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Zurvainism and Post Islamic Persian Literature: with Ferdusi As a Case Study

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Zurvainism and Post Islamic Persian Literature: with Ferdusi As a Case Study COPYRIGHT AND USE OF THIS THESIS This thesis must be used in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Reproduction of material protected by copyright may be an infringement of copyright and copyright owners may be entitled to take legal action against persons who infringe their copyright. Section 51 (2) of the Copyright Act permits an authorized officer of a university library or archives to provide a copy (by communication or otherwise) of an unpublished thesis kept in the library or archives, to a person who satisfies the authorized officer that he or she requires the reproduction for the purposes of research or study. The Copyright Act grants the creator of a work a number of moral rights, specifically the right of attribution, the right against false attribution and the right of integrity. You may infringe the author’s moral rights if you: - fail to acknowledge the author of this thesis if you quote sections from the work - attribute this thesis to another author - subject this thesis to derogatory treatment which may prejudice the author’s reputation For further information contact the University’s Director of Copyright Services sydney.edu.au/copyright ZURVANISM AND ITS INFLUENCE ON ‘POST-ISLAMIC’ PERSIAN LITERATURE with FERDOWSI AS A CASE STUDY By Parisa Pourhosseini Submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of Sydney, for the Degree of Masters of Arts by Thesis Submitted March 2014 1 Introduction …………………………………………………………… 1 1 Zurvanism: Concepts and Development Mesopotamian Legacy of Zurvanism Avesta and Zurvan …………………………………………………….. 9 The Historical Background of Zurvanism ……………………………..10 Narratives of the Zurvan Myth Imperfect Origin of the Creation ……………………………………... 23 Infinite Zurvan and Finite Zurvan ….………………………………… 24 Vāyu, Sky, and Finite Zurvan ………………………………………… 26 Zurvan and Destiny …………………………………………………… 27 Spihr and Destiny ……………………………………………………... 36 Zurvanism, Men, and World ………………………………………….. 38 Human and Destiny …………………………………………………… 40 Zurvanism and Morality ………………………………………………. 41 The End of the World …………………………………………………. 46 Types of Zurvanism ………………………………………………….... 48 2 Epistemological Bases for Poems by Firdausi Introduction …………………………………………………………..... 52 Shahnameh …………………………………………………………….. 53 Dualism in Divinity …………………………………………………..... 53 The Collective Origin of Good and Evil in Firdausi’s Words …………. 54 The Extended Reign of Evil over the World …………………………… 55 Fatalism in Shahnameh …………………………….………………..56 Pessimism in Shahnameh …………………………………………... 57 Greed ………………………………………………………………........ 58 The battle of Keyumars and Ahriman ………………………………...... 59 Evil inside human existence in Shahnameh and Zurvanite teachings 62 Judgement ……………………………………………………………… 66 Time and Destiny (Zamāneh and Rouzegār) …………………………... 70 Fate and God-given Fate (Baxt and Bagu Baxt) ……………………….. 73 Spihr, the Sky, Firmaments, and the Celestial Sphere …………………..77 2 The Determined Rule …………………………………………………….78 Allotment and Portion ………………………………………………….. 79 The Impact of Good and Vicious Stars on Life ………………………… 81 God's Willing …………………………………………………………… 83 Failure of Abstinence and Knowledge in Preventing Destiny ………..... 87 Transient World and the Necessity of Happiness ……………………. 89 The Other World ……………………………………………………… 97 Conclusion …………………………………………………………… 103 References …………………………………………………………… 104 3 Introduction The Problematic of the Research Based on the same philosophical dualism inherent in all Iranian religions, Zurvanist doctrine was the intellectual interpretation of the Zoroastrian religion spread over ancient Iran, yet aimed to present a materialistic and naturalistic explanation of the universe. Zurvanist philosophy believe that Infinite Time is the first Principle of this world and of all the various changes and groupings to which its members and organs are subject as well as of the mutual opposition that exists between them and of their fusion with one another. There is no punishment for sin; therefore heaven and hell do not exist. There is no spiritual existence. Metaphysics is not a specific subject of the doctrine of Zurvanism. Unlike Zoroastrianism, it is generally accepted that the Zurvan heresy or sect originated from the west Iranian plateau1. Its basic ideas rest in all likelihood upon the influence of Babylonian astrology, the use of which continued after the Persian conquest of the Babylonian empire (539 BCE). Zurvanism, as an attempt to make sense the universe based on materialistic principles and naturalist concepts, took celestial bodies and the firmament to have considerable effect over the universe. Zurvanism constitutes beliefs of a sect of Persians who considered space-time