The Concept of "Beauty" in Navoi's Works

Mukhabbat Kurbanova

and Tursunoy Yandashova

National University of Uzbekistan named after Mirzo Ulugbek, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Keywords: Concept, Beauty, Language, Culture, Universality, Uniqueness, Standard Patterns, Individual-Author

Analogies, Linguocultural Analysis, Linguocognitive Analysis.

Abstract: Alisher Navoi's literary treasure trove unveils the hidden facets of Uzbek culture, language, and the concept

of beauty, transcending five centuries without fading. Navoi's depiction of beauty, entwined with mystical-

Islamic undertones, presents a divine blessing, reflected in nature and beloved, steeped in spiritual sentiments.

Delving into linguistic and cultural dimensions, beauty emerges as a nuanced, linguocultural, and

linguocognitive unit, embodying universality, specificity, and individuality. Navoi's works, extensively

analyzed in linguistics and literary studies, notably his epic "Khamsa," reveal lexical-semantic intricacies and

stylistic innovations. His poetic genius reinvigorates traditional motifs through metaphors and similes,

intertwining nature, body attributes, and gastronomic analogies, shaping traditional beauty standards while

infusing cultural beliefs. Navoi's legacy not only mirrors beauty but also propels literary innovation,

imprinting Turkic worldviews within Uzbek literature. Engaging with Navoi's linguistic realm offers profound

insights into cultural values and aesthetic appreciation, inviting readers on an evolutionary journey through

his timeless works.

1 INTRODUCTION

Navoi's work is, in essence, an inexhaustible treasure

trove. This treasure provides ample information about

the Uzbek language, culture, literature, climate,

geography, art, and even flora and fauna, all of which

have been concealed for thousands of years. That's

why this topic has neither faded nor aged over five

centuries. We examine the concept of beauty in

Navoi's works, the linguistic units that facilitated its

mystical-Islamic interpretation, and crucially, the

perspectives concerning the fact that beauty is a part

of culture in Navoi's work, and concurrently, culture

itself. Humans are born with an inherent affection for

beauty, a drive towards beauty, and an inclination

towards actions that create beauty. Without beauty,

art, literature, science, and culture would not have

developed to such an extent. Scholars interpret the

conditions for beauty's existence in two different

ways. The first group acknowledges the existence of

beauty as natural, born in human nature and

developing with it. As evidence of this, they use the

example of a baby, not yet influenced by social and

cultural life, favouring unique things over crude ones,

Corresponding author

and preferring proportion to disproportion.

(E.Byork). Philosophers of the second group dispute

this idea and emphasise that beauty is a product of

human progressive thinking. In Navoi's works, beauty

takes on a more mystical-Islamic interpretation,

according to which beauty is God's blessing to

mankind, a precious gift. Navoi and Sufi-natured

poets like him endeavoured to reflect this blessing in

their descriptions of nature and the beloved,

surrounded by spiritual sentiments. Our interest lies

in how this reflection was translated into materiality

and transferred to language. In general, beauty is

mentioned in language and linguistics alongside

concepts of culture, thought, and value. Thus, we

render and analyse it in the linguistic field as a

linguocultural, linguocognitive, axiological unit.

As for the concept, we could say that it is a unity

comprising a combination of cognitive,

philosophical, and linguistic aspects, having absorbed

a national-mental, cultural characteristic, and

standing higher than comprehension yet lower than

judgement. This unity has traits of universality when

it applies to all of humanity, nationality when it

pertains to a specific nation, specificity when it

applies to a small group or stratum, and individuality

294

Kurbanova, M. and Yandashova, T.

The Concept of "Beauty" in Navoi’s Works.

DOI: 10.5220/0012486200003792

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 1st Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies (PAMIR 2023), pages 294-297

ISBN: 978-989-758-687-3

when it pertains to a particular person or creator.

Beauty is a topic that has been consistently discussed

throughout global history, thus it is universal. It is

national according to each nation's perception and

understanding of it, and individual because

everyone's consciousness and level of thinking vary.

In Navoi, we can observe universal, national-cultural,

and individual perspectives of beauty.

