered that he could not speak in the languages I knew, I took along my friend Azimbek Birimcan.   He was the translator.   He stated: “I learned from the letter of Monsieur Ferrand in Paris and from Professor Weil that you found Ibn Fadlan and Ibn Faqih in Iran; I am very curious.”   I asked for permission to light a cigarette.   “Please no permission for that.   If there was wine or schnapps, we would imbibe together.”   We laughed and talked quite a bit; perhaps about three hours.   I indicated that my first reports on the subject were going to be published in France and in the journal of the Russian Academy of Sciences.   His immediate response was: “do not let them fall into the hands of the Russians; they will fraudulently alter them.   Last century, they got hold of some Eastern manuscripts by way of Gottwald, and they destroyed them because those contained some records against the Russians.   Do not let the same happen to Ibn Fadlan and Ibn Faqih.”   I went to see him several times.   He told me: “there is no need for a translator; we can communicate in German as much as you know it.”   In truth, that is what happened.   He presented me with the copies of his “Studies on Eastern Europe and Eastern Asia” and “On the history of the Cumans.”   In his work “Moslem News concerning the Northern Countries,” which was being printed during those days, he mentioned me: “as such, a Bashkurt has discovered such an important source.”   Marquart, who was not that old, left a good impression on me.   He was one of those German scholars who can be described as “genious.”   Marquart also wanted me to stay in Germany to work on Eastern sources.   He believed that we would make important discoveries by working with a Sinologist Dutch scholar (later I learned that his name was De Groot) who was making translations from Chinese, and working with me we could solve quite a few problems.   He had attached importance of my discovering Khorezm language, Ibn Fadlan and Ibn Fakih.   He was convinced that I truly understood the dastans of Firdewsi and Esedi-Tusi.   He stated: “Germany is poor, the value of her money is non-extant; and social democrats pester her,” cussing them out.   Apparently, he did not like them.   After arriving in Istanbul, I corresponded with him.   His writing was very illegible; however, each of his letters illuminated a serious scholarly issue.

Proposals of English scholars—
The fact that I could seriously work on texts written in Arabic, Farisi, old and new Turkish dialects was communicated to Edward Brown by Mirza Muhammed Qazvini in Paris.   They joined in with Sir Denison Ross in order for me to move to Cambridge.   That meant, my proficiency in those languages gave me the opportunity to live in Europe.   At the same time, Monsieur Gabriel Ferrand wanted me in Paris to work along the same lines.   Meanwhile, my friend Joseph Castagne, who had aimed to learn the contemporary life in Turkistan, wanted me to work in the field of Islam, especially at the journal Revue de Monde Musulmane.   He had indicated to me in writing that he spoke with Monsieur Massignon on this matter, and that it was not at all difficult to realize that solution.   However, since we had decided in Kabul that it was more suitable for us to settle in Turkiye, and because of the increasing and seriousness in nature of our correspondence with these Orientalists, I began to research how it would be possible to arrive in Turkiye.   Besides, Mahmud Han Tarzi, the Afghan Ambassador in Paris had plans to have me called to Kabul, and Islambek Hudayarhanov who was in his entourage, was working seriously toward realizing that.  

My talks with a Polish gentleman—
A correspondent of the Polish Telegraph Agency I met in Berlin, Monsieur Stempovsky, had a different plan for me.   He stated:

1. “It is necessary to establish a political alliance among Caucasus, Turkistan and Ukraine against the Russian invasion and their attempt at digesting these people into Russia.   We can establish an institute, and publish a journal.   You can be very helpful in that regard.   After our initial talks, I had relayed this matter to our government in Warsaw.”  
Our talks with that gentleman, which began on 20 June 1924, continued.    The details are written in my diary.    He did not regard it appropriate for these activities to be undertaken by a political party.   Instead, he foresaw a scholarly and semi-scholarly institute, “Vsxotniy Institut” [‘wschodni?’ ‘orientalny?’], centralizing these activities.   He indicated that he was in contact with a group called “the Concord Club” in Warsaw.   In France, he was in touch with “Society for the Defence of Human Rights” and the reporters of the Quotidien newspaper.    In sum, these talks with Stempovsky were very hopeful for my political activities.   Mustafa Cokay was also in favor of these proposals.  A White Russian by the name of Sokolnikov heard of these and spoke with me, indicating that it would not be appropriate for such an initiative to be entirely based on non-Russian “Inorodets,” otherwise we would be tied to the American and English capital as a result.   From that date, my contacts with Ukrainians and Caucasians have increased.  This journal was going to be published in France and not in Poland, and under the name Prometheus.  Monsieur Stempovsky was indicating that in addition to those nations imprisoned by the Russians, it was necessary to follow a path that would favor the defence and gather the close political interest of the nations such as Turkiye, Iran and Afghanistan, whom the Russians want to invade under the mask of socialism.  

2. The second stage of my talks with Stempovsky was attached to even more vital topics for me.   He wanted to place me in the German-Polish “Ufa” movie company.   Stempovsky and some of his friends were defending the thought that it was necessary to promote the Eastern nations and their histories around the world.   I was urged to become the decoration specialist in that endeavor.   The proposed salary was very high.   The Ufa movie company representative who spoke with Stempovsky had indicated that: “since the decorations of the movies about the Eastern life were not based on scholarship, history or ethnography, they were not successful.   For example, we do not know how Cengiz, Temur, Kubilay Kaan, Babur, Ekber would appear on stage, and what would their retinues look like.   On the other hand, you indicate to us the source materials containing miniatures are present in the museums that we could use in making these movies.   Thus we can make use of your talents.”    This was truly an attractive offer.   I thought about that offer for a long time.   Finally I answered: “I spent my life on scholarship and in struggles to regain the rights of my nation.   If I now join a movie company, they will say Validov has become an artist, and will conduct propaganda against the seriousness of our case.   I cannot allow that.”

The students from Turkistan in Berlin—
The Government of Feyzullah Hoca had sent seventy students to Berlin.   Among them were Azimbek Birimcan from the Kazaks, whose name appears multiple times in these Memoirs, and Abdussettar from the Biytilev Ozbeks.   We spent all manner of times with them.   My hopes of the future were tied to them.   There was also a Baskurt by the name of Osman Kuvatov.   His name was mentioned in connection with the 1917 events.   He became ill from alcohol, and returned to his country.   His father was an intellectual who had written a book on the history of the Baskurt.   He was determined to devote himself to political activities.   Upon our arrival in Berlin we were very sorry to learn that he had left.   That was because, there was nobody from the Baskurt to defend our case, who had studied at a university and spoke German.   During 1943, when I arrived in Germany to speak with the prisoners, I heard from a fellow townsman that he was very sorry that he had returned and cried, stating: “nothing but death called me back.”   And, he was killed before long.   In Europe, only Colonel Alimcan Tagan was present from among the Baskurt.   He had gone to Manchuria via Siberia, got involved in the struggles there, and finally arrived in Hungary with the aid of the Hungarian Ambassador in Tokyo.   He studied in Debretsin Agricultural School in Hungary.   Afterward, he did his doctorate at the Budapest School of Economics.   He had learned excellent Hungarian during a very short interval and made friends in Hungary.    He arrived in Berlin during the month of July, and altogether with other friends, we went on trips and spent the month in festivities.   Abdussettar, unlike all the other Ozbek students who were studying medicine, commerce and technical subjects, had devoted himself to literature.   He had learned German well.   He also knew Farisi.   In Turkistan, the concept of handsomeness has a special place among the urban populations.   There is always joking about it.   Since Abdussettar was very handsome, he took those jokes well.   He especially liked the Farisi and Chaghatay gazel.   He would work at the Eastern Division of the Prussian State Library.   One day, the darkness settled about four P.M., rendering the reading room dim enough that nothing could be read.   At that moment, Abdussettar Cabbaroglu entered the room, and at the precise moment, electric lights came on.   I wrote the following poem by a Khorasan poet, and placed it on his bag: “ah-hey, light that provides heavenly radiance, you rendered our meeting into a rose garden by arriving/ as you stepped in you enlightened the house.”   The poor man liked it very much.   He asked: “did you create those lines impromptu as I walked in?”  I responded: “no, this is a poem by an old poet.   I recalled it when I saw you.”   After that, we were sincere friends.   He translated an article of mine into German and published it in the journal Deutsche Rundschau; later he wrote an article on Ozbek literature and published it in the same journal.   After he completed his education, I worked hard to bring him to Turkiye, but could not obtain a visa.   He went back to his country and was eliminated there.   He had read all the works on Turkistan history, and especially those pertaining to the history of the latest independence movement, and had benefited from the materials I possessed.  

Azimbek Birimcan is a Kazak intellectual mentioned in these Memoirs.   If I were to write the life we lived in Berlin, and his good deeds, this work will become longer.   After he completed his education, he wanted to live in Turkiye.   Once again, it was not possible to obtain a visa.   Even though he knew that it was going to be his end, he went back to his country crying.   He, too, was eliminated just like Osman Kuvatov and Abdussettar.   Also there, there were two flutists, “Koray players” there, by the names of Cintemir and Mehmet Devletcurin from among the Baskurts.   Both were prisoners left over from the First World War.   I discovered that Mehmet was the brother of my friend Sibgat from the Yoldibay village of the Tungevir.   They both knew the Baskurt music very well.   We would invite them to our houses, or would go visit them, and listen to the Baskurt national melodies.   It was especially important that Mehmet Devletcurin knew and played melodies very much like the Mevlevi music in Turkiye, for the history of music.   After arriving in Turkiye, I mentioned them to the famed flutist in Turkiye, Neyzen Tevfik, and the last Mevlevi Seyh, Veled Celebi.   I worked hard to bring those two flutists to Turkiye.  For whatever reason, I could not obtain visas for them either.    They were both eager to live in Turkiye.   Cintemir died in Berlin.   Devletcurin spent the Second World War in Germany.   He was killed by the bayonette of a Red soldier while he was protecting his two beautiful daughters as the Russians were occupying Berlin.   I can never forget these five individuals which I must remember painfully in these memoirs, concerning our life in Berlin.  

