Farid ad din attar. Philosophical poem by Farid ad-Din Attar “The Language of Birds”: selected chapters in translation and arrangement

Rabiyah's parents were so poor that when she was born, there was neither oil in the house to light a lamp nor a piece of cloth to swaddle her.

She was the fourth child in the family. Her mother asked her husband to borrow some butter from the neighbors. But he decided never in his life to ask anything from anyone other than the Creator; so he cheated and, going up to the neighbor’s door, knocked on it so quietly that they did not hear him and did not come out to him. So he returned home empty-handed. He explained to his wife that the neighbor did not answer the door, so he returned empty-handed. At night, the Prophet appeared to him in a dream and said: “Your newborn daughter is the favorite of the Almighty, and she will guide many Muslims to the Path of Deliverance. You need to go to the Emir of Basra and give him a letter in which the following will be written: “You offer Darud to the Holy Prophet a thousand times every night and four hundred times every Thursday. However, since you violated this rule on Thursday, as punishment you must give four hundred dinars to the bearer of this letter.” Rabiyya's father went straight to the emir's palace, he cried with happiness. The Emir was very happy to receive this message because he realized that the Prophet remembered him. In gratitude, the emir distributed a thousand dinars to the poor and gladly paid Rabiyya's father the specified amount. He asked him to come to him for help whenever such a need arises, because he, the emir, will be honored if he helps a person whose soul is so dear to the Almighty.”

Rabiya's father died, famine began in Basra, and Rabiya had to leave his home and sisters. One day, the caravan she was traveling with was attacked by robbers. The leader captured Rabiyya as booty and brought him to the market, where he sold him into slavery. Rabiyya's new owner forced her to work hard.

One day, Rabiyah left her master's house to carry out his assignment. As she walked down the street, a tramp began to follow her. To escape from him, she started running, fell and broke her arm. Then Rabiyah prayed: “O Lord! I am a poor orphan and a slave. Now my arm is also broken. But if You are pleased with me, I will humbly accept all trials. But please give me a sign that You are pleased with me.” The voice of God answered: “Pay no attention to all this suffering. On the Day of Judgment you will be given such a high position that even the angels will envy you.” Rabiya returned to her master's house. After this incident, she became in the habit of spending all nights in prayer after finishing her housework. She observed multi-day fasts.

It so happened that the owner of the house woke up in the middle of the night and his attention was attracted by the excited voice of Rabiyah, who was praying to God. She said the following: “Lord! You know well that more than anything in the world I want to carry out Your orders and serve You with all my heart, O light of my eyes. If I were free, I would spend my days and nights in prayer. But what can I do, since You have made me a slave? Rabiyya's owner saw that a magic lamp was hanging in the air without any support, and her entire room was flooded with light. At that very moment he realized that keeping such a holy girl in his service was sacrilege, and he decided to serve her himself. In the morning he called her and told her about his decision: from now on he will serve her, and she will become the mistress of the house. If she insists on leaving his house, then he is ready to free her from slavery. She replied that she wanted to leave this house to worship alone. The owner let her go and she left.

One day Rabiyah was making a holy pilgrimage to Mecca. Her luggage was carried by an old donkey. On the way he died. Rabiyya's companions volunteered to carry her burdens. However, she refused their help, noting that she began the hajj not under their protection, but under God. She was left alone, and the caravan continued on its way. Then Rabiyah prayed to God: “O Lord of the Worlds! I am a lonely, humble and poor woman. You first invited me to Your house, the Kaaba, and then you killed my donkey, leaving me alone in the desert.” At that same moment the donkey came to life. She loaded her burdens onto him and continued on her way. Approaching the Kaaba, Rabiyah began to pray: “I am just a handful of dust, and the holy Kaaba is a strong House. I want You to meet me Yourself, without any mediation (bevaseta). The Voice of God answered: “Rabiya, should I turn the world upside down for your sake, so that the blood of all creatures will lay an indelible stain on your name and on the tablets of your destiny? Don't you know that Moses was looking for a meeting with Us? We simply illuminated him with a ray of our effulgence, and he entered into a state of ecstasy, and Mount Sinai turned into a pile of black ash.”

The next time Rabiyah was making her way to the Kaaba through the desert, she noticed that the Kaaba, the House of God, was approaching her to greet her. Seeing this, she said: “Why do I need a House? I want to see the Master of the House - God. Doesn’t the Almighty say that to those who take a step towards Him, He approaches seven steps? It’s not enough for me to see the Kaaba, I want to see Him.”

At the same time, Ibrahim Adham was also heading to the Kaaba, and he made it a rule to perform namaz (prayers) at every step of his way.

Therefore, it took him 14 years to reach the Kaaba. Arriving at the place, he discovered that the Kaaba had disappeared. He was very disappointed. The Voice of God told him: “The Kaaba has gone to meet Hazrat Rabiyya.” When the Kaaba returned with Rabiyah leaning on her because of her advanced age, Ibrahim approached the saint and asked: “Rabiyyah, why are you doing such strange things and why are you making a universal noise?” Rabiya replied: “I do not do anything like that, rather, it is you who, in order to gain fame, go to the Kaaba for fourteen years.” Ibrahim admitted that he actually prayed every step of the way. Rabiyyah remarked: “You walked this path by saying namaz, and I overcame this distance thanks to submission and humility.”

The next year, Rabiya again decided to visit the Kaaba, and she asked God: “Let me see You.” After these words, she walked the rest of the way on her knees, crawling and rolling on the ground. Then the Voice of God said: “Rabiya, come to your senses. If We appear before you in all our radiance, you will turn into ashes.” Rabiya replied: “I lack the courage to look directly at Your sparkling and magical face. Grant me fakr (asceticism), which is so pleasing to you.” The Voice of God answered: “You are not ready for this. This honor is given to people (men) who have died to themselves (dissolved their ego and desires), dedicated their lives to Me, and between them and Me there remains a distance no thicker than a hair. We bring these people very close to Us, and then, when they have a desire to see Us, we move them away. Rabiyah, there are still seventy veils between you and Us. Until they are removed and you start with with a pure heart to search, it is useless to ask Us for the right to fakr.”

Then Rabiyah again heard the Voice of God asking her to look straight ahead. She looked. Oh miracle! She found herself in a completely different place, and an unusual picture appeared before her. She saw a rippling ocean of blood floating high in the sky, swirling into a giant funnel. The Voice of God said: “Rabiya, these are bloody tears shed from the eyes of those who love Us and cry because of separation from Us. But, despite all the trials and suffering to which these people were subjected, they did not deviate even five centimeters from the Path and did not ask Us for anything. Having taken the first step on the Path, they rose above the desires and ambitions of this and the future life and so retired from the world that no one even knew about their existence. Such was the disgust of these people for earthly glory.” Hearing this, Rabiyah asked: “Lord! Then let me stay at the Kaaba." But this too was denied to her. She received permission to return to Basra, where she spent the rest of her life in solitude and prayer.

One day Rabiyah was sitting in the house and preparing to start a meal when a dervish appeared at the door. Rabiya, wanting to treat him, placed in front of the guest two flatbreads that she had prepared for herself. The dervish was surprised because Rabiya did not keep anything for herself. Soon he saw a woman enter the room holding a dish of flatbread, which she offered to Rabiye, saying that this treat had been sent by her mistress. Rabiya asked how many flatbreads she brought. The woman replied, “Eighteen.” Rabiya did not accept this offering and asked her to take it back. The woman left, but soon returned. This time Rabiya accepted the cakes, learning that there were twenty of them. Dervish asked Rabiyya why she first refused and then agreed to accept the treat. She replied: “The Almighty said in the Koran that whoever offers a gift in His name will be rewarded tenfold. Therefore, I accepted the treat only when the words of the Scripture were fulfilled.”

One day Rabiyah was baking flatbread. She remembered that she had no vegetables. At the same moment, several onions fell from the ceiling. She threw them away and shouted: “Satan! Away with your tricks! Does my God keep a greengrocer?” Rabiya said: “I have never asked for anything from God or accepted anything from others, but only from God.”

One day Hassan Basri saw Rabiyah surrounded by wild animals who looked at her with love. But when Hasan Basri approached her, they ran away. Hassan asked: “Why did they run away?” In response, Rabiya asked her question: “What did you eat today?” He replied: “Meat.” Rabiya said: “They ran away because you eat their meat, but I only eat dry bread.”

One day Rabiyah came to visit Hassan Basri and saw that he was sobbing bitterly from separation from God. The number of tears he shed was so great that they flowed like a stream down the gutter of his house. Seeing this picture, Rabiyah reproached Hassan: “Refrain from such manifestations of feelings, because love for Him can fill your insides to such an extent that your heart will drown in this love, and it is possible that you will not be able to discover his whereabouts.”

One day Hassan, eager to become famous, saw Rabiyya, as usual, surrounded by saints, approached her and said: “Rabiyyah, let’s leave this meeting, let’s sit in the middle of the lake and have our spiritual conversation there.” He said this to demonstrate to others his miraculous ability (similar to that of Christ who walked on water). Rabiya began to persuade him: “Hasan, leave your vanity. If your art is so strong that you can leave the general meeting of the saints, then why don’t we both fly up and talk in the air?” Rabiya suggested this because she had an ability that Hassan did not have. He felt guilty. Rabiya said: “Know that what you can do is also available to fish, and what I suggested can be done by a fly. The reality is greater than this competition of abilities. Look for a miracle in humility and submission."

One man asked Rabiyah to marry him. She replied: “Only he can marry who belongs to himself and whose life is subordinate to him. But I am not the owner of my body and my life. They belong to God. Ask Him for my hand.”

Hassan Basri asked Rabiyah how she managed to achieve such spiritual greatness. She replied: “I forgot about my earthly existence (I stopped feeling myself), remembering only Him.”

Rabiyah was asked: “Where are you from?” She replied: “From Him I came and to Him I will return.”

Prophet Muhammad appeared to Rabiyah in a dream and asked her if she remembered her friend. She replied: “Is it possible to forget you? But what can I do? Love for God has so filled every pore of my body that there is no room left for love for you or hatred for Satan.”

The people asked Rabiyah, “Do you see the God whom you worship?” She replied, “If I don’t see Him, I won’t pray.”

Rabiyah cried constantly for God. People asked her the reason for these tears. She replied: “I am afraid to part with Him even for a moment and cannot live without Him. I am afraid that the Voice of God in my hour of death will say about me: “Take her, she is not worthy to be near Us.”

God is pleased with the believer who is equally grateful to Him for the efforts he makes to earn His love and for the manifestations of His mercy towards him (that is, he understands that he can serve God only by His mercy).

Someone asked, “Does God really forgive a repentant sinner?”

