☰ Contents · Literature

Sa’diy of Shiraz and “Guliston”

Lessons 32–33 · 2 lessons · S. Ahmedov, B. Qosimov, R. Qo‘chqorov, Sh. Rizayev. Literature, Grade 5. “Sharq” publishing house, Tashkent, 2020 (4th edition)
32

Sa’diy of Shiraz

Textbook: pp. 180–181
GoalLearn about Sa’diy of Shiraz’s life and his two main works.
New words
sheikh, venerable teacher · shayxghazal (lyric poem) · g‘azalcaravan leader · sarbonwisdom · hikmat
Explanation

Sheikh Muslihiddin Sa’diy of Shiraz was a great poet of Persian-Tajik literature; as his pen name shows, he was from Shiraz, the famous city in Iran. Sources give different birth years (1184, 1189, 1203, 1210), so we do not state one; he died in 1292. Sa’diy spent more than twenty years travelling, knew the hardships of exile and even captivity, and put what he saw and learned into stories. He wrote wise ghazals; one famous ghazal begins with the words “O caravan leader, go slowly”. His main works are “Bo‘ston”, written in 1257, and “Guliston”, written in 1258. Western scholars such as Voltaire and Goethe also turned to his works.

Worked examples
Example: Sa’diy died in 1292 – since his birth year is uncertain, we cannot count his age exactly.
Example: “Bo‘ston” (1257) was written one year before “Guliston” (1258): 1258 − 1257 = 1.
Class activity

“Two books”: two columns for “Bo‘ston” and “Guliston”: year, meaning (“orchard” and “rose garden”), main form (poetic / mixed).

Practice
1
From which city was Sa’diy and when did he die?
2
What are Sa’diy’s two famous works?
3
Why is Sa’diy’s birth year not stated?
4
How did travel influence the poet’s work?