"Hafiz' Shirazi Turk": A Structuralist's Point of View * Written by Iraj Bashiri copyright 1979 The "Shirazi Turk" has been the subject of study by Western scholars since 1771 when William Jones translated this beautiful ghazal into English for the first time. Many translations and interpretations of it have since appeared in the literature. In 1966, however, while discussing the poetry of Hafiz, Professor G. L. Windfuhr expressed his suspicion that bayts 6 and 7 of this ghazal may not belong to Hafiz. His insight is the stepping stone for the following structural analysis. In 1953 Mary Boyce expressed her suspicions that there may exist "wholly new ranges of meaning" in the "Shirazi Turk"--meanings that are now totally lost. Capitalizing on the common belief that Hafiz may have been a mystic, or a poet capable of using mystical concepts in his diwan, it is hoped that an explanation for Boyce's suspicions can be found. I hasten to add, however, that there is no one set interpretation for the "Shirazi Turk," and that which follows is simply another appreciation of Hafiz' poetry. By looking at all the interpretations presented to date, perhaps deeper inroads can be made into the works of medieval Persian writers. 1. Introduction 1 * An abbreviated version of this paper was presented to a panel on Literary Theory and Middle Eastern Genres chaired by Professor G. L. Windfuhr at the 11th annual MESA meeting in New York, November 10, 1977. This paper has also been published separately in the Muslim World, (1979). In the course of writing this paper I have received constructive criticism from Professor William Hanaway and the editorial board of Edebiyat, as well as encouragement from Professors M.A.R. Barker, Anwar Chejne, Caesar Farah, George Koury and David Lelyveld. I would like to also acknowledge the efforts of many who, in one way or another, have influenced this paper. This article was originally published in The Muslim World (LXIX, nos. 3 & 4, 1979). I would like to thank the editors of that journal for their permission to reprint the article. It was also published as a part of Kamal Khujandi: Epoch and its Importance in the History of Central Asian Civilization in 1996. 1 With regard to the translation of Persian works such as The Blind Owl of Hidayat and the ghazals of Hafiz, it should be emphasized that a mere knowledge of medieval or modern standard Persian is not sufficient. These are works produced after many nights of vigil in the case of Hafiz, and years of research in the case of Hidayat. With regard to the ghazals of Hafiz, I said in 1974: "It will take years before the West will be able to enjoy the poetry of Hafiz the way he wrote it, the way he structured it, and the way Persians understand it." Hedayat's Ivory Tower: Structural Analysis of the Blind Owl (Minneapolis: Manor House, 1974), p. 23. I also added that a well-defined structural analysis needs to precede any attempt at a translation of these works (Ibid., p. 34). In the present article I would like to illustrate this statement by presenting an analysis as well as an interpretation of two ghazals of Hafiz. 1