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In Politics, Poetry, and Sufism in Medieval Iran Chad Lingwood offers new insights into the political significance of poetry and Sufism at the court of Sulṭān Ya‘qūb (d. 896/1490), leader of the Āq Qoyūnlū. The basis of the study is Salāmān va Absāl, a Persian allegorical romance ‘Abd al-Raḥmān Jāmī (d. 898/1492), the great Timurid belletrist and Naqshbandi Sufi, dedicated to Ya‘qūb. Lingwood demonstrates that Salāmān va Absāl, which modern critics have dismissed as ‘crude’ and ‘grotesque,’ is a sophisticated work of political and mystical advice for a Muslim ruler. In the process, he challenges received wisdom concerning Jāmī, the Āq Qoyūnlū, and Perso-Islamic advice literature. Significantly, the study illustrates the extent to which Jāmī’s compositions integrated the Timurid and Āq Qoyūnlū realms.
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Politics, Poetry, and Sufism in Medieval Iran
Studies in Persian Cultural History Editors
Charles Melville
Cambridge University
Gabrielle van den Berg Leiden University
Sunil Sharma
Boston University
VOLUME 5
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/spch
Politics, Poetry, and Sufism in Medieval Iran New Perspectives on Jāmī’s Salāmān va Absāl By
Chad G. Lingwood
Leiden • boston 2014
Cover illustration: Salāmān and Absāl arrive at the island of delight. Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.: Purchase, F1946.12.194 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lingwood, Chad G. Politics, poetry, and sufism in medieval Iran : new perspectives on Jami's Salaman va Absal / by Chad G. Lingwood. pages cm -— (Studies in Persian cultural history ; v. 5) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-90-04-25404-6 (hardback : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-90-04-25589-0 (e-book : alk. paper) 1. Jami, 1414–1492. Salaman va Absal. 2. Sufism—Iran—History. 3. Politics and literature—Iran. 4. Iran—History—1256–1500. I. Title. PK6490.S33L56 2013 891'.5512—dc23
2013031794
This publication has been typeset in the multilingual “Brill” typeface. With over 5,100 characters covering Latin, IPA, Greek, and Cyrillic, this typeface is especially suitable for use in the humanities. For more information, please see www.brill.com/brill-typeface. ISSN 2210-3554 ISBN 978-90-04-25404-6 (hardback) ISBN 978-90-04-25589-0 (e-book) Copyright 2014 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Global Oriental, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers and Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Such is the custom of rulers, You will have heard this if you remember The paladins stand on their left hand Because the heart is bound to the left side The chancellor and the men of the pen are on the right side Because the science of writing and book-keeping is fixed to the right hand. They situate the Sufis in front of their face, For they are the mirror of the soul, and they are better than a mirror, Since they have polished their breasts in remembrance and contemplation of God In order to receive the pure image in the mirror of the heart. —Rūmī, Masnavī-yi maʿnavī, book 1, 1.3150–3153
Contents Acknowledgements ...................................................