My contacts with my friends and family in the East—
While I was in Berlin, I wrote letters and reports to Turabbek Turebekoglu in Meshed, Abdulhamid Arifoglu in the Chitral Province of India, and to Hasim Sayik in Kabul on world political developments, on the destiny of Turkistan, about the personages, scholars, various political party leaders in a summary form.   I also received letters from them.   Turabbek and Abdulhamid were able to relay some of those letters to our country via the channels determined earlier.   Those who had been in the entourage of General Enver, who had arrived via Iran, and those who were in my entourage, arrived in Turkiye and swelled the numbers of the Turkistan fighters and cultural workers.   There was correspondence touching on very important issues with Osman Hoca in Istanbul, Haci Isamettin of Bukhara living in Eskisehir and Sadreddin Han living in Gazne, Afghanistan.   I received the letters of Haci Isameddin and Nasir Mahdum Hekimov, the former Treasury Minister of Bukhara on 10 September and caused me a great deal of grief.   Both indicated that I was the cause of the difficulties being experienced by the recent immigrants in Turkiye, when they could not find jobs and fell destitude.   Those letters and my responses constitute the documents on Turkistan tragedy.  

During those days, I received many letters from my father and brother Abdurrauf.   My father sent me a copy of the pamphlet he wrote on the passing of my master and maternal Uncle Habib Neccar.   That caused me to re-live in my mind my youth.  

There were also letters from my wife Nefise and her father Haci Mehmet Yaksimbet.   In my respone of 27 November 1924 to hers dated 2 November, I indicated to her that I would be contacting the Russian Embassy to bring her either to Germany or to Turkiye.   I had also added the following lines from the poems of Navai and Fuzuli: “if the heavens rotated according to my wishes/ and remove the sorrow of separation with the medicine of togetherness/ my spirits could not find a keel in the valley of unfamiliar/ I wish my friend would arrive soon to host me, to cure me/ my spirit is burning with the fire of separation/ now I wish to reach the face of my friend/ I am ailing from separation, I would like to recover by seeing your face.”   I also wrote to my father and Nefise’s father similar poems.  

The first European meeting of Turkistan National Union—
Shortly after arriving in Berlin, it became apparent that the Soviets have been taking measures to prevent my activities from bearing fruit.   All this began by a statement form some shady characters that a Baskurt being the chief was something dishonorable for the Ozbeks.   In Turkistan, such propaganda would not have any effect.   However, outside, somehow, it began to take hold.   The old Unitarists from among the Tatars led the way.   I sent an eight page notice to the “Members of the Turkistan National Union living in diaspora,” with that heading, on 13 November 1924, proposing they elect someone else as the chief.   I announced that the Turkistan National Union Congress was going to meet in Berlin on 23 November.   Mustafa Cokay from Paris and Alimcan Tagan from Budapest arrived to participate.   Both were sworn in and became members.   Abdulvahhab Murad and Abdulkadir Inan oversaw the swearing in ceremony.   Mustafa showed a coinsiderable hesitation in joining, due to the Society program containing an item about independence.   Hoever, he finally relented.   This congress did not at all accept my resignation.   Important decisions were taken against the subdivision of one Turkistan into five republics under the names of Ozbekistan, Kazakistan, Kirgizistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.   The term Turkistan would continue to be utilized in our publications, and the separate republics would be referenced, for example, as the Ozbekistan section.   Also, it was decided to continue to use the flag in the form it was accepted in Samarkand.   The comong language issue was discussed and all the decisions were accepted.   Those decisions were sent to our fellow countrymen living in Turkiye, Egypt, Iran and Afghanistan.  

Moslems of Finland—
The esteemed merchants Zitynetullah Ahsen and Imadeddin arrived in Berlin from Finland during October.   They gave feasts at the home of Alimcan Idris and later at the hotel where they were staying.   I had last visited the Finnish Moslems at the beginning of the 1917 Revolution.   There were educated individuals amongst them.   That meant, in addition to dealing with commerce, they were also closely following cultural issues, and had publications there.   Since they were wealthy, they also contributed to the national movements amongst Russian Moslems.   The educated Tatars living in Petersburg, the famed Musa Carullah Begi and the Imam of Petersburg, Lutfu Ishaki would go and be their guests.    The beautiful work of Musa Carullah, entitled “Fasting during Long Days” was begun to be written while he was a guest among the Finland Tatars.  They now arrived in Berlin in order to meet with those individuals who had an influence on the life and culture of the Moslems in Russia, such as Ayaz Ishaki and me.   Ziynetullah Ahsen was determined to have the Kur’an and the publications that presented Islam well translated into Finnish and publish them.   He was intent on publicizing the Islamic culture among the Finnish people.   He had already engaged a high school teacher by the name of Georg Pimenev to translate the Kur’an, and he began the task.   Ahsen wished to speak with me on such matters.    He brough many a question in written form; my answers to a segment of his questions he liked.   The remainder was indeterminate, since they touched upon topics I did not know.   We will touch upon those shortly, which forced me to consider religious matters once again. 

Burhan Sehidi—
On 10 November, an educated Tatar merchant by the name of Burhan Sehidi arrived.   According to the calling card he presented me, in German, he was called the representative of the Xingjiang Provincial Government, S. Burchous.    Reportedly, he was from the Aksu village in the vicinity of Tetis in Kazan.   He was a brother of the well-known author Burhan Seref and Alimcan Seref.   He was living in Urumci since 1912.   He was a friend of Hadi Atlasi whom I knew well.   He was portraying himself as a nationalist and Moslem to the extreme, living in Eastern Turkistan since 1912, in Urumci, busying himself with trade and public affairs.   He gave me some of his writings in Tatar that have been duplicated.   He further represented that he is fluent in Chinese and eastablished good relations with the Chiang Kai-shek.   He indicated that he had thoughts about Moslems in China and the autonomy of Eastern Turkistan.    He advised me to write a history volume on Eastern Turkistan, and stated “I will definitely have it published.”   He stated that he was in Berlin to purchase supplies and a printing press, sent by the Xingjiang Government.   Next day, I inquired of him from Alimcan Idrisi who knew all of the Tatar educated.   He told me: “he is a merchant working both sides; for Chiang Kai-shek and the Russians.”   Later on, he published a dictionary of Chinese, Uygur and Russian during 1935 in Eastern Turkistan events [sic].   Later on, I made more inquires of him.   He became a member of the Parliament of Chiang Kai-shek, but worked more sincerely for the Russians.   At the end of 1949, when the Chiang Kai-shek government lost control to the Red Chinese, he immediately emerged as the most trusted man of the Red Chinese.   When the Mesut Bey Government [in Eastern Turkistan] was dispersed, he had the Reds kill those members of the Government remaining in Eastern Turkistan.   During 1940, he sabotaged the efforts of the great Altay Kazak leader Osman Batur, in helping both the Red Chinese and the Russians.   When Osman Batur was captured in 1957 by the Red Chinese and imprisoned in Urumchi, this Burhan established a counterfeit court to kill this courageous leader and headed the said court and killed Osman Batur.  

This Burhan, with whom I spoke on 10 November, was one of the greatest hypocrites I have ever encountered.   While he was taking his leave, at the doorstep, he expressed his desire to speak again; my response was that I would not have much time for that.   His talk left the impression that he was a shady person.   The series of events I cited above proved that my instincts about him were correct.

Congress of the Revolutionary socialists—
Among the SR emigres in Berlin, the Chernov group had good relations with us.   When Chernov arrived in Berlin from Prague, where he was living, we spoke.   All the SRs find it strange that the Russian imprisoned nations would seek independence.   In that regard, the Chernov group and the Left SRs were more tolerant.   The Kerenski group of the SRs had slid to the Right.   I had met Steinberg and Spero of that group during June.   This Spero personally told me that he was the Commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and he was the one who annulled the Tatar Peoples Republic.   He separated from the Bolsheviks by objecting to the Brest-Litovsk treaty; he was arrested and later escaped to Germany.   On 19 December 1924, the English Government of MacDonald was brought down, largely on the bases of the letter attributed to the Head of the Third Komintern, Zinoviev.   Many Russian politicians stated that it was a document forged by the English Conservatives, while other stated that it was a balloon let loose by Moscow.   However, the Left SR leadership was claiming that that document was manufactured by the Russian émigré socialists, because they preferred the Conservatives instead of the moderate Laborites in the Mac Donald Government, and it was manufactured in Berlin.   They seemed certain about that.   All this was a great lesson for those of us who had arrived from Russia.   That was because; it showed that those parties in the West, which as a principle chose to fight the Bolsheviks, did not have a common point.   Instead, confusion reigned.  

However, a result was obtained by my getting acquainted with these Left SRs: Steinberg invited me to attend the Cogress, in the name of Turkistan Socialists, which they were planning to hold in Berlin during 24-25 December 1924, of the Left Socialist Parties who did not acknowledge the leadership of the Russian Communism.   I had Mustafa Sakuli and Mamur Niyazi in Istanbul; Abdulvahab Murad, Azimbek, Abdulkadir Suleyman, Damulla Biytiyev in Berlin had sign a writing [sic?] and gave it to Ledeburg, informing them that I would be attending as a guest representing the Socialist Arm of the Turkistan National Union.  

This congress met at the late Karl Liebknecht’s home on Scnosseestrasse No. 121 [Schloßstraße?] in Berlin, as the World Left Socialists Congress.   The following Parties participated: German Socialist Alliance (Ledeburg, Wegman, Rabold); French Socialist Alliance (M. Letrange); Russian Left SR and Maximalists Party (Steinberg, Spero); Lithuanian Left People’s Party (Perkinas); Byelorus Left SR (Greb, Borovski); Ukrainian SR (Ripetski, Krax); Italian Socialist (Maximalist) Party (Nenni, A. Balabanova) and, as guests, Z. Validov and Ukrainian Socialist Sapoval.   A. Balabanova, whom I had met in Moscow, was an Italian woman.   She was very close to Lenin; she left the Party and returned to Italy due to differences in principles.   At the consultative session, this lady showed great interest in me and introduced me to Nenni and others.   The papers read were very good, because they were free ideas expressed in a free world.   My presentation was entitled “Toward Socialism over Bolshevism” (Über den Bolschewismus zum Sozialismus).   The contents stressed that the Russians arriving under the flag of socialism were leaving the capitalists far behind in their imperialism; the Basmaci Movement was a people’s action; it is necessary for the World Left Socialists to sincerely cooperate with the revolutionary leadership of the colonized people; and it is imperative that the Third International be forgotten and convene a Fourth International.   My words were applauded.   There was no possibility of my speech drawing applause from Socialist-Democrat Mensheviks, English Right SRs, French and German Right Socialists (Members of the Second International).   However, there were those among the Left Socialists who avoided distancing themselves from Moscow-Communism.   Some members of the Jewish Bund and the leadership of the Russian Left SRs were devoted to Sionism, and were religious Jews.   Their occasional smiles toward us were for their own timely benefit and not entirely sincere.   Those who sincerely listened to my speech were Nenni, Balabanova, Ledebug, Wegman and Shapoval.   They asked me questions to expand some of my statements and took notes.   The brother of Karl Liebknecht, whose name now I forgot, published the text of my presentation in the journal Klassen Kampf (1925 No. 14, 21) which they were publishing, and also in the journal of the Russian Left SRs, Znamia Borby (1925 No. 9-10) with appreciative introductions.  

