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Poet Laureateship of Astan Quds Razavi

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The Poet Laureateship of Astan Quds Razavi (Persian: مَلِک‌ُالشُّعَرایی آستان قدس رضوی) was one of the positions in Astan Quds Razavi, where the holder was appointed as the official poet of Astan Quds. The duty of the Poet Laureate (Malik al-Shu'ara) of Astan Quds was considered to be composing poetry in praise of Imam al-Rida (a) and reciting it in the ritual of Majlis-i Salam of the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Rida (a) and on national and religious celebrations and festivals.

A hemistich from the qasida of Qasim Rasa, the Poet Laureate of Astan Quds, in the Balasar Mosque of the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Rida (a). Photo: Sayyid Shahab al-Din Vajidi.

The context for the arrival of the position of Poet Laureate of Astan Quds is considered to be the develoment of compliment for Imam al-Rida (a) during the Safavid period. The Qajar period is considered the era of the comment of the Poet Laureate position of Astan Quds. There is no precise information about the time of the appointment of the first official Poet Laureate of Astan Quds in the Qajar period; however, sources mention names of some of them, such as Mirza Mina-yi Turbati and Mirza Muhammad Kazim Saburi. Qasim Rasa is counted as the last Poet Laureate of the Astan, and with his death in 1977, no one was appointed in his place.

The poems of the Poet Laureates of Astan Quds are considered a type of formal poetry and somewhat similar to the poems of aged court poets. The main form of these poems, like the main form of court poems, is reported to be Qasida, and the main content of these poems is the praise of the Imams (a) and Imam al-Rida (a). Despite criticisms regarding the courtly aspect of these poems, some of them are considered to possess literary value.

Nature and Context of Emergence

The Poet Laureateship of Astan Quds Razavi was one of the positions of Astan Quds Razavi[1] where the holder was appointed as the official poet of Astan Quds.[2] The duty of the Poet Laureate of Astan Quds was considered to be composing poetry in praise of Imam al-Rida (a) and reciting it in the ritual of Majlis-i Salam of the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Rida (a) and on national and religious celebrations and festivals.[3] Composing poetry and chronograms[4] for special events of the Astan[5] and for attachmentin the inscriptions of the Shrine[6] are listed as other duties of the Poet Laureates of the Astan.

The appearance of the position of Poet Laureate of Astan Quds Razavi is considered an adaptation of the existence of this position in the courts of kings.[7] Regarding the context of the appearance of the Poet Laureate position of Astan Quds, it is said that with the answer of Shi'ism in Iran during the Safavid period and the encouragement of religious poets by the kings of this family, and the expansion of the organization of Astan Quds and the establishment of customs and rituals in the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Rida (a), poets found more opportunity to praise Imam al-Rida (a).[8] This opportunity led some poets to confidentially focus their poems on the praise of Imam al-Rida (a), and their poems were used in variousconference of the Astan and the inscriptions of the Shrine.[9]

It is said that the position of Poet Laureate in Astan Quds Razavi had many spiritual and material benefits for the poet; this sometimes led to conflicts among poets who claimed this position.[10] Also, the celebrated and fame-bringing position of the Astan's Poet Laureate is considered the reason why rulers and Deputy Custodians of the Astan generally appointed individuals related to themselves to this position.[11]

The decree of Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar for the Poet Laureateship of Muhammad Kazim Saburi: Since His Excellency Mu'taman al-Mulk, the Chief Custodian of Sarkār-i Fayḍ, wrote a description of the expression and bombast of the honorable Mirza Kazim, pen-named Saburi, the servant of the first shift, and considered him worthy of the inflated rank of Poet Laureate of the Holy Astan... we have honored him with the position of Poet Laureate of the Holy Astan, adding to his rank and status through this favor. The angel-respected servants of the Throne-like Astan of the Imam... must consider him the Poet Laureate of the Holy Astan and observe admiration and respect for him befitting this rank and position.[12]

