نشریه نثر پژوهی ادب فارسی
سال بیست و ششم شماره 53 (بهار و تابستان 1402)

Zaidari’s prose writing is widely regarded as an artistic and rhythmic masterpiece, with his work “Nafthat-al-Masdur” standing out as a tour de force. Despite the scientific and novel explanation provided by Dr. Amir Hassan Yazdgerdi, there remain several issues and ambiguities within this text.
Shihab al-Din Muhammad Khurandizi Zaidari al-Nasawi or Muhammad bin Ahmad bin Ali bin Muhammad Monshi (died: 647?), whose family resided in the Khurandz Fortress near the city of Zaidar in the province of Nisa (Nasavi, 1965: Introduction), wrote the book Nafthat-al-Masdur four years after the death of Jalal al-Din Khwarazm-Shah (murdered: 628 AH) while describing his own one-year sufferings, and the reign of Jalal al-Din Mangburni (ruling: 617-628AH)
Nafthat-al-Masdur is considered a reliable historical and literary work, particularly concerning the events and situations of the Anushtegin dynasty, their bravery, cowardice of the king, the corruption and betrayal among courtiers, Minkubirni’s disease, and the extinction of the Anushtegin dynasty. Furthermore, it serves as one of the crucial historical sources regarding the Mongol invasions, atrocities, and plundering of Iran.
The book Nafthat-al-Masdur is written in the format of a letter addressed to a prominent figure from Khorasan named Saʿd al-Dīn, who was apparently a relative of Shihab al-Din Muhammad Khurandizi Zaidari (Nisavi, 2020: introduction, 79). Shihab al-Din writes in clerical prose style, which entails the use of verses from the Quran, Hadith, common proverbs, as well as Arabic and Persian poetry to make his prose more artificial and decorated for the reader (Sajjadi, 2016: 532). At times, he employs exaggeration, metaphor, irony, allusion, rhyme, contrast, derivation, and simile to such an extent that it can confuse the interested and novice reader. This study strives to clarify some of the ambiguities within the book.
Despite the efforts made in providing explanations to resolve ambiguities in the text of Nafthat-al-Masdur, certain readers would encounter difficulties and ambiguities that require further clarification. In order to attain a more precise understanding and explanation of Nafthat-al-Masdur, it is imperative that specific points be clarified and expounded upon. Furthermore, technical language and reference pronouns have been identified as areas of confusion for some readers. Correcting the movement of words and punctuation marks, as well as reference pronouns, may also prove necessary in certain instances. The aim of this undertaking was to elucidate the salient points and challenges inherent in Nafthat-al-Masdur to the best of our abilities.


The research methodology entailed providing answers to key questions that had emerged over several courses in which Nafthat-al-Masdur was taught to esteemed doctoral candidates. Furthermore, responses were furnished to other ambiguous aspects deemed necessary. Additionally, the author's intended objectives were cross-examined with three handwritten versions, most notably the version recognized as “Sii”, which is considered the most accurate and superior rendition (Khazanedarloo and Sultani, 2016: 26).
 


This study aims to elucidate, and enhance comprehension of the vocabulary and phrases featured in Nafthat-al-Masdur by presenting the contents of the book according to the late Dr. Yazdgerdi's explanation in a systematic manner. In contrast to the original text, which included the opinions of other scholars, this summary solely focuses on the author’s viewpoint and interpretation.
Page 1, Line 6: “When the Lord of the Days bears the burden of events entwined, he wields the sword of severity in full force.”
The salient point of significance here pertains to the aspect of burden, rather than the placement of “small loads on larger burdens”. In the greater Khorasan region, the term “sarbari” holds two distinct meanings:Firstly, it denotes a lightweight or minor object that is placed on or adjacent to a larger load after some time has elapsed from the movement of the pack animal.
Secondly, it refers to a person or object that interferes or becomes involved in a situation or environment without any necessity. With regards to the feminine phrase under consideration, the latter meaning is intended. The sword, in this context, serves as a lightweight weapon that instead becomes an encumbrance or vexation, causing pain and suffering to others—a burden that materializes during a caravan of unfortunate events, namely, the advent of the Mongols.
Page 3, Line 7: “From a pen that when it does not sit on black, performs white, and when sitting on white, performs black...”
The meaning of “sitting on black” is to insert the nib of the pen into the black inkwell. Considering that a pen filled with black ink creates valuable and useful books and writings, we take “whitework” to mean the good work of the pen and the beneficial effect it produces. The last meaning that the late Ali-Akbar Dehkhoda wrote about “white-work” is true here.
Page 9, Line 14: “And I had heard the news of the return of my desired army from the Romans.”
What was discussed in this article is about “Rome” so that it can be definitively stated for the audience, with reference to historical sources, what is meant by “the army that has returned from the Roman side”.
Page 14, Line 8: “He attained a kind of madness, like that of a shoemaker’s device, in distress.”
With reference to the tools used by traditional shoemakers, “a line like a shoemaker’s device” refers to the non-standard hooks that shoemakers use with a hammer to shape the leather into a shoe. The bad handwringing of Zaidari’s rival is compared to this.
Page 42, Line 8: “You couldn’t even pass through the ring with all your might, and breathing with all your delicacy...” (Nasvi, 2020: 42).
In this phrase, the "ring" refers to the ring of Mongol troops around the tent and court of Anushteginids. The Mongol army had surrounded Jalal al-Din's camp in such a tight circle that even breathing was impossible.
Page 85, Line 3: “Basemak, Ahmad Urmawi..”
“Basemak” or according to Minovi’s the handwritten copy "Bashmik" (Nasvi, 1926: 70), is a non-Persian word. Here, it is used as an insult meaning “dishonorable, dishonored, and weak person.”
Page 104, Lines 8-9: “What is the event of Urmia? ...”
This refers to the attack by Jamāl al-Dīn al-Iraqi's assignees, who beat and stripped Zaidari and his servant in the midst of snow and cold, leaving them to die (Zaidari, 2020: 86). Using contemporary texts, Zaidari provided insights in explaining the meaning of this event.
 


Despite the extensive commentary of the late Yazdgerdi on Nafthat-al-Masdur and the efforts of other scholars to explain ambiguities in the book, due to the intricate nature of the book, some readers still have difficulties in understanding certain parts. In this regard, an attempt was made toelucidate, as much as possible,  some of ambiguous points of the book. In brief, some of the matters which have been discussed are enumerated as follows:1- “Sarbari”. Although this word has been explained, in Greater Khorasan it has a broader meaning that is better suited to the context.
2- The phrase “blackening the pen” seems to imply that coating the tip or nib of the pen in either silver or black color is more appropriate for the context than other explanations. Likewise, the phrase “whitening the pen” means doing good and virtuous deeds with the pen which results in the production of valuable books and writings.

Regarding the phrase “return of the army from Rome” and based on historical books of the same period such as Tarikh-i Jahangushay and Zaidari’s other book, the meaning of the phrase “I had heard news of the return of an army from Rome” was convincingly explained with reference to the sources, leaving no doubt about this matter.
The simile “a line like a shoemaker’s device” was explained by examining the tools and methods of shoemaking in the past, and the image and meaning of the phrase were elaborated.
The word “to” at the beginning of the first line and the word “jewel box” in the next line were identified, and then the meaning was determined based on the meanings of “to” “in” and “inside”.

“The green and emerald plant are the same color, but they differ in appearance due to their jewel boxes”

The meaning of the first line on page 33 was explained.
The explanation was given regarding whether “bashmak” or “bashmik” is an adjective or a noun.
The meaning of the incident of “Urmia” on page 104 of the book was explained, and some other ambiguities were also resolved.