In my life, I spoke with various party members; however, I appreciate the individuals who believe in their party doctrine and those whose activities carry some consequence.  

Cokayoglu and Socialism—
On 25 January 1925, I received a strange letter form Cokayoglu.   Earlier I had written to him that his articles in Miliyukov’s newspaper are not commensurate with his membership in the Turkistan National Union.   He could not reconcile that statement with the presentation I made at the Left Socialist Congress which was published in Znamia Borby, and was confused.    He took my letter to mean “cut all your ties with those Kadets.”    In his letter he stated: “if you are going to represent Turkistan in such congresses as a socialist, I cannot be a member of your Turkistan National Union.   Do you think that you can drag the people behind you with the ERK party program?”   On 1 February 1925, I wrote him an answer:
“During our Berlin meetings, you had read the text that I was going to present to the Congress of Socialists, which is now published in Russian, and you had approved it with the statement ‘we need to take advantage of such occasions to make our case known.’   Now, why did you turn in this fashion?   Apparently, this paper and the letter I wrote you were not met with the approval of Maria Yakilna (Cokay’s wife).   Such instances were also observed several times during last year.   The wives of Eleken (Alihan Bukeyhanov) and Aqan (Ahmet Baytursun) were also Russian.   However, they had managed to keep their wives out of politics.   They would not have their wives read their letters.   When politics was the subject of discussion, they would immediately rise and leave.   I know Maria Yalkina as a good person, and respect her for being your wife.   Because of that, I am sending you whatever you ask.   Now, I sent you Turkish cigarettes; I trust you will like them.   However, Maria Yalkina is not a member of Turkistan National Union.   Accordingly, I am sending this letter by the hand of Ekber Aga Seyhulislam.   Do not be offended.   I delivered my paper not as a member of the Turkistan National Union, but as a member of the Erk Party.   You also know that I attended the said congress, not as a member, but as a guest.   Turkistan National Union is an organization of seven item platform that brings together the two largest parties of Turkistan and Alas Orda.   All three parties constituting TNU can participate in any congress, according to their own party programs, outside of those seven planks of the TNU platform.   The existence of those parties, after leaving Turkistan, is purely theoretical.   From the Erk Party, in diaspora, we are only twenty-two members.   We do not have vital communication with those members who remained in the country.   Naturally, when our country can gain independence, those parties will live according to the electoral results.   I hope that seven plank platform that can provide us with the possibility of establishing a coalition, or something similar in the future.  

Why did the Erk Party make a program of open socialism?   You, during 1917 in Khokand and Abdulkadir Muhittinov during 1921 in Bukhara having been deep anti-socialists, caused the labor strata to join in with the Russian labor organization.   When you were deputy head of the Government, in the debates with Chernishev you had clearly shown that you understood legality as “bourgeois,” and did not at all side with the Moslem labor unions.   You had rejected the idea that large “quarters” (block apartments) in which the laborers and middle class citizens would live should be constructed by the government and stated that ‘if Puteliaxov in Khokand and Mirkamil Bay in Andijan wish to buy all houses in their cities and render the entire city population their tenants; that is so according to the law.’   Then this ‘laborer-tudeh’ idea emerged at that time.   We had advanced that idea in order not to lose the Moslem laborers to the Russian Socialist Parties and organizations, and advanced the matter as a national issue.   That was the reason for the establishment of national labor unions during June 1917 with Hamza Hekimzade in Samarkand, me and Mahmud Hoca Behbudi.   Azerbaijan’s national socialist parties and the Musavat Party had organized that business much better during 1918-1919.  

We had understood socialism as a free-federation to be established Russia-wide comprised of all organizations founded on the bases of all national characters.   We were definitely against the dictatorship of tyranny.   On the other hand, the Russian Communist Party was following a policy of a Russian imperialist socialism on the scale of Russia.   They were allowing a Moslem Center for the Moslems only at the center of the Russian Communist Party in Moscow (as a secondary propaganda arm).   However, they were not allowing that center to open affiliated centers elsewhere.   By 1919, socialism had taken the lead in Turkistan.   No party that was not socialist could be established.   It was forbidden.  

Even after we left our country, we believed that we could continue our influence in the country via a national socialist party.   That is still possible.   We did not see a reson to change the party program, which was written in 1920 according to the conditions of Russia.  

You ask me if Erk Party can gain the masses; if it remains true to nationality and Islam, why not, as long as it can live under the conditions of freedom.   We spoke quite a bit during 1917 with Mahmud Hoca and Hayreddin Balgimbayev on this matter.   Now, we are learning the German organizations which are close to the same aims, with Azimbek.   Here, the task of keeping together socialism with nationalism in the same organization is split into two.   One is National Socialists; but their primary aim is animosity toward the Jews.   The National Socialists are placing the German race and paganism against Catholicism, and following the path for a full dictatorship.   In our case, in order to honor the Tajiks, in many cases, it will be necessary to use the term Moslem instead of Turk, and Turkistanis.   That means, the race issue will not be valid with us.   The second route is the path of the Christian Socialists.   We may possibly learn some from them.   My socialism is based on scholarship.   I seriously learned Chernyshevsky, Marx, Plekhanov, Lenin, Herzen and Chernov.   However, scientific socialism can only help while writing the history of the decline of materialism.   But, a socialism that takes democracy as the primary principle along with believing in progress, joined with nationality and Islam, can lead large masses in Turkistan.   Besides, ERK is a party solely for Turkistan; the party program and related ideas are not for export.  

The program of the Cedids [roughly: ‘new’ or ‘renewal’] does not contain any order.   I had written their nineteen item program draft.   The talks among them lasted for months on those items.   Those discussions were boring.   There cannot be a nationalist party that does not include production, consumption and cooperatives in the party program.   You wish to call that party ‘radical’ instead of ‘cedid.’  Still, you do not have a program containing economic items.   For the time being the best for all of us is the seven plank platform.   That is, as long as the details outside that platform are not aggrandized.   I had suggested that you have a talk with Resit Saffet Bey; I understand you have done so.   However, you had mentioned that you did not like my participation in the Congress of the Socialists.   While you were stressing that you were writing articles for Miliukov’s paper, and that you were tolerant of Miliukov, you attempted to distance Miliukov from Mensikov.   However, he was a secretary of General Talat at one time, and to them, such differences do not mean anything.   I participated in the Berlin Congress, because they are socialists who will listen to the problems of numerically small nations.   Now I see; the letters Rosa Luxemburg wrote before her demise bemoans Russian imperialism of the Russian Communist Party.   She termed the promises of the Russian Communist Party announcements, that they would provide independence to the nations imprisoned by the Russians, as charlatanism.   The world is changing fast.   It would be useful for you to speak with those socialists who are in favor of a federation with smaller nations, and those who are against colonies.   You, as an attorney, could have labored to have the impounded properties of Putliaxov returned to him during 1917-1918.   Now, you cannot open your mouth in favor of Emir of Bukhara or Putliaxov or Mir Kamil.   These past seven years brought unimaginably fast changes.   The next seven years will see even more changes.   Even the liberals, who are not socialists, began to suggest that as well.   Means of transportation and communication will be nationalized in the country as well.  

Freedom of publication is one of the holiest rights of a nation.   However, that cannot be left to the monopoly of the capitalists.   Leaving the press under the monopoly of the state during the Soviet period, just as it was under the Tsar, is a most negative outcome.   It appears that nations will choose to limit the dictates of capital and tyranny of inheritance over the people.   You will not find that strange either.   But, that is precisely the socialism you had rejected loathingly during 1917.   All this is a problem of the world.   There is no reason to expend separate efforts for Turkistan in this arena.   Whatever the world will choose, so will we.   And, that is: a national and sincerely democratic socialism, which will not be deceived by the imperialist and dictatorial socialism of the great nations, one that will not compromise the freedom of self determination of nations and individuals.  

All these matters were discussed in detail during 1920-1921 when the center of Turkistan National Union was in Bukhara and Samarkand.   Since you were not in the country at that time, I provided the details here.   I sent a summary of this letter to Osman Hoca, Nasir Mahdum and Mustafa Sahkuli in Istanbul; Abdulhamid Arif and Turabbek in Meshed.   If there are any errors, they will write you and me.    1 February 1925.”

Talks with German socialists and followers of Kautski—
Among those attending this Congress, the views on the future of socialism and the rights of the weak nations were different.   The majority of ideas expressed did not satisfy me.   Because of that, I decided to speak with the representatives of other Parties, and non-Socialists in Berlin.   I first contacted the Party of the President Ebert and Starenberg [here, the type-setter left out a couple of sentences].   Wegman fortified my idea.   After the congress was over, I spoke with a correspondent [again, a sentence is missing] who had gained the sympathies of the Easterners during 1914.    These talks took place at the colossal building of the Worwarst newspaper editorial offices.   With the aid of the correspondents of the same newspaper, I found the spiritual leader of German socialism, Karl Kautski.   That was because I knew his ideas expressed in his grand volume “Materialist Understanding of History” and that had formed the bases of Buxarin’s book of the same title.   I had a chance to learn his ideas in greater detail ten years later in Vienna, during the time of Hitler; during our talks on 16 January 1925, it became apparent that this great scholar did not have any firm understanding of the minority issues.   During all these talks, Azimbek Birimcan helped me to express myself in German.   From my talks with the Editor of Worwarst, Friedrich Stampfer, since their party was now in power, I understood that they were a bit too supercilious and that they did not attach much importance to the problems of minority nations while they were pursuing colonies.   Wegman, friend of Karl Liebknicht, had pulled me to the side at the other congress that I attended as a guest, and we had a talk.   He did not seem to be interested in the return of the German colonies.   At the end of this Congress, during the closing session, I spoke with the German members and stated: “there is no benefit to be gained from German Social Democrats who are thirsting after Colonies.   The German people need to demonstrate that they have abandoned this colony gathering greed to England, France, and Belgium in no uncertain terms and announce that they will honor the rights of the colonized people.   At that time, they will gain tremendous respect in the East.   [Here, once again, several sentences are missing in the printed text].

