About the Book
ALISHER NAVOI Sufi Master Poet, Politician, Linguist, Scientist, Author, Calligrapher, Art-patron, Intellectual, Painter, Builder. SELECTED POEMS Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Alisher Navoi (1441 - 1501) a truly universal man, was of Uyghur origin who was born and lived in Herat (now north-western Afghanistan) like Jami who he knew. He is generally known by his pen name Navoi ('the weeper'). Alisher Navoi was among the key writers who revolutionized the literary use of the Turkic languages. Navoi himself wrote primarily in the Chagatai language and produced 30 works over a period of 30 years, during which Chagatai became accepted as a prestigious and well-respected literary language. Navoi also wrote in Persian (under the pen name of Fani), and to a much lesser degree in Arabic and Hindi. Navoi's best-known poems are found in his four divans, or poetry collections, which total 50,000 couplets. Each part of the work corresponds to a different period of a person's life. He is still greatly revered throughout the Middle East, Asia & Russia and there are many building etc. named after him. Many of his gazels & robai's are represented in this translation in the correct forms for the first time. Introduction: Turkish & Sufi Poetry, Life & Times of Alisher Navoi, Bibliography. Appendix on first Chagatai Sufi Poet Ahmed Yesevi who influenced him. Large Format Paperback 7" x 10" Pages... 164 COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFEZ'S GHAZALS."It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafez is a great feat and of paramount importance. I am astonished.." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran."Superb translations. 99% Hafez 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator of English to Persian and knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart. Paul Smith (b.1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets of Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish and other languages including Hafez, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in ud-din Chishti, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Hallaj, Rudaki, Yunus Emre, Ghalib, 'Iraqi, Iqbal, Makhfi, Lalla Ded, Abu Nuwas, Ibn al-Farid, Rahman Baba, Nazir, Seemab, Jigar, Hali, Dard, Zauq and many others, as well as his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, childrens books and a dozen screenplays. amazon.com/author/smithpa
