Examining the Influence of the “Verse of Light” on Imaginative Images Related to Light and Illumination in the Poetry of ʿAttār of Nishapur

Abstract

In Iranian mystical literature, the symbols of light and illumination hold a distinguished position and are considered among the most frequently used elements for expressing mystical concepts. Among poets, Farīd al-Dīn ʿAttār of Nishapur employs these symbols more extensively than others. The present study examines whether the use of light in ʿAttār’s poetry is merely aesthetic and scattered, or whether it is formed on the basis of a deliberate and systematic pattern. According to the article’s hypothesis, the Verse of Light from the Qur’an constitutes the foundational basis of the symbolic system of light and darkness in ʿAttār’s poetry and is repeatedly recreated throughout his poetic works as a semantic and mystical structure. The research method is based on descriptive analysis and qualitative content analysis of poetic texts in order to scrutinize the function of image-elements related to light. The findings show that ʿAttār employs the six components of the Verse of Light as a complete mystical system. The divine manifestation in the phrase “Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth” is depicted in ʿAttār’s poetry as the eternal sun and the ocean of Being. The three symbols—niche (mishkāt), lamp (miṣbāḥ), and glass (zujāja)—are respectively aligned with the body, soul, and heart of the spiritual seeker, marking the path of knowledge from the outward to the inward. The blessed tree and its oil appear symbolically as the spiritual master (pīr) and love: the master as guide and source of direction, and love as the fuel that carries the seeker toward God. Finally, the station of “light upon light” is represented in poetic images such as the annihilation of the moth in the candle and the drop in the sea—signs of the seeker’s union with the divine Truth. In contrast, darkness encompasses symbols such as the carnal self, the world, ignorance, and heedlessness, all of which prevent the vision of the light of Truth. According to the findings, the influence of the Verse of Light on ʿAttār’s poetry is not accidental or ornamental but structural and foundational; this verse provides a complete roadmap for the mystical journey from self-purification to fanāʾ fī-llāh within the poet’s worldview.