Rabiya replied: “A sinner is forced to confess and repent of his sins only when God forces him to do so. That is why the Almighty accepts the sinner’s repentance for his sins.”

Salih Qazwini always taught his students: “The day will come when someone’s door will definitely open to the one who has been knocking on it all the time.” One day Rabiyah heard this and said: “Salih, how long are you going to give your sermons in the future tense? You say that the door will be opened, but was it ever closed? It's always open." Salih bowed his head respectfully before her.

One person shouted: “Ah! What terrible pain! Rabiya came up to him and said: “Oh! It doesn’t hurt you at all!” The man asked her why she said that. Rabiya replied: “Because pain is the privilege of true believers, who, even when it becomes unbearably difficult for them to speak and breathe, accept this torment with joy.”

One day Rabiyah saw a man with a bandage on his forehead. She asked him why he was wearing the blindfold. The man replied that he had a severe headache. "How old are you?" she asked. He replied that he was thirty.

- How did you live before? today?

- I was absolutely healthy.

Rabiya said: “For thirty years God maintained your health, but you never thanked Him or dressed yourself in colorful clothes so that people would ask you the reason for your joy and, having learned about God’s mercy towards you, could glorify Him. However, when, through your own fault, you have a slight headache, you wrap it up and walk around with this bandage, testifying to how harsh He is with you, making you suffer from a headache. How low of you!”

One day, Rabiyya’s servant girl told her: “Mistress, go outside and admire the spring beauty of nature.” She replied: “Seclude yourself, like me, and you will see the Creator. I see God, not His creation."

People asked Rabiyya why she didn't keep a knife in the house. She replied: “A knife is needed to cut into pieces. I am afraid that the knife will not be able to sever the connection that exists between me and My beloved Lord.”

One day Rabiyah fasted for eight days. On the last day of fasting, she felt slightly hungry. A man came in and brought some sweet water in a bowl. She took it, put it on the floor in a dark corner of the room and wanted to light the lamp. The cat touched the bowl and knocked it over. Then Rabiyah decided to drink only water all night. When she wanted to take the clay jug, the lamp went out, the jug fell and water spilled on the floor. She sighed and said, “Lord! Why are you doing this to me?" The Divine Voice replied: “Rabiya, if you are looking for earthly joys, We are ready to offer them to you, but we will deprive you of Our torment and pain (gam). There is no room in one heart for the gifts of this world and Our torment at the same time. Rabiya, you will learn one thing, and We will learn another. Two independent desires cannot coexist in one soul.”

One day Hazrat Malik Dinar came to Rabiyya to pay his respects. In her hut he found a broken jug of water for drinking and bathing, a stone used for a pillow, and a torn mat for her bed. Guest said:

- If you allow, I will ask my rich friend to provide you with everything you need.

- Is there one God who helps me, and another who helps him? If not, can He forget me because of my poverty and remember him because of his riches? The truth is that He does not forget about anyone, so we do not have to remind Him of anything. He knows what is best for us and dispenses or withholds His favors accordingly.

Rabiya said: “The beloved of God is the one who is so immersed in thoughts of Him that he ceases to feel his body and cannot distinguish pain from pleasure.”

One saint came to Rabiyya and began to complain about life. She remarked: “You must love this earthly existence very much, because a person talks a lot about what he is most attached to.”

Sufyan Zauri came to visit Rabiyya. She spent the whole night offering prayers to the Almighty. When morning came, she remarked: “Praise be to the Almighty for being merciful to us and allowing us to spend the whole night in prayer. As a sign of gratitude, let’s fast today.”

Rabiya used to pray like this: “Lord! Whatever You bestow upon me in this life, bestow the same upon my enemies; and whatever You reward me in the future life, grant the same to all the faithful, and as for me, I seek You in You. Deprive me of heaven and hell, but do not deprive me of the opportunity to see You.”

Sufyan Zauri and Rabiya once held pious conversations all night long. In the morning, Zauri remarked: “It was a good night.” Rabiya objected: “No, the night went badly because you kept trying to say things that were pleasant to me, and I was thinking about what to say pleasant things to you in response. We spent the night without thinking about God. It would be much better if I were alone and spent the night thinking about the Almighty.”

Rabiya said: “I pray to You that as long as I live, I will live in remembrance of You and that after my death You will grant me the grace to see You.”

May Almighty Allah protect you!

Amen.

Review date:

14-12-2014

Publication date:

15-01-2015

Abstract.

The translation from the Persian language of the main the syuzhetoobrazuyushchikh of fragments of the major monument of the Persian sufiysky philosophical tradition - the philosophical poem "The Speech of the Birds" (Mantik at-tayr) Farid of ad-Din Attar Nischapuri (the XII -XIII centuries) is presented in article, and also are considered a number of questions, connected with studying of a literary heritage of Attar: disputes on number of the literary works written to them are conducted, there is no accurately established chronology of writing of compositions, besides, there are some poems attributed to Attar however there are no direct historical evidences that their author he. In research philological methods, and also the historico-philosophical and conceptual analysis of the text that allows to define strategy of interpretation of a number of poetic constructs (such as "soul bird", by "Simurg", "valleys") are used mainly thanks to which Attar opens the maintenance of important concepts of medieval sufiysky philosophy. Novelty of research consists first of all in translation from the Persian language of the medieval poem "The Speech of the Birds" (with a total amount about 800 couplets) relating both to poetry masterpieces and to the most authoritative works of sufiysky thought in tradition. This composition was repeatedly translated into the European languages ​​(Garsen de Tassi, Edward Fitzgerald, D. Davies and. A. Darbandi, P. Everi) and Arab (M. Dzhum"a). The translation of separate parts of the poem into Russian and its partial retelling was executed by domestic Iranianist E.E. Bertels and A.E. Bertels. Only in 2006 the translation "Parables about the sheikh San"ana" from the poem "The Speech of the Birds" was published, and in 2009 — the translation of the poem executed by M. Borzui into Russian under the name "Logic of Birds" is published. However this translation of the poem is incomplete and is almost completely deprived of the scientific comment. In this regard the author counted necessary to make his own translation of a significant part of this philosophical monument that will allow further more objectively and fully to cover philosophical ideas of Attar and to define his place in the context of Islamic medieval philosophical tradition.

The literary heritage of the medieval Iranian poet-philosopher Farid ad-Din Attar (1145/46 - ca. 1221) is truly a treasure trove for researchers. His poems contain incredibly rich material for the study of Sufi ideas in their specifically Iranian interpretation. This remark is especially true in relation to the Sufi philosophical poem “The Language of Birds”, selected chapters from which, translated from Persian, are published in this article.

All the information about Attar that we have today is obtained either from his own texts or from his biographies compiled much later, in the 15th century. Daulat Shah of Samarkandi (“Memories of the Poets”) and Abd ar-Rahman Jami (“Blows of Friendship from the Halls of Holiness”). Full name Attara - Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr Ibrahim. "Attar", i.e. “perfumer”, “pharmacist” is the poetic pseudonym of Farid ad-Din. The future poet was born in 1145/46 and died around 1221. It is also known that Attar was from the village of Kadkan, located in the Zarvand area, near the city of Nishapur. This city was considered one of the most important cultural and intellectual centers not only of Khorasan, but of the entire Islamic world. In addition, the province of Khorasan, and especially the city of Nishapur, was widely known as centers of Islamic mysticism.

Farid ad-Din Attar was the son of a successful pharmacist and doctor Ibrahim Abu Bakr and after the death of his father he continued his work. Attar received an excellent education, as evidenced by the texts of his poems, and showed considerable interest in medicine and pharmaceuticals. Soon Farid ad-Din Attar began to practice healing on his own. Nevertheless, he managed to find time for literary creativity.

After some time, Attar decided to leave the pharmacy business and devote himself entirely to the spiritual practice of the Sufis and poetic creativity, but it is not known for certain what caused this decision. IN research literature There are suggestions that Attar traveled to become familiar with Sufi wisdom; there are also opinions that he never left the city of Nishapur, where he died at an old age. There are many legends about the tragic death of Attar. Most of them tell that he was killed by a Mongol warrior during the capture of Nishapur in 1221 and was buried near his hometown.

Although it is customary to consider the work of Farid al-Din Attar within the framework of Sufi poetic tradition, researchers point out some difficulties when it comes to classifying the poet as a certain Sufi movement. We know almost nothing about the poet's contacts with Sufi sheikhs or orders of that time. However, Dr. Leonard Levison and Professor Christopher Shackle, the authors of a brilliant collective monograph devoted to the study of Attar's work, indicate that the poet was familiar with the sheikh of the Kubrawiyya order, Maj ad-Din Baghdadi (d. 1219).. It is possible that it was he who was Attar’s spiritual teacher, if, of course, the poet had any kind of Sufi mentor at all. Even if we cannot answer this question positively, it is clear that the lyrical and epic poetry of Farid al-Din Attar was greatly influenced by the well-known paradoxical sayings of Bayezid al-Bistami (d. 875) and the ecstatic exclamations of Mansur al-Hallaj (d. 922).

There is another point of view on this issue. Researchers often refer to the German orientalist H. Ritter and his extensive study of Attar's writings entitled "The Ocean of the Soul", where he argues that Attar was not in fact a Sufi. Defending his thesis, Ritter emphasized that the poet himself did not consider himself a Sufi and referred to the introduction to Attar’s prose work “Remembrance of the Friends of God.” Although it is possible that the meaning of the poet’s words was somewhat different: Attar treated the early Sufi sheikhs with such reverence and respect, in addition, the poet believed that he himself was not worthy to stand on the same level as such great mentors, and therefore did not dare to call himself a Sufi. The majority of researchers share this opinion and confidently classify Attar among the brilliant galaxy of Persian Sufi poets.

The question of Attar's literary heritage continues to remain controversial. Firstly, researchers of his work still do not have a common opinion regarding the number of literary works he wrote. Medieval biographers insistently asserted that Farid ad-Din Attar wrote one hundred and fourteen works, one for each sura of the Koran. However, this figure is greatly exaggerated, since in reality we can only talk about thirty works that have survived or are mentioned by Attar himself in his writings. Professor Said Nafisi identified 66 titles of poems, the author of which is Attar. Only twelve of them were recognized by Professor Nafisi as genuine, three of which were completely lost.

The study of Professor Badi' al-Zaman Furuzanfar, which is one of the first works devoted to a detailed analysis of the life and work of Attar, indicates that he wrote 6 serious poetic works: “The Book of Secrets” ( Asrar-name), "Language of Birds" ( Mantik at-tair), "Book of Sorrows" ( Musibat-name), "Divine Book" ( Ilahi-name), Mukhtar-name ,Khusrau-name. and one large prosaic one, “Remembering the Friends of God” ( Tazkirat al-Auliyya). He also compiled a large collection of lyric poetry ( sofa). We share Furuzanfar's conclusions, especially since his work is almost the only well-founded study of Attar's work.