Talks with General Schleicher—

I wished to speak with the chief representative of the non-socialist circles, General Schleicher.   He was the Chief of the General Staff, and our meeting was facilitated by the German Officer Lemman.   This Lemman was an enemy of the German social democrats.   He told me that one of his close friends joined the Social Democrats.   He sought Lemman for talks and offered his hand.   Lemman stated: “withdraw your hand and put it in your pocket.”   When I was in Kabul, I had told him that I was travelling to Europe and especially Germany, he had stated: “let me give you the address of someone I know; perhaps he can help you” and gave me a short letter.   And that letter was not sealed; in it, he had written about me with the words: ”he knows the conditions of Central Asia well.”   I searched and found the said individual.   He was an officer in the Wermacht, and knew Russian just like Lemman.   He asked me: “what do you need?”   I told him: “If possible, I wish to speak with General Schleicher,” and told him the outlines of the topic I wanted to discuss.   It was difficult to find a suitable time of the General, but that officer finally did.   I spoke fifteen minutes with the general.   I asked him: “will you give us permission to work in Germany, and can you support us financially for us to publish?”   His response was: “there is no need for permission.   Work as much as you like, and keep me informed as well.   However, we cannot provide financial support.   We are still living with the psychology of war, and convinced that our real enemy is the French.   Because of that we are intending to move our aircraft and chemical industries to Soviet lands.   From that perspective, we cannot render any aid that would offend the Russians.   You had helped our officer Lemman who was in Kabul; for that we are grateful.”   From those words of the General, we understood that Lemman was in the service of the German General Staff, using a nom de guerre.   I was astonished that the General was such an unwary person so as to transfer the chemical and aircraft industries to Soviet lands.   I told him that in carefully worded statements.  

Our talks with the Iranian Azerbaijanis—
On 22 April, my friend Huseyin Kasimzade of Azerbaijan invited me to the home of a countryman of his who was living in Berlin with his family.    Another Iranian also arrived with his wife and child.   Also present was the Iranian author Kasim Ganizade, whom I had met earlier.   We ate tasty Iranian food.   My friend Abdulkadir observed that the child was speaking in Azeri Turkish with his mother and praised that.   His father immediately interjected: “unfortunately he does” showing his disdain toward Turkish.   Ganizade explained that the Turks of Azerbaijan never wrote in Turkish, but only in Farisi, and that Turkish would disappear over time and that there were no Turks in Azerbaijan.   Ganizade had written a Turkish pamphlet which he issued in response to an Ottoman Turk by the name of Ruseni Bey.   It was also stated that when the Turkish General Kazim Karabekir was in Iranian Azerbaijan, his troops ostensibly took the samovars of the Azerbaijanis by force; and that supposedly caused the Azerbaijanis not to like the Turks.   Now, alledgedly, the Iranian Azerbaijanis were not naming their children in Turkish, but using names such as Cemsid, Huseng.    In some, this meeting left a bad taste.   Huseyin Kasimzade did not speak.   The owner of the house was not in favor of becoming persianized voluntarily; but the opposing side defended their cause with fanaticism.   I stated: “we Turkistanis love the Persian literature; we are even lovers of it.   However, if that causes the eradication of our culture and Turkishness, that fondness toward it will be lost.   Iskender Muradbek, in an article he wrote in 1882 stated that “we Dagistanis must leave our mother tongue and cross over to Russian.”   However, that was an exceptional case.   Forcing the Turks of Iran to forget Turkish, and preventing the children from speaking in Turkish with their mothers can only be realized in an era of the Kacar monarchy.  If one day full democracy reigns in Iran, you cannot prevent the opening of schools operating in the non-Iranian languages.   Banning that can only be possible under absolute monarchy or the dictatorship of Persian nationalism.”

That meant, besides the “Turkan-I Farsi goyan” [the Turk who sings in Persian] of Meshed, another type of humans are being reared who hate to be called Turks.   That also meant the creation of a united front against the Turks between the Persians and the Soviets; especially during this year while the Soviets were establishing “national boundaries” according to the names of the Turk Branches’ lands, any by removing the words Turk and Turkistan.   Ten years prior, we were not even aware that while we were reading the “Travelogue of Ibrahim Bey” and “Darurahad Moslems” that one was written in Farisi and the other in Crimean Turkish.   Nowadays, we can encounter new type individuals who are tasked to remove “Turkish cultural union” and to deny Turkishness, to demean it.    In sum, Abdulkadir and I returned home concerned about the future.   Kacar in Iran and the Mangit in Bukhara have been the least skillfull among the Turk ruling families.   Like the Mangit, the Kacar appear to be disappearing into history.   The Manchu, who have ties to the Turks by virtue of membership in the Uralic-Altaic family of nations, while they were administering China, had paid maximum attention to the life of national language and literature.   Kacars, just the opposite, showed a disinterest in the subject, especially among the Azerbaijani Turks that constituted their main support, and allowed the contra, Iranian nationalist thoughts and ideas to take hold.   The ensuing penance will be upon the current family members.   However, despite those who were careless enough to regret their children speaking Turkish and now acting with pride as if they understood the real danger then, from a spiritual point, the Azerbaijani Turkish will not fall like Manchu after 1912.    That is because; the Manchu were the minority acting as the tyrant and had to regard democracy as the enemy.   When the family fell, their tribe and their language were also condemned to oblivion.   Even though Azerbaijan is divided into two parts, their communities have been rearing strong fighters for democracy and have been succeeding against oppression.   Besides, within their territories, they are not the minority; just the opposite, they are the majority.   The Kacar family is a remnant of the days old, and they are condemned to oblivion.   However, the community is desirious of living with their own language, in democracy, contrary to the likes of Irec Mirza whose aim is to persianize his own nation.   The Azeri community I came to know in Meshed a year earlier inspired these observations.  

Our communications with our friends remaining in the East—
I knew the importance of speaking with the political and idea men form various nations while I was in Berlin.   Especially after speaking with Kautsky and General Schleicher for a few minutes, I had arrived at the opinion that I finally understood the West.   I wrote letters to the friends who were left in the East, and sent them by hand who were travelling to Iran.   The recipients were Abdulhamid Arifov, the former Minister of War for Bukhara; Turabbek Turebekov, one of the Cizzak elders; and Sadreddin Han of Tashkent.  The letter dated 12 January 1925, the original of which I still have, summarized the experiences of my two years since leaving Russia during March 1923.   Turab Bek and Abdulhamid asked for visas from the Turkish Embassy in Tahran, but their request was denied with some harshly hurting words.   They had not received any interest from the Iranians either and they returned to Meshed, mostly on foot, hungry and miserable.   They immediately asked what I learned in Europe, concerning what the free world would do seriously against the Soviets.   They indicated that if there was nothing to expect, they were thinking of returning to Turkistan.   As soon as I received that letter, I wrote this detailed letter.  

After arriving in Europe, I wrote detailed political letters to my friends living in Meshed, Kabul, Peshawar and Istanbul on 24 February 1924, 15 October 1924, 18 October 1924, and 13 November 1924.   Each was ten to fifteen pages long, and contained an analysis of what I learned in the free world pertaining to the conditions in Central Asia.   They also analyzed the information sent from the three individuals from Tahran, Kabul, Gazne, Meshed and Quetta.   During 1926, I learned from Mehdi Kadi, the Muftu of Kazakistan who stayed in Istanbul for a spell on the way back from performing pilgrimage, that two of those letters made it to the center of Kazakistan, to Kizilorda.   That made me very happy.   One of them was my letter dated 12 February 1925 and the last was the one dated 28 February 1925.   The summary of that letter is as follows:

“What we heard while in Russia that the West knew everything and was in possession of plans for actions to be taken against the Soviets turned out to be only extant in the imagination of the Communists.   There is no such thing here, and in general, there is no crystallized thinking about the Soviets.   It is also true that the flow of ideas and events in the West is slower than that of Russia.   For example, what Kautski wrote in 1925 on the Soviet agricultural revolution is based on the statistics of 1916.   Likewise, the speed of the socialist revolution around the world, as is suggested to us, is exaggerated.   I was first told of these ideas in Bombay at the Caliphate Committee.    We also noted that the Egyptian newspaper al-Muqattam also stresses the same ideas (14 November 1924).   In the journal Yirak Sark published in the Far East by émigré Tatars, which has so far published thirty-five issues, some articles taken from Japanese newspapers also advancing the same ideas.   Meaning, the efforts to cause the Communist Revolution are slowing down, and the idea of evolution is gaining currency.   The Italian Socialists Nenni and Balabanova stated during our talks that: “now, the Third International is doomed to dissolve within the prodigious Russian imperialism.”   Since the German and English Socialists are remaining loyal to the Second International, it is not possible to find financial resources toward holding a Fourth International and announce it as widely as the previous ones.   Balabanova, who left the side of Lenin, agrees with Trotsky that we must work to have the Russian Revolution not be sequestered by the Russian imperialist nationalism.   In that task, Balabanova believes that the imprisoned nations need to cooperate with the revolutionary socialists.   In that regard, the Second International does not help.   As far as we have learned, since the Bolsheviks began to assimilate the Old Russian traditions, the émigré White Russians began to think that that will turn their own positions into a favorable direction.   Thus, they will slowly return to Russia, or they will serve the Soviet Imperialism with or without a salary.   The old Novoye Vremia is now being published in Paris.   I am certain that even though Markov, Vtoroy, Meliukov and Kerensky are now criticizing the Bolsheviks, in time they will support them for external politics.   The famed Rightist Izgoyev, in his articles published in the newspaper Rul, states that Soviet Foreign Policy is developing in accordance with the Russian national goals.   In the latest issues of that newspaper, especially in the issue dated 25 April 1925, Izgoyev wrote: “now, Bolshevism is losing power as an ideology.   Nobody is willing to forfeit his life for it anymore.   However, the power of national feeling is on the increase.   Now, the Soviets can mobilize hundreds of thousands against any other state in the name of Russian honor.   Now, among the Soviets and their supporters in the Free World, business is conducted not with the excitement of ideology, but with money and compulsion.   Russia’s wealth is inexhaustible; therefore, the Bolsheviks can buy the services of people for sale indefinitely.   However, when the matters take that direction, Bolshevism will be confined to Russia.”  

