Partaw Bayza’i

Partaw Bayza’i, Husayn (1868-1929), son of ‘Ali Muhammad Adib Bayza’i. A writer, editor, and poet with the nom de plume Partaw, he hailed from the village of Aran, Kashan. His grandfather, Mirza Muhammad Riza, with the nom de plume Ibn Ruh, and his great grandfather, Mulla Muhammad Arani, with the nom de plume Ruh al-Amin, were distinguished mystics and poets. He received his formal education in Kashan and studied belles-lettres and poetry with his father. After his father’s demise, he departed for Tehran in 1935, found an employment at the police department and in his last years was transferred to the Intelligence and Security Administration. In composing poetry, he followed the Indian School and Sa’ib’s style. He was buried in his hometown, Kashan. His works include: Varzish-i Bastani-yi Iran; Tadhkira-yi Shu’ara-yi Kashan, also well-known as Kashanih-yi Danish; Tarikh-i Kashan; Talkhis-i (abridgement of) Tarikh-i Gitigusha-yi Zand; Divan-i Ash’ar; edition of the divans of Kalim Kashani and Sabahi Bidguli; edition of Salim Tihrani’s Mathnavi, titled Qaza va Qadar. The following couplets are by him:

What remains of man is but a name

What he takes away with him is but un-meditated thought

Such unending desires are of no avail on such short path,

Death is but one step in the way of life.

The generosity of the drunk is not out of purity of heart,

It is engendered merely by that of the wine cup.

The difference between knowledge and ignorance looks as vast as a world to common people,

The difference between the ignorant (‘am) and the knowledgeable (‘alim) lies in one letter – lam.

Asar-afarinan (2/ 117); Sukhanvaran-i Nami-yi Mu’asir-i Iran (2/ 734-739); Farhang-i Sha’iran-i Zaban-i Parsi az Aghaz ta Imruz (1/ 111).