Literary Arts (Jun 2022)
Paradise, Light, and Beauty: Fundamental Metaphors in Abhar al-Asheqeen
Abstract
AbstractAbhar-ol-Asheghin, as a volume that uses complex, metaphor-based language, is thought-provoking and obscure. Despite the fact that previous studies have been conducted on the book, its linguistic and intellectual features are not yet fully known. Due to the linguistic features of Abhar-ol-Asheghin and the capacity of conceptual metaphor theory for simultaneous analysis of language and thought, the current study investigates the conceptual metaphors in Abhar-ol-Asheghin by relying on the structural relations between them. This study does not consider the metaphors to be of the same value; instead, it deals with the structure arising from the relations between conceptual metaphors by considering ‘the expansion of the mappings of a conceptual domain’ in the process of ‘entailment’. ‘Paradise’, ‘light’, and ‘beauty’ are the most significant conceptual domains in the text and have been used for the metaphoric understanding of the fundamental concepts in Rouzbehan’s mystical thinking. Other conceptual domains in the text are activated through the expansion or re-examination of these domains. It can be said that the structure arising from the relations between conceptual metaphors in Abhar-ol-Asheghin has three layers: first, Paradise, light, and beauty; second, the expansion of the conceptual domains in the first layer; and third, the re-examination of the conceptual domain in the first layer with the aid of a few other conceptual domains. Introduction Abhar al-Asheqeen features a complicated language due to the accumulation of images and similes, and to understand it, one has to go through the tangled corridor of its words and images. The theory of conceptual metaphor and explaining the relationship between abstract and concrete concepts is a suitable approach for analyzing the language and thought of texts such as Abhar al-Asheqeen. The main purpose of the present study is to find the most important conceptual metaphors in this text according to central ideas and their expansion in the process of implication and the structural relationships of metaphors with each other. Preliminary ResearchResearch about Rozbahan’s Abhar al-Asheqeen is abundant; however, the followings are among those conducted with a conceptual metaphor approach. Agha Hosseini et al. (2016) propose the concept of simile based on which they further examine the conceptual domains of Abhar al-Asheqeen, and conclude that there are 44 conceptual ideas in this text. Fotoohiroodmojeni and Rahmani (2017), in their article ‘the Function of Metaphor in Expressing the Mystical Experiences of Rozbahan Baghli in Abhar al-Asheqeen’ argue that the most significant conceptual metaphor of Abhar al-Ashqeen is the one where the world is assimilated to a gown worn by the bride of truth. However, this conclusion is based on the concept of mystical experience and previous research on Rozbahan without a thorough analysis of other metaphors available in Abhar al-Ashqeen. Hashemi (2015) is another researcher who has examined the conceptual metaphors related to the concept of love in several mystical prose texts, including Abhar al-Ashqeen. Discussion: Conceptual Elements in the Text of Abhar al-AsheqeenHeaven, light, and beauty are the three macro conceptual domains and the central mappings in Abhar al-Ashqeen that we further study.32.1. The Central Concepts of Abhar al-Ashqeen32.1.1 HeavenIn Abhar al-Ashqeen, eternity is illustrated as the garden of paradise. This metaphorical understanding appears in the form of compositions such as the eternal garden in the text. Also, the garden is an objective concept for the perception of eternal beauty; the sort that the beauty of this world resembles.32.1.2 BeautyThe second concept that Rozbahan uses to talk about eternity is beauty. Combinations such as the beauty of the kingdom, the beauty of meaning, the beauty of spirituality, and the beauty of observation confirm this metaphorical perception.32.1.3 LightRozbahan perceives eternity and its related concepts as light. Holy souls, glory, nature, heaven, goodness, faith, step, attributes, happiness, power, and manifestation are among the eternity concepts acting like a source of light that vanishes with distance. In addition to the metaphorical use of light in the Qur'an, which is Rozbahan's source of reliance, light is a tool and radix for seeing, and based on the common metaphor to know is to see, light is connected with the concept of knowledge. This is where the concept of hijab, which can potentially exist in the concept of light, emerges in Abhar al-Asheqeen.32.2. Development of Central SchemesThe conceptual layers of heaven, light, and beauty in the place of the central mappings are expanded according to the process of implication and provide a context for understanding other mystical concepts in the framework of modern worldview by becoming macro conceptual schemes.32.2.1 Heaven as a Central ConceptFrom