Seyyed Ahmad Hatef Esfahani ( fa, سید احمد هاتف اصفهانی; also

Romanize Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

d as Hatif Isfahani and Hātif Isfahāni) was a famous

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ian

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

of the 18th century.

Life

Hatef Esfahani was born in

Isfahan Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...

(Esfahan), a central province of

, and most likely he died there in 1783. (Some documents also indicate that he died in 1777). Hatef's date of birth is unknown. He was contemporary to at least seven rulers of

, namely Shah Rukh of Persia (ruled 1748–1796),

Karim Khan Zand Mohammad Karim Khan Zand ( fa, محمدکریم خان زند, Mohammad Karīm Khân-e Zand; ) was the founder of the Zand Dynasty, ruling from 1751 to 1779. He ruled all of Iran (Persia) except for Khorasan. He also ruled over some of the Cauc ...

(r. 1760–1779), Abolfath Khan, Mohammad Ali Khan,

Sadiq Khan Zand Sadeq Khan Zand ( fa, صادق‌خان زند, d. 1781), also known as Mohammad Sadeq, was the fourth Shah of the Zand dynasty of Iran from August 22, 1779 until March 14, 1781. Biography Background and early life Sadeq Khan belonged to the ...

, and

Ali Murad Khan Ali-Morad Khan Zand (died 1785) the fifth Shah of the Zand dynasty of Iran, reigned from March 15, 1781, until February 11, 1785. Life After the death of Karim Khan Zand, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar who was a hostage—in light of preventing a ...

(all from

Zand dynasty The Zand dynasty ( fa, سلسله زندیه, ') was an Iranian dynasty, founded by Karim Khan Zand (1751–1779) that initially ruled southern and central Iran in the 18th century. It later quickly came to expand to include much of the rest of ...

who ruled 1779–1785), and

Agha Mohammad Khan Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar ( fa, آقا محمد خان قاجار, translit=Âqâ Mohammad Xân-e Qâjâr; 14 March 1742 – 17 June 1797), also known by his regnal name of Agha Mohammad Shah (, ), was the founder of the Qajar dynasty of Iran, rul ...

, the founder of

Qajar dynasty The Qajar dynasty (; fa, دودمان قاجار ', az, Qacarlar ) was an IranianAbbas Amanat, ''The Pivot of the Universe: Nasir Al-Din Shah Qajar and the Iranian Monarchy, 1831–1896'', I. B. Tauris, pp 2–3 royal dynasty of Turkic peoples ...

(r. 1781–1797). He studied

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

, and foreign languages (

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

and

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

). He had a son and a daughter. His daughter, named Beygom, married poet Mirza Ali Akbar Naziri.

Poems

Hatef was an expert in the composition of

ghazal The ''ghazal'' ( ar, غَزَل, bn, গজল, Hindi-Urdu: /, fa, غزل, az, qəzəl, tr, gazel, tm, gazal, uz, gʻazal, gu, ગઝલ) is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry. A ghazal may be understood as a ...

s (odes). A ghazal is a poem of complex structure and exalted by lyrical or rhapsodic mood on some stated theme. Another line of his profession was in the writing of tarji'-band poems. When the linking verse is recurrent, the poem is called a tarji'-band (literally: return-tie). But when the linking verse is varied, the poem is called a tarkib-band (literally: Composite-Tie). He was also skilful in the composition of

qasida The qaṣīda (also spelled ''qaṣīdah''; is originally an Arabic word , plural ''qaṣā’id'', ; that was passed to some other languages such as fa, قصیده or , ''chakameh'', and tr, kaside) is an ancient Arabic word and form of writin ...

elegies An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lament for the dead. However, according to ''The Oxford Handbook of the Elegy'', "for all of its pervasiveness ... the 'elegy' remains remarkably ill defined: sometime ...

(sugnameh), rubaiyat (quatrains) and fragments (qita'at). But his reputation lay in his excellent poems of a

mystical Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in u ...

nature. Hatef has been considered one of the great Iranian mystic poets who taught many peoples about the higher aspects of the human existence and the journey of the

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

. Hatef's poems are smooth, clear and flowing and free of ambiguities. He followed Saadi and

Hafez Khwāje Shams-od-Dīn Moḥammad Ḥāfeẓ-e Shīrāzī ( fa, خواجه شمس‌‌الدین محمّد حافظ شیرازی), known by his pen name Hafez (, ''Ḥāfeẓ'', 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'; 1325–1390) and as "Hafiz", ...

especially in the composition of his odes. Due to his excellent odes, Hatef is also very well known in many parts of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and particularly in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Hatef also wrote three odes in

. In two of his odes, he was inspired by the poems attributed to Urvah ibn Hazam Ozri, Jamil ibn Ozri and Umar ibn Abirabia. In the third ode, which is a

eulogy A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as a ...

of the Prophet, he was inspired by the poems composed by Fallera and Bursiri. Hatef's Poetry

Anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

(in Persian: ''Divan-e-Hatef-e-Esfahani'') was firstly edited and published in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

in 1953 by late poet and

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researche ...

Hassan Vahid Dastgerdi (Dastjerdi), the founder of the literary journal Gift (in Persian: ''Armaghan'').

References

# "A Research Note on Poet Hatef Isfahani" by Dr

Manouchehr Saadat Noury Manuchehr, Manuchar, Manuchihr, or Manouchehr ( fa, منوچهر, ''Manūčehr'', Old Persian: Manōčihr, Avestan: Manuščiθra) is a Persian male given name meaning "Heaven's face". It consists of two parts ''Manu (Manou),'' which means "Heaven" ...

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# "Christ and Christianity in Persian Poetry" By

Hassan Dehqani-Tafti Hassan Barnaba Dehqani-Tafti (Hassan Barnābā Dehqānī-Taftī; 14 May 1920 in Taft, Iran – 29 April 2008 in Winchester) was the Anglican Bishop of Iran from 1960 until his retirement in 1990. Dehqani-Tafti was the first ethnic Persian to ...

br>

External links

Iranica article

Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREEPoem ''če šavad be čehre-ye zard-e man'' sung by Mohammad-Reza ShajarianArticle by Gen'ichi Tsuge (1970) with musical transcription of song ''če šavad''
(JStor)
Recital of Hatef's Tarji'-band by Dr Iraj Shahbazi
(Begins at 4:05) {{DEFAULTSORT:Esfahani, Hatef Sufi poets 18th-century deaths Year of birth unknown 18th-century Iranian poets Writers from Isfahan Persian Arabic-language poets People of the Zand dynasty

Life

Poems

See also

References

External links