The Persian poet Hafez (1320-1389) is best known as a Sufi mystic who incorporated elements of Sufism into his verses. The state of God-Realisation is symbolised through union with a Beloved, and drinking the wine of spiritual love.
This compact version of the Divan of Hafez is a facsimile illuminated manuscript, complete with beautiful Persian calligraphy and miniature illustrations. There are 43 ghazals, translated into English by classical scholar Gertrude Bell. It is a truly beautiful introduction not only to the works of this beloved Sufi mystic, but also to the artistry of Mahmoud Farshchian. It is like getting two books in one: poetry and art.
"Hafiz has no peer." 鈥� Goethe Poetry is the greatest literary form of ancient Persia and modern Iran, and the fourteenth-century poet known as Hafiz is its preeminent master. Little is known about the poet's life, and there are more legends than facts relating to the particulars of his existence. This mythic quality is entirely appropriate for the man known as "The Interpreter of Mysteries" and "The Tongue of the Hidden," whose verse is regarded as oracular by those seeking guidance and attempting to realize wishes. A mere fraction of what is presumed to have been an extensive body of work survives. This collection is derived from Hafiz's Divan (collected poems), a classic of Sufism. The short poems, called ghazals, are sonnet-like arrangements of varied numbers of couplets. In the tradition of Persian poetry and Sufi philosophy, each poem corresponds to two interpretations, sensual and mystic. This outstanding translation of Hafiz's poetry was created by historian and Arabic scholar Gertrude Bell, who observed, "These are the utterances of a great poet, the imaginative interpreter of the heart of man; they are not of one age, or of another, but for all time."
H膩fez (丨丕賮馗) (Khw膩ja Shams-ud-D墨n Mu岣mmad 岣つ乫e岷�-e Sh墨r膩z墨) was a Persian poet whose collected works (The Divan) are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are to be found in the homes of most people in Iran, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings.
His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author
Themes of his ghazals are the beloved, faith, and exposing hypocrisy. His influence in the lives of Persian speakers can be found in "Hafez readings" (f膩l-e h膩fez, Persian: 賮丕賱 丨丕賮馗鈥庘€�) and the frequent use of his poems in Persian traditional music, visual art, and Persian calligraphy. His tomb is visited often. Adaptations, imitations and translations of his poems exist in all major languages.
Though Hafez is well known for his poetry, he is less commonly recognized for his intellectual and political contributions. A defining feature of Hafez' poetry is its ironic tone and the theme of hypocrisy, widely believed to be a critique of the religious and ruling establishments of the time. Persian satire developed during the 14th century, within the courts of the Mongol Period. In this period, Hafez and other notable early satirists, such as Ubayd Zakani, produced a body of work that has since become a template for the use of satire as a political device. Many of his critiques are believed to be targeted at the rule of Amir Mobarez Al-Din Mohammad, specifically, towards the disintegration of important public and private institutions. He was a Sufi Muslim.
His work, particularly his imaginative references to monasteries, convents, Shahneh, and muhtasib, ignored the religious taboos of his period, and he found humor in some of his society's religious doctrines. Employing humor polemically has since become a common practice in Iranian public discourse and persian satire is now perhaps the de facto language of Iranian social commentary.
Khw膩ja Shams-ud-D墨n Mu岣mmad 岣つ乫e岷�-e Sh墨r膩z墨, known by his pen name Hafez (岣つ乫e岷� 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'; 1315-1390), was a Persian poet who "lauded the joys of love and wine but also targeted religious hypocrisy."
His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings.
His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.
Hushang Ebtehaj (H. E. Sayeh鈥�, lit. Shade) is an Iranian poet of the 20th century, whose life and work spans many of Iran's political, cultural and literary upheavals.
Hafez collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature, and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart, and still use them as proverbs and sayings. His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.
Khw膩ja Shams-ud-D墨n Mu岣mmad 岣つ乫e岷�-e Sh墨r膩z墨, known by his pen name Hafez (岣つ乫e岷� 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'), was a Persian poet who "lauded the joys of love and wine but also targeted religious hypocrisy."
His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings.
His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.
Themes of his ghazals include the beloved, faith and exposing hypocrisy. In his ghazals he deals with love, wine and taverns, all presenting ecstasy and freedom from restraint, whether in actual worldly release or in the voice of the lover speaking of divine love.
