The First and Most Ancient Mystical Interpretations of Quranic Verses and Prophetic Sayings in Persian Literature

The writing of mystical texts in Persian literature started from the second half of the fifth century. Although a good deal of this kind of interpretation of Quranic verses and sayings come sporadically, but, in the meantime, the first mystical interpretation of Quranic verses, and prophetic sayings on Persian mystical literature are not well known. According to the documents which had been handed down to us, it seems from the sixth century that traditional Persian interpretations of some philosophers and mystics have grown substantially due to their mystical worldview and with an emphasis on Quranic verses that prophetic traditions have attempted to interpret them. Among the rare samples in this area which are available to us are two treatises on the interpretation of verses and hadiths that have been written separately and independently and are presented in the writings of Salim Agha and Süleymaniye Library. One of these treatises was corrected by Forouzanfar under the title of "Interpretation of Sura Muhammad and al-Fatah" as a single manuscript, but the other treatise regarding the translation and interpretation of hadiths has still remain unknown. This paper analyzes the formation and historical development of Persian mystical interpretations of the Quran and sayings of the Prophet's mystical interpretation and describes one of the oldest examples that we have discussed.