Ayatollah Khomeini’s Mystical Poetry and its Reception in Iran and the Diaspora

Diede Farhosh-van Loon obtained her PhD in Persian Studies from Leiden University in 2016. She is currently the project coordinator for the ERC Advanced Grant, Beyond Sharia: The Role of Sufism in Shaping Islam, in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Utrecht University.

"Ayatollah Khomeini’s strikingly “unorthodox” poems, published shortly after his death in 1989, provoked very diverse reactions, and discussions about how to interpret them continue to this day, both among the academic community and among his staunch supporters and ardent opponents. Ayatollah Khomeini’s Mystical Poetry and its Reception in Iran and the Diaspora formulates the main research question exactly as «how to interpret Ayatollah Khomeini’s mystical poetry» and “how his aspirations to worldly power and to mystical sublimation are reflected in his poetry” and makes a significant contribution to solving these intriguing problems. . Natalia Chalisova, Russian State University of Moscow This monograph is novel, well-written, and exceptionally well organized. This work will prove to be seminal in years to come in Western publications as it is the most comprehensive work on Ayatollah Khomeini’s poetry and poetics. The hermeneutic approach is quite apt in that it considers social, anthropological, and political dimensions of Ayatollah Khomeini’s poetics. . Alireza Korangy, American University of Beirut "

• Table of Contents Acknowledgments Notes on transliterations, translations and footnotes Introduction 1 The Clergy’s Role in Politics Iran’s Socio-Political Situation under the Qajar Dynasty (1785-1925) Clergy-State Relations during the Qajar Period The Role of the Clergy during the Constitutional Revolution (1905-1911) The Clerical Response to Constitutionalism The Rise of Reza Shah and the Curtailment of the Clergy’s Role The Clergy’s Response to Reza Shah’s Modernisation Policies The Clergy under Mohammad Reza Shah Rise of Ayatollah Khomeini 2 Ayatollah Khomeini’s Inner World: Mysticism and Poetry Ayatollah Khomeini’s Mysticism Studies of Ayatollah Khomeini’s Mysticism The Role of Mysticism in Ayatollah Khomeini’s Life Ayatollah Khomeini’s Poetical Work The Role of Poets and Poetry in Persian Society Ayatollah Khomeini’s Poetry 3 Ayatollah Khomeini, the Topical Poet and his Quatrains (robâ.is) Robâ.is in Historical Perspective Structure of the Persian Robâ.i Robâ.is by Ayatollah Khomeini Biographical Elements: A Dialogue with Ayatollah Khomeini’s Daughter-in-Law Mystical Love The Iran-Iraq War Martyrdom and Shiism The Mystic Mansur Hallâj The Ka.ba, the Holy House of God Despised Conclusion 4 Ayatollah Khomeini as an Antinomian Poet: Lyrical Poems (ghazals) Structure of the Ghazal Themes and Motifs in the Ghazal The Ghazal in Historical Perspective Ayatollah Khomeini’s Poetry inspired by Hâfez Ayatollah Khomeini’s Imitation of the Ghazal Antinomian Elements in Ayatollah Khomeini’s Ghazals Censure of the House of God in Mecca in Ayatollah Khomeini’s Ghazals Conclusion 5 Ayatollah Khomeini, the Shiite Philosopher and his Panegyric Poems (qasides) The Qaside in Historical Perspective Ayatollah Khomeini’s Qasides The Concept of the Mohammadan Light Veiling and Mystical Unveiling Mohammad al-Mahdi, the Twelfth Shiite Imam Rejection of the Monarchy Mahdi’s Representative on Earth: A Predecessor to Velâyat-e Faqih Spiritual Perfection and Leadership Anti-British Tendencies in Ayatollah Khomeini’s Qasides The Shiite Interpretation of Oppression Islamic Governance Conclusion 6 Reception of Ayatollah Khomeini’s Poetry in Iran and Abroad Responses of Followers to Ayatollah Khomeini’s Poetry Responses to Ayatollah Khomeini’s Poetry in the Diaspora Conclusion General Conclusion Bibliography Index