His influence on Persian speakers appears in divination by his poems and in the frequent use of his poems in Persian traditional music, visual art and Persian calligraphy. His tomb is visited often. Adaptations, imitations and translations of his poems exist in all major languages.
Khw膩ja Shams-ud-D墨n Mu岣mmad 岣つ乫e岷�-e Sh墨r膩z墨, known by his pen name Hafez (岣つ乫e岷� 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'), was a Persian poet who "lauded the joys of love and wine but also targeted religious hypocrisy."
His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings. His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.
XLII TRUE love has vanished from every heart; What has befallen all lovers fair? When did the bonds of friendship part?鈥� What has befallen the friends that were? Ah, why are the feet of Khizr lingering?鈥� The waters of life are no longer clear, The purple rose has turned pale with fear, And what has befallen the wind of Spring?
None now sayeth: "A love was mine, Loyal and wise, to dispel my care." None remembers love's right divine; What has befallen all lovers fair? In the midst of the field, to the players' feet, The ball of God's favour and mercy came, But none has leapt forth to renew the game鈥� What has befallen the horsemen fleet?
Roses have bloomed, yet no bird rejoiced, No vibrating throat has rung with the tale; What can have silenced the hundred-voiced? What has befallen the nightingale? Heaven's music is hushed, and the planets roll In silence; has Zohra broken her lute? There is none to press out the vine's ripe fruit, And what has befallen the foaming bowl?
A city where kings are but lovers crowned, A land from the dust of which friendship springs鈥� Who has laid waste that enchanted ground? What has befallen the city of kings? Years have passed since a ruby was won From the mine of manhood; they labour in vain, The fleet-footed wind and the quickening rain, And what has befallen the light of the sun?
Hafiz, the secret of God's dread task No man knoweth, in youth or prime Or in wisest age; of whom would鈥檚t thou ask: What has befallen the wheels of Time?
Khw膩ja Shams-ud-D墨n Mu岣mmad 岣つ乫e岷�-e Sh墨r膩z墨, known by his pen name Hafez (岣つ乫e岷� 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'), was a Persian poet.
His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings.
His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.
Hafez is the embodiment of perfection, a perfect mystic, a unique artist, and a human being who has gone beyond the boundaries of time and space; Few can be found as great as him.
For Persian speakers, "Hafez", a name, is more valuable than the boundaries of imagination.
They are present everywhere, from the halls of the House of Elders to the remote cottages of the Iranian peasants. With a miracle that can only be imagined for them.
"Hafiz" is known as "the tongue of the unseen", his gazelle has something that satisfies everyone. The perfection of beauty, the extraordinary insight, and the greatness of thought have placed him among the other greats of words.
His strong logic, his clear and radiant technique for knowing the truth, his radiant appearance, and his pure nature, and his being like the sea, make it clear to all.
H膩fez was a Persian poet whose collected works (The Divan) are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are to be found in the homes of most people in Iran, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings.
The Poems Hafiz Written By The Calligrapher Mir Emad 1600 AD, Hafez
Mir Emad (born Emad al-Molk Qazvini Hasani,鈥� 1554 鈥� August 15, 1615) is perhaps the most celebrated Persian calligrapher.
It is believed that the Nasta士l墨q style reached its highest elegance in Mir Emad's works. These are amongst the finest specimens of Nasta士l墨q calligraphy and are kept in several museums in the world.
Mir Emad was born in Qazvin, Iran, where he had his early education. Mir Emad's family had librarian and accountant positions in Safavid court.
He was trained in calligraphy at first by Isa Rangkar and then Malek Deylami. Mir Emad later on moved to Tabriz to study with Mohammad Hossein Tabrizi.
Afterward, he traveled to Ottoman Turkey, Baghdad, Halab and Hijaz. He returned to Semnan and worked as a scribe in Shah Abbas's library and later on his court in the capital of Isfahan.
Works and legacy: "Adab al-Masq", a dissertation on penmanship, is attributed to Mir Emad. Goharshad, Mir Emad's daughter, was also an adept calligrapher. So was her husband, Mir Mohammad Ali and her sons Mir Rashid, Mir Abd al-Razzaq and Mir Yahya.