as the beginning of the world. The sectarians held Zurvan as a father of the reported Zurvanite rivals Ohromasdes of light and Ahrimanius of darkness. The Zurvanite philosophical system of thought affirms the Infinity of Time, according to which all the creatures come into existence through Time and Zurvan or Zamān (Time) in the perpetual being inside which the universe comes into birth. Zurvan is not a creator but sets out a passage for emergence and creation. Ohrmazd and Ahriman, responsible for the creation, are even created through Time regardless of Zurvan’s intention and deliberation. Zurvan is only capable of requesting the creation and being eager for it. Based on the capability it prays for the Ohrmazd responsible for the creation of the universe 1Jalili Moqhadam 1384: 24 4 to come into birth, and within its prevenient Iranian mythology, it unwillingly paves way for the creation of Ahriman. This point indicates fatalism as a basic and fundamental element of Zurvanism, one conquering the intentions and decisions made by deities. The concept Time or Zurvan is closely associated with destiny. Such insights are hardly unfamiliar with any moderns; as Jean-Paul Sartre (1353:132) affirms: ‘Time besides Space is of the two determinants of the existence’. Needless to say, the circulation of night, day, year, and month alongside their natural manifestations, i.e., the sun, moon, stars, and celestial bodies, had led ancient Mesopotamian and Persians to perceive a relation between Time and the heavens and to convictions about the influence the latter exerted over the universe. Zurvanists pile in on this thread, but also the instability of human affairs, evil and cruelty, and the ephemeral quality of life are other concerns of theirs. Moreover, Zurvanism condemns greed and insists on harmony, moderation, contentment, and encourages its followers to honour their vows. It reminds followers that there will be an annihilation of the world; the universe finally dissolves back into the eternity of Zurvan. Zurvanism has had a profound and continuing influence on the Iranian sphere of thought. Fatalism though modified with the coming of Islam through the concept resignation or trust in God, never entirely vanished among Persians even up to present era, and keeps on reappearing as a long-lasting effect on beliefs and ideas of the people. Such a durable impression can obviously be traced from Iranian poets and thinkers of the earlier centuries of Persian literature, especially with the Khorasani Style. The naturalistic spirit and ethics of this group of poets derives from an historical intimacy with pre- Islamic Iran, confirming the persistence of Zurvanian influences. It is of great importance to explore religious influences in literature. Our study in this respect is highly relevant to the contemporary situation. Human beings now live in a dividedly multicultural, technological, and globalized world. In these days, exploring cultural developments and human relationships with religion provides insights into the mystery of other cultures, which in itself opens an inquiry into the philosophical questions concerning life and death, love and hate, time, space, history, subject and object. The study of the influences of Zurvanism on post-Islamic Persian literature can be a clue for unveiling how religion as a cultural and historical phenomenon mobilizes itself 5 through time and space and becomes a defining element in a nation’s art and literature philosopher and a critic who argued that literature can represent ideology. This thesis examines the endurance of Zurvani ideas in Persian culture through considering the works of predominant Khorasani poet and more than that, it examines the views of Hakim Abdul-Qasim Firdausi or Ferdowsi. In the extensive amount of Iranian intellectual works, mostly written following the emergence of Islam, literature plays an important role, this author assumes that Khorasani school of Persian literature may be the most suitable mean to recognize the influence of the pre-Islamic mind-set, especially Zurvanism. Goals and Methodology of the Research The General Research Questions asked below apply to more poets than I can discuss in the compass of a Master’s Thesis, but my research is part of and a contribution toward a broader questioning. Above all, I address: Major questions of the research: • How does underlying fatalism operate in the work and thought of aforementioned Khorasani poets who demonstrated their works from the tenth century to the sixteenth century which named Persian classical poetry? In addition, what kind of relation does it have with Zurvanism? • What kind of ideas and maxims of what the poets were influenced or were originated from Zurvanism other than the ideas having roots in fatalism? • To what extent has every of these poets been influenced by Zurvanite maxims? • What is/are the
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