Irony in Bayazid Bastami's Shathiyat

Irony is a figure of speech which refers to the expression of the meaning by using a language which signifies the opposite. Irony is used to express a prominent meaning and to signify a special signified, and it results in highlighting a specific part of the discourse. This figure of speech expresses the meaning implicitly through satire, metonymy, praising and blaming and contributes to the rhetoricity of the text. This research using a descriptive analytic approach aims at explaining the status of irony in Bayazid Bastami's Shathiyat. Bayazid Bastami has controversial Shathiyat rooted in mysticism and ascetisim accompanied by love. In this article, the concepts of irony, satire, and surrealism aspects are defined at first. Then, Shathiyat will be represented in their structural framework. By reflecting on the language in Shathiyat and their symmetries we can understand that wisdom or knowledge is related to surrealism too. Finally, surreal and paradoxical Shathiyat will be illustrated and explained within the principles of Sufism and mysticism.