A risale (Arabic: لرسالة) is a small book in the form of a treatise on socio-economic, political or historical topics. This type of Ottoman literature became popular thanks to two risales written by Koçi Bey from the first half of the 17th century. In them, Bey analyzes the causes of the decline of the Ottoman Empire after the hanging of Michael Kantakouzenos Şeytanoğlu on 3 March 1578 and the assassination of Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha on 11 October 1579. The two Kochi Bay risales are one of the most important sources for the history of the Ottoman Empire in the 17th century.
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Risale in the context of Islam in Lithuania
Islam in Lithuania, unlike many other northern and western European countries, has a long history starting from the 14th century. The medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania, stretching from the Baltic to Black seas, included several Muslim lands in the south inhabited by Crimean Tatars. A few Muslims migrated to ethnically Lithuanian lands, now the current Republic of Lithuania, mainly during the rule of Grand Duke Vytautas (early 15th century). The Tatars, now referred to as Lithuanian Tatars, lost their language over time and now speak Lithuanian; however, they maintained Islam as their religion. Due to the long isolation from the greater Islamic world, the practices of the Lithuanian Tatars differ somewhat from the rest of Sunni Muslims; they are not considered a separate sect, however, although some of the Lithuanian Tatars practice what could be called Folk Islam. One anonymous Lithuanian Tatar who made Hajj to Mecca acknowledged in his work the risale that the Lithuanian Tatars had unorthodox customs and rituals so that they could possibly be viewed as infidel (kafir) from the perspective of orthodox Muslims.
In Lithuania, unlike many other European societies at the time, there was religious freedom. Lithuanian Tatars settled in certain places, such as around Raižiai (in Alytus district municipality).
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