{{Short description|Major work of Persian literature (11th century AD)}} {{italic title}} {{Infobox book | name = Qabus Nama | title_orig = Nasihat Nama | translator = | image = page=26|300px|Page 52 from the manuscript that includes an image in Nafisi's correction. | caption = A page from the book ''Qabus Nama'', manuscript from the Malek Museum. | author = Keikavus | language = Persian Dari | series = | subject = Didactic literature | genre = Advice literature | pages = | isbn = | preceded_by = | followed_by = }}
'''''Nasihat Nama''''' ({{Langx|fa|نصحیت نامه}}), also known as '''''Qabus Nama''''' ({{Langx|fa|قابوس نامه}}), is a book in the Persian language from the 11th century. It was authored by Amir Keikavus. The book was completed in the year 475 AH. ''Qabus Nama'' is an advice book, and its contents are presented in the form of counsel and advice.
The author of ''Qabus Nama'', Keikavus, was a prince of the Ziyarid dynasty. He wrote this book for his son, Gilanshah, in 44 chapters and one introduction; with the intention that if his son were to maintain the rule after him or take care of other affairs, he would know how to fulfill his duties. Keikavus also covered topics such as the upbringing of a child, the customs of military expeditions, governance, social etiquettes, and the common knowledge and skills of that era. Although the primary audience of the book is Gilanshah, Keikavus explained in the introduction that others could also benefit from this work, and he strived to make the book accessible to all.
''Qabus Nama'' is one of the earliest advice books in Persian Dari and one of the most prominent ones. Five manuscript versions of ''Qabus Nama'' are known, which have differences in their compositions. This book has a simple text that is close to contemporary Standard Persian, and throughout the book, advice, proverbs, stories, and poems are interwoven. Although most of ''Qabus Nama'' is written in simple prose, there are also quatrains in the middle of the text, mostly by Keikavus himself. However, these poems are of lesser quality compared to his prose. The book uses Arabic sparingly, and the author only employs this language for technical and specific terms. There is only one verse in Arabic and one verse in the Tabari language in the book.
In contemporary times, various editions of ''Qabus Nama'' have been published in Iran. For the first time, Reza Qoli Khan Hedayat published a lithographed version of it during the Qajar era. Subsequently, editions with corrections and introductions by Saeed Nafisi and Gholamhossein Yousefi were also published. ''Qabus Nama'' has been translated into various languages. The earliest translations were into Turkic languages, including Ottoman Turkish and Tatar, and later translations were published in German, French, English, Italian, Russian, Arabic, Japanese, Georgian, Uzbek, and Azerbaijani.
The prose style of ''Qabus Nama'' influenced Persian literature after its time and led to more complex literary texts. Additionally, the storytelling style and the inclusion of short poems within the prose impacted writers such as Saadi. The translations of this book into Turkic languages gave rise to a style in Ottoman Turkish literature known as Nasihatnama. The German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was also influenced by this book in his work ''West–östlicher Divan''.
== Background == ''Qabus Nama'' is a book in the category of educational literature. Such books have a long history in Persian literature, and a large portion of literary books were written for education and training.<ref>{{cite book |last=الهامی |title=جایگاه قابوس نامه در قلمرو ادبیات تعلیمی |year=2012 |pages=132–133}}</ref> Writing Pahlavi advice books was a common tradition in ancient Iran before Islam. Although the original Pahlavi advice books mostly disappeared gradually before the advent of Islam, their contents were translated into Arabic in the first three centuries after Hijra. Additionally, Sasanian Pahlavi language continued to be used up to the fourth and fifth centuries after Hijra, and the tradition of writing advice books was thus passed on to later generations. By the fifth century after Hijra, advice books had found their way into Persian works. However, the moral teachings rooted in ancient times underwent changes according to the requirements of Islam.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mousavi |title=تبیین جایگاه قابوس نامه در تاریخ اندرزنامه نویسی |year=2020 |pages=4–7}}</ref> Nevertheless, references to Sasanian customs, which are present in ''Qabus Nama'' and other early works, are derived from these Pahlavi regulations.<ref>{{cite book |last=Tafazzoli |title=تاریخ ادبیات ایران پیش از اسلام |year=1999 |pages=247–248}}</ref> Persian prose in the fifth century, contemporary with the Ghaznavids, also witnessed gradual changes. Its Simple Prose lost its excessive simplicity, and sentences became longer and more elaborate. The works of this period are referred to as transitional or formative literature.<ref>{{cite book |last1=آرتا |title=کارکرد ساختهای همپایه در قابوس نامه و تأثیر آن بر متون نثر فنی در آفرینش اطناب |last2=مدرسی |last3=نادریفر |year=2017 |pages=2}}</ref>
== Extant original copies ==
* The oldest copy, dated 1349, belongs to the library of Malik National Museum of Iran in Tehran. * The Egyptian National Library and Archives keeps a copy in Old Anatolian Turkish, written during the reign of Süleyman of Germiyan.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|author=Sadettin Buluç|title=Belleten|section=Eski Anadolu Türkçesiyle Bir Kabus-name Çevirisi|page=195|publisher=Turkish Language Association|year=1969|lang=tr}}</ref> * One of the earliest remaining copies of this work is one dating from 1450, translated into Turkish by Mercimek Ahmed on the orders of the Ottoman Sultan Murad II. It is kept in the ''Fatih Library'' of Istanbul. * The British Museum keeps a copy of an early Turkish translation, dated 1456. * Another copy, dated 1474, exists in the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris (ms. Persan 138). * An excellent copy is kept at the Leiden University library.
