Among Ken’ân Rifâî’s circle of conversations were also high-ranking officials of the Ottoman Empire, including grand muftis (şeyhülislâms). Three persons who served as grand mufti during the late period of the Ottoman Empire became disciples of Rifâî.
Haydârizâde İbrâhim Efendi
Haydârîzâde, born in the Erbil district of Mosul, belonged to a Kurdish tribe. Like Ken’ân Rifâî Hazretleri, he served at many levels and provinces of the Ottoman educational administration. Between 1918 and 1919, during the governments of Tevfik Pasha, Ali Rıza Pasha, and Salih Pasha, he served as grand mufti four times. Haydârîzâde received the Sufi order (ijazah) from Ken’ân Rifâî’s revered spiritual guide, the head of the sheikhs Hamza er-Rifâî, and passed away in Medina in 1933. Although not a jurist (fakih), he was knowledgeable in Islamic sciences and Eastern literature. He was also a poet.When Haydârizâde İbrahim Efendi became a disciple of Rifâî, those around the grand mufti objected to this. When asked why such attention was shown to a civilian sheikh like Ken’ân Rifâî instead of a sheikh from a traditional family, he reportedly replied: “Yes, due to my position, all sheikhs come to pay their servitude. But I go to offer servitude to Hazret Ken’ân because I possess the knowledge and scholarship of many sheikhs. The ‘kal’ knowledge (knowledge based on written words) of Esat Efendi is also in me. However, the ‘hal’ knowledge (knowledge based on action and state) that influences me is neither in Esat Efendi nor in me. I was attracted by his spirituality. That is a different matter altogether.”
Dürrîzâde Abdullah Efendi
Abdullah Efendi, from the Dürrîzâde family which produced grand muftis for six generations, served during the cabinets of Grand Vizier Ahmet Tevfik Pasha and Grand Vizier Damad Mehmed Ferid Pasha in the late Ottoman period. He was the son of Rumeli Kazasker Dürrîzâde Mehmed Efendi. Abdullah Efendi held positions such as membership in the Council of Islamic Jurisprudence (Meclis-i Tedkīkāt-ı Şer‘iyye), Anatolian Kazasker, and other administrative roles. In 1920, during the National Struggle, he was appointed grand mufti. In March 1923, he went to Mecca to perform the Hajj pilgrimage and passed away at the Holy Mosque (Harem-i şerif) on April 30, 1923.