Secondly, for many decades, Attar researchers have been trying to resolve another, no less important problem, - is Farid ad-Din Attar really the author of all these poems? The doubts that have arisen are primarily related to the fact that poetic works that are attributed to him vary greatly in style. In addition, some poems indicate that their author was a Sunni, while others indicate a Shia. H. Ritter suggested that such a discrepancy is explained by the spiritual evolution of the poet. He identified three main stages in the work of Farid ad-Din Attar, according to which he arranged all his works:

1. Essays in which mystical ideas are harmoniously woven into an artistic narrative.
2. Works in which the presentation of pantheistic ideas prevails over poetic expressiveness.
3. Essays in which the motive of praising Imam Ali is persistently developed.

H. Ritter suggested that the last stage of creativity is associated with the transition of the elderly poet to Shiism. However, in 1941 Professor Said Nafisi proved that the differences in the style of poems in the first and third groups according to H. Ritter’s classification are too great and cannot in any way be explained by the spiritual evolution of the author. Then Professor Nafisi came to the conclusion that the works related to the so-called. "the third period of Attar's work" were actually written by another poet. He also bore the nickname “Attar”, lived a century and a half later in Mashhad and was from the city of Tun. Subsequently, H. Ritter reconsidered his views and agreed with the arguments of Professor Nafisi.

In the question of the authenticity of Attar’s writings, it is necessary to take into account one more circumstance that will help clarify it. In the prologue to “Mukhtar-nama” and “Khusrau-nama”, the poet himself lists the works that came from his pen: a collection of poems ( sofa), poems: “The Book of Secrets”, “Station of Birds” (another name for the Masnavi “Language of Birds”), “Book of Sorrow”, “Divine Book”, “Jawahir-name” and “Sharh al-kalb”. In addition, Attar reports that he himself destroyed the manuscripts of “Jawahir-name” and “Sharh al-kalb”.

Thirdly, certain problems also arise in connection with determining the time of writing of Attar’s main works. The poet himself exact dates doesn't name. Therefore, constructing a chronology of the writing of Attar’s poems was not so easy. Badi' al-Zamana Furuzanfara did this grandiose work and found out that first 'Attar wrote the poem “The Language of Birds”, followed by the “Divine Book”, then the “Book of Sorrows”, then the “Book of Secrets”, “Khusrau-name” and "Mukhtar-name."

To summarize the above, it is important to note that according to the form of presentation, all of Attar’s works are divided into two groups: poetic And prosaic .

The essays of the first group are:

1) poetry collection (sofa), consisting mainly of ghazals (qasidas make up a seventh of the divan). Attar rarely wrote qasidas, as he tried to avoid the panegyric genre of versification. His ghazals vary in their themes of love and wine, but most contain descriptions of mystical experiences;

2) a collection of ruba’i called "Mukhtar-name". At the request of his friends, Attar selected about a third of the six thousand quatrains for this collection and divided them into fifty chapters in accordance with a specific topic. Almost two thirds of the chapters "Mukhtar-name" are dedicated to covering various aspects of the theme of love; the remaining sections of the collection contain shirts on Sufi themes;

3) poetic novel " Khusrau-name", which tells the fate of two lovers: the daughter of King Ahwaz named Gul and Gurmuz, the illegitimate son of Emperor Rum (the protagonist was later renamed Khusrau);

4) philosophical and didactic poems: “Book of Secrets” ( Asrar-name), "Language of Birds" ( Mantik at-tair), "Book of Sorrows" ( Musibat-name), "Divine Book" ( Ilahi-name).

The second group of works includes only one work by Attar, “Remembrance of the Friends of God” ( Tazkirat al-Auliyya). This prose work is an impressive collection of biographical information about the most famous Sufi mentors, describing their deeds and sayings. The “Note on the Saints” opens with stories about the lives of Imam Jafar al-Sadiq, Uwais Qarani and Hasan al-Basri, and ends with a presentation of the events of the life of Mansur al-Hallaj, who was for Attar an example of a true Sufi. This prose work brought the poet fame as an excellent expert on Sufi thought of that time.

The poem “The Language of Birds” occupies a special place among all of Attar’s works, not only due to its beautiful plot, amazing elegance and beauty of style, but also due to the significance of the Sufi ideas presented in it, the most important of which is the description of the path of the human soul to God, which took the form of an allegorical story about the journey of birds to their king - Simurgh. In the structure of the poem “The Language of Birds” three main parts can be distinguished: 1) introduction (prologue), written according to the Persian literary canon; 2) main narrative- the largest section of the poem. It consists of forty-five chapters ( Makale), each of which is accompanied by one or more parable stories. This part of the poem is devoted to a description of the journey of the birds who went in search of their king Simurgh; 3) conclusion (epilogue), which is not divided into chapters and represents a single semantic fragment. In conclusion, Attar sums up the written poem, discusses the purpose of poetry and the purpose of creating the poem.

FARID AD-DIN ATTAR

POEM “THE LANGUAGE OF BIRDS”

The poem opens with a traditional praise to Allah, which includes a presentation of the concept of the creation of the world, the history of Adam, the fall of Iblis, who refused to bow to the first man, and the expulsion of Adam from paradise. This is followed by a praise of the Prophet Muhammad and a description of his mi'raj, after which Attar addresses the four righteous caliphs: Abu Bakr, Omar, Osman and Ali, and then moves on to the main narrative.

The hoopoe tells the birds about the recovery of the Simurgh

The birds of the world have gathered,

All that were, both obvious and secret.

Everyone said: "In the world now

There is not a single city without a ruler.

What will happen to our region without a king?

To be without a king - there is no other way for us!

We need to be each other's support,

And set off in search of the king.

After all, if there is no king in the country,

Then there will be no harmony and order in the army.”

And so, all [the birds] gathered in one place,

They all sought to find a king for themselves.

Hoopoe, with an excited heart,

Full of hope, he went out to the gathered [birds].

On his chest is the elegant robe of the tariqa,

On the head is a crown of haqiqat.

Possessing a quick mind, he set out on the path

Informed of good and evil.

[The hoopoe] said: “O birds, there is no doubt that I

And the messenger of the lord, and the messenger of [the world] of secrets.

And I brought news about the master.

And out of his wisdom he became a confidant of secrets.

The one who held in his beak "In the name of Allah"

It is no wonder that he was able to comprehend many secrets.

I spend my life grieving about myself.

No one can share my sadness.

After all, I am overwhelmed with suffering for the king,

And I will never be sad because of the army.

I see water in the depths of the earth,

I know a lot of secrets besides.

I came forward to talk with Sulaiman.

Undoubtedly, I surpassed his retinue.

About everyone who left, oh wonder, his possessions,

[Sulaiman] did not question and did not demand [to himself].

As soon as I left him once,

He searched everywhere.

After all, he couldn’t stand a moment without me.

The hoopoe will be content with such honor until the end of centuries.

I took his letter and returned,

He became his confidant of secrets.

Anyone who is desired by the Prophet

His head is worthy of a crown.

Everyone whom the Lord remembered with a good word,

Not a single bird will outrun you in flight.

For years I wandered over water and land.

I walked steadily along the path.

Went through valleys, mountains and deserts.

Flew around [the entire] world during the flood.

Went on travels with Sulaiman.

I walked around [the whole] world up and down.

I recognized my king.

How can I go alone? I couldn't do it!

If you become my traveling companions,

You will be admitted to that King and to that Palace.

Leave the shameful look on yourself.

How long will this shame of unbelief last?

Everyone who gives his life for His sake is freed from himself.

On the path to the Beloved one is freed from good and bad.

Give up your life and take the path.

While dancing, bow your head to that Threshold.

Undoubtedly, we have a King.

He is behind the mountain, and its name is Kaf.

He is called Simurgh, Lord of the Birds,

He is close to us, but we are far from Him.

At the top of a tall tree is His peace.

His name cannot be expressed in words.

More than a hundred thousand curtains

Before Him - both from light and from darkness.

In both worlds no one has enough courage,

In order to receive a share from Him.

He is the Absolute King forever,

Immersed in the perfection of his power.

He does not reveal himself from where he is.

How can knowledge and reason rise to where He is?

There is no way to Him, but one cannot bear [separation] from Him.

Hundreds of thousands of people fell into madness because of their love for Him.

If [even] a pure soul cannot comprehend His properties,

Reason [and even more so] has no source of His knowledge.

Undoubtedly, both the mind and the soul are at a loss.

Before His properties, darkness obscures the eyes.

The mind cannot comprehend His perfection,

You cannot see His beauty with your eyes.

What was created did not find the way to His perfection.

Sight did not find the way, but knowledge followed [it].

Some people will join that Perfection and that Beauty,

Unless they rely entirely on imagination.

Is it possible to walk this path [relying on] imagination?

Can you reach the moon in a month?

There are a hundred thousand heads turned into balls.

There are shouts of joy and sorrowful lamentations.

Along the way you will encounter both land and sea hundreds of times.

So know that this path is not close!

You need to be as brave as a lion to overcome this path,

After all, the path is long, and the sea is very deep.

We must walk in confusion

On the way to Him, both laugh and cry.

If we receive a sign from Him, things will work out.

And if not, life without Him will turn into shame.

Why is a soul needed if there is no Beloved?

If you are a husband, do not allow your soul to be without the Beloved.

It takes courage to go all this way

You need to give up your life at this Palace.

We must courageously renounce life,

Then you can say that you are the husband of this matter.

The soul without the Beloved is worth nothing.

Like husbands, sacrifice your precious life.

If you courageously give up your life,

Your Beloved will grant you life a hundred times over.

Parable of the Simurgh

At the beginning of creation, Simurgh, - oh wonder,

Flew brilliantly over China at midnight.

In the middle of China one of His feathers fell.

And, of course, excitement began in every country.

Everyone perceived the image of that feather,

Everyone who saw that image got down to business.

To this day that pen lies in the vault of China,

That is why they say: “Seek knowledge even in China!”

If the image of that feather had not become visible,

There wouldn't be such a commotion in the world

All works of art are from His splendor.

All creations are from the image of His pen.

After all, His description has neither beginning nor end,

[Therefore] there is nothing more to add to this speech.

And now those of you who are men of the path,

Make up your mind and take the path.

Having heard this parable, the birds understand how great their king, Simurg, is. They are determined to go in search of their Master. But here’s the problem - the journey to Simurgh seems to them too long, difficult and dangerous. Therefore, each of the birds tries to find some excuse for itself to explain why it cannot participate in the journey, and the hoopoe, in turn, tries to reason with them and convince them.

