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The Cultural Sociology of Sanai’s age and its impact on Sanai’s thinking and Mysticism
Dr.Ahmad Reza Keikhay Farzaneh
Abstract— when the social stations of the literary works is brought into consideration, in fact the exact definition of cultural sociology and literature is examined. Literature is a social entity which is indicated by the studying and identifying the literary works contents of its creator’s social station. Not only is literature influenced from society, but affects on it in an irref rangibly link. In this research, it is tried to present a graphic image of Sanai’s thoughts and mysticism by showing a general view and aspects of society in Sanai’s age.
Index Terms—Sociology, Sanai’s age, Sanai, Mysticism.
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graphic image of thinking, cultural and spiritual conditions can be represented by Iran’s literature in every period, and this reflection function is one of
the most significant sociological or psychological func- tions simultaneously or consecutively, which has paid less attention to (Zaraghi, 2002: 261).
In Iran’s ancient literature, there were poets and literalists who created magnificent and great works in historical severe conditions and while there were intense social and political pressures. And not only they reflected their so- cial conditions in these works, but criticized biases, injus- tices and social instabilities with scrutiny and accurately and acted against social and political abnormalities by a weapon like pen.
One of various kinds of Sanai’s characteristics is the social and cultural aspects that have an influence on Sanai’s thoughts and mysticism.
It is firstly essential to explicate about society and cul- ture and its roots concerning cultural sociology.
Society: the social commission, people of a country or a city or rural area, a group of people who are gathered together for attaining to a special purpose ( Dehkhoda encyclopedia, 1993: 88).
Sociology: explicating the theory of thinking reflection, which the effects of real life conditions on current artistic works are emphasized. Accepting the external world identities is the base of true understanding of the reality. This means that the reality is independent from aware- ness. So, understanding the external world is made possi- ble through its reflecting in understanding.
The term of culture is an ancient one in Persian literature which are also entered Dari and Pahlavi texts. The ancient form of this term is Far-hang, which is composed of “fra”
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Assistant Professor of Persian Language and Literature, University of
Sistan and Baluchestan, Zahedan, Iran.
meaning the ancient root and background and “ thang” meaning “ to drag”. The term “Hang” means “to will”, and “Hanjidan”, “Hikhtan” and “Anjidan” means “to drag and extract from the root of this term. If the suffix “ far-” is added to its root, some terms as “ Farhekhtan”, “ Farhikhtan” and “ Farhanjidan” are created which means “ to train”, “ to learn politeness”, and “ to punish”, and also terms like “ Farhekhte” and “ Farhanjide”, meaning a person who is learnt to be polite. In dictionaries, “Fara- hakhtan” and “Farahikhtan” means “to be polite”. In Ra- shidi dictionary, culture means “politeness, and the ex- tent and limits, and the person who direct others to be polite” (Dehkhoda, 1993: 5109).
Some great poets as Ferdowsi and Molavi involved the term of culture in their poetries. Sociologist and anthro- pologists presented some definitions concerning culture, which the most important of them is from Taylor (1870). He says: “culture or civilization is an interrelated totality that includes knowledge, religion, art, law, moralities, traditions and every ability and habits that people gained as a member of a society have commitments and duties concerning that society” (Ashori, 2001: 48).
According to Lokach’s cognition sociology, the validity of
thinking is based on its validity in reflecting the life’s to-
tality. Therefore, the correctness or falseness of an artistic
work is based on reflecting such a totality. Hence, a good
artistic work is a true reflection of that totality”. (Rave-
drad, 2003: 76).
“the totality of life is shown in its contemporary mystic-
ism. There are many works in a society which are appar-
ently different, but have a similar logical order and simi-
lar viewpoint concerning living, death and metaphysics.
The reason is that they have an identical mysticism” (ibid,
79).
“An artistic works can only be figured out in social condi-
tions and through mysticism. Therefore, based on his
view, the most important artistic work in every era acted
as a shared experience.” (ibid).
