Amir Hushang Ebtehaj ( fa, امیر هوشنگ ابتهاج; 25 February 1928 – 10 August 2022), also known by his

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

H. E. Sayeh ( fa, ه.ا.سایه, lit. ''Shadow''), was an Iranian poet of the 20th century, whose life and work spans many of Iran's political, cultural and literary upheavals.

Life

Ebtehaj was born 25 February 1928 in

Rasht Rasht ( fa, رشت, Rašt ; glk, Rəšt, script=Latn; also romanized as Resht and Rast, and often spelt ''Recht'' in French and older German manuscripts) is the capital city of Gilan Province, Iran. Also known as the "City of Rain" (, ''Ŝahre B ...

in a prominent Baha'i family in Iran and had his primary schooling there before moving to

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 ...

. His first book of

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

, with an introduction by eminent poet

Mehdi Hamidi Shirazi Mehdi Hamidi Shirazi ( fa, مهدی حمیدی) (born 1914 Shiraz, Iran, died 1 July 1986, Tehran, Iran) was an Iranian poet and university professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other ...

, was published when he was 19 years old. During Iran's open period following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Sayeh got involved in various literary circles and contributed to various literary magazines such as Sokhan, Kavian, Sadaf, Maslehat, and others. Unlike many other literary figures of the time who got deeply involved in politics and left-leaning activities, Sayeh stayed true to his social and political consciousness but refrained from deeper involvement. He was employed at the National Cement Company for 22 years while continuing his literary activities. Later he was invited by the National Iranian Radio to produce the traditional music program "Golhaye Taze" and "Golchin Hafte." After the 1979

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

and the ensuing suppression, Sayeh spent a year in prison for his writings. After he was released, he began to work on "Hafez, by Sayeh," a verse-for-verse study of the various publications of

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", ...

. In 1987, he moved to

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

, Germany, with his family and lived there, but he visited Iran several times a year. Sayeh died from kidney failure at his home in

on 10 August 2022 at the age of 94.

Poetry

Sayeh published his first collection of poetry while he was still a high school student in the northern province of Gilan, Iran. His total output, however, remains small because of his preoccupation with high craftsmanship and exact phraseology. In the political climate of the 1940s, Sayeh was an ardent advocate of the poetry of social commitment. His own early poetry reveals his concern with purposive literature. Sayeh has also written a collection of lyrical poems (

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 ...

) in the classical style. Here, he reveals an easy mastery of traditional forms—the lyrical ode, in particular—which he uses to celebrate both the sacred and the secular moments of life. Sayeh's poetry, at times highly emotional, is always remarkable for its convincing directness and unconcealed sentiment. A number of his lyric poems, ballads and poems have been performed by famous Iranian singers such as

Mohammad Reza Shajarian Mohammad-Reza Shajarian ( fa, محمدرضا شجريان; , 23 September 1940 – 8 October 2020) was an Iranian singer and master (''Ostad'') of Persian traditional music. He was also known for his skills in Persian calligraphy and humanitari ...

, Alireza Eftekhari,

Shahram Nazeri Shahram Nazeri ( ku, شارام نازری, translit=Şaram Nazirî, ; born 18 February 1950) is a contemporary Iranian tenor of Kurdish origin from Kermanshah, Iran, who sings Sufi music, classical and traditional Kurdish and Persian music. H ...

, Hossein Ghavami and

Mohammad Esfahani Mohammad Mahdi Vaezi Esfahani ( fa, محمدمهدی واعظی اصفهانی ; born 5 July 1966), better known as Mohammad Esfahani, is an Iranian Persian pop music, Persian pop and Traditional music, traditional singer. He graduated from Ir ...

Works

Poetry *The First Songs, 1946 (نخستین نغمه‌ها) *Mirage, 1951 (سراب) *Bleak Travails I, 1953 (سیاه مشق ۱) *Nocturnal, 1953 (شبگیر) *Earth, 1955 (زمین) *Pages from the Longest Night, 1965 (چند برگ از یلدا) *Bleak Travails II, 1973 (سیاه مشق ۲) *Until the Dawn of the Longest Night, 1981 (تا صبح شب یلدا) *Memorial to the Blood of the Cypress, 1981 (یادگار خون سرو) *Bleak Travails III, 1985 (سیاه مشق ۳) *Bleak Travails IV, 1992 (سیاه مشق ۴) *Mirror in Mirror, Selected Poems, 1995 (آینه در آینه) :(selected by M.R. Shafie-Kadkani) *Dispirited, 2006 (تاسیان) (non-ghazal poems) Other *Hafez, by Sayeh, 1994 (حافظ به سعی سایه) Please note: English names of books are not official, but the Wikipedia author's translation. See

talk Talk may refer to: Communication * Communication, the encoding and decoding of exchanged messages between people * Conversation, interactive communication between two or more people * Lecture, an oral presentation intended to inform or instruct ...

page.

Poems in translation

Translations by Mojdeh Marashi and Chad Sweeney: * “Arghavaan.” Washington Square Journal, 2008 * “Search/Circle” and “Moan of the Mirror.” Poetry International 12, 2008 * “Kayvaan Was a Star,” “Sterile,” “The Fall,” and “Bird in the Cage.” Pingpong, Henry Miller Library Journal, Issue 3, 2008.
"Sunset on the Green"
and "Image." Subtropics, Issue 6, Fall 2007. * “Fright,” “Life” and “The Few Thousand Hopes of the Children of Adam.” Crazyhorse Issue 72, 2007. * “Night’s Alley.” American Letters & Commentary 19, 2007. * “The Art of Stepping Through Time” and “Black and White.” Indiana Review 29.2, Winter 2007. * “Maybe,” “Story” and “Dove’s Wings” Seattle Review, Spring 2007. * “Numbers” and “Red.” Fourteen Hills, Fall 2005.

References

* * *

External links