Navoi's work is among the most thoroughly

studied subjects across all fields. In literary studies,

extensive research has been conducted in terms of

genre and style, and in linguistics, academic works

related to onomastic units, language features, and

stylistic issues that occur in his work have been

completed, starting with the explanatory dictionary of

Navoi's works. As the principles of anthropocentric

analysis of language units are being established in

linguistics, we believe that monographic research of

Navoi's works in the same direction is one of the

pressing issues of today's linguistics. Our linguists

such as Q. Muhiddinov, Kh. Doniyorov, U.

Sanakulov, I. Nosirov, and Z. Hamidov made

significant contributions to studying the language

features of Alisher Navoi's works. These scholars

endeavoured to examine the lexical-semantic features

of Navoi's works. Notably, Khudoyberdi Doniyorov

studied the language and style of Alisher Navoi's

works, which are considered one of the most essential

parts of Navoi studies, in the late 1960s. B. Bafoyev,

a linguist who analysed the lexicon of Navoi's works,

found that the number of words used in Alisher

Navoi's works exceeds 26,000. It is a rare

phenomenon in the history of world languages for the

creativity of a single creator to be so expansive.

In Uzbek linguistics, numerous studies have

resulted from the research conducted within the scope

of Alisher Navoi's works. Among the works

researched, Z. Isaqova's candidate work on the topic

"Social-political lexicon in Alisher Navoi's work

'Majolis un-nafois'" stands out. In the studies of the

poet's works, the phonetic, lexical, morphological,

and syntactic features of Navoi's poetry and prose

were meticulously examined. Among them are

academician A. Rustamov's doctoral dissertation on

the topic "Phonetic and morphological features of the

language of Alisher Navoi", B. Bafoyev's

monographs and pamphlets titled "Lexicon of Navoi's

Works", "History of Ancient Words", G.

Abdurakhmonov and A. Rustamov's pamphlet titled

"Grammatical Features of Navoi's Language", S.

Ashirboyev's doctoral dissertation on the topic

"Structural and Semantic Features of Simple

Sentences in Navoi's Prose Works"; M. Kadirov's

"Functioning of Case Forms in the Prose Language of

Alisher Navoi", F. Hayitmetov's "Emphasis of Logic

in the Rhyme of Alisher Navoi's Ghazals", N.

Umarova's "Expression of Cause and Effect

Relationship in the Praise of Alisher Navoi's

Ghazals", Sh. Yakubov's "Onomastics of Navoi's

Works", I. Azimov's "Formal and Substantive

Features of Clause-Centred Sentences in the Prose

Works of Alisher Navoi", and numerous candidacy

works on the topic of social-political lexicon in the

work "Majolis un-nafois". The list of doctor's and

candidate's theses listed in Appendix 3 of volume II

of the "Alisher Navoi" encyclopaedic dictionary,

which summarises the achievements in Navoi studies

published in 2017, totals 110. This list includes 20

philological scientists who conducted research on

Navoi's epic "Khamsa".

2 RESULTS AND ANALYSIS

The expression of the concept of beauty in Navoi's

work is most apparent, primarily, in the analysis of

metaphors and similes. According to their structure,

metaphors can be categorised into simple and

extended, as well as artistic and linguistic metaphors.

Based on the repetition or uniqueness of the linguistic

expression, individual-author similes and standard

similes can be distinguished. In Navoi's work, similes

portraying the concept of beauty effectively utilise

both "standard" and "template" metaphors

characteristic of traditional Eastern poetry, as well as

individual author's similes. Traditionally, the

semantic classification of similes can be divided into

meaningful groups such as:

a) phytomorphic metaphors;

b) zoomorphic metaphors;

c) naturmorphic metaphors;

d) gastronomorphic metaphors;

e) religiomorphic metaphors.

In Navoi's work, the description of beauty using

somatic units is predominantly active in the depiction

of a lover's body parts, particularly the eyes,

eyebrows, lips, hair, chin, figure, and gaze. In these

instances, the traditional beauty standards of the

peoples of the East: the blackness of the eyebrows and

eyes, the redness of the lips, the length or thickness of

the hair, and the straightness of the figure are

actualised through traditional beauty analogies.

