Moral and Social Foundations of Human Rights in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh with an Approach to the Components of Social Justice and Human Dignity

The concept of human rights has been respected in all cultures and many laws have been established in this regard, and it is not necessarily exclusive to the contemporary era. With the credit that literature is the manifestation of culture reflected in the context of society, the examples of human rights can be seen in it. In the field of Persian literature, Ferdowsi in his Shahnameh, while dealing with various literary issues, also spoke about human rights and ethics issues. In various verses, he has repeatedly protested the shortcomings of human rights and moral anomalies and called his audience to observe them directly and indirectly. In order to realize this goal, Ferdowsi has made innovations, one of which is the cultivation of perfected personalities to explain human rights. In this research, referring to library sources and descriptive-analytical method, Ferdowsi's view in Shahnameh in relation to the moral foundations of human rights, especially social justice and human dignity, has been analyzed. Also, in order to present a new reading of Ferdowsi's humanitarian opinions, a reference has been made to the provisions of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights.

From Ferdowsi's point of view, establishing justice and social equality is one of the most important duties of those in power in society. Also, they should respect human rights and in this way set the grounds for the realization and learning of other citizenship rights. The comparison of Ferdowsi's approaches in relation to social justice and human dignity with the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights shows that Ferdowsi's opinions are presented with more detail and, unlike the Declaration of Human Rights, which is presented in a general and transient manner, it is more inclusive.