Islamic Art

Islamic Art

Critique and Examination of the Nature of Love in Several Interpolated Verses of the Story of Zal and Rudabeh, Relying on the Illustrations of the Ibrahim Sultan Shahnama Manuscript Preserved in the Bodleian Library, Oxford

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Abbas Haidari 1
Omidvar Aalimahmoudi 2
Omidevar Malmeli 3
1 PhD student of Persian language and literature, Izeh branch, Islamic Azad University, Izeh, Iran
2 Assistant Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Izeh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Izeh, Iran
3 Assistant Professor of Persian Language and Literature, Izeh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Izeh, Iran
10.22034/ias.2023.404730.2230
Abstract
One of the literary discussions of the recent century is the examination and correction of literary texts, especially the text of the Shahnama. In recent decades, the corrected editions of the Shahnama by Jules Mohl, the Moscow edition, Mehri Behfar, and Jalal Khaleghi Motlagh have been recognized as the primary and authoritative versions. This research aims to examine several verses from the love story of Zal and Rudabeh based on the aforementioned editions, which have been placed in brackets as a sign of doubt regarding their authenticity, by presenting evidence. This research has been written based on library studies and the mentioned manuscripts using a descriptive-analytical method. The purpose of this research is to become acquainted with the form and foundation of the story, the culture and customs of ancient Iran's heroic and popular traditions, and to preserve the authenticity and details in the verses of the Shahnama—this masterpiece of Persian literature and the guardian of Iran's national identity—which have not been recorded in this correction for whatever reason. The findings of the research, relying on the Ibrahim Sultan Shahnama manuscript, consist of citing and analyzing the doubtful or interpolated verses from a structuralist perspective, examining the socio-cultural context or social tradition of the mentioned verses, becoming acquainted with popular and heroic culture, and the etymology and geography of the story's evolution, which shows that it can be effective in understanding the form and origin of the story and the omitted or interpolated verses.
Research Objectives:


Examining acquaintance with the form and foundation of the story and the culture and customs of Iran's heroic and popular traditions.


Examining the category of antiquity and authenticity in the verses of the Ibrahim Sultan Shahnama.


Research Questions:


How to become acquainted with the form and foundation of the story and the culture and customs of Iran's heroic and popular traditions.


How antiquity and the preservation of authenticity and details in the verses of the Ibrahim Sultan Shahnama.
Keywords
Ferdowsi
Shahnama
Zal and Rudabeh
Heroic Customs
Subjects
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