A Historical Look at Zahiruddin Faryabi’s Divan: Azerbaijan's Atabakan and the Legitimacy of Sovereignty

Abstract

The Seljuk court, which inherited Divan's experiences including the court poet's organization from the Ghaznavids, at the peak of this dynasty, became a good place to grow and use the process to propagate the political goals of the sovereignty. After the collapse of the Sanjar monarchy in Khorasan, the sovereign rule of the Ildegiz dynasty in Ajams caused the emigration of the poets of this area, including Faryabi (598 AH), to western Iran. By joining the Kizil Arsalan's court (582-587 AH) and his successor Abu Bakr (588-607), the poet praised them for promoting the political views of the family, which in fact reproduced the legitimacy of their sovereignty. This paper intends to adopt a content analysis approach to the discussion of court poets’ role, with bringing into light the historical value of Faryabi’s Divan and with delving into poet’s praise in order to uncover the zeitgeist and the nature of legitimacy principles of the ruling in the era in question. Owing to enjoying religious legitimacy and sufficient authority for providing security and justice against Tugrul’s (590), Kizil Arsalan’s governance has been given legitimacy by Faryabi. In addition to having religious legitimacy, justice, appointment and authority have been raised as components of the legitimacy of Abu Bakr against his stepbrothers.

Keywords

• Faryabi’s Divan
• the Poet of the Court
• Azerbaijan's Atabakan
• Principles of Legitimacy