Shafaqna English | by Dr. Mohammad Hossein Mokhtari*- Shahriar was among the poets who established a deep connection between poetry and religion. At a time when some contemporary poets leaned toward Westernization or distanced themselves from traditional values, Shahriar, with inner sincerity and heartfelt faith, turned literature into a medium for promoting religious culture.
According to Shafaqna, Seyyed Mohammad-Hossein Behjat Tabrizi, widely known as Shahriar, stands as one of the most eminent contemporary poets of Iran. Through the creation of original works in both classical and popular forms, he played an unparalleled role in the promotion and expansion of Persian poetry. By drawing upon the rich legacy of classical literary traditions while simultaneously engaging with the social and cultural transformations of his own time, Shahriar succeeded in building a bridge between the past and the present.
With his Persian ghazals, he not only preserved the heritage of masters such as Hafez and Sa‘di but also demonstrated that classical poetry continues to possess the capacity to convey the emotions and intellectual concerns of modern times. At the same time, his Turkish-Azeri masterpiece, » Heydar Babaya Salam «, not only elevated Azeri literature but also emerged as a cultural monument introducing the richness of Iranian literary and cultural identity to the global stage. Shahriar’s religious, social, and romantic poems—expressed in fluent, melodious, and accessible language—reconnected Persian poetry with the general public, while many of his compositions became an integral part of both traditional and popular Iranian music.
Persian literature in recent centuries has undergone remarkable transformations. On one hand, the innovations of Nima Youshij and his followers inaugurated a new literary current within Persian poetry; on the other, a number of poets sought to keep alive the connection with the classical tradition by building upon its profound legacy. In this context, Shahriar (1906–1988) occupies a unique and distinguished position. Not only did he, with his captivating and graceful ghazals, recall the poetic grandeur of Hafez and Sa‘di, but he also, through his simplicity of language and clarity of expression, released poetry from the confines of elite literary circles and brought it into the realm of the people.
The social and political upheavals of his era—including the Constitutional Revolution, the First and Second World Wars, and the political developments in Iran during the first half of the 20th century—exerted a profound influence on Shahriar’s thought and vision. Although he was not a political poet in the strict sense, many of his poems reflect the pains and social concerns of his time. His humane and ethical outlook on life enabled his poetry to establish a deep connection with the wider public.
From an intellectual perspective, Shahriar was influenced by two principal sources: first, the classical Persian literary tradition, especially the ghazals of Hafez; and second, religious and ethical teachings. These two sources imbued his poetry with a spiritual, moral, and at the same time popular character. His ghazals often make reference to religious themes, and his eulogies of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) remain among the most enduring parts of his literary legacy.
Shahriar and the Persian Ghazal
The ghazal, one of the most popular forms of Persian poetry, has for centuries been a medium for expressing emotion, love, mysticism, and ethics. With the emergence of modernist movements in contemporary poetry, many believed that classical forms no longer had the capacity to meet the spiritual and social needs of modern man. Yet Shahriar, amid this challenge, demonstrated with extraordinary strength that the ghazal could still remain alive, dynamic, and influential.
In his ghazals, Shahriar paid attention to the traditions of Hafez, Saadi, Rumi, and Bidel, while at the same time striving to blend them with the spirit of his own age. His poems often possess an inner rhythm and melody reminiscent of Hafez’s lyrical fluency. At the same time, the simplicity of his language and the natural flow of his expression moved the ghazal beyond a purely classical form and brought it closer to the common people.
In terms of content, Shahriar’s ghazals can largely be divided into three domains: romantic, mystical–ethical, and social. His romantic ghazals reflect personal and sincere experiences; his mystical ones are rooted in religious and moral beliefs; and in some of his poems, the sufferings and struggles of society are echoed.
Thus, through his ghazals, Shahriar both safeguarded the heritage of the past and kept it vibrant and relevant for future generations, proving that the Persian ghazal still has the capacity to convey the realities of contemporary life.
Shahriar and the Popularization of Persian Poetry among the People
One of Shahriar’s most important characteristics was the popular nature of his language and thought. He succeeded in taking Persian poetry out of the closed circles of literary elites and academics, and bringing it into people’s homes and daily lives.
In his Persian poems, Shahriar never resorted to excessive complexity. Although his works are filled with literary devices and musicality of language, these elements did not prevent general understanding. His simple and fluent style allowed many of his verses to enter everyday speech and popular culture. Moreover, the connection of his poetry with traditional music played a decisive role in spreading his works. Many great singers performed his poems, and through music they entered the collective memory of the people.