Human beings are inherited the knowledge, ideal, belief,
hope and fears and generally physical and spiritual
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achievements of the ancient generations through culture and transmit it to the future generation. As mentioned, some of these traditional beliefs and humane society’s achievements which are narrated chest by chest are the superstitions about animals or abstract creatures and lu- minaries, which some of these superstitions and beliefs can be found in that period writer’s works as a sample. One of these poets is Sanai who was lived in 5th -6th cen- tury AH, and reflected these traditions and beliefs in his works ( Ghaseminejad Raini, 2009: 153).
The 5th and 6th century is a period full of anxiety and confusion which is the results of the domination of tribes and Turkish slaves and also some dynasties of yellow big and small tribe’s chiefs and their slaves and commanders in Middle East and Near East, including Iran. In the second half of the 5th century, Iran is influenced by con- fusion and killings and ravaging by the result of power combating and various occurrences and events as getting power the Turkish dynasties including Ghaaznavi and Saljughi which are dominated over Iraq and Azerbaijan, and this events lead to people’s death, moral corruption, poverty and annihilation of national and general values, a kind of religious despotism, which made the abrogation of heroic and humanity milieu, and people got away from the valuable thinking concerning independence and na- tionality. The 6th century is thought of as the period in which nationality thinking in Iran is weakened, and the main causes of this matter are in one hand the successive Turkish dominance and the new servants wiped away the honesty for the kings and emirs, and on the other hand, not only weakened the old Iranian thinking concerning maintain the social classes and the necessity for assigning each emir and king to the royal families because of prop- agating religious policy, but considered religion and faith based on people’s superiority upon each other (Safa, 1992:
98).
This factors caused Iranians made themselves ready to
be obedient to all civilized and barbaric tribes, whether
infamous or superior kings. This is an stressful period
dominated over Iran. But this conditions were mostly
martially, and therefore oppression, brutality, looting,
unlawful acts, rapes and invasion to people’s property
and honor were brought forth, which all these matters
caused people are brought to depression, isolation and
therefore the society was oriented towards individualism,
and dominating a tragic atmosphere over the whole socie-
ty, because the nation which had to be capitulated to the
influences of the beaten nations and freed itself from thinking for vengeance and compensating laggings, such
a nation has not heroic and epic poetries and laudation of bravery and swordplay and expressing the conquerors and champions are not involved in such a poetry, on the contrary; the dark memories of lovers, people’s misery,
cruelty, patience, contentment and isolation of great fig- ures, the world’s inconsequential issues, questioning and taking revenge of the Day of Judgment, describing the paradise and men’s comfort after the death are the root and foundation of his speech (Razmju, 1990:31). These issues are influenced on political developments in terms of social and cultural conditions and these factors show their impacts on various aspects in the short term or long period of time. These effects can also be directed in the excellence and development of a community or collaps- ing culture or social foundations; but whenever political stability of a nation was established, developments and progress would follow out in all its aspects from tradi- tions and people’s conduction to architecture, literature and sciences and techniques. The reverse issue is correct; that is to say, whenever political stability was not estab- lished, anarchy, lawlessness, and the breakdown of social culture would follow out, and this factors of instability were often caused by wrong doings and breaking the rules of government agents and wealth owners, and con- sequently moral corruption and the desire to menials and rascality would occurs (Ghaseminejad Raiini, 2009:12).
The anarchies resulted from the discord among the ru- lers and civil wars and involved in pleasure, complacent and judicial corruption and bribery were in a way that even the ministry could be bribed (Shamisa, 2003: 106).
In these ravages brought in by the Turks and their masters in Iran, it is not surprising that we are occurred with numerous complaints of the ravages situations in the works of the writers and poets of the era, even the poets who had the responsibility for admirations of most yel- low kings (Safa, 1992:111).
The dominant culture of the society is mystical, and everyone is replete with this feeling, conscious or uncons- cious. This degree is growing day by day in our commu- nity and with a compelling mix of Sufism and Shiite in recent centuries, this kind of thinking forms the main theme of our culture (Shafii, 2009:42).
