Sahrasub is a collection of poems by Amir Hakimi, published by Asemana Books.
Language: Persian
“Sahrasub,” the third volume in the trilogy Wonders of Memory, consists of one hundred pieces composed from Azar 1400 to Dey 1401 in the Iranian calendar (December 2021 to January 2023).
We know that Sahrasub is a form of Persian poetry. As defined by lexicographers, it refers to praise and satire composed by poets about the people of a city. The term shahr-angīz, also meaning sahrasub, denotes a type of poem that includes praise or satire of the majority of a city’s people. However, sahrasub or shahr-angīz is also used to describe poetry that details the craftspeople of a city and praises their professions and trades.
(Dehkhoda Dictionary)
Moreover, Sahrasub is described as a poetic form that addresses transformations, disorder, or the state of order/disorder in a city or country and its people. It is a type of verse that narrates political or economic turmoil or the conditions of different social classes in a satirical or humorous tone.
(Mahjoub, Iranian Folk Literature, 1163)
The most well-known example of sahrasub poetry is a 92-piece collection by Mas‘ūd Sa‘d Salmān, who died in 515 AH (1121 CE), with the shortest piece being two lines and the longest nine.
“The Praise of a Sweet-Voiced Beloved”
To the sweet melody of David’s voice
My heart, like a bird, turned toward you in song
You should soften your iron-hearted soul toward me
Just as David softened iron and steel.
(Mas‘ūd Sa‘d)
On the other hand, we also know that a sahrasub is a seductive beauty who, upon stepping into the alleyways and markets, causes a stir among the people and steals everyone’s heart. The narrator of Mas‘ūd Sa‘d’s Sahrasub is this very figure—a radiant, seductive figure passing through the marketplace, stopping at every shop, reciting verses that describe the shopkeeper, the artisan, and their trades. She enchants craftsmen, employers, and workers alike as she advances through the market to the alleyways, perhaps accompanied by music and loud, beautiful song—eventually reaching the “House of Justice” and the royal quarters.
Perhaps there were traveling performers who made a living this way—singing and playing instruments in the market, praising merchants and artisans. The poets of sahrasub crafted such dialogues—romantic, satirical, and biting—with the city and its residents, artisans, leaders, and pioneers, holding up a mirror to the culture, customs, and economy of their time. These verses, placed in the mouths of such performers, portray a vivid image of that society/world/era—an image that has remained for the future.
The inspiration for the volume Sahrasub is drawn from this tradition of sahrasub-poetry in Persian literary history, composed at the station of today’s turbulent times and contemporary language.
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