Year:2007 | Volume:26 | Issue:2 (51)|Papers Count:26

Introduction: Sharh-s Shatthiyat (570 A.H.) (Commentary upon Ecstatic utterances) is the translation of the Manteq al-Asrar into Persian by Rubehan-e Baqli, Sheikh Shattah (522-606A.H.), who wrote it originally in Arabic. He added more chapters to the Persian translation making it three times larger than the Arabic version. The book is a description and commentary upon the ecstatic utterance of mystics, especially Bayazid (d. 261 or 264 A.H.) and Hallaj (d. 309 A.H.).Ruzbahan begins his commentaries with a definition of shatth as the movement of the mystics based on their inner secrets once ecstasy is strong and epiphany prevails. Thus it can be summarized as:Emanation of Truth upon the mystic ® unity of the mystic and Truth ® inner movement ® creation of shatth ® interpretation.This study uses narratology to elaborate the different narrative techniques and narrations used in Shatthiyat.Discussion: In Sharh-e Shatthiyat the reader has a key position as in most mystical stories and narratives. The narratives in this book can be classified into six categories: riddle, report, action, dialogue, autobiography (mystical romances) and compound anecdote. The riddle narratives are very much similar to mysterious letters of alphabet in the Qur'an. Ruzbehan believes that shatth's origin is in the Qur'an, Hadith and revelations of saints. He starts his book with a commentary upon the ambiguous letters of alphabet; the smallest shatths in the book are these letters.Shatth categorized as report lacks action and dialogue and usually consists of one or two statements.  Most of the narratives of the book are short conversations between two characters whose identities are not revealed. The mystic romances always narrate a journey to make the individual reach perfection and to bring unity with God. The structure of these autobiographies is comparable with the archetype of quest leading to artistic re-creation and rebirth of the individual. There are a few compound anecdotes which follow the traditional mystical stories.Conclusion: Shatth is either the utterance that the mystic gives on the verge of unification with the Eternal Beloved or the action he performs. This utterance or action does not follow the logic of ordinary life or religion. As a result he is accused of being an apostate. The most important characteristic of shatth is the element of movement which starts from within the text and due to a need for interpretation reaches out of the text to the reader. The other characteristic of Shatth is the presence of ambiguity thus necessitating commentary and interference on the part of the reader.

Discussion: Mowlavi (604-672 A.H.) has paid special attention to the dignity, inner values and nobility of human beings in Mathnavi. In book five of Mathnavi he mentions that due to divine honoring, mankind is a perfect collection of everlasting qualities and a mine of goodness as he is the goal of creation; as a result of which whatever exists is at his service. He considers man as the spiritual king of creation and divine honoring brings him the status of the beloved. On the surface he is dust while he has illuminating inner characteristics. The reasons for the dignity of man are based upon four pillars of prophecy, sainthood and prostration of angels to him, and learning and teaching of Divine Attributes.This paper is a historical-philosophical study of the text of Mathnavi in which lines from this text are brought for a close reading and scrutiny.Discussion: Beside the Qur'an and Islamic commentaries, two other factors have been the source of inspiration for Mowlavi; one is his intuition and the other is his access to the precious heritage that people of knowledge have left behind. Mowlavi had read Sheikh Ahmad Ghazzali, Mohammad Ghazzali, Sana'i, Attar and Ibn Arabi and had used their views in his works. There are some references in the Qur'an to the angels prostrating in front of Adam to increase their knowledge while Satan who did not do this deprived himself of a great fortune. Man is, on the one hand, a student of God learning Divine Attributes; on the other hand, he teaches these Attributes to the angels. Mowlavi believes that these Divine Attributes are the knowledge saturating man.Conclusion: Mowlavi uses Qur'anic verses and Hadith in order to define dignity of man among creatures. He believes that man's status of being prostrated to is because of the knowledge he had gained from the Divine Attributes; Angels prostrated themselves in front of Adam because of this knowledge. These two factors lead to the principles of prophecy and sainthood. Man with rank of sainthood is adorned with all accomplishments as he becomes bereft of human characteristics and connected to Divine Attributes