Birds Apology

The nightingale is the first to decide to tell about his doubts. He considers himself an expert in all the secrets of love. The nightingale has already found his beloved. This is a rose that blooms in the garden and delights him with its beauty. The nightingale cannot imagine life without a rose and constantly sings of it. Only next to this wonderful flower does he hope to find happiness. The Nightingale will not be able to reach the Simurgh. And why should he go on a journey if all the nightingale needs is the love of a rose?

The hoopoe replies that the beauty of the rose, which so delights the nightingale, is not eternal and lasts only a week. Can love really be true for something that will one day disappear forever? What the nightingale calls love is only affection for the beautiful form that this flower has. And when the rose fades over time, the nightingale will have nothing left but bitter disappointment.

Following the nightingale, a parrot appears. He calls himself Khizr among birds, because his plumage is green, like Khizr's robe . However cruel people They locked him in an iron cage, where the parrot languishes and dreams of a sip of living water from the spring of Khizr. If he manages to escape from this prison, the parrot will be able to find this source, drink the living water and gain immortality. He cannot bear the hardships of the path to the Simurgh. All a parrot needs is a sip of water from the Khizr spring.

The hoopoe replies that life was given to the parrot not so that he would try with all his might to preserve it, but so that he would part with it for the sake of his Beloved.

After the parrot, the peacock takes the floor and admits that he is driven by only one desire - to return back to the Garden of Eden. Once upon a time a misfortune befell him: he became friends with a serpent, and therefore was expelled from paradise. And now the Peacock is looking for a guide who would help him find the way to heaven. The peacock does not intend to go on a journey to the Simurgh; he will be happy if he ends up in the Garden of Eden.

The hoopoe replies that the paradise that so attracts the peacock is the refuge of the base soul (nafs), and he himself must strive for the abode of the heart. It is much better to find the King himself, the lord of paradise, than to be content with the Garden of Eden.

It’s the turn of the duck, who proudly declares that in terms of purity of thoughts and attire, hardly anyone can compare with her. The whole life of a duck is connected with water, every moment it performs ablution and praises the Creator. She cannot live without water, is she able to get to the Simurgh?

The hoopoe convinces the duck that water is necessary only for those whose faces are dirty. And if the duck is one of them, then let him look for water.

Following the duck, a partridge joins the conversation. She says that she lives in the mountains and is looking for precious stones. It is to them that the partridge is attached with both heart and soul. Precious stones are the greatest value for her. The partridge cannot overcome the path to the Simurgh, her attachment to precious stones is too strong.

The hoopoe is surprised by the partridge's arguments. He replies that these jewels are just colorful stones. Why become attached to them with all your heart?

Now the huma turns to the hoopoe. She says that she is a special bird, she managed to curb the rebellious base soul (nafs). Many strive to catch the shadow of the huma bird in order to gain their own kingdom. Why should she look for the king - Simurgh, if she herself can point to the king?

The hoopoe reproaches the huma bird for being too proud and arrogant. It's time for her to stop shrouding kings in shadow. Indeed, on the Day of Judgment, all those who were endowed with royal power and might will have to say goodbye to the throne.

Following the huma bird, a falcon appears. He is proud to sit on the king's arm and is happy with his position. The falcon has never heard of the Simurgh and is not going to go in search of him.

Hoopoe answers him that all kings have rivals who one day may deprive them of power. Only King Simurgh has no equal. No one can encroach on his kingdom. If a falcon seeks to be close to another king, many dangers await him.

It's the heron's turn. She admits that she is happy with her life near the sea. She is tormented by thirst, but she does not dare to get drunk, because then there will be less water in the sea, which she adores. The heron thinks only about how to save a drop of sea water and therefore cannot go on a journey to the Simurgh.

The hoopoe tells the heron that she does not know the sea at all, to which she is so attached. It is capricious, changeable and full of dangers. If the heron does not leave its habitat, someday the sea will swallow it up and destroy it. Even the sea becomes agitated, expecting to see its Creator. So can the heron really find peace next to him?

An owl appears and joins the conversation. She lives in ruins and, like crazy, searches for the treasures hidden there. The owl cannot love the Simurgh; its heart is where the treasure is hidden.

The hoopoe replies to the owl that the love of treasure leads her to destruction. If she strives for treasures and gold, then she is one of the infidels.

And finally, the last one to enter the conversation is the finch (sparrow). He admits that he is very weak, and also cowardly, and therefore cannot go in search of the king - Simurgh. The hoopoe reproaches him for hypocrisy and pretense and urges him to gather his strength and go on a journey.

Apologies to all the birds

After such a long conversation, during which each of the birds showed themselves and expressed their doubts, they turn to the hoopoe with a request to explain to them how they are connected with the Simurgh. And they add that if in fact there is such a connection between them, then all the birds will immediately go to the Simurgh. The hoopoe gives the birds a detailed answer:

Know when the Simurgh is from behind the veil

He showed his face like the sun,

He cast a hundred thousand shadows onto the earth.

Then he fixed his gaze on the pure shadow.

He scattered his shadow over the world.

Several birds appeared every moment.

The appearance of all the birds of the world

From His shadow - understand this, O ignorant one!

Understand that! If only you knew this in advance,

I would find a true connection with That Master.

How will you know - look, and then be knowledgeable!

When you find out, don't reveal this secret!

Everyone who has become such has achieved immersion [in the Truth].

God forbid you to say: “I am the Truth.”

If you do as I say, you are not the Truth.

However, you are constantly immersed in the Truth.

Will a husband immersed [in the truth] become a blasphemer?

Will these words become the work of a talker?

If you realized whose shadow you are,

Would be free whether you were dead or alive.

If the Simurgh remained hidden,

This shadow would never appear in the world.

And if the Simurgh disappeared again,

There would be no shadow in the world forever.

Everything that is here is like a shadow,

At first it arose in that world.

If your eyes cannot see the Simurgh,

Your heart is not like a shining mirror.

Since no one has eyes [capable of] beholding that Beauty,

And it is impossible to bear His beauty.

Love cannot bear His beauty.

Out of the perfection of His mercy He created the mirror.

The heart is the mirror. Look into the heart!

To see His face in it, look into the heart!

Birds ask Hoopoe about his journey

The birds understand who the Simurgh is to them, and are ready to go on a journey with the hoopoe. But they still fear that they will not have enough strength and courage to overcome this path. The hoopoe replies that if love for Simurgh has awakened in the birds, then they must be ready to go through all the tests that will meet them on the way, and without hesitation, give up their lives for the sake of their Beloved. In support of these words, the hoopoe cites parable about Sheikh San'an.

Sheikh San'an was an elder of his time.

Whatever you say about his righteousness will not be enough.

He spent half a century as a sheikh in Mecca,

With him were four hundred gifted students.

Each of his students is an amazing thing,

Day and night he remained in abstinence.

His action and knowledge were in harmony,

He mastered both the obvious and the revelation [of secrets] and secrets.

He performed Hajj almost fifty times.

[And] he performed the minor hajj all his life.

He observed prayer and fasted without measure,

He did not neglect any of the [established] rituals.

The leaders who came forward

They were not themselves in front of him.

The hair was split by [that] spiritual man,

Strong both in miracles and in stops.

Anyone who has suffered from illness or disease,

From his breath I gained bodily health.

In a word, for people in joy and sorrow

He was a mentor, a guide in the world.

Although he considered himself the leader of the Companions

For several nights he saw the following in his dreams:

“How did he get from Mecca to Rum,

Continuously worshiped some idol.”

When I saw that dream, the sage of this world

He wailed: “Oh woe! Alas! It's time to!

Yusuf of luck fell into the well, -

A difficult place was on the way.

I don’t know if I can save myself from this sadness.

I will die if I lose faith!

There is not a single person in all the earth

Who does not have difficult places on such a [mountain] path?

If you immediately overcome a difficult place,

The path will be open for him to reach the palace.

If he stops before this difficult place,

As punishment, the path for him will become longer.

After all, that incomparable teacher

He told his disciples: “I have something to do.

I need to quickly go to Rum,

So that the interpretation of this [dream] becomes clearer.”

Four hundred worthy students

They accompanied him on his journey.

They walked from Ka'ba to the borders of Rum,

We walked around Rum from edge to edge.

Suddenly they saw a tall palace,

A girl was sitting at the window [high up].

The girl is a Christian with a spiritual [face],

On the path to the Spirit of God she has a hundred knowledge.

On the heavenly sphere of beauty, in the House of power,

She was the sun that never sets.

The sun, envying the radiance of her face,

[It became] yellower than the [faces] of the lovers on her street.

Anyone whose heart was attached to the curls of that beauty,

I tied the zunnar, dreaming about her curls.

Anyone who in his soul wished for the rubies of that beloved,

Before he could set foot on this path, he folded his head.

When the morning breeze from her locks turned musky,

Rum wriggled in front of that [curl] like an Indian.

Her eyes sowed confusion among lovers,

Her eyebrows were beautifully arched.

When she glanced at the lovers' faces,

With her gaze she forced them to say goodbye to life.

Having met a beautiful Christian girl and, captivated by her beauty, the elder falls in love and suffers painfully. That's when the students come to him and their conversation begins. :

All friends for his comfort

They gathered that evening after hearing his lamentations.

One of his friends said to him: “O greatest sheikh!

Get up and wash away this temptation!”

The Sheikh said: “Tonight with the blood of the liver

I have already performed ablution a hundred times, O ignorant one!”

Someone else asked, “Where are your rosary beads?

How can your cause be righteous without a rosary?”

[The Sheikh] said: “I threw away the rosary from my hands,

To be able to get involved Zunnar !»

Someone else said: “Oh, ancient old man!

If you have sinned, repent quickly!”

[The Sheikh] said: “I have already renounced my good name and provisions

To free yourself from the title of sheikh and worldly vanity!”

Someone else said: “Oh, master of secrets!

Go and concentrate on prayer!”

[The Sheikh] said: “Where mihrab the face of the Beloved -

Then I will have no other thing to do than prayer!”

Someone else asked him: “How long will such speeches last?

Go and worship the Lord in solitude!”

[The Sheikh] said: “If my idol was there,

Bowing before her face would be wonderful!”

Someone else asked, “Don’t you have repentance?

Don’t you have at least one sigh of regret for Islam?”

[The Sheikh] said: “No one has repented more than this

The fact is that I didn’t become in love before that!”

Someone else said, "Div has led you astray,

An arrow of helplessness unexpectedly struck your heart!”

[The Sheikh] said: “To the marvel who leads us astray, tell -

“Lead!” because, truly, he leads [astray] beautifully.”

Someone else told him: “Whoever knows

Talks about him - How has this old man gone astray!”

[The Sheikh] said: “I am completely free from [concerns about] a good name,

I broke the glass of duplicity on a stone.”

