A Study of the Relation between Mystical Experience and Metaphorical Language in Suhravardi's " Aghl-e- Sorkh"

The new outlook on metaphor opposes the traditional outlook. The new idea of the outlook rejects the idea that metaphors have an absolutely linguistic and literary nature. This outlook introduced by Lakoff and Johnson in their work called "Metaphors". Liveby (1980) believes that people make use of metaphors in their daily lives. Metaphorical attitude of Suhravardi makes allegory a dominant rhetorical element in his style. To show his theosophical world, Suhravardi mostly used metaphoric concepts. In this paper, by referring to the ontological system of Suhravardi which is known under the name of “Hikmat-I Ishragh”; the relation between mystical experience and metaphorical language in Suhravardi’s "Aghl-e- Sorkh" is examined. The theory of conceptual metaphor is being used as theoretical frame work. In conclusion by recognizing the function of “"God is light” and “Spirit is bird” as macro metaphors it is possible to analyze the metaphorical system and cornerstone of thoughts of Suhravardi. Metaphorical mapping makes appropriate categories for Suhravardi 's abstract analysis and shows intratextual coherence of "Aghl-e- Sorkh" with primary mapping.