Introduction: The story of Daquqi is one of the relatively short narratives of Mathnavi. It consists of lines 1926 to 2307 of Book Three of Mathnavi. It is the story of a pious man named Daquqi who travels constantly to see the holy men whom he finally meets on one of his voyages. He talks with them and leads them in prayers. Then he sees a ship drowning in the storm. He prays for the safety of the passengers; God answers his prayers but the holy men leave him as they believe Daquqi's prayers are a sign of protest against God. Daquqi who is constantly traveling sees seven candles that become one and yet again they turn to seven candles. Later they become seven trees in prayer and finally the seven candles turn into seven men who talk to Daquqi and follow him in prayers.This story is analyzed from a structuralist point of view. In this paper it is not treated as a story of mysticism but as a narrative and discussed based on views of structuralist narratology.Discussion: In analyzing this story it is argued that the text consists of two complete and independent sequences. The first sequence is the story of Daquqi's wish to see the holy men and finally finding them; the second sequence, the opposite of the first, is the presence and then the absence of holy men. The first sequence shows  a man who never stays in one place but is always on move to find the holy men; he discovers that he is not only one of the holy men but also their leader. So this sequence shows a process of ignorance leading to knowledge.Mowlavi starts the story with an omniscient narrator who introduces Daquqi, describes the physical appearance and behavior of Daquqi, and interprets his ideas and internal feelings. In the middle of this introduction the narrator talks directly with the reader. Continuing the narrative, the writer changes his point of view and goes on as the third person narrator. There is not any distinction between the three voices of author-narrator-character. As a result the text is monologic.Conclusion: From the syntactic aspect the text has two sequences and several narrative utterances and the plot follows a logical and chronological order.  Sometimes the presence of the author disturbs the unity of the plot and breaks down the narration causing a defect in structure.  The text is narrated from different points of view. The presence and voice of the author is seen in the text and the text is monologic.

Introduction: Two of the stories mentioned in the Qur'an are the story of Adam and the Forbidden Tree and the Story of Moses going to the Right Side of the Valley and hearing the Tree. These stories are of much interest to the scholars and mentioned in many of the mystic texts and commentaries in prose and verse such as Meibodi's Kashaf al-Asrar, Tamhidat of Ein al-Ghozat, works of Ruzbehan Baqli, Shabestari's Golshan-e Raz, Mathnavi of Mowlavi, Mersad al-Ebad of Najm al-Din Razi and many more. The tree in both stories is a mystical symbol. In this paper the symbolic meanings of these two trees are analyzed and compared.This is a comparative study of two symbols in religious and mystical texts. The Qur'anic symbol of tree (forbidden and Moses') are analyzed. Discussion: In many instances such as verse 35 of Baqara, verse 19 of 'Iraf and verse 12 of Taha, the Qur'an refers to the story of Adam and the Forbidden Tree. Mystics have interpreted the Forbidden Tree as the physical world, divine secrets, the knowledge of destiny and fate, wisdom, love and union.Seid Heidar Amoli considers the Forbidden Tree the symbol of the physical world which will result in leaving the Garden of Eden. Aziz al-Din Nasafi considers the Forbidden Tree as the tree of wisdom and a reminder of free will; the result of this free will is doubt and only love of God can free man from doubt. In 'Araes al-Bayan and Sharh-e Shatthiyat Ruzbehan regards the tree as the secret of love. Attar referring to verse 35 of Baqara believes that the tree is the tree of union. Meibodi says that union as a sign of the Forbidden Tree also reminds one of the pain and suffering of proximity.In verse 30 of Qisas the story of Moses and his departure to the Right Side of the Valley is told. The tree of Moses has allegorical meanings such as absolute existence, the sacred soul of man, the light of Mohammad (PBUH), the power of thinking, love, knowledge, monotheism and union. Seid Heidar Amoli and Ruzbehan consider the Tree of Moses as the absolute existence.Conclusion: Revelation has descended in a multidimensional language. Mystics have interpreted Qur'anic stories from different points of view due to their allegorical meanings. Interpretations of the mystics show that the Forbidden Tree means love and the Tree of Moses means the sacred soul of man. According to mystics these stories are abstract concepts such as love, wisdom, knowledge and union. Different intuitions, mystical experiences and interpretation of Qur'anic verses by different mystics have led to a rich body of literature which testifies to the still hidden meanings of the Divine subject.