the expansion of the central mapping of heaven, the concepts of hell, sky, road, and sky appear in the text of Abhar al-Asheqeen. To understand eternity, heaven is considered to be at the highest level of the sky while the hell is at the lowest level to imply the concept of an accident. As heaven in the holy texts is considered as a garden in the sky, every other entity appearing in the sky relates to heaven in Abhr al-Ashqeen. Therefore, concepts that are somehow synonymous with eternity, or related to it, are understood as the sky in this text, and the sky, per se, is like a way between heaven and hell. From the expansion of the concept of the sky, the holy territory of God and metaphors such as “the heart is the earth" are obtained.32.2.2 Beauty and Light as Central ConceptsAs explained earlier, the concepts of eternity and accident are understood as light and beauty. Based on this premise, the relationship between eternity and accident is explained. In Abhar al-Ashqeen, the concepts such as window and mirror, container and content, and ‘eltebas’ are used to metaphorically understand this relationship.32.2.2.1 The Concepts of Window and MirrorThere is a relationship between the beauty of the accident and the eternal beauty; the former is the source of the perception of the latter. Also, based on the general metaphor ‘to know is to see’, seeing the beauty of an accident is like knowing (perceiving) the eternal beauty. As a result, the combination of this general metaphor and the concept of beauty generates ideas of window and mirror in Rozbahan's mindset and adds to the conceptual domain of beauty. Also, objective concepts such as wine in a glass, Meshkat, candle, and bowl that all express the idea of content and container, are used to understand the relationship between the accident and eternity and fall under the metaphor ‘the accident is the container of eternity’. The metaphorical concept of Eltebas also stems from the concepts of beauty and light. Eltebas implies both covering and revealing and is used for the perception of beauty. Comparing the three sets of window and mirror, container and content, and Eltabas, it can be said that the first two explain a facet of the relationship between accident and eternity; the former has more of an epistemological dimension while the latter has more of an existential nature. But the metaphor of Eltebas shows both aspects at the same time.32.3 Recognition of the Central ConceptsSometimes abstract concepts are multifaceted and complex; that is why several conceptual factors are used simultaneously to understand them. Moreover, as the conceptual domain of the origin might be too complex or abstract, it is perceived in a metaphorical process. Some of the conceptual metaphors of Abhar al-Ashqeen are the result of such recognition. Rozbahan uses the conceptual domains of the king, war, mine, and bridge to metaphorically recognize more abstract mystical concepts. ConclusionEternity is understood through the three concepts of paradise, light, and beauty in Abhar al-Asheqeen. These have been developed in the central mapping of the text and have caused the emergence of other metaphors. Spatially imagining eternity (heaven) helps form a coherent structure of conceptual metaphors in such a way that it can be said the most important metaphorical mapping in Abhar al-Ashqeen is the perception of eternity as heaven, and further as light and beauty. This metaphorical understanding has created a coherent structure comprising three stages. The first is the metaphorical understanding of eternity (heaven, light, and beauty); the second is the expansion of the metaphors related to the first stage (hell, sky, window, mirror, etc.); and the third is a process of metaphorical recognition. This process refers to the role of previous metaphors in understanding other aspects of the main worldview concepts (king, war, mine, and bridge). The remarkable point of this generative structure is that the metaphors of Eltebas, bridge, and sky, despite implying the important worldview and mysticism of Rozbahan, in an expletory process of expansion, have risen from the heart of early metaphors. This coherent structure with three layers, in addition to an illustration of the power of the primary metaphors and central mappings of Abhar al-Asheqeen, expresses the deep reconnaissance of Rozbahan and his mystical experiences that constantly give birth to new mystical concepts. This very feature distinguishes Rozbahan from other mystics.His discovery approach and the formation of the important elements of his worldview based on the metaphorical recognition and re-identification of the fundamental elements make Abhar al-Ashqeen a perfectly reliable example to show the power of conceptual metaphors in the generation of meaning and conception in the process of ‘requirement’ and relying on ‘central mapping’. Also, these two terms from the conceptual metaphor theory could provide a reliable criterion to determine the important metaphor(s) in the text.
Keywords
