PERSIAN LITERATITRE, ANCIENT. The literature of Persia rightly claims a place of recognition among the literatures of the world, not alone for the long period which its history covers, but also for the real merit of its literary productions. Younger, indeed, in point of antiq uity, and less in compass than the great body of its cousin literature, the Sanskrit of India, and not so ancient as the Egyptian or the Old Baby lonian, nor again so early as portions of the Hebrew, its claims, nevertheless, to consideration are hardly inferior to any one of the four. In point of form and in classic finish, it is true that the ancient and medixval productions of Persia fall far below the Greek; but this is true of other Oriental literatures as well. The later and more modern development of Persian literature, whether it be in the realm of the epic, the lyric, or in narrative poetry, deserves a high rank even when judged by present standards. So much by way of general estimate. A few words may now be added with reference to the history in outline of Iranian literary epochs.
In its broadest sense the title. Literature of Persia, is conveniently used to comprise all the literary monuments of Iran conceived of as a great nationality. The long line of descent cov ers a period of nearly two thousand five hundred years. From the fact that "the book of records of the chronicles" was brought to Ahasuerus and read before the king (Esther vi:t), we may in fer the existence of annals, chronicles, legendary and historical accounts, which were written and kept, long before the days of King Xerxes; nor has the stream since ceased flowing, that could produce, within the last thousand years, poets such as Firdausi, Omar Khayyam, Sa'di and Hafiz. And the sweet-voiced nightingale still flutes in the modern Persian minstrel's throat. A glance, next, at the national development of Iran may render clearer the life of Persia's literary history.
1. Historical and Literary Periods. The historical beginnings of Iran are lost in the dark ness of receding antiquity, but we know from history that two Iranian empires, the kingdom of Media and the dominion of Bactria, existed be fore Persia proper rose above the horizon under the first great Achaemenian monarchs. It was
the conquering sword of Cyrus and the organiz ing hand of Darius that founded the Achaemen ian or third empire (B. C. 559-338). The throne of the Achaemenithe crumbled before the world conqueror, Alexander the Great (B. C. 336-323), and then the fourth rule, the Seleucid govern ment, became established for about seventy years. Fifth came the Parthian dynasty. This power for five centuries ruled the fate of Iran (B. C. 250-A. D. 226) ; but it gave way and fell before the triumphant ascendancy of the Iranian house of the Sassanids (A. D. 226-651), whose dynasty lasted until the seventh century of our era, when the conquest of Persia by the Mohammedan Arabs altered the entire face of events. This latter event, as may be added, wrought a mighty change in the history of Persia as an' Iranian na tion. By way of summary it should he stated that each of these great eras has had its literary bear ing as well as its national and religious signifi cance.
Roughly corresponding to the influences of the great epochs mentioned, we can distinguish three more or less marked eras in the development of Persian literature: (t) Old Iranian Literature, extending from at least the 6th century B. C. to the first centuries A. D., and including (a) the Avesta or Bible of Zoroaster, and (b) the Ancient Persian Inscriptions of the Achaemenian kings. (2) Middle Persian Literature or Pahlavi liter ary remains, running from the third century A. D. to the 9th or loth centuries A. D. (3) New Per sian Literature, beginning with Firdausi's Shah Namah, or extending from about the Toth century to the present. Chief in interest and importance are the first and the last of these great literary eras. The strictly sacerdotal character of the medixval Iranian or Pahlavi literature tends to circumscribe its artistic and esthetic value. The first division only is treated here, as that alone is pertinent to Bible study.