Someone else told him: "Old friends

They are sad about you, their hearts are breaking.”

[The Sheikh] said: “When a Christian child rejoices,

[My] heart does not notice the sorrows of others.”

Someone else told him: “Agree with your friends,

So that tonight we will go to Ka'ba again."

[The Sheikh] said: “If there is no Ka’bah, then there is a temple,

He who was sober in Ka'bah became drunk in the temple."

Someone else said: “Make up your mind to go now,

Stay in Shrine and beg for your forgiveness."

[The Sheikh] said: “[Bowing] his head on the threshold of the Beloved,

I will beg for forgiveness. Leave me alone!"

Someone else told him: “Hell lies on [your] path,

Only those who are knowledgeable will not end up in hell.”

[The Sheikh] said: “If hell is my companion,

Seven hells will burn with one breath of mine.”

Someone else told him: "In the hope of heaven

Change again and repent of this vile act!”

[The Sheikh] said: “After all, there is that beauty with a heavenly face,

If paradise is what I deserve, then there is this street.”

Someone else told him: “Fear the Lord!

Truly, be ashamed of the Lord Almighty!”

[The Sheikh] said: “Since the Lord kindled this fire in me,

I myself am not able to get rid of it.”

Someone else told him: “Go, calm down,

Find your faith again and become a true believer!”

[The Sheikh] said: “Except for disbelief from me, confused, do not expect anything,

Do not demand faith from someone who has become an infidel!”

Since the speeches had no effect on him,

In the end, everyone got used to this disaster.

Already a respected sheikh, San'an, like an inexperienced student, dutifully fulfills all the commands of the Christian girl, who at this stage becomes his kind of mentor. She tests his fortitude, the strength of his feelings and, as proof of his love for her, demands that he do four things: bow to an idol, burn the Koran, drink wine, and renounce the faith forever. Expressing complete readiness to carry out any of her orders, Sheikh San'an decides to drink wine. After this, the Christians take him to the temple, where he burns his hair shirt, ties the zunnar, and then, as a ransom for the Christian girl, agrees whole year herd pigs . The venerable old man is subjected to a wide variety of trials and all kinds of humiliation, which he accepts without complaint and with gratitude. The sheikh's students, stunned by the behavior of their mentor and having lost hope of returning him, go to the Kaaba. However, upon arrival there, they were all reprimanded by the most devoted and perspicacious student of San'an, who learned from their words that they did not follow the sheikh. Repenting of their action, they decide to share his fate with the teacher and again go to Rum. All this time, the students cry out to God to guide Sheikh San'an on the true path. Their prayer achieves its goal, and the sheikh returns to the ranks of the adherents of Islam. Now the Christian girl has a prophetic dream and clearly feels an inexorable call to follow Sheikh San'an and accept his religion. In the end, she achieves what she wants, pronounces the Shahada formula and dies in front of the sheikh, dissolving in his love. And the poet himself ends his story with a sermon on the renunciation of attachments and desires that prevent the individual soul from uniting with its creator, as well as a call for the struggle of the human spirit with the base soul (nafs).

Questioning the Birds

The birds, inspired by the parable they heard, choose the hoopoe as their leader and promise to obey him in everything. The decisive moment comes - the birds finally set off on a journey to the Simurgh. Gradually, they begin to be overcome by fears that prevent the birds from continuing their journey. They ask the hoopoe to help them clear their hearts of doubt. The hoopoe patiently answers the birds' questions.

One bird asks: “How did you manage to achieve such a high position?” The hoopoe answers her: “I achieved this neither with silver nor with gold. Sulaiman favored me with his glance. If you show humility and submission, Sumayman will turn his gaze to you too!”

Another bird asks: “How can we overcome this hard way what if I'm so weak? Even if I get to the first parking lot, I’ll die right there.” The hoopoe answers her: “It is better to lose your life on the way to the Simurgh than to meet death in this dirty world. It promises nothing but difficult trials, worries and disappointments.

Another bird asks: “I have committed many sins. Am I worthy to approach the king? The hoopoe answers her: “Don’t lose hope! If you have sinned, repent! The gates of repentance are open for you!”

Another bird asks: “I am fickle by nature. Either I remain in abstinence, or I turn into a dissolute reveler. Either a miracle leads me astray, then an angel again leads me onto the true path. I'm at a loss. What do i do?" The hoopoe answers her: “This can happen to anyone. If everyone were pure and perfect from birth, there would be no need to send prophets to people. If you tirelessly tame your animal soul (nafs), you will get rid of impermanence.

Another bird asks: “My main enemy- animal soul. How can I make him obey me? The hoopoe answers her: “If you yourself allow the animal soul to guide you, you will never be able to get rid of it.”

Another bird asks: “I am being led astray by the demon of pride (Iblis), I do not have the strength to fight him. How can I get rid of it? The hoopoe answers her: “As long as you follow the lead of your nafs, Iblis will not leave you alone. If you continue to indulge all your desires, hundreds more demons will be born within you.”

Another bird asked: “I really love gold. I was overcome by a passion for this world and gold!” The hoopoe answers her: “Gold is just a colored stone, it has no value. If you tie yourself to the things of this world and want to possess them, you turn away from God.”

Another bird asks: “I have a palace to which I am attached with all my soul. I live there like a queen. Why should I leave my piece of paradise and go on a dangerous journey? The hoopoe answers her: “I could agree with you if death did not exist on earth. Sooner or later, death awaits you, which means your palace is just a dungeon in which you are doomed to suffer.”

Another bird asks: “I am bound by the bonds of love, which has completely deprived me of reason. Living without a lover means being unfaithful in love.” The hoopoe answers her: “You are too attached to the external form. What you call beauty is actually just a mixture of mucus and blood. True beauty is in another world. Only she is worthy of love.”

Another bird asks: “I am afraid of death. My fear is so great that at the first stop I will lose my life!” The hoopoe answers her: “Everyone on earth is mortal. We were all born to die one day."

Another bird asks: “I had to suffer and suffer a lot. My heart is torn. Do I have the strength to go on a journey? The hoopoe answers her: “It’s stupid to be sad because of the earthly things that you have lost. This world is not eternal, so leave it!”

Finally, the last bird turns to the hoopoe with the question: “O expert on the path, tell me how long the journey awaits us?” The hoopoe answers her: “Seven valleys are on our way. But no one knows how long it will take to wander. At the beginning of the path is the valley of seeking, right behind it is the valley of love, next will appear the valley of knowledge, after it will be the valley of desirelessness, then we will find ourselves in the valley of pure unity, and after it the valley of painful confusion, and finally we will enter the valley poverty and non-existence, after which our journey will be over.”

Description of the Valley of Quest

When you descend into the valley of search,

Hundreds of difficulties will constantly arise before you.

Here every moment will bring a hundred troubles.

Here the parrot of the sky will turn into a fly.

Here you will have many years of struggle.

After all, the heart here is constantly changing.

Here you must leave your wealth,

Here you must part with possession.

You will have to walk [drowning] in blood.

You will have to go, leaving everything outside [of you].

How do you get rid of everything you know?

You need to cleanse your heart of everything that is.

When your heart is cleansed of [external] properties,

[It] will shine from the presence of the light of the [Divine] essence.

When that light appears in the heart,

The yearning in your heart will increase a thousandfold.

If fire appears on the way to Him,

If a hundred terrible valleys appear,

From yearning for Him, as if possessed,

He himself will rush into the fire like a moth.

He will become a seeker of secrets, [burning] with strong desire,

He will ask his cupbearer for a sip [of wine].

Having taken a sip of that wine,

He will completely forget both worlds.

Plunged into the sea, you will remain thirsty,

Seeking from the heart the secrets of the Beloved.

In your desire to know the secret,

He will not be afraid of the deadly dragon.

If faith and unbelief appear before him together,

He will accept them so that the doors will open to him.

If the doors are opened to him, whether it is faith or unbelief is [indifferent]!

After all, there is neither one nor the other on the other side of the door!

Description of the Valley of Love

Following this [valley] will appear the valley of love.

Whoever gets there will drown in fire.

May everyone who enters this valley be fire.

And for those who are not fire, pleasure is not a joy.

He is in love who is like fire,

Who is impetuous, burning, rebellious.

He is never prudent for a moment.

Joyfully plunges a hundred worlds into fire.

Not for a moment does he think about either faith or unbelief.

He doesn't have a grain of doubt or confidence.

On his path, good and evil are united.

He himself will become like love, he will be neither one nor the other.

O freethinker, these speeches are not for you!

You are an apostate, this is too tough for you!

The pure one will put all the cash he has on the line.

For the sake of connecting with a Friend, he will completely lose all his cash.

Others are promised [reward] Tomorrow.

However, his cash is already here.

Until he burns himself to ashes,

Will he be able to get rid of grief?

Until he burns the essence of his being,

Will he be able to please his heart with Mufarrikh?

He constantly rushes about in a fever and melts from the heat,

Until suddenly it returns to its [true] place again.

[So] a fish, when it is thrown out of the sea onto land,

It rushes about until it returns to the sea again.

There love is fire and reason is smoke.

When love comes, the mind instantly takes flight.

Reason is not a guide in the sufferings of love.

Love is not a matter of natural reason.

If you are given true vision of the world of secrets,

There you will see where the root of love is.

Every leaf exists because there is love,

The intoxication of love reigns everywhere.

If your eyes have been opened, seeing things in secret,

Every particle of the universe will initiate you into its secrets.

If you look [at the world] with the eyes of reason,

You will never understand anything about love.

For love you need a proven husband.

Love requires a free husband.

You are not tested. You're not in love.

[So] you're dead. Are you worthy of love?

This path requires a heart equal to a thousand living hearts,

To give a hundred lives every moment.

Description of the valley of [gaining] knowledge

Afterwards he will appear before your eyes

The valley of [gaining] knowledge, [where there is] neither beginning nor end.

There is no one who is in that place

Does not take a different path [than others].

No path here is similar to the other.

The one who is attracted by the body is not like the one who is attracted by the soul.

Due to the perfection of the soul and the inferiority of the body,

The soul is constantly elevated, but the body is doomed to destruction.

Before everyone, undoubtedly, only that path will appear,

Which he can overcome.

Will he be able on this glorious path

A weak spider to become an elephant's companion?

Everyone's journey will [continue] to perfection.

The closeness [to God] of each will be in accordance with his condition.

Fly a mosquito with all your might,

Can he match the perfection of the wind?

Undoubtedly, since the journeys are so different,

Birds will never travel the same route.

Therefore, the knowledge here is different:

One found a mihrab, the other found an idol.

When the sun of knowledge rises

In heaven, [moving] along its sublime path,

Each one will become a seer according to his strength,

Truly will find its place.

