Analysis of the Jamshid Myth Quoted in the Shahnameh and Islamic Histories with an Archetypal Criticism Approach

All the mythological themes and worldviews of the primitive tribes and religious concepts of different nations, which represent the general examples of human behavior, should be called archetypes. These mythological themes are repeated and common in different societies. In the myth of Jamshid, which is quoted in the Shahnameh and some other works of Muslim writers, like the myths around the world, one can see the role of the archetypes, and based on these archetypes, one can analyze the desired myth. The present study has been conducted with the archetypal criticism approach and the descriptive-analytical method based on the library data. The purpose of this study is to investigate some of the most important archetypes in the Jamshid myth quoted in the Shahnameh and to compare them with the most important historical works of Muslim writers who have quoted the Jamshid myth. The study results indicate that the role of archetypes such as the archetype of good and evil battle (the archetype of heroic and anti-heroic battle), the archetype of utopia, the archetype of flight, the archetype of the New Year celebration, the archetype of longevity, the archetype of sin as a result of being deceived by demonic forces, the archetype of shadow, the archetype of the mask, the archetype of punishment, and so on, are observed in the Shahnameh and other mentioned works. Thus, the myth of Jamshid can be analyzed based on these archetypes.  

Today, myths have been studied from different perspectives, including historical, philosophical, mystical, functional, psychological, anthropological, sociological, artistically, etc., and each of them has different analyses and interpretations. One of the major methodologies is to analyze myths using archetypes, which is also called archetypal criticism. Archetypal criticism explores the nature of the characteristics of myths, archetypes, and their role. Critics of this method look for exemplary forms and archetypes in mythological works and talk about their relationship to the depths of human nature. The collective subconscious encompasses contents and behaviors that are more or less the same everywhere among all human beings. In other words, it is common to all human beings and, therefore, creates a common psychological realm that is superhuman and exists in all of us. The contents of the collective unconscious are called archetypes. If we want to deal with the concept of the collective unconscious, we must know that we are dealing with ancient patterns, or rather eternal, that is, universal images that have existed since time immemorial. Accordingly, the contents of the collective unconscious are formed by archetypes. These archetypes are deposited in the collective subconscious of human beings based on ancient experiences and manifest themselves in the form of dreams, myths, and works of art. In the definition of an archetype, it can be said that it includes a pattern, a model, a person, a letter, an example that looks, patterns, models people, professions, and other examples of perfect imitations, or at least very similar to them. The analysis and adaptation of the archetypes that make up the structure of myths will enable researchers to solve the mysteries of prehistoric man and analyze their beliefs. This study examines the myth of Jamshid, one of the most famous Iranian myths narrated in the Shahnameh and some other historical works of Muslim writers and analyzes some of the most important archetypes in this myth.  

Since the present research is a library study in which the library data constitute the main materials for investigation. The research method is descriptive-analytical with an archetypal criticism approach.  

The results of this study indicate that the narration of the Shahnameh and the narrations of the other Muslim writers concerning the myth of Jamshid are very close to each other and there are slight differences in these narrations. In the myth of Jamshid, like many other Iranian myths, the archetype of the battle between good and evil is symbolized in the form of the battle between a hero and an anti-hero. In this myth, Jamshid can be mentioned as a hero who is captured by carnality in the end or by being deceived by demons who are a symbol of the negative part of the archetype of the shadow, he deviates from the right path and commits the sin of heresy. This sin of Jamshid carries a heavy punishment, and that is the loss of all possessions, wandering, and tragic death. Archetypes of sin and punishment are among the most important archetypes found in this myth. In this myth, the archetype of utopia can also be seen. In various sources, the period of Jamshid’s reign is mentioned as a golden period, which is the manifestation of the archetype of the utopia in Persian myths. The flight archetype is another important archetype that has been quoted in the myth of Jamshid and various sources. The narration of this archetype is the manifestation of ancient human desires to fly in the skies. Another important archetype in this myth is the archetype of the New Year celebration. The archetype of the New Year celebration is one of the most important archetypes that has continued to live in the cultural geography of Iran until today in the form of the Nowruz celebration. Another important archetype quoted in this myth is the archetype of the longevity of some mythical kings. This archetype is also reproducible and can be seen in many myths. In general, by examining the archetypes in the myth of Jamshid and applying them in different narrations, an acceptable analysis of this myth can be achieved.