Introduction: Shams-e Fakhri Esfahani is a writer of the eighth century A.H.; however we do not know the exact date of his birth or death. From the introduction to his book Me'yar Jamali we know that in 713 A.H. he had traveled from Esfahan to Lorestan where he had written a book of prosody named Me'yar-e Nosraty. In 732 he settled in Qom and composed an ode in praise of the Minister Khajeh Gheiyas al-Din Mohammad Rashidi. After his patron was murdered he went to Shiraz and added two chapters to Me'yar Nostrati and called it Me'yar Jamali in honor of Jamal al-Din Abu Eshaq-e Inju.Shams al-Din Mohammad Ibn Qeis Razi is a famous man of letters but we know little about his life; from the introduction to his famous book al-Mo'jam Fi Ma'ir Ash'ar-e al-Ajam we know that he came from Rey and in 614 A.H., in the midst of the Mongol invasion of Iran he moved from Khawrazm to Iraq.  His famous book was written originally in Arabic in 630. Shams Qeis divided it into two parts, one on Persian Prosody and one on Arabic.This study is a textual analysis of two classical texts on prosody of Persian and analyzes the influence of al-Mo'jam Fi Ma'ir Ash'ar-e al-Ajam on Me'yar-e Jamali.Discussion: Me'yar-e Jamali uses many parts of al-Mo'jam so that we can state his original pattern in composing his book was based on al-Mo'jam of Qeis-e Razi.  He mentions Qeis-e Razi seven times with much respect and agrees with him or modifies his points. Both writers have paid attention to poetry criticism while Shams-e Qeis's criticism is based on following the rules and traditions of prosody; digression from these rules is considered a mistake. On the other hand, Shams-e Fakhri brings his own poetry as examples.Conclusion: Shams-e Fakhri in writing the prosody section of his book repeats what the past writers, especially Shams-e Qeis, have said.  However, sometimes he adds commentary on the views of past writers. It can be summed up that the prosody of Shams-e Fakhri is a selection and summary of the prosody of al-Mo'jam which has passed through Shams-e Fakhri's screening thus becoming more applied rather than theoretical criticism.

Introduction: Najm al-Din Razi, who was born in Rey in 573 A.H. and died in Baghdad in 654 A.H., is one of the outstanding Persian mystics. Besides guiding his disciples, preaching and advising followers, he has left behind several books the most famous being Mersad al-Ebad.  Verses and line of this book can be found in his other books, Marmuzat-e Asadi dar Mazmurat Davudi and Resaleh Eshq. One of his concerns was to fight against cruelty and corruption.This study looks at his place of birth, Rey, which had always been a center of intrigue and disturbances and the effects of the political and social atmosphere of the time upon Razi.This paper uses a biographical-historical approach to study the influence of political and social upheaval of the time on Najm al-Din Razi. A close study of his poetry also helps to understand his views better.Discussion: Factors influencing the social concerns of Najm Al-Din comprise his travels, the environment of Rey and the political and social atmosphere of his time. The frame work of his views regarding the well-being of society rests upon four elements: 1) a disciplined religious outlook, 2) idealism, 3) advocacy of justice and 4) recognition of social abnormalities and how to prevent them.Najm al-Din believes that the goal of creation was mankind. In Mersad he divides knowledge into intuitive, relative, and subjective knowledge; in Marmuzat Asadi he divides knowledge into four classes: intuitive, relative, subjective and traditional. However, he considers intuitive knowledge as the highest degree of knowledge.  His belief in a utopian society is rooted in the Qur'anic teaching and his own idealism. His example of a good government is that of Solomon and David. It seems that he agrees with Al-Farabius in following the Prophet's example in running the society.Najm al-Din believes that side by side with justice and generosity to the subjects, criminals should be dealt with as they deserve. He also tells each class of the society how to behave giving them a list of pitfalls to be aware of.Conclusion: Najm al-Din pondered over political and social problems of his time. In contrast to many of the mystics, his frequent travels to Islamic countries and the political upheavals of the time helped him to be concerned and involved in the well-being of the people. In his books Mersad al-Ebad and Marmuzat-e Asadi he tried to find the roots of social injustices while at the same time he proposed suitable governmental pattern to lead the subjects to prosperity and salvation.  He believed that if the conduct and behavior of the king and the subjects were based upon the love of God, their life could be considered as a part of the mystical journey.