Kalīla wa-Dimna (Kelileh o Demneh) is a book that has been translated by Iranians in different times and there have been interpolation in it. One of these interpolations is the addition of “the Book of Borzouyeh the Physician”, which has been the place of debate and disagreement among researchers ever since. It was written by Bozorgmehr and added to the mentioned book; however, since there is no trace of the Pahlavi text written by Bozorgmehr, it is not possible to give a definite opinion about what was added to it. The only important point is that the Pahlavi text "is considered the main source of the later translations of Kalīla wa-Dimna" (Dublova, 2012: 16); therefore, the two Arabic translations of Ibn Muqaffa and the old Syriac translation from the Pahlavi text have been provided. Despite this, Borzouyeh chapter exists only in the Arabic translation and is not seen in the Syriac text (Mahjoub, 2015: 48). The issue of "Manichaeism" is prominent in connection with the presence and absence of the chapter on Borzouyeh in the Syriac and Arabic translation, in such a way that its existence in the Arabic translation caused a series of debates about the authenticity of this chapter and attributing it to Ibn Muqaffa and promoting Manichaean beliefs; its absence, however, in the Syriac translation by a person who wrote against the Manicheans, led the minds to the anti- Manichaean tendencies of that translator and discursive interventions.


This research follows a descriptive-analytical method, and in the analysis, an effort is made to reveal the religious tendencies of the author of the Book of Borzouyeh the Physician by comparing it and the Manichaean texts. Since the Book's skepticism in the discussion of religious skepticism has similarities with other issues from the Sassanid and the Islamic period, the present study will, firstly, examine the issue of religious skepticism in it and compare it with propositions from other texts; the study tries to find a convincing answer to this question: which Manichean theme is included in the piece related to religious doubt about the physician's profession?
Secondly, by analyzing and examining the above-mentioned Book comprehensively, the study will answer the question: which Manichaean teachings does the Book of Borzouyeh contain?
 


In order to distinguish the Manichaean doctrines about Borzouyeh, three major issues have been taken into account, i.e. religious skepticism, asceticism and parables. What will be obtained from the examination and analysis of the Manichaean themes under the mentioned trilogy include: 1- the issues of selection of the outcomes of religions, in the discussion of religious skepticism, i.e., the interpretation of "the elite of all religions" in the Book of Borzouyeh, in connection with the selectiveness of Manichaeism and Mani's use of works and beliefs of all religions in developing his religion. It seems that Mani, in the light of an elitist and compromising point of view, based his teachings on what is approved by various ethnic groups from the West to the East (Klimkait, 2014: 269). This compromising feature of Mani allows him to easily use the sign systems related to different beliefs and cultures in order to spread his ideas widely. Mani himself, while enumerating the reasons for the superiority of his religion over past religions, acknowledges this selectiveness and taking advantage of the heritage of others and says: wispānnibēgānwihīhudāzendīgpēšēnagāndēnān ka ōēndēnī man….(Boyce, 1975: 30). (All the writings, philosophy and wisdom of the ancients’ religions, to this religion of mine...[was added...]).
        Speaking of Mani's selectivity, it should be said that he considered himself to be the interpreter of the thoughts of Christ; Mani considered himself not only Jesus, but also a living Christian and spoke of his living books and his eternal religion. Also, Mani's influence on the epic-mythical narratives and traditions of Iran is evident in the book of Ghulan Maniwi.
As to the contribution of Babylonian beliefs, "the Babylonian epic of Gilgamesh" was one of the main sources from which Manichean beliefs began and expanded" (Daly, 1400, 97). The influence of Indian and Buddhist beliefs should also be considered in the Manicheans' special attention to allegoric and narrative literature of India. Therefore, the use of the phrase "Elite of all religions" in the topic of Borzouyeh and its selection is in line with the intellectual system of the Manicheans and the subject of selectiveness on their part.
Regarding the ascetic teachings of the Book of Borzouyeh with Manichaeism, one should also mention issues like the demonic creation of the human body, the desire to be freed from the prison of the body, the belief that life is painful, abandoning cohabitation with women, abandoning witchcraft, and avoiding harming humans and animals. In the explanation of these references, as to the pessimistic attitude of the Manicheans about the human body, it can be said that the impure body and its corrupt mixture, which is highlighted in the Book of Borzouyeh, are connected with the body of the human demon and the pure soul. About the belief in the sufferings of the world and the life accompanied by torments, that can be seen among the teachings of Manichaeism, the Book of Borzouyeh also considers the world to be a "plague" full of "torment" in which a person, incessantly, suffers from pain and suffering from the moment of his birth to the time of his death. Therefore, in accordance with the pessimistic attitude of the Manicheans to the world, the statements like "the world is a well full of calamity and fear", "friendship with the world is one of the evils", "divorce of the world is liberation", provide a proper way to look pessimistically at the world and to avoid it.
Avoiding lust and intercourse with women is also one of the common teachings in Manichaeism and the Book of Borzouyeh. According to the narration of the Book, Borzouyeh "prevented the vagina from being inappropriate and [showed] general symptoms from the inclination of women" (Nasrullah Manshi, 1389: 51). According to Borzouyeh, witchcraft is one of the sins (ibid. 51). This order is consistent with a Manichaean teaching in "abandoning... the teaching witchcraft" (Abul Qasmi, 2017: 27). Avoiding "hurting animals and killing people" (Nasrullah Manshi, 2009: 50) is also in accordance with Manichaean ascetic teachings. According to Mani, "it is not permissible to kill any creature" (Reeves, 2011: 161).
"Borrowing from Buddhist narratives" can be considered as one of the influential platforms of Manichaeism (Skjærvø, 2006: 58). In this way, stories and parables can be found in the book of Borzouyeh which, although they "certainly have Indian roots" (Dublova, 1382: 71), they have taken on a Manichean flavor and were used to expand or consolidate their beliefs; therefore, the warning of the Book Borzouyeh about paying attention to the pleasures of the senses as the main obstacle to happiness is in accordance with Manichean world-aversion teachings. In addition, the connection of Manichaean allegorical literature with the Book of Borzouyeh can be seen in the allegorical use of "agriculture", "straw" and "seed". Therefore, relying on the textual evidences and measuring them with Manichaean teachings, we see themes that are in connection and alignment with Manichaean beliefs throughout the Book of Borzouyeh.
 


In “the Book of Borzouyeh the Physician”, we find elements that refer to Manichaean teachings. The discussion of "religious skepticism" has been the most important factor of disagreement among researchers. From the point of view of this research, the only determining factor in the discussion of skepticism is relying on its privative form. Relying on the privative aspect, what separates the statement of religious doubt about Borzouyeh, as a special element of manifestation from other similar statements, is the phrase "elite of all religions" which is in line with the selective and elitist view of manifests, in such a way that Mani himself considers this selectivity as one of the reasons for the superiority of his religion over others.
Also, asceticism is one of the most frequent semantic components throughout the Book. Considering the integrated thought of the Manicheans, ascetic themes, apart from their Indian, Gnostic and Christian sources, play a role in serving Manichaean thoughts. The demonic nature of man, abandoning the lust and desire of women, abandoning witchcraft, believing in the suffering of the world, death and wishing to be freed from the prison of the body, abandoning cruelty to men and animals are among the ascetic teachings in the Book of Borzouyeh.
Manichean allegory of is also an important feature in deriving Manichaean themes from Borzouyeh. Not paying attention to sensual pleasures and abandoning them is the most central Manichaean theme in the allegories of Book of Borzouyeh.
With the identification of Manichean characteristics of the Book of Borzouyeh, it is not only revealed that this Book is attributed to Ibn Muqaffa, but, beyond that, it also leads one to the Manichaean tendencies of Borzouyeh and its probable author, Bozorgmehr Vizier Anoushirvan.