Mir Emad's son, Mirza Ebrahim, is also known to be a calligrapher. So is Mohammad Amin, Mirza Ebrahim's son.
"Hafiz - a quarry of imagery in which poets of all ages might mine."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Shams Ud-Din Muhammad or Hafiz is said to be an almost exact contemporary of Chaucer. The pen-name 鈥楬afiz鈥� means 鈥榦ne who can recite the Koran by heart鈥�. Not much else is known about Hafiz. The poems from The Divan (or Collected Works) of Hafiz is in fact more or less all we know of his life, where we learn that Hafiz received his gift of poetry from a Gypsy-mystic-scholar who appears only once in a while to mortals.
Background
Hafiz lived in what was called the 鈥榯imes of troubles鈥� of the Persian civilization, just before the establishment of the Timurid Dynasty, again forcing us to draw parallels with Chaucer.
Before entering the poetry of Hafiz, we need to understand the world that produced it. Hafiz was a Shi鈥檌te. Shi鈥檌sm was more than just a quarrel of succession for these conquered Persians - it was the religion of the non-Arab oppressed who found in the dispossessed Ali and his sons symbols for suffering and martyrdom. It was also an outlet for the mystical and religious longings of this ancient civilization, expressed through the cracks of a much more rigorous new religion (which forbids much of the Dionysian aspects of Persian culture as well as their ecstatic connection with the mystical).
Without keeping in mind the two major currents of religious influence in Persia at the time: Shi鈥檌sm and Sufism (font of much of the lyric poetry of the time), Hafiz cannot be fully appreciated. The suffering and pathos of early Shi鈥檌sm and the pantheism and the life-celebration of Sufism comes together in Hafiz to form an exhilarating yet humanizing mix that has given it such grandeur and such an endearing personal quality, allowing it to transcend time and still touch our hearts.
So the Sufist deification (or re-deification) of wine and of the wine keeper as well as the and the neo-Platonian conception of the divine as Absolute Beauty all meld together in Hafiz鈥檚 poetry to form an intoxicating yet deeply sad mix. Here again we can notice the parallels between medieval poetry of Chaucerian English and the personal lyric poetry of the Persians.
Imagery
Medieval Persian poetry trades in a number of stock images such as: the moon as the perfect lover鈥檚 cheeks; the rose as the lover鈥檚 face; the hyacinth the curling locks; the cypress the graceful form鈥� Leading to dual images of the nightingale helplessly enamored of the rose; the morning breeze as the messenger of love; the scent of musk the beloved鈥檚 smell of tresses; the beloved as seller of sweetmeats and the lover-poet as an eloquent sweet-loving parrot鈥� All leading us to the eternal image of the Lover contemplating the Absolute Beauty, of Man gazing at God.
This stylized imagery forms the basic stock and trade of all such poets - much of the poet鈥檚 art consists in the ingenious recombination and re-application of these traditional stock-symbols.
And Hafiz鈥檚 genius is the extraordinary degree to which they become vivid, natural and spectacularly personal in his hands.
Such a poet as Hafiz depends on an audience which takes these stock images for granted yet which is sufficiently sophisticated to appreciate the subtleties and ingenuities - understanding the poems on several simultaneous levels of significance.
Again we are drawn to the comparison of how the same dynamics enliven Chaucer鈥檚 poetry (with the multi-fold allegorical interpretation of scripture and other devices).
Thus almost any poem of Hafiz can be read on at least three levels of significance (though one or the other might be foremost and highlighted):
- As a celebration of wine and love (of sensuality); - in terms of Sufi theology - as experiences of the universal mystic (beloved transposed as the Divine - Sacred and profane love thus intermixing un-self-consciously!); - as courtly panegyrics - lauding his kingly masters as equals to the gods.
The following are a few more pointers that are not applicable to Hafiz alone but for much of oriental poetry. I have found it important to keep such distinctions in mind to understand poetry that at first glance seems outlandishly far-away. While much of this comes from the translator鈥檚 notes, it might be useful advice for reading other beautiful works too.
Add to all this the consideration that these were meant to be sung and not to be read and were composed mostly impromptu on the urging of an unforgiving patron and we can begin to see the true genius of the poetry.
