Lessons 18–19 · 2 lessons · S. Olim, S. Ahmedov, R. Qo‘chqorov. Literature, Grade 8: textbook-collection, Parts 1 and 2. G‘afur G‘ulom publishing-printing creative house, Tashkent, 2014 (revised third edition)
18
Alisher Navoiy
Textbook: Part 1, pp. 98–101
GoalKnow Alisher Navoiy’s life, key dates and the structure of his lyric legacy (his divans).
New words
divan (a collected volume of a poet’s lyrics) · devonpreface · debochapen name · taxallusthe king’s closest person (a court title) · muqarrabi shohiy
Explanation
Alisher Navoiy was born on 9 February 1441 in Herat, in the family of the court emir G‘iyosiddin Kichkina. In youth he loved reading Attor’s poem “Mantiq ut-tayr”; his parents, afraid, hid it, but the poet had memorised the book. In 1466–1469 he studied in the madrasas of Samarkand. In 1469, when his friend Husayn Boyqaro took the throne of Herat, he called Navoiy to his side; Navoiy served in high posts at court and received the rank “muqarrabi shohiy”. The “Xamsa”, five poems, was created in 1483–1485. Navoiy died in Herat on 3 January 1501. His lyrics were gathered in eight divans: seven Turkic and one, the “Devoni Foniy”, Persian (it uses the pen name “Foniy” and has 554 ghazals). From 1491–92 he began gathering his Turkic poems into the four-divan “Xazoyin ul-maoniy”, which has 16 lyric genres, 650 ghazals in each divan, 2,600 in all. The divan names point to four stages of life: “G‘aroyib us-sig‘ar”, “Navodir ush-shabob”, “Badoye’ ul-vasat” and “Favoyid ul-kibar”. The total of ghazals in both languages is 3,154.
Worked examples
Example: Navoiy’s first own divan, “Badoyi‘ ul-bidoya”, was compiled about 1472–1476 at the request of Husayn Boyqaro, and the poet wrote a preface (“Debocha”) for it. The second divan, “Navodir un-nihoya”, was compiled in 1486.
Example: the divans of “Xazoyin ul-maoniy” are likened to the stages of the poet’s life: childhood as spring, youth as summer, then middle and old age. But one should not think each divan holds poems written at that age, because there is also symbolism.
Class activity
Put four dates from Navoiy’s life (1441, 1469, 1483–1485, 1501) and their meaning in one table. Also explain the order of the divans in your own words.
Practice
1
When and where was Navoiy born?
On 9 February 1441 in Herat.
2
How many divans make up “Xazoyin ul-maoniy” and how many ghazals are there in all?
Four divans; 650 in each, 2,600 ghazals in all.
3
In which language is the “Devoni Foniy” and how many ghazals does it have?
In Persian-Tajik; 554 ghazals.
4
Why can the divan names not be tied directly to age?
Because the textbook says there is symbolism: each divan does not hold only poems written at that age.