This volume offers fresh insights into themes of love, gender, sexuality, and the interaction between the profane and the spiritual in classical Persian culture, including their reception and appropriation in modern and contemporary Iranian history. Each chapter is original in its own right, offering perspectives on these interrelated concepts. Together, they provide us with a solid foundation for understanding how modern Iranians utilize their cultural heritage to protest against injustice. One striking example is the episodes from Firdowsī’s Shāh-nāma, used during the 2022 “Women, Life, Freedom” protests. Chapters focus on masterpieces of Persian literature such as Gurgānī’s Vīs-u Rāmīn, Niẓāmī’s Laylī and Majnūn, Khvājū of Kirmān’s Humā and Humāyūn, Feyżī’s Nal-u Daman, and the intriguing genre of Shahr-āshūb (how the beloved “upsets the town”). The contributions embrace the complexity of love and gender in these and other works, imparting precise information about their various moral, mystical and secular dimensions. Together, these chapters offer indispensable perspectives on how Persians have conceived of love and gender, and how these works continue to inspire them in their struggle for freedom, even at the cost of their lives.
Ali-Asghar Seyed-Gohrab is Professor of Iranian and Persian Studies at Utrecht University in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, and member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). He has published extensively on Persian literature, mysticism and religion. His publications range from Persian poetry to Sufism and the role of religious and mystical motifs and metaphors in Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988) and how peaceful religious injunctions are used to justify violence. Currently, he is the Principal Investigator (PI) of an ERC-Advanced Grant entitled Beyond Sharia: The Role of Sufism in Shaping Islam (www.beyondsharia.nl), examining Islamic non-conformist movements.
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