The Unity of Religion and Politics from the Viewpoint of Ruza al-Aqul (The Grand Marzban-Nameh of the Sassanid Era)

Marzban-nameh is one of the most imperative works written by Marzban bin Rostam bin Shahriar during the Sultanate of Rum dynasty. This valuable literary work which is considered as one of the most magnificent literary works of Persian and Tabari languages is translated and edited by Mohammad bin Ghazi Malatavi and has been titled as "Ruza-al Aqul”. The concept of the book contains stories told by animals bearing ethical and didactic morals which are narrated in a specific technical and literary manner. The heroes of these stories are often animals, plants, and creatures that play the symbolic role of the characters in the story; moreover, at times, humans are also applied as symbols of the actual personalities of the stories.  One of the concepts mentioned in this book is the unification of religion and politics which embodies the ancient theme of divine monarch theory. This library-based research with a descriptive-analytic approach explores the descriptive themes of monarchy with four approaches: religion and monarchy, Far-e-Izadi (divine divinity) and Zel-e-Elahi (divine reverence), dominion awe and wisdom in the stories of Ruza-al Aqul. Finally, the results of this study indicate that Malatavi explicitly refers to the connection between religion and monarchy in the Ruza-al Aqul; however, in the overall analysis, this aspect of the divine theory of monarchy is seen with the least frequency. Therefore, from his point of view, the sultan's policy, before it bears a strong connection with religion, must have the characteristics Far-e-Izadi (divine divinity) and Zel-e-Elahi (divine reverence), dominion awe and wisdom which will sustain the structure and create popularity among all.