A very important educational text that has not been discussed much is the book "Anis al-Naas". This work is authored by a person named "Shoja" in the field of ethics and household management, and is referred to as "Anis al-Naas" for short. “Anis al-Naas” was published by Iraj Afshar in 1977 AD with a short introduction. There is not much information about the author of the book and only a little information can be obtained by reference to the introduction of the book. It seems that he is from Shiraz and his grandfather was also the cousin of Shah Sheikh Abu Ishaq. Shoja wrote this book in 830 AH and presented it to Sultan Ibrahim Timuri. Examining the language and content of this text shows that “Anis-al-Naas” was greatly influenced by the pedagogical and educational texts before him. From among those texts, it has many similarities with Qaboosnameh. However, a thorough analysis of the words and sentences used in this book confirms that the author of this work had the textbook “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī” in mind, and in addition to adapting the meaning and content, it has many verbal and linguistic borrowings to the extent that some sentences are taken directly from the “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī”. According to what has been said, the present study aims to answer the question whether “Anis al-Naas”, as an important educational text in the 9th century of Hijri, was influenced by the book “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī. In other words, what is the extent of the influence of “Anis-al-Naas” from the “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī” in the areas of structure, language and content?

The present study was conducted using a descriptive analytical method and was based on the library documents. Accordingly, the two books of “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī” and “Anis al-Naas” have been examined in terms of content and wording, and the similarities between the two have been investigated, and their content has been analyzed using other books. In the end, the similarities of these two texts and the methods of “Anis al-Naas” being influenced have been elaborated upon.

In the text of Anis al-Naas, we are faced with two types of borrowings and influences: a) verbal-content influence b) content influence. In "verbal-content influence", since Shoja's adaptations of the “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī” have led to a total similarity of the sentences, expressions, and words of the two texts, they have necessarily become similar in terms of content; that is, Shoja has borrowed both the meaning as well as the content. In this way, Shoja has taken the words of Khaje Nasir and included them in his book so that there is no doubt that he had “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī” in mind and these similarities are not accidental. In "content influence", the adaptations of the author of “Anis al-Naas” are purely content related, and the author has only adapted the opinions and ideas of the author of the original text, but has added his own words and interpretations to it. A look at the content list of the two books shows that at least 8 of the titles of Anis-al-Naas are similar to those of “Akhlāq-i Nāsirī”. The two tables below show the influence of “Anis-al-Naas” in both ways:Table 1: Verbal-content influences

Educational factor
Common concepts between Anis-al-Naas and Naseri ethics
The criteria for choosing a wife
for those who want to marry should be lust and sexual pleasure - paying attention to the piousness and obedience of a woman - not setting the criteria for beauty- not setting the criteria for wealth
The manners of dealing with wife
The man should keep his awe so that his wife follows him - honoring his wife through things that are the basis of affection and love
Avoiding consultation and sharing secrets with women
To avoid consulting with women in important matters of the home (not to share the secrets and the amount of capital and property due to the lack of reasoning skills)

The rights of children
to choose a decent name and entrust the child to a suitable nanny; effort in their education and training; paying attention to the number and types of children's interests; simple life education (depreciation of luxurious clothes and food) - prohibition of alcohol and intoxicants

The rights of parents
Among the rights of the spiritual father and the bearing mother are respecting the rights of parents by loving them, sacrificing their property, and showing kindness. The harassment of parents involve three things: 1- Harming them with lack of love in words and deeds 2- Covert and overt ruthlessness 3- Disrespecting their advice and instructions.
The necessity of paying attention to the encouragement and punishment of the child's behavior
Appreciate the child's good deeds and condemn his (her) bad deeds

The manners of speaking
Not to divulge anything he is aware of; Not to respond to a question addressed to others; Not to be pretentious in responding among the public

Etiquettes of eating
Not to eat with more than three fingers; Not to open the mouth wide or take large mouthfuls; Be moderate in taking a bite; Not to lick fingers; Not to care too much about eating food
The manners of drinking wine
Drink with the best and most honorable people according to one's own sex near those who are known by their word of mouth; One should read eloquent and melodious poems and anecdotes and should not be bad tempered.
Manners of buying slaves
The servant is to be seen free and must be supported and put ahead of his service. The servant is like body parts to the master. They are all made by God and should be equally respected.
Table 2: Content influences

Educational factor
Common concepts between Anis-al-Naas and Naseri ethics
The necessity of marriage and family formation
Providing the ground for marriage and family formation for the child is necessary and obligatory. For as long as it is possible to marry a maiden, one should avoid marrying a widow.
Forbidding women from playing music and masculine anecdotes
Forbidding women from socializing with men or listening to musical instruments, beautiful songs, and romantic stories so that they don't fall in love.
The manners of making a friend
One should not find fault with a friend. In case one is to talk about the faults of a friend, one should mention that in the form of an anecdote or say it openly but in private.
The manners of war
The king must not enter a war whimsically. The captives must be respected and one should not order killing them hastily.
The nature, necessity and types of love
Love is necessary for human life. There are two types of love: natural and voluntary. There are many types of voluntary love.

Analyzing the text of “Anis al-Naas” demonstrates that the author has been significantly influenced by the book "Akhlāq-i Nāsirī" written by Khaja Nasir Al-Din Tusi. This influence is sometimes in the form of verbal and propositional borrowing meaning in a way that that the sentences and expressions of Khaje Nasir are quoted exactly or with a slight modification; these have been examined under the heading of "verbal-content influences". Sometimes, however, the educational and pedagogical stuff in Akhlāq-i Nāsirī has been adapted via changing the interpretations, phrases, and sentences, which are analyzed under the title of "content influence". The statistical analysis of the common themes of the two works shows that Shoja has adapted from the Akhlāq-i Nāsirī in 15 cases. In a general view, among the three parts of the Akhlāq-i Nāsirī, Shoja has been basically influenced by the second part entitled household management. Within this process of adaptation, Shoja, generally, has a desire to describe and express in details; therefore in common topics, Anis al-Naas is more detailed and extensive than Akhlāq-i Nāsirī. On the other hand, due to the 200-year distance, and the Arabic text of Akhlāq-i Nāsirī, in cases where Shoja has intended to quote the same sentences as Khaje, he has made use of simpler words and interpretations in most cases.

As a verb, the term “Correspondence” means “to look at each other” (in Persian culture, under the word, “تناظر”, “Tanaazor”), “to confront” (in the dictionary under the word “Movajeheh”, “مواجهه”), and to match; as a noun it means similarity. In mystical terms, “correspondence of cosmoses” is the similarity and/or confrontation of the two universes, i.e. the microcosm, and the macrocosm, despite their contemporaneity. One of the clear examples of this is the correspondence of the dimensions of human existence with other universes. In the mystical discussion of “correspondence”, the basis of creation is the correspondence of the cosmoses; the emergence of various aspects of creation is visible in the two worlds ‒ macrocosm and microcosm ‒ and shows the interconnectedness of the parts and elements of these two worlds. Mystics believe that whatever exists in the visible world and the macrocosm, has its example existing in the microcosm. In his works, Sheikh Ala-o-Dowleh  Semnani, one of the mystics of the 7th and 8th centuries AH, has used the principle of the correspondence of the worlds, depicting the gist of his special mystical teachings such as 'Lataif Sab’a', and the question of creation of man. The issue of dualism is present in all his topics, including the principles and branches of religion, theoretical views of mysticism, etc.

This study, through a descriptive-analytical method and based on a library study, seeks to analyze and examine the idea of the correspondence of worlds in the works of Sheikh Ala-o-Dowleh Semnani in order to find out the purpose, application, and function of the use of correspondence in his mystical teachings. In the thought of Ala-o-Dowleh Semnani, the events of the universe are related to the affairs of the soul. 

