The Poet and His Patrons: Two Ghaznavid Panegyrists

PERSICA XVII, 2001

THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS

Julie Scott Meisami University of Oxford

Among Professor Hans de Bruijn's many contributions to the study of Persian poetry, his discussion of the influence of patronage on the poetic production of Sanaî of Ghazna (d. 525/1131) stands out as the first major effort at addressing this important issue.1 De Bruijn disputed the traditional image of Sanaî as a court poet who, after a mystical “con- version”, dedicated himself to composing religious poetry, and showed us instead a poet who, failing to secure satisfactory patronage at the court of the Ghaznavid Masüd III (492-508/1099-1115), turned to religious patrons, for whom he composed panegyrics, homiletic poetry, and poems to be used in preaching. Sanaî also produced song-texts (gazals) for professional minstrels; and when he returned to the Ghaznavid court in the reign of Bahramsah (511-52?/1117-57?), he dedicated to that ruler both his homiletic ma†nawi the Îadiqat al-Ìaqiqa and numerous panegyrics in the qaÒida and gazal forms. The diversity of Sanaî's patrons, and of his poetic output, raises broader questions about the nature of literary patronage; and Professor de Bruijn's study illustrates the need for a more extensive exploration of this issue. In his doctoral thesis on Sanaî Franklin Lewis addressed this issue further;2 but it remains to be seen whether Sanaî's case is excep- tional, or whether it reflects changing patterns of patronage at the courts of the later Ghaznavids.3 That from its very beginnings Persian poetry was intimately connected with courts is well known. To state that poets were dependent on court patronage is to state the obvi- ous; but the nature and conditions of this patronage have yet to be systematically ex- plored. What follows is a preliminary attempt to investigate poet-patron relationships at the Ghaznavid courts in the 5th/11th and early 6th/12th centuries. What did patrons expect of poets? And what did poets expect of their patrons? The answer might seem self- evident: patrons expected poems, and poets produced them in exchange for (among other things) financial remuneration. But the poet-patron relationship was but one expression of a more general client-patron relationship which obtained in medieval Islamicate society. 1 J.T.P. de Bruijn, Of Piety and Poetry: The Interaction of Religion and Literature in the Life and Works of Îakin Sanaî of Ghazna, Leiden, 1983. 2 Franklin D. Lewis, Reading, Writing and Recitation: Sanaî and the Origins of the Persian Ghazal, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Chicago, 1995. 3 This question applies to court poetry under the Seljuqs as well, but the latter cannot be dealt with here. 92 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI

It is this system of clientage which explains the poet's position in the courtly milieu, as well as the fact that poets were often not simply composers of verse, but might perform other functions as well, and were intimately involved in the life — and the politics — of the courts they served. The institution of clientage has been studied in detail by Roy Mottahedeh, with specific reference to the Buyid period.4 His conclusions, however, hold (with some modifica- tion) for other periods and other milieux. The bond between patron and client was (over and above specific services rendered) one of loyalty, and, more specifically, of benefit. Conferring and receiving benefit created a system of mutual and reciprocal expectations and obligations on the part of both patron and client. A client would become attached to a patron (or patrons; in the case of poets, at least, multiple patronage seems to have been the rule rather than the exception) with the understanding that he would perform certain tasks (a soldier would perform military service; a poet would compose poetry), and with the expectation that the patron would reciprocate through financial support (a regular stipend, a periodic remuneration, or provision of some form of employment) and (of at least equal importance) through “political” support (in the case of a poet, support against rivals, de- tractors, and so on). The poet-patron relationship was thus not unique, by virtue of the client being a poet, but was predicated on the larger values of this system of patronage. Although we have little evidence from the patrons' side as to what they expected — or demanded — of poets, there is ample evidence in the poetry to reconstruct at least some of these expectations. We know that poems were required on certain occasions: to celebrate the major festivals, both Islamic and Persian, campaigns and victories, and important events in the patron's life, and to present general praise on less specific occasions. The poems also furnish evidence as to what poets expected from their patrons in the way of both financial and political support; and it would seem that explicit references to such expectations became more frequent in the poetry of the later Ghaznavid period. Here I propose to examine the poetry of two Ghaznavid panegyrists — FarruÌi Sistani (d. after 421/1032-3) and Ütman MuÌtari (d. after 513/1119) — in the hope that a comparison of the two will shed light on changing patterns of patronage. The aspiration of most poets was to obtain entrée to a court; the higher the court, the more desirable the entrée. The service of local princes, provincial governors, important officials and the like was often a preliminary stage in the rise to service of a more important ruler. Despite some charming stories — such as Îamd Allah Mustawfi's account of Firdawsi's supposed encounter with the Ghaznavid court poets ÜnÒuri, FarruÌi and Äsgadi5 — we may assume that it was rare for a poet simply to present himself at court, recite his verses, and be made welcome. Normally, the poet would seek out a person of standing at the court, address poems to him, and entreat his recommendation to the ruler. What appears to change during the period under study is not this basic procedure, but the increase in importance of what might be called second- or third-tier patrons, through whom the poet might seek the royal patronage to which he aspired. * * * 4 Roy P. Mottahedeh, Loyalty and Leadership in an Early Islamic Society, Princeton, 1980. 5 Îamd Allah Mustawfi Qazwini, TariÌ-i guzida, ed. Äbd al-Îusayn Navaî, Tehran, 1960, p. 738. THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 93

