Nizami Ganjavi

Biography

Nizami Ganjawi, Jamal al-Din Abu Muhammad Ilyas ibn Yusuf (1126/1135/1140-1205/1207/1217), philosopher and distinguished poet flourishing in the twelfth century under the Seljuks. Born in Ganja to Yusuf and Ra’isa, of Kurdish extraction. His birth place has been recorded in some biographical sources as Quhistan, Farahan, Qum, and Tafrish. Notwithstanding his dislike of his hometown, he lived all his life in it, though he only made a short journey to a region near Ganja at the invitation of Qizil Arsalan (1185-1191). He also studied literature, history, and legends in his youth and distinguished himself particularly as an astronomer. He was a contemporary of the Atabaks of Azerbaijan and Mosul, and the Shirwanshah rulers. His Sufi inclinations led him to have an ascetic life far from attachments to royal courts. Similar to all literary and scholarly figures, he studied different disciplines in his youth and his strenuous efforts in learning sciences and literature paved the way for him to distinguish himself as a great poet. His efforts in learning different disciplines are reflected in his works. In his Sufi wayfaring, he was a disciple of Akhi Faraj Zanjani. His numerous friends and acquaintances include Khaqani and ‘Awfi to whom he had intimate relations and even composed an elegy to the former. Biographers have disagreed on the date of Nizami’s death and making inferences from his poetry, they have suggested the dates 1205, 1207, and 1217. He died in Ganja and his tomb was still erect till the mid Qajar era, though it fell into ruins afterwards until it was reconstructed by the local government of Azerbaijan of the former Soviet Union. Nizami has been accorded particular significance for his literary style. He was followed by numerous poets, like Amir Khusraw Dihlawi, Jami, Hatifi, Qasimi, Vahshi, ‘Urfi, Maktabi, Fayzi, Fayyazi, Ashraf Maraghi, Azar Bigdili, Khwaju-yi Kirmani, Hilali Jughata’i, Mawlana Hashemi Kirmani, and Mawlana Nawidi Shirazi. Nizami was also an expert in intellectual sciences, particularly in philosophy, logic, mathematics, and astronomy. He had also mastery of narrational sciences, e.g. hadith, Qur’anic studies, and jurisprudence. The themes of his poetry include monotheism, arguments for the oneness of God, and refutation of naturalist philosophers as reflected in his five mathnawis in which he presents diverse arguments and interpretations. He is renowned for his decisive arguments and erudition in these fields. However, his affiliations with Sufi orders are not sufficiently known, but his poetry reflects that he was a pious man free from worldly attachments. He particularly refrained from attaching himself to courts and dignitaries. He never went to extremes in eulogies and never made poetical compositions to attract the attention of rulers. He lived the life of a recluse free from worldly attachments late in life and never bowed to rulers. His quotations from Greek philosophers as to the creation of the world and the first creature are in harmony with the views held by philosophers but his views are in harmony with the those shared by Islamic philosophers who maintain that intellect was first created. His erudition is acknowledged by Eastern and Western scholars; for instance, Jan Rypka translated Haft Paykar into French. Wilhelm Bacher, German orientalist, conducted studies on Nizami and Wilson, English orientalist, rendered Haft Paykar into English. Two Indian scholars, Badr al-Din ‘Ali and Mir Husayn ‘Ali, published Iskandarnama under the title Shuruh-i Iskandarnama. Further, Bertels, Russian orientalist, conducted studies on Nizami. Another Russian orientalist, Francois-Erdmann, published Iskandarnama under the tile Russo-Roman War. Another Russian orientalist, Louis Spitznagel wrote a book entitled The Campaign of Alexander the Great wherein he incorporated materials from Iskandarnama. Herbert Duda, Czech orientalist published Farhad wa Shirin. ‘Abd al-Na’im Muhammad Hasan, Egyptian scholar, wrote Nizami al-Ganjawi Sha’ir al-Fazila and published it in Egypt. The English used