Introduction: Maqamah (or moqamah) is an old story in prose interspersed with poetry about an anonymous hero who is involved in some events. Towards the end of the story he disappears to show up in another guise in the next maqama. So maqamat is a collection of separate stories with unity in subject. Hariri's Maqamat is one of the outstanding literary works of Arabic literature written in the fifth century A. H. Hamid al-Din Balkhi (d. 599 A.H.) created the only Persian Maqamat (Hamidi's Maqamat) in  the sixth century A.H. This study is the first comparative study of these two works with regards to the use of dialogue. It is a close study of how dialogues are used in these works and which one is more appealing to the reader. The analysis of the dialogues covers three aspects: how they give variety to the structure and content of the story; how they represent the inner feelings and characteristics of the characters; the way they help to develop and further the plot.Discussion: Dialogues comprise more than half the content of Hariri's Maqamat, the other half is a description of other elements. His dialogues are short and give a realistic picture of how people behave. Hamidi's Maqamat has less dialogues as it is devoted to long parts of descriptive passages so that sometimes a character speaks only once in the story.In Hariri's Maqamat the two characters of all stories are first introduced as Abuzeid and Hares in the first maqamah and the subject is always about the begging and cunning of the first character. Hares, the narrator, who is forced to travel due to hard times, is charmed by Abuzeid who appears in a different guise each time deceiving people and getting money from them.  The cunning Abuzeid finally turns into an old pious man and Abuzeid sees him among the mystics at the end of the story. In Hamidi's Maqamat most stories have two characters. The major character appears in the guise of a mystic or a jurisprudent or a wise old man who tells some elegant words in a gathering and suddenly disappears. The second character is the nameless narrator who starts each maqamah with: "I was told by a friend …." The subject is about education. Conclusion: It can be summed up that Hariri has used more dialogue in his stories making the tales more realistic and convincing. He seems to be more aware of how the reader may react to the text. The complexity of the characters in his work is outstanding while in Hamidi's work this is not so. There are several types of dialogue in Hariri's Maqamat: sometimes Abuzeid is addressing the audience and his monologue turns into a lecture but at the same time it shows his dexterity in speech. The other type of dialogue is a question and answer in which a member of the audience asks Abuzeid a question or vice versa. Sometimes the dialogue is between Abuzeid and Hares which is very much like a modern day conversation. The same types of dialogue are present in Hamidi's Maqamat; however, the monologues are longer and look like sermons and it is at the end that the reader notices that there are other characters present. Thus the characters are not vividly presented. There are also question and answer type conversations usually between two people only. There are a few cases of short dialogues like modern conversations. Thus it is Hariri's Maqamat which is more successful in dealing with the reader.

Introduction: Sufis use the two terms of "qabz" (compression) and "bast" (openness) to show different attitudes towards life. Openness is interpreted as joy and happiness of the heart while compression is sadness and sorrow of the heart. The pious mysticism following the principles of religion strictly does not leave any place for joy and happiness while loving mysticism looks at mercifulness and forgiveness of God pushing aside sadness and fear.Openness is not meant as an abstract mystical term but all the thing that lead to joy and tolerance. Mystics like Abu al-Hasan Kharaqani, Bayazid Bastami, Abu Hafs, Shah Kermani, and Hasan Basri have followed sadness and compression while some others like Abu Soleiman Darani, Abu Said Abu al-Khayr and Mowlavi have turned to joy and openness.In this paper a philosophical-historical approach is used to study the idea of openness in Mowlavi's Shams Sonnets.Discussion: Jalal al-Din Mohammad Mowlavi followed his father's tradition regarding joy and happiness. Certain things such as death, cruelty and bitterness in life, which ordinarily lead to sorrow and sadness for people, bring joy and happiness for him; such joy is sustained through dance, sama' and prayers.Death for Mowlavi is a rebirth; thus he praises death and considers it a step in the development of the soul. So he advises his followers to celebrate and show pleasure in the face of adversity and death. He also prefers spiritual intoxication to sobriety. Mowlavi's hope in God's forgiveness is another reason for happiness. Mowlavi's use of a variety of different meters and specifically rhythmical and happy meters is evidence to his preference of intoxication.Conclusion: Mowlavi's Diwan of poetry shows the process of his moving from sadness and entering the stage of happiness; his book of Shams Lyrics is full of joy and happiness representing the mystical idea of openness.  What he considers as openness with regards to death, hope for union and harshness of being ignored is actually compression and sadness for many others. He considers death as sugar and candy. He was instrumental in spreading the idea of showing happiness in burials. Mowlavi considers life as the foam of the sea; he does not care much for this world. He sees love alive and moving everywhere, thus he lives with joy and emphasizes happiness.