Our knowledge of FarruÌi's early life comes chiefly from NiÂami Äru∂i's account in his Cahar Maqala;6 the rest of the poet's career must be reconstructed from his poetry.7 According to NiÂami Äru∂i, FarruÌi's father had been a gulam of the Saffarid ruler of Sistan, Îalaf ibn AÌmad; FarruÌi himself was employed by a local dihqan.8 Wishing to marry, he asked for an increase in salary; dissatisfied by his employer's response, he decided to improve his situation by entering the service of the MuÌtagid prince Abu l- MuÂaffar AÌmad Cagani, a vassal of MaÌmud of Ghazna (388-421/998-1030) and a noted patron of poets.9 He arrived at the Amir's court on the occasion of Nawruz 406/ 1016 (which coincided with Ïd al-Fi†r),10 and presented the Amir with two of his most famous qaÒidas. The first congratulates the Amir on Nawruz and makes a plea for his favour (the poet has travelled a long way, he says, in the hope that the Amir will accept his service);11 the second describes the Amir's branding-ground (daggah).12 In a third poem to the Amir, composed for Mihragan of the same year, the poet expresses his gratitude for the Amir's gifts of robes and other tokens of honour (Ìilät), gold, and, especially, a horse, which have added much to his status.13 We need not repeat the details of how FarruÌi won acceptance at the Amir Abu l-MuÂaffar's court.14 What is important is that he had the help of an intermediary: the Amir's katÌuda, the Ämid Sayyid Asäd, to whom FarruÌi submitted his first Nawruz poem to the Amir, who demanded that he compose the second poem (on the branding- ground) to prove his poetic ability, and who (says NiÂami Äru∂i) told the Amir that FarruÌi was the best poet since Daqiqi.15 FarruÌi addressed two qaÒidas to the Ämid. The first was clearly composed for the same Nawruz;16 in the second, which has an

6 NiÂami Äru∂i, The Chahár Maqála (“Four Discourses”), trans. Edward G. Browne, Hertford, 1899, pp. 58-66. 7 Here I rely heavily on the research of Ms. G. Tetley for her D.Phil. thesis, “Panegyric Poetry in Per- sian as Evidence for Political and Social History…the Poetry of Farrukhi Sistani and Amir Muïzzi” (in progress). 8 Îalaf was removed by MaÌmud of Ghazna in ∑afar 393/December 1002, after which Sistan became a Ghaznavid province. It is unclear why de Blois thinks that FarruÌi was a slave (François de Blois, Persian Literature: A Bio-Bibliographical Survey, vol. 5 part 2: Poetry to ca. A.D. 1100, London, 1992, p. 109). 9 On Abu l-MuÂaffar AÌmad (or MuÌammad) Cafiani see C.E. Bosworth, “The Rulers of Chagha- niyan in Early Islamic Times,” Iran 19, 1981, pp. 11-12. Bosworth notes the confusion of names in the sources, and argues that this prince must have been Abu l-MuÂaffar MuÌammad, the son of Abu Äli AÌmad Cafiani. 10 See de Blois, Persian Literature, p. 109. The EI2 article (“Farru*i Sistani” [Cl. Huart/H. Massé] is clearly incorrect in stating that FarruÌi took Daqiqi's place as the Amir's panegyrist after that poet's death in 377/987-8. 11 FarruÌi Sistani, Diwan, ed. Äli Äbd al-Rasuli, Tehran, 1932, pp. 31-3. 12 Ibid., pp. 177-82. 13 Ibid., pp. 221-3. Compare NiÂami Äru∂i (Chahár Maqála, p. 66), who states that after the branding-ground episode (n. 14 below) the Amir ordered that the poet be given “a horse and equipments suitable to a man of rank, as well as a tent, three camels, wearing apparel, and carpets.” Îilät means, literally, a robe of honour (so called because it is often doffed by the patron and bestowed on the client), but includes other gifts; see EI2, art. “*ilä”. 14 For the account of how FarruÌi was asked by the Amir, at the branding-ground, to catch as many colts as he could, and how he did so using his turban, see ibid., pp. 65-6. 15 Ibid., p. 43; on the Ämid Asäd's role in introducing FarruÌi into the Amir's court see ibid., pp. 60-6. 16 FarruÌi, Diwan, pp. 190-1; the coincidence between Nawruz and Ïd al-Fi†r is noted in the final line. 94 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI autumnal nasib, the poet laments his separation from the Ämid's court. But although he is physically distant, he will not “abandon custom [rasm] without excuse,” but ever sends a new encomium. If he has not come himself, it is because “a small and new excuse [ü∂raki taza] has presented itself to me;” but since his separation from the Ämid's court, he suffers “each moment a separate grief.” It is clear that, by this time, the poet had moved on.17 How FarruÌi acquired his position at the Ghaznavid court remains a mystery; nothing in his Diwan gives any clear indication of the circumstances. François de Blois states that, shortly after arriving at the MuÌtagid court, the poet “transferred his allegiance yet again [sic] to an even more powerful patron, Sul†an MaÌmud,” to whom the majority of his panegyrics were dedicated, although he also composed “eulogies of MaÌmud's two successors, MuÌammad and Masüd.”18 This is not quite correct. Of the qaÒidas composed for members of the Ghaznavid house, 43 are addressed to MaÌmud, 39 to his brother Amir Yusuf, one to his brother and governor of Khurasan Amir Abu l-MuÂaffar NaÒr (d. 410/1021), 46 to MuÌammad and 12 to Masüd, both before and after their re- spective accessions to the throne.19 Various officials of the Ghaznavid court are also praised. Moreover, the assumption of “transfer of allegiance” does not account for the implications of leaving the service of one patron for that of another — implications sug- gested by the lines quoted above, in which FarruÌi addresses his apologies not to the Amir, but to the Ämid Asäd, who facilitated his entrée to the MuÌtagid court.20 FarruÌi's first datable panegyric to MaÌmud celebrates that ruler's victory over the Khwarazmians at Hazarasp in ∑afar 408/July 1017.21 It was composed, not directly after the event, but (apparently) for the Mihragan festival of that year. It must therefore have taken the poet nearly a year to become sufficiently well established to offer a panegyric to MaÌmud; he must also have had to ingratiate himself with MaÌmud's malik al-suära ÜnÒuri (d. 430?/1038-9?), who composed a qaÒida on the same occasion.22 Here, rather than attempting a chronology of FarruÌi's panegyrics (some can be dated on the basis of internal evidence, but many others cannot), I propose to deal with those addressed to his major patrons, beginning with Amir Yusuf, who might possibly have been FarruÌi's sponsor at court, who was certainly one of his most important patrons, and with whom he was more or less of the same age.23 17 Ibid., p. 5. Whether FarruÌi was actually in Ghazna at this time is unclear, but it seems doubtful. A qi†ä suggests a visit to Samarqand at some point (ibid., p. 435); this would have been unlikely had he been established at the Ghaznavid court. 18 De Blois, Persian Literature, pp. 109-10. 19 Based on my own count of the qaÒidas in the edition of Äbd al-Rasuli. G. Tetley gives a slightly different count: 44 to MaÌmud, 45 to MuÌammad, 41 to Yusuf, 12 to Masüd. 20 Presumably the Amir could have had little to say about the poet's “transferring his allegiance” to the suzerain to whom he himself owed allegiance. Abandoning a personal sponsor to whom the poet owed a debt of gratitude would, however, have been a different matter. 21 On this event see MuÌammad NaÂim, The Life and Times of Sultan MaÌmud of Ghazna, New Delhi, 1971, p. 59. 22 See ÜnÒuri, Diwan, ed. YaÌya Qarib, Tehran, 1944, pp. 48-51. It appears that MaÌmud's court poets were required to produce panegyrics celebrating the same occasion or event; a comparative study of such parallel poems in the Diwans of ÜnÒuri and FarruÌi would undoubtedly prove rewarding. 23 That Yusuf was FarruÌi's sponsor must remain speculation; but there is a parallel with ÜnÒuri, whose first sponsor was MaÌmud's brother Abu l-MuÂaffar NaÒr. See, for example, ÜnÒuri, Diwan, p. 35 (in a qaÒida composed for Sada): “From your customs I learned to be a poet; through praising you my name THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 95