The Moslem emigres have collaborated with various Russian émigré groups, according to their preferences.   Sadri Maksudi and Mustafa Cokay are in unison with the old Kadet and Meliukov milieu.   Ayaz Ishaki, Fuat Toktarov, Ahmet Salikov are together with Kerensky.   As for us, even though we are talking with the Viktor Cernov group, and with some Left SRs, we wish to remain independent, and maintain contacts with Turkiye, Iran and Afghanistan circles; and with the close spheres of Resulzade and Ali Merdan Bey of Azerbaijan.   We are in contact with Cernov, and with those Turks, Afghans and Iranians who are in Berlin.   Since we are remaining loyal to the Erk Program, we are against getting close to any party who does not accept ideas of independence.    Because of that, I attended the Congress of the Left Socialists, who are in favor of forced revolution, held during 24 December, only as a guest.   We are intimate with the Poles.   They will establish an Oriental Institute, and help with the publication of a journal in Russian and French, in order to aid the struggles of the nations imprisoned by the Russians.   For our own struggle, if it is possible to receive help from America, to receive it, and even open an American School of Agriculture in Meshed to especially educate the youth of Turkistan.   In that regard, we spoke with some Iranians, and requested help from the Iranian Government and presented them with a project.   However, our idea of receiving help from the Americans is theoretical; we have not contacted them.   If such an agricultural school can be established, that can also help the spread of English and French among the Turkistanis.   However, we will definitely not approach the English for such help.   They are thinking differently about the Central Asian politics than the time of Lord Curzon.   Abdulhamid Arifov knows well that, during the two year stretch of MacDonald government [sic], the ideas have not changed.   The English regard the Central Asian liberals detrimental for their own cause.   Because of that, they did not grant us permission to contact anyone in India.   If it will be possible to have an agricultural school in Meshed, you can settle there and conduct activities favorable to our country.   Since there is no central government in capitalism and the world of democracy, and the politics are confined to the traditions of pre World War I, we are experiencing difficulties explaining the problem.   Additionally, we do not have individuals who speak European languages.   Cokayoglu only this year began to master French.   Unfortunately, we have nobody who can write in English.   By the time we explain our conditions to the Europeans and the Americans, the Soviets will immediately intervene.   They can pressure the Iranians.   Meaning, the Easterners are fearful, and the Westerners are supercilious, slow for our times, and obtuse.   Perhaps the Poles can help us with regard to publications.   They promised to aid us in publishing a journal with the title “Turkistan” in Turkish.   At this time, the Soviets do not appear to be expanding beyond their current borders.   However, they will deprive the small nations of their independence and property rights, as they did to their villagers, suppress Islam and support the Soviet religion which they call “international.”  They will next work on eradicating our language.   More than likely, they will expend efforts to completely destroy the independence movement in our country with determination.   Meaning, since they cannot bring-about a world-wide communism, they will make the establishment of communism in Russia a priority in their program.   No European country will declare war against the Soviets in order to return the Russian imprisoned nations their rights.   Meaning, we are left alone with the Russian communists.   However, the Westerners possess self-confidence; that is also our only ally.   The Soviets can never remove the ghetto.   According to Monsieur Castagne, a former highschool teacher in Taskent, among those Frenchmen who are dealing with Central Asia, there are those who think that the Russians have a right to destroy the Kazak, Baskurt and Turkmen in Central Asia to create a new Amerika just as the Americans did by destroying the Native American population.   The same Castagne believes that the Third International will split the communists.   In any event, we must works to keep our nation together with all our might.   In my opinion, the future belongs to a progressive minded nationalism that accepted democratic socialism.   Even in Europe, in the fight against Bolshevism, there is no other remedy than to use their methods against them to fight them.”  

And the following is the letter sent to Abdulhamid and Turabbek on 12 February 1925:
“Even if you walked back from Tahran to Meshed, do not leave this free world in which you arrived.   That is because, if you return to Russia, you will long for the hungry walking days you spent in Iran.   During the past two years, we spoke with many individuals especially with those pertaining to the future of Central Asia in Iran, Afghanistan, India, France and Germany.   We cannot name names, as a bulwark against this letter opened and read on the way.   I believe that, even though the world is dark, there is one hole with light shining through.   That is:

1.    Communism cannot conquer the entire world as previously feared; it is confined to the Russian borders, joined the Russian imperialism, and condemned to dissolve in that imperialism.   Henceforth, Bolshevism will be forced to conduct matters with money, instead of weapons, in order to expand. 

2.    The Russian people, while enduring hunger and extreme powerty as they run after great imperialist objectives in order to take over the world for Russia by means of communism, will perhaps freeze within that faith.   The Russians will not be able to break the will of the world, and as a result will recede.   The Finnish Professor Nilson stated to me: ‘the Finnish Communists will never be taken in by the class struggle terminology and leave their homeland to their Russian friends.   Even if you in Central Asia and we in Europe are left hungry, let us continue to believe that we can regain the will and freedom of our nations.’   During the Wey reign in China, the Turks were forced to forget their language and become Chinese.   An opportunity arrived, and they recovered their language and national entity.   At that time, Buddhism brought them into that hole of calamity.   It was causing the Turks to be Sinified.   This time, Islam will be the element that will save us.   The entire world will understand that communism is not an independent entity, but a tool in the hands of Russian imperialism.   We the Members of the Turkistan National Union held a congress here two-and-a half months ago.   We spoke in detail that Turkistan will be abolished only to be replaced by five nations instead of the Turkistan Turk.   For each, separate grammars and dictionaries will be written.   Since the new languages do not possess historical depth, they will lose their existence and will be replaced by Russian.   If the Turkish of Turkiye takes on a form that we can accept as well, the Turkish of Central Asia will discover a new dimension of growth.   However, today, our political existence and literary language is entering a dark age rarely found in Turkish history.   Perhaps there will be manifest destinies in the lives of world nations.   This problem, meaning the strong swallowing the weak, is a problem faced by all Eastern European and Central Asian nations.   The remedy against that will have to be found by all nations of this earth.   The propensity of the Russians dividing and swallowing their neighboring countries is scaring all of her neighbors; that is because, the Soviets have taken the road to accomplish their goals by political means.   That failing, they will attempt to do it culturally.   God help our nation.   What we learned is that we are not alone for our fight for our national will.   12 February 1925.”

Problems of writing the history of Turkistan—
One problem I seriously concentrated on while living in Berlin was the writing of a history of Turkistan contemporary life in a Western language.   Another was the establishment of a journal that would be issued in Turkish and in one Western language, and to find staff to accomplish all that.   The writing of the History of Turkistan was developing nicely.   After my arrival in Istanbul, it was published in Egypt.   My friends Professor Eberhart and Dr. Anhagger had translated it into German for publication in Germany.   Mr. W.E.D. Allen had it translated into English from German, on his own account; neither translation was published.   I have the German translations in my possession; the English translation is in the library of the Harvard University.   A former Governor in India, Sir Olaf Caroe, made a summary of the English translation and published his Soviet Empire and the Turks of Central Asia.    Through that book, what I wrote in Berlin during 1924-1925, the Turkistan National Liberation war became known in the world.   When I spoke with Iskender Mirza, the President of Pakistan, in Lahore during 1958 and Pandit Nehru, the President of India during 1964 in Delhi, both indicated they became acquainted with me and our struggle from the book of Sir Olaf, and they wished that the full translation of my work could be published.  

The problem of journal pertaining to Turkistan—
It proved not possible to interest the German circles in the matter of publishing a journal.   However, among Ukrainian Socialists there were individuals who wanted to approach the matter as a common problem among the nations imprisoned by the Russians.   On the issue, I spoke many times with Sapoval, leader of Ukrainian Socialist Party, whom I met at the Left Socialist Congress, at the Exelsior Hotel.   In the beginning it was suggested that the socialists of Russian imprisoned nations to get together and publish a journal under the title “nationality problems from the perspective of revolutionary socialism in Russia and their legal rights.”   Then, the suggestion was made to issue an idea journal with the participation of the Czechs and Poles; then to be issued three journals, one for each for Ukraine, Turkistan and the Caucasus.   I stated that a single journal for all three nations would suffice.   I surmised that the Polish Stempovski had spoken with this Sapovalin.   I believed that the Czech and the Poles would have different ideas since the Russian revolutionaries had taken up headquarters in Prague.   Stempovski, while proposing the establishment of an Oriental Institute in Warsaw, had not at all mentioned the Czech.    He had spoken as if the Polish Government was going to underwrite the costs.   Now the journal proposed to Sapoval would not be a wide ranging one as foreseen by the Poles but would be the organ of the national Socialist Parties.   Shapoval had me speak with the Byelorussian and Lithuanian representatives who had arrived, like himself, for the Left Socialists Congress.   That meeting took place on the first day of January 1925.   I was told: “let us discuss your proposals three days later (on 4 January), at the home of Karl Liebknecht, with his brother as well as the reporter of Klassen Kampf newspaper, Wegmann; they have good impressions of you, and he has influence.   If the Poles and the Czechs do not help, we can perhaps gain the help of all Left Socialist movements for the journal you are thinking of establishing in France.”   At that meeting, I explained that, in addition to the journal proposed for publication by the socialist organizations of the Russian imprisoned nations, and equal to that, we must be tolerant of another journal to be published by the non-socialist nations, and those who are attached to the social democratic movement such as the Georgians and the Armenians.    In that manner, my contacts with the Left SR and the Left Socialists of the Russian imprisoned nations, gave me hope.   A little later, that journal gained the name Prometheus.   I think the Caucasians gave that name.  

In order to discuss these issues, I invited Mustafa Cokay from Paris to Berlin, realization of Stempovsky’s plans and the need for us to join them.   Naturally, there must have been other aspects of the publication of the journal Prometheus.   I count Mustafa Cokay’s agreement to join this organization my first success after we left Turkistan.   In sum, an Oriental Institute is going to be established in Warsaw, to concentrate primarily on our problems, and with the aid of the Polish, the journal Le Prometheus is going to be published in Paris.  

Talks along those lines resuscitated the third issue we had on deck, to prepare the staff who would work in Europe on the matter of Turkistan’s independence.   For that task, I was keeping in mind Azimbek Berimcan of the Kazaks, who had been acting as my translator; from the Ozbeks, Abdulvahap M. Muradi; from the Bukharans, Ahmet Naimi; and from the Baskurts, Dr. Alimcan Tagan.   I told these ideas of mine to some students from Turkistan who were then lodging in the Zoch house, advised them to find a way to send Azimbek Birimcan or Ahmet Naim to Paris so that either could work with Cokayev and learn French and English.   For whatever reason, Cokayoglu did not agree to have these two youths to work with him even if all their expenses would have been paid.   Moreover, from among the socialists he only liked those who were close to the Kerensky group.   That was his previous position.   Osman Kuvatov would have been the ideal individual to work on the journal which we had envisaged to publish in French and in Russian at Paris.   Cokayoglu also had mentioned that fact.   But, Kuvatov had returned to Russia immediately prior to our arrival in Europe, with the hope of returning.   However, the Soviets did not allow him to return.   In sum, due to Cokayoglu showing “unwillingness” toward his Kazak brother Birimcan, the matter could not go forward.   I proposed an Ozbek youth by the name of Abdussettar.   For whatever reason, he did not like him either.