In this way, Shahriar was able, at a time when modern verse was inaccessible to much of society, to keep Persian poetry alive and to make it enduring in the hearts of the people.
Shahriar and Religious and Social Poetry
Shahriar was among the poets who established a deep connection between poetry and religion. At a time when some contemporary poets leaned toward Westernization or distanced themselves from traditional values, Shahriar, with inner sincerity and heartfelt faith, turned literature into a medium for promoting religious culture. His religious poetry did not remain limited to praise and elegy but carried moral, spiritual, and intellectual messages that invited young people to reconsider their religious identity.
One of the most outstanding examples of this service is his famous Composition is “Ali, O Huma’i Rahmat.”(Ali, O Celestial Bird of Mercy) With simple yet profound language, this poem portrays a fresh image of Imam Ali (a) and has found wide resonance both in religious gatherings and within the realm of traditional Iranian music. Many young people, through this poem, became acquainted with the teachings of Imam Ali and, in an atmosphere full of emotion and artistic beauty, received the message of justice, compassion, and faith.
Shahriar also, in his poems on Ashura and his elegies, succeeded in narrating the culture of sacrifice, martyrdom, and resistance in the language of poetry for the younger generation. Through poetic imagery and sincere tone, he presented the Karbala tragedy not merely as a historical event but as a model for ethical and social life. This made his religious poems especially significant in youth gatherings, serving as a medium for emotional and intellectual connection with religious values.
Moreover, in the final years of his life, Shahriar, by composing revolutionary and Islamic poems—among them verses in praise of Imam Khomeini (RA) and the martyrs of the Revolution—demonstrated that poetry could serve as a tool for strengthening religious and national identity among the younger generation. At a time when society was in need of a cultural model to transmit values to the youth, he managed, through his appealing and popular language, to recreate religious culture in a fresh and attractive form for them.
Thus, Shahriar was not only a national and popular poet but also one of the prominent promoters of religious culture in the contemporary era. His legacy shows that literature can play an unparalleled role in transmitting spiritual values to the younger generation—a transmission which, when accompanied by the language of art and poetic sincerity, becomes lasting and influential.
In this way, by composing religious and social poetry, Shahriar succeeded in establishing a bond between religion, society, and people’s culture, bringing Persian poetry into new domains.
By remaining faithful to his mother tongue while also cherishing the Persian language, he showed that ethnic and national identity can coexist and together enrich Iranian culture.
Shahriar’s contributions to Persian poetry and literature can be summarized in several main areas:
Reviving the Persian ghazal in the modern era and demonstrating its capacities;
Popularizing Persian poetry through simple and sincere language;
Expanding Persian poetry via music and embedding it in the auditory memory of society;
Strengthening religious poetry with works such as Ali, O Soaring Bird of Mercy;
Promoting national and cultural identity by blending Persian and Turkish;
Entering formal education (school and university textbooks);
Achieving international fame and having his works translated, thus helping to introduce Persian poetry to the world;
Inspiring young poets and reaffirming the place of traditional poetry alongside modernism.
In this regard, Shahriar was not only a great poet but also a cultural reformer who managed to keep Persian poetry alive both within Iranian society and beyond its borders.
Conclusion
In modern Iranian history, Shahriar symbolizes the link between tradition and modernity, the people and the elites, religion and art, and ethnicity and nationality. With his Persian ghazals, he revived the legacy of Hafez and Saadi; with Heydar Babaya Salam, he conveyed the voice of Azerbaijan to the world; with his religious and social poems, he breathed the spirit of faith and justice; and with his simple and heartfelt language, he returned Persian poetry to people’s homes. From this perspective, Shahriar’s service to the promotion of Persian poetry and literature is unparalleled, and he truly deserves to have the anniversary of his death recognized as the “Day of Persian Poetry and Literature.”
In the final years of his life, Shahriar resided in Tehran. After his passing on 18 September 1988 , in accordance with his will, he was laid to rest in the Maqbarat al-Sho‘ara of Tabriz—the resting place of many great poets of Azerbaijan and Iran. On the proposal of literary and cultural figures, the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution designated the anniversary of his death as the “National Day of Persian Poetry and Literature,” a sign that Shahriar was not only a renowned poet but also a symbol of the enduring bond between the people and Persian literature in the contemporary era.
*Dr. Mohammad Hossein Mokhtari is the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Holy See.
