In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
All praise is due to God, Lord of the Worlds, and may peace and greetings be upon our Master and our Prophet, Abul-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his untainted, pure, chosen Progeny, particularly the Remnant of God on earth.
If we hadn’t run out of time, I would have liked to benefit from the poetry of some of the gentlemen you mentioned and some others I see present here, people whose delicate spirit, overflowing [artistic] taste, and mature poetry I am familiar with. But we’ve run out of time, and when one feels tired — now, you young people don't get tired as easily, but those of us my age get tired quickly — they don’t enjoy the poetry as much as they ought to and could enjoy it.
Praise God, the committed and Revolutionary poetry is on the rise. For me, tonight was a night that brought glad tidings. The poems recited were generally good poems. Of course, not all were at the same level. Some were good, others were better. The quality of the recitations and the attention to poetic nuances indicated that these poems weren’t composed in a rudimentary way. Rather, they stemmed from a source and substance within these poets. This shows that, praise God, the number of educated poets in the country is increasing day by day. And, of course, I’ve been informed that a good assessment was conducted by committed, Revolutionary poets in relevant centers of poetry this past year.
The recent surge in poetry, especially among young people, is very encouraging. Poetry is important. It’s a unique art. The existence of various forms of media hasn’t been able to diminish poetry's status as a strong and influential medium. Poetry is truly an influential medium. Therefore, the more poetry advances and the more talented poets there are, the more it is a cause for joy and happiness.
The quantity of poems has increased significantly, which is very good, but we also expect the quality of the poems to increase to the same extent. Right now, quantity is taking precedence over quality among our community of talented young poets. However, the talents I see — all of them, God willing — will develop in quality if they continue well and advance. Praise God, we aren’t lacking in quality poets. That is, within the community of committed, Revolutionary poets, we have good poets, strong poets, poets that we expected to reach a commendable level and they have achieved that level, praise God. However, I have repeatedly said that no one, whether this is in poetry or in other fields, should feel complacent when they see their own progress.
If you see that your poetry has improved, your ability has increased, and you have created an outstanding piece of work, you shouldn’t feel that’s enough. This is because you are still far from Hafez, Saadi, and Nezami. I believe our era can produce poets like Saadi. It can. Now, the factors that make a poet into a poet and enable them to employ words, phrases, and expressions is a detailed discussion, which I don’t wish to enter now. But this era is a time when poets are encouraged. This doesn’t contradict the fact that poets always have their grievances and complaints. This has always been the case. Since the birth of poetry in Iran, which was over a thousand years ago, poets have always had complaints. Just look at the great poets who despite the considerable privileges they had in royal courts, where they were paid and praised [the shah], [to the extent] that "Onsori made cauldrons from silver, I have heard / He made tableware from gold, I have heard" (Khaqani), despite all this, they were discontented and always complained about life. This is the case. This cannot be denied, and it isn’t something that will change. The reason for this is that the turbulence and twists of life never end; however, others don’t see these things, poets do. Others lack the words to express these matters, but poets have the language to speak out. This is the reason. There’s nothing wrong with that. However, our contemporary poets, praise God, enjoy certain privileges in society. I'm not talking about material matters, but about the respect they receive. The recognition that someone is a poet and a master in this great art remains intact.
During the time of the taghut [Pahlavi], we saw some great poets who were truly outstanding, but no one paid attention to them. For example, the late Amiri-Firuzkuhi was a truly remarkable poet. In my opinion, he was the best poet of his time among those who composed ghazals, yet no one paid attention to Amiri. I mean, no one even cared about him. If he walked down the street, even in the street where he lived, no one would greet him. He and others like him were never invited to a radio or television program – there weren’t many programs back then – or even for an interview with the press.
The only thing that was done, for example, was that a certain newspaper would print a ghazal from someone like Rahi, Amiri, or others just to fill its pages. No one paid attention to them. But today, poets are present on television, on the radio, in various programs, and so on. Therefore, the environment today is ready for producing poets akin to Saadi, Hafez, or Nezami, and it’s possible for one to advance.
