currentduringhisage.ApartfromarichDīvāncomposedoverthecourseofhislife,
fivemathnawīpoems from him arealso extant.Thefirst oftheseis adebate
(munāẓira)betweenvariousloversandbeloveds.Thesecondisatreatiseongood
mannersandproperconduct(adab),addressedtotenpeoplewithwell-defined
characters.In756/1355,hewroteatreatiseinmathnawīverseonSufismcalledthe
‘BookoftheWay’(Ṭarīqat-nāma),withaprefacededicatedaffectionatelytoPrince
Mubārizal-Dīn,whohadbeenrulerofShīrāzsince754/1353.Thepoemconstitutes
asortofmanifestoofthesacredalliancebetweenpietyandpoliticalpower.‘Imād’s
fourthmathnawīisabitofamixture,compoundedofsevenpoemsofdesolation,
somelengthycounseladdressedtotheprince,thestoryofthefoundationofaSufi
meetinghouse(khānaqāh)inKirmān,rangedalongsidethepoet’sowndreamsand
visions.Afifthpoemcontainstenletters,modelledontheepistolarygenre.Insuch
worksonecanadmireonceagain‘ImādFaqīh’spoeticfinesse,hissensitivity,his
strengthofsoul,aswellashisattentiontotherealitiesoflifeinKirmānandthe
verypersonalwayinwhichheincarnatedthecontinuityofthegrandtraditionof
classicalPersianpoetry.
Asstatedabove,‘Imād’sBookoftheWay(Ṭarīqat-nāma)wasatreatiseonSufism
intheformofapoem.Writtentoinstructdisciples,chapterbychapteritsumma-
rizesinabeautifulmannertheMiṣbāḥ al-hidāyat,or‘TheLampoftheGuidance’,
which‘Izzal-DīnMaḥmūdKāshānī(d.735/1334)hadcomposedinNatanz.This
greatbookofPersianprosewasthefruitofimmenseknowledgeinwhichKāshānī
aspiredtoencompassandexpressalltheIslamicloreonSufismofhistimetothe
highestdegreeofperfection.Itwasalsoinfluencedbythefamousode(Qaṣīda)on
theecstasyoflovebyIbnal-Fāriḍ(d.633/1235),andmodelledafterthe‘Awārifal-
ma‘ārif,themostcelebratedandexhaustivemanualofSufidiscipline,doctrineand
practiceevercomposed.Thelatterwork,completedsometimebefore612/1215,
waspennedbythesupremefounderoftheSuhrawardīSufiOrder –Shihābal-Dīn
AbūḤafṣ‘UmarSuhrawardī(d.632/1234).
UnderlyingthistransmissionofSufiknowledgebybooksandteaching,wecan
alsoseethetransmissionofthelivingpracticeoftheSufisfrommastertodisciple.
Onemayclearlydiscernadirectlinethatconnectsthesuprememaster‘Umar
Suhrawardītooneofhisdisciples,Najībal-Dīn‘Alī(sonofNajībal-DīnBuzghūsh,
d.678/1279,aneminentShīrāziSufimaster),whofoundedaSufiorder,andtrans-
mittedhisknowledgedowntohissonanddiscipleẒāhiral-Dīn,aswellasonto
anotherdisciple,Nūral-DīnIṣfahānī.Thelatterinturnhadimportantdisciples,
suchastheabove-mentionedMaḥmūdKāshānī,aswellasthecelebrated‘Abdal-
RazzāqKāshānī(d.730/1329).Our‘ImādFaqīhKirmānītracedhisinitiaticaffiliation
to‘UmarSuhrawardīthroughhisfather,himselfadiscipleofacertainZaynal-Dīn
Kāmū’ī,whowasadiscipleofSuhrawardī,butwhohadalsofoundedhisownSufi
order(ṭarīqa).Itisinterestingtonotethat‘Imādadvisedhisowndisciplestoread
severalpagesfrom‘UmarSuhrawardī’s‘Awārifal-ma‘ārif‘everymorning’,^5 andalso
recommendedtheyregularlystudyMuḥammadGhazālī’smonumentalRevivification
oftheSciencesofReligion(Iḥyā’‘ulūmal-dīn).
ḤāfiẓandthePersianSufiTradition 145