Our pinnacles of wisdom and knowledge, Hafez and Saadi, suffered from a severe lack of curiosity and desire for exploration. Both of these guys lived in Shiraz, a mere 70 kilometers, 43.5 miles away from the most important Persian / Iranian archeological site, Persepolis. Yet, none of these fountains of wisdom appears to have EVER asked what these ruins were about! I know, it’s hard to imagine, but none of these giants of Persian culture had the minimal level of curiosity to even ask what these “things” were. They had a derive to take a mental journey to discover “irfan,” but were both apparently so intellectually lazy that they did not want to spend their energy in trying to figure out who they were, where they came from, or whether or not those great ruins had anything to do with them. Especially Hafez. Didn’t he spend a lot of time chasing little boys? Why couldn’t he spend the time to enlighten himself about the history of his nation and explore his backyard?
No wonder their followers are just as ignorant and stupid as they are. They are unable or unwilling to read a comment properly, and even when it’s explained and spoon fed to them, they still write a blog that showcases their, intentional or unintentional, lack of understanding of what was actually discussed.
Our culture has a long way to go. We must first reexamine our priorities, and specially- specially-reexamine our icons, role models and who we worship. We are a people worshipping culture to begin with, and tend to get carried away with following human beings. That tendency tends to seep into our understanding and reading of literature as well. We don’t need to be a dead poet society to appreciate literature. We don’t need to grab our pitch forks and demand condemnation of cultural critics. Hafez and Saadi and other dead poets were poets. That’s all. Nothing else, nothing more. If anything, they suffered from a basic lack of curiosity. If your culture is meaningless without them, then there is something seriously wrong with your culture. Incidentally, putting great and overwhelming emphasis on poetry and literature is one of the reasons why we have fallen behind in technological progress and exploration. That, and our obsession with Imam-e zaman and aftabeh! Toilet paper is sufficient people. You don’t need to stick your fingers up your rectums to achieve “taharat.” Trust me, you won’t go to hell for it!
Seriously, if these are the people you emulate, and if these are the people who describe your indentity, be prepared to spend another one hundred years being a Third World nation of “sho’ar dahandeh.”
