Work Ali-Shir Nava'i

alisher nava depicted on 1942 ussr stamps celebrate 500th anniversary of birth

alisher served public administrator , adviser sultan, husayn bayqarah. builder reported have founded, restored, or endowed 370 mosques, madrasas, libraries, hospitals, caravanserais, , other educational, pious, , charitable institutions in khorasan. in herat, responsible 40 caravanserais, 17 mosques, 10 mansions, 9 bathhouses, 9 bridges, , 20 pools.

among alisher s famous constructions mausoleum of 13th-century mystical poet, farid al-din attar, in nishapur (north-eastern iran) , khalasiya madrasa in herat. 1 of instrumental contributors architecture of herat, became, in rené grousset s words, florence of has justly been called timurid renaissance . moreover, promoter , patron of scholarship , arts , letters, musician, composer, calligrapher, painter , sculptor, , such celebrated writer bernard lewis, renowned historian of islamic world, called him chaucer of turks .

literary works

under pen name nava i, alisher among key writers revolutionized literary use of turkic languages. nava himself wrote in chagatai language , produced 30 works on period of 30 years, during chagatai became accepted prestigious , well-respected literary language. nava wrote in persian (under pen name fāni), and, lesser degree, in arabic.

nava s best-known poems found in 4 diwans, or poetry collections, total 50,000 verses. each part of work corresponds different period of person s life:

a page nava s diwan. library of suleiman magnificent.



ghara ib al-sighar (wonders of childhood)
navadir al-shabab (rarities of youth)
bada al-wasat (marvels of middle age)
fawa id al-kibar (benefits of old age)

to other turkic poets, alisher wrote technical works such mizan al-awzan (the measure of meters), , detailed treatise on poetical meters. crafted monumental majalis al-nafais (assemblies of distinguished men), collection of on 450 biographical sketches of contemporary poets. collection gold mine of information timurid culture modern historians.

alisher s other important works include khamsa (quintuple), composed of 5 epic poems , imitation of nizami ganjavi s khamsa:

hayrat-ol-abrar (wonders of people) (حیرت الابرار)
farhad va shirin (farhad , shirin) (فرهاد و شیرین)
layli va majnun (layli , majnun) (لیلی و مجنون)
sab ai sayyar (seven travelers) (سبعه سیار) (about 7 planets)
sadd-i-iskandari (alexander s wall) (سد سکندری) (about alexander great)

alisher wrote lison ut-tayr (لسان الطیر or language of birds, following attar s manteq-ol-tayr منطق الطیر or speeches of birds), in expressed philosophical views , sufi ideas. translated jami s nafahat-ul-uns (نفحات الانس) chagatai turkic , called nasayim-ul-muhabbat (نسایم المحبت). besh hayrat (five wonders) gives in-depth @ views on religion , sufism. book of persian poetry contains 6,000 lines (beits).

nava s last work, muhakamat al-lughatayn (the trial of 2 languages) comparison of turkic , persian , completed in december 1499. believed turkic language superior persian literary purposes, , defended belief in work. nava repeatedly emphasized belief in richness, precision , malleability of turkic vocabulary opposed persian.

list of works

below list of alisher nava s works compiled suyima gʻaniyeva, senior professor @ tashkent state institute of oriental studies.

badoe ul-vasat (marvels of middle age) – third diwan of nava s hazoin ul-maoniy. consists of 650 ghazals, 1 mustazod, 2 mukhammases, 2 musaddases, 1 tarjeband, 1 qasida, 60 qit as, 10 chistons, , 3 tuyuks. overall, badoe ul-vasat has 740 poems , 5,420 verses long. compiled between 1492 , 1498.

waqfiya – documentary work nava i. wrote under pen name fāni in 1481. waqfiya depicts poet s life, spiritual world, dreams, , unfulfilled desires. waqfiya important source of information social , cultural life in 15th century.

layli wa majnun (layli , majnun) – third dastan in khamsa. man mad love. layli wa majnun divided 36 chapters , 3,622 verses long. written in 1484.

lison ut-tayr – epic poem allegory man s need seek god. story begins birds of world realizing far king , need seek him. begin long , hard journey many complaints, wise bird encourages them through admonishment , exemplary stories. nava wrote lison ut-tayr under pen name fāni between 1498 , 1499. poem 3,598 verses long. in introduction, author notes wrote poem response farid ud-din attar s mantiq-ut tayr.

majolis un-nafois – nava s tazkira (anthology). written in 1491–92, anthology completed additions in 1498. consists of 8 meeting reports , has information poets of nava s time. overall, in majolis un-nafois nava wrote 459 poets , authors. work translated 3 times persian in 16th century. has been translated russian.

mahbub ul-qulub – nava s work written in 1500, year before death. mahbub ul-qulub consists of introduction , 3 main sections. first part status , duties of different social classes; second part moral matters; third, final part contains advice , wise sayings. mahbub ul-qulub has been translated russian. of stories contained within work originate sanskrit book kathāsaritsāgara has, example, “story of king prasenajit , brāhman lost treasure”.

mezon ul-avzon – nava s work persian , turkic aruz. mezon ul-avzon written in 1490.

minhoj un-najot (the ways of salvation) – fifth poem in persian collection of poems sittai zaruriya (the 6 necessities). minhoj un-najot 138 verses long. written in response khaqani s , ansori s triumphal poems.

munojot – work written in prose nava in last years of life. small work pleading , repenting before allah. in munojot, nava wrote unfulfilled dreams , regrets. work translated english in 1990. has been translated russian.

munshaot (a collection of letters) – collection of nava s letters written different classes of people various kinds of matters. collection includes letters addressed nava himself , adopted son. munshaot collected between 1498 , 1499. work contains information husayn bayqarah , badi al-zaman mirza. contains letters expressing nava s dream performing hajj pilgrimage. in munshaot, nava provides insight political, social, moral, , spiritual matters.

