Mysteries of Hafiz: the Ghazal “O Parrot, the Teller of Secrets” (translation and commentary)

Abstract

This publication includes the text, translation and commentary of Hafiz’s ghazal No. 245; the introduction provides the basic information about the text, and the conclusion summarizes the results of the lexical, cultural and poetological commentary. The conflict of interpretations presented in the Hafiz studies is primarily due to the challenge of his poetics. The authors proceed from the idea that Hafizian ghazal is a polysemic poem, at the same time amatory and mystical, panegyric and socio-political. The commentaries focus on Hafiz's "fusion technique" to create multidimensional poetic ideas; poet addresses poet, drunkard addresses his drinking companions, and the true lover sings the praises of his idol and calls upon the Divine Beloved.The ghazal under discussion ends with a panegyric to the ruler, and the significant differences in interpretation among commentators are due, at least in part, to the mystery of the panegyric's addressee. It was assumed that the verses include a panegyric to Shah Mansur Muzaffarid (d.1393) or Shah Shaykh Abu Ishaq Injuid (d. 1357). However, poetic ideas close to the imagery of the poem could be traced in several ghazals dedicated to Shah Shuja‘ Muzaffarid (d. 1384). On this basis, the authors put forward another hypothesis: ghazal No. 245 could have been addressed to Shah Shuja‘, Hafiz’s patron, who was himself a poet. Close reading of the ghazal reveals the association of its imagery with Hafiz’s key theme of poetic gift; thus, reflection on the origin and purpose of poetry forms a special semantic dimension of the ghazal.