Nizami Ganjavi

  Nizami Ganjavi (pseudonym; real name-Ilyas Yusif oglu) (1141-1209)-is a great Azeri poet and philosopher. He was born in a craftsman's family,received education in madrasah, and perfectly studied the medival sciences on his own. Nizami also became closely acquainyed with the oral and written literature of the Near East.
    Nizami had never travelled out of Ganja, rejected being a palace poet and lived on honest earning. Approximately in 1169/70 the ruler of Darband Seyfaddin Muzaffar send Nizami a kipchak slave-girl Afal (Appag-White), who became his wife and in 1174 bore a son, named Muhammad. Nizami Ganjavi started his creation with lyric poems. From his works we learn that he had written a large divan, and was famous as a gazal and gassida author. Nizami 's lyrics stand out with high professionalism, worldly attitude to love and humanist thoughts about a man's destiny. But Nizami Ganjavi entered the world literature with ''Khamsa'' (Quintiple) a pentalogue of five poems ''Treasury of Mysteries'',''Khosrov and Shirin'', ''Leili and Medjnun'', ''Seven Beauties'' and ''Iskander-nameh'' written in the masnavi form. Nizami Ganjevi's creation was the primary top of the Renaissans of the East, and consisted of bright artistic reflection of the most humane, universal socio-political, social and moral-ethic ideals of his epoch. The description of a man's inner world, his feelings, thoughts along with the dynamic development of the main hero's characters organizes the basic aim and content of the Nizami's literary school. Nizami Ganjevi's poems played a great role in enrichment of the love theme which has widely spread in the Eastern literature, with social- universal, ideals and humane content.
     Nizami Ganjavi brought the highest humane ideals and new professional achievements into the literature of the Near East nations and opened a new direction in Eastern literature. Nizami always tried to connect the literature with the life, though taken images from the history, he treated them from his present day and being a great humane poet, he sang of a man, a man's dignity. The wise thoughts, taken from the people's creation and knowledge, along with people's wishes and dreams were skillfully expressed by Nizami in his works, which are perfect by meaning and form.
      Nizami was the first poet in the Eastern literature, who described a woman as a being possessing high human qualities. He opposes brave, valiant, highly-moral, fighting image of a woman to an image of a man without any human qualities. He proves that a woman can participate in many fields of activity on equal terms. Nizami Ganjavi was the first in the Eastern Literature who praised the work, considering it as a man's main differ from other living reatures.
   According to the poet only a working man deserves respect and love Nizami also was a great patriot. In each work he tried to connect the described events with Azerbaijan and to praise the past powerful days of his country. The beauties of the native nature are praised in Nizami Ganjevi's works. Azery oral folk literature- dastans, legends, tales and proverbs are widely and skillfully used in Nizami Ganjevi's creation. In it's turn his plot significantly affected the Azery folklore.

Nizami Ganjavi's works were translated into number of languages. The unique handwritings of his works are kept and guarded in the famous libraries,museums and handwriting funds of Moscow, St.Petersburg, Baku, Dashkend, Tebriz, Tehran, Gahira, Istanbul, Deli, London, Paris and other towns of the world as valuable pearls. Nizami's creation played a great role in the development of the Eastern Arts. Since the end of 17th century, the interest to the Nizami Ganjevi's heritage has rosen in Europe and Russia: his works have been translated into English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Japan and in other languages of the world; his life and creation have been studied.
    Listen young partridge, the messenger of rocks, When you put your hand on the tomb of mine You will call on the pure spirit of mine The more you will cry out on the tomb of mine The more I will give you of the light of mine Any wish or dream if Ihear from you I'll say Amin, let your wishes come true.