FarruÌi's expressions of gratitude to Amir Yusuf strongly suggest that prince's sponsorship. The poet states that he had travelled the world for years, consumed with anxiety for his livelihood, until “fortune showed me the way to your service, and said: ‘Don't wander any more.'”24 The prince's generosity and good deeds towards him are “a mountain-like barrier between myself and need;” he was like a thirsting man lost in the desert, until the Amir's generosity “gave me water, and showed me the way to a garden sweeter than the season of youth.”25 The prince has “elevated me to the (level of) the heavenly sphere, and raised my worth beyond (that of) the moon.”26 Most kings give poets gifts [Ìvasta ]“at that time when they compose for them encomia like pearls;” but the Amir ordered that he be given a Ìilät from among his own robes, and dinars, when praise of him “had not (yet) occurred to my mind,” as well as a stipend (Òilat) “brilliant as the sun, beautiful as the moon.” Even though he deserved bad treatment because of his “shortcoming”, the Amir treated him well, and from now on he must forever express his gratitude.27 Elsewhere he states that the Amir's magnificence “has borne me to the clouds,” and declares that he must marry so as to have a son who will preserve the ben- efits he has received from the prince. He also mentions a horse, which MaÌmud had given him (along with other gifts) “for the honour of serving you [Yusuf], so that I might go with you, equipped, on campaign,” and for which Amir Yusuf had provided bridle and saddle.28 FarruÌi also alludes to his multiple obligations: “FarruÌi, if you would seek a good name, frequent [the Amir's] court; think of no other service….Go swiftly to him from the sultan's gate when you have sung the praise of the magnificent sultan.”29 Congratulating the Amir on recovery from an illness, the poet exhorts himself: “Live happily, FarruÌi, who have such a lord; don't sell the glory of his service for the world's wealth; among the princes of the world, turn only to his service.”30 And when, after a month's absence from the prince's court, another poet asked him, “Why do you go to (praise) no one? became famous. Before I was no one, and no one knew of me.” FarruÌi composed only one panegyric for Amir NaÒr, perhaps to avoid competition with ÜnÒuri (see FarruÌi, Diwan, pp. 300-1; although the rubric states that the qaÒida was addressed to Amir Yusuf, the mamduÌ is clearly identified as “sipahdar-i Îurasan Abu l-MuÂaffar NaÒr.” The poem was evidently composed for Mihragan. 24 Diwan, p. 202. MaÌmud's rule is said to extend “from Qannawj to Ahvaz;” MaÌmud's Qannawj campaign (on which the poet accompanied him) took place in 410/1019-20 (see NaÂim, Life, pp. 110-15). The Ïd is also mentioned; possibly that of 411/January 1020? Although the rubric includes Yusuf's title Ä∂ud al-Dawla (which the caliph bestowed on him in late 417/1026), he is not addressed by this title in the poem. 25 Diwan, p. 13; composed for Mihragan. 26 Ibid., p. 136; as Amir Yusuf is addressed by his title Ä∂ud al-Dawla, the poem must date to 417/ 1026 or later. 27 Diwan, p. 138; a Nawruz poem, composed in or after 417/1026. The word for “shortcoming”, taqÒir, occurs frequently in the poetry, and connotes failure to fulfill an obligation dictated by the client-patron relationship. 28 Diwan, p. 136; 417/1026 or later. As Amir Yusuf is addressed by his title Ä∂ud al-Dawla, the poem cannot (as G. Tetley suggests) refer to MaÌmud's Kashmir campaign of 412/1021-2, in which FarruÌi travelled in Yusuf's train. A curious passage in another qaÒida (ibid., p. 285) refers to Yusuf's exploits in India and, more specifically, to his commanding the poet to stay behind there, take charge of some elephants, and fatten them up. 29 Ibid., p. 220; composed for Nawruz; 417/1026 or later. 30 Ibid., p. 392; 417/1026 or later. 96 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI

