A Two-Colored Brocade


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Two-Colored Brocade: The Imagery of Persian Poetry




The different aspects of islamic culture


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This publication examines art, the human sciences, science, philosophy, mysticism, language and literature. For this task, UNESCO has chosen scholars and experts from all over the world who belong to widely divergent cultural and religious backgrounds.--Publisher's description.




The Book of Sarmad


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THE BOOK OF SARMAD Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Sarmad (d. 1659) or Hazrat Sarmad Shaheed, whose name 'Sarmad' derives from the Persian word for eternal or everlasting, was a famous and infamous Persian dervish poet of Jewish and Armenian origin. As a merchant he gathered his wares and travelled to India to sell them. In India he renounced Judaism and adopted Islam: he later renounced it in favour of Hinduism that he finally renounced for Sufism. He was known for exposing and ridiculing the major religions and hypocrisy of his day, but he also wrote beautiful mystical poetry in the form of 321 rubai's (all here translated). He wandered the streets and the courts of the emperor as a naked dervish. He was a close friend of Prince Dara Shikoh, another great Indian Sufi poet. He was beheaded in 1659 by Emperor Aurangzeb for his perceived heretical poetry. His grave is located near the Jama Masjid in Delhi. Introduction on The Life, Times and Work of Sarmad, Sufis & Dervishes: Their Art & Use of Poetry, The Ruba'i: Form, Use & History. Selected Bibliography. Appendix. The correct rhyme-structure has been kept as well as the beauty and meaning of these immortal poems. Large Format 7" x 10" 407 pages. COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'. "It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat and of paramount importance. I am astonished.." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran. "Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator into Persian and knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart. "I was very impressed with the beauty of these books." Dr. R.K. Barz. Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University. Paul Smith is a poet, author and translator of over 130 books of Sufi poets of the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages... including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Lalla Ded, Baba Farid, Rahman Baba, Yunus Emre, Iqbal and many others, as well as poetry, fiction, plays, children's books biographies and screenplays. www.newhumanitybooksbookheaven.com




Rumi: The Big Red Book


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“Really, what other book would anyone ever need?” —Naomi Shihab Nye, author of Honeybee “Elegant and exquisite.” —Deepak Chopra, author of Muhammad, Jesus, and Buddha The Big Red Book is a poetic masterpiece from Jalaluddin Rumi, the medieval Sufi mystic whom Time magazine calls “the most popular poet in America.” Readers continue to be awed and inspired by Rumi’s masterfully lyrical, deeply expressive poems, collected in volumes such as The Illustrated Rumi, The Soul of Rumi, and the bestselling The Essential Rumi. With The Big Red Book, acclaimed poet and Rumi interpreter Coleman Barks offers a never-before-published translation of a crucial anthology of poems widely considered to be one of Persian literature’s greatest treasures.




Khidr in Sufi Poetry


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~KHIDR IN SUFI POETRY: A SELECTION~Translation & Introduction by Paul SmithKhidr (Khizer, Khadir) is often called: “The Green One” for he was said to have drunk from the Fountain of Immortality and gained Eternal life. He has been identified with Elias, St. George, Phineas, the Angel Gabriel, the companion of Mohammed on a journey which is told in the Koran, viii, 59-8 1, and throughout the literature of Mysticism has appeared to many great seekers who eventually became Perfect Masters. Here are poems by many great Sufi Master Poets who have composed poems in Persian, Turkish, Pashtu, Urdu and English in which he is invoked or appears: Ansari, Anvari, Khaqani, Mu'in, Nizami, 'Attar, Baba Afzal, Rumi, Sadi, Yunus Emre, Shabistari, Amir Khusrau, Obeyd Zakani, Emad Kermani, Hafiz, Ruh Attar, Haydar, Jahan Khatun, Ahmedi, Zeyneb, Necati, Khushal, Makhfi, Rahman Baba, Khwaja Mohammad, Niyazi, Wali, Dard, Zauq, Ghalib, Dagh, Iqbal, Paul. The correct rhyme-structure has been kept as well as the beauty and meaning of these poems. Introduction on 'Who is Khidr'. Selected Bibliography. Three Appendixes. Illustrated. 267 pages.COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'.“It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat and of paramount importance. I am astonished. If he comes to Iran I will kiss the fingertips that wrote such a masterpiece inspired by the Creator of all.” Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran. “Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith.” Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator into Persian and knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart.“Smith has probably put together the greatest collection of literary facts and history concerning Hafiz.” Daniel Ladinsky (Penguin Books author).“I was very impressed with the beauty of these books.” Dr. R.K. Barz. Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University.Paul Smith is a poet, author and translator of over 80 books of Sufi poets of Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages, including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Lalla, Obeyd Zakani, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Yunus Emre and many others, as well as poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books and screenplays.