the works of Nizami in the Persian textbooks used by East India Company wherein they used materials from Nizami’s complete works (Kulliyyat), Makhzan al-Asrar, Iskandarnama, and Khamsa, several editions of which have recently appeared. Nizami’s works include his magnum opus entitled Panj Ganj or Khamasa whose couplets reportedly run to about 20,000. Khamsa includes Makhzan al-Asrar, Layla wa Majnun, Khusraw wa Shirin, Haft Paykar, and Iskandarnama. All these mathnawis have been composed in the Iraqi style of poetry. Khamsa is one of the most renowned Persian poetical compositions. Nizami was able to reach the zenith of perfection in Persian allegorical poetry. Nizami is unrivalled in his poetical diction, employment of novel and appealing similes, metaphors, themes, and delicacies in his depictions of nature and characters. His earliest mathnawi, Makhzan al-Asrar runs to 2,260 couplets. It is dedicated to Fakhr al-Din Bahram Shah ibn Dawud and includes 20 chapters on counsels and aphorisms of an ascetic and mystical nature. Following a prelude, each chapter includes a meaningful, appealing, moving, but brief tale. The mathnawi of Khusraw wa Shirin, running to 6,500 couplets, is the story of the love of Khusraw Parwiz, the Sassanid King, for Shirin, the Armenian princess. Completed in 1180, it was dedicated to Ababak Shams al-Din Muhammad Jahan Pahlawan ibn Ildigiz. The mathnawi of Layla wa Majnun, running to 4,500 couplets, was completed in 1188 and was dedicated to Shirwan Shah Abu al-Muzaffar Akhistan wherein he composed the story of the passionate love of Majnun (Qays ‘Amiri), from the Banu ‘Amir tribe, for Layla, the daughter of Sa’d. It was a famous pre-Islamic Arabic tale. The mathnawi entitled Haft Paykar, also known as Haft Gunbad and Bahramnama, in 5,136 couplets, was dedicated to ‘Ala’ al-Din Karib Arsalan, the ruler of Maragha, in 1196. It is one of the Persian tales tracing back to the Sassanid times in which the accounts of Bahram Gur have been narrated. Iskandarnama, running to 10,500 couplets, comprises of two sections: Sharafnama and Iqbalnama. The former depicts Alexander as a great conqueror and the latter presents him in the guise of a sage and a wise prophet. Completed in 1202, it was dedicated to Nusrat al-Din Abu Bakr Muhammad Jahan Pahlawan. Nizami is regarded as one of the most distinguished Persian poets who, similar to Firdawsi and Sa’id, succeeded in the establishment and perfection of a particular poetical style. Although his predecessors made poetical compositions of Persian tales, but he succeeded in attaining to perfection in allegorical poetry in the late twelfth century. Although criticized for his prolixity, highly ornate diction, inclusion of numerous scientific and philosophical terms, Arabic lexicon, and semantic complications in numerous verses, but the features of his poetical style make him as one of most distinguished poets unsurpassed by other Persian poets, particularly in making compositions which suit poetical circles. He is unrivalled in his depiction of happy moments. His diction is appealing, delicate, and elegant to the extent that his depictions of battles are unconsciously tinged by lyricism. He lived by moral principles and in contrast to many other poets, none of his verses reflect loose morals. He is the master par excellence of lyrical poetry and romantic tales in Persian literature. His similes and depictions are elegant, artistic, and very imaginative. His numerous novel metaphors and similes at times create ambiguities and his abundant Arabic words and philosophical and further scientific terminology make his compositions complicated and at times hard to appreciate, but he is indubitably one of pillars of Persian poetry. Similar to Firdawsi and Sa’di, he succeeded in the creation and perfection of his peculiar poetical style. His mastery of arrangement in his poetical compositions led many poets to imitate his style from the thirteenth century on which continued in all the literary eras of Persian literature.

Asar-afarinan (6/ 54-55); Tarikh-i Adabiyyat dar Iran (2/ 798-824).