Common Themes in Persian Poetry
Compiled by:
Ahmad Mirzendehdel
Publication Year: 2019
This book is a collection of fascinating common Persian poetic themes, conveying universally accepted messages, from the glorious eras of Persian poetry, taking the reader through centuries of the subtle poetic thoughts of Persian dignitaries, including both male and female poets, philosophers, and artists such as musicians, painters and calligraphers, who chose to express their overall view of world and life in a poetic manner. It also includes the verses written, in rare cases, by some ordinary people who may even have received no classic education, yet enjoyed God-given poetic talent.
The purpose of a large portion of Persian poetry, as prescribed by the wise, is to make us question our beliefs, the legitimacy of our ideals, and the endless paradox' that life presents. It truly fits the definition of poetry as provided by a 19th Century English poet and cultural critic, namely Mathew Arnold: “Poetry is at bottom, a criticism of life”. Further, as once said by Thomas Stearns Eliot, the American poet and literary critic that: “Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood”, even in most cases of complicated Persian poetry, the average reader gets the impression that the overall theme of the poem is received despite the exact meaning of a word or two may not be well understood.
Persian literature enjoys countless popular poetic themes, the concepts that have proved enduring over centuries. Since most of the times, a poet does not strictly bound oneself to a single theme in a poem, in the present book efforts were made to single-out a specific verse of a poem which independently carries the relevant theme. Moreover, in some cases, other aspects and even an ironically opposite perspective of a certain main-theme have been expressed by another poet who happened to have a totally and interestingly different point of view regarding that very specific theme. Such verse(s) is/are introduced as a footnote.
Further, shifting of language-usage in expressing a single poetic-theme in the course of ever-developing schools of Persian poetry can be clearly witnessed in the book which focuses on such major themes in Persian poetry, as follows:
- Injustice and retribution for one’s deeds is among the dominant themes in Persian
poetry.[1]
- Do justice, receive justice.[2]
- The open-ended story of love and its confrontation with wisdom[3] is possibly the most
popular of all poetic themes. The love-themed poems vary from the description of
the-first-sight love to the long-established love[4] and finally to the everlasting love.[5]
The dark side of love such as failed love, lost love and the sense of unfaithfulness and
even betrayal and the resulting heartbreak, are not left unreferred to.
- Spirituality-related concepts have also frequently appeared in Persian poetry.
Praise of God Almighty[6], Mercy of God towards mankind[7], Necessity to mention the name of God Almighty prior to commencing any work, as failure to do so would result in failure of the work in question to besuccessfully implemented[8]; There is no God but one[9]; Impossibility to perceive God by the five physical senses and mere natural intellect[10]; God is not and cannot be bound to a specific location as is everywhere and no where[11]. God closes a door for a reason[12]. When God shuts a door, He opens another[13]. When God shuts a door, He opens a window[14]. When God shuts a door, no man can open[15].
Praise of the Prophet Mohammad (PbH).[16] and the Twelve
Imams, specially Imam Ali (PbH)[17] in addition to dirge regarding martyrdom of Imam Hossein (PbH)[18] who fought an unequal battle of 72 justice-seeking men against an army of about 30000- men strength, comprise the religiously-themed poems.
-“No man of woman born, coward or brave, can shun his destiny” [19]. This quote prescribes the impossibility to change the predetermined fate. Facing the realities of life, such as submission to the fate[20], as it is beyond thehuman power to not only totally defy the fate, but also partially effect changes therein and even such bitter facts of life as the inevitable death[21], the mystery surrounding it and the very reality that no living creature can escapefrom death, as mortality comes to all, with the humans being no exception to this universal rule, comprise yet another poetry theme; There is no point in crying, since the tears will not bring the dead beloved back to life[22].
- Praise of the humanity[23] and the issues that go against human nature[24].
- Beauty in both aspects of natural beauty and the beauty of nature, is universally inspired by the poets, as is the case with the Persian poets who further specifically have emphasized on the very fact that the nature of physical beauty is only skin-deep, may be easily lost and also temporary as is the case with
one’s financial strength and wealth, thus they shouldn’t be regarded as sources of pride.[25].
