Bahá'u'lláh's Mathnavíy-i-Mubárak : Introduction and Provisional Verse Translation
Material type:
TextSubject(s):
In:
The Bahá'í Studies Review 9, 101-125Abstract: Bahá'u'lláh composed several formal poems in rhyme and meter. One of these, the Mathanvíy-i-Mubárak, concerns Bahá'u'lláh's disclosure of his station to the Bábís and humanity. Bahá'u'lláh's Mathnaví alludes to the world-famous work of the same name by Jalálu'd-Dín Rúmí, whose followers founded the spipritual confraternity known as the "Whirling Dervishes," which was active in Istanbul and Edirne during the time of Bahá'u'lláh's exile. This paper suggests the theological and rhetorical significance of Bahá'u'lláh's use of the discourse of Sufism, specifically Sunni Persian poetry; discusses the importance of Rumi among 19th century Iranians, in particular the Bábís and Bahá'ís; outlines the date and circumstances of composition of Bahá'u'lláh's work; proposes some factors to consider in establishing critical editions of the poems of Bahá'u'lláh; and theorizes aboutsome of the aesthetic factors to consider in translating the poetry of Bahá'u'lláh.
Bahá'u'lláh composed several formal poems in rhyme and meter. One of these, the Mathanvíy-i-Mubárak, concerns Bahá'u'lláh's disclosure of his station to the Bábís and humanity. Bahá'u'lláh's Mathnaví alludes to the world-famous work of the same name by Jalálu'd-Dín Rúmí, whose followers founded the spipritual confraternity known as the "Whirling Dervishes," which was active in Istanbul and Edirne during the time of Bahá'u'lláh's exile. This paper suggests the theological and rhetorical significance of Bahá'u'lláh's use of the discourse of Sufism, specifically Sunni Persian poetry; discusses the importance of Rumi among 19th century Iranians, in particular the Bábís and Bahá'ís; outlines the date and circumstances of composition of Bahá'u'lláh's work; proposes some factors to consider in establishing critical editions of the poems of Bahá'u'lláh; and theorizes aboutsome of the aesthetic factors to consider in translating the poetry of Bahá'u'lláh.