Among the preliminaries of the design and explanation of the subject of correspondence in Sheikh Semnani's thought is the explanation of the place of man, the world, and the heart in the system of existence. In one categorization, he divides the universe into two worlds, minor and major, and in another division, while expressing his mystical thoughts, he believes in four types of worlds: horizons, soul, unseen and martyrdom (Semanani, 1362: 70). According to Semnani, the existence of correspondence in the world is an obvious phenomenon that does not require any special reasoning and logic. In his intellectual system, correspondence has various functions, the first of which is the correspondence of the cosmic and personal worlds; the correspondence of these two worlds with each other and familiarity with these worlds is evident in the practical teachings of Sheikh Ala-o-Dowleh Semnani. The second function of the idea of correspondence of the Sheikh is evident in his “Treatise on Chess”, in which, by expressing detailed mystical points about chess pieces, he somehow corresponds it to the chess game of human existence. The Sheikh refers to chess pieces as having a spiritual meaning. The third function and example of correspondence in the thought and works of Ala-o-Dowleh, which is also related to the knowledge of self, ontology, and the heavens, is that he considers a spiritual matter for every cosmic matter. The fourth function of correspondence in Semnani's thought is the subject of mystical lights, which was planned by the mystics before him and somehow evolved with Ala-o-Dowleh. The fifth function of correspondence in Sheikh Semnani's works is the subject of mystical veils, and prophets. In all these cases, we see the establishment of correspondence in the mystical system of Sheikh Semnani.

The idea of the universality of man and the universality of the world is actually the expression of the idea of the “correspondence” of microcosm and macrocosm, which will cause the comprehensive recognition of man as both a microcosm and a macrocosm with its own meaning and place in the system of creation. Using a descriptive-analytical method and based on library studies, this study analyzes and examines the idea of correspondence in the works of Sheikh Ala-o-Dowleh Semnani and shows the purpose, application and function of the use of correspondence in his mystical teachings. By emphasizing the duality and connection between microcosm and macrocosm, Sheikh Ala-o-Dowleh Semnani disputes Ibn Arabi's views on the unity of existence and tries to explain the idea of the correspondence of worlds. It is necessary to understand the idea of correspondence in his thought, in order to know the place of man, the world, the universe, and also the heart as the middle links of this correspondence. All these topics are included under his main mystical thought, Lataif Sab'a. The basis for Semnani's theory of Lataif Sab’a is the principle that, on the one hand, all these Lataif (Subtleties) are the result of the effects of heavenly bodies and elements, and on the other hand, there is a correspondence between the subtleties of the Saba, heavenly bodies, elements, types of lights, types of humans and prophets. From Semnani's point of view, the function of correspondence is manifested in the knowledge of man, the world, and the truth, as well as in monastic education, human existential chess, types of subtleties, lights, and prophets.

Nasrullah Monshi's Kalila and Demneh is considered to be one of the trend-setting and influential works on Persian literature, especially Persian prose. The style of Nasrullah Monshi in the translation of this work has influenced later writers to follow and use his style in their writings (Daneshpazhooh, 2008;12). Ziya-al-Din Nakhshabi, a poet, mystic, and writer of the 8th century, is also among those who were influenced by Nasrullah Monshi. Just as the influence of Kalila and Demneh is evident on his Tootinameh, this influence can also be seen in Afsaneh Golriz.
Afsaneh Golriz is a work in verse and prose, created under the influence of Kalila and Demneh, Maghamat Hariri, and Indian literature; it is written in artificial prose style; the content is Romantic and moral; it consists of fables and parables with the structure of a story within a story, accompanied by motifs of folk literature and the description of strange creatures such as demon, fairy, and monster. The bases for Indian stories are books such as Ramayana, Mahabharata and Suka Septati, which not only have they given their content to these stories, they have also transferred their own style of storytelling to these works (Madankan & Eliyasipour, 2009;139).
The main purpose of these stories was entertainment and fun; for this reason, their appeal has been very important to readers. The events in these stories are very diverse and sometimes unreasonable and extraordinary to attract the attention of the reader and listener more (Taqavi, 1997; 57).


This article is a report of a theoretical research with a descriptive-analytical method that with a stylistic approach and using the principles of structural stylistics and relying on written and library documents and sources, has investigated and analyzed the stylistic features of Ziya-al-Din Nakhshabi's Afsaneh Golriz at the linguistic level, in terms of phonetic, lexical and syntactic features.
In this article, the linguistic features (phonetic, lexical, and syntactic) of the book have been examined with a stylistic approach. The authors seek answers to the following questions:What features does Afsaneh Golriz have at the linguistic level (phonetic, lexical and syntactic)? What results can be obtained by examining and analyzing the linguistic features of Afsaneh Golriz from the point of view of stylistics?
 


 Stylistics uses the most comprehensive methods in examining texts; it means that it starts from the smallest language structures, namely sounds, and analyzes the vocabulary, types and quality of their use, interpretations and allusions, as well as the syntax and structure of sentences, rhetoric and the application of thought and in the layered branch of the artist's ideology. Finally, the artistic goals of the speaker from the totality of the structure of the work is realized (Mohammadi afshar & Shayanmehr, 2017; 262). In this article, due to the wide scope of stylistics, an attempt has been made to examine and analyze only the stylistic features of the work at the linguistic level in terms of phonetic, lexical and syntactic features.
In Afsaneh Golriz substitution, deletion and addition have been used. Substitution has mostly been used in consonants. In this work, phonetic processes are not as abundant as the texts of previous centuries. deletion or reduction of phonemes also have been used in Afsaneh Golriz more.
Nakhshabi has used different kinds of rhyme, mostly parallel rhyme. He has used internal rhyme, parallelism and leonine verse more. The multiplicity of parallelism and leonine verse has resulted in sentences having consecutive rhyme. Many kinds of puns have also been used in this work. Phonemes, repetition, antimetabole and additions have been employed to make speech musical.
In the lexical layer, sensory or abstract words, common and proper nouns, archaism and word formation, coining, and markedness of words are evident. (Fotouhi, 2012; 251-264). Often, writers and poets use sensory words for description and mental words for narration (Foroozandeh & Banitalebi, 2015; 304). In the text of Afsaneh Golriz, the use of both objective and subjective words be can be seen.
The number of archaic Arabic words is more in Afsaneh Golriz. These types of words have been used less or not at all in Persian prose and poetry, and there is no evidence for them in Dehkhoda's Dictionary as well.
Arabic compounds have been used in the book, which are rare. There are words that are not recorded in dictionaries. Turkish and Indian words are also included.
Sometimes the writer has used unusual spelling of a word. Synonym are also employed, the frequency of synonymous words is high. Sometimes the author has used word in a new meaning. Also, he has used the word in a new construction and has made new and meaningful compounds. These compounds are one of the blocking factors of the meaning of some sentences.
Nakhshabi has used proper names in this book; he refers to the names of elders and prophets and has also creates new proper names.
The abundance of short and interrupted sentences in speech causes light acceleration of the speed of thought and excitement, and, on the contrary, the abundance of long sentences creates a smooth and steady style; complex and compound sentences slow down the movement of style. Rapid and hastey styles are more emotional, while composed styles are more argumentative and logical (Fotouhi, 2012; 275).
In Afsaneh Golriz, sentences are usually simple and short, and there are few compound sentences. The style of the book is exciting and emotional. The frequency of inflectional sentences is high. The style of sentences is a combination of discrete and co-ordinate style. The speed of speech is higher and the style is dynamic.
The time factor is an important variable in the realism of the text and the author's way of looking at things. The present is more certain than the past and different constructions of the past also increase the distance between the speaker and his point of view in the same proportion as it distances from the present (Fotouhi, 2012; 291). In this book, in 200 simple and compound sentences analyzed, there were 127 (63%) simple verbs, 33 (16%) compound verbs, and 5 (2%) prefixed verbs. Also, 72 cases (36%) present verbs and 124 cases (62%) past and future verbs have been used; therefore, the distance between the speaker and the author's point of view is greater in this book.
The modality is the speaker's decisiveness in expressing a proposition, which is implicitly shown by grammatical elements (Fotouhi, 2012; 285). In most of the verbs of the book, indicative modals have been used. The indicative modal shows the certainty of the speech. In indicative modal, the audience is confident about the speech.
Adverb is a part of speech that the verb does not need and for this reason it can be omitted from the sentence (Vahidian Kamiyar, & Omrani, 2003; 104). The frequency of adverb types is higher in Afsaneh Golriz, and adverb is one of the factors of lengthening the sentence. In 100 sentences, there are 56 adverbs, which shows that Nakhshabi has used more adverbs. Among the types of adverbs, adverbial complements has been used more.
In adverbial groups, the preposition has been omitted symmetrically based on the previous sentence; also, in the verb phrases, the preposition has been removed without symmetry.
In Afsaneh Golriz, the verb has been removed based on verbal and semantic symmetry.
 


