نشریه مطالعات عرفانی
پیاپی 21 (بهار و تابستان 1394)

Intertextuality is the overt or covert appearance of a contemporary or earlier text in another, and texts with similar themes can more often impact each other intertextually. From this perspective, the intertextual impact of ‘Attār’s Asrār Nāmeh, as the background text, on Shabestari's Golshan Rāz, as the foreground text, was studied. It is argued that this intertextual impact begins with the title and poetic rhythm of the foreground text and continues through tacit/covert and overt semantic and literary images in it. Shabestari occasionally expands‘attār’s concepts to enhance the didactic overtones of his own work, and sometimes tacitly exploits and borrows concepts, allusions and poetic imageries of the Sheikh of Neyshabur to afford a mystic text with a new diction. Though the original aim of this research was to expose samples of the intertextuality of Asrār Nāmeh in Golshan Rāz, it also concluded that ‘Attār’s and Shabestari's similar cultural and thought milieu has also resulted in the similarity of the texts and contents of their works owing to the fact that they had both been brought up and educated in the context of the grand sources of Islamic mysticism including Hadith and Erfān, and this partly explains the intertextuality observed between the two works. Since Shabestari had also studied the works of Ibn ‘Arabi, traces of Ibn ‘Arabi's line of thought are also observed in Golshan Rāz which the researcher has broached in this paper.

Self-training and purification is a preliminary step for the exaltation of the soul and human salvation. Self scourges and moral knaveries are considered as the most important obstacles to mystical paths. The Desert Fathers consider fighting against the self scourges as a necessary prelude to the beginning of spiritual transition and covering mystical stages. Muslim mystics too, highly emphasize the purification of self and avoiding moral knaveries. This article is to study the scourges of self from the viewpoint of the Desert fathers and Muslim mystics in the early centuries of their teaching formation. The procedure of the study is comparative and descriptive –analytic. Identifying the self medically and psychoanalytically, the Desert fathers and Muslim mystics have recognized and enumerated scourges whose methods of confrontation are, to a large extent, similar. Both schools have advised controlling gluttony and gormandism, starvation and hunger, avoiding voluptuousness and worldliness, chastity, piety and asceticism, avoiding garrulity and voracity, silence, controlling wrath, jealousy and ambitiousness, humility and reverence.

As a matter of fact, saint and sainthood are among the most pivotal issues in the Islamic mysticism that have been widely discussed by many mystics. Undoubtedly, one of the greatest Muslim mystics was Shams al-din Muhammad Tabrizi who lived in the 7th century AH. Substantially affecting Rūmi’s attitudes, Shams founded a new school of mysticism. In his only literary work known as “Articles”, he has stated unchallenged and interesting opinions about various aspects of mysticism. The book is a disorganized collection of quotations from Shams. Due to lack of organization, it is so hard and time-taking to find a specific subject among so many sporadically included in the book. In this study, Sham Tabrizi’s approach and opinions about sainthood are explained, classified, and compared to the corresponding ideas of other mystics prior and contemporary to him. Also, the rate and influence of his ideas as reflected in Rūmi’s Mathnawi is investigated. Shams has put forth ideas of interest and novelty about sainthood unprecedented even in Rūmi’s works. This along with other issues such as saints’ characteristics, their covertness, and the way of recognizing them is dealt with in details in this paper.

In spite of their eminent and expected conformity in attitudes and their obvious influence on each other, Shams Tabrizi and Jalal al-Din Rūmi are found to have some differences of opinions on several issues. These disagreements appear to be either overt or covert. Yet, the covert disagreements are assumed to be discoverable. Employing comparative method, the current study sought to extract some of the aforementioned disagreements from the authors’ works and words. Then, the main instances are examined to get more recognition of these outstanding characters of mystical romance area. In an attempt to be more systematic, the article presents three classifications which cooperates the reader to get more knowledge on poets’ disagreements on various aspects. The obtained results indicate that Shams and Rūmi are somehow different when considering their (1) thoughts (three cases), (2) exegeses of verses of Quran and narratives (five cases), and (3) judgements about prophets and mystics (three prophets and seven mystics). Hence, the scholars of this field are proposed to consider these instances and other similar examples when investigating Shams andRūmi’s lives and thoughts.

Despite the grandeur of Ibn ‘Arabi’s personality, a few researches have been done about his methodology. This makes such research important and necessary. So the article has targeted discussing the subject in the realm of methodology of understanding the facts and methodology of expressing ideas, and the first, by referring to the most important texts and works of Ibn ‘Arabi And using the rational analysis and interpretation methods, argues about “How has been Ibn ‘Arabi obtained the facts”, And then about her expression method. The article, on the one hand, shows that Ibn ‘Arabi considers rational, quote, using the five senses and inspire methods, the cognitive tools for understanding the facts, but He honors revelation, more than all methods. On the other hand it shows that Ibn ‘Arabi was influenced by his contemporary and before thought, and he also used observational descriptive methods, historical methods, theological, religious explanations and lexical ways, Metaphor, mystery, interpretation and… to express his ideas.