The Turkish version was then translated into German by Heinrich Friedrich von Diez as '''Buch des Kabus''' in 1811, and a source of inspiration for Goethe's West-östlicher Diwan as he was in contact with von Diez.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}
The text was translated directly from Persian into English by Reuben Levy with the title: '''A Mirror for Princes''' in 1951. French, Japanese, Russian, Arabic, and Georgian (1978) language translations also followed.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}
==Cultural references==
This work is mentioned several times in Louis L'Amour's ''The Walking Drum'' as well as in Tariq Ali's "The Stone Woman".
==See also== *Persian Literature *Mirrors for princes
==Notes== {{reflist}}
== References == * {{cite book |author=Ali Akbar Amin Karbalaei |url=https://archive.org/details/McGillLibrary-rbsc_isl_qabusnama_MSISL0228-19285/mode/2up |title=Handwritten Copy of Qabus Nama in Shekasteh Nasta'liq Script |publisher=Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University |year=1287}} * {{cite book |last=Nafisi |first=Saeed |author-link=Saeed Nafisi |url=https://fa.wikisource.org/wiki/فهرست:Qabus_nama.pdf |title=Nasihat Nama (Qabus Nama) |publisher=Majles Printing House |year=1312}} * {{cite book |last=Badawi |first=Amin Abdolmajid |author-link=Abdolmajid Badawi |url=https://archive.org/details/20211216_20211216_2047/page/n1/mode/2up?view=theater |title=Qabus Nama |publisher=Sina Bookstore |year=1335}} * {{cite book |last=Hasouri |first=Ali |author-link=Ali Hasouri |url=https://asmaneketab.ir/product/%DA%A9%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%A8%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%87-%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%AD%DB%8C%D8%AD-%D8%B9%D9%84%DB%8C-%D8%AD%D8%B5%D9%88%D8%B1%DB%8C/ |title=Qabus Nama |publisher=Organization for Promotion of Pocket Books |year=1343 |archive-date=2025-03-13 |access-date=2025-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250313180614/https://asmaneketab.ir/product/%DA%A9%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%A8%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%87-%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%AD%DB%8C%D8%AD-%D8%B9%D9%84%DB%8C-%D8%AD%D8%B5%D9%88%D8%B1%DB%8C/ |url-status=dead }} (Based on Reuben Levy's 1951 edition) * {{cite book |last=Yousefi |first=Gholam-Hossein |author-link=Gholam-Hossein Yousefi |url=https://pdfrock.com/download/compresspdf |title=Qabus Nama |publisher=Scientific and Cultural Publications Company |year=1371}} (Sixth edition; first edition in 1345) * {{cite book |last=Levy |first=Reuben |author-link=Reuben Levy |url=https://archive.org/details/qabus-nama-english-levy-1951/page/n9/mode/2up |title=A Mirror for Princes |publisher=E.P. Dutton & Co. Inc. |year=1951 |language=en}}
=== Secondary sources === * {{cite journal |last1=Arta |first1=Mohammad |last2=Modarresi |first2=Fatemeh |last3=Naderifar |first3=Abdolreza |date=2017 |title=Function of Coordinating Structures in Qabus Nama and Its Impact on Technical Prose in Creating Amplification |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/385964/کارکرد-ساخت-های-همپایه-در-قابوس-نامه-و-تأثیر-آن-بر-متون-نثر-فنی-در-آفرینش-اطناب |journal=Zabanshenakht |number=1}} * {{cite journal |last=Eftekhari |first=Asghar |date=1999 |title=An Overview of Political Thought Structure of Anushirvan in Qabus Nama |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/62292/مروری-اجمالی-بر-ساختار-اندیشه-سیاسی-عنصر-المعالی-در-قابوس-نامه |journal=Quarterly Research Journal of Imam Sadiq University |number=9}} * {{cite journal |last=Elhami |first=Fatemeh |year=2012 |title=The Status of Qabus Nama in the Realm of Educational Literature |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/314079/جایگاه-قابوس-نامه-در-قلمرو-ادبیات-تعلیمی |journal=Research Journal of Educational Literature |pages=131–158 |number=16}} * {{cite journal |last=Badawi |first=Abdolmajid |author-link=Abdolmajid Badawi |year=1998 |title=Qabus Nama |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/278393/قابوس-نامه |journal=Anthropology Magazine |publisher=Foreign Policy |number=47 |place=Tehran}} * {{cite journal |last=Berjian |first=Habib |author-link=Habib Berjian |year=2009 |title=Tabari Texts |journal=Mirror Heritage Quarterly |publisher=Center for Written Heritage Research |number=Supplement 15 |place=Tehran}} * {{cite journal |last=Binish |first=Taghi |author-link=Taghi Binish |date=1967 |title=Qabus Nama (Edited by Dr. Gholam-Hossein Yousefi) |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/262074 |journal=Nameh Astan Ghods |pages=168–171 |access-date=19 March 2022 |number=26–27}} * {{cite book |last=Tafazzoli |first=Ahmad |author-link=Ahmad Tafazzoli |url=https://persianpdf.com/book/دانلود-کتاب-تاریخ-ادبیات-ایران-پیش-از-ا/ |title=History of Persian Literature Before Islam |date=1999 |publisher=Sokhan |isbn=9645988142 |edition=Third |place=Tehran}} * {{cite book |last=Takmil Homayoun |first=Nasir |author-link=Nasir Takmil Homayoun |title=Educational Systems and Institutions in Ancient Iran |publisher=Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies |year=2003 |isbn=9644261895}} * {{cite journal |last=Jamalzadeh |first=Mohammad Ali |author-link=Mohammad Ali Jamalzadeh |date=June 1940 |title=In the Ritual of Music |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/download/267871 |journal=Music Magazine |page=2 |number=3}} * {{cite journal |last1=Rahmatian |first1=Sajad |last2=Khoyini |first2=Esmaeel |date=2019 |title=Echo of Some Ancestors' Advice in the Qabus Nama |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/422953/پژواک-برخی-اندرزهای-پیشینیان-در-کتاب-قابوس-نامه |journal=Research Journal of Educational Literature |pages=131–159 |number=43}} * {{cite journal |last1=Rahimi |first1=Naser |last2=Akbari |first2=Azadeh |date=2016 |title=Study of Verbs in Qabus Nama |url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/402298/بررسی-فعل-در-قابوس-نامه |journal=Nameh Academy of Culture (Dastour) |number=12}} * {{cite journal |last=Rezaei |first=Mehdi |date=2010 |title=Marzban Nama, a Remnant of the Sasanian Iran |url=http://www.sid.ir/fa/VEWSSID/J_pdf/76713891303.pdf |journal=Research Journal of Persian Language and Literature (Gohar Goya) |pages=47–68 |number=1}} * {{cite book |last=Rostami |first=Mohammad |author-link= |title=Iranologists and Persian Literature |publisher=Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies |year=2011 |isbn=0-964-978-426-528 |place=Tehran}} * {{cite journal |last=Dorosti |first=Ahmad |date=2002 |title=Overview of the Thoughts of Marzban ibn Rostam Esfahbodzadeh Tabarestani |url=https://www.noormags.ir/view/fa/articlepage/110040/مروری-بر-اندیشه-های-مرزبان-بن-رستم-اسپهبدزاده-طبرستانی |journal=Mesbah Mehr |volume=43 |pages=125–148 |access-date=7 April 2022 |number=43}} * {{cite news |last1=Dolati |first1=Amir Hossein |last2=PourSahat |first2=Davoud |date=June 20, 2017 |title=Qabus Nama, A Delightful Teaching Book for Yesterday and Today |url=https://www.irna.ir/news/82570875 |access-date=5 September 2023 |agency=IRNA}} * {{cite book |last=Abbasi |first=Shahabuddin |title=Complete Collection of Qabus Nama Stories |publisher=Pekan Publishing |year=2002 |isbn=964-328-227-9 |edition= |series= |volume= |place=Tehran |pages=11 |language= |type= |format= |access-date= |orig-year= |archive-date=}} * {{cite journal |last1=Fazli |first1=Abolfazl |last2=Sepahri |first2=Mohammad |title=Educational Systems and Institutions of Al-Ziyar and Their Reflection in Qabus Nama |journal=History (Islamic Azad University, Mahalat Branch) |date=2019 |number=}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Qabus-nama}} Category:Persian literature Category:11th-century Persian books Category:Islamic mirrors for princes