A Different Look at Correcting Verses from the Divān of Suzani Samarqandi

Editing Soozani Samarghandi’s, a 6th century poet, complete poetical works book which was accomplished by Dr. Naser-o Din Shahhosseini in 1959. Due to the fact that earlier manuscripts dating back to the poet’s life time were not available, the editor used later ones. This ignorance of using the more reliable manuscripts in some cases and also disregarding the literary tradition and its indications for editing has led to the deliverance of a disorganized, unsystematic work to the readers which is marred with frequent errors. Misreading complex and special Turkish and Arabic words is another problem with this edition. Since its publication, several criticisms have been made to this editing of this book of poems which led to publishing a number of articles in reediting the couplets. Considering the lack of access to earlier manuscripts, this article tries to reexamine and edit some of the couplets in the complete book of poems of this poet by using some notable dictionaries including Jahangiri Dictionary and Dehkhoda comprehensive encyclopedic dictionary.
 
 Keywords: Sozani Samarghandi’s Complete Poetical Works Book; Editing; Misreading
 
Introduction:
Suzani Samarqandi is primarily recognized for his humorous compositions, a factor that has contributed to his relatively limited attention in scholarly circles. In the year 1338 SH (Solar Hijri calendar), Naserodin Shah Hosseini undertook the task of editing and publishing his anthology. However, the widespread misreadings and textual corruptions within that printed edition prompted subsequent scholarly endeavors, including the present article. An examination of the writing dates of some existing copies of Diwan Suzani Samarqandi reveals that all of them postdate Farhang-i Jahangiri. Some of these manuscripts include the Sepahsalar School version (Martyr Motahhari) with serial number 418 and a transcription date of 1033; the Malek Library version with serial number 5615/2 from the 13th century; the National Library version with serial number 1487 and a transcription date of 1265; the Library of IRAN Parliament version with serial number T 26 and a transcription date of 1272; the Library of IRAN Parliament version with serial number 13602/2 and a transcription date of 1274; the Malek Library version with serial number 4996 and a transcription date of 1299; the Dehkhoda's Lexicon Institute Library version with serial number 92 from the 13th and 14th centuries; and the Library of Hazrat Abdul Azim Hassani version with a transcription date of 1246.
In this article, due to the relative absence of manuscripts closely aligned with the poet's era and the predominance of later transcriptions, the editorial correction of verses has been undertaken using the Farhang-i Jahangiri, which boasts a longer historical pedigree among the available manuscripts.
 
 
Methodology:
The research methodology is library-based, involving the examination of the printed version of the Divān and the scrutiny of verses identified as corrupted. Through an investigation into the Farhang-i Jahangiri and, in some instances, consulting Dehkhoda's lexicon, we discovered and documented the accurate forms of the verses.
 
Discussion and Analysis:
In this article, the distorted verses of Sozani Samarqandi were examined in three sections. In the first section, verses were scrutinized and corrected using the Farhang-i Jahangiri, and, in some cases, Dehkhoda's lexicon. The terms investigated in this section include:
 




Documentary Confirmation of Corrections


Corrected terms


Distorted terms


No.




Dehkhoda, Jahangiri


Ghomaytare


Mohantare


1




Dehkhoda, Jahangiri


Ghatfare


Ghanghare


2




Jahangiri


Anj


Denj


3




Dehkhoda


Tab Tiz


Tab-e-Tire


4




Dehkhoda


Shams Ghātfari


Shemsh Ghātfari


5




Dehkhoda


Ozand


Orjand


6




Dehkhoda, Jahangiri


Pāzāj


Bāzāj


7




Dehkhoda, Jahangiri


Khashuk


Hasuk


8




Jahangiri


Gowz


Kowz


9




Jahangiri


Meghlāj


Melāj


10




Dehkhoda


Kumāj


Kubāj


11




Dehkhoda, Historical evidence


Toghmāj


Tamāj


12




Dehkhoda


Tim Arus, Tim Malek


Nim Arus, Nim Malek


13




Dehkhoda


Bāj


Tāj


14




Dehkhoda


Chekāk


Hakāk


15




Jahangiri


Mordāram


Morvāram


16




Jahangiri, the manuscript of the Parliament


Baghand


Bafand


17




Dehkhoda, Historical evidence


Marand


Parand


18




 
Second: Verses were identified and corrected based on literary evidence and indicators, sometimes utilizing the rhyme patterns of the poetry to discern and rectify errors.
 




Documentary Confirmation of Corrections


Corrected terms


Distorted terms


No.




meaning


Abkam


Abras


1




meaning


Setam


Siam


2




meaning


Chame


Jame


3




Meaning, poetic evidence


Tang Shakar


Moshg-e-shekar


4




meaning


Nyak


Sabak


5




Meaning, Rhythm of the poem


Barad


Bedard


6




Meaning


Da’d


Va’d


7




Meaning, duplicate version


Mosaman


Motman


8




Meaning, Rhyme of the poem


Ghamām


Yaghmā


9




Meaning, Rhyme of the poem


Gazand


Goriz


10




Meaning, compatibility with "Nal Band"


Chatrdār


Chatr Dārad


11




meaning


Kākh


Tāj


12




meaning


Hasham


Khashm


13




meaning


Khasm


Hazm


14




Meaning, Rhyme of the poem


Chandan


Chandān


15




meaning


Nahmat


Tohmat


16




meaning


Farr-e-Ferdows


Gher Ferodosh


17




Meaning, Rhyme of the poem


Khyāl


Kheyl


18




Meaning, specific lexical evidence


Sehn


Sejl


19




Meaning, compatibility with other words of the verse


Dor


Zar


20




 
Third: Typographical Errors. The present correction also accounts for typographical mistakes, which are not few in number, and the lack of precision in this matter has diminished the credibility of the corrections. In this research, 26 instances of such errors were identified and illustrated,
 
Conclusion:
Reflection on the verses of Divān of Suzani Samarqandi, corrected by Naserodin Shah Hosseini, reveals numerous instances of errors and distortions that can be rectified by consulting extratextual sources. In this research, we have meticulously scrutinized and corrected the verses using the Farhang-i Jahangiri, which historically predates the available manuscripts of this work. Simultaneously, considering literary indicators and rhyme patterns, we have identified and rectified errors. Additionally, we have acknowledged and addressed certain typographical mistakes in the text.