Mowlanā Jalāl al-Din muhammad Rūmi(604- 672 h) is one of the iranian poets and Sufis. For those who don’t know Mowlavi well understanding the concepts in his gazals is a demanding task. The existence of mystical expressions, his broad knowledge of various Islamic sciences, and cultural and literal traditions can be regarded as causes of this. In spite of the growing trend of researching on mowlana in the recent decades and the valuable attempts made by these researchers, there are still lots of points calling for reflection in the interpretation of some Gazals of this knowledgable poet and there are untapped (or unmapped) areas in this regard. Investigating the kinds of signs in shams’s “Gazals” is one of those underresearched areas. The present study named “Semiotics of a Gazal by Jalāl al-Din Rūmi” tries to explore the literal and mystical signs and illustrate the relationships between the signifiers and the signifieds in one of mowlana’s gazals that begins with the following line: You! The sudden resurrection and the endless mercy You! The fire in the woods of thought The present study is of descriptive – analytical type. The data has been collected and Investigated by the content analysis procedure, library method and the studying of documents based on the principles of semiotics. The existence of terms like “fire, life, doorkeeper, silent, sun, mersy, colour, prison, copbearer, intoxication, seeker, wisdom, knowledge, hate, draunk and key” as mystical signs and internal rhyme, metonymy, hyperbole, collocation chains, the dominance of interpretive dimension, artistic use of meter, and the richness of peripheral melody as parts of literal signs in this gazal are among the finding of this study.

The hypothesis of the present research is that in Iranian mysticism, there is an outlook that according to Sohravardi’s opinion is called the philosophy of the spiritual insight or the Hekmat khosravāni (Philosophy of Kings) and everybody who has been in line with this philosophy is the follower of Hermes. The present research tries to show that the Hermesian characteristics are the main cause of the appearance of a structure in the Iranian mysticism that is based on common Hermesian identities. The common characteristics in the present structure are as follows: Hermesians are alchemists, doctors, grocers, and those who know about drug and wine. The origin of their work is based on metamorohosis. Their contemplation has an astrologic structure and they know magic. They ascend and they write about their ascensions. They believe in light philosophy. Their way of writing is symbolic, as represented in Manteq-al-Tayr or the language of birds. The language of birds is their secret language. They are influential in variation of the symbolic meanings. They believe in reincarnation and, as Hermes and Hallāj reincarnate. They defend Satan. They are Showbiz (patriots). They have dual viewpoints toward Hajj. They believe in unity. There is an interaction among the Hermesian components. Hermesian component interrelation –that we call it Hermesian structurehas caused a special mechanism in Iranian mysticism that we call it Hermesian structure.

Many researchers have researched the source of Islamic Sufism from a certain intellectual disposition. The prevailing view of these research works, is based on arbolic thinking and having centralized roots. According to the theory of allegorical Metamorphosis, each of the topics discussed in Islamic Sufism, can have separate roots. The present paper aims to show that Iranian Culture is one of the sources of Islamic Sufism, and formation of Mystical Supervision Theory in Iran can be a result of an evolution in Iranian beliefs about Divine Glory. In this paper, the environmental and intellectual backgrounds affecting on the compilation of the discussion of Mystical Supervision by Hakim Termazi, will be discussed. And also by showing the pathway of Mystical Supervision Theory till the era of Sohrevardi and its effect on the works of great Mystics and Intellectuals, the theory of Sohrevardi and its relevance to the theory of Mystical Supervision will be discussed. Moreover the combination of these ideas – that despite the evolution in elements, has preserved its semantic nature- is examined. The present research, shows that the link between Khosravāni wisdom and Iranian Mysticism and the gradual evolution in the theory of Mystical Supervision, how prepared the intellectual and theoretical backgrounds for what later called the Safavi Supervision. The primary backgrounds of this evolution, was present in the Iranian Culture and a great thinker like Sohrevardi gave it a new life.Manyresearchershaveresearchedthesource of Islamic Sufism from a certain intellectual disposition. The prevailing view of these research works, is based on arbolic thinking and having centralized roots. According to the theory of allegorical Metamorphosis, each of the topics discussed in Islamic Sufism, can have separate roots. The present paper aims to show that Iranian Culture is one of the sources of Islamic Sufism, and formation of Mystical Supervision Theory in Iran can be a result of an evolution in Iranian beliefs about Divine Glory. In this paper, the environmental and intellectual backgrounds affecting on the compilation of the discussion of Mystical Supervision by Hakim Termazi, will be discussed. And also by showing the pathway of Mystical Supervision Theory till the era of Sohrevardi and its effect on the works of great Mystics and Intellectuals, the theory of Sohrevardi and its relevance to the theory of Mystical Supervision will be discussed. Moreover the combination of these ideas – that despite the evolution in elements, has preserved its semantic nature- is examined. The present research, shows that the link between Khosravāni wisdom and Iranian Mysticism and the gradual evolution in the theory of Mystical Supervision, how prepared the intellectual and theoretical backgrounds for what later called the Safavi Supervision. The primary backgrounds of this evolution, was present in the Iranian Culture and a great thinker like Sohrevardi gave it a new life.