A critical look at Sofia's legacy in Barreh-ye Gomshodeh-ye ra'i (Ra'i's Lost Lamb) by Houshang Golshiri

Mystical culture and tradition in Persian literature has a long background in the history and culture of Iran-land. The propositions of this mystical tradition can be found in ancient Persian literature and in the doctrines of Mehr, Zorvan and Mazdayasna, then in classical Persian mystical works and then in contemporary Persian fiction. Influenced by the postmodern social atmosphere, contemporary fiction has given a new structure to mystical culture and changed the classical structures and sometimes criticized it. He main issue is how this postmodern atmosphere was able to break the classical structures of mysticism and form new views? Also, what perspective has replaced it? In this research, the components related to mystical culture in one of the prominent works of Houshang Golshiri, titled Barreh-ye Gomshodeh-ye ra'i (Ra'i's Lost Lamb), have been analyzed. The aim of the research is to extract and explain the elements related to the mystical culture to identify the contemporaries' view of the mystical culture. This review shows that the novel author's critical view of mystical categories is explained in the form of introducing two characters "Ra'i" and "Sheikh Badroddin" and through that, how contemporary man encounters the Sufi heritage is introduced and analyzed. Criticism of some views based on habit in mystical and religious categories, criticism of propositions, terms and mystical concepts in relation to Sufis claiming to be related to those in power, philosophical and social aspect of some concepts related to mystical heritage and the contrast between devotional asceticism and romantic mysticism and the presentation of a new model of social mysticism is one of the topics investigated in this research and through it, the author's critical view is institutionalized.analyzed.