Reading: Rudaki, “The cheerful spring came” (آمد بهار خرم), “Ju-ye Mulyan’s scent” (بوی جوی مولیان)
Listening: In this short video lecture, Rashid Kakavand, a scholar, lecturer and expert on Persian literature and poetry, discusses the life and the works of Rudaki, widely regarded as the “Father of Persian poetry”.
Subject of Conversation: The origins of the Persian literature (آغاز ادبیات فارسی)
Each student will be given the opportunity to present her/his ideas on the origins of the Persian literature. The students will be encouraged to discuss their personal views as to which circumstances created the ground for the rise of the Persian literature. Original ideas as well as the correct and abundant use of the Persian words and expressions will be taken into account while assessing the success of each student.
Homework:
- Do the reading assignment at home and prepare the vocabulary.
- Please watch the video lecture and try to answer the following questions: a. What role did Rudaki play in the formation of Persian poetry? b. What is the story behind Rudaki composing the qasideh “Bu-ye ju-ye Mulyan”?
- Prepare for the next day’s discussion.
Vocabulary (Poem 1):
| Persian Word | Transcription | English Translation |
| طیب | tayib | fragrance |
| نزهت | nozhat | joy, delight |
| شاید (< شایستن) | šāyad | it is fitting; it is possible |
| بدین | bedin | this, at this |
| گه (= گاه) | gah (= gāh) | time, moment |
| گیتی | giti | world, universe |
| بدیل یافتن | badil yāftan | turn into |
| شباب | šabāb | youth |
| از پی | az pey-e | after, following |
| مشیب | mašib | old |
| چرخ | čarx | sky |
| بزرگوار | bozorgvār | great |
| تیره | tire | black, dark |
| صبا | sabā | breeze, zephyr |
| نقیب | naqib | leader |
| نفاط | naffāt | fire-thrower |
| تندر | tondar | thunder |
| خیل | xeyl | a large group (of people) |
| مهیب | mohib | frightening, terrifying |
| گرید (< گریستن) | geryad | is weeping |
| کئیب | ka’ib | sorrowful |
| دمد (< دمیدن) | damad (< damidan) | appears |
| حصاری | hesāri | prisoner |
| رقیب | raqib | warden (here); Modern P. competitor |
| یک چند روزگار | yek-čand ruzegār | for some period of time |
| دردمند | dardmand | full of pain |
| به | beh | well |
| مشکبوی (مشک + بوی) | moškbuy | musc-scented |
| نو به نو | now be now | again and again (lit. new to new) |
| حله | holé | robe, dress |
| قشیب | qašib | new |
| جویک | juyak | small canal, rivulet |
| قضیب | qazib | whip |
| کشت | kešt | meadow |
| حنا | hanā | henna (a dye) |
| خضیب | xazib | imbued, coloured |
| شاخسار | šāxsār | full of branches; abounding in trees; a garden |
| مجیب شدن | mojib šode | to answer |
| صلصل | solsol | a bird (common cuckoo, Lat. Cuculus canorus) |
| به … بر بودن | be … bar budan | sit on something |
| خواجه | xāje | lord, master |
| مهتر | mehtar | prince |
| حسیب | hasib | honorable, venerable |
| باده | bāde | wine |
| نصیب | nasib | fate, fortune; share |
| ساقی | sāqi | cupbearer; the person who serves the wine |
| می | mey | wine |
| ریژ | riž | desire |
| فر و زیب | farr o zib | glory and beauty |
Vocabulary (Poem 2):
| Persian Word | Transcription | English Translation |
| بوی | buy | scent |
| جوی | ǰuy | rivulet, stream |
| ریگ | rig | sand |
| پرنیان | parniyān | silk |
| جیحون | ǰeyhun | Amu Darya, Oxus |
| نشاط | nešāt | cheerfulness, vitality |
| خنگ | xeng | white (horse) |
| دیر زی! | dir zi | Live long! |
| میر | mir | prince |
| زی | zi | to, toward |
| شادمان | šādemān | happy |
| بوستان | bustān | garden |
| مدح | madh | panegyric |
Vocabulary (Listening):
| Persian Word | Transcription | English Translation |
| زمانه | zamāne | time, era |
| پند | pand | advice, moral |
| آزادوار | āzādvār | nobly, generously |
| نگری (< نگریستن) | negari | you look |
| نیک | nik | good, virtuous |
| بسا | basā | many, much, many a |
| کسا (archaic plural of کس) | kasā | people |
| آرزومند بودن | ārezumand budan | to desire, to long for |
| خشم | xašm | anger |
| خویش | xiš | self, one's own |
| بند | band | bond, chain |
| در بند بودن | dar band budan | to be in chains, to be imprisoned |
| درود | dorud | greeting, salute |
| همواره | hamvāre | always |
| احساس رضایت کردن | ehsās-e rezāyat kardan | to feel satisfaction, to be satisfied |
| فوق‌العاده | fouqol‘āde | extraordinary |
| آدم الشعرا | ādam oš-šo‘arā | father of the poets |
| اشعار (مفرد: شعر) | aš‘ār (sing. še‘r) | poems |
| قریه | qariye | village |
| ناحیه (جمع: نواحی) | nāhiye (plur. navāhi) | district, region |
| شاعر | šā‘er | poet |
| دیوان | divān | collection (of poetry) |
| اعتبار | e‘tebār | credibility, reputation |
| ماوراءالنهر | māvarā’onnahr | Transoxiana |
| معتبر | mo‘tabar | here: prestigious; reputable, reliable |
| مراکز (مفرد: مرکز) | marākez (sing. markaz) | centers |
| بهانه کردن | bahāne kardan | to use as an excuse |
| با اصرار | bā esrār | insistently, insisting |
| به واسطه | be vāsete-ye | by means of, through |
| جغرافیای سیاسی | joƴrāfiyā-ye siyāsi | political geography |
| مبنا | mabnā | basis, foundation |
| پیوند دادن | peyvand dādan | to link, to connect |
| حامل بودن | hāmel budan | to carry, to bear |
| زیبایی‌شناسی | zibāyišenāsi | aesthetics |
| اخلاق | axlāq | ethics, morality |
| انسانیت | ensāniyyat | humanity |
| اظهار ارادت کردن | ezhār-e erādat kardan | to express devotion, to show respect |
| کاش | kāš | I wish, if only |
| مرز | marz | border |
| یکپارچه | yekpārče | unified, united |
| حفظ کردن | hefz kardan | to preserve, to maintain |
| متعلق بودن | mota‘alleq budan | to belong |
| قابلیت داشتن | qābeliyyat dāštan | to be worthy, to have merit |
| روایت شدن | revāyat šodan | to be narrated |
| مورد بی‌مهری قرار گرفتن | moured-e bimehri qarār gereftan | to fall out of favor |
| درگذشتن | dargozāštan | to pass away |
| آرامگاه | ārāmgāh | mausoleum, tomb |
| پسوند | pasvand | suffix |
| جدا از | jodā az | apart from |
| نمونه | nemune | example, specimen |
| الگو | olgu | pattern, model |
| تبعیت کردن | taba‘iyyat kardan | to follow, to obey |
| اقسام (مفرد: قسم) | aqsām (sing. qesm) | types |
| قصیده | qaside | qasida (classical poem form, typically tripartite), ode |
| رباعی | robā‘i | ruba‘i (quatrain) |
| قطعه | qet‘e | qit'a (a form of monorhyme poetry) |