POEMS OF BEDIL Sufi Pocketbook Series...

POEMS OF BEDIL Sufi Pocketbook Series... Translation & Introduction Paul Smith. Mirza Abdul-Qader Bidel (1644-1721) is one of the most respected poets from Afghanistan. In the early 17th century, his family moved from Balkh to India, to live under the Mughal dynasty. He was born and educated near Patna. In his later life he spent time travelling and visiting ancestral lands. His writings in Persian are extensive, being one of the creators of the 'Indian style'. Bidel's 16 books of poetry contain nearly 147,000 couplets. With Ghalib he is considered a master of the 'Indian Style' of the ghazal. He had complicated views on the nature of God, heavily influenced by the Sufis. The correct rhyme-structure has been kept as well as the beauty and meaning of these beautiful and often mystical poems including ruba'is, qit'as, masnavis, bino-rhymes. Introduction on The Life and Times and Poetry of Bidel, Some Forms of Poems in Persian in which Bidel composed poems, Sufis & Dervishes: Their Art & Use of Poetry, and a Selected Bibliography. Pocketbook Paperback, 5" x 8" Pages... 160. COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'. "It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat and of paramount importance. I am astonished." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran. "Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator of mystical works in English into 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 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, Yunus Emre. Lalla Ded, Mahsati and others, and his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books and a dozen screenplays.