Analysis of Mystical and Literary Concepts in Maqalat-e Shams from a Semiotics Perspective

Abstract

Semiotic systems and implications in the mystical literary work of Maqalat-e Shams Tabrizi raise multilayer. Thus, semiotic analysis of Maqalat can lead to a better understanding of such texts. In this article, Maqalat-e Shams is investigated from both mystical and literary points of view, and the science of semiotics is introduced. The research method is descriptive-analytical, and the library research method has collected and reviewed the data. From the mystical point of view, the semiotic analysis consists of expressions/idioms and word symbols. Terms such as Hijab, Samaa, Talab, Love, Monotheism, and word symbols such as Wine, Mirror, and homeland are semiotic features in Maqalat-e Shams and always describe the semantic relations among them. From the literary point of view, the Semiotic code of the creator, aesthetics, and intertextuality are evaluated. There are numerous Semiotic codes of the creator in Maqalat-e Shams that provide useful information about the life, personality, contemporaries, and social status of Shams of the reader. Also, aesthetics makes the text more prominent through symbols, exaggeration, Semantic contradiction, hyponymy, and repetition. Analysis of literary symbols reveals that the Maqalat are not closed texts that are explicit intertextual links between texts like the Quran, prophetic Hadiths, and works of poets and intellects such as Sanai, Attar, Al-Ghazali, and Najm al-Din Razi.