When the secret of each particle is revealed to him,

The sauna firebox of the mortal world will become a blooming garden for him.

He will see the core inside the shell.

He won’t see a speck of himself, only his Friend.

Wherever he looks, he will constantly behold His face.

In every smallest particle one will see His abode.

A hundred thousand secrets from behind the veil,

Like the sun, they will show him their face.

One hundred thousand people are constantly disappearing,

So that one becomes a perfect contemplator of mysteries.

This great path requires a perfect husband,

Who can dive into this formidable sea.

When he gets a little taste of its secrets,

Every moment he will be in passionate languor.

Here he will crave perfection.

Here he will shed pure blood a hundred thousand times.

If you reach your hand to the all-glorious Throne,

Don't talk about [threat] anymore: "Are there any supplements?"

Immerse yourself in the sea of ​​knowledge [of God].

And if not, shower your head with road dust!

If you, O sleeper, are not one of the people of greetings,

Why don't you mourn yourself?

If you cannot rejoice in connecting with a Friend,

Go, put on the mourning of separation!

If you don't see the beauty of your Friend,

Don't sit! Get up! Seek secrets!

If you don’t know, then find out! Shame on you!

How long will you be a donkey without a bridle?

Description of the Valley of No Desires

Following it will appear the valley of desirelessness.

There are no claims or ideas.

The wind blows tirelessly

An entire country is being swept away every minute.

Here the seven seas will be like one pond.

Here the seven luminaries will be like one spark.

The eight Gardens of Eden also withered there.

Like frozen ice, seven hells.

And the ant here - oh wonder!

For no reason, the power of a thousand elephants!

While the crow's crop is full,

No one will survive from a hundred caravans.

A hundred thousand angels burned with grief,

Until a light shone for Adam.

A hundred thousand bodies have parted with their souls,

While Nuh became a carpenter.

A hundred thousand mosquitoes attacked the army,

While Ibrahim rose above everyone.

Hundreds of thousands of babies had their heads cut off,

Until the Interlocutor of God became a seer [of God].

One hundred thousand people tied the zunnar,

While ‘Isa was admitted to [hidden] secrets.

A hundred thousand lost their souls and hearts,

Until Muhammad ascended to heaven one night.

Neither new nor old has a price here.

Whether you are inactive here or not, [it’s all the same].

If you see a great many burnt hearts,

I know that you only saw a dream.

If the souls of hundreds [of people] fall into this sea,

[It’s like] a dewdrop fell into an endless sea.

If a hundred thousand souls fall asleep,

[It’s as if] a shadow from the sun fell on one speck of solar dust.

If the heavens and stars crumble into pieces,

[It’s as if] only a leaf fell from a tree in the world.

If everything, from Pisces to the Moon, sinks into oblivion,

[It’s as if] at the bottom of a well an ant injured its leg.

If both worlds disappear at once,

Consider that a grain of sand has disappeared from the earth.

If both the divas and the human race disappear without a trace,

[It’s like] a little rain fell unnoticed.

If all bodies crumble to dust,

Why be afraid if one hair of a living creature falls?

If everything that exists here perishes, both the whole and the parts.

[It’s like] one straw has disappeared from the face of the earth.

If all nine heavens disappear at once,

[It’s as if] the seven seas became scarcer by one drop.

You will come to a station of purification and solitude.

When they turn their faces to this desert,

Everyone pulls their heads out of the same collar.

If you see a large number or a small one,

On this path it will be one thing, without a doubt!

If you start endlessly multiplying one by one,

Multiplying one by one always gets one.

The one who is united is not similar as you thought,

On the one that is in the number.

Since that [One] is beyond borders and counting,

Take your eyes off pre-eternity and eternity.

When the beginningless and the infinite disappear forever,

Then nothing will remain between them.

When everything is nothing and nothing is everything.

Will all this be, at its core, something other than twisting?

Description of the Valley of Confusion

Then you will find yourself in the valley of confusion.

Your eternal occupation will be pain and melancholy.

Here every breath will [stab] like a dagger.

Every moment here will bring you suffering.

There will be sighs, there will be pain and there will be heat.

There will be day and night, but [for you] neither day nor night.

Each one has a hair from the root, not a dagger,

The blood starts dripping - oh wonder!

The husband in this valley will be like a frozen fire,

Or from this pain, like hot ice.

When the husband reaches this place in confusion,

In amazement he will arrive and lose his way.

Everything that unity has inscribed in his soul,

Everything about him will disappear, just like himself.

If they ask him: “Are you there or not?

[Or] are you unable to answer whether you exist or not?

Are you inside or outside?

Aside, whether you are hidden or revealed.

Are you perishable or remain for eternity, or both,

Or are you neither

neither one nor the other? Or aren't you?

He will answer: “I don’t know myself at all.

And I don’t know what this “I don’t know” is.

I'm in love, but I don't know with whom.

I am not a Muslim, not an infidel, then who am I?

However, I also do not know about my love:

Either my heart is filled with love, or it is free.”

Description of the Valley of Poverty and Death

How to have a conversation there?

The essence of this valley is oblivion,

Silence, deafness and insensibility.

You will see how a hundred thousand of your eternal shadows

They will disappear from the [rays] of your sun alone.

When the perfect sea gets rough,

Will the images remain in place on the surface of the sea?

Both worlds are images [on the surface] of that sea and nothing more!

Anyone who says that this is not so is a madman and nothing more!

Everyone who is lost in the perfect sea,

Disappeared forever and found peace.

The heart in this sea is filled with peace,

Finding only disappearance.

If you bring him back from this non-existence,

He will see everything created, many secrets will be revealed to him.

When experienced travelers and brave men

Entering the realm of suffering

Having taken the first step, they are lost. What's the use of continuing?

Surely no one will take the next step.

If everyone gets lost after taking the first step,

Even though they are people, consider them inanimate!

When branches and wood are thrown into the fire,

They equally turn to ashes.

In form, both will be the same for you.

You will see a huge difference in properties.

When the unclean [husband] disappears into the greatest sea,

[Low] in terms of his qualities he will be at the bottom.

But if a pure [husband] falls into this sea,

Not a trace will remain of his existence.

His movements will merge with the movements of the sea.

When he is gone, he will be inside the [sea of] beauty.

If this happens, he will not be there, and he will be there.

[Understanding] this is beyond the mind.

Thirty birds at the throne of Simurgh

The sun of intimacy shone before them.

From the rays of that sun, the souls of all [the birds] began to shine.

In the reflection of the face of the Simurgh of the world

At that same moment they saw the face of the Simurgh.

When we looked at those thirty birds, -

[Then] without a doubt, these thirty birds were that Simurgh.

Everyone was amazed and confused,

They didn’t understand who they were: “this one or that one?”

They saw that all of them, without a trace, were Simurgh.

And the Simurgh himself was thirty birds.

When they looked at the Simurgh,

It was the Simurgh who was in this place.

And when they looked at themselves,

These thirty birds were that other [Simurgh].

When they looked at themselves and at him,

[They] were one Simurgh in both big and small.

This one was this, and those were this.

No one in the whole world has heard such a thing.

All those [birds] drowned in confusion.

Without thinking they remained in thought.

Since they couldn't understand anything,

They silently questioned that Master.

They prayed to reveal this great secret.

They asked me to clarify what “I” is and what “you” is.

Attar Fariduddin

Persian poet. Full name: Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Ibrahim; The nickname Attar (Pharmacist) goes back to his father's profession, which he inherited. Attar was born in Nishapur in the second half of the 12th century. He made a pilgrimage to Mecca and traveled through Syria and Egypt. Author of the Lives of Saints (Tazki-rat-ul-auliya). Attar is known for his poetic works, especially the allegorical poem The Conversation of the Birds (Mantiq-at-tair), which tells the story of the journey of bird seekers in search of their king Simurgh. ABOUT highest goal Attar narrates the mystical experience - the dissolution of personality in God - in colorful and figurative language.

Attar Farid al-din Mohammed ben Ibrahim (born c. 1119 - year of death unknown), Persian-Tajik mystic poet. He affirmed in poetry the ideas of dervish and Sufi morality (see Sufism). A widely educated person, A. collected in his works many interesting stories, drawn from oriental folklore. The main work is the poem “The Conversation of the Birds” (written around 1175), which reflected the influence of Ghazali’s “Treatise on Birds”. One of the largest literary monuments of Sufism, the poem was extremely popular and inspired many poets, including Navoi. A. also belongs to: “Mukhtar-nama”, “Book of Edification”, “Book of Ascension”, anthology “Biographies of Sheikhs”, etc.

Like a rain cloud over the ocean, hit the road
Because without travel you will never become a man! (2, 707)

So says Attar, whom many researchers consider the greatest master of masnavi in ​​the entire history of Persian mystical poetry.

Sana was the spirit, and Attar was his eyes,
We came after San"i and Attar, -

Jalaluddin Rumi speaks, wanting to emphasize how much he owes to two great mentors. In his works he followed very closely the models set by these mystics of eastern Iran, his own native land.

If Sana was distinguished by his sobriety of mind and concluded his thoughts in short, sharp, sometimes sharp allegories, then Attar, writing a century later, was a born storyteller. One can imagine Attar sitting in his pharmacy shop (his nickname “Attar” means “ seller of incense"), talks with people, heals them, reflects on mystical topics, and then writes the results of these reflections on paper in his inimitable style, beautiful and clear language.

Fariduddin was born in Nishapur, where he died, most likely in 1220, at a very old age. The later mystical tradition includes Attar in the list of martyrs of love, victims of the orthodox or, as in his case, the infidels for excessive love of God. In fact, it is not known for sure whether he was actually killed by the Mongols who invaded Iran, but the very existence of this story testifies to the high rank that he was awarded in the spiritual tradition of Iran.

Attar demonstrates his extraordinary talent as a storyteller both in lyric poetry and in numerous epic works; this talent is also evident in his collection of biographies of saints - Tazkirat al-auliyya. Hagiography was for him in an unnecessary way tell stories about the teachers he revered; his narrative and even dramatic talent is beautifully represented in Tazkirat. However, if we are interested in factual details, this book should be compared with other, more down-to-earth sources. Many anecdotes from Tazkirat al-awliyya were included in Attar's poetic works. In general, all his books are treasure troves of anecdotes and lively sketches.

One of the notable aspects of his epic works is his harsh criticism of worldly rulers. The ancient Sufi ideal of poverty in his works takes on a practical meaning - isn’t the dervish richer and higher than the king? The king is asking for money everywhere; The dervish does not ask anyone. Often social criticism is put into the mouth of a lunatic - in Attar you can find a whole group of these mentally disabled people who fight both with God and with earthly rulers. The old woman is another character with the help of which the tyrant ruler is called to account. Stories about just rule are sometimes reminiscent of similar anecdotes found in the “mirrors of princes” - literary genre, which gained great popularity in Iran at the end of the 11th century. Attar not only tells stories, he often interprets them himself, without leaving that work to the reader.