Relations with Russian Academy of Sciences—
On 3 January, twenty-five off-prints of my paper that was published in the Russian Academy of Sciences journal on the works of Ibn-Fadlan and Abu Dulef, which I found in Meshed, arrived.   I sent one each to Monsieur Ferraud, Professor Deny, Minorsky, Castagne, Mirza Muhammed Qazvini and Sadri Maksudi in Paris; Professor Browne, Denison Ross in England; Sachau, Marquart in Berlin; Fuat Kopruluzade in Istanbul; Yusuf Akcora in Ankara.   A few days later, I received congratulatory letters from them.   Professor Bartold, Samoylovic and Krachovsky sent me a letter indicating that the Russian scholars would be grateful if I were to continue publishing such articles in the journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences.   Separately, Krachovsky relayed the information that they would be interested in me preparing a volume on al-Biruni.   There were no new barriers in my corresponding with my family in Russia or publishing scholarly works there.   However, when my political writings began to appear against the Soviets in Klassen Kampf and Znamia Borby, all changed.   Only Bartold continued to write.  

Professor Janson of Finland—
On 9 January, Professor Janson of the Helsingfors Technological University arrived in the company of Kazan intellectual Hamit Zubeyir, who had been educated in Turkiye.   We sat down and talked for four hours.   His aim was to unite Finns with the Asian political units and those nations imprisoned by the Russians against the Russian colonial movements.   He listed what aspects would be of interest to the Turks, Iranians and the Afghans.   The Finns, according to him, were also inviting the Japanese to join this project via Professor Ramstedt who is their Tokyo Ambassador.   And all this was a Finnish bourgeois project and they had a “Klub der Vorpostenvolker” named structure.   They came to an understanding with “Clube de Concord” in Poland, under the administration of Senator Siedletsky, which I first heard of from the mouth of Stempovsky.   Since the socialists in Finland are pacifists, they were not supporting the idea of National Socialism idea which was put forth by Ukrainian Sapoval and me.   Since he mentioned the Concord club, I mentioned to Professor Janson a part of our discussions with Stempovsky and stated: “if the Polish Government guarantees the publication of a journal in that direction, it would be good for the Finnish Government to help as well.”   Professor Janson indicated that he did not like the idea of Poles giving the leadership of that project to Ukrainians, Georgians and Armenians, which would cause the Moslems to withdraw, and told them so.    According to him, the Asian populations and Moslem nations can cooperate with the Polish and Finnish tribes.   However, according to him, it would be better for the Armenians and the Georgians to group with Ukrainian and Lithuanian Christian tribes.   On the other hand, since the Georgians are deeply Socialist, they will not cooperate with other nationalist but non-socialist groups.   According to Janson, the idea of “Turanism,” which includes the Hungarians, is a matter of ethnography and culture far away from politics.   They may be tied to the Finns from one end, and the Japanese at the other.   I indicated to him that it is necessary not to mix our political movement with the Hungarian position that includes racial and political relations with the Turks and the Mongols.     I added that, it will not be possible to interest the Iranian and Afghan tribal units in the problems of the nations imprisoned by the Russians if unpoven theories such as these are mixed in.    After Professor Janson returned to his country, he sent letters to indicate he spoke with the leaders of the Vorpostenvolker and Concord Clubs, my ideas were received with very good impressions, that all would be well if I were to journey to Helsingfors and Warsaw to deliver papers on these topics and they would meet my expenses.   He had duplicated writings in German pertaining to this topic.

Dr. Riza Nur Bey—
The former Minsiter of Education of Turkiye arrived in Berlin on 13 March.   He was staying at Hotel Eden; he sent someone to invite me.   It is said that this person was very interested in Turkish history and ethnography and prepared a multi-volume work on Turkish history.   He stated that he had heard of my contacts with European politicians and scholars from Ali Merdan Bey Topcubasi, and that many scholars were interested in keeping me in Europe.   He was adamant that I should leave all that behind and move to Turkiye, transfer my political duties to some other person and devote myself to scholarship in Turkish history.   He also stated that he had discussed all this with Turkish elders Fuat Koprulu, Akcoraoglu Yusuf, Hamdullah Suphi, Agaoglu Ahmet Bey, and corresponded with them.   He invited me to write the same people as well.   On 15 March, we spoke alone for another three hours.   I told him in detail what we were planning to accomplish in Europe.  He responded with: “leave all this to others; it will be better for you to become a professor in one of our universities; you can also manage your friends politically and contribute in that manner as well.   Besides, we are of one mind with you in those quarters.”    He introduced me to General Kemaleddin Sami, the Turkish Ambassador, and suggested I meet with Dr Resit Saffet and Rauf Orbay Bey who were due to arrive in Berlin.   Those talks were instrumental in my leaving Europe and moving to Turkiye.   Riza Nur Bey’s absolute behavior that did not allow me to argue seemed interesting to me.    I believed that the Turkists of Turkiye were regarding me one of their own.   A few days later, General Kemalettin Sami called me to hand me the letter of Hamdullah Suphi Bey, the Turkish Minister of Education inviting me.   I also received letters from Fuat Koprulu and Yusuf Akcora Beys.   However, Yusuf Akcora being a guarantor only for me and not for Abdulkadir bothered me.   Riza Nur Bey had that done as well.   On 11 April, a letter arrived from Riza Nur indicating I was appointed to the “Original and Translated works Commission” at the Ankara Ministry of Education.   That was a fait de compli, because the offer by Professor Browne and his invitation to England was very favorable; Mirza Muhammed Qazvini and Mustafa Cokayoglu were insisting that I accept that offer.   I cast lots; I ended up with Turkiye, and that resolved the matter.   Besides, the letter by Hamdullah Suphi Bey’s letter and the appointment arranged by Riza Nur Bey to the “Original and Translated works Commission” had already solved the problem.   Now, regardless of how profitable the conditions Sir Aurel Stein, Denison Ross and Professor E. Browne proposed, I could not tell those two Turkish Beys “I am going to London.”  

The papers I delivered to the Oriental Club in Berlin during January and February, and my friend Abdulkadir Inan’s paper was published on the Baskurt autonomy movement in the Azerbaijan journal Yeni Kafkasya in Istanbul; it caused severe arguments between us and the Tatar intellectuals resident in that city.   

Conference on Cengiz Han—
I presented a detailed paper on Cengiz Han on 22 and 23 January.   On 1 February, I summarized a work that I had written on Azerbaijan history as a paper.   On 4 February, the Azerbaijan intellectual Ali Asgar Bey’s paper on the Azerbaijan poet Sabir was much like the continuation of my paper on general Azerbaijan history four days earlier.   Both occasions were very lively.   Kazan intellectuals Ayaz Ishaki and Fuat Toktar objected on the bases that the Ali Asgar Bey’s paper was designed to support the ideas of Zeki Velidi.   Since the students arriving from Turkistan and all the Azerbaijanis defended me, those discussions did not develop in favor of the Kazan position.   The statements by Mehmet Efendi, Mirza Haci Efendi and Ali Kemal Bey of the Azerbaijanis became individual paper presentations.   Ayaz Ishaki attacked me for making materialistic and economic positions the center point of historical treatment.   In response, Mirza Haci stated: “We were already prepared these papers.   All of us are still here.   Nobody here derived anything from Zeki Velidi’s speech such as that.”   Fuat Toktar objected to my portrayal of Cengiz as the founder of the joint state established by the Turks and the Mongols, and stated that he regarded Cengiz only as a Tatar hero.  

Economic history of Turkistan and the Unitarists of Kazan—
On 1 April, again at the Oriental Club in Berlin, I delivered a paper on “The History of Agriculture in Turkistan.”   Again I was accused of making economics the center-piece of history and derailing the understanding of nationalism by Ayaz Ishaki.   He also attacked Abdulkadir’s published paper in Yeni Kafkasya journal (No. S, 12-16, 1925), claiming it was written in order to insult the Tatars, and created a lot of noise.   In response the Turkistani students Tulegen, Ahmet Sukru, Salih Ulus, Ahmet Can Okay, Afzal of Bukhara, Ahmet Naim and all of the Azerbaijanis, and from Turkiye Halil Vedad, Bekir Sitki and Ekrem Karan supported me severely, and returned the meeting to a positive channel.   On 17 April, at the circumcision ceremony of Alimcan Idrisi’s son, they got a Finnish merchant involved in the argument, and reported me and Abdulkadir to the Turkish Consul Namik Bey, knowing I was invited to Turkiye, aiming to prevent that.   As a result, at the initiative of Consul Namik Bey’s initiative, a commission was established to investigate the complaints of theTatars.   This commission comprised of citizens of Turkiye, Azerbaijan, and Turkistanis (Bekir Sitki, Harun, Malik, Halil Vedat, Afzal Bukhari of Turkistan, and Iskender Aga of Azerbaijan).   During the deliberations, four Turkistani students presented the Commission with a copy of Ayaz Ishaki’s article, accompanied by a Turkish translation, which he wrote with Ahmet Salikatti of Daghestan, published in Kerensky’s Dni newspaper (22 August 1924, No 542, 544 and 560) presenting themselves as very sympathetic of Russian democracy, and thus fighting against all the autonomy and independence movements in Russia among the Moslem populations.   The Commission solved the problem by deciding for us.   This matter was explained in a thirty-two page pamphlet by Abdulkadir Suleyman, and in the articles published in Yeni Kafkasya.    During those arguments, Ayaz Ishaki, addressing us directly, made a sarcastic comment to the effect that we had moved against Great Russia.   Kemal Bey of Azerbaijan asked Ayaz Ishaki: “why are you happy that Baskurdistan fell, while opposing the Russian swords?”   Ishaki could not answer.   During those arguments, the negative stances of the Tatar unitarists became clear.   The occasion for that was the Turkish economist Dr. Harun Bey’s statement: “why are you Tatars so opposed to the economic aspects of national issues?   Why did this talk about the economics and agricultural history of Turkistan made you so mad?”   Ayaz Ishaki’s response: “economic issues will cause the separation of Moslems in Russia; for us it is only necessary to unite around cultural and religious issues.   Previosuly, during the Tsarist regime, there was an Office of the Mufti.   The reason for the abolition of that institution was the Baskurt Autonomy Movement, the Kazak-Baskurt land issues.”   Earlier, Harun Bey seemed as if he was on the side of the Tatars, but now he stated: “there cannot be a nationalism issue without economics.   Every regime will give you cultural autonomy like the Jews have.   In order to obtain that, there is no need to leave your homeland.”   Ayaz Ishaki and Fuat Toktar stated that previously the Kazakistan was in Kazan’s sphere and that nowadays the national movements began in Kazan would make sure of that [sic].   Harun Bey, who was presiding, stated: “that is your internal issue.   There is nothing for Turkiye to do with that,” and closed the matter.   