In particular, the language that our poetry uses today, this language is unprecedented. In other words, the language of the poems you’ve just read is unlike any other. It’s a product of the Revolution period. Now, defining it requires work and contemplation, and some individuals have worked in this area. Now, it's not very clear to me, but the language is new. It isn’t the language of the old Khorasani poems, the Iraqi-style ghazals, or the Indian-style ghazals. It has elements from each of these and something else too that make it unique to itself. Well, this is very significant in itself. We can envision a great poet, great poets, and peaks in our time. This must, God willing, be carried out.
The inner self of a poet influences their poetry, because what you articulate springs from your inner being. The purer and clearer your inner self is, the purer and clearer your poetry will be. This is something that must definitely be heeded. We have seen examples of this. That is, there have been poets who have composed poetry with their particular temperaments, and their poetry reflects those temperaments. My recommendation, especially to young poets — who are naturally exposed to certain challenges due to their [artistic] taste, delicate emotions, etc. — is that they should reflect more on piety and protecting it, as well as other religious principles along with adherence to fundamental religious knowledge.
Thus, you see in the Quran at the end of Surah Ash-Shu‘ara [The Poets], it says about poets, "Except those who believe and do righteous deeds and remember Allah much" (26:227). Why does it say "remember Allah much?" Well, everyone should remember God abundantly. [However,] the fact that it specifies that poets must "remember Allah much" shows that they need this abundant remembrance. In other words, it’s essential for them to remember God abundantly.
One of my recommendations is that you make use of the treasure trove of Persian literature. Yes, we’ve said that, for example, your poetic style differs from Saadi’s, but Saadi is a vast collection of artistic experience. Or, secondarily, there’s Hafez and certain others, the likes of whom truly cannot be found. These figures truly stand out in terms of their artistic reserves. From every single fragment and particle of their poetry, one can gain insight. That is, you — who are gifted, who are young, and who see things that people like us cannot see — can gain so many wonderful things [from these poets]. My request is that you turn to these sources.
Another point to note is the subject of love poems and romantic ghazals. Sometimes I see here in this gathering — and this has been the case in past years as well — that romantic ghazals seem to be viewed as a crime or as something negative. No, feelings of love and affection do arise in poets after all, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Therefore, composing love poems is perfectly fine. Love poems can be composed alongside poems that are written about sacred, lofty concepts. That’s perfectly fine. However, what’s important to note is that love poems in the tradition of Persian poetry have always been of a chaste, noble nature. Don’t let your love poems deviate from this nobility and chastity. This is what I wanted to say.
The explicitness, immodesty, and shamelessness in romantic poetry are not appropriate. During the time of the taghut [Pahlavi], there were some poets who were deliberate in this regard. I mentioned some of their names at one time, but I don’t wish to repeat those names. Nevertheless, it’s indeed possible to write romantic poetry without any transgression against aspects of chastity, virtue, and similar matters. This is also an important point.
One point is the issue of themes and the creation of themes. Of course, in the poems that were just recited, they contained good themes and you can truly see the discovery and creation of themes in them. However, a single idea can be expressed in multiple ways. You can take the same idea that hundreds of other poets have expressed — since there is abundant writing [about an idea]; it’s said, "One can speak for a lifetime about the beauty of the beloved's hair" (Saib Tabrizi) — and present it using a new combination and new form. That becomes a theme. This is what is meant when it’s said that Indian-style poetry is thematic. Otherwise, the elements present in Indian-style poetry aren’t missing in other poetry. Those elements just aren’t expressed in the same manner or with the same themes as they are in Indian-style poetry. "I’m glad that you passed by your rivals, your skirt trailing behind you / Even if a fistful of our dust has gone with the wind too" (Hazin Lahiji).
Has no one said this before? Why, perhaps one could find ten poems that have. But the expression "you passed by, your skirt trailing behind you" is a form of theme creation. Of course, this is extremely prevalent in Saib's poetry. All of Saib's poetry is like this from the beginning to the end, and the poets who followed Saib, like Hazin and others, are the same. The pinnacle of complexity, however, lies with the late Bidel, whose poetry is rather challenging to understand, and I don’t think it’s necessary for us to delve into that type of thematic creation which demands significant explanation and elaboration.