There are poets who always seize people along the road. In this victorious state there are all sorts of people; praise them in verse, and ask for stipends and gifts [Ìil¨at],” he replied: “They are like stars, and Malik Yusuf the moon; I don't recognize stars, when I always see the moon. I, who have become famous through adoring him, will not bend my back in homage to just anyone. In this service I have (found) great status, which I will not sell for money or worldly goods.”31 Such protestations of loyalty suggest that the poet may not always have been able to juggle competing demands for his services success- fully. It is not clear when FarruÌi became attached to the service of Amir MuÌammad;32 but at some point this seems to have rankled with Amir Yusuf. In a qaÒida addressed jointly to the two (the rubric states, Dar Ìasb-i Ìal u malal-i Ìa†ir-i Amir Yusuf u mahgur mandan az Ìidmat dar sih sal u safa¨at-i Amir MuÌammad), FarruÌi describes the arrival of spring — a spring “which confers no obligation [minnat],” a “Paradise which has no gatekeeper.” This spring in all respects surpasses last year's, whose beauties failed to please the poet because he was grieved by his separation “from a personage [Ìa∂rati] whose auspicious service brought me both fame and bread,” and from whose service he was never absent. “At banquets [bazm] he would tell me, ‘Come, play the lute;' at feasts [gasn] he would tell me, ‘Come, recite poetry.'” If the poet erred, the prince would not grow angry; if angry, he would not withhold his beneficence. But a slanderer's words separated him from that prince, who is both Ìaqq-sinas u Ìirmat-dan — i.e., knowledge- able of the rights due to others, and according them due respect. After three years, the poet begged Amir MuÌammad to intercede for him. He relates the whole tale to him, skillfully incorporating praise of Amir Yusuf which includes a reference to his appoint- ment as military governor of Khurasan (in 412/1021), and a prediction of future victories against the Îan of Turkistan. This is followed by his apology: “If I have been absent from your service for a long while,” the poet says, “at least I was not serving your en- emy; I was in the service of a king who is of one heart with you” — namely, MuÌammad, whom he has heard Yusuf praise “a thousand times” as being “like a jewel in a mine.” “Since the house of both of you is one,” he asks, “what harm is my coming and going from one to the other?”33 FarruÌi is full of praise for MuÌammad's generosity. If, through praising this MuÌammad, the poet is equal in honour to the Prophet MuÌammad's panegyrist Îassan ibn ™abit, in respect to wealth he has received in one week, for just one panegyric, more than Nabiga received from Nu¨man in a lifetime.34 He thanks the prince for bestowing his own robe upon him: “What greater honour? You have decked me out like a many-colored peacock; only a ruler [tagdar] wears your robe.”35 In an amusing

31 Ibid., p. 351. 32 This may possibly have been after MuÌammad was made governor of Guzganan in 418/1018; a Nawruz poem equates his arrival there with that of spring (ibid., pp. 109-11). 33 Ibid., pp. 285-8. The fact that Yusuf is not addressed by the title ¨A∂ud al-Dawla, the reference to the (recent) entrusting to him of the armies of Khurasan, and the prediction of forthcoming campaigns against the Îan of Turkistan, would place the poem somewhere between 411/1021 and 415/1024-5. 34 Ibid., p. 279. Al-Nabiga al-∆ubyani (6th c.) was panegyrist to the Lakhmid king of Hira, al-Nu¨man III ibn Mun∂ir (580-602). 35 Ibid., p. 376. MuÌammad is identified as MaÌmud's vali-¨ahd; the poem must therefore date from the last years of MaÌmud's reign (see C. E. Bosworth, The Ghaznavids: Their Empire in Afghanistan and Eastern Iran, 2nd ed., Beirut, 1973, pp. 227-8). THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 97 account he tells how MuÌammad, while hunting, learned that the poet had burst into tears at the the sight of a gazelle which reminded him of his beloved, and sent him one of his own “gazelles”.36 MuÌammad's has made the poet so rich that he is sought after by those in need.37 And in a qaÒida which recalls another to Amir Yusuf quoted above, he states that MaÌmud had provided him with means and equipment for a campaign, but that he squandered it. “I am going to observe the war; perhaps, out of your generosity, you will provide me with a horse and the means to travel….Before this the king used not to command you to go to war, for he had not seen how bold and brave you are; but he has done so this year, so go, that he may know what a courageous lion you are.”38 But such praise is not always unmixed. In one qaÒida, after expressing his gratitude for Amir MuÌammad's continual largesse (thanks to which he has a splended house, beautiful slaves, and fine horses), the poet continues: “I will make the outward sign of that status and grandeur I have gained from you the qaba which you are going to give me.” He has not asked for the qaba “out of rudeness [bi-adabi],” he insists, nor to suggest that MuÌammad should do something without precedent, but because “your father, ruler of the east, king of the world, made me happy in this way; so do as your father did, for that which he gave his panegyrists confers nobility.”39 It is clear that princes sometimes needed reminding of their clients' expectations. It is also clear that things did not always run smoothly. In a qaÒida to MuÌammad composed when the poet was apparently out of favour, FarruÌi states, “Although that place where you sent me today is your house, and I feel no separation, still, what shall I do when I long for your court? Show your slave a way, and relieve me of this grief. O king, when I do not see your court for a single day, this world becomes for me now a grave, now a prison….Do not make me de- spair of your affection, O king, may my life be sacrificed for you.” Such words must be tempered; so he asserts, “I said this out of sorrow; for out of sorrow (those words) that the heard wishes come to the tongue.”40 In several qaÒidas addressed to MuÌammad after he became sultan,41 FarruÌi emphasizes both his legitimacy and the loyalty of his supporters — among them, of course, the poet himself. “Whoever obtains his auspicious service becomes of auspicious fortune and obtains his desire. Like me, there are more than a thousand, more than a hundred thousand, who through the glory of serving him have made their affairs (sweet) as the harp.”42 In what may be one of his last panegyrics to MuÌammad he asserts: “All that I have I owe to the glory of that king, foremost among kings,” and “Thanks be to God that today I am in this place.”43 It is clear that FarruÌi had a long and close