In most schools established after the 5th century on- wards, teaching rational sciences were forbidden and the main efforts were directed on religious sciences and lite- rature. Those who had only been involved in science or philosophy are generally assumed to be atheist and hete- rodox. However, inattention to science and scientists, which was initiated in the Ghaznavian period, came to its pinnacle at this time, and the characters like Abualisina or Abureyhan Birooni were create no more, and the mystics set the science and sagacity aside as much as possible, and considered the science as the bigger vein (Shamisa,
2003: 96).
The religious domination caused a hostility to be created against Greek philosophy (ibid). However, the
dominance of religious thinking is spread over to all as- pects of life in this century (ibid: 97).
The attacks and invasion to Shahnameh and the news related to Iranian tribes and Iranian customs, initiated in Ghaznavi period and can be seen Farokhi’s and Onsory’s
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divan, were increased in Seljuk era, and the poets like
Moazi considered Shahnameh as deceitful and lying.
This is much certain that one of the various aspects of
Sanaii poetry is social dimension, as Shafie Kadkani says:
“If a list of weak points and shortcomings of the existing
social system of Iranian people be achieved, perhaps the
best proof of these poems is Sanaie’s. Not only are his
poems an image of his contemporary time situations, but
is a chain of our social history in all eras (Razaghi,
1381:262).
The Persian language and literature had been influ- enced by many changes in the second half of 5th and 6th centuries by the arrival of the Seljuk in 5th century. As Shamisa mentioned, the main factor and the so called “the motor of style changing” is the social changes and developments (political, economic), that cause the life and behavior changes, and consequently how to think and view (Shamisa, 2003:40).
The Seljuk were also forced to get help from Baghdad
rulers for establishing their power and make it canonical, and hence engaged in constructing religious schools and propagating Islamic culture, though the more we think over the history of arriving Islam to Iran, we come to un- derstand the natural familiarity of the people with Islamic contents, Quran, commentaries and narrations. Hence, in this period, the poets implied more to verses, narrations and Islamic allusions more than ever, and there were even people who had hostility with Iranian mythologies as Shahname. (ibid: 96), and the religious domination caused a hostility to be created against Greek philosophy (ibid). However, in the schools established the 5th century onwards, teaching intellectual sciences were prohibited and the main efforts were directed to religious sciences and literature (ibid). However, the religious thinking dominance in all thinking aspects in this period (ibid: 97).
The Seljuk were not much initially believed in poetry,
and therefore ballad which was the means for eulogy was lagged behind and sonnet which was the means for ex- pressing the feelings and emotions was promulgated. However, the Seljuk was gotten familiar with Iranian civi- lization and magnificent courts were created in Iranian style and returned to their previous situations by the help of Iranian ministers, and hence ballad and eulogy was again come to the fore (ibid: 99).
In the second half of the 5th century and the beginning
of the 6th century, the poets much tried to renovate Sa- mani period style as Naserkhosru, and Ghataran Tabrizi. In the beginning of the 6th century, the poets of the 5th century was still prevalent and the poets like Sanaie and Moazi initially imitated the Farokhi and Onsory divans, but Sanaie left immediately aside the imitation and
created a new method and inserted the mysticism se- riously into the literature ( Gaseminejad Raiini, 2009: 22).
Many poets expressed their poetry contents with philo- sophical and scientific thinking in this period, and made used the scientific thoughts in poetical imaginations and conceptions. Other groups criticized harshly the philoso- phers and arbiters and had an antipathy view against them. The poets took this harsh view were influenced by that time thinking and were affected by severe disagree- ment between religious scientists and philosophers (ibid).
What mentioned above was considering the Sanaie’s thoughts in several chosen dimensions among the most significant social and cultural dimensions of the time. It is so clear that his social and cultural dimensions are not limited to these ones and are also involved other exten- sive horizons as governmental system and the way for managing a society, the ceremonies, traditions and ethics, beliefs and superstitions, music, archeology, letters, enter- tainments and briefly the social and cultural living of the people in that period. Sanaie was deeply familiar with political and social events because of having a social and common spirit and character; hence, it is natural that his works are mature in terms of social and cultural.
For this maturity, it is worth a comprehensive research being performed in this regard.
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