From Formalization in the Qajar Period to Decline in the Pahlavi Period

The Qajar period is considered the era of the formalization of the Poet Laureate position of Astan Quds Razavi; such that in this period, the title of Poet Laureate was officially granted to some poets of the Astan.[13] The process of appointing the Poet Laureate in this period is described as follows: the most skilled poet of the time in Astan Quds would be introduced to the court by the Astan, and the Shah's decree appointing him as the Poet Laureate of Astan Quds would be issued.[14] Then, a salary would be determined for him from the endowments of Astan Quds;[15] a salary that was sometimes in cash and sometimes in kind, and in addition, he would be given a reward as a robe of honor (khil'at) on some festivals.[16]

According to 'Ali Mu'taman, a researcher of Astan Quds, there is no precise information about the time of the appointment of the first official Poet Laureate for Astan Quds Razavi in the Qajar period; nor is there a reliable document for knowing their names.[17] However, it is said that relying on some sources,[18] it becomes clear that in 1284/1867-8, Mirza Mina-yi Turbati was the Poet Laureate of Astan Quds.[19]

According to some sources, after Mina's death, Mirza Muhammad Kazim Saburi was appointed to the position of Poet Laureate of Astan Quds Razavi.[20] According to I'timad al-Saltana (d. 1313/1896), a Qajar official, Saburi came to the attention of the governor of Khorasan due to a qasida he recited in the Salam Assembly on Eid al-Fitr 1284/1868.[21] After this, in 1294/1877, upon the proposal of Mirza Sa'id Khan Mu'taman al-Mulk Ansari, the then caretaker of Astan Quds, and by the order of Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar, he was appointed as Poet Laureate.[22]

According to Taqi Binish (d. 1995), a man of letters and editor of the journal Nama-yi Astan Quds, after Saburi's death in 1323/1905, the position of Poet Laureate remained vacant for a while, and competitions arose over it.[23] Finally, in 1324/1906, Muhammad Taqi Bahar, the son of Malik al-Shu'ara Saburi, attained this position by the decree of Muzaffar al-Din Shah Qajar.[24] It is reported that after Bahar's migration to Tehran, disputes over the title of Poet Laureate arose again; but eventually, Muhammad Husayn Mirza Naderi attained this position.[25] After Naderi's death in 1944, Qasim Rasa held the position of Poet Laureate of Astan Quds until his death in 1977.[26] With Rasa's death, no one else was chosen for this position.[27]

Document of salary payment to the Poet Laureate of Astan Quds, Muhammad Kazim Saburi, in 1303 AH/1885-6.

Characteristics of Poems and their Assessment

Taqi Binish considered the poems of the Poet Laureates of Astan Quds as a type of formal poetry and somewhat similar to the poems of ancient court poets.[28] In his view, the poetic form in these poems, like formal and court poems, was mostly Qasida.[29]

Binish considered the content of these poems to be mentioning the virtues of the Imams (a) and Imam al-Rida (a), sometimes accompanied by the praise of the custodian and deputy caretaker of the time.[30] According to him, although some literary critics have disapproved of the poems of the Poet Laureates of Astan Quds due to their association with the praise of rulers, there are many good and valuable examples among their poems.[31]

