Persian Literature

This is a reproduction of a library book that was digitized by Google as part of an ongoing effort to preserve the information in books and make it universally accessible. https://books.google.com HARVARD UNIVERSITY. LIBRARY OF THE Semitic Department, SEVER HALL. TRANSFERRED TO HARVARD COLLEGE LIBRARY A. .V>vFAC SIMILE OF A PORTION OF THE TITLE PAGE OF AN ILLUMINATED. SIMILJIMie "SHAH NAM AH "(SEE PREFACE) \. PERSIAN LITERATURE ANCIENT AND MODERN BY ELIZABETH A. REED MEMBER OF THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN MEMBER OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF ORIENTALISTS AOTHOR OF HINDU LITERATURE, ETC. ^CHICAGO S. C. GRIGGS AND COMPANY 1893 3502 &. 3 m^ " ' « n»> (UNIVfcRSlYY I LIBRARY I COPYRIGHT. 1893. BY S. C. GRIGGS AND COMPANY. O)t ILakreiBe prrss R. R. DONNELLEY * SONS CO., CHICAGO TABLE OF CONTENTS. PERSIAN LITERATURE, ANCIENT AND MODERN. DIVISION I. — EARLY TABLETS AND MYTHOLOGY. CHAPTER I. HISTORIC OUTLINE. ORIGIN OF PERSIAN LITERATURE — ACCAD AND SUMER — LITERATURE OF NINEVEH — BABY LON — IRAN OR PERSIA — PHYSICAL FEA TURES — PERSIAN ART — MANUSCRIPTS — . EARLY LITERATURE — THE ARABIAN CON QUEST — LITERATURE OF MODERN PERSIA — PERSIAN ROMANCE 1 CHAPTER II. THE CUNEIFORM INSCRIPTIONS. EARLY LITERATURE — HISTORIC TABLETS — THE INSCRIPTIONS OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR — THE FALL OF BABYLON —CYRUS, THE ACH^ME- NIAN — BEHISTUN INSCRIPTIONS — DARIUS AT PERSEPOLIS — INSCRIPTIONS OF XERXES — iii IV TABLE OF CONTENTS. ARTAXERXES — A LATER PERSIAN TABLET — RESUME 30 CHAPTEE III. THE POETRY AND MYTHOLOGY OP THE TABLETS. PRIMITIVE MYTHOLOGY — ANU — SEVEN EVIL SPIRITS — ACCADIAN POEM — ASSUR — HEA — NIN-CI-GAL — SIN, THE MOON GOD — HEA- BANI — NERGAL — MEHODACH — NEBO — NINIP — CHEMOSH — INCANTATIONS TO FIRE AND WATER — IM — BAAL — TAMMUZ — ISHTAR — ISH- TAR OF ARBELA — ISHTAR OF ERECH — LEGEND OF ISHTAR AND IZDUBAR — ISHTAR, QUEEN OF LOVE AND BEAUTY — THE DESCENT OF ISHTAR 53 THE COMMON PERSIAN SOURCE CHAPTER MYTHOLOGY. OF MYTHOLOGY IV. — MYTHICAL MOUNTAINS — RIVERS — MYTHICAL BIRDS — AHURA MAZDA — ATAR — THE STORM GOD — YIMA — THE CHINVAT BRIDGE — MITHRA — RESUME 86 DIVISION II. — PERIOD OF THE ZEND-AVESTA. CHAPTER V. THE ZEND-AVESTA. DERIVATION AND LANGUAGE — DIVISIONS — AGE OF THE ZEND-AVESTA — MANUSCRIPTS — ZAR- TABLE OF CONTENTS. V ATHUSTRA — THE EABLY PARSIS— THE MOD ERN PARSlS 109 CHAPTER VI. THE TEACHINGS OP THE ZEND-AVESTA. THE GATHAS — THE WAIL OF THE KINE — THE LAST GATHA — THE MARRIAGE SONG — THE YASNA — COMMENTARY ON THE FORMULAS — THE YASNA HAPTANG-HAITI — THE SRAOSHA YAST — THE YASNA CONCLUDING . 127 CHAPTER VII. TEACHINGS OP THE ZEND-AVESTA, CONCLUDED. THE VENDIDAD — FARGARD II — THE VARA OF YIMA — THE LAWS OF PURIFICATION — DIS POSITION OF THE DEAD — PUNISHMENTS — THE PLACE OF REWARD — THE VISPARAD — TEACHING OF THE MODERN PARSlS . 146 DIVISION III. — THE TIME OF THE MOHAMMEDAN CONQUEST AND THE KORAN. CHAPTER VIII. THE KORAN. THE SUCCESSOR OF THE ZEND-AVESTA — AUTHOR OF THE KORAN — FIRST REVELATIONS — THE HIGRAH — CONTINUED WARFARE — DEATH OP MOHAMMED — RECENSION OF THE TEXT — TEACHING OF THE KORAN — BEATEN — VI TABLE OF CONTENTS. HELL — PREDESTINATION — POLYGAMY — LIT ERARY STYLE OF THE KORAN . 