Investigating the Influence of Imam Ali's Speech on the Life and Poetry of Shahriar

The speech is one of God’s gifts bestowed upon human beings by which God has made him superior to other beings. This gift can be seen most eminently in the hands of poets and rhetoricians. Because we can preserve the values of each society through art, poetry, among others, has an outstanding place. Now, when poets use the religious teachings in their works, it helps their poems to endure much longer. For this reason, such poets as Mowlavi, Hafiz, Sa’di and Shahriar have used the quranic verses and religious sayings of the Infallibles to enrich their poetry. This paper investigates the influence of Imam Ali's speech upon Shahriar's poetry. Ths is done either directly through quoting Imam Ali's exact words or indirectly through allusions. This influence has its roots in the indescribable love of Shahriar towards Imam Ali (peace be upon him) and his beliefs in him. Shahriar has reached from a virtual love to a true love and it is Imam Ali through whom Shahriar connects himself to God. In this paper, we compare and contrast those of Shahriar’s poetry mostly taken from the Commander of Expression, Imam Ali, with Imam Ali's speech in Nahj al-Balaghah.