Iranian Poets
 
Saadi
Saadi was born in Shiraz in the beginning of the 13th Century in a religiously educated family. He studied literature and the introduction to theology and religion during his elementary schooling and went to Baghdad for his secondary school. After graduation he traveled abroad, visiting Rome, Lebanon and Hejaz (The Saudi Arabia Peninsula). During his journeys he began writing his two masterpieces, Bustan (in 1257) and Golestan (in 1258). He accomplished the task of writing Bustan during his youth when he returned home in 1257. In fact Bustan, the unique unrivaled book of poetry, was a souvenir of his journeys presented to his friends. Bustan, "the Brilliant Diamond of the Persian poetry" contains 4000 verses and is made of 56 chapters. His second book written both in the "Prose and Poetry" starts with an introduction and contains 8 chapters, the eighth of which consists of proverbs commonly used nowadays in colloquial Farsi language. Saadi's other works include Lyrics, Quatrains, and "Ghassideh". Although he speaks in a very simple fluent style, his words are expressed delicately and meticulously. His pieces of advice are moral, social and full of wisdom.
  Sanai
Sanaie Ghaznavi is a distinguished mystic poet. He was a renowned sagacious Sufi and definitely a master in Persian literature. He was born in Ghaznain in the mid-Eleventh Century. Following the prevailing fashion of his time he dedicated his poems to contemporary rulers. Being a court poet during his youth he used to be a panegyric for King Massoud Ghaznavi and Bahramshah. But we know that, after converting to a mystic poet, he had far better understanding of a poet's duty than the many panegyrists and court poets. Actually, right after meeting Sufi sheikhs while living in Khorassan Province he was drastically changed. Having retired into seculation, he chose to spend his time in meditation to achieve self-consciousness. While attempting to achieve enlightenment he isolated himself from the society for a few years. During this period he resolved to learn mysticism, and that is when he started to compose his elegy and his famous long poems (ghassidehs). His books include "Hadighat-ol Haghighah" (The Garden of Truth), Tarighol Tahqiq (A Guide to Research), and Karnameh Balkh. Sanaie writes his poems in a very complicated way. In order to substantiate his point he relies on arguments and drawing conclusions assisted by wisdom. His poetry is mostly implications to diverse quotations, Qoranic verses, proverbs and well-known stories. He also uses plenty of sagacious idiomatic expressions relevant to diverse fields and sciences. This in turn, is another evidence of his true knowledge. He died in 1150. His grave is in Ghaznain.
Iraj Mirza  
Iraj whose ancester was Fathali-Sah Ghajar, was born in 1874 and died at the age of 50 in 1924. He was a master of Persian literature. He studied at Darolfonnon school in Tabriz. He fluently spoke Arabic, French and Turkish and was very much familiar with Russian. His handwriting (calligraphy) was very atistic. Iraj was the court-poet and when he was only 19 he was named Sadro-Sha'erin (head of poets). During this time Mozzaferdin Shah was still a crown prince. The latter reigned from 1896 till 1906. But shortly after that he resigned from service as the court-poet. He was then employed by the government sector and his service at the Culture Ministry is very notable. Iraj who was one of the famed contemporary poets composed his poems mostly in colloquial form. Some of his works include facetious verses. His simplified poems are famous for witticism and jocularity. In many verses one will even find indecent vocabulary, and that is why his collection of poetry for a long time had been banned from appearing on the shelves. And now they are being censured. Iraj was influenced by the revolutionary and changing circumstances. This fact is manifested in the particular style of poetry that he innovated. Modern and imported concepts coped with what were obtained from his own thoughts are the framework of his style. He criticizes the social conditions. The striking originality in his use of metaphor when addressing diverse social problems has been admirable by his critics. His style is rich in simile. He ridicules. His striking sarcasm, pungent and fanged words are pointed at the dishonest merchants and statesmen. These are what the poet expects to drive at social consequences. His words are very simple to understand. It is as if he is talking to you in a conversational language or slang.