36 Diwan, pp. 105-6. 37 Ibid., p. 117. 38 Ibid., p. 380. G. Tetley suggests that the poet refers to an expedition to Kashmir planned some time after 412/1023 which probably never took place. 39 Ibid., pp. 39-40. 40 Ibid., p. 281. 41 On the circumstances of MaÌmud's contested succession see NaÂim, Life, pp. 000. On several poems by FarruÌi which relate to these circumstances see J.S. Meisami, “Ghaznavid Panegyrics: Some Political Implications,” Iran 28, 1990, pp. 36-9. 42 Diwan, p. 211. 43 Ibid., pp. 107, 109; composed for ¨Id al-Fi†r 420/1031, three days before MuÌammad's arrest by Mas¨ud's supporters. Cf. Meisami, “Ghaznavid Panegyrics,” pp. 36-8. 98 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI association with that party at court known as the “MaÌmudiyan”.44 Moreover, his qaÒidas to Yusuf and MuÌammad exhibit an intimacy of tone which, in general, is not seen in those composed for MaÌmud, with whom his relations appear to have been somewhat more formal. FarruÌi regularly produced poems for the major occasions of court life; he also accompanied MaÌmud on his campaigns, which he often described in detail. There are fewer personal references to MaÌmud's generosity such as are found in qaÒidas to the two princes; more often FarruÌi voices generalized praise of the ruler's extraordinary largesse to his supporters. In what may be an early poem, he asks MaÌmud to equip him so he can accompany him on campaign, and to give him a place in his retinue.45 In another, he addresses an imaginary interlocutor who keeps asking him how he stands with the sultan: “Why do you ask in vain about something you know? What use are words, when you know of the deeds? Or if you say, ‘Words are necessary to express gratitude,' yes, words are useful in expressing gratitude.” The poet is prosperous and happy because of the ruler's favour; he is “better off today than yesterday, better off this year than last.” He has property and a fine house, comforts and equipment, horses, herds of sheep, beautiful slaves, the means both to travel and to stay at home (including “swift mounts and laden beasts of burden”), a magnificent tent and rich carpets. He is the envy of all the nobles and amirs; such are the rewards for service to MaÌmud, the latest of whose ex- travagant gifts is a horse, which is no mere horse, “but a source of glory.”46 Two (probably late) poems include complaints. In one, FarruÌi stresses that nothing is more precious to him than serving the ruler, and that he will do so as long as he lives. “If I pass out through this door, I will have abandoned the straight path. My heart is in love with the shadow of magnificence and importance; and in this service I am under [that] shadow. My friends are noble men, and I am called a poet; yes, I am a poet, but the equal of noble men.” He enumerates the ruler's gifts: fine riding horses, beautiful slaves, silver and gold, all from the honour of serving MaÌmud. For more than thirteen years (he continues) he has “been present in this prosperous court,” serving the ruler at home and accompanying him on campaign. He does not say this to remind the king of his services (“for such would not be proper”), but so that people might know how many years he has served MaÌmud. Yesterday someone asked him how much salary (igr) he received from the Amir; he replied, “My salary is greater than my talent; but for two years now the Amir has ordered neither bread for me nor barley for my horse.” But he rejects his “friend's” offer to provide these, because he cannot serve the Amir and “take bread” from another.47 In the second poem he addresses the ruler's nadims and the nobles of his court. “I too am one of the sultan's servants, though today I am no longer among you; but I need

44 That is, MaÌmud's close associates and friends, who supported MuÌammad's designation as vali- ähd and his accession. 45 Diwan., p. 342. 46 Ibid., p. 83. 47 Ibid., pp. 233-5. If FarruÌi entered MaÌmud's service in 407/1016-17, and MaÌmud died in 421/ 1030, the poet would have served thirteen years. He was possibly out of favour at this time, or MaÌmud was otherwise preoccupied, perhaps suffering from the lingering illness of which he eventually died (see NaÂim, Life, pp. 123-5). THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 99 to speak to you.” Once, he says, “the world-ruler held me dear; day and night my name was on his tongue….I heard ‘bravos' for my gazals, and received rewards for my praise.” He “used to enjoy a spring without fear of autumn,” and “had gardens full of roses and fields full of poppies;” but “a wind arose from the mountain and destroyed all, and mothing remains but grief and suffering, as if it had all been a dream.” Deprived of the sight of the king, he is like Adam deprived of the gardens of Paradise. He relates at length how the king became angry with him because some “slanderer” told him that the poet had been seen drinking “in such and such a place, with a certain person;” he protests his innocence, and pleads for the sultan's mercy.48 While several of FarruÌi's qaÒidas to MaÌmud's ultimate successor Masüd date from prior to his accession, most appear to have been composed after he became sultan. In only one is there a specific reference to Masüd's generosity towards the poet, who states: “O king, my heart was full of hope, and my cheeks wan from worry — (but) not from having toiled in this service, as this kindness makes incumbent on me. You made me happy, and filled my house with carpets, wealth and vessels; I adorned my house through your favour…”.49 In another there is a somewhat oblique, and slightly back- handed, reference in the nasib: when the poet's beloved tells him, “Ask for wine, and don't go to wait (upon the ruler) today,” he responds: “He thought I would exchange an obligation for an impossibility. He didn't know that I am bound to the Sultan's service both by my heart's desire and by money.”50 FarruÌi's panegyrics to other members of MaÌmud's court can be mentioned only briefly. A significant number are addressed to his fellow Sistani, MaÌmud's boon-com- panion Abu Bakr ÎaÒiri; several of these stress ÎaÒiri's Sistani origins. In one, a Nawruz poem, the poet states that both Sistan and the whole world are honoured by the “Îvaga Sayyid”, and predicts that “when [MaÌmud] sets his face towards us [in Ghazna] from that campaign on which he has gone….he will send you a royal Ìilät and a writ. If this poem I have composed is like rosewater, on him I will fashion a poem like sugar; for I know how to congratulate a ruler.” He concludes by thanking ÎaÒiri for his favour: through the patron's status and magnificence he himself has gained both status and importance.51 This last statement suggests that ÎaÒiri may have been influential in introducing FarruÌi into MaÌmud's court; but this must remain speculation. FarruÌi also addressed a number of panegyrics to MaÌmud's sometime vizier AÌmad ibn Îasan Maymandi, whom MaÌmud removed and imprisoned in 416/1025, but who was reinstated by Masüd at the beginning of his reign.52 An early poem tells how the poet, returning from a sea journey, hastened “to serve the vizier, that most generous of patrons,” in the expectation that he would provide the poet with provisions and equipment for travel.53 The later poems emphasize FarruÌi's past service, and show that his connections with Maymandi, and with his family, were of long

