About Alisher Navoi’s Ghazals with “Firaq” from the Diwan of

the Aq Qoyunlu Admirers

Dilnavoz Yusupova

1,*

and Nazmiya Mukhitdinova

2,†

Tashkent State University of Uzbek Language and Literature named after Alisher Navoi, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Samarkand State University named after Sharof Rashidov, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Keywords: Love, Separation, Gazel, Dīwān, Tashbih, Exclamation.

Abstract: This article examines Alisher Navoi's ghazals featured in "The Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu admirers". The

author of the article considers these verses to be typical of the poet's youthful lyrics and bases their opinion

on the fact that these ghazals were included in the first divans. The author believes that these ghazals have an

autobiographical nature, and the theme of separation expressed in them is linked to the period when the poet

lived apart from his friends, loved ones, and his native city of Herat..

1 INTRODUCTION

Navoi scholar Aftondil Erkinov, a doctor of

philology, made an important discovery in Navoi

studies in 2012. He identified a manuscript of Alisher

Navoi’s divan compiled by foreign enthusiasts while

studying copies stored in world manuscript archives.

This divan, compiled by the poet's fans during the

reign of the Aq Qoyunlu dynasty (the Oghuz Turks

who ruled the territory of Azerbaijan and Western

Iran from 1378 to 1508), was published in Tokyo. The

divan, known as "Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu

admirers," was copied on December 25, 1471, by the

poet and calligrapher Abdurahim ibn Abdurahman

Khorazmi, who wrote poems under the pseudonym

Anisy.

According to the findings of the scientist R.

Djaborov, who extensively studied this divan, there

are two different assumptions about its origin. Firstly,

it might have been moved to the palace of Sultan

Khalil, the prince who ruled in Shiraz from 1471 to

1478. Secondly, it could have been established in

Tabriz under the leadership of Uzun Hasan, the king

of the Aq Qoyunlu, who gained complete power, or

on his personal instructions (Djabolov R. 2020.).

The Dīwān comprises a total of 229 poems, including

224 ghazals, 1 mustazad, 3 mukhammas, and 1

Corresponding author

tarji’band. Out of the 224 ghazals, 217 were

transferred to "Badoyi’ ul-bidaya," and only one to

"Navodir un-nihaya." It is interesting to note that

more than 80% of the ghazals in the Dīwān are not

found in the first collection called "Ilk Dīwān," which

was compiled by the poet's fans. This indicates that

the majority of these ghazals were created in the five

years after 1466 (until 1471). "Ilk Dīwān" mainly

provides information about the poet’s poems written

before 1466, while "The Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu

admirers" contains the poet's poems written before

the age of 30.

Two ghazals written with the radif "firoq" in the

Dīwān caught our attention. These ghazals were later

included in the first volume of the lyric collection

"Khazayin ul-maani" – "Garayib us-sigar." In this

article, we will focus on the history of creation and

textual features of these ghazals.

In Eastern Muslim literature, poems on the topic of

separation hold a significant place. This is not

surprising, as the concept of separation has been

present since the time of Adam and Eve. Thus, this

topic has become an integral part of works by great

thinkers in the East, such as Jalaluddin Rumi. The

concept of separation is extensively explored in his

work "Masnavii Manavi," particularly in "Naynoma."

496

Yusupova, D. and Mukhitdinova, N.

About Alisher Navoi’s Ghazals with “Firaq” from the Diwan of the Aq Qoyunlu Admirers.

DOI: 10.5220/0012491200003792

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 496-498

ISBN: 978-989-758-687-3

The great Sufism theorist Aziziddin Nasafi also

addresses separation in his "Perfect Man's Book,"

where he considers it to refer to the second career of

metaphorical love. The poet describes love as a herb

that falls into the body of a lover, and its place is the

heart. Love comes to the heart through vision and

keeps the homeland in the heart. This herb gradually

burns the inside of the lover, making them pure. A

lover’s heart is so delicate that it cannot bear the

affection of the beloved, and there is a risk of death

due to the lover's devotion.

As mentioned earlier, "The Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu

admirers" includes Navoi's poems written before the

age of 30, most of which were composed while he

lived in Samarkand. This suggests that the poet paid

special attention to the theme of living apart from his

native city. The ghazals in this collection emphasize

the theme of separation, which encompasses

moments of parting from the motherland, friends, and

loved ones. "The Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu admirers"

is valuable because it features poems written during

Navoi's time in Samarkand, which is a significant

period in his work (Djabolov R. 2020.).

2 ANALYSIS

The first ghazal, taken from the Dīwān, opens with

the poignant cry of the lyrical hero, brokenhearted

and physically weakened by separation. Upon closer

examination, some words in the verse bear

resemblance to the Oghuz dialect. For instance, the

words "edar" and "jismuma" differ from the version

in the ghazal "Garayib us-sigar."

Since the main inhabitants of the Aqquyunli kingdom

are Oghuz Turks, the poems of Alisher Navoi were

adapted to the Oghuz dialect in this manuscript. For

example, "tut" became "dut," "bo‘lg‘on" became

"o‘lan," "quyosh" became "gunash," "tosh-dosh,"

"ber-ver," "yig‘lar-ag‘lar," "bor-vor," "emas-emaz,"

"sarg‘arib-sararub," "yo‘q-yo‘x" were given in their

respective forms (Erkinov A.. 13). The ghazal

progresses gradually from stanza to stanza.