Without a doubt, Bidel holds a high position and is unmatched in both the form and meaning of his poetry. However, poetry doesn’t have to adhere strictly to that style. Nonetheless, it’s crucial to establish a theme, employ suitable language and vocabulary, and steer clear of colloquial expressions and particularly lower level everyday speech in poetry. By paying attention to these aspects, your poetry can rise up and become outstanding. I’ve noted here, "Edifying themes expressed through an eloquent, captivating language infused with delicate and refined poetic emotions." If these elements are present, the poetry will truly be outstanding.
Another point is the issue of the concepts present in our time. I believe there’s seldom been a period with so many prominent, inspiring social concepts. For instance, during this very session, figures like Martyr Soleimani, Martyr Raisi, Martyr Sinwar, and Martyr Nasrallah were discussed [in the poems]. I’m sure many of the respected people who are present here were ready to share or may have already composed poems about these individuals. They certainly have, because I’ve heard some very good poetry related to these concepts from Mr. Malekian and others. These are important issues. In fact, they revive concepts that must remain alive in people’s minds. This is what must be achieved in our time, and this is essential in my opinion.
Furthermore, the concepts of monotheism, insight, and wisdom in poetry [are important]. I mentioned that the poetry of one of our friends was truly wise. It’s indeed wise. Some of the expressions and concepts that are conveyed in poetry are high-level concepts of wisdom, and these are truly valuable. Such work should be continued. Although, it will have a limited audience, and surely not everyone will understand those concepts. "I asked, ‘Where are you from?’ He laughed and replied / ‘Half of me is from Turkistan, the other half from Fergana’" (Rumi, Divan-e Shams). It’s difficult for a person to understand what he’s trying to say. What drunkenness is he referring to when he says: "O lute-playing wanderer, are you more drunk than I? / In the presence of a drunk like you, my enchantment is a mere tale" (Rumi, Divan-e Shams).
We often don’t understand what these concepts mean, but they exist. Such concepts have their own admirers and people who comprehend them. There are certain people who understand these themes, and if some poets can do this, they will find a good audience in these areas.
I also have an opinion about the way television is used. Of course, this is a personal preference, and I don’t intend to issue any commands or prohibitions in this area. Bringing a good poet who meets our standards into a regular, weekly program, keeping them in viewers’ sight for an hour, so they can listen to the poetry of certain young poets, or discuss and talk about their poetry, lowers the poet's level of credibility.
A poet shouldn’t be shown on television like that, and not everyone will watch such a program. What I fear is that these sorts of programs may lead to the commercialization of poetry and good poets. Having said that, poetry must definitely be recited on television and radio with nice, specific methods. A good poem should be recited with a fitting introduction. A good presenter should say, for example, "There’s a poet like this with these qualities who has composed a poem on this subject." Then the poet should walk in, be shown the utmost respect, sit down, and recite their poem. This would be very good. But if it’s done in the way I described earlier, I believe it will reduce the value of poetry. It probably won’t attract many viewers either. I mean, not everyone enjoys those kinds of programs on poetry. In any case, I hope, God willing, that all aspects [will be taken into consideration.]
A friend of mine who gave me some recommendations about tonight's content reminded me of a good point. That point is that in our traditional collections of poetry, it was customary to start the book with a tawhidiyyah [a hymn of monotheism] and a tahmidiyyah [a hymn of praise for God]. "First, in the name of the Wise Lord" (Saadi). Even Rumi, who doesn’t explicitly mention God or such things [in the first poem of Masnavi], in fact expresses that eternal connection, that spiritual bond, and similar notions that are about God, spirituality, and divine knowledge. In my opinion, it would be good if you can observe this practice. So when you publish a book of your poems, let it begin with a poem about religious knowledge, a poem of monotheism, or a poem of praise. May God grant success to all of you.
May God’s greetings, mercy, and blessings be upon you.
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