Helmut Ritter, who dedicated his brilliant book “The Ocean of the Soul” to Attar’s mysticism and his poetic mastery, distinguishes three periods in the poet’s life. In the first period, Attar showed himself as a storyteller; it was then that he must have created his masterpieces - Mantik at-tair, "The Conversation of the Birds", Ilahiname, "The Story of the King and His Six Sons", and Musibatname, "The Book of Sorrows". In the second period, the external form recedes into the background, and the chains of anaphors become increasingly longer: Attar often falls into ecstasy and tries to express Divine secrets through long chains of repeated exclamations or other words; intoxication takes him away from the logical construction of the narrative. For this period, it is very significant that the hero of Ushturname - the puppeteer around whom the action of the poem is concentrated - commits suicide in mystical ecstasy. Previously, there was an opinion that in the third period of his life Attar became a zealous Shia. Ritter proved this view to be wrong: works that were marked by strong Shia influence and were hitherto considered to be Attar's are now attributed to another poet of the same name.

Attar's poems, especially Mantiq at-tair, became standard works of Sufi literature, from which entire generations of mystics and poets drew inspiration. Its influence on mystical literature has not yet been fully studied. But it is enough to mention his story about Sheikh San'an, who fell in love with a Christian girl and “exchanged his rosary for the belt of an infidel” (17.77 pp.). This story even penetrated into Kashmiri and Malay literature.

Iraqi wrote:

On this Path because of the love of one gazelle
The holy man did not hesitate to become like a pig.

The name San "ana is found in Turkish folk mystical poetry, as well as in Sindhi Sufi songs. He has become one of the most famous symbols of the self-giving of a true lover, which does not recognize any religious traditions, no concern for one's reputation, good name or fame.

One of the most impressive aspects of Attar's mysticism, as well as that of his elder contemporary Ruzbikhan Bakli, is special treatment to Hallaj. Spiritual Hallaj blessed his entry into the mystical Path. Attar's biography of this mystic martyr is one of the most moving sections of Tazkirat al-Auliyya; it influenced the perception of the image of Hallaj by all subsequent generations. It was from Hallaj that Attar learned the mysticism of suffering, and began to see constant pain as a means of healing:

The pain of love has become a medicine for every heart,
Not a single difficulty can be overcome without the help of love (27, 346).

More than any other mystical poet of Iran, Attar can be called the “voice of suffering” (17, 287), longing and search. Through various allegories, his works describe the continuous movement of the soul towards its source and goal. Musibatname is the story of the Sufi search for the Absolute: it objectifies the experience of a forty-day retreat, when the mystic makes a journey through the world of created existence, starting from the Divine spirit and to the lowest creature. The traveler listens to the lisan al-hal, the “language of the state” of earth and wind, fire and sea; he hears the endless complaints of all creatures who passionately desire to return to their home. The mystic recounts his conversations with the forty created beings to the pir, who interprets them. In the end, the seeker, led by the Prophet Muhammad himself, finds the way to the ocean of his own soul, where all searches end. But even union with the ocean of the soul is not the end of the journey, for when the soul ends its path to God, its journey in God begins (a state that mystics call baka, being in God). The soul has to pass through new abysses of the incomprehensible Divine existence, which human language is powerless to describe.

Like Rumi and Sana'i, Attar knew that such constant movement is characteristic not only of the human soul, but of the entire created world (27, 63). Before one beautiful flower or a Perfect Man appears, endless periods of development must pass - periods marked by deaths and by the destruction of hundreds of thousands of lower beings.In turn, these beings may one day reach the state from which their ascent will begin (cf. 17, 234).For:

Every man's journey is directed towards his perfection;
Each person’s closeness to God corresponds to his “state” (17, 232).

The restlessness of the universe is a theme often heard in late Persian poetry; among the late medieval poets, Bedil, the Indian mystic poet (d. 1721), paid tribute to her; in our time, such a poet was Muhammad Iqbal, who never tired of describing the long path of development from drop to ocean, from sperm to man and, ultimately, to the Perfect Man - the crown and pinnacle of creation.

The motive for such a journey was embodied in Attar’s famous epic poem “The Conversation of the Birds” (its title contains an allusion to the Quranic image of Solomon - the ideal of a mystical mentor who was able to talk with the bird of the soul in a secret language). This epic work is the most perfect poetic introduction to the mystical Path that runs through the seven valleys; it introduces you to all the difficulties that the soul encounters along the way. The equation “bird = soul” is known throughout the world: it is found in many primitive religions, and in some places it has survived to this day. Thus, in Turkey you can still hear the expression jan kusu uchtu, “the bird of his soul has flown away,” meaning that someone has died. Persian poetry is replete with such images. They are found in Avicenna, and Ghazali wrote Risalat at-tair, “Treatise on Birds,” similar in content to Attar’s poem. Be that as it may, Attar came up with a wonderful mystical ending for his story: thirty birds, who have undertaken a tedious journey in search of Simurgh, the king of birds, eventually realize that they themselves - si murgh, "thirty birds" - are the Simurgh . This is one of the most original puns in Persian literature, perfectly expressing the identity of the soul with the Divine essence.

After Attarova’s Mantik at-tair, which became one of the favorite books in Persian literature, the “bird” imagery was developed further and further. Anyone who is familiar with Persian poetry, at least from translations, knows about the nightingale who yearns for a rose. In mystical language this is a soul yearning for eternal beauty, as explained by Ruzbikhan. The nightingale tirelessly praises the rose, talks about his longing, sings verses from the Koran of the rose (i.e., its petals), and endures suffering from the pricks of thorns without a single complaint. Iqbal interpreted the song of the nightingale in the context of his philosophy of unrealized union and desire - only desire gives the bird-soul the ability to sing, inspiring it to create beautiful melodies. Passionate desire is the highest state that the soul can achieve, for it results in creativity, while the achievement of unity entails peace and self-destruction.

One of the birds described in Mantiq at-Tayr is the falcon, a white royal bird that strives to return to the hand of its master. The falcon, or white hawk, beautifully described by Attar in Ushturnama, became one of Rumi's favorite symbols. Rumi often speaks of the soul as a falcon driven into exile among the ravens, or as a nightingale surrounded by ravens, or as a gazelle in a donkey's stall (14, 5:833-838). And just as Attar made a pun on the name of the Simurgh, Rumi uses a pun based on the word "falcon", baz - the bird received this name because it always strives to "return", baz, to the chest of its sultan. How touching is his imagery when he describes the proud bird returning to the sound of the falcon's drum from its earthly exile! The falcon sits on the owner’s shoulder, rubs its head against his chest - this is how the lost and confused soul will one day return in peace to its Lord (8, 1353). In the magical cosmos of Attar and his followers on the mystical Path, every bird, every animal has its own place. So, Sana "created a litany of birds. The dove, for example, constantly repeats ku ku, because it asks about the way to its beloved: ku ku means “where, where?” And the stork, lak-lak, got its name, because all the time piously testifies: al-mulk lak, al-amr lak, al-hamd lak, “Thine is the kingdom, Thine is the order, to Thee is the praise.” The duck symbolizes the human being who is half tied to the earth and half lives to the ocean of God; the crow always associated with the unsightly winter landscape of the earth's vale.

Quotes from Farid al-Din Attar:

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about goodness:

Be kind to those who depend on you.

With these words, the Persian Sufi poet Farid al-Din Attar (Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr Ibrahim) calls us to be kind to those who depend on us.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about laziness and humiliation:

Always following laziness
Humiliation comes.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about love and reason:

A lover's love is fire, reason is smoke.
When love comes, reason leaves the lover.

In this case, Farid ad-Din Attar means that just as smoke disappears from a fire in a fire, so the mind disappears because of love.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about reason and love:

The mind is ignorant of matters of love,
Love is not a matter of innate intelligence.

With these words, the Persian Sufi poet Farid ad-Din Attar (Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr Ibrahim) wanted to say, in my opinion, that love and reason cannot exist simultaneously in one person.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about peace, soul and feelings:

The world is a city, your soul is a Shah,
External and internal feelings are an army.

With these words, the Persian Sufi poet Farid ad-Din Attar wants to say that the external and internal feelings of a person, under the guidance of his soul, are called upon to protect the world within himself.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about enmity:

Fire of enmity, son,
Extinguish it while it's small
Bye - God have mercy! -
It didn’t start a fire.’

Quote from Farid ad-Din Attar on morals:

We have to live with people;
they are irreconcilable
And if they don't like our character,
We must adapt to their temperament,
Having curbed my evil spirit within myself.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about diseases:

There is no need to hide your illness
From two people: from a doctor and a friend.

Quote from Farid al-Din Attar about our world:

The world where we live
Just a gloomy tavern.
But with the light of knowledge in him
You can dispel the darkness.

It seems to me that in this case, the Persian Sufi poet Farid al-Din Attar (Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr Ibrahim) wanted to say that human shortcomings and evil reign in our society, but they can be corrected with the help of knowledge.

- [Arab. ] Farid ad Din Muhammad ben Ibrahim an Nishaburi (between 1148 and 1151, village of Kedken near Nishapur 1220, Nishapur), Persian. mystic poet. Genus. in the family of a pharmacist and, having inherited the shop, followed in his father’s footsteps, practicing pharmacology and medicine.... ... Orthodox Encyclopedia

Farid ad din Mohammed ben Ibrahim (born around 1119, death unknown), Persian Tajik poet and mystic. He affirmed in poetry the ideas of dervish and Sufi morality (see Sufism). A widely educated man, A. gathered in his... ...

