About the Book
FAIZI: LIFE & POEMS Translation & Introduction by Paul Smith FAIZI (1547-1595). The work of Faizi, who held the honorary title Malek ol-shoara (king of poets), marks the beginning of the golden age of Indian literature in Persian. This Sufi poet-laureate of Akbar assisted him in his efforts at reform, which were aimed at reconciling Indians of different faiths. In his best known masnavi poem 'Nal and Daman' he reworks a story from the third book of the Mahabharata in accordance with the demands of the masnavi genre. Faizi also wrote works on philosophy, philology, mathematics, medicine, and the history of religion. He helped translate into Persian the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and other works of classical Indian literature. Faizi wrote the commentary of the Koran. Faizi's poems have been collected in a Divan; among them are qasidas, ghazals, and ruba'is that were composed in the traditions of classical Persian poetry and are translated here in the correct form for the first time. His ghazals show the influence of Hafiz and Jami and Fighani and are early examples of the 'Indian Style'. 120 pages. Introduction to Sufi Poets Series AATISH, ASHGAR, 'AISHAH Al-BA'UNIYAH, AMIR KHUSRAU, ANSARI, ANVARI, AL-MA'ARRI, 'ARIFI, 'ATTAR, ABU SA'ID, AUHAD UD-DIN, BABA FARID, BABA AZFAL, BABA TAHIR, BEDAR, BEDIL, BULLEH SHAH, DARA SHIKOH, DARD, FAIZI, GHALIB, GHANI KASHMIRI, HAFIZ, HALI, HASAN DEHLAVI, HATEF, HUMA, IBN 'ARABI, IBN YAMIN, IBN AL-FARID, IQBAL, INAYAT KHAN, 'IRAQI, JAHAN KHATUN, JAMI, JIGAR, KAMAL AD-DIN, KABIR, KHAQANI, KHAYYAM, LALLA DED, MAHSATI, MAKHFI, MANSUR HALLAJ, MIR, MOMIN, MU'IN UD-DIN CHISHTI, NAZIR, NESIMI, NIZAMI, NUND RISHI, OBEYD ZAKANI, PAUL, QUTUB SHAH, RABI'A, RAHIM, RAHMAN BABA, RUMI, SADI, SA'IB, SANA'I, SARMAD, SAUDA, SEEMAB, SHABISTARI, SHAH LATIF, SHAH NI'MAT'ULLAH, SHEFTA, SULTAN BAHU, URFI, WALI, YUNUS EMRE, ZAFAR, ZAUQ, EARLY ARABIC, EARLY PERSIAN, URDU, TURKISH, AFGHAN SUFI POETS... Paul Smith (b. 1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Lalla Ded, Mahsati and others, and his own poetry, fiction, biographies, plays, children's books and screenplays. amazon.com/author/smithpa