Introduction: In the study of ancient Persian religions, three religions are prominent; they are Zorvani religion, Mithraism or Kish-e Mehr and Zoroastrianism. Mithraism has close ties with Zorvani religion.  It also had two major rituals, one was the sacrifice of bulls and the other was drinking juice and extract of Hoom, a sacred plant of ancient times. Hoom is considered to be ephedra vulgaris, a small plant with yellow flowers.There are many sacred trees and plants in religious and mythological narratives of many religions which usually represent the living universe continually rejuvenating itself. There are also mysterious relationships between human beings and trees and plants; some tree or plant is considered as the mythological ancestor of a tribe.The word Hoom (Avestan haoma, Middle Persian hom) is mentioned in different parts of Avesta. Hoom was a golden plant and a drink was extracted from it which enjoyed a special place in Mithraic ceremonies. With the advent of Zoroastrianism Hoom was regarded negatively but later on regained its importance as depicted in adding a part to Avesta named Hoom Yasht in which Haoma is manifested as: 1) a golden plant, 2) an intoxicating drink, 3) a man, 4) a god.In this paper the role of this mythical plant is discussed in the formation of some of the narratives of Persian Epic, Shahnameh. This study uses textual analysis of ancient religious texts and Shahnameh to discuss the mythological and archetypal elements of a classical Persian epic. Discussion: Hoom is only once mentioned directly in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, that is the appearance of a woolen-clad pious man named Hoom. The story relates how during his prayers at the temple, Hoom hears a man groaning in a cave. Finding out that he is Afrasiyab, the enemy of Iran, he ties his arms with his girdle. However, Afrasiyab tricks Hoom and runs away, but with the help of Kai Khosro he is captured again, then Hoom disappears.In Shahnameh, Simorgh (phoenix) the legendary bird advises Rostam to use a special plant to be mixed with milk and musk in order to cure Rudabeh's wound. In Rig Veda and Avesta the mixing of Hoom and milk and pounding them in a mortar are mentioned many times. It is also mentioned that this plant is medicinal. Hoom is said to grow on Alborz Mountain where Simorgh used to live. Hoom can also be traced in the story of Rostam and Sohrab. Rostam not recognizing his son, Sohrab, wounds him; he asks Kai Kavus for an antidote with wine to cure Sohrab. The description of antidote is very much like that of Hoom. Another instance is the story of the death of the invincible Esfandiar in war with Rostam. Simorgh advises Rostam to choose an arrow and to dip it in raz water (grape juice) or wine which is supposed to be fatal. Again the description and the toxicity of the drink is very much that of Hoom.Conclusion: The ritual-mythical relationship of Simorgh and Hoom in Shahnameh is mostly related to Rostam's family. Simorgh and Hoom are also related to Mithraism and the worship of Mehr, an older religion that Rostam is its chief priest. That is why Esfandiar as the upholder of the new Zoroastrian religion kills Simorgh that with the help Hoom is the protector of Mehr and the followers of Mehr.

