The Correction of Two Mistakes in the Biography of Mohammad Hossein Hosseini-e Shirazi, Poet and Mystic in Qajar Era

Introduction

The effort of researchers in biography writing has led to a better knowledge of poets’ lives and works, but sometimes there are mistakes in the information. Therefore, it is necessary to review them to create a secure foundation by correcting errors or eliminating deficiencies. One of them is about Hosseini-e Shirazi.
Hosseini Shirazi was a poet and mystic in Qajar era. He studied with his father, but the superficial sciences were little for him. He traveled searching for true knowlege and a spiritual teacher until he became Mirza Abo al-Qasem Sokut’s disciple in Shiraz and gained grace. After the death of Hosseini's father and the master, he became the successor and started preaching. Hosseini also composed Khamseh/Panj-Ganj (Vamaq and Azra, Mehr and Mah, Oshtornameh, Ilahinameh, and Vasf al-Hal). He also had a poem collection that is unavailable now. He died in 1249 AH and was buried in Shiraz.
In the research about Hosseini's life and works, the authors found that Hosseini's birth year and mystical orientation were wrongly recorded in some biographies and books. There are different sayings about his hometown. In this research, an attempt has been made to answer the following questions: why is Hosseini's birth year in some books and certificates incorrect? Based on Hosseini's works, how can we find it and what are the opinions about his birthplace? Also, how close to the truth is Hosseini's attribution to Nematullahi in some newer texts? In the older sources and biographies, do they consider him a main member or follower of Nematullahi? In Hosseini's works, what signs and reasons are there to reject or prove this issue?

Literature Review

Limited research works have been published about Hosseini:
Khamseh-e Hosseini (1324 AH), lithography of the first three Mathnavis of Khamseh, by Abdolhosein Zolreyasatein (1251-1332 AH). The correction of four mathnavis of Vamaq and Azra (1382), Mehr and Mah (1386), Oshtornameh (1386), and Vasf al-Hal (1392) from Khamseh-e Hosseini along with an introduction about the poet by Kavoos Hassanli and Kavoos Rezaei. Vasf al-Hal is the poet’s autobiography in verse, which is useful for knowing the his life. Hassanli and Rezaei have also written articles about Hosseini’s mathnavis. Jooya Jahanbakhsh has edited “The Explanation of Mowlavi’s Prose Prologues in Mathnavi” and added an explanation to that. “Introducing Ilahinameh by Hosseini-e Shirazi and the Influence of Mathnavi-e Ma’navi on It” (1401) is written by Masumeh Sadeqi and Mahin Panahi. The only PhD thesis about Hosseini is by Masumeh Sadeqi entitled Manuscript Correction and Structural Analysis of Ilahinameh Composed by Mohammad Hossein Hosseini-e Shirazi. Also, some literary biographies contain a brief description of Hosseini's biography and parts of his poems.
In the introductions written by the editors on the four mathnavis of Vamaq and Azra, Mehr and Mah, Oshtornameh, and Vasf al-Hal, Hosseini's birth year is 1184 AH and his age is 65.  In the articles, 1184 is recorded but the researches show that incorrect. Hosseini's birthplace is also mentioned Karbala, while in some sources it is Shiraz. In the introduction to the revision of Oshtornameh and Vasf al-Hal citing Persian Poets and Scientists (Roknzadeh Adamiyat, 1337), Hosseini is considered “the head of the Akhawan Nematullahi dynasty”, while studies show it incorrect, too.

Methodology

In this research, with a descriptive-analytical and critical method, the poet's birth year has been determined by enumerating the definitive reasons with a careful examination of the first-hand sources about the poet's life and the documents obtained from Hosseini's works, especially Ilahinameh and Vasf al-Hal and the origin of the mistakes recorded in some biographies and books. To calculate the year, attention was paid to the chronograms of Ilahinameh and other signs placed in the text. The existing statements and the differences in the statements about the poet’s birthplace and the attribution of Hosseini to Nematullahi with solid reasons closer to the truth are mentioned.

Discussion

The year of Hosseini's birth is not mentioned in these works: Riaz al-Arefin, Majma al-Fosaha, Hadiqat al-Shoara, Tarayeq al-Haqayeq, Hosseini's Khamseh lithographic preface, Farsnameh Naseri, Al-Dhariyya, Reihanat al-Adab. Ebn-e Yusuf Shirazi, in The Manuscripts List of the Sepah-Salar High School Library, based on the chronogram of Ilahinameh and the age of the poet mentioned in the verses near the end of Ilahinameh considers the birth year to be 1184 AH; the mistake in the calculation of the numbers corresponding to the chronogram is quite obvious here and the most important reason for this mistake. According to the chronogram at the end of Ilahinameh, which indicates the year 1239, and the mentioning of 45 as the age of the poet, about 200 verses before the end, and also the record of 1237 as the date of composition at the end of the manuscript of Ilahinameh, it can be said that the poet’s birthdate is 1192 or 1194. The final verses of Ilahinameh mourning Abu al-Qasem Sokut, show that 1194 is more accurate.
Hosseini's birthplace is recorded as Karbala in most of the biographies, but the poet spoke in such a way that it can be assumed to be Shiraz. Both DivanBeygi in Hadiqat al-Sho’ara and based on it Hassan Emdad in The Image of Persian Poets in a Thousand Years have recorded it as Shiraz; obviously, these are not enough reasons to prove that.
Regarding Hosseini's mystical orientation, from the biography texts, only in Persian Poets and Scientists, Hosseini has been called “the head of the Nematullahi dynasty”. Hassanli and Rezaei have also mentioned it in the introduction to the revision of Oshtornameh and Vasf-al-Hal; however, none of the authors among the elders of the Nematullahi in other reliable sources such as Riaz al-Arefin, preface of Khamseh-e Hosseini and Tarayeq al-Haqayeq mention Hosseini as the head of the Nematullahi and they all introduce Hosseini as Abo al-Qasem Sokut’s disciple.
According to Hosseini's statement in his works – and biographies – he had remained faithful in the devotion of Abo al-Qasem until his death. In the works written about Sokut, there have been hints about him as a member of Noorbakhshiya dynasty or Owaisiya and it is not far from the mind that Hosseini was also on the way of his master, or – as they have also said about Sokut – he was not a follower of any dynasty. Nematullahi’s followers were close to the Hosseini family, and perhaps the mistake of attributing Hosseini to Nematullahi was for that.

Conclusion

Hosseini-e-Shirazi, a mystical poet of the Qajar era, was born in 1194 AH, according to the signs he placed in his works, especially Ilahinameh and Vasf al-Hal. He adhered to the principles of the Sharia, a mystic and the Twelver Shiite religion, and he was Abo al-Qasem Sokut’s disciple and remained loyal to him until his death.
In the end, due to the existence of some mistakes and deficiencies in the registration and recording of information in the biographies, the necessity of revising the biographies and literary research about the lives of poets and writers is emphasized.