Structure
Hafiz鈥檚 poetry (and in fact much of oriental poetry) seems disconnected to the modern ear - drawing criticism such as being 鈥榦riental pearls strung on a random sting鈥� - but this is because they were not influenced by the 鈥榖eginning-middle-end鈥� Aristotelean conception of structuring.
The unity in such poetry emerges from a symbolic unity of the leading imagery of each Ghazal/couplet - each linked to the others only through imagery (but not through ideas) - deliberately suppressed for effect, sometimes even forming multiple interlinkages (skipping couplets to form multiple threads) to form a delicious arabesque imagery through the poetry鈥� it is hard to conceive of.
In addition, the whole composition being circular rather than linear allows the couplets to eventually lead you back to where you began from (similar to much of the Persian miniature painting principles).
As if a necklace of images has at long last been clasped - completed.
Excerpts
Now for a few excerpts:
Boy, bring the cup! And circulate the wine! How easy at first love seemed鈥� but now the snags begin.
...
Except for this one fault I can find no fault in your beauty - That your face reveals no trace of truth or of love鈥�
鈥�
Tears, tears like pearls must thread your eyelashes, Before you drink the wine from the eternal jeweled cup
鈥�
None shall, as Hafiz does, withdraw Thought鈥檚 veil, Who has not combed out language, like a bride.
鈥�
Love knows no difference between monastery and drinking-booth, For the light of the Friend鈥檚 face irradiates all..
鈥�
Come let us get drunk, even if it is our ruin: For sometimes under ruins one finds the treasure
鈥�
A laughing wine cup, a tangle of knotted hair - And let good resolutions, like those of hafiz be shattered!
鈥�
If you sit above my grave with music and wine At the fragrance of you I shall rise from that narrow place and dance!
鈥�
We are not bigots nor puritans; we need no penance: Preach to us only with a cup of unmixed wine.
鈥�
This worship of wine, Hafiz, is a virtuous business, So be resolute in performance of Righteous works!!
His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings. His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.
The Persian poet Hafez (1320-1389) is best known as a Sufi mystic who incorporated elements of Sufism into his verses. The state of God-Realisation is symbolised through union with a Beloved, and drinking the wine of spiritual love.
This compact version of the Divan of Hafez is a facsimile illuminated manuscript, complete with beautiful Persian calligraphy and miniature illustrations. There are 43 ghazals, translated into English by classical scholar Gertrude Bell. It is a truly beautiful introduction not only to the works of this beloved Sufi mystic, but also to the artistry of Mahmoud Farshchian. It is like getting two books in one: poetry and art.
"Hafiz has no peer." 鈥� Goethe
Poetry is the greatest literary form of ancient Persia and modern Iran, and the fourteenth-century poet known as Hafiz is its preeminent master. Little is known about the poet's life, and there are more legends than facts relating to the particulars of his existence. This mythic quality is entirely appropriate for the man known as "The Interpreter of Mysteries" and "The Tongue of the Hidden," whose verse is regarded as oracular by those seeking guidance and attempting to realize wishes. A mere fraction of what is presumed to have been an extensive body of work survives.
This collection is derived from Hafiz's Divan (collected poems), a classic of Sufism. The short poems, called ghazals, are sonnet-like arrangements of varied numbers of couplets. In the tradition of Persian poetry and Sufi philosophy, each poem corresponds to two interpretations, sensual and mystic. This outstanding translation of Hafiz's poetry was created by historian and Arabic scholar Gertrude Bell, who observed, "These are the utterances of a great poet, the imaginative interpreter of the heart of man; they are not of one age, or of another, but for all time."
Includes Bell's translation of Hafez, along with the original Persian (Farsi). Also included are Bell's extensive introduction on the life and poetry of Hafez and a preface by E. Denison Ross.