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Attar Kittah king of Elam, reigned approximately 1310-1300 BC. e. Younger brother and heir of Pakhir Ishshan. And he got rich booty, however, as the inscription states, he no longer kept it in Ayakhitek, but in Susa, in... ... Wikipedia

- (born around 1119 - year of death unknown), Persian Tajik poet and mystic. He affirmed in poetry the ideas of dervish and Sufi morality (see Sufism). A widely educated person, A. collected many interesting stories in his works,... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

Persian and Tajik Sufi poet of the 12th century. (see Sufism). Poem Conversation of Birds (c. 1175), lyric verses; anthology Biography of Sheikhs... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Najah al Attar نجاح العطار ... Wikipedia

- (d. 1230), Persian poet. Full name: Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Ibrahim; The nickname Attar (Pharmacist) goes back to his father's profession, which he inherited. Attar was born in Nishapur in the second half of the 12th century. And most spent his life in Sufi... Collier's Encyclopedia

Persian and Tajik Sufi poet of the 12th century. (see Sufism). The poem “The Conversation of Birds” (circa 1175) is one of the largest literary monuments reflecting the ideas of Muslim mysticism; lyric poetry; anthology “Biographies of Sheikhs”. * * * ATTAR Farid... encyclopedic Dictionary

- (actually Mohammed Ibn Ibrahim Ferid eddin A.) Persian poet; genus. in 1119 (513 Gejra) in Kerken, near Nishapur, the son of a rich merchant of Muscat goods (attar), after whose death he took up trade, but, converted by one dervish to... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Ephron

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• , Attar Ronda. On the Temple Mount of Jerusalem there is an unusual school where students comprehend ancient secrets that give those initiated into them enormous opportunities. Elisha David Son, one of the students of this school, accidentally...
• Elisha Davidson and the Fire Letters, Attar R.. Do you want to know what would happen if Harry Potter lived in Israel? Then this book is for you. On the Temple Mount of Jerusalem there is an unusual school where students learn ancient secrets that give...

Mansour al-Hallaj
Farid ad-din Atgar begins his story about this great saint, Mansur, with the comment:
“What a pity that such a great saint was poorly understood by his contemporaries. You may bow before a tree if the sound of Ana al Haqq (I am the Truth) is heard from it, but you send the person who uttered these words to the chopping block. You should know that all the great saints who utter such words in a state of ecstasy are simply speaking in the name of God. The Almighty speaks through their lips, but their essence is dead.”
Shibli noted that although he and Mansur uttered the same words, he was considered crazy and was left alone, while Mansur was quartered on the grounds that he had uttered blasphemous words while of sound mind and memory.
Mansur came to Tustar at the age of sixteen and stayed there for two years and then moved to Doharka, where he spent one and a half years in the company of Hazrat Umar bin Usman Makki. There he married the daughter of Hazrat Yaqub al-Aqta. After this, he lived with Hazrat Junaid in Baghdad for some time. From there he went to Hijaz, where he met a group of Sufis, with whom he returned to Hazrat Junaid in Baghdad. There he asked a question to Junayd, the answer to which was the prophecy of the great saint:
“One day you will paint a piece of wood red.” This meant that Hallaj would be quartered on the chopping block. Hearing this, Mansur said: “When this happens, you will have to give up the attire of a Sufi and put on the attire of a layman.” This is exactly what happened in due time, for it is well known that when the religious teachers were asked to sign the death warrant of Mansur, they did not dare to do so until Hazrat Junaid signed it first. Junayd had doubts, but the caliph told him that he would not execute Mansur until he signed his name. Then Junaid took off his Sufi clothes and put on the clothes of a secular teacher, and then signed the verdict and said: “I express my opinion about Mansur’s external behavior and believe that he deserves to be executed.”
Mansur was disappointed to hear from Junayd, instead of answering his question, a gloomy prophecy that was destined to have dire consequences. Mansur said goodbye to Junayd and went to Tustar with his wife. He lived there for one year. Local residents treated him with great respect. He made it a rule to criticize religious pretenders, whom he greatly irritated. They organized a conspiracy against him, in which Hazrat Umar bin Usman took an active part, who wrote slanderous letters for them in order to destroy Mansur. However, Mansur did not tolerate such opposition to his views. He took off the clothes of a Sufi and put on the attire of a layman, but by this time he had reached a very high spiritual state, which had possessed him for five whole years.
During this period he made trips to Seistan, Kerman and Nimroz. Mansur wrote several brilliant books, and his sermons were so inspired that he received the title “Teacher of Secret Knowledge.”
Mansur then went to Basra, where he again donned the garb of a Sufi. He came to Mecca, whose inhabitants considered him a magician. Mansur returned to Basra, and from there to China via India. Upon his return, he made a second pilgrimage to Mecca. Great spiritual changes took place in Mansur. His sermons were filled with secret meaning, so he had very few followers. Mansur was persecuted and driven out of the places he visited.
During his intense spiritual state, Mansur wore the same woolen cloak for twenty years. One day people forcibly removed this cloak from him. To their amazement, they discovered that a scorpion had built a nest in the folds of the cloak and wanted to kill it, but Mansur asked to return the scorpion to its place, since over these twenty years they had become friends.
One day, four thousand pilgrims accompanied Mansur to the Kaaba. Arriving there, he stood in one place for a whole year, barefoot and bareheaded. Usually a man would come to him and bring him bread and a jug of water, but he rarely agreed to swallow even a piece. Therefore, Mansur was very physically exhausted. He was all dried out, his skin wrinkled and cracked in places. A scorpion made a nest in his clothes. Mansur prayed: “O Lord! You are the guide of those who pass through the Valley of Amazement. If I am a heretic, increase my heresy." When the people left and Mansur was left alone, he prayed again: “I know only You and worship no one but You, and I am grateful for the gifts that You have sent me. I am Your servant, and Your gifts to me are so numerous that, having only one tongue, I cannot express my gratitude for them. Therefore, thank yourself on my behalf.”
One day Mansoor met Hazrat Khawas in the desert and asked what brought him there. He replied: “I try to find satisfaction (tawakkul) and be pleased with whatever the Lord does to me: whether he sent me food or decided to leave me without it.” Mansoor remarked: “How long are you going to spend time on your stomach? When will you lose yourself in the Divine Unity (dissolve your personality in the Divine consciousness)?”
When people came to his prison cell on the first night of Mansur's imprisonment, they did not find him in it. He disappeared. On the second night they came again and found him in his cell, but the prison had disappeared. On the third night they saw that the prison stood as before, and Mansur was sitting in his cell.
They asked him about the reason for such strange transformations. He replied: “The first night I was with God, the second night God came here to me, and now I am here to confirm the words of the Scripture: “A person in his right mind should never utter the words ‘I am the Truth,’ because, being a man, he can never become God. If a person utters these words, it means he is an apostate.”
Mansur used to bow to God a thousand times every day after finishing his daily prayers. When people asked him: “Since you say that you are God (Haqq), then to whom do you bow?” - he replied: “I have a very good idea of ​​what I’m worth.”
There were three hundred prisoners in the prison where Mansur was imprisoned. He asked them if they wanted to be released. Having received an affirmative answer, he gave a sign, and their chains fell and the prison gates opened wide. They asked him to run away with them. He replied: “I have a secret affair with God, which will be revealed when I am put on the scaffold. I am a prisoner of God, my Master, and I must respect His Scripture."
In the morning, people saw that all the locks were broken, and the prisoners had escaped. They asked Mansur what happened. He told them everything. People asked him why he did not escape with the rest of the prisoners. He replied: “My Master is angry with me, and He brought this punishment on me, that is why I am here.”
When the caliph learned of what had happened, he ordered Mansur's head to be cut off immediately so that he would not cause more trouble. He was given three hundred lashes, and after each blow a voice was heard: “Oh, Mansur, I am not afraid. You can handle anything."
One hundred thousand people gathered around the scaffold on which he was to be executed. He looked around and said:
“Haqq, Haqq, Ana al Haqq” (Truth, Truth, I am the Truth).”
At this critical moment, a dervish asked Mansur to define love. Mansur told him that he would know the answer today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Mansur was executed on this day. The next day the mutilated body was burned, and on the third day the ashes were scattered. This was Mansur's answer to the dervish's question.
During the execution, Mansur's servant asked for final instructions. Mansur answered him as follows:
“Never give in to the desires of your bodily essence (nafs), if you do this, it will force you to commit base acts.”
His son asked him for advice. He said: "The world strives to live moral life, and you seek Divine life. She's better. Even if you manage to live even a part of it, it will be higher than all the virtuous deeds performed by people and angels.”
When Mansur was just walking to the place of execution, a smile shone on his face. People asked him how he could be happy at such a moment. He replied: “Now is the time to be happy, since I am returning home,” and said the following words;
My friend is not a tyrant at all. He gave me to drink the wine that the Master of the House offers to His guests. I drank the wine until there was not a drop left. Then He ordered the sword to punish the one who drank so much aged wine during the forbidden month.”
Mansur then kissed the steps leading to the scaffold and, turning to the Kaaba, said: “You have given me what I sought.”
Then Mansur said:
“In my youth, I looked at one young woman in a bad way, for which I was punished. Be careful not to sin in this way and suffer dire consequences.”
Shibli asked Mansur to explain what Tasawwuf is.
“The spectacle you are witnessing is Tasawwuf. And this is only its lowest degree.”
Shibli asked:
“What is the highest degree then?”
Mansur replied:
“You are ignorant to understand this.”
The Caliph ordered the crowd to throw stones at Mansur. He endured all this, but when, on the orders of the Caliph, Shibli hit him with a flower, he screamed. When asked why, he replied: “The people who threw stones at me are ignorant, but Shibli has no excuse for hitting me, because he knows everything.”
Mansur's hands were cut off, but he continued to smile. When asked what his smile meant, he replied: “They cut off my hands that were outside, but with the hands that were inside me, I grabbed the legs of the Almighty, and they do not dare touch these hands.” Then the executioner cut off his legs. He said: “They cannot touch my inner legs, on which even now I can travel through two worlds.” Mansur then rubbed the bloody stumps of his hands across his face and said, “Today I feel happy because the blood of a martyr is imprinted on my face.” Then he made a gesture as if folding his hands in prayer and said the Prayer of Love.
After that, his eyes were gouged out and his tongue was torn out. Finally, Mansur's head was cut off. Before this he said a prayer:
“Oh Lord! I thank You for allowing me to remain calm and steadfast until the very end. I want You to give this wealth to my persecutors too.”
Hearing these words, people began throwing stones at him. He spoke his last words:
“The friendship of the ONE sets you apart and makes you exceptional.” The moment his head was cut off, he laughed and his soul went to the Almighty. All the severed limbs of the martyr began to shout: “I am the Truth.” The Caliph ordered them to be collected and burned. When this was done, the ashes began to pronounce the same words: “I am the Truth (Ana al-Haqq).” When the ashes were thrown into the Dajla River, its particles formed on the water into the words “I am the Truth.” The water in the river began to boil and rose high. Anticipating this, Mansur gave orders in advance to his servant to spread his clothes on the surface of the water in order to calm the anger of the river and save Baghdad from flooding. The servant did so. The water has calmed down. The ashes collected along its banks were buried.
On the occasion of Mansur's death, Hazrat Abbas Tusi said: "On the Day of Judgment, Mansur will be brought in chains for fear that in his ecstasy he will be able to turn the globe over."
On the day of his death, Mansur spent the whole night in prayer, sitting under the scaffold, and he heard the Voice of God:
“We entrusted Mansur with one of Our secrets. He revealed it to others. Therefore We punished him for revealing the Royal Secret.”