- Wisdom of experience[26] and the difference in depth of vision.[27]
- When you are strong, help the weak.[28]
- Caution against ordering punishment in fury, as anger will end in repentance.[29]
- Redressing a murder with another murder is not morally justified. A crime will not be exonerated by committing another crime, as two wrongs do not make a right.[30]
- The concepts of unpredictability and unreliability of the world’s behavior[31], the lessons we learn from the world, including the people we deal with in our everyday life, and the experiences we gain, most of the time by the hard way[32], are among other most commonly-referred themes in Persian poetry.
- You cannot mend a broken egg.[33]
- As you sowed, so shall you reap; You reap what you sow.[34]
- Reflection of conflicted sense of self is also observed in poetic themes. In other words,
one should realize that his/her negative feelings towards others are reflecting back to
his/her own sense of negativity then it would be possible to do something to help
himself/herself forward. [35]
Moreover, emphasis is made on the fact that our thoughts, beliefs, emotions, and the extent of our knowledge of the world around us, form our identity.[36]
- People reveal whatever is in their nature.[37]
- Who chatters to you, will chatter if you.[38]
- Caution against continuous complaint about the things we don’t have at the moment, while totally forgetting about the very things which were once a burning need and we already have.[39]
- Everybody seeks his own good.[40]
- The grass always grows greener on the other side of the fence.[41]
- Having no greed brings comfort and dignity.[42]
- Do as you wish to be done by; Wish for others what you wish for yourself.[43]
- Seeing is desiring.; Seeing is wishing.; What is seen, is also desired.[44]
- Out of sight, out of mind.; Far from the eye, far from the heart.[45]
- Our sufferings are due to our own faults.[46]
- The benefit and power of silence with emphasis on the fact that he who knows little, talks too much.[47]
- A wise should not remain silent.[48]
- He who lies down with the dogs, must expect to rise with flees.; He who keeps company with a wolf, will learn to howl.; Caution against association with the evil and the unworthy, as one may be influenced as a result of repeated contacts. In other words, keeping company with the wicked, dashes the hope for salvation.[49]
- One should appreciate the very moment he lives in and avail oneself of every single
opportunity.[50]
- To learn to command, one must learn to obey.[51]
- Noble characters are usually poor. .[52]
- Adventures are to the adventurous.[53]
- One does not notice one’s own defect, as failure to notice one’s own deficiency
is a common failure of human beings.[54]
- Heart speaks to heart.; A true friendship joins two hearts and minds.[55]
- There are many a devil in human shape.[56]
- No joy exists without sorrow.; There is no rose without a thorn.[57]
- Caution against a rush to punishment and imposing hasty punishments.[58]
- Everything in nature reveals divine wisdom.[59]
- After death the doctor.[60]
- No joy without annoy.[61]
- A good name is better than riches.[62]
- One’s caviling tongue finally causes the loss of one’s head;
Man’s tongue brings him misfortune. ; Let not your tongue cut your throat. [63]
- Humbleness gets its reward.; Modesty is the key to loftiness.;
Genuine humility and true humbleness elevates you.[64]
- No one permanently lives in this transient world.[65]
- Be not indebted to the base, even for a trifle.[66]
- One who cries wine and sells vinegar; A sly double-dealer. [67]
- Feigning to be better than what you really are.[68]
- A wise avoids an act that results in repentance.[69]
- Practice what you preach.[70]
- Action is the proper fruit of knowledge, as knowledge without practice is
worthless.[71]
- Your father’s fame is not in your name.[72]
- You must lie on the bed you have made; No compensation for one’s own
blunder, as one has to solely suffer the consequences of a self-committed
wrong act and without blaming others.[73]
- Every human being has his own share of grief.[74]
- Breach of promise is as condemned as renunciation of one’s religious belief.[75]
- All destiny in God’s hand.[76]
- Beauty needs no embellishment.[77]
- A sentinel’s neglect helps a thief.[78]
- He jests at scars who has never had a wound. The afflicted can have sympathy
for sufferers.[79]
- Leave well alone.[80]
- One should not belittle an enemy.; Your enemy may seem a mouse, yet watch
him like a lion.[81]
- Accustom to loneliness as people’s company proved troublesome.; Sometimes
it is better to be alone.