With all that, the senselessness of many a Tatar intellectual declaring for unitarism during 1917 became apparent.   It was especially poignant that Ayaz Ishaki and his friend Omer Teregulov, by joining the Oriental Institute in Warsaw, were forced to show themselves in favor of independence.   However, they chose to change the nature of the old “unitarism and federalism” debate into Tatar-Baskurt tribal fight.   They labeled me “number one Tatar enemy,” and began conducting propaganda against me among the Crimean and even Dobruca Tatars and in Turkiye.   Since we were all going to congregate in Turkiye, it was apparent all that was going to result in unpleasant outcomes.   Considering that possible ending, I sent letters to Yusuf Akcora Bey, Ali Merdan Bey, and Sadri Maksudi Bey, who was preparing to journey to Turkiye, and asked them to prevent that bad and lowdon propaganda.   Yusuf Bey gave a positive answer.   Sadri Maksudi Bey, in his reponse of 25 June 1925 from Paris, stated: “in the matter of Russian Moslems, your views are sufficiently known by me, and mine to you.   Let us not be naïve enough to think we can convince each other.”   Ali Merdan Bey wrote to indicate he personally sought Maksudi Bey and spoke with him, but could not succeed in explaining the general negative effects of the issue.

As a result of that dispute, I received a copy of a long letter sent to Ayaz Ishaki by Mustafa Sakuli from Eskisehir on 2 May 1925.  Among other statements, it contained the following: “by opposing the independence movements of the Turk lands imprisoned by the Russians, and even that of Ukraine and Finland, by portraying your personal feelings as if they are held dear by all Tatars, you have isolated the Kazan Turks who have so far occupied such an esteemed position in the cultural history of the Turks from the Turks who are desirious of their independence and from other non-Russian nationalities.    During the initial months of the Russian Revolution your application to Kniaz L’vov, head of the temporary Russian government in Petrograd, as the ‘delegates of the Kazan Moslems, to declare ‘we are not seeking autonomy or independence like Ukrainians; we shall remain citizens of Russia.’    Furthermore, you announced all that in your newspaper IL by using words that were regarded as insulting by Ukrainians, calling their lands as Malorus and Xoxlandia, became your biggest mistake.   However, there were only four of you applying to Kniaz L’vov.   Now your attempt to show what you did was ostensibly for the unity of the Turks and placing that against your article in the Kerensky newspaper Dni as if you did what you did for the unity of Russia as a loyal patriot, simply amazes me.   However, you, too, like those who participated in the Azerbaijan and Turkistan independence movements, will become a refugee like us in Turkiye.   After your arrival in Turkiye, if you were to engage in publication activity to show that you have been right all along, your application to Kniaz L’vov may strike your face.”   With that and similar writings, the unitarists were silenced.  

Various conferences—
Since Berlin was one of the five greatest centers of the civilized world, it was possible to obtain information from the representatives of various nations in complete freedom on political and cultural problems.   To us, and those who have arrived from Russia, Paris and Berlin was giving the impression that they represented an entirely different universe than Russia.   During that April alone, several important, at least for me, conferences and talks took place.   On 2 April, the aforementioned Dr. Harun, who was on the Staff of the Berlin Naval Construction Technicum, gave a good talk on the basic economics of Turkiye and the future of ship construction.   On 5 April, a Russian political writer by the name of Peter Savitsky convened the Russian Moslem representatives and delivered a talk on Eurasia.   Later, the text of that talk was printed in Prague under the title “Questions on Learning the Refugees” and used to present the refugees as if they represented Eastern European, Central and Northern Asian “Eurasian Civilization.”   The Tatar intellectuals present in Berlin liked that “Eurasia Movement” very much.   At another gathering, I stated that that movement was another method of having the Easterners swallow and accept Russian imperialism.   My statement caused a lot of disputes.  

On 12 April, Chinese Professors and writers held a memorial meeting for their leader Sun yat-sen at the Siemens Oberrealschule which allowed us to speak on the close relations between Russian imprisoned nations and the problems of Far East as well as the application of the Latin alphabet to Chinese.   From the Chinese Revolutionaries there was one whom I had met in Moscow.   He stated: “comrade Validov is here.   He is a scholar of Middle East and Far Eastern problems.   We request he address us.”   I responded with: “I know very little about the topic and whatever I know is based on Soviet publications.”   Regardless, I was invited to speak.   So, I stated: “I have not read any other book on the present matter other then your great leader Sun yat-sen’s ‘Principles of Democracy.’   Accordingly, your late master was overly devoted to democracy.   He ought to have been told that being a neighbor of the Bolsheviks, who have chosen the principle of most oppressive dictatorship as the governance model, democracy must be conditional.   Otherwise, the machinery of government, neither army, justice nor the economic and social institutions can work normally.   Sun yat-sen, by sliding to the left during the last two Guomindang party congresses, and admitting the Communists into the Party, sent China into a most dangerous path.   The Communists will cause your party to explode from within, or will take it over or cause you to leave.   The fate of Nalivkin and his friends in Turkistan is known.   If you show fortitude and not leave your party to them, China will be permanently split into two.   Since the Great nations were not in favor of Turkistan becoming independent, as much as the Bolsheviks, and distant from the seas, there was no chance of local and Russian democrats to unite in Turkistan.”

I gave these ideas to the Chinese friends in writing.    A second paper of mine under the title “Cin Tecrubesi” [Chinese Experiment] was published two years after the meeting in the journal Yeni Turkistan we were then publishing in Istanbul (1927, N. 2-3, Pp. 9-13).   Celaledding Wang-zinsan translated that into Chinese, and presented it to Chiang Kai-shek, then published it.   My friendship with Abdulresul Han, the Afghanistan Ambassador to Bukhara during 1921 was mentioned earlier.   Our first talk with General Enver in Bukhara was conducted in his home.   Now, Abdulresul Han brought his son to Berlin for his education.   We spent the day of 24 April together, had our photographs taken.   On 25 April, we were together with Abdurresid Ibrahim (Resit Kadi), who was a known figure of the Russian Moslems and a close frined of my father.   According to his wishes, we held a meeting on Wednesday, 27 April in order to discuss the problems of Russian Moslems.  

Second Berlin Congress of Turkistan National Union—
Resit Kadi spoke Farisi well.   Abdurresul Han recounted his memoirs pertaining to the winter of 1920 while he was a guest of the Baskurt Government, and enlivened our meeting.  

We were planning on leaving for Turkiye on 12 May, after convening the second European Congress of the Turkistan National Union, and invite Mustafa Cokay and Dr. Alimcan Tagan.    We determined the problems to be discussed at the congress.   Among them, the mutual Eastern Turkish literary language to be utilized in the publications we were going to publish outside Russia was also decided.   That meeting continued on 29 April, and we derived good and positive decisions.   We wished the conditions were ready for us to apply them.  

I had applied to the Soviet Embassy as soon as we arrived in Berin at the beginning of 1924, to ask for permission to bring my wife Nefise to Berlin.   My wife herself, her father Haci Mehmet and my father had tried as well, but no answer was forthcoming from the Russians.   Alimcan Idrisi, who had brought the students from Turkistan, was in constant contact with the Russian Embassy.   The students were receiving their money from that channel.  

Talks with the Russian Ambassador Kristinsky—
On 16 April, he indicated: “it appears an answer may have arrived pertaining to your wife; they are summoning you.”   On 17 April I went there; I was told to speak with the Ambassador himself.   We did.   I knew Kristinsky since 1912.   He and Tsurup, who later became the Soviet Minister for Finance, were members of the Social Democrat Party.   Kristinsky was working in Ekaterinburg and Tsurup was working in the city of Ufa where I was living then, in the respective municipalities.   I had mentioned that before.   It turned out that even though both Kristinsky and Tsurup represented themselves as SRs, in reality they were actually Bolshevik leaders.   Later, Kristinsky became a member of the Communist Party Central Committee Secretariat (TSKP).   He did not get along with Stalin.   He had criticized the dispersion, with Mostovenko, of the Baskurt Army and the emasculation of the Baskurt Government.   About the time of Lenin’s death, he had left his position at the TSKP and was appointed Ambassador to Berlin.   Now, in his office, speaking alone, he welcomed me as an old friend.   He stated: “it is not an easy matter to bring your wife, library and personal effects to Berlin.   First, you need to declare whether or not you will return to Russia.   In general, if you acquire foreign citizenship, it will not be possible to bring your family.”   I told him what I wrote to our joint friend Rudzutak and to Lenin two years earlier and added: “my return to Russia is not even a topic of discussion.   I understand the value of a human having self determination and cannot sacrifice it for anything.”   I translated a poem by the Iranian poet Nizami on the same topic.   He responsed with: “I am not suggesting you return to Russia; except, do not cut your ties with Russia, have your works printed there, and I wish you would also continue your contacts with your friends.   You can also write articles critical of the Russian politics, but it is imperative that you remain a citizen of Russia in order to bring out your family and belongings.”   During those days, I had already obtained a temporary passport from the Turkish Embassy and was about to become a Turkish citizen.   Even though I did not openly state that fact to Kritinsky, I stated: “henceforth, I cannot be a citizen of Russia; let it be, if my wife cannot join me here, then she will not.”   We spoke a long period.  At the end he said: “I wish you all the goodness; live long and healthy.”   I responded to him that I, too, never could believe in Stalin, and wished him well likewise.   That was because he did not believe Stalin.   A little later, he was recalled to Moscow, jailed, and was executed along with his friends Rykov and Bukharin.   I knew Kristinsky, just as I did Rykov, an honorable man.   His final words to me: “it would be best for you to remain outside, even if you would continue your relations with your homeland” were the final signs of friendship.  

On 9 May, we held the final meeting of Turkistan National Union in Europe.   Mustafa Cokay and Dr. Alimcan Tagan were also present.   Our center would move to Turkiye, Mustafa Cokayoglu would be the European Representative of TNU.   We also decided on the language of the publications we were going to issue in Istanbul.   Even though they would maintain their own dialects and vocabulary, the Kazaks, Ozbeks, Tatars and Baskurts would observe the same etymological and morphological rules when writing for publication.   It was a good Congress.   However, Cokayoglu refused to cut his contacts with the Russian Kadets (Miliukov) and the Right SRs (Kerensky Group), and did not at all accept the independence principle.   That was because he believed in the necessity of struggling with the Russian emigres against Bolshevism.   While we were in Berlin, we also busied ourselves with the Moslems of Finland on the one hand, and the Moslems of India and Iran on the other on the issues pertaining to Islam.