48 Diwan, pp. 269-71. 49 Ibid., p. 395; composed for Mihragan, probably 422/1031. 50 Ibid., p. 399. 51 Ibid., p. 174; see also pp. 176-7 (for Ïd-i Fi†r); pp. 46-7 (for Ïd-i Fi†r). 52 On Maymandi's career see NaÂim, Life, pp. 135-6. 53 Diwan, p. 243. 100 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI standing.54 In one, after recalling his “long years of service” to the vizier and his family, he announces his wish to retire. “I have grown old in the palace of your sons, and in your service; it's time for me to retire to a little villa [kuskaki] to live out the rest of my life in peace, to have a small occupation [suglaki] which, because of where it is, would provide the means (both) to travel and to live at home;” he asks the vizier for a pack-horse [baragi] so as to make this possible.55 In another, which begins, “O you whose magnificence and state have raised me to high status,” he continues: “Your long-time servant should not be absent from this court one day or one night,” but should sometimes “play the barbu† softly,” sometimes “extemporise poetry in your maglis.” He begs the vizier to forgive his shortcomings (for which he has “both good and bad excuses”): “Don't say, ‘So-and-so was once my servant, but now, from month to month, does not even pass by my gate.' I am still your servant, nay, now, even more so; so it is, and God knows what is in my heart. I was a child, and have grown old in your service….If I do not utter poetry, it is not because my heart has be ruined for you and your service.”56 FarruÌi may have turned to Maymandi for support after Masüd's accession; because of his close association with MuÌammad and Yusuf (and in view of Masüd's notoriously vindictive nature), he might not have felt secure in his position at that ruler's court. A qaÒida addressed to a certain Îvaga Îusayn ibn Äli contains explicit references to that patron's generosity. He “is rarely deficient in his awarding of stipends and gifts,” says the poet, and continues: “I am that person who was unknown to anyone; but I became well-regarded in his eyes and in his maglis. I hastened to Balkh to serve him, as Mutanabbi (hastened) to Kafur, and returned home as did Moses from Sinai. With one gift to me he made me without need.” Now he is rich in slaves and riding-beasts, has fine clothing, expensive carpets, and so on, as the Îvaga's patronage (ïnayat) “has freed me from grief.” He laments his present separation from the patron, and prays that God may “make me rejoice with sight of him; for although the sultan's court is to my eyes the heavens, without the Ìvaga's presence it has no light.”57 It would be tempting to view this as an early poem; for Îusayn ibn Äli may well be the Mikali of that name whom MaÌmud, after his victory in Khwarazm, charged with bringing the scholars of the Maˆmunid court to him in Balkh.58 But the correspondence of the Ïd and Mihragan suggests a later date: Sawwal 422/September 1031, a year after Masüd's accession.

* * *

54 See, for example, ibid., pp. 155-7 (Mihragan 422/1031), where the poet refers (no doubt exaggerat- ing) to his “twenty years of service” to the vizier. FarruÌi addressed a particularly fine qaÒida to Maymandi's brother ManÒur ibn Îasan, the governor of Bust (Diwan, pp. 335-9), and several others to his son Äbd al- Razzaq (see ibid., pp. 17-19, 43-4, 160-1, 162-3). 55 Ibid., p. 158 (eve of Ïd-i Fi†r 422/1031). 56 Ibid., pp. 360-1; the rubric states, “Dar madÌ-i Îvaja-yi Buzurg u üzr-i taqÒir-i Ìidmat.” 57 Ibid., pp. 198-9; for Ïd al-Fi†r/Mihragan. 58 See Mohamed Shafi‘, “The Sons of Mikal,” Proceedings of the Idára-i-Ma‘árif-i Islámia (First Session), Lahore, 1933, pp. 142-3. In the final line of a Nawruz qaÒida (composed after 417/1026) addressed to Amir Yusuf's vizier, Îvaga Abu Sahl Äbd Allah ibn AÌmad ibn Lakshan, FarruÌi states: “May God make the beginning of the new year auspicious for you, for me, and for my Îvaga Îusayn” (Diwan, p. 328); this suggests that “Îvaga Îusayn” may have been connected with Yusuf's court. THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 101

Following Masüd I's defeat by the Saljuqs in 421/1040, his retreat to India, and his murder in the following year, there seems to have been somewhat of a hiatus in poetry both in what remained of the Ghaznavid domains and in the regions conquered by the Saljuqs.59 Writing around 451/1059-60, the historian Bayhaqi states that, when he was looking for an appropriate poem with which to adorn a particular section of his work, he could not find any, as all the old poets were dead, and no new ones had as yet replaced them. He finally made the acquaintance of Abu IsÌaq Iskafi, whom he introduced (with some difficulty) into the court of Sultan Ibrahim (451-92?/1059-99?).60 It was perhaps slightly later that Abu l-Farag Runi (d. after 485/1102) sought to gain entreé to Ibrahim's court.61 Runi's poems do not concern us here; but we may note that, as compared to ear- lier poets, they contain a relatively high incidence of passages of Ìasb-i Ìal and of explicit requests for patronage and support. This is true as well of the poetry of MuÌtari. Galal al-Din Humaî has argued that neither Ibrahim nor his successor Masüd III were particularly enthusiastic patrons of poetry.62 Although MuÌtari acquired several patrons from amongst the officials at the court of Ghazna, he seems to have been dissatisfied with the state of things there. At some time between 490-93/1097-1101 he went to India and addressed panegyrics to the governors MuÌammad ibn Îa†ib in Qusdar and Masüd-i Sa¨d-i Salman in Lahore. He then went to Balkh, where he addressed various notables, and finally to Kirman, where he remained for some three years in the service of the Saljuq ruler Muïzz al-Din Arslansah Qawurdi, and also composed panegyrics for various officials and local rulers.63 Ultimately, however, he made a bid to return to Ghazna.64 He did so when a fatÌnama celebrating Masüd III's recent victories in India arrived in Kirman. MuÌtari composed a lengthy congratulatory qaÒida, which he sent to the Ghaznavid ruler via his vizier Qu†b al-Din Yusuf ibn Ya¨qub, who, he hoped, would transmit it to the ruler and intercede for him in obtaining a place at court.65 In it he states,