Introduction: A thousand and two hundred years have passed since the first poet, Mohammad Ibn Vasif Segzi or Hanzaleh Badgheisi or some other poet wrote down the first Persian poem. Persian poetry has gone through ups and downs due to wars, upheavals and conquests; however, it has continued to exist to the present time. Up to the seventh century A. H. the courts of kings supported and acted as an effective background for the blossoming of Persian poetry. In the following centuries, especially the tenth century A.H., lack of attention to poetry from the courts resulted in migration of poets to places outside the borders of Iran such as India. There were many poets and poetry centers at that time, however the information available about them is very little, limited and often incorrect. Many of these poets' works remained in the Subcontinent or were taken to Britain and other countries. One such poet is Fahmi Astarabadi whose only remaining diwan is at the Library of Cambridge University (Dd.11.12). The manuscript is 132 pages and three pages (1, 8, and 128) are missing. Pages 1 to 122 contain the poetry of Fahmi; from page 122 to the end the ruba'is of Hafez are included.This is a historical-biographical study of a tenth century A.H. poet based on the analysis of a Cambridge manuscript. The manuscript is analyzed to evaluate its authenticity in order to decide who the poet is.Discussion: In my search for Persian manuscripts at Cambridge University, I came upon a manuscript which Edward Brown had indexed as Diwan Molla Fahmi Kashani.  After much search I found a part of Kholas al-Sho'ara of Taqi Kashi which contains the biography and a great number of the poems of Fahmi Kashani none of which was in the Cambridge manuscript. Further research made it clear that Brown had made a mistake and the Cambridge manuscript belong to Fahmi Astarabadi. The poems mentioned in different biographies as belonging to Fahmi Astarabadi are there in this manuscript. The poet, Fahmi Astarabadi, has been associated with the court of Ruzafzunieh family and had written elegies and eulogies for three rulers of this family who ruled in Guilan and Mazandaran. Many biographers have mentioned that Fahmi Astarabadi had lived in India towards the end of his life and there are many references to India in his poems. Biographers have mentioned that Fahmi Astarabadi was a merchant and this fact is referred to in several of the poems of the manuscript. The people praised by Fahmi Kashani are Shah Ismael Ghazi, Sadr al-Shari'ah and Morshed Kamel (Safavid kings and their ministers) while Fahmi Astarabadi has praised Ruzafzunieh family.Most of the poetry of Fahmi Astarabadi is in praise of Rostam-e Ruzafzun and his son Mohammad. He has also traveled extensively and in his poetry nostalgia for home and beloveds is manifested. His pilgrimages to Mecca, Mashad, and Najaf are many times mentioned in his poetry.Conclusion: Fahmi Astarabadi's Diwan is one of the many manuscripts mentioned by biographers and writers of histories of Persian literature. In his Diwan we find the origins of some poems by later poets such as refrains of Hatef, composite ties of Vahshi Bafqi and examples of the school of Voqu (unaffected simple poetry).

Introduction: Monotheism (Tawhid) as a major principle of Islam has been studied since the Prophet (PBUH) put forth his invitation. Monotheism was first considered as a rejection of gods and idols. The basis of the Prophet's call was rejection of any partner for God. With the passage of time and especially with the formation of mysticism and Sufism, monotheism gained new meanings. As a result, degrees and classifications were assumed for monotheism. In later years some Muslims believed in monotheism intermingled with theological thoughts of predestination and free will. Some thinkers reached the conclusion that God is the prime agent of man's actions which led to the idea of Unity of Divine Acts. In Islamic mysticism this idea developed into the concept of annihilation in God which later was called Oneness of Witness best seen in the views of Junayd of Baghdad. Junayd ibn Muhammad Abu al-Qasim al-Khazzaz al-Baghdadi (220-297 A.H.) was born in Nahavand and was buried in Baghdad. He is one of the early mystics. Some of his works are Shatthiyat and Rasa'el.Junayd's views are closely analyzed in order to find how he regards the degrees of monotheism. Many of his quotations by other thinkers have been used to comment upon. Thus it is a historical-philosophical approach to an early Sufi.Discussion: Junayd never describes monotheism in one specific form; that is why we see different views mentioned by different people. Junayd answers to questions from the laymen depended on their knowledge. Suhravardi reports that in reply to complaints regarding different answers Janayd had said that the answer deserves the questioner. Junayd believes that in order to evaluate the degrees of monotheism, one must study them in two stages: knowledge and union. The first stage is based on cognition and recognition. The first stage is the same as the religious point of view. The second stage is union and gain. This stage is also divided into annihilation and oneness of witness.Conclusion: Junayd favored the subject of monotheism. Four degrees of monotheism can be seen in his sayings. Three degrees existed at the time of Junayd and he added the last one which is called oneness of witness. The difference in mystics' view points has led to two schools of sokr (intoxication) and Sahv (Sobriety). Sokr shows annihilation while sahv is not returning from intoxication but a degree above it.