Finnish translation of Kur’an—
Professor Pimonof, who had been translating the Kur’an into Finnish for the Tatar merchant Zinetullah Ahsen, had arrived in Berlin during 28-29 March.   As understood from the letters he had sent me earlier, he was in written contact with Egyptian scholars; he was now in Berlin according to the wishes of Zinetullah, desiring to speak with those indoviduals who understand Islam well, such as Alimcan Idrisi, me, Dr. Yakub Sinkevic of the Polish Moslems, Iranian scholar Takizade and the Indian Ahmedi scholar Professor Sadreddin.   The questions asked of all these persons, who were all in Berlin at the same time, were tailored to each individual but said to pertain to the points in the Kur’an he could not understand.   He asked me fifty seven questions, mostly on topics I did not understand.   I indicated to him: “I do not know Islamic theology.   I have not read the commentaries of the Kur’an, only their translations.   I do not know the reasons behind the verses nor the sayings of the Prophet.   I understand the Kur’an only superficially as a person who knows Arabic.”   Professor Pimonov’s aim said to be the writing of an “introduction” to the Kur’an and on the Prophet Muhammad.   When I suggested to him to speak with Professor Noldeke who was in berlin and alive, he responded with: “I read the writings of Europeans, among them Noldeke and Goldzieher; there is nothing I can learn from them.   It is important for me to learn the ideas of intellectual Moslems.”

Question 1— some of the historical records in the Kur’an reflect the true events; some of them do not.   What causes that?   Even though Alexander of Macedonia was a believer of Greek Gods, why is he portrayed as a believer of a single God?   What is the purpose of recounting this story?

Answer— this is a matter I faced fifteen years ago within my family.   As for explanation of such issues, I follow the Mutezile sect reasoning.   That means, what became known to the Prophet was not in Arabic words, but the meaning given to them.   In order to describe that meaning to the Arabs, it became necessary to utilize the pre-Islamic legends, folklore and the terminology known during the time of the Prophet.   For example, what is discussed in sura number 91, which references chapters 7-10: “God created the complex ego in the humans, and inspired the goodness and evil in them; with those goodnesses, the evil can be cleansed and they can be free of them.   Those who have not been able to accomplish that task but instead entered the path of sin have been frustrated.”   Above those four chapters, according to the Arabic style of expression, there are oaths in the name of the sun, the moon, day and night and the human ego.   Collectively, all that is foreign to our Turkish.   The chapters after those four, recounts the tale of the old mythical tribe of the Arabs called the Themuds who killed the Prophet’s camel for him bringing the words of God; that not controlling their ego would cause calamity to them.   Those chapters were written only to confirm the chapters 7-10.   Alexander was shown as a select servant of God and bringing together the countries of the East and the West as a conqueror under the sun; while doing so, to convince the Arabs, he is portrayed as capable and protected because he followed the God’s will, thus he was favored (XVIII, 84).   All this was done in order to convince the Arabs.   Likewise, in your Christian Bible, two centuries before Christ, Cyrus, the King of the Abemenids, is presented as the lieutenant of God and sent to conquer Eastern countries, and tasked to bring justice.   However, he too was like Alexander, a Polytheist.    But the true objective of the story is to stress that selected conquerors have received the favor of God.   Otherwise, the task of Kur’an, much like the Torah or the Bible, is not to teach history.   These great lessons are brought to these tribes with the help of the stories and epics they already knew.  

Question 2—do you believe the ascension of the Prophet was physical?
Answer— the Ottoman Commander of Pleven [during 1877], General Osman, after he was taken prisoner, was asked by Alexander II how Muhammad ascended to the skies.    Reportedly he answered with: “he did so from the same staircase used by your Jesus, Your Majesty.”   Kur’an, on the other hand, referenced that ascension as a ‘dream;’   Prophet’s wife recounted that the Prophet spent the night among his family.    Certainly, the Prophet completed his trip during that night, and he understood the secrets of the universe.   This ascention trip was the flowering of his consciousness as the Prophet.   This can also be seen in the life of Buddha.  

Question 3— The Kur’an, in many places (II, 22; XIII, 2; XXXI, 10; XL, 64) teaches cosmonogy with terms such as flat earth, bed; with the heavens as a seven story building covered with a roof on top, according to the understanding of common people.   In other places (XXXVI, 40; XVII, 12; XXI, 33) we see the earth living alternate day and nights under the sun that will continue within their orbits until the end of the days.   Is there a reflection of heliocentric versus geocentric understandings in that portrayal, and how did that dichotomy emerge?  

Answer— in my view, you have put your finger on an important point by your statement on dichotomy.   In chapters XXXVI, verse 40; chapter XXI verse 33, there are definite references to sun, moon and earth ‘swimming’ in different orbits.   That is because, by referencing the day and the night, the earth is mentioned; if the sun and the moon was intended, the word would have been ‘both of them’ and not ‘all of them.’   Elsewhere in the Kur’an (XXVI, 88), it is stated: “you think the mountains are frozen.   However, they are passing (moving) as fast as the clouds.”   That was not stated to mark the end of the world, but to fortify: “the art of God’s creation is thus, he makes everything unchanging,” that follows.   This is the “vahy,” the word that came from God to the Prophet.   Other vahy’s that came down from God to the Prophet are couched in words the Arabs would understand in that setting.   The “Sufis” who also regard the Prophet as extraordinary individual, similar ideas have emerged that he is one who continually audits the humanity, social life and the universe.   Celaleddin Rumi states: “beyond these stars starts another universe of stars.   They will not burn down to ashes.   They swim in skies beyond what is given to us as the seven story tall skies.   Those stars gain their energy from the heat of the light bestowed by God.    They are not tied nor will they separate.”   Because of such statements, Rumi’s work has been called “The Second Kur’an.”   Al-Biruni spacified: “humans are sufficiently egotistical to state that the universe revolves around them, even though some Greek and Indian philosophers had understood that the earth rotates.   However, I am not a physics scholar, I am an algebraist; physicists will prove that aspect.”   Al-Biruni did not wish to provide the proof of earth’s rotation in order not to distance himself from his followers.   Even though he himself accepted the theories expounded by Descartes and Galileo, he refrained from issuing his own volume containing the same information.   The Prophet and Celaleddin Rumi did not dwell on this matter, but used the language of the people, and according to the understanding of the people, showed them the path to follow.  

I definitely did not touch the rest of Pimonov’s questions; because they dwelled on issues on which I knew nothing.   Pimonov continued to correspond with me after he returned to Finland.   During 1937, when I was the Honorary Professor of Islamic Sciences at Bonn University in Germany, Zinetullah invited me to Tammerfors.   I spoke with Pimonof several times there.   He adopted Islam seriously and truly liked our Prophet.

Pimonof’s Kur’an translation was published in a good package by Zinetullah Ahsen.   According to those scholars who speak Finnish, it is one of the best Kur’an translations in Europe.  

Hoca Sadreddin—
Pimonof also spoke with Hoca Sadreddin of India and told him that I belonged to the Mutezile sect.   He was the head of all the Ahmedi living in Berlin, and was busily building a mosque in the Welmersdorf section of the city.   He invited me and the Polish Moslem intellectual Yakub Senkevic to his home for an excellent feast.   There were also several other Indians present.   They all spoke beautiful Farisi.   Sadreddin stated: “Pimonof told me you are a member of the Mutezile sect.”   I responded: “I do not belong to any sect; I am only a Moslem.   Except, I believe in the ideas expressed by the Mutezile on the meaning of the Kur’an and the language they use.   Just like Temur had appointed imams from among the Khoresmians under his regime, and had those Damascenes executed who wanted to revolt and did not want to perform namaz behind them.”   Hoca Sadreddin gave me, as a present, some of his sermons in German.   That caused us to dispute the issue of the alphabets at that gathering.   In those sermons, the Arabic and Persian names were written in the Latin alphabet, but according to the English pronunciations, for example, instead of “u” they were rendered with “oo” and instead of “a”, the letter “u” was used.   Those who did not know English could not read them properly.    I had observed the same tendency in India, that while writing the English words in Arabic or in Urdu alphabets, or the Arabic and Urdu words in Latin alphabet, no common, standardized principle was followed.   The fact that all those transcriptions were rendered according to the English pronunciations would cause anarchy, and prove to create difficulties in the dissemination of knowledge.   Hoca Sadreddin asked me to explain my ideas.   In response I indicated that, while writing the Islamic names and terms, they need to be written not according to the local pronunciations, but according to the Arabic language rules.   Accordingly while writing “fetha,” “kesre” and “damme” with “a,” “I” and “u”, with the horizontal bar above them as the Orientalists do.   It would be necessary to bring together the intellectuals of the Islamic nations together to decide all that.   I also wrote down the Latin equivalents of the Arabic consonants.   Only Yakub Sinkevic who was at the gathering defended this style of writing knowingly.   Hoca Sadreddin, even though he did not completely grasp the issues involved, accepted the fact that it was necessary to standardize the writing rules in the works being published in the Western languages.   The other Indians who were present regarded the techniques I explained as “missionary writing” and did not at all acquiesce.   Forty years after that date (in 1965), while attending the “Common Cultural Heritage” conference with the scholars from Turkiye, Iran and Pakistan, I presented a paper on this specific issue which was then published in the Papers Read at the RCD Seminar on Common Cultural Heritage (No. 1 1965 Pp. 22-23).   I also explained the same ideas, once again, to other Islamic intellectuals, among them Adnan Adivar, Resit Saffet, and Muallim Cevdet in Turkiye; Muhammed Mustafa of Egypt; Mirza Muhammed Qazvini of Iran, and others, but could not have them accept any of it.   None of those, except for the Islamic Research Journal being published as of late in Karachi by Pakistani scholars seem to have accepted the system.   It is not easy to understand the true reasons of individuals who have the capability of writing in Western laguages, in English, French or German but experiencing difficulties in applying the norms adumbrated even though they accept them in principle.   While I was in Berlin, I spoke with Hoca Sadreddin multiple times.   According to him, the inventor of the Ahmedi sect, Gulam Ahmed was in origin a Baburid, meaning he was a Timurid Mirza.   These Ahmedi were very close to the English.   When the English prevented us from contacting other Indian Moslems, they wanted to send us to Qadiyan with their money.   Even though the Indians we met alongside Hoca Sadreddin were extremely against the English, Sadreddin and his friends would not say anything against the English.