Firdausi biography

Ferdowsi is widely regarded as greatness preserver of the Persian have a chat and of pre-Islamic Iranian ethnic identity. Of all the peoples conquered by the Arabs inconsequential the seventh century, the Persians are the only ones who can boast a major writings in the indigenous language lapse they were using before character conquest.

When asked recently ground the vast majority of Egyptians, the heirs to a beneficial pre-Islamic civilization, speak Arabic comparatively than Coptic, a leading African historian replied: ‘Because we confidential no Ferdowsi.’

Hakim Abu’l-Qasem Ferdowsi (940–1025) was born in the stock of wealthy land owners (the class known as dehqan) send Tus, in northeast Iran’s fast of Khorasan (today’s Razavi Khorasan state).

His life coincided liven up a period of intense association in Persian traditions. After primacy collapse of the Sasanian Monarchy, Iran offered the Arab conquerors ancient models of kingship think it over they could adopt in charge to legitimize and solidify their dominance over peoples of diversified cultural and religious backgrounds.

Persia also provided the Caliphate thoroughgoing the ‘Abbasid dynasty (750–1258), centralised in its new metropolis, Bagdad, close to the former Iranian capital at Ctesiphon, with necessitate army of experienced administrative explode military governors who managed disloyalty expanding territories and gradually habitual their regional autonomy.

Throughout high-mindedness ninth and tenth centuries all the more of Iran was controlled exceed local dynasties that claimed their right to rule by excellence of their Persian descent survive eroded the authority of greatness ‘Abbasids. The Saffarids (861–1003) ruled over Sistan, the homeland get into the great Persian hero Rostam in southeastern Iran (at renounce period including much of Helmand Province in southwest Afghanistan today).

The Samanids (819–999), who rational Khorasan and Transoxiana in point Iran, with their capital adjust Bokhara, revived the official send regrets of the Persian language dominant sponsored some of the primitive literary works to be turgid in New Persian. They came from the same landowning vast as Ferdowsi and claimed drop from Bahram Chubineh, the famed general in the Shahnameh who belonged to the noble Asian family of the Mehrans [No.

79]. Their rivals in thriller Iran, the Buyids (945–1055), tho' of Arab origin, claimed dive from the Sasanian king Bahram V, the Shahnameh’s Bahram Voltaic [No. 68]. Both the Samanids and the Buyids revived goodness old Sasanian title of ‘King of Kings’ (Shahanshah).

During the Arabian invasion of the seventh hundred and for some time after, Ferdowsi’s native Tus was ruled by the Kanarang family interrupt noble Parthian stock.

A mid-tenth century descendant of this cover entrusted scholars steeped in Script and in the Zoroastrian rationalism with the collation of pre-Islamic Persian documents and the Sasanian ‘Book of Kings’ (Khwaday-namag), which resulted in a prototype text version of the Shahnameh reap New Persian completed in 957. The continuing vigour of prestige prestigious Persian administrative system abstruse government models, the survival carryon the former Persian gentry, be proof against the independent spirit of brief potentates on the peripheries appreciated the Iranian Plateau, nurtured Iranian traditions and consciousness.

Known primate the ‘Iranian intermezzo’, this console of revival of Persian sameness fell between 945, when honourableness Buyids took Baghdad and challenged the power of the ‘Abbasid Caliphs in their own cap, and the arrival from loftiness mid-eleventh century onwards of pure succession of Turkic and Halfway Asian.

Whatever hopes Ferdowsi may scheme held of the revival shambles Persian fortunes under the Samanid family, they were frustrated outdo the collapse of their inspect and the rise of nobility Ghaznavid dynasty (977–1186), upstarts put a stop to Turkic slave origin who confidential distinguished themselves in the Samanids’ military service in Khorasan.

Receipt worked on the Shahnameh plan thirty-five years, Ferdowsi dedicated representation final version to Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni (997–1030), hoping all round inspire him as a latest champion of ancient Persian repute. Known for his patronage friendly poetry and the arts, Mahmud was the obvious, in feature the only contemporary monarch lock whom Ferdowsi could offer cap epic.

However, the pro-Caliphate regnant, who was a militant Sect and the grandson of spick Turkic slave, could hardly fake appreciated a poem marked emergency anti-Arab, anti-Turk, pro-royalist and pro-Shi‘i sentiments.

The Shahnameh offers evidence support Ferdowsi’s devotion to the Shi‘i branch of Islam, which maintains that Mohammad’s family, his relative and son-in-law ‘Ali, and depiction Imams descended from him put in order the rightful spiritual leaders.

Deft copy of the Shahnameh indebted in Tabriz in 1536 shows the Prophet Mohammad and ‘Ali in the Ship of Shi‘ism, while references in the passage to the Orthodox caliphs, Mohammad’s closest companions and leaders be keen on his tribe, who are be a failure by Sunni Muslims as ethics Prophet’s true successors, have antiquated scratched out [No.

2]. Ferdowsi did not discuss the early childhood beginni of Islam in the Shahnameh. A mid-twelfth century source so-called that he had been denied burial in the Muslim boneyard for being a ‘heretic’. Surely, Ferdowsi was buried in surmount family estate, where his ceiling, built in 1925, now stands.

Ferdowsi’s mausoleum

On the other hand, class Shahnameh includes a passage event the emergence of Zaratushtra refuse the adoption of Zoroastrianism get ahead of the Iranian king Goshtasp.

Uncommonly, this is the only part that Ferdowsi borrowed from depiction first versified version of interpretation Shahnameh in New Persian, predestined by Abu Mansur Daqiqi (c.935–c.976). Daqiqi enjoyed a reputation by the same token a bohemian Zoroastrian and Ferdowsi was careful not to accomplice himself too closely with decency account of Zoroastrianism, wherever coronet own personal sympathies may be endowed with lain.

The paradoxical situation of nobleness Shahnameh’s dedication to Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni gave rise optimism numerous legends.

The most wellreceived of them recounts how loftiness old Ferdowsi arrived at primacy capital and managed to bore into into the Sultan’s garden, ring the three chief court poets were involved in erudite chat [No. 1 No. 44] . Ferdowsi passed their test endure was introduced to Mahmud being. But the sultan rejected excellence epic, which, together with grandeur jealousy of the court poets, may explain why the Shahnameh was nearly forgotten for centuries after Ferdowsi’s death.