Introduction: Ilia Abu Madhi (1890-1975) is one of the outstanding Arab poets of the twentieth century. He was born in Lebanon. When he was eleven years old, he was forced to leave school to immigrate to Egypt to find a job. However, he continued his studies at night. He published his first poem when he was 17. At that time great reformists such as Seyed Jamal al-Din Asadabadi, Mohammad Abddoh, and Rashid Redha had contributed to the intellectual atmosphere of Egypt opening new horizons for Arab thinkers. Abu Madhi focused his attention on social and political happenings of the time. He went back to Lebanon to help his country but he was so disappointed by the extent of ignorance and corruption that he went to America where he lived to the end of his life. He established a socio-political journal in Arabic called al-Sameer.Abu Madhi and his friend devised new techniques and novel themes and poetic styles. He is considered as one of the founders of "mahjar literature." In his poetry the influence of Khayyam and Abu al-Ala Ma'arri can be seen. His works Diwan Abi Madhi, Al-Jadavil, al-Khama'il, and Tabar wa Torab were published in America.This is a thematic study of Abu Madhi's poetry. Three themes of love, homeland and philosophy of existence are discussed in his poetry.Discussion: Abu Madhi is a true lover of beauty and he finds this beauty in women. Carpe Diem is the theme of most of his love poems. Like Khayyam he believes that wine and mistress are here today while nobody knows where they might be tomorrow.Abu Madhi's views regarding homeland are not limited to the geographical boundaries of Lebanon. He regards human beings highly, especially the people of the east. He considers the east as his homeland. He believes ignorance is the main reason for the problems of the eastern people. According to Abu Madhi technology should be used to overcome backwardness; however, in one of his odes he warns the east from following the west blindly. Though he has paid attention to social and political problems of his homeland, the first thing he describes about Lebanon is its magical beauty. Conclusion: Abu Madhi presents pain and suffering of human beings in order to find answers for man's anxieties and worries.  He believes that one way of overcoming sadness is embracing happiness of the moment. His poetry is framed within the triangle of love, homeland and philosophy of existence. In his lyrics he is romantic while his social and philosophical poetry has affinities with symbolism.

Introduction: Sa'di Shirazi is one of the most remarkable Persian poets whose poetry covers a vast range of topics. He has written on many subjects and has used different subjects and genres such as love, mysticism, eulogy, elegy, satire, lampoon and parody, which is why he is one of God's saints to some and a rogue and a rascal to others. In his Gulestan he presents man with all his goodness and badness, paradoxes and dualities, while in Bustan man is presented ideally as he should be. He has many sonnets on earthly love side by side with sonnets of mystical love.  However, his world views remain the same.One of the subjects he has mentioned many times is looking at the beautiful ("nazar bazi") which he calls as his religion. The terms ogler (nazar baz) and ogling (nazar bazi) seem to have been coined by him. The term is later used by many poets such as Awhadi Maraghei, Khaju-ye Kermani, Hafez Shirazi, Vahshi Bafqi, and many others. Philosophical-historical approach is used in this paper in order to analyze the theme of "nazar bazi"(looking at beauties) in the poetry of Sa'di.Discussion: Sa'di's use of ogling is important from two aspects: one is that he coined the term "nazar bazi"; the second is that he was a religious scholar and was aware of judicial decrees of clergymen regarding what is right and what is wrong in the relationship of men and women. It must be emphasized that many times he mentions that he does not have a specific man or woman in mind, from his point of view beauty must be praised. Praise of beauty in Sa'di's poetry falls into three categories: in some of his poems he praises beauty without any restraint and considers it as his religion. In some poems referring to some of the negative views of the public to this matter, he still insists on and asserts his liking for the beautiful. In some poems he has described the reasons for loving and looking at the beautiful.He confesses he had forgotten to praise his patrons because he is involved with love. The number of his lyrics on love testifies to this involvement. He has also devoted a chapter to love in Gulestan and Bustan.Conclusion: As a poet and religious scholar Sa'di has accepted looking at the beautiful and he has poetically decreed it. However, such a look must meet some conditions. It must be pure and the onlooker must be reminded of God represented in that beautiful face. His love reminds him of God's grandeur. Looking at beautiful things gives one spiritual pleasure; that is why eyes were created for. The other reason is old age and remembering past youth by looking at youthful faces.