Separation takes a toll on the lyrical hero's life, and

this life is further tarnished by the world.

Moreover, not content with that, separation inflicts a

hundred arrows of sorrow on the wounded soul,

secretly igniting the pain caused by these arrows. The

heart cannot bear these pains and desires to surrender.

In the fifth stanza, the lyrical hero implores the heart

not to succumb to these pains and sufferings, urging

it to bravely embrace any pain, emphasizing that this

is a test of fate through parting.

The plea to the heart continues in the following

stanza. The consolation in the content of "if we spend

our lives in the pain of parting without saying a word,

maybe one day parting will be kind to us" appears to

momentarily comfort the heart.

In the Dīwān, this verse is followed by a praise verse

with the nickname Navoi, and the ghazal ends in 7

verses. However, in the "Garayib us-sigar" version,

the ghazal extends to 9 stanzas. Therefore, it can be

said that Navoi later added verses related to the desire

for approval and satisfaction from a friend, expanding

the ghazal's content and reflecting the pain of parting

after the breakup. These stanzas reinforce the

assumption that they were included when the poet

returned to Herat, his hometown. If we focus on one

of these stanzas, particularly the one absent in "The

Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu admirers," located before

the eulogy in "Garayib us-sigar," it becomes apparent

that the friend mentioned in the verse is not a specific

individual but a generalized image reflecting several

layers of meaning. In this stanza, the image of a friend

represents the Creator, who is the ultimate goal

through the motherland and Husayn Boykara (or

other friends and teachers of the poet) at the same

time. The poet, even when separated from his

homeland or loved ones, believes he will eventually

return, and this separation does not diminish his love

for his motherland and friends. At the same time, the

verse conveys the idea that a servant seeking approval

from the Creator gladly embraces any test, whether it

brings happiness from success or weakness from

separation. In the praise, the poet addresses himself

through the art of exclamation, encouraging himself

to embrace His love like the blood of the heart and

find happiness under its influence, as only His love

can alleviate the pain of parting and provide solace.

By employing the repetition of words and the art of

tashbih, the poet achieves linguistic charm in the

verse. From the outset in Matla, we witness a vivid,

exaggerated image. The lover's face has turned

saffron (yellow) due to separation and pain. When the

intensity of separation becomes overwhelming, the

lover sheds tears resembling blood on his yellow face,

giving the impression that saffron has grown on his

face, turning it into a tulip field. The simile used by

the poet effectively demonstrates the impact of

separation. In the following stanza, the imagery

becomes even more captivating. The lyrical hero

About Alisher Navoi’s Ghazals with “Firaq” from the Diwan of the Aq Qoyunlu Admirers

497

enters the house of separation and pours hundreds of

gems from his tears at the feet of separation's lover,

as if showing respect. The art of tashxis (animation)

employed in the verse brings the scene vividly before

the reader's eyes.

The subsequent stanzas continue the gradual

progression. Although the lover once claimed to be

steadfast in the pain of love, the intensity of the

breakup shattered this claim, leaving the lover

ashamed of himself. The sorrow of parting intensified

to such an extent that all signs of joy and happiness

vanished for the lover. Parting drove the stone of grief

into his heart with countless nails, leaving no room

for joy. The revival of separation through the art of

diagnosis paints a captivating scene before the

reader's eyes. In this ghazal, the theme of separation

takes precedence, but it shifts to a different tone when

it comes to praise. The poet turns to himself,

expressing hope that the days of peace will soon

come, and the pain of separation in his heart will be

remembered with a smile as a cherished memory.

This feeling of hope is grounded in reality, as seen in

the final stanza of the ghazal. It suggests that the

lyrical hero is separated from someone dear to him,

whether it be his wife, friend, or ruler of the time, but

the poet believes that they will be reunited soon.

According to the verse, Firaq has become hostile to

the poet and prevented him from enjoying the power

of a mighty king like Jamshid for a certain period.

Similar to the previous ghazal, the version of this

ghazal in "Garayib us-sigar" has undergone a

significant change: a stanza has been added after the

3rd stanza. The content of this stanza conveys the

lover's desire to find life, or the soul, from the lips of

the beloved, but separation thwarts this longing,

leaving the lover in agony, akin to a dying person.

As previously mentioned, the fact that this ghazal is

found in "The Dīwān of the Aq Qoyunlu admirers,"

compiled by the poet's enthusiasts, and the praise

reflects the theme of separation from the ruler of the

time, indicates that it was written before 1471, during

the time when the poet lived in Samarkand. This

further supports the assumption of its origin.

3 CONCLUSION

Alisher Navoi's ghazals on parting from "The Dīwān

of the Aq Qoyunlu admirers" are characterized as

radiant ghazals. They portray the theme of parting

from the poet's friends and loved ones, as well as his

separation from his hometown, Herat, during

different periods of his life. When these ghazals were

included in "Garayib us-sigar" in an expanded form,

their content expanded, encompassing a more general

vision of farewell and a combination of the time spent

in Herat with the times of parting.

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