In the phonetic layer, Nakhshabi has used various types of phonetic processes such as substitution, deletion and addition. Substitution in consonants and reduction of phonemes is more visible; however, phonetic processes are not as abundant as the texts of previous centuries. To increase the music, the writer has used all types of rhyme, mostly, parallel rhyme. In most of the sentences, there is internal rhyme, parallelism and leonine verse. He has used various types of puns, phonemes, repetition, and additions successive also.
In the lexical layer, there are more sensory words and the style of the sensory book is clear and effective. A large number of abandoned Arabic word can be seen in Afsaneh Golriz, which are used less or not at all in Persian poetry and prose and there is no evidence for them in Dehkhoda's Dictionary. One of the reasons for using archaic words is superiority. A few Turkish and Indian word are used and the number of synonyms and compounds in the book is also significant.
In the syntactic layer, there is usually simple and short sentences and few compound sentences. The style of the book is exciting and emotional, and the frequency of inflectional sentences is high. The style of sentences is a combination of discrete and co-ordinate style. The speed of the speech is high and the style has a dynamic rhythm. Simple verbs are used more, and compound and prefixed verbs have been used less. The tense of most verbs is past, by which the distance between the speaker and the author's point of view can be seen more clearly. Most of the verbs have been used in indicative modal, which shows the certainty of the speech. The frequency of adverb types is more in Afsaneh Golriz, and adverb is one of the factors of lengthening the sentence. In 100 sentences, there are 56 adverbs, which shows the abundance of adverbs. Among the types of adverbs, adverbial complements have been used more. Sometimes the verb has been omitted based on verbal and, more often, semantic symmetry. The preposition has sometimes been removed from the verb phrase based on symmetry in the previous sentence, or without symmetry.

One of the persisting issues about Sa'adi’s Gulestān is the question of whether or not there is a structure and system in its text. Some consider the anecdotes of Gulestān as lacking order and semantic connection, while others believe in the existence of a measured, symmetrical and systematic architecture in it. Currently, the successful application of systemic functional linguistic theory in the study of Persian literary texts has opened a new path for the structural study of Gulestān. In this study, employing the theory of systemic functional linguistics and the model of "non-structural coherence", the cohesive harmony and the coherence between two anecdotes from the second chapter of Gulestān have been investigated. This study aims to measure the degree of cohesion and coherence in these two anecdotes by analyzing the semantic relationships between the lexical items of their constituent elements. Having done that, it was revealed whether the author of Gulestān had a specific intention in arranging the anecdotes or not.


Halliday's systemic functional linguistic theory has been recommended by linguists to measure the cohesiveness of Persian texts; “By utilizing this theory - that is a scientific method- we can probe the degree of cohesion and coherence in any ghazal of Hafez or other literary texts quantitatively” (Ishani, 2016: 130). Therefore, in this study, the coherence coordination between two separate but consecutive anecdotes - with the premise that two anecdotes together make a single text - has been studied. In the systemic functional linguistic, coherence is studied at three levels: 1. Structural coherence (intra-sentence) 2. Non-structural coherence (inter-sentence) 3. Macro coherence (at the level of discourse and genre). In this research, the non-structural cohesion model has been used.
 


In this research, "Anecdote 25" (A Frenzied Mystic) and "Anecdote 26" (The Ignorant and Love-free Sheikh) were selected from the second chapter of Gulestān (On the Morals of Dervishes).
 
First story: A Frenzied Mystic
I remember once having marched all night long with a caravan, at down, I was sleeping at the outskirt of a thicket. A frenzied mystic who accompanied us on that journey let out a loud cry and took the path of the wilderness not standing still even for a moment. When the day broke, I asked him what state it was. He said: I saw nightingales on the trees, pheasants on the mountains, frogs in the water and beasts in the thicket all lamenting. I thought it would not be just that all should be awake praising God and I be sleep in ignorance.
Last night, a bird kept lamenting till morning;
It stole my wisdom, patience, fortitude and consciousness.
Hearing my wailing, an intimate friend said:Never did I believe that a bird’s caroling would throw thee into unconsciousness.
I said I deem it against the human calling
That birds be praising God and I rest in quietness. (Rezvani, 2018:180)
 
Second story: Ignorant and Love-free Sheikh
Once, on a pilgrimage to Hejaz a group of gnostic youths happened to be my fellow-traveler companions. Most of the times they whispered a tune and recited a mystic verse and there was a pious man accompanying us who kept  disparaging their state and was ignorant of their hidden affliction until we reached the palm plantation of the tribe of Helal. A lad with a dark complexion came out of the Arab horde and let out such a melodious tune that brought the birds down from the air. I saw that the camel of the pious man was moved into dancing; throwing him down, it went away. I said: O sheikh! That melody threw an animal into ecstasy, but left no impression on you.
Knowest thou what that nightingale of the dawn told me?
“What sort of human art thou ignorant and love-free?
By an Arab song a camel is thrown into rapture;
Thou art but a crooked brute if devoid of such nature.”
Affected by the breeze blowing in the verdure, the twigs shake,
But a piece of hard rock will not be moved by the quake.
Whatsoever thou beholdest is praising him;
He can hear an ear, receptive.
It’s only a nightingale on the flower that extols him,
But even every thorn in a tongue, of him appreciative. (Rezvani, 2018:182)
 
The repetition of the words desert, journey, dawn, nightingale, bird, state, and rosary are repeated in both stories (see table number 1). The repetition of "Shurideh" (a frenzied mystic) in the second story is done through "Adjectives of Shurideh". The paragraph "he took a desert path" is repeated exactly in both stories in two similar contexts.
In these two anecdotes, Saadi has used synonyms with a special knowledge (see table number 2).
The Antonyms between two stories are not used for beauty and industrialization, but to polarize the text and create meanings based on symmetry and parallel layers of meaning. Almost all the elements of the "material situational context" of the two stories are cleverly designed opposite to each other. Some of the contrasts between the two stories are as follows: on foot / on horseback, night / day, frenzied mystic / love-free Sheikh, Natural sounds / human tones, singing / whispering, human / animal, (see table number 3).
Examining Total Tokens of two anecdotes (as a continuous text) shows that hyponymy and meronymy are present in the text with great frequency (see table number 4).
The search for Similarity chains and Identity chains between two stories shows the author's goals in integrating the text. For example: I have shown the chain of sounds and music, the chain of times, the chain of places, the chain of animals and birds, the chain of plants, the chain of the thinking process, the chain of morals of dervishes, the chain of morals of jurists and the chain of mystical states. (To see these chains, refer to table number 5).
 


