A critical review of the redaction of the Sandbad-nameh

The most important Persian version of the Sandbad-nameh, was written by a witty scribe named Mohammad-Ali b. Ali Zahiri of Samarqand, shortly after the translation by Nasrollah Monshi of the Kalileh va Demneh in the latter’ style and genre. The traces of very formal florid prose and stylized divani and court letters are clearly seen in this book. Two scholarly editions of the book are obtainable: one by Ahmad Atash produced in Turkey, and the other by Kamal al-Dini published in Iran. Despite all the efforts made by these two scholars in amending the Sandbad-nameh, there are still cases in it that call for greater and more meticulous examination.
In this article, by considering certain manuscript variants and textual and external evidences, the writer makes an effort to propose new readings for those cases that have incurred distortions and ambiguities in both editions.