59 The first major Saljuq poet whose Diwan has come down to us is Maliksah's panegyrist Muïzzi (d. after 542/1147-8?). On Muïzzi's father Burhani, panegyrist to Alp Arslan, and on Muïzzi's difficulties in gaining court patronage, see NiÂami Äru∂i, Chahár Maqála, pp. 67-70. 60 Abu l-Fa∂l Bayhaqi, TariÌ-i Bayhaqi, ed. Äli Akvar Fayya∂, Mashhad, 1971, p. 853. Bayhaqi records two of Iskafi's poems: one a retrospective panegyric of the Ghaznavids, the other a panegyric to Ibrahim. 61 Runi's Diwan presents many problems in respect of patronage, as many of his addressees are not clearly named. Six (?) of his poems are addressed to Ibrahim; see Diwan, ed. L. Chaykhin, Tehran, 1925, pp. 44, 60-1, 73-4, 86-7, 87-9, 104-5 (?). 62 Galal al-Din Humaî, MuÌtarinama, Tehran, 1981?, p. 185. Humaî also states that these rulers seem to have paid little attention to keeping the old Iranian festivals, and that it was Arslansah who revived the bazm u razm image of the ruler (ibid., pp. 203-4). In view of the number of poems addressed to Masüd, both as governor of India and as sultan, by Runi and by Masüd-i Sa¨d-i Salman, this would seem to require further investigation. 63 In one of these, a Mihragan qaÒida to the Buyid prince Ä∂ud al-Dawla Fana-Îusraw, MuÌtari states that he sends the prince a poem four times a year: “Description of idols and wine at the turn of the year [Hijri?] and the feast [Ïd al-Fi†r]; description of spring and summer at Nawruz and Mihragan” (Diwan, ed. Jalal al-Din Humaî, Tehran, 1962, pp. 459-60). 64 Humaî speculates that MuÌtari may have displeased Masüd by his preference for the court of Kirman and his views on the unsuitability of the Ghaznavid court; otherwise, he asks, why would he have had to wait for the ruler's order before returning, seek out intermediaries to press his suit, and so on (MuÌtarinama, p. 186). 65 See ibid., p. 210. 102 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI

“Although here this slave has some small respect because of (his association with) that noble court, should the good tidings come of the acceptance (there) of this separated one…he would turn from (this) dark earth towards the garden of Paradise, from burning sands to the fountain of life.”66 In a lengthy qaÒida sent to the vizier at the same time, he praises that notable as patron and as arbiter of taste: “Without your gold-scattering hand and fine judgement of eloquence, nobility would have perished and the poets' profession been lost.” He continues: “Should these words be honoured by your hearing, they will also be regarded by the ruler; and now, should you accept my service, I will find my goal, and rest from journeying. Should you convey that fatÌnama to the king's ear, it will be the key to fortune and the augury of triumph; and should you, O vizier, take charge of [tarbiyat] my affairs, so my abode moves from hell to Paradise; you will have planted a root the top of whose tree will, in virtue's spring, one day reach the sun; and when the flower of its praise blossoms in the garden of verse, it will remain blooming everywhere eternally.”67 But it was not until the accession of Mas¨ud's son Arslansah in 509/1116 that MuÌtari returned to Ghazna.68 Of the approximately 129 qaÒidas in his Diwan, at least 26 are addressed to Arslansah, whose eighteen-months' reign was ended by the victory and assumption of rule by his younger brother Bahramsah. Arslansah made MuÌtari his malik al-su¨ara and crowned him as his “king of poets.” In a qaÒida to Arslansah MuÌtari states: “Two poems of mine found the honour of the Sultan's hearing, and I became rich through the king's royal gifts.”69 Elsewhere, he refers to his past service in Kirman, and vigorously denies a rumour that he might return there, from whence he had fled and where only danger awaits him; he loves “the dust of [Arslansah's] court” far more dearly than the kingdom of Kirman. “Don't listen to the words of enemies about your slaves,” he pleads, “for lions lie in wait for every weak one on the road.”70 In general, none of the poems to Arslansah are particularly informative about conditions of patronage; nor, it must be said, are they among MuÌtari's best. Arslansah's role in revitalizing court patronage of poets seems to have been minimal, which is perhaps not surprising, given the brevity of his reign. MuÌtari appears to have found no favour with Bahramsah, to whom he addressed only two poems.71 Although he attempted to find patronage further afield, at the Qarakhanid court of Samarqand, the degree of success he achieved is uncertain. When we compare MuÌtari's diwan with that of FarruÌi, what is immediately strik- ing is the high proportion of poems not addressed to rulers or members of the ruling

66 Diwan, p. 364. 67 Ibid., p. 179. 68 Masüd III was immediately succeeded by his son Sirzad, who was arrested and killed by Arslansah (also known as Malik Arslan), who ascended the throne on 6 Sawwal 509/22 Feb. 1116. His rule was contested by his brother Bahramsah, who defeated Arslansah in the winter of 511/1117-18. On the succession struggle see Ghulam Mustafa Khan, “A History of Bahram Shah,” Islamic Culture 23, 1949, pp. 69-79; C.E. Bosworth, The Later Ghaznavids: Splendour and Decay, New York, 1977, pp. 89-98. 69 Diwan, p. 281. 70 Ibid., p. 55; see also Humaî, MuÌtarinama, pp. 219-20. 71 See Diwan, pp. 82-5, 500-1. The latter poem has been interpreted as referring to an incident in which Bahramsah wounded the poet with an arrow; but this reading was perhaps invented to explain the poem. THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 103 house. Out of 129 qaÒidas, only 29 are addressed to reigning Ghaznavid sultans: 26 to Arslansah, two to Bahramsah, and one to Masüd III. Is this pure accident? I think not, because the same general impression arises when we look at the diwans of his close con- temporaries Sanaî and Masüd-i Sa¨d, at those of the Seljuq panegyrists Muïzzi and Anvari, and at MuÌtari's own poems from his Kirman period. It might be argued that this simply reflects a natural broadening of the base of patronage; but while this may be partly true, it does not account for the seeming indifference of many rulers to both the propagandistic and the memorializing functions of poetry — functions whose importance NiÂami Äru∂i (for example) takes pains to point out to his own Ghurid patrons.72 Moreover, those of MuÌtari's poems that are addressed to second- and third-tier patrons contain more frequent, and more extensive, passages of Ìasb-i Ìal, and more outright requests for support, than was the case with FarruÌi. Here we may briefly consider some of his qaÒidas composed for non-royal patrons. An early patron was ManÒur ibn Saïd, a grandson of AÌmad ibn Îasan Maymandi, who held the post of äri∂ under both Ibrahim and Masüd III, and who died in the first half of the latter's reign.73 The most significant and poignant testimony to his support of the poet is found in a qaÒida addressed to another of his MuÌtari's early supporters, the Sarhang MuÌammad ibn Äli. Lamenting ManÒur ibn Saïd's death, the poet turns to the Sarhang: “O noble lord, hear the state of your slave, whom the jesting world has placed in trouble. The pass- ing of my master [maÌdum], and the inallowability [na-rawaî] of poetry, have silenced speech… Since ManÒur ibn Saïd passed like the wind, my face is wrinkled as water rip- pled by the wind.” Music sounded to him like screeching; sweet wine left a bitter taste in his mouth; he no longer gloried in poetry, since praising “unchivalrous” persons seemed shameful. But “when the sphere saw that [ManÒur] had disappeared, and [other] men of virtue were betrayed, and honour remained to none, it guided me once more to good fortune, and said, ‘Go, grasp the skirt of that vizier. You will become the leader of nobles and the foremost among poets, when you place your head in the bonds of service to the sarhang.'”74 MuÌtari dedicated 14 qaÒidas — more than to any single individual with the exception of Arslansah — to Abu l-MuÂaffar MuÌammad, the son of the katÌuda of Masüd III's army Abu l-FatÌ MuÂaffar ibn Masüd, who was the poet's friend as well as patron, who was entrusted with looking after the poet's household and family during his absence in Kirman, and who acted as his intermediary in delivering panegyrics to Ghaznavid officials and remitting their payments to him.75 In one qaÒida, after boasting of his poetic brilliance, MuÌtari asks Abu l-MuÂaffar MuÌammad to accept his services as panegyrist: “Accept my poetic talent; but don't count me among (ordinary) poets.”76 In another, he expresses his confidence in Abu al-MuÂaffar's support: “Your slave has now left home