165 DIVISION IV. — THE PERIOD SUCCEEDING THE MOHAMMEDAN CONQUEST. CHAPTER IX. THE ANWAR-I-SUHALI. HISTORY OF THE WORK — PREFACE — THE BEES AND THEIR HABITS — THE TWO PIGEONS — THE BLIND HAN AND HIS WHIP — AMICABLE INSTRUCTION — THE PIGEONS AND THE RAT — THE ANTELOPE AND THE CROW — THE ELEPHANT AND THE JACKAL — GEMS FROM THE HITOPADESA 189 CHAPTER X. PERSIAN POETRY. SEVEN ERAS — THE FIRST PERIOD — (THE HOMER OF IRAN — THE SHAH NAMAH— HISTORY OF THE PERSIAN EPIC — FIHDUSl — INVECTIVE — MUTESHIM — THE SHAH'S REPENTANCE -r- DEATH OF FIRDUSI — THE POEM . 214 CHAPTER XL STORY OF THE SHAH NAMAH. SAM SUWAR — THE SlMURGH's NEST — THE FATHER'S DREAM — RUDABEH — THE MAR RIAGE — RUSTEM — THE TURANIAN INVASION — THE WHITE DEMON .... 228 TABLE OF CONTEXTS. vii CHAPTEE XII. THE HEFT-KHAN, OR SEVEN LABORS OP RUSTEM. A LION SLAIN BY RAKUSH — ESCAPE FROM THE DESERT — THE DRAGON SLAIN — THE EN CHANTRESS — CAPTURE OF AULAD — VICTORY OVER DEMONS — SEVENTH LABOR, THE WHITE DEMON SLAIN — THE MARRIAGE OF RUSTEM — SOHRAB 252 CHAPTER XIII. ISPENDIYAR. THE HEFT-KHAN OF ISFENDIYAH — THE BRAZEN FORTRESS — THE CONFLICT WITH RUSTEM — THE FALL OF THE WARRIORS . 272 CHAPTER XIV. SECOND PERIOD. ANWARI — NIZAMl — LAILI AND MAJNUN — A FRIEND — THE WEDDING — DELIVERANCE — THE MEETING IN THE DESERT — DEATH OF THE LOVERS — VISION OF ZYD . 284 CHAPTER XV. THIRD PERIOD. J, WORKS OF SA'DI— THE BUSTAN— THE PEARL — KINDNESS TO THE UNWORTHY — SILENCE, THE SAFETY OF IGNORANCE — DARIUS AND HIS HORSE-KEEPER — STORIES FROM THE Vlii TABLE OF CONTENTS. GULISTAN—OF PROSPERITY THE — WISE BORES WRESTLER .... — DANGERS 309 CHAPTEK XYI. LATER PERIODS. THE FOURTH PERIOD — LITERARY KINGS — HAFIZ PIR-I-SEBZ — SHIRAZ — THE FEAST OF SPRING — MY BIRD — FIFTH PERIOD — JAMI — THE WORKS OF JAMI — RECEPTION — THE SIXTH PERIOD — THE SEVENTH PERIOD . 321 CHAPTER XVII. MEHER AND MUSHTERI. PERSIAN ROMANCE — THE TWO COMRADES — THE SEPARATION — THE QUEEN — THE DEPARTURE — THE ANNOUNCEMENT .... 338 CHAPTER XVIII. MEHER AND MUSHTERI— CONTINUED. THE REbCUE EXILES — — THE THE CAPTURE DESERT — A SHIPWRECK . —. THE . 351 CHAPTER XIX. MEHER AND MUSHTERI— CONTINUED. THE FUGITIVES — ROYAL INTERVIEWS — THE CONFLICT — A GARDEN SCENE — AFTERWARDS — THE DECISION ...... 365 TABLE OF CONTENTS. ix CHAPTER XX. MEHER AND MUSHTBRI— CONTINUED. THE CAPTIVES — ARREST AND TRIAL — ROYAL FAVOR — THE SENTENCE .... 383 CHAPTER XXL MEHER AND MUSHTERI— CONCLUDED. THE WEDDING — A COUNCIL — ROYAL CAVAL CADE — THE MESSENGER — RECEPTION . 392 CHAPTER XXII. CONCLUSION. SUMMARY — PRIESTLY RULE — RUSSIAN OPPRES SION . 403 PREFACE. is a growing interest in the literatures of the Orient, but the difficulties in this field of investigation have been so great that few students have taken time to recover the gems from the worth less matter surrounding them. The author of the pres ent volume, however, has chosen to devote years of persistent effort to the work of collecting and con densing the historic facts pertaining to this subject, and giving them to the public, together with the finest thoughts to be found upon the pages of these early manuscripts. No labor has been spared to attain accuracy of statement, no difficulties have been ignored in these years of research, and the results, so far as completed, are now before the reader in two volumes : the one re cently published on Hindu Literature, and the present work on Persian Literature. Although this book was partially written long be fore the publication of its predecessor, still