Abutaleb Esfahani, a pioneer in the Epic Verses of Haydari attack

The influence of Shahnameh Ferdowsi in the Persian literature was the reason behind the formation of National epic poetry in Iran. Following the gradual decline of National epics which has started in the late 5th and the beginnings of the 6th century Hijira, composition of the historical epics and soon after religious epics began. With the establishment of Shia faith and special regard towards religious thoughts in Safavid period and the support of the court for the religious composers, the inclination for composing epic-religious poetry in praise of Prophet Mohammad and Imam Ali and his descendents greatly intensified. Mirza Abutaleb Fenderesky Esfahani was the pioneer of such poetry. He composed a poetry under the name of “Haydari rapture” about the life of Imam Ali, thereby he initiated a tradition that very soon inspired other poets in that period and later periods to compose and imitate epic poetry of this genre under the general name of “Haydari attack”. These poetries were normally concerned with the life of Prophet Mohammad, Imam Ali, major events in the beginnings of Islam, and Imam Ali’s Wars. Haydari Attack compositions in the 12th century Hijra, began with the composition made by Bazel Mashhadi and within a century after that, several people in his imitation, created works of this genre the last of whom was Lotfollah Ghajar, known as Majnoon. This article is concerned with the life and works of Mirza Abutaleb Esfahani, as the pioneer in the composition of epic-religious poetry and his influence over the continuity of composition of this genre of poetry and thus forming a tradition in the name of “criticism” in the Persian Poetry