Foreword:
√Æfiæ of Sh∞rÆz
PeterAvery
ḤāfiẓofShīrāzwasbornabout1315anddiedin1389AD.Thinkingofmyexperience
ofhim,fourincidentscometomind.Thefirstiswhathappenedonemorningwhen,
ontheadviceofmymentor,Pīr,Ilistenedforseveralhourstoacommentaryonthe
poetryofḤāfiẓdeliveredtomebyamullah.IwastakentoasmallmosqueinShīrāz
withtheinjunctionthat,sinceIwasastudentofḤāfiẓ,itwasnecessaryformeto
listentowhatamullahhadtosayabouthim.ThusIspentthemorningbeingtold
howeveryreferencetowine,therose,thenightingaleandsoforthcouldbe,and
shouldbe,seeninaspirituallight:Ḥāfiẓwasreducedtoadealerinmetaphors,allof
whichhadameaningjustifiedbysanctity.Irefrained,ofcourse,fromreferringmy
interlocutortotheGulshan-irāzofShabistarī,whodiedafter1340.Inadditiontoits
beingacomprehensivekeytoSufiimagery,itseemsnottobedoubtedthatitinflu-
encedḤāfiẓ;butthisisnottheplaceinwhichtogointothequestionofwhetheror
notḤāfiẓ’s,orforthatmatterShabistarī’s,thoughtwascolouredbyIsmailism.What
should,however,beaddedinanydiscussionofthemysticalsignificanceofwineand
intoxicationisthefactthatAbūHāmidal-Ghazālī,oneofthegreatestIslamicand
for that matter world thinkers, saw intoxication as the ‘intoxication of love’. As
MargaretSmithputsit:‘ForHislovers,GodpoursoutadraughtfromthecupofHis
love,andbythatdraughttheyareintoxicated,raptawayfromthemselves.’^1 Since
Shīrāzhasalwaysbeenfamousforitswines,inspiteofthesecaveatsitmightbe
supposedthatḤāfiẓhad,amongotherconsiderations,realwineinmind;thereis
evidenceforthisinoneortwoofhisallusionstowine.
Ofcourse,Ḥāfiẓdealtinmetaphor.Thepoet,especially,hastoexpresstheother-
wiseinexpressible.Apossiblecriticismofthemullah’scommentsisthatitmight
notbecorrecttoattributeoneparticularsetofmeanings,basedononeparticular
strandofbelieforprejudice,tothemetaphorsthepoetused.Thereis,however,no
doubtthatwinewasacommonmetaphorforthespirit;toberememberedisSurah
XIIoftheKoran,verse36,whereoneoftheprisonersinadreamsawhimselfpress-
ing wine, and wine here stands for service to God, spiritual devotion. Take, for
example,thefragmentofḤāfiẓ,whichmaybetranslatedasfollows:Againthetimehasaheadfordiscord:
Ianddrunkennessandtheincitementofthefriend’seye!00c_Hafiz_i-xxvi8/4/1011:11Pageix