it might never have been completed, but for the kindly recep tion which a generous public gave to the preceding volume. Cordial thanks are due to the American press, which not only gave to "Hindu Literature" hundreds xl Xll PREFACE. of favorable notices, but in many instances devoted whole columns to able reviews of the work. It is also a rare pleasure to acknowledge the cour tesies of the British press, and especially the great kindness of leading European scholars, who have sent words of warm approval and congratulation to the author. In the present volume the subject has been sim plified as far as possible, by arranging the work in four chronological divisions ; the epoch of Persian poetry being again divided into seven distinct periods, corresponding to the times of the leading poets, who have been called "The Persian Pleiades." Not only does their literature present seven leading poets, but this number appears to have a peculiar charm for the Persian literati, and hence we find in this field of Eastern fable, the "Seven Evil Spirits" of Anu, the " Seven Labors of Rustem," the " Seven Great Feats of Isfendiyar," "The Seven Fair Faces" of Nizami, the " Seven Thrones " of Jami, and va rious other combinations of the same number. In this as well as previous works, the author wishes to acknowledge the great value of the Chicago Public Library, where a wealth of Oriental lore is ever at the service of the student ; here are valuable works which bear on the history and literature of the Sanskrit, Hebrew, Chaldaic, Persian, Arabic and other Asiatic tongues, besides many volumes in the modern languages. Among the literati of Europe the author is in PREFACE. X111 debted to such men as Prof. A. H. Sayce, Sir M. Monier-Williams, W. St. Chad Boscawen, Prof. F. Max Miiller, Dr. Haug, Dr. L. II. Mills, and Ernest A. Budge ; also Profs. Darmesteter, Eastwick, Atkinson, Davie and Owsley, the credits being given where the quotations are made. Grateful acknowledgement is especially made to Prof. A. H. Sayce, of the Oxford University ; to Sir M. Monier-Williams, and to Mr. Theo. G. Pinches, of the British Museum, each of these distinguished schol ars having examined portions of the manuscript and affixed their valuable notes thereunto. Cordial thanks are also due to Dr. R. Host, of the India Office in London, who laid before the artist all the illuminated Persian manuscripts in that vast col lection of Eastern lore, and to the honorable Council of the india Office, who placed these rare literary treasures at the author's service without the customary precaution of taking a bond therefor. The frontis piece is a section of the illuminated title-page of a Persian manuscript of priceless value. This is a copy of the Shah Namah, which is a large folio, the pages being beautifully written in four columns. Each page is illuminated with delicate paintings, which are a triumph of art. This old manuscript, which is now invaluable, was purchased for the India House Collec tion at the celebrated Hastings sale about twenty-five years since. Our illustration gives only a portion of the page, and thus the full size of the figure has been XIV PREFACE. preserved, which is far better than to mar the beauty of the work by reducing it. The author is also desirous of expressing thanks to S.

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