حديقه المعارف: شرحي بر گلشن راز

A Commentary of the Gulshan e Raz and the Commentator

Gulshan e Raz, the poetic couplets (^j—by Sheik Mahmood e Shabestari, is one of the most excellent mystical Persian poems. Its exemplary brevity Gl^oJ), profound ideas and rich symbolism have been a source of inspiration for several commentaries during five centuries. Hadiqa al-Maaref., considered as one of the oldest and most completed commentaries on Gulshan Raz, was written by Shuja al-Din Kurbali, a scholar from Shiraz. He was a disciple of Shah Qasem e Anwar ( 867H) with one link, through whom he may have inherited the Hurufi doctrines. Hadiqa al-Maaref was produced in 867H in the name of Sultan Jahan Shah e Qaraquyunloo (802-872H). The fact that this commentary was admired by Abd al-Rahman e Jami, provides a good reason to consider it a significant authorship. Jami had factually decided to write a commentary on Gulshan e Raz but gave up his decision after he had read Hadiqa al-Maaref. So far, three manuscripts of Hadiqa al-Maaref have been known in Iran. Relying of the extant sources, the article attempts to identify the commentator, introduce his book, and describe its three manuscripts.