Notes

  1. ↑ Muʾtaman, Rāhnamā, p. 254.
  2. ↑ Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  3. ↑ Muʾtaman, Rāhnamā, p. 314; Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  4. ↑ "A word, sentence, or phrase that is usually part of a poem and indicates the date of an important event, such as a death, the accession of kings, or the conquest of a city, according to the Abjad numerals" (Anvarī, Farhang-i buzurg-i sukhan, vol. 7, p. 6510).
  5. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 112.
  6. ↑ Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  7. ↑ Turābī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-hā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī rā bishnāsīd".
  8. ↑ Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  9. ↑ Imām, Mashhad-i Ṭūs, pp. 495-496; Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", pp. 103-104.
  10. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 112; Turābī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-hā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī rā bishnāsīd".
  11. ↑ Turābī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-hā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī rā bishnāsīd".
  12. ↑ Imām, Mashhad-i Ṭūs, p. 499.
  13. ↑ Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  14. ↑ Imām, Mashhad-i Ṭūs, p. 496.
  15. ↑ Imām, Mashhad-i Ṭūs, p. 496; Muʾtaman, Rāhnamā, p. 322.
  16. ↑ Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  17. ↑ Muʾtaman, Rāhnamā, p. 322.
  18. ↑ Iʿtimād al-Salṭana, Mirʾāt al-buldān, vol. 3, p. 1548; Ḥakīm al-Mulk, Rūznāma-yi safar-i Khurāsān, p. 214.
  19. ↑ Naqdī, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī", p. 535.
  20. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 111.
  21. ↑ Iʿtimād al-Salṭana, Maṭlaʿ al-shams, vol. 2, p. 386.
  22. ↑ Iʿtimād al-Salṭana, Maṭlaʿ al-shams, vol. 2, p. 386.
  23. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 112.
  24. ↑ Mujtahidzāda, "Malik al-Shuʿarā-hā-yi Āstān-i Quds: Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Bahār", pp. 26-27.
  25. ↑ Gulshan-i Āzādī, Ṣad sāl shiʿr-i Khurāsān, p. 557.
  26. ↑ Gulshan-i Āzādī, Ṣad sāl shiʿr-i Khurāsān, p. 557.
  27. ↑ Gulshan-i Āzādī, Ṣad sāl shiʿr-i Khurāsān, p. 264.
  28. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 100.
  29. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 100.
  30. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", p. 100.
  31. ↑ Bīnish, "Mīnā Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds", pp. 100-101.

References

  • Anvarī, Ḥasan. Farhang-i buzurg-i sukhan. Tehran, Sukhan, 1382 Sh.
  • Bīnish, Taqī. "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds". Nāma-yi Āstān-i Quds, no. 28, Khordad 1346 Sh.
  • Gulshan-i Āzādī, ʿAlī Akbar. Ṣad sāl shiʿr-i Khurāsān. Edited by Aḥmad Kamālpūr. Mashhad, Markaz-i Āfarīnish-hā-yi Hunarī-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī, 1373 Sh.
  • Ḥakīm al-Mulk, ʿAlī Naqī. Rūznāma-yi safar-i Khurāsān. Tehran, Farhang-i Īrān-zamīn, 1356 Sh.
  • Iʿtimād al-Salṭana, Muḥammad Ḥasan. Maṭlaʿ al-shams. Edited by Taymūr Burhān Līmūdahī. Tehran, Farhang-sarā, 1362 Sh.
  • Iʿtimād al-Salṭana, Muḥammad Ḥasan. Mirʾāt al-buldān. Edited by ʿAbd al-Ḥusayn Navāʾī & Mīr Hāshim Muḥaddith. Tehran, Tehran University Press, 1367 Sh.
  • Imām, Sayyid Muḥammad Kāẓim. Mashhad-i Ṭūs. Tehran, Malek National Library and Museum, 1348 Sh.
  • Muʾtaman, ʿAlī. Rāhnamā yā Tārīkh-i Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī. Tehran, n.p., 1348 Sh.
  • Mujtahidzāda, Sayyid ʿAlī Riḍā. "Malik al-Shuʿarā-hā-yi Āstān-i Quds: Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Bahār". Nāma-yi Āstān-i Quds, no. 24, 1345 Sh.
  • Naqdī, Riḍā. "Malik al-Shuʿarā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī". In Dāʾirat al-maʿārif-i Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī (Vol. 2). Mashhad, Islamic Research Foundation of Astan Quds Razavi, 1399 Sh.
  • Turābī, Marḍiya. "Malik al-Shuʿarā-hā-yi Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī rā bishnāsīd". Mashhadchehreh. Published: 24 Ordibehesht 1404 AH (sic; likely 1403 Sh). Accessed: 10 Mehr 1404 Sh.
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