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Manuscript/Mixed Material Gulshan-i rāz : s̲ālis̲ گلشن راز : ثالث /

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About this Item

Title

  • Gulshan-i rāz : s̲ālis̲

Other Title

  • گلشن راز : ثالث /

Summary

  • Gulshan-i rāz (The garden of mystery) is a 20th century text on the Nizari Ismaʻili belief system, written by Nadir Shah Kayani (circa 1897-circa 1971), a leader of the Ismaʻili community in Afghanistan. The title of this work deliberately echoes a celebrated Ismaʻili book of verse of the same name composed by Mahmud Shabistari in 1317. Nadir Shah's work is organized in 14 sections, each of which discusses a philosophical or religious topic such as nafs (the soul) or namaz (prayer). The first section, on tafakkur (the faculty of thought), is written as a commentary on a verse from the original Gulshan-i rāz. Kayani's leadership of the Ismaʻili community coincided with the reign of Muhammad Shah (Aga Khan III, 1877-1957). Much remains to be discovered about the Ismaʻili community of Afghanistan during this period. What is known is that Nadir Shah belonged to a family of Ismaʻili leaders based in the Kayan valley in northern Afghanistan. He was a prolific author who wrote both poetry and philosophical texts. The present work is a manuscript, most likely produced in Afghanistan. The script is nastaʻliq, written in black ink, 11 lines to the page, on a light-cream paper. The "third" in the title probably refers to Shabistari's original work as the first Gulshan-i rāz. The identity of the second Gulshan-i rāz is not clear; it could be a reference to the well-known commentary by Shams al-Din Lahiji, written in 1472-73. World Digital Library.
  • Islamic topics in question and answer form, probabally written during early 20th century.

Names

  • Kiyānī, Nādir Shāh

Created / Published

  • [between 1900 and 1999?]

Headings

  • -  Manuscripts, Persian--Washington (D.C.)
  • -  Afghanistan

Notes

  • -  Manuscript.
  • -  Nastalīq script; 11 lines in written area 21.5 x 14 cm.
  • -  Paper is light cream; black ink.
  • -  Probably written in Afghanistan.
  • -  Also available in digital form.
  • -  In Persian.
  • -  Acquired for LC only.

Medium

  • 32 unnumbered pages (11 lines) bound ; 21.5 cm

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2002341371

Online Format

  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

The contents of the Library of Congress Persian Language Manuscript Project are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions and are free to use and reuse.

Credit Line: Library of Congress, African and Middle East Division, Near East Section Persian Manuscript Collection

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Kiyānī, Nādir Shāh. Gulshan-I Rāz: S̲ālis̲. [Between 1900 and 1999?] Manuscript/Mixed Material. https://www.loc.gov/item/2002341371/.

APA citation style:

Kiyānī, N. S. Gulshan-I Rāz: S̲ālis̲. [Between 1900 and 1999?] [Manuscript/Mixed Material] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2002341371/.

MLA citation style:

Kiyānī, Nādir Shāh. Gulshan-I Rāz: S̲ālis̲. [Between 1900 and 1999?] Manuscript/Mixed Material. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2002341371/>.