Divan of Hafez Persian-English, H膩fez, 丨丕賮馗 Khw膩ja Shams-ud-D墨n Mu岣mmad 岣つ乫e岷�-e Sh墨r膩z墨, known by his pen name Hafez (岣つ乫e岷� 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'), was a Persian poet. His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are often found in the homes of people in the Persian speaking world, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings. His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author. ... Roses have bloomed, yet no bird rejoiced, No vibrating throat has rung with the tale; What can have silenced the hundred-voiced? What has befallen the nightingale? Heaven's music is hushed, and the planets roll In silence; has Zohra broken her lute? There is none to press out the vine's ripe fruit, And what has befallen the foaming bowl? ... 鬲丕乇蹖禺 賳禺爻鬲蹖賳: 1971 賲蹖賱丕丿蹖貨 禺賵丕賳卮 丕蹖賳 賳爻禺賴: 爻丕賱 2007 賲蹖賱丕丿蹖 賵 亘丕乇賴丕 倬爻 丕夭 丌賳 丕. 卮乇亘蹖丕賳蹖
One of those books that, after you finish, you keep close by so that you can, at certain moments, reach out and read one of the poems. Because there are moments when, if you are attentive and still enough to listen, you will feel a need for some kind of contact with beauty, a yearning of sorts for something very much like love, that you maybe lost or still hope for. The wonder of Hafez poetry is that it answers this universal longing even as it awakens it. There are poems where the love is clearly directed to God and others where the love is very human, for the fragile tulip, for another human being, for the real friend or the real lover or the lost child. But there are many poems where you just don't know. When I first read Hafez many, many years ago in my youth, I could see in Hafez' poems this distinction between divine and human love more clearly. Now the lines are blurred. It's all one. Or as Hafez says: "Where shall I go, when from thy presence Thou art everywhere?" The lines and distinctions between this is of God and this is not are blurred. Hafez blurs them for you, confuses the mental constructs and distinctions and returns you to the truth of the emotion. Who who has lived a while has not felt the truth of this: "For all eternity the perfume of love comes not to him who has not swept with his cheek the dust from the tavern threshold." Every time I read Hafez I understand a little more about the role of poetry, the function of all art, of literature, of the poet. We need to make time in our lives to feel what these poems make us feel and there needs to be people who can do this. It is a terrible loss if this doesn't happen.
Hafiz, the secret of God's dread task No man knoweth, in youth or prime Or in wisest age; of whom would鈥檚t thou ask: What has befallen the wheels of Time?
My review of The Nightingales are Drunk, one of the few good things to come out of the Penguin Little Black Classics: /review/show...
When I read that collection, I immediately knew I needed to read more of his collection, preferably by a different translator that could provide a more beautiful writing, and Gertrude Bell's collection provided that. To me, a poem must be able to stand, not only on its written form, but also incites people to recite. This collection made me want to stand and spew his poetry to anyone near me. I didn't do it, but I wanted to.
ARISE, oh Cup-bearer, rise! and bring To lips that are thirsting the bowl they praise, For it seemed that love was an easy thing, But my feet have fallen on difficult ways. I have prayed the wind o'er my heart to fling The fragrance of musk in her hair that sleeps In the night of her hair-yet no fragrance stays The tears of my heart's blood my sad heart weeps.
This man really does have two extremes, one is of his devoutness and Sufism, and the other is just sex and wine, a lot of sex and wine. I loved it.
Hafiz, thy praise alone my comrades sing; Hasten to us, thou that art sorrowing! A robe of honour and a harnessed steed I send to thee."
It is said almost every Iranian household has his collection, and that people memorize his verses and recite them as proverbs, and after reading this, I see why.
THE rose is not fair without the beloved's face, Nor merry the Spring without the sweet laughter of wine; The path through the fields, and winds from a flower strewn place, Without her bright check, which glows like a tulip fine, Nor winds softly blowing, fields deep in corn, are fair.
And lips like to sugar, grace like a flower that sways, Are nought without kisses many and dalliance sweet; If thousands of voices sang not the rose's praise, The joy of the cypress her opening bud to greet, Nor dancing of boughs nor blossoming rose were fair.
Though limned by most skilful fingers, no pictures please Unless the beloved's image is drawn therein; The garden and flowers, and hair flowing loose on the breeze, Unless to my Lady's side I may strive and win, Nor garden, nor flowers, nor loose flying curls are fair.
Hast seen at a marriage-feast, when the mirth runs high, The revellers scatter gold with a careless hand? The gold of thy heart, oh Hafiz, despised doth lie, Not worthy thy love to be cast by a drunken band At the feet of her who is fairer than all that's fair.