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Ferdowsi: A Critical Biography
A. Shapur Shahbazi
The present study offers the first critical biography of Ferdowsi who, ten centuries ago,
gathered historical traditions of various Iranians and recast them in epic poetry into a
coherent "National History" which the great Orientalist, Theodor Noldeke,
described as a monument "unrivaled among other nations."
Chapter One evaluates the sources, and reveals the inadequacies of studies since 1800,
thereby demonstrating the need for a balanced biography of Ferdowsi primarily based on his
own testimonies scattered throughout The Shah-Nama.
In Chapter Two, various dates adduced from Ferdowsi's history are examined and the exact
date of his birth is discovered. Also, his family background and the effort of his
precursors in preserving Iranian traditions are elucidated.
Chapter Three draws on The Shahnama references to show that Ferdowsi lived in Tos the life
of a country squire (dehqan), received a sound literary education without the need to
learn Pahlavi or Arabic, and spent much time riding, feasting and studying. While he
admired ancient Iranians and their ideologies, he adhered to Shi`ism and advocated reason
and tolerance.
Chapter Four sheds light on Ferdowsi's early compositions, his search for written sources
on which to base an epic history of Iran, and shows that the first version of The
Shah-Nama, composed long before Soltan Mahmud's accession, was a concise work which
omitted the Sasanian history and several epical episodes, such as the story of Siavush.
Chapter Five examines the problematic relationship of Ferdowsi and Soltan Mahmud of
Ghazna. Posing as a defender of Iran and resurrector of her ancient glory, Mahmud was
hailed by Ferdowsi as a "New Fredon" worthy of receiving a memorial such as The
Shah-Nama. Later, the Soltan's pro-Abbasid policy, his wars against Shi`ite princes (the
Buyids) and his Indian holy wars gave him the stature of an "Islamic hero king,"
interested in propagating the "True Faith." It becomes clear that Ferdowsi never
met Mahmud, did not satirize him, and as he continued completing or revising The
Shah-Nama, he remained a faithful subject of the king. Ferdowsi's last days and the
history of his burial place are also described in this chapter.
Chapter Six explains the contents of The Shah-Nama, and argues that through it Ferdowsi
intended to preserve ancient Iranian history in flowing epic form, to vindicate Iranians
of old and their ideologies, to build an undying memorial to himself, to revitalize
Iranian national feelings, to gain personal glory and to illustrate lessons of history.
The Shah-Nama is thus characterized as the history of the Iranian nation, based on written
sources and faithful to them without advocating their religious tendencies, and as a work
of enormous poetic embellishment.
Specifications:
1991: xiv + 149 pages, notes, bibl., index.
ISBN:0-939214-83-0 (cloth): $19.50
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Fredowsi a Critical
Surveyors of Persian Art
Zendegiy-e Toufani
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