FIRDAUSI, fer-dow'-se, FIRDOUSI or FIRDUSI, Persian poet : b. Shadab, near Tits, in Khorassan, about 935; d. there, 1020. With the name of Firdausi in the 10th century of our era, modern Persian poetry may be said to be gin. Firdausi, however, really forms only one link in the long chain of Iranian literature which extends over more than 25 centuries, and whose beginnings are to be sought in the Avesta, 500 years before the birth of Christ.
The Mohammedan conquest of Iran by the Arabs somewhat resembles, in its effect upon Persian literature, the Norman conquest of England. Hardly two centuries had elapsed before an Iranian renaissance is begun to be felt in Persia. Firdausi comes 300 years after the battle of Nihavand, in which the eagle of the Persian military standard sank before the crescent of Allah's prophet and the Mohamme dan sword; just as Chaucer followed the battle of Hastings by 300 years.
Such was the literary situation at the end of the 9th century. Firdausi was the poet In whom the wave of the national epos culminated in the 10th century. But as there were Eng lish poets who struck the note before Chaucer, so in Persia, Firdausi had his literary predeces sors. Abbas of Mery (809) was one of these earlier bards. Of greater repute was Riidagi (d. 954) who is said to have composed no less than a million verses. But Firdausi's di rect predecessor and inspirer in the epic strain was Daqiqi, cruelly murdered when he had sung but a thousand lines. Yet these thousand verses were immortal, as Firdausi has incorpo rated them into his poem and has thus happily preserved them. They are the lines that de scribe the founding of the religion of Zoroaster, priest of fire. There was possibly a certain amount of tact on Firdausi's part in using these, or in claiming to employ Daqiqi's rhymes; he thus escaped having personally to deal with the delicate religious question of the Persian faith in the midst of the fanatical Mohammedans, who are said to have assassinated Daqiqi on ac count of his too zealous devotion to the old time creed. With Firdausi, then, the new Per sian era is auspiciously inaugurated in the 10th century; its further development through the romantic, philosophic, mystic, didactic and lyric movements must be, sought under the names of Nizami, Omar Khayyam, Jalal-ad-din Sa'di. Hafiz and Jana
Firdausi is pre-eminently the heroic poet of Persia. His full name seems to have been Abul qasim Hasan (Ahmad or Mansur) ; the ap pellative "Firdausi" (Paradise), by which he is known to fame, was bestowed upon him, ac cording to some accounts, by his royal patron, the Sultan Mahmad. By descent he was heir to that Persian pride and love of country which the Arab conquest could not crush. By birth, therefore, this singer possessed more than ordi nary qualifications for chanting in rhythmical measures the annals of ancient Iran. He had undoubtedly likewise made long and careful preparation for his task, equipping himself by research into the Pahlavi or. Middle Persian sources, from which he drew material for his chronicle-poem. From statements in the 'Shah Namah) itself, we may infer that Firdausi was nearly 40 years of age when he made the real beginning of his monumental work. We like wise know, from personal references in the poem, that he had been married and had two chil dren. The death of his beloved son is mourned in touching strains. One of the crowning events now. in the poet's life was his entrance into the literary circle of the court of Sultan Mahmad of Ghazni, who ruled 998-1030. To Mahmad the great epic is finally dedicated and the story of Firdausi's career may best be told in connection with the masterpiece.
The removal of the heroic bard Daqiqi by fate and by the assassifi's dagger had left open the way for an ambitious epic poet. Firdausi was destined to be the fortunate aspirant. This poet laureate lived long in the sunshine of the court, and was promised a gold piece for each line he composed. The liberality of Sultan Mahmud's favor called forth from Firdausi a splendid poetical panegyric, that is only eclipsed by the fierce savageness of the scathing satire which later the poet poured out against his royal patron, when disappointed in old age of the promised reward that .was to crown his great work.