Nobody can hurt you.[82]
- Actions speak louder than words.[83]
- A friend in need is a friend indeed.[84]
- Upon departure of the devil, the angle arrives.;
Arrival of the angel follows departure of the devil.[85]
- Truth and the strive for right.; Be truthful since the honest are delivered.;
Salvation is in truthfulness.[86]
- One heart needs only one sweetheart.[87]
- Seeing is believing.[88]
- A loveless creature is a barren tree.[89]
- Who longest wait of all surely wins.[90]
- Life is too short for fortitude to bear fruit.[91]
- Call a spade a spade; As plain as the nose on your face; Intuitively obvious;
Self-evident.[92]
- Birds of a feather flock together.; Like likes like.[93]
- All is welcomed from a friend.[94]
- Laughter and tears are companions.[95]
- A worthy man’s words and deeds are in compliance with each other.[96]
- The biter bit. The fox is taken when he comes to take. Signifying the fact that
there is always a superior to a superior, or in other words, any superior is a
subordinate to someone else. Someone who has committed wrongs, is now
experiencing a taste of his/her own medicine. [97]
- Wisdom is better than strength.[98]
- Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.[99]
- Friendship is expected from friends.[100]
- Do not forbid falling in love, as I did and suffered the consequence by falling
in love.[101]
- No gains without pains.[102]
- Every herring must hang by its own gill.; You won’t suffer on my account.[103]
- The handsomest flower is not the sweetest.; A clean appearance does not
always mean a clean heart.[104]
- What has been done, can’t be undone; as there is no overtaking the shot, once
fired, signifying that it would be too late to regret what is already done.[105]
- A thousand friends are two few and one single enemy, too many.[106]
- To be between the devil and the deep sea.[107]
- Crooked by nature is never made straight by education.; You can’t wash a
black moor white.; Figs do not grow on thistles.; Education has no positive
effect on an evil nature.; Educating the base is a vane deed.[108]
- The hotter war, the sooner peace.[109]
- In helplessness, one may assault much stronger opponent.[110]
- No one should be regarded as a law-breaker if the law is violated by the law-
enforcement officer.[111]
- Never put off for tomorrow, what you can do today.[112]
- Sorrow and happiness, as “Every cloud has a silver lining”.[113]
- A soft answer turneth away wrath.[114]
- Sanity and insanity.[115]
- Keeping secrets. A secret is soon out even through a friend [116]
- The mills of God grind slowly but they grind exceedingly fine.[117]
- You buy land, you buy stones, you buy meat, you buy bones.[118]
- The shoemaker’s child goes barefoot.[119]
Quoting representative poems of well-known, known and also unknown Persian ancient and contemporary poets who rose within the once vast geographical boundaries of the Persian-speaking territory, in the course of centuries illustrates the extent of richness and diversity of topics repeatedly referred to in Persian poetry, in various wordings.
Contrary to the English poems in which such themes as nature, religion, politics, individual struggle, and love and romance comprise the main themes, there is practically no boundaries to the so called “central themes” when it comes to Persian poetry, as it covers nearly each and every aspect of human life delicately and in an astonishing details, in a single verse.
Instead of applying a chronological division of the identical-theme poems, they are categorized based on the central theme given as the topic and a list of verses pertaining to the same common theme in question. In certain cases, the degree of association of the verses to the topic, smoothly weakens and conceptually diverges as the reader browses down the list. Any verse(s) related to a certain theme in a different or even in an opposite aspect, is (are) provided as a footnote in the Persian (Farsi) text.
I sincerely hope that the present book which among all, serves as a true mirror of Persian culture and civilization, and in the meantime justifies how the Persian classic poetry can remain lively even in the age of globalization, would be regarded as a compelling contribution to enchant both the Persian literature-majored students as well as the casual readers. I am confident that this book will project the joy of poetry to the readers who will find it rather difficult to put the book aside before reaching the very last page.
Yet since as Mosleheddin Saadi Shirazi, the great Persian writer and poet has said that “Criticism is the means of correction”[120] and since I sincerely believe that it is a powerful, if not the ultimate means of correction, any comment of any nature is most welcomed if addressed to the Author’s email at: amirzendehdel@yahoo.com.
Ahmad Mirzendehdel
Sworn and certified English Translator
Tehran, Iran
February 2019