The application of the non-structural cohesion model provided clear evidence of strong intra-sentence and inter-sentence relationships between the two anecdotes discussed in this study. The absence of side elements among the total tokens indicates a high level of coherence in these stories. Furthermore, the content, emotional, and structural unity between the two narratives was distinctly revealed both qualitatively and quantitatively. By employing such a theoretical framework, the accuracy of the audience's comprehension is enhanced, enabling them to move beyond passive engagement with the text and dive into the realm of "Semiotics of Discourse". This approach sheds light on previously unknown aspects of Gulestān's rhetoric. For instance, the theory of Systemic Functional Linguistics elucidates why the scene setting of the first story (the trade caravan and constructing a home in the forest) correlates with the second story (the Hajj pilgrimage caravan and making a home in Nakhl-e Bani Helal Caravanserai, the pious man's behavior, etc.). Through this theory, we not only understand the structure of the text but also uncover hidden meanings embedded within the orientations of each story relative to the other. Additionally, the tools offered by this theory assist the audience in filling in the missing textures of each narrative. For example, the use of ellipsis specifies the responsibility of each clause in completing other clauses within the story. It is important to note that an examination and evaluation of Gulestān's inter-narrative relations using role-oriented linguistics theory can help resolve disagreements among researchers regarding conflicts and contradictions in the structure and epistemology of Gulestān's stories, ultimately facilitating the process of understanding and interpreting the text.

Reporting and narrating the Sheiks’ Karāmāt (sing: Karāmat, refers to supernatural wonders or miracles performed by Muslim Saints) are among the most important subjects in the prose works of Sufism particularly Manaqibnamehs which are written in an elaborate language. Numerous texts have been left from these types of Sufi works. Safwat al-Safa written by Ibn Bazzaz Ardabili is considered as one of the most detailed and important Manaqibnamehs in the history of Sufism. The original name of the book is Al-Mawahab al-Sunniyyah fi al-Manaqib al-Safawiyya which is written upon request of Sheikh Safi's son, Sadr al-Din Hasan, whose narratives make up a substantial part of book's content. Ibn-Bazzaz wrote this book gradually and finalized it in 759 AH. Safwat al-Safa is comprised of an introduction along with twelve chapters, each divided into several sections. Five chapters of the book are about the Karāmāt of Sheikh Safi-ad-din. The second and third chapters are dedicated to the explanation of the Sheikh's Karāmāt that happened on the land and the sea. The fifth chapter describes the Karāmāt of the Sheikh in relation to the daemons. The seventh chapter is an exposition of various sorts of Sheikh’s Karāmāt, and the tenth chapter refers to the Sheikh’s postmortem Karāmāt. The main issue of this study is to investigate, review, and classify Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s Karāmāt based on the concepts and themes that shape the dominant aspect of his Karāmāt.


This study is conducted in a descriptive-analytical method on the basis of library sources. The authors are concerned with several topics. Firstly, Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s life history and the overall circumstances of his life, which have been summarized based on reliable old sources, are discussed. The introduction of the book Safwat al-Safa, that was also summarized, comes next. However, the main subject of the study is dedicated to classification and review of Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s Karāmāt based on Ibn Bazzaz’s accounts in his book Safwat al-Safa. To this end, all the Karāmāt in this text were extracted and classified under various types and categories based on different subjects and notions. To delineate Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s character, while pointing out to the similarity of his Karāmāt to those of other Sufis, a few Karāmāt are briefly mentioned under each type or category, and the statistics of all the Karāmāt are given in the final table.
 


Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s Karāmāt are chronologically divided into three categories, The Karāmāt before his birth, Karāmāt during his lifetime, and postmortem Karāmāt. In his scarcely occurred pre-birth Karāmāt, his appearance as the reviver of Sharia and Tariqa is heralded in different ways. Most Karāmāt of Sheikh Safi-ad-din, with a frequency of 574 honors, are related to his lifetime. Being informed of the unseen world and communication with it, taking possession of the living beings, and transforming the nature ‒ each of which classified in different types ‒ are among the most prominent categories of these unearthly powers assigned to him. Knowledge of the invisible world, which is a sign of his spiritual maturity, and communicating with the transcendental world are considered as the most numerous Karāmāt attributed to him. One of the most distinguished types of these Karāmāt is his command of people’s internal thoughts and feelings. Another subcategory of this type of supernatural power is knowledge of the dreams of his followers which he interpreted. Being informed of the past, present and future incidents is also part of the Karāmāt of knowledge of the invisible world. He had a strange power to inform his followers of their sins in order to teach them lessons. He was also simultaneously aware of some distant or nearby accidents. Another category of his Karamat was awareness of lost objects that needs an unearthly ability to locate them. A different sort of supernatural power in this category of Karāmāt was knowing whether the properties and food were ritually clean and legitimate.
     One of the pivotal types of Karāmāt, during Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s lifetime, was communicating with the invisible world which was a sign of his connection with the transcendental world and confirms his highly spiritual position. Seeing the invisible world which often happens in the form of seeing the angles and the dead or communicating with the daemons, is a major type of this power. Another type of this power of communication with the invisible world is being able to hear the invisible caller which is assumed to indicate that the sheikh has reached to a paramount spiritual level and is connected to transcendental world. Summoning objects from the unseen world is another type of this kind of Keramat. Tay al-Arz (covering long distances in a twinkling of an eye) which is actually an expression of overcoming physical obstacles and the geographical determinism, is one of the different forms of the communication with the invisible world.
     Having Command on living things was an important type of Karāmāt in Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s life. One of the significant sorts of this mystical power, which he is said to widely applied, was healing the sick. Saving people from danger and imprisonment was another facet of this supernatural power. In these types of narratives those who were imprisoned, tortured or caught in looting are saved by the sheikh. Among the other manifestations of possession in living things is the extraordinary attraction, guidance and education of disciples, which has also been narrated in the stories of other mystics. The subject of an important part of the sheikh's coercive Karāmāt is the punishment of enemies and deniers. Such Karāmāt, which are manifestations of the sheikh's wrath and zeal, sometimes ended in punishment and sometimes in disciplining and guiding the disciple.
     One of the most important types of Karāmāt performed by Sheikh Safi is the mastery over nature and its elements, which in narratives has been ascribed to other mystics as well. In this type of power, the elements of nature and its laws are under the control of the sheikh, and he comes to the aid of the disciples by overcoming the natural obstacles. One of the types of Karāmāt related to nature is the spiritual connection with animals. In these Karāmāt, domestic and wild animals carry out his intentions, under the spiritual will of the sheikh. The physical strength of the sheikhs is actually a form of mastery over nature and overcoming its obstacles. Such miracles about the strange physical strength of Sheikh Safi-ad-din have also been narrated. Part of Sheikh Safi-ad-din's Karāmāt is related to the time after his death. It is believed that at the time of his death, the sky darkens and cries were heard from unknown place, and during ghusl, he moves to help the person giving ghusl to him. His body turns towards the Qibla and his tomb shines.
 


Understanding Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s life and works is important from two aspects. First, he is a follower of Sheikh Zahed Gilani who is one of the recognized Sheiks having a special position in the Sufism dynasties. Second, Safi-ad-din is considered as the ancestor of the Safavid dynasty, and the kings and rulers of this dynasty have gained their spiritual legitimacy from his position, status, and authority. Although the description of Shaykh Safi-ad-din Ardabili’s life and works are found in various sources, the most important source of knowledge about him is Safwat al-Safa, that is significant because it contains the Karāmāt related to him. This text, containing 718 items of Karāmāt about Sheikh Safi-ad-din Ardabili from before his birth to after his death, is a rare text from the viewpoint of the number and variety of the Sheikh’s Karāmāt. Before his birth he has a few Karāmāt, but they are important in terms of adding a spiritual and unearthly aspect to his personality. Most of the Karāmāt are related to his life time. Knowledge of the invisible world, communication with the unseen, having command on souls and controlling animate and inanimate nature are the most remarkable types of special power each of which including various types ascribed to him during his life time. Some of the postmortem Karāmāt are also related to him. The author of Safwat al-Safa and the researchers of this study have tried to depict a holy image of Sheikh related to the unearthly world. The picture of Sheikh Safi-ad-din in Safwat al-Safa is the picture of a saint immersed in light, aware of the invisible world and connected to it, whose hand is open to the world and human being without any restrictions.

