A Speculation on Obeyd Zakani’s Life Events Mentioned in the Tazkeras And Comparing Them with Other Sources

What we read in the tazkeras about poets and writers is mainly a mixture of truths and lies. Some ambiguities in the history of Persian literature can be removed by reading these texts carefully and comparing them with the works of poets and writers and other sources of the kind. This article examines several narrations about “Obeyd Zakani” in the tazkeras, which originated from one narration and are repeated with variations. Two tazkeras were the primary references of this study: Tazkerat al-Shoʽara by Dolatshah Samarqandi (completed in 1487) and Kholasat al-Ashʽar by Taqi-al-Din Kashani (completed in 1607). Initially, this paper mentions the main parts of the narratives of the two tazkeras about Obeyd Zakani. Then it compares their similarities and differences and associates them with other tazkeras. The sources of this study are Obeyd’s Kolliyāt, the divans and historical texts of the 14th and 15th centuries, and the writings of contemporaries. This study tries to show the extent of the authenticity, validity, and correctness of the most elementary propositions in Persian tazkeras written about Obeyd to clarify his life events. In the end, Obeyd’s teacher, Azed-al-Din Iji, his grave, and the date of his death were verified.