Navoi's poetic genius also becomes evident when he

upholds existing traditions in his lyrical works and

refreshes literary expression, artistic detail, and

imagery based on the lifestyle, beliefs, and worldview

of the Turkic peoples. We shall attempt to

The Concept of "Beauty" in Navoi’s Works

295

substantiate our opinion by referencing a singular

detail - some lines in the portrayal of images and

expressions related to eyebrows.

It is well-known that in Eastern poetry, in the

poems of peoples influenced by the traditions of

Eastern literature, the eyebrow is depicted as curved

or arched, and likened to a crescent. Navoi also

rigidly adheres to this image pattern. You can find as

many traditional forms of expression as you like in

the poet's offices, such as “Qoshi yosinmu deyin,

koʻzi qarosinmu deyin” ("Say, is your brow smooth,

say, are your eyes black"). Though at first glance they

may seem like traditional restorations, other artistic

details serve to reveal new facets of elements.

Quyoshni boʻlmas, ey gardun, ul oyga

aylamak tashbih,

Ogʻiz gar zarra, choʻlpon – koʻz, yangi oy

anga qosh boʻlsun.

Referring to a mouth as a particle, an eye as a

chulpon (shooting star), and an eyebrow as a new

moon, was a well-established and frequently used

expression even during Navoi's time. However, these

traditional images are cited as the reason why the sun

cannot be associated with the original idea - "ul oy"

(lover). Because as long as the sun exists, there can

be no other particle, no shooting star, no new moon.

These verses also reflect the hypo-hypernym

relationship of lexical-semantic groups of lexemes.

For instance, the fact that the lexemes Sun, gardun,

moon, particle, chulpon belong to the same lexical-

semantic group, that is, the group of cosmonyms,

validates our point.

In the past, people utilised special filament lamps

to illuminate their homes, and they trimmed and

cleaned their burning parts with particular scissors -

minkosh. Navoi finds a basis for a poetic innovation

when describing the beauty of the eyebrow. At first

glance, it seems that Navoi repeats the traditional

image: the lover's brow is a crescent, and because of

her beauty, he referred to it as the moon, her face is

white and it illuminates the surroundings like a

candle. However, the poet unexpectedly finds a new

analogy for this view: As the light of the candle is

further enhanced by the minkosh (minkosh - scissors

used to clean the wick of the candle), it is her crescent

moon-shaped eyebrows that have garnered her a great

deal of attention. Until Navoi, we were not aware that

minkosh had any connection to the eyebrow. This is

understandable. Because while cleaning the wick of

the candle with scissors truly makes it shine, there is

no resemblance between the shape of the minkosh

and the eyebrow. But the insightful poet uncovers the

commonality that is concealed from others' eyes.

According to the poet's interpretation, their function

is the same: they serve to increase the light (beauty)

of the landscape (object being depicted). On the other

hand, the fusion of the minkosh (scissors) blades also

suggests a connection between the eyebrows.

Furthermore, it is unsurprising that the author was

drawn to the melodiousness and rhyme of the words

'brow' and 'minkosh' [Kurbanova M., Yoldoshev M.

(2014), 211].

Zoomorphic metaphors can be seen in the works

of Navoi, in the description of the beauty of the

sweetheart, examples of fauna - animals. In fiction,

before Navoi, no artist had used the lexeme of

ankabut - a spider to describe the beauty of the

sweetheart. This is also a proof of the originality of

Navoi's world.

Belingu la’ling xayoloti bila ko‘nglum erur,

Ankabutekim, oning jon rishtasidin tori bor.

We can highlight the metaphor of a flower as a

clear example of phytomorphic metaphors, which is

active in Navoi's poetry.

Gastronomorphic metaphors encompass Navoi's

similes that include the names of food and household

items such as sugar and bowls.

Examples of gastronomorphic metaphors in

Navoi's work can include similes that feature the

names of food items and household objects, such as

sweets, sugar, and bowls. In allusions to the beauty of

a sweetheart, especially her lips, the lexemes of

honey, sugar, and sweets have become traditional

similes.

3 CONCLUSION

It is not an exaggeration to state that Navoi's works

serve as exemplary representations of beauty in

Uzbek literature. The poet's verses feature traditional

motifs of beauty used to depict the allure of love.