In the midst of the Mongol invasion of Iran and the subjugation of the cities, two authors with a time difference of a few years, translated Marzbanname of Marzban bin Rostam bin Shahryar bin Shervin bin Rostam bin Qaran, from the simple prose of the first centuries of Persian prose style, into the artificial prose style; these works were produced in the sixth and seventh centuries. (Mojtabaei, 1390: 185). First, in 598 AH (about 15 years before Varavini), Muhammad bin Ghazi Malatiwi wrote his version of Marzbannameh called Roza-tol-Oqul in artificial and mutakalf prose style. This work is closer to the Marzbannameh of Marzban bin Rostam from two perspectives: firstly, (unlike Varavini's Marzbannameh), the anecdotes and chapters are not summarized, and secondly, the translation or rendering of phrases, from the semantic point of view, is much more trustworthy than the Varavini Marzbannameh. (Varavini, 1376: nineteen). A few years after that, Saad al-Din Varavini wrote another version of Marzbannameh; this work is a rewriting and a summarizing of Marzbannameh of Marzban bin Rostam through its removing, introducing, and delaying chapters and anecdotes.
A comparison of the number of articles, treatises, and books written about Varavini's Marzbannameh and Roza-tol-Oqul Malativi reveals that of these two texts, Marzbanamah written by Saad al-Din Varavini has been popular with readers and researchers from the past centuries until now, and that Roza-tol-Oqul has been less the subject of criticism and research. Perhaps the efforts of researchers and the title of the book chosen as “Marzbannameh” can be considered as one of the main reasons for the popularity of Varavini’s work.


In this study, based on the version of the National Library of Iran, some errors in Marzbannameh have been corrected, and in some cases, suggestions have been made for the comparative correction of some other distortions. Based on evidence from Marzbannameh and other old texts, numerous examples are given to confirm the acceptable recording.
 


Conducting research on ancient texts of Persian literature without having a neat and original text is subject to all kinds of errors. Marzbannameh is one of the forerunners of Persian prose texts, which has been discussed in various studies from stylistics, rhetoric, historical, grammatical, and many lexical perspectives. However, despite several corrections, and writing of numerous commentaries on this book, misreadings and omissions have made their way into it, and these errors need to be corrected.
As mentioned earlier, in this study, suggestions have been made for correcting several spellings in different chapters of Marzbannameh, some of which are supported by the version of the National Library of Iran ‒ which has not been used by any of the correctors of Marzbannameh. Accompanied by evidence from Persian literary texts, comparative corrections are suggested, and based on evidence from Marzbannameh and other old texts, numerous examples are given to confirm the acceptable recording.
 


In the last century, three corrections of Varavini's Marzbannameh have been printed; however, there is still room for correction and an original and worthy report of this important and valuable text. Being in a rush and not knowing about the existing versions, or the unavailability of all the old versions of Marzbannameh made the task difficult for the correctors of this technical and complicated text, and caused various changes and spellings to remain hidden from their eyes. In this study, relying on the version of the National Library of Iran and some other versions, as well as citing evidence from ancient Persian literary texts, some deviations in Marzbannameh were reported and corrected.
Also, in other cases, suggestions were made for comparative correction of several other spellings in Marzbannameh, and efforts were made to emphasize the correctness of these suggestions based on intratextual and extratextual evidence.

The structure of sentences and the order of words are two representative factors of the syntactic style of an author which are highly useful in explaining his personal style. Understanding the personal style of each author can be very helpful for readers in understanding the themes of his/her texts, knowing the character of the author and identifying his/her personal characteristics. Ghaem Magham Farahani is one of the greatest writers of the Qajar period whose personal style distinguishes him from his contemporary writers.
 


Using the approach and theory of layer stylistics and the method of discourse analysis, the researchers have undertaken the study of syntactic level of the 45th letter in Ghaem Magham Farahani’s Monasha’at. They have attempted to identify the connection between meaning and the syntactic level in this text, and to explain to the readers what the syntactic factors are in this letter and how the syntactic structure of the text helps its theme.


One of the most famous literary figures in Qajar period is Ghaem Magham Farahani, the Grand Vizier to Mohammad Shah Qajar. Thanks to his talent, artistry, and dedication, Ghaem Magham managed to write about the issues of his time in his Monsha’at with the use of a colloquial language and a literary texture which is more often than not compared with Sa’di’s Gulistan, since like Sa’di’s masterpiece, it is full of Arabic words, anecdotes, and proverbs. When these factors are combined with folklore literature, the result is a pleasant, attractive and dynamic prose. In a word, “Ghaem Magham is the Sa’di of his time” (Shamisa, 2014: 282). In Ghaem Magham’s prose, one can distinguish three styles: simple, intermediate and complicated, which have been very common in the previous periods. The prose contains Quranic verses, religious fables and hadiths which are signs of prolixity in texts (Khatibi, 2007: 58). One can also find elements of conciseness in sentences and the avoidance of complexity which are manifestations of simple and straightforward style (Rastegar Fasaei, 2018: 243). However, the most frequent style used in his writings is the simple style which is a recreation of the ancient simple and straightforward prose (Rahimian, 2008: 12), since his texts are intended to be simple and devoid of complexities in style and meaning.
It is the aim of stylistics to study the characteristics of texts with the attention to different linguistic periods, and then analyze these characteristics in relation to the authors who have used them in their texts. Accordingly, by analyzing the works of a writer or a period, researchers of stylistics can reveal many aspects about the texts, such as the perspective of the author, the social condition of the period, the discourse of the age, the orientation of the writer, creativities or imitations in the style of the writer, the author’s ideology and the dominant ideology of the period. However, due to the high number of these stylistic characteristics in the texts, the researchers have divided them into 5 categories and study each category independently. These five levels are phonetic, lexical, syntactic, semantic and pragmatic levels. Each of these levels are again divided into several sublevels which eventually make up the meta-levels when combined with each other. Syntax is the study of the relationship between linguistic forms in sentences, structure, order, syntagmatic and paradigmatic levels. The analysis of the syntactic level makes the reader capable of discovering the relationship between the syntactic structure and the thematic structure of a text. Some of the issues discussed on this level are the structure of the sentences, the length of the sentences, the order of sentences, moods in adverbs, adjectives and verbs, the verb tenses, adjuncts, the use of Arabic words and expressions. The researchers have undertaken the analysis of these elements in letter number 45 of Monsha’at by Mirza Abol-Ghasem Farahani.
 


