Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 P.h.D candidate of Persian language and literature, Qom university
2 Associate professor, department of Persian language and literature, Qom university
Abstract
Religious, moral and mystical beliefs are rooted in the ambitious spirit of man and his instincts for wanting the more and the better, and his higher needs such as the need to move. These innate tendencies have led man to the beliefs that have been and will be inseparable from his social and personal life for a long time, and it is natural that writers, who are themselves part of human society, reflect these tendencies and beliefs in different ways. After the revolution and with the beginning of the imposed war, there was a fundamental change in the religious view of many writers and unlike many writers before the revolution, their perception of the religious life of society influenced by the realities of society and the different presence of religious thought, a positive and realistic perception. Abdolmajid Najafi is one of these writers after the revolution and who has a semantic view. In this research, the reflection of religion, ethics and mysticism in the novel With cups of hemlock by this author has been studied. In this novel, he has depicted moral and religious behaviors and their spiritual perceptions with a meaning-oriented perspective and bringing opposite and opposite spectrums, and has presents a spectacular picture of religion and meaning. The beliefs and spiritual behaviors of the main characters of this novel are the main elements shaping the action of the story; characters who are responsible people with pleasant and sociable religious beliefs and far from superstition, those who endure suffering in fulfilling their responsibilities and fulfilling their beliefs, endure hardships and ridicule death and captivity.
1. Introduction
Spiritual and mystical tendencies and religious beliefs throughout history have been an inevitable part of individual and social life, and any writer influenced by the realities of society, not writing a story to prove his ideological and quasi-ideological beliefs, has somehow found himself obliged to reflect these semantic factors. In the years of the history of fiction before the revolution, some writers, in an anti-religious atmosphere fueled by the authorities and in an atmosphere where realism in a quasi-naturalistic behavior was often limited to reflecting the suffering of the lower classes and society, in an artificial and clichéd portrayal of religion and beliefs, sought to address only the negative aspects of religious beliefs and practices, and portray a world full of superstition, unpopularity and bias. The fifties and the efforts of religious dissidents, especially Shariati, brought about a fundamental change in the religious view. The Islamic Revolution and the occurrence of an unintended and unequal war and the different role of religious people in the social arena and the emergence of a new generation of writers created a new perspectives in the field of fiction on the role of religion and spiritual tendencies. Abdolmajid Najafi is one of those who has tried to show this different view in his works. In this research, this view and how religion, ethics and mystical tendencies have been reflected in his novel With cups of hemlock have been studied.
2. Methodology
To do this research, the novel With cups of hemlock was read several times and samples of reflections of religion, ethics and mysticism were extracted and then analyzed. In order to avoid generalization, an attempt has been made to obtain a more accurate and scientific understanding of the reflection of spirituality in this work by answering a few questions.
3. Discussion
Abdolmajid Najafi was born in 1960 in Tabriz. He completed his primary education in Hekmat elementary school and his secondary education in Dehkhoda high school and entered Tabriz University in 1977. From 1985, he started writing short stories and novels and wrote valuable works for teenagers and adults. He is one of the writers whose realist tendencies are evident in his works.
With cups of hemlock is the story of the life of a militant named Mohsen Shafiei. After being engaged to his cousin, Maral, he goes to war to be of help. Her parents and fiancé are restless, waiting for him, but his passion for being in the war zone and service to the homeland is so strong in him that he does not remain in his home, and Despite his family's pleas, he returned to the war zone after going home, and was eventually captured by Iraqi forces at the end of an operation.
The novel With cups of hemlock narrates the confrontation of different groups and tendencies. On the other hand, this novel narrates self-sacrifice, cooperation and beautiful manifestations of morality, religious beliefs and semantics. There are those who sacrifice their lives in the service of the homeland and in defense of honor and the victory of truth over falsehood and the domination of religious ideals. They endure the highest tortures, abandon their homes, families and relatives, and fight in holy jihad on the battlefields of right against wrong.
There are also groups that do not have a strong attachment and belief in the system, homeland and Islam. They are busy with their lives and try to make a name for themselves by selling out and betraying their homeland, and even if it is in their interests, they do not hesitate to betray their country.
Belief in destiny and that God has destined everything for man is one of the characteristics of the novel's main characters, including Mohsen. He believes that not meeting his family, participating in operations and being captured by the enemy were all decided by God in his destiny.
In this novel, unlike the works before the revolution, people with religious and mystical tendencies have a prominent position. These are people who work hard and earn a living, help their parents in family affairs from childhood and adolescence, go to the war zone without any consideration and defend the homeland and in this way, they are not afraid of captivity and martyrdom, and they do not turn a hair in hardships.
The resistance of the captives against the enemy and their unique behavior towards each other during captivity is another example of the characteristics of religious and moral people in this novel. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the action of this anecdote is based on the high beliefs and moral characteristics of its prominent characters, and that the story is an attempt to portray the role of these values.
The high morale and resilience of the warriors on the battlefields, even when they have no hope of surviving, are some of the points made by the author of the novel. Religious and semantic characters in this novel have positive moral and special characteristics, each of which has beauties and sits in its place. Chastity, belief in the dignity of the Imams, not being attached to home and family and comfortable life, as well as the high religiosity and morale of the warriors of Islam, are the characteristics that religious figures display in this novel.
4. Conclusion
Abdolmajid Najafi's novel In cups of hemlock is one of the works of the eighties, and its subject is the life story of Mohsen Shafiei, from adolescence to war, captivity and freedom. What is evident in this novel is religious belief, trust in God, morality, respect for elders, patriotism, altruism, self-sacrifice and self-sacrifice, and enduring the hardships of Iranians in defending their rights, religion, honor, and country. This novel narrates the confrontation of different groups and tendencies.
1- The narrator of self-sacrifice, cooperation and beautiful manifestations of morality and religious beliefs and semantics. There are those who sacrifice their lives in the service of the homeland and in defense of honor and the victory of truth over falsehood and the domination of religious ideals, they endure the highest tortures, leave home and family and relatives, and fight on the battlefields of right against wrong, in holy jihad; those who not only survive on their own, but also their families, endure hardships and hardships behind the front, relying on their deep religious beliefs, and live in trust in God.
2- It narrates those whose religious beliefs are very superficial and emotional and far from some of the responsibilities defined in the religion for the believers, those who, for example, drink wine while claiming to be a Muslim and make excuses that just having a pure heart is enough.
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