FUZULI: A Great Sufi Poet of the 16th Century... Selected Poems, Translation & Introduction Paul Smith FUZULI (1494-1556). Fuzuli (pen-name means 'perfect'). His contemporaries called him the 'prince of poets', but he spent his life torn between impossible dreams of travel and glory and a relatively mundane daily routine. He wrote many qasidas in honour of potential patrons, but it is in his intensely mystical gazels and other poetic forms in Azeri-Turkish, Persian and Arabic and his masterpiece version of Leyla and Mejnun (in gazels, mesnevis and qasidas) that his great fame rests like Hafiz (perhaps the greatest influence on him) as a poet who combined successfully the praising and understanding of human and divine love and the fusing of them. In the true Sufi tradition he saw in human love as a bridge to the Divine. He also wrote of theology, medicine, ethics and astronomy. In three Divans of gazels, qasidas, roba'is, qit'as and other forms in Azeri-Turkish, Persian, and Arabic bear witness to his genius that has not diminished over time. Introduction on The Life & Poetry & Times of Fuzuli, The Forms of Poetry Used by Fuzuli, Sufis & Dervishes: Their Art & Use of Poetry. Selected Bibliography. Two Appendixes on his Life, Poetry & Influence then & now. The true rhyme-structures & beauty, power & meaning of these poems has been achieved. Large Print (16pt) & Large Format (8"x10") Edition. 235 pages. COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'. "It is not a joke... the English version of all the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat and of paramount importance. I am astonished." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran. "Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator of many works in English into Persian and knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart. "Smith has probably put together the greatest collection of literary facts and history concerning Hafiz." Daniel Ladinsky (Penguin Books author). "Perfect Translation." Amir, Amazon.com Paul Smith (b.1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets of the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish and other languages... including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Obeyd Zakani, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Yunus Emre, Baba Farid, Mu'in, Lalla Ded, Jigar, Seemab, Abu Nuwas, Ibn al-Farid and others and his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books, plays, screenplays. amazon.com/author/smithpa
