The Analysis of Nezami's Imagination Journey in Creating the Myth of Bahram Goor (Based on Gilbert Durant's Theory)

  Myths have been defined differently from researchers' perspectives and there are various criteria for defining and discrimination of myths. In this article we define myth based on Gilbert Durant's definition, a contemporary theorist. In Gilbert Durant's view, myth is a combination of signs, arc types and stimulators. He also believes that there is a relationship between imagination and myth. Mythologists on the one hand believe that mankind seeks eternity, and on the other hand, they believe that the time passage is the greatest fears of human beings. Myth has an instrumental role in removing this time passage and reaching eternity. One can consider eternity as a panacea against time and death. Gilbert Durant believes that imagination force can create literary works against death.
Since Nezami is one of the most prominent imaginative poets of Persian literature and Bahram Goor is one of the mythological characters in Persian literature, this paper is focused on analyzing the story of Bahram Goor by using Gilbert Durant’s imagination structures and components of mythology. Nezami is one of the dreamiest poets of all times. The story of Bahram Goor is full of signs. In this paper, based on Gilbert Durant's theory and his categorization of fear of time, we review how Nezami has created fascinating and remarkable illustrations of Bahram by depicting him as an idealistic, saint and mythical personality which makes him immortal.

The basis of this research is on the structures of imagination and review of the components of myth from Gilbert Durant’s viewpoint. Gilbert Durant believes in a relationship between imagination and myth. This research attempts to answer this question: Can we analyze Bahram Goor’s story using imagination framework and mythology components of Gilbert Durand?

Gilbert Durant believes that through imagination, human beings will find out that their lives are limited by time and that they are not immortal. He has has been a bitter truth for early humans, because time passage includes pain and suffering and ultimately death. This is where the role of mythology becomes important. He believes in mythology as a medicine for mortality and death. Durand’s view towards myth is a particular one and has a different function. According to him myths are the most significant manifestations of imagination, and imagination is also composed of symbolic imagery.
Gilbert Durant categorizes all the human imaginations in two very large clusters: daytime imagination cluster and nighttime imagination cluster. Gilbert Durant puts some of the images in the group of daytime imagination cluster and puts some other images in group of nighttime imagination cluster. His approach regarding the images is inspired by functions of understanding reactions. He develops a set of singes that have archetypal contents. He also emphasizes on image similarities of the daytime imagination cluster and compares the two groups of images with each other. The first group of images includes the ones that show a great fear of time passage. The second group of images includes the ones that show the hope of victory and controlling the anxiety of time passage and seeking the limitations of human life.
The images that show the fear of aging due to approaching the time of death are categorized in three signs: beast signs, darkness signs , and falling signs. Mankind chooses three reactions to overcome this fear in three forms of “separating signs”, brightness signs and elevating signs. According to Gilbert Durant, in daytime imagination cluster, the positive and negative forces do not interact with each other. Also in the nighttime imaginations cluster all the frightening images are repeated, although the fear is alleviated and the human being becomes fearless.

In this article, it is determined, according to Gilbert Durant, that in the first chapter of Masnavi Bahram Goor, the imagination structure of the poet is more inclined to daytime imagination cluster; the champion fights with different shapes of the time passage challenge and attempts to overcome them. In poets’ imaginations, the only way to win is in a battle. He believes that in this confrontation Bahram can win using a surprise attack and sharp weapons. Bahram’s journey to domes, which starts from black dome and ends with white dome is an elevating journey. In the second half of story, since the imagination of the poem is in the nighttime imagination cluster frame work, Bahram wins without any confrontations. In this chapter we see bond, unity, and peace. The champion of the story needs a shelter for reaching peace. Bahram protects himself from the claw of the death by going to solitude. Each of the stations and domes are signs of these places for solitude. This time Bahram unifies with the world forces by going to the cave. In Nezami’s imagination, Bahram has to go into a cave and the story has to be finalized in such a mysterious way. The idealistic character requires a mysterious finale. Here we come up with the importance of imagination and why the poem starts to imagine. The poet’s champion is the king of Iran and Nezami is a patriot within the chaos in the era he lived. Going back to Sassanid empire and Iran’s glorious times in his stories alleviates his pains for tolerating the chaotic Iran of his time. In the poet’s imaginations, Bahram is a king with wisdom and bravery that was in contrast with the kings of Nezami’s era. A powerful king that can organize the contrary, Bahram is a mythical and idealistic character for the poet. Therefore the end of such character’s life should be mysterious. The champion of his story neither falls into a swamp nor in a well, and not even dies in his bed. Nezami determines the faith of Bahram by his own choice, going into the cave and being eternal; in this way, he protects Iran’s king from death. Accordingly, Nezami has created his mythical champion to be eternal by dehumanizing Bahram