The Eyniyye ode
The Arabic ode of Eyniye includes the Gnostic subjects and spiritual needs from the natural journey of the soul, instinctive “mystic journey” (solook) of the soul, “coming down” (hoboot) in the “earthly” (näsooti) degrees and ascending to the angelic degrees. It contains the wayfarer’s punishments and encouragements in passing the paths with cutting off the material interests and removing the physical obstacles that is the completion things of human souls and one of the perfecting poems of human “stations” (maghämät) that leaving it causes loss,#### everlasting damages and causing disappointment from the real “blessings”(ne’am). It also including a kind of “interrogation” (question) and a way of asking about this immortal holy bird that is called “human soul” (nafs ensäni) why has been descended and indwelled in this dark and prisoner place. The total of this ode is about 21 couplets. In some are about twenty couplets that have a couplet short.
The author brief biography:
Abu Ali Hussein, the son of Abdullah Ibn Sina, famous to Ibn Sina, also called Sharaf Al-Molk and Sheikh Al-Ra’is, is the philosopher, physician, poet, mathematician and Iranian astronomer, the most famous Islamic scientist and one of the great scholars that have been yet. He was born in a city of Bukhärä’s environs in 981A.D.(370A.H.). In Bukhärä which that time was the Samanids’ capital, he leaned the logic, medicine and mathematics. Due to his great talent and intelligence, very soon could gain scientific fame in different cases. In the age of 17 years, he cured Nooh Ibn Mansoor Sämäni and this task caused to be famous. Therefore he entered to the royal library. He himself says: the books that I saw there, nobody even heard their names. I read them and profited by use of them. When I got 18 years old, I graduated. Although Ibn Sina was great philosopher but besides, he was a very busy doctor, had perfect political influence and as a minister, served to his supporter princes. He wrote “The Canon of Medicne” book, in 1013 A.D. (403A.H.). During his life, which coincided with Ghaznavids rule, he travelled to different cities and did different services, till after Shams Al-Doale’s Daylami’s death, his successor by the name of “Samä Al-Doleh” imprisoned him for a month but Abu Ali Sina, after releasing, went to Isfahan and had the respects of people of Isfahan. He instructed and wrote there. In fact, he spent in Isfahan the last fourteen years of his fruitful life and finally in a journey with Alä’ Al-Dolleh to Hamadan, he died at the age of fifty eight in 1037A.D.(428A.H.).
The authorities view:
As the Hakim Elahi mentioned in the preface, Ibn Sina’s Arabic ode of Eyniyye, among the other Arabic odes, is like himself among the scholars and philosophers. Because, apart from “Poetic devices” (Sanäye she’riyeh), “beauties of rehterics” (mohassanät badi’), “literal and spiritual rules” (ghaväed lafziyeh and ma’naviyeh), literal rules and points, the speeches (orations) allegories and similes, “statement metaphors and metonymy” that are counted as a requirements and parts of eloquence and fluency, including the Gnostic subjects.
The book structure:
In the beginning of this book have been related poems by the Mohammad Ali Hakim Elähi Fereydooni about Ibn Sina’s Eyniye ode, his characteristics and works. After a short preface, has been related, the Ibn Sina’s birth and death date that has been written in some couplets (by the Hakim Elahi).Then has been related the Ibn Sina’s Eyniyeh ode, that after each couples has been related its meaning (cham) and then its Persian couplet and has explained its intention (chäme = ballad). (He has explained, to a pure Persian, word by word, each couplet of it, by the title of “Cham” and has written under it. Then has explained that couplet, by the title of “balled” (chäme), into two pure Persian couplets and has related its intention. Furthermore its brief response he has composed intention. Furthermore he has composed its brief response, in ten couplets of pure Persian. Also after that, he has responded completely and reasoningly, in eleven couplets in Arabic. So that it is compatible with “rational proofs” (borhän aghli) and accorded with Quranic verses.
For example:
هبطت الیک من المجل الارفع *** و رفاء ذات تعزر و تمتع
“chem” (means the message of poem)
come down toward you from the higher place \ a pigeons that holding the dominance and the greatness
Chäme (ballad or the meaning of poem)
come down from the high place ****for you a pigeons very worthy
that pigeons is so that**** flying up and down
Brief structure:
-twenty-one Arabic couplets with the title “Arab questions”.
- The Arabic couplets with the title “Arabic response”: response in an Arabic “ballad” (chäme) by IBn Sina’s view.
- ten Persian couplets (Persian response): response in the Persian “ballad” (chäme) by Ibn Sina’s view.
- Eleven Arabic couplet (Arabic response): response in Arabic “ballad” (chäme) by Hakim Elahi’s view
- Ten Persian couplet (Persian response): response in Persian “ballad” (chäme) by Hakim Elähi’s view
Sources :
the Eyniyye ode