The Islamic Intellectual Tradition in Persia


Book Description

This volume gathers together the numerous essays by the Iranian metaphysician and ontologist, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, on Islamic philosophers and the intricate relationship between Persian culture and its philosophical schools. Brought together into a single volume for the first time, these essays span four decades of Nasr's prolific and learned scholarship on the development of Islamic philosophy, as well as the general history of Islam, and expound his belief that philosophy is not merely a rational but a sacred activity.




Fal Nama


Book Description

~FAL NAMA~Divination Book of Hafez of ShirazTranslation, Introduction, Interpretations Paul SmithHafez's Divan of poems has been used as an Oracle successfully by millions of people from all walks of life for the past 600 years. The practice of interpreting his insightful poems ('fal') has been a long tradition worldwide. Here are four hundred ghazals with insightful, clear interpretations by Paul Smith, an Introduction that includes his life, poetry, spirituality and the history of the use of his book as one of the world's great Oracles. The correct rhyme has been kept and the beauty and meaning of these immortal, mystical poems. Large Format Paperback 7" x 10" 438 pagesGertrude Bell: "It is as if his mental Eye, endowed with wonderful acuteness of vision, had penetrated into those provinces of thought which we of a later age were destined to inhabit."Meher Baba: "There is no equal to Hafez in poetry. He was a Perfect Master ... His Divan is the best book in the world because it engenders feelings which ultimately lead to illumination."Goethe: "In his poetry Hafez inscribed undeniable truth indelibly! He has no peer!"COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFEZ'S 'DIVAN'."It is not a joke... English version of all the ghazals of Hafez is a great feat of paramount importance. I am astonished." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran."Superb translations. 99% Hafez 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator and knower of Hafez's Divan off by heart."I was very impressed with the beauty of these books." Dr. R.K. Barz. Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University.Paul Smith is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafez, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Omar Khayyam, Rudaki, Yunus Emre, Lalla Ded, Rahman Baba, Baba Latif, Iqbal, Ghalib, Nazir, Mansur Hallaj, Ibn al-Farid and others, and his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies and screenplays.www.newhumanitybooks.com




The Empires of the Near East and India


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In the early modern world, the Safavid, Ottoman, and Mughal empires sprawled across a vast swath of the earth, stretching from the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea. The diverse and overlapping literate communities that flourished in these three empires left a lasting legacy on the political, religious, and cultural landscape of the Near East and India. This volume is a comprehensive sourcebook of newly translated texts that shed light on the intertwined histories and cultures of these communities, presenting a wide range of source material spanning literature, philosophy, religion, politics, mysticism, and visual art in thematically organized chapters. Scholarly essays by leading researchers provide historical context for closer analyses of a lesser-known era and a framework for further research and debate. The volume aims to provide a new model for the study and teaching of the region’s early modern history that stands in contrast to the prevailing trend of examining this interconnected past in isolation.




Converting Persia


Book Description

'Converting Persia' explains how Iran was to acquire one of its defining characteristics: its Shi'ism. Under the Safavids (1501-1736 CE), Persia adopted Shi'ism as its official religion. Rula Abisaab explains how and why this specific brand of Shi'ism - urban and legally-based - was brought to the region by leading Arab 'Ulama from Ottoman Syria, and changed the face of the region till this day. These emigre scholars furnished distinct sources of legitimacy for the Safavid monarchs, and an ideological defense against the Ottomans. Just as important at the time was a conscious and vivid process of Persianization both at the state level and in society. Converting Persia is vital reading for anthropologists, historians and scholars of religion, and any interested in Safavid Persia, in Shi'ism, and in the wider history of the Middle East.