The structure of sentences and clauses and the order of words in any text are representatives of the grammatical and syntactic style of that text which eventually lead the reader or the researcher of the linguistic behaviors to identifying the personal style of the writer. The analysis of the items under study showed that there is a relationship between the syntactic principles and the themes of the text. In this research, we studied the length of the sentences and analyzed the relationship between sentences from different perspectives. The findings showed that short sentences are used more than long sentences in this letter, which means that Ghaem Magham has used them for accelerating the expression of his thoughts. Short sentences are proper vehicles for transferring the purpose of the writer to the audience; however, whenever necessary, the writer has used longer sentences to explain and describe more. Therefore, the high frequency of short and concise sentences with independent thoughts in each sentence is indicative of the preference of meaning over verbosity in the mind of the writer and, as mentioned before, accelerates the expression of meaning. From among the four types of links in the sentences of this letter, the two types of equivalent and intertwined are more frequent than the other two, dependent and independent links. The use of these links brings more coherence and stronger relationship between the parts of the text and their meaning. The study of moods in this letter led to identifying Ghaem Magham’s ideology and individual character. In this regard, the findings show that in verbs, the indicative mood are more frequently used than imperative and subjunctive moods. This delineates that the writer of the letter has intended to narrate the incidents and phenomena; therefore, it reveals Ghaem Magham’s certainty in his text. The study of the mood in adverbs show his close relationship with the incidents; while the study of the mood in adjectives show the writer’s tendency toward different factors and people which usually express his power and certainty.

Text stylistics is one of the most important ways to reach the historical boundaries of works; by studying the stylistics of a text and examining its linguistic, intellectual, and literary domains, one can determine its type of prose and its period. Therefore, what is important in these studies is form and content. Bahar defines style as: "Style in literary terms refers to a specific method of perceiving and expressing ideas through the combination of words, choice of vocabulary, and mode of expression-style gives a literary work its own unique aspect in terms of form and meaning. Therefore, style in its general sense is the realization of a literary type of perception in the world that determines the main characteristics of its product (a composed or written work)", (Bahar, 2014: 1/16). Bahar considers form and content as important in determining style (Bahar, 2014: 1/17). Farshidvard also refers to the importance of form and content in determining style: "Style emerges from the combination of spiritual and formal features of a literary work" (Farshidvard, 1999: 2/219). Mahjoub considers style as the expression of the writer's or poet's thought in his own special way (Mahjoub, n.d: 49). Shamisa considers three conditions of a special perspective, selection, and deviation from norms necessary for achieving style (Shamisa, 2001: 15). However, today there are different approaches to style that can be referred to for further understanding of stylistics (Fotouhi, 2012: 125-196). In any case, it must be acknowledged that what is important in the analysis of the style of a work is the formal and content analysis that encompasses the three linguistic, intellectual, and literary domains. These three domains can help us in determining the type of prose and its historical boundaries.


The method of collecting information in this study is library research and data extraction. This research was conducted using an analytical-descriptive method, and its statistical population includes the book "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul fi Latayef el-Fosool" and books on stylistics.
 


The present study aims to examine the stylistic features of the text in the three linguistic, intellectual, and literary domains using textual data, while enumerating the features of the handwritten version of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul fi Latayef el-Fosool" by Abu Tahir Muhammad ibn Muhammad Yahya Aufi. Since the name of the writer and the date are not mentioned in the single manuscript of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" (Ayatollah Marashi Library No. 9084), this research aims to determine its historical period and type of prose based on stylistic features. The present research was conducted using a descriptive-analytical method, and based on the conducted analysis, the linguistic features of this text date back to the sixth to eighth centuries. Moreover, from a literary point of view, it is a technical prose that focuses mainly on description and literature. It has benefited from new literary industries based on technical prose, such as simile, metaphor, innovative themes, interpretive use of letters, and author's analogies. From an intellectual perspective, this work is included in texts that represent Islamic ethical concepts. The author's respect for Shia Imams is also evident in the text. However, based on the present research, there is doubt and skepticism about attributing the text "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" to the author of "Jawame ul-Hikayat". The reasons for this suspicion are as follows:
Inconsistency in attributing the authors of these two works to Abdur Rahman Aufi

 In the twenty-fourth chapter of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul fi Latayef el-Fosool", which is written about gratitude, the author speaks of Abdurrahman Afui, who is the great uncle of the author: "It has been narrated from Abdurrahman Auf-may God be pleased with him that he is the great uncle of the author of these chapters..." (Aufi, n.d: 110 a). The same phrase appears at the beginning of a story in "Jawame ul-Hikayat" in the fourteenth chapter of the second part, which is about gratitude, with the difference that instead of uncle, ancestor is mentioned: "It is reported that Abdul Rahman Auf - may God be pleased with him - who is the ancestor of the author of the book.." (Musafa, 2014: 367.  

No reference to "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" in other works of Aufi

If we are based on Aq Qala's claim that "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" is from the author of "Jawame ul-Hikayat", there are two possibilities for when this text was written. One is the same one given by Safari Aq Qala, which is based on the fact that this text was written before "Jawame ul-Hikayat": "The author of these lines thinks that Aufi wrote "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" before "Jawame ul-Hikayat", and later, when he wanted to compose a huge text such as "Jawame ul-Hikayat", he wrote parts of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" is included in the text. The fact that confirms this point is that at the beginning of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul", the author mentioned his two books named Ghoniyat el-Awsaf and Maniyat el-Wasaf, as well as Zubadat ol-Maali, and if he had written this work after his two voluminous and valuable works - "Lobab ol-Albab" and "Jawame ul-Hikayat", as a result, he should have mentioned those two writings in the preface of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul". (Safari Aq Qala, 1391: 14). The opposite of this possibility can also be true. What can be the reason that the name of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" is not mentioned in the "Jawame ul-Hikayat" and "Lobab ol-Albab"?! If there was no reference to other works of Aufi in any of the mentioned texts, this concern would not have arisen in the minds of the writers. In the historical books, there is a mention of Lobab, Jawme and the translation of Faraj bad al-Shadat, but there is no mention of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul". Can't this be a place of doubt?! The second possibility, which is not considered by Safari Agh Qala, is that he wrote "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" after the "Jawame ul-Hikayat" and "Lobab ol-Albab". If so, one should ask oneself what is the reason for not mentioning this great work of his in the preface of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul"? While in the preface of this book, the author of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" has even mentioned his booklet, but he has never mentioned the two great works of "Jawame ul-Hikayat" and "Lobab ol-Albab" (Aufi, n.d: 1a). It seems that this issue also creates doubt in identifying these two aufis as one.

Incompatibility of the style of the Jawame ul-Hikayat with Noz’hat-ul-Oqul

In stylistics, Bahar has pointed out a key point in connection with the "Jawame ul-Hikayat". He believes that: "It is better to obtain the true style of Aufi from the "Lobab ol-Albab"; because it is not clear whether a story is written by him or it is directly quoted from a Persian book (Bahar, 2013: 3/38). According to Bahar's opinion, these anecdotes can be directly quoted from another Persian book. This case can seem reasonable to the owner of "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul". Based on this, can these similarities be a convincing and sufficient reason to recognize them as one?
 


"Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" is a technical prose written by Abu Tahir Muhammad Aufi, in which its technicality is reduced in some parts of the text to match the narrative style. However, it cannot be denied that the majority of this text is technical. The stylistic features of the text and the use of poetry by poets before the seventh century place this text in a period before the seventh century. Linguistically, there are stylistic features in it that belong to texts from the sixth to eighth centuries. Some of these linguistic features include: the letter "ya" indicating continuity, omission of pronouns referring to verbs, writing "Ke" connects letters as "kei", special pronunciations and writings, neglected Persian and Arabic words. From an intellectual point of view, "Noz’hat-ul-Oqul" includes narratives with Islamic ethical content. Throughout these narratives, in addition to their content, important mystical figures such as Bayazid Bastami, Junaid Baghdadi, Mansur Hallaj, Rabia bint Qazdari are mentioned. Respect for Shia Imams is also seen in these narratives. From a literary point of view, it has extensively used various literary industries based on its stylistic features. These industries include: simile (in various forms), metaphor (in various forms), various types of allegory, various types of ambiguity, innovative thematic compositions, interpretive use of letters, and author's analogies. In the final part of this research, the authors conclude that the attribution of this work to Aufi (the owner of "Jawme ul-Hikayat") is doubtful.