Firdawsi

Firdawsi

Abu Al-Qasem Mansur Firdawsi was a medieval poet, writer, and historian, best known as an author of the Persian grand epic Shahnamah (the Epic of Kings). This monumental work made him the most recognized and highly regarded writer among Persian-speaking people from Central Asia to the Middle East.

Despite his fame, little is known about his personal life and some facts are still disputed, as many accounts of his personal life were written long after his death. It is believed that Firdawsi was born in a small town on the outskirts of the city of Tus situated in Khorasan—the region that is now divided among Afghanistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

He was a relatively wealthy dekhqan (landlord), who was devoted to Persian history and poetry. He mastered several languages and had great knowledge of historical and poetic works. In his 20s he began writing prose and later successfully experimented with poetry.


By the time he was in his mid-30s he undertook a monumental task—to compose a poem that would cover the history of the Persian world from ancient time to the seventh–eighth centuries c.e. According to some reports, Firdawsi spent his entire adult life, or about 35 years, completing this extraordinary task.

His major source of reference, on which he based his research and writing, was the Khvatay-Nameh, a Middle Persian (Pakhlavi) work created under the order of King Khosrow Anushirvan (590–628). His secondary source was a work by the Persian poet Daqiqi (d. c. 976), who attempted to write about early history of the Persian world at the time of the introduction of Zoroastrianism. Some modern literary critics claim that parts of the Shahnamah resemble a mere translation of some chapters of the Khvatay-Nameh.

Others argue that he created a completely new work in verses, and that he only used other works as historical sources. As in earlier epics like The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Shahnamah deals with the struggle between the forces of good and evil. Its jagoan Rustam, with his trusty steed Rakhsh, rescues allies, vanquishes foes, and lives for over 500 years.

painting from the book of shahnamah

The first revision of the Shahnamah was completed in 994, and parts of it were shared with close associates. It took another 15 years before it was completed in about 1010. It consisted of between 55,000 and 60,000 couplets (beits) subdivided into 50 sections devoted to various ruling dynasties. According to the tradition of his era, Firdawsi sought to present his work to Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni (Ghaznavi) (r. 998–1030), the ruler of Khorasan.

Mahmud and his entourage doubted the significance of the work, deeply offending Firdawsi. There are many interpretations of this event, ranging from disapproval of the religious content of the book (Firdawsi describes the rise of Zoroaster) to inappropriate praise of the great pre-Islamic rulers of Persia.

The conflict between the ruler and the poet forced the latter to leave his homeland and move to Heart, and after that to Mazendaran. There are reports that he spent his selesai days in Baghdad. Some sources indicate that he continued writing poetry but was not as productive as in his early days. Firdawsi died c. 1020, highly respected by his contemporaries, if not by the court of Ghaznavi.

Shahnamah

Shahnamah

The Shahnamah (various spellings) is a central epic of Persian literature written by the poet Firdawsi (various spellings) in approximately the year 1010. It is an epic poem of considerable length, which aims to recount the history and achievements of the Persian people and their kings.

Using the earlier Khvatay-namak, which was a prose epic covering the Persian people from the mythic past to the seventh century, Firdawsi rewrote the prose in verse form and extended the tale to include the Sassanid period.


He wrote this under the sponsorship of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni and it endures as a central part of modern Persian culture, extending beyond modern Iran into Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent.

Firdawsi wrote his epic, which is known in English as the Epic of Kings, in a form of verse couplets known as masnavi. The effect of the epic was to Persianize the people within the territories claimed by Persian kings, irrespective of their original ethnic and religious affiliations.

Because of the Islamization of Persia, the Shahnamah has been cast within a worldview strongly influenced by Islamic thought. The Persian heroes, such as Rustam, were recreated within this context.

one of the page inside shahnamah epic

Just as in the case of Jewish verse histories, a number of which cover apparently the same incidents from a different perspective, the Shahnamah acts to provide a centralizing narrative, which was used by state builders to help integrate a set of diverse peoples into a single nation.

The story itself covers a bewildering variety of individuals, kings, heroes, and notable people of the past, as well as the defining events of their lives. Although the majority of individuals disappear from the narrative quickly, many have distinctive characteristics and are comparatively sophisticated in terms of characterization.

Both good and evil appear to be combined in the characters. Previous religious beliefs, notably Zoroastrianism, are presented as having been defeated by the newly arrived faith.

Battle scene ilustration

However the more than 60 stories and 60,000 couplets allow for considerable latitude in interpretation. The material is deliberately composed in such a way as to invite the reader to ponder on the events of the past and to seek the budpekerti lessons to be learned from them.

Misunderstandings, unrequited love, hubris, and jealousy are all present. The epic serves jointly as a history and a repository of budpekerti and religious truths, and an artistic masterpiece in its own right.

Firdawsi statue

Ghaznavids

Ghaznavids

The Ghaznavid dynasty ruled eastern Afghanistan and parts of Iran and Pakistan from 977 to 1186. Sebuk Tigin (r. 977–997), a former slave, founded the empire, ruling from the city of Ghazna, from which the dynasty obtained its name. Sebuk-Tigin had been a slave of the Turks and the military force that he led to supplant the previously ruling Samanid dynasty was also Turkish in origin.

The Samanids were Iranian Muslims and the Ghaznavid Empire was also Muslim dominated, especially under subsequent rulers who were keen to Islamize the pagan-leaning Turks. The founder expanded his territory to the borders of India, with his son Mahmud of Ghazni (r. 998–1030). Eventually the Ghaznavids in the west and the Qara-Khanids to the east replaced the Samanids, with the Oxus River marking the border between them.

It was during Mahmud’s reign that the Ghaznavid Empire reached its greatest extent, spanning from the Oxus to the Indian Ocean. However the death of Mahmud and the succession of Masud (r. 1031–41), ousting the short-term ruler Mehmed, proved the turning point of Ghaznavid fortunes as increasing pressure by the Seljuk Turks resulted in the Battle of Dandanqan in 1040, a disastrous defeat for Masud.


Despite the much larger numbers of Ghaznavid troops, the more mobile cavalry of the Seljuk dynasty denied them access to water and other supplies and destroyed their morale. The battle caused the loss of the gained Iranian and Central Asia territory. The Ghaznavid Empire persisted until 1186, but its influence was greatly reduced and it is remembered largely by its artistic and cultural achievements rather than its temporal power.

One of the most famous of Persian or Iranian poets was Firdawsi, whose masterpiece the Shahnamah (The epic of kings) was completed under the patronage of Mahmud. The epic tells the history and traditions of Persia and the stories of its rulers.

It is considered a central part of Iranian culture and one of the world’s great works of literature. Mahmud’s patronage enabled him to recreate the Ghaznavid Empire as an Islamic state, which strengthened faith across the region the Ghaznavids controlled.

The resulting artistic influence can be seen in the cultural production created within the Seljuk world. This included architectural forms and figurative painting styles. Ghurids captured Ghazna in 1149 and the last remaining outpost of Lahore in 1187. The city of Lahore was greatly increased by this and subsequently become a significant urban and cultural center.