Examples of such descriptors include: black

eyebrows, black eyes, black hair, a face as beautiful

as a flower, and a face resembling the moon. The

beauty similes employed in the ghazals were crafted

considering the climate, natural environment,

geographical location, and national-cultural

perspective of the country in which the author

resided. For instance, lexemes such as 'bow', 'alif',

'ghazol' (deer), 'novak' (arrow), 'sandal', utilised in

ghazals, are lexical units peculiar to this nation's

ethnoculture. The notion of beauty in the works of

Navoi and Babur predominantly hinges on the

physical appearance, or more specifically, on

individual body parts - somatic units (such as the face,

hair, eyebrows, eyes, lips, figure). Subsequently,

these traditional similes influenced the standards of

PAMIR 2023 - The First Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies- | PAMIR

296

traditional beauty amongst Eastern peoples. In

contemporary Uzbek fictional works, the term

'beauty' primarily refers to external features of

women - the face, lips, eyebrows, hair, etc., which are

often likened to the moon, flowers, bows - these are

traditional analogies inherited from Navoi's works.

A linguo-cultural analysis of Navoi's works

provides valuable insights into Navoi's character, the

society he was a part of, the historical period, and the

attitudes of the Uzbek nation and Uzbek literature

towards beauty. The linguo-cognitive study of

Navoi's works enables us to perceive how beauty is

mirrored in Navoi's eyes, his mind, and in the

collective thought of the nation. Upon examining the

linguistic units expressing beauty in Navoi's ghazals,

we initially recognise their semiotic-symbolic nature.

This is because beauty is initially understood through

cognitive stages, and then it infiltrates human actions

and deeds through perceptual knowledge. Navoi's

world plays a significant role in propagating universal

values to its admirers, such as understanding and

appreciating beauty, and striving for perfection, both

internally and externally. For this reason, we believe

that "the reader's mind must evolve alongside Navoi's

work".

REFERENCES

Explanatory dictionary of the language of Alisher Navoi's

works. Four volumes, volume 2. - T.: "Fan", (1983). p.

307.

Abdurahmanov G., Rustamov A. (1984).Grammatical

features of Navoi language. - T.: Science,

Ashirboev S. (1990). Structural and semantic features of

simple sentences in Alisher Navoi's prose works: DDA.

-Tashkent,

Azimov I. (2001).Formal and substantive features of

clause-centered clauses in Alisher Navoi's prose works:

NDA. Tashkent,

Bafoev B. (1983) Lexicon of Navoi's works. Tashkent:

"Fan",.

Bafoev B. (1991). History of old words. Tashkent: "Fan",

Haitmetov F.A. (1998) Giving emphasis on logic in the

rhyme of Alisher Navoi's ghazals: NDA. Tashkent,.

Isakov Z. (2010). Socio-political lexicon in Alisher Navoi's

work "Majolis un-nafois": NDA. -Tashkent,

Kurbanova M., Sayfullina F., Karimova Z. –(2021).

Pragmatic Interpretation of Word-Sentences in Uzbek

Language //Annals of the Romanian Society for Cell

Biology. -S. 623-632.

Kurbanova M., Yandashova T. (2020). Unions expressing

the concept of beauty in the works of Navoi and Bobur.

International conference: “Modern philological

paradigms: interactions of traditions and innovative

approaches”. Toshkent –P.57-63.

Kurbanova M., Yoldoshev M. (2014). Text Linguistics.

Tashkent

Kadirov V. (1993). Some features of the poetics of

contemporary Uzbek ghazals. NDQ. - T.: p. 97.

Kochkarov O. (2014) Image of the eyebrow in Navoi's

poetry. - T.: Eastern star, /4.

Rustamov A. (1979).Navoi's artistic skills. Tashkent: G'.

Gulom,

Yakubov Sh. (1994) Onomastics of Navoi's works. NDA. -

Tashkent,.

Yusubova R. (2022) Linguopoetic characteristics of

syntactic economy. Journal of Pharmaceutical Negative

Results // Volume13. Special Issue 6 //.

Yandashova T. (2021) Expression and linguopoetics of the

concept of "beauty" in Uzbek and English languages.

Dissertation written for receiving the degree of Doctor

of Philosophy in Philology. Tashkent .

The Concept of "Beauty" in Navoi’s Works

297