a 16th century herat school miniature of alisher nava i

mufradot – nava s work problem solving written in 1485. in work, nava discussed many different types of problems , offered own solutions. first section of mufradot entitled hazoin-ul-maoni contains 52 problems in chagatai , second section entitled devoni foni contains 500 problems in persian.

muhakamat al-lughatayn – nava s work belief in richness, precision , malleability of turkic opposed persian. in work, nava wrote poets wrote in both of these languages. muhakamat al-lughatayn written in 1499.

navodir ush-shabob (rarities of youth) – second diwan of nava s hazoin ul-maoniy. navodir ush-shabob contains 650 ghazals, 1 mustazod, 3 muhammases, 1 musaddas, 1 tarjeband, 1 tarkibband, 50 qit as, , 52 problems. overall, diwan has 759 poems , 5,423.5 verses long. navodir ush-shabob compiled between 1492 , 1498.

nazm ul-javohir – nava s work written in 1485 in appreciation of husayn bayqarah s risala. in nazm ul-javohir, meaning of every proverb in ali s collection of proverbs entitled nasr ul-laoliy told in 1 ruba i. creation , purpose of work given in preface.

nasim ul-huld – nava s qasida written in persian. qasida influenced khaqani s , khusrow dehlawī s works. russian historian yevgeniy bertels believed nasim ul-huld written in response jami s jilo ur-ruh.

risolai tiyr andohtan – short risala has 3 pages. risala, seems commentary on 1 of hadiths, included in nava s unfinished work kulliyot. kulliyot published book in 1667–1670 , consisted of 17 works. in book navaiy, yevgeniy bertels chose risolai tiyr andohtan last work in list of 22 works nava i.

rukh ul-quds (the holy spirit) – first qasida in nava s persian collection of qasidas entitled sittai zaruriya. rukh ul-quds, 132 verses long, divine love.

sab ai sayyor (seven travelers) – fourth dastan in nava s khamsa. sab ai sayyor divided 37 chapters , 8,005 lines long. poem written in 1485.

saddi iskandari (alexander s wall) – fifth dastan in nava s khamsa. in work, nava positively portrays conquests of alexander great , expresses views on governance. saddi iskandari written in 1485 , consists of 88 chapters , 7,215 verses long.

siroj ul-muslimin (the light of muslims) – nava s work islamic law. siroj ul-muslimin written in 1499 , discusses 5 pillars of islam, sharia, namaz, fasting, hajj pilgrimage, signs of god, religious purity, , zakat. work first published in uzbekistan in 1992.

tarixi muluki ajam – nava s work shahs of iran. work describes deeds shahs performed people. tarixi muluki ajam written in 1488.

tuhfat ul-afkor – nava s qasida in persian written response khusrow dehlawī s daryoi abror. work influenced jami s qasida lujjat ul-asror. tuhfat ul-afkor 1 of 6 qasidas included in nava s collection of poems sittai zaruriya.

favoid ul-kibar (benefits of old age) – fourth diwan in nava s hazoin ul-maoniy. work consists of 650 ghazals, 1 mustazod, 2 muhammases, 1 musaddas, 1 musamman, 1 tarjeband, 1 sokiynoma, 50 qit as, 80 fards, , 793 poems. favoid ul-kibar 888.5 verses long. written between 1492 , 1498.

farhod wa shirin (farhad , shirin) – second dastan in nava s khamsa. farhod wa shirin, written in 1484, described classic romeo , juliet story central asians. poem divided 59 chapters , 5,782 verses long.

fusuli arba (the 4 seasons) – common title of 4 qasidas written in persian nava i. each qasida 1 of 4 seasons – spring (57 verses), hottest part of summer (71 verses), autumn (35 verses), , winter (70 verses).

hazoin ul-maoniy – common title of 4 diwans include nava s completed lyric poems. hazoin ul-maoniy consists of 2,600 ghazals, 4 mustazods, ten muhammases, 4 tarjebands, 1 tarkibband, 1 masnaviy (a poetic letter sayyid khsan), 1 qasida, 1 sokiynoma, 210 qit as, 133 ruba is, 52 problems, 10 chistons, 12 tuyuks, 26 fards, , 3,132 poems. hazoin ul-maoniy 22,450.5 verses (44,901 lines) long. finished in 1498. sixteen different lyrical genres used in collection.

the top exterior of nava s khamsa (five poems) on display @ walters art museum. copy dates 16th century.

khamsa – common title of 5 dastans nava written in 1483–85. work nava established precedent quality literature in chagatay. 5 dastans included in nava s khamsa are:

hamsat ul-mutaxayyirin – nava s work jami written in 1494. work consists of introduction, 3 sections, , conclusion. in introduction, nava writes jami s genealogy, birth, upbringing, studies, , how became scientist , poet. first part tells jami s spiritual world, , ideas creative works; second part reveals closeness between nava , jami in creative collaborations. conclusion sheds light on jami s death. includes nava s eulogy in persian consists of 7 sections of ten lines.

gharoyib us-sighar (wonders of childhood) – first diwan in nava s hazoin ul-maoniy. work consists of 650 ghazals, 1 mustazod, 3 muhammases, 1 musaddas, 1 tarjeband, 1 masnaviy, 50 qit as, 133 ruba is, , 840 poems. gharoyib us-sighar 5,718.5 verses (11,437 lines) long. compiled between 1492 , 1498.

hayrat ul-abror (wonders of people) – first dastan in nava s khamsa. work divided 64 chapters , 3,988 verses long. hayrat ul-abror written in 1483.