72 Chahár Maqála, pp. 45-8. 73 See Khan, “History,” pp. 226-7; de Bruijn, Piety, p. 44. 74 Diwan, p. 299.The Sarhang was the son of the general Abu Îalim Saybani and the brother of Rabi¨ Saybani; on his career (he was finally killed in battle, having rebelled against Bahramsah) see Khan, “His- tory,”, pp. 83-6. 75 See Humaî, MuÌtarinama, pp. 174-5. 76 Diwan, pp. 144-5. 104 JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI and family, and God (alone) knows when he will return; but since you will provide for his household and children, how should he grieve about these matters now?”77 Elsewhere he expresses his gratitude: “O you who have grasped my hand at every precipice, whose wealth has raised me above the (earth's) axis: your largesse made me strong and inde- pendent, after having long been helpless and distressed. I sold my life to praise you, because I found no better customer for praise.” He refers to his three years' absence in Kirman, made necessary by his need for money; but “why (did I have to) gain my bread from the offspring of slaves, (I ask you) O seeker of praise, patron of panegyrists?” “Seek justice for me from your own generosity,” he entreats; “be you witness, adversary and judge.” If not, he must resume his travels in search of livelihood.78 Yet MuÌtari also found it necessary to reproach Abu l-MuÂaffar for failing to provide support promptly: “Your servant and his child are destitute from lack of cash. Do your slave the favour of sending his praise to the lords of the diwan; in a word, quickly, as you promised, receive the writs of your servant's stipend, so that [his] affairs may be put in order through your efforts and their concern. When you are the ravi, no stipend will be fitting save a heap of gold in Ü†man's arms.”79 It is in another qaÒida to Abu l-MuÂaffar MuÌammad that we find an idealized pic- ture of the poet-patron relationship. Here, MuÌtari states that he should not repeat, “like other poets,” the customary encomiastic hyperboles (several of which he proceeds to list); nor should the patron “look at me in astonishment (and think), ‘What did he say? And what did he mean by it?'” The poet protests his absolute sincerity: “That which I see from you, I say the same,” he says, and goes on to describe the patron's joy at his praise poems: “When you hear that I am going to utter poetry in your name, you smile like the rose, and blossom like spring….When I recite poetry to you you listen with your heart's ear….And, before I've gone from the madÌ to the duä, you call for writing mate- rials and set to work. The first time that I was granted an audience by you, I had no more need for audience(s).”80 Yet the poet must also apologize for his “shortcoming” in failing to visit the patron during an illness. In so doing, he stresses the bonds of loyalty which unite poet and patron. “If I purchase the loyalty of noble men,” he states, “it is fitting that my code [madhab be nought but loyalty.” He will not exchange loyalty to the friend for the dinars of the foe, even though his face is “yellow as a dinar” from want. He will never be disloyal, for “it is not allowed that disloyalty should arise from MuÌtari's nature.” He recalls “that day when fate gave you to my soul as a friend; is it not ugly, in the code of chivalry, for the noble man to forget a good deed? Am I not that same person who, injured by poverty, escaped misery through the glory of your acceptance?” After much more of this, he makes his apology: “If I did not visit you during your illness, you should not hold this sin against me. Men fear your illness, since you are the essence of the turning sphere; but the sphere's time has not yet come to its end, so why should I fear for your life from illness?”81

77 Ibid., p. 71. 78 Ibid., p. 153. 79 Ibid., pp. 404-5. 80 Ibid., pp. 149-50. 81 Ibid., pp. 519-20. THE POET AND HIS PATRONS: TWO GHAZNAVID PANEGYRISTS 105

MuÌtari addressed many poems to other Ghaznavid officials which cannot be dis- cussed here. Suffice to say that many more examples might be cited of pleas for support and assistance, and that these would certainly merit more detailed study than is possible here.

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A comparison of the diwans of FarruÌi and MuÌtari leads to two conclusions: first, that the proportion of panegyric qaÒidas addressed to rulers and members of the ruling house decreases, in the later Ghaznavid period, in favour of those composed for second- and third-tier patrons; and second, that outright appeals for patronage and support increase in this period. This state of affairs, moreover, seems to be replicated under the Saljuqs. The conditions which produced it clearly require more extensive study; and such a study should be expanded to encompass other types of patronage: of literature of all types in verse and prose; of architecture (both secular and religious), objects, and so on. Only a more detailed study can support, or refute, the tentative conclusions reached in the present paper.