The Islamic Drama

by Jamshid Malekpour

  The Resurrection.

  THE LITTEN COLLECTION

  The fifteen manuscripts of this collection were collected by Wilhelm Litten, a German diplomat who was resident in Iran in 1838. Litten states that fourteen scripts of this collection were copied directly from actors scripts. Unfortunately, he does not mention the name of the script that was not copied directly from actors scripts. The scripts of the Litten Collection, from 1831–34, are similar in character to those found in the Chodzko Collection.5 The most famous script of the Litten Collection is Ibrahim Sacrificing Isma’il (No. 1), which an Iranian scholar, Mehdi Forough, has compared to the French miracle play Abraham Sacrifant and the English miracle play Abraham and Isaac.6 The Persian manuscripts of the Litten Collection were published with a German introduction by Friedrich Rosen in 1929 under the title Das Drama in Persien.

  The complete list of the scripts in the Litten Collection is as follows:

  Ibrahim Sacrificing Ismaʹilil

  2. The Pigeon that Brings the News of the Martyrdom of Hussein to Medina, and the Recovery of the Jewish Girl from her Illness.

  The Martyrdom of Hussein.

  The Martyrdom of Abbas, Son of Ali.

  Khuli Hides the Head of the Imam in the Oven.

  The Martyrdom of Vahab and his Farewell to Hussein’s Family.

  A Christian Lady Visits the Field of Karbala and the Miracles which Happen.

  Hussein Asks for a Respite from the Enemy on the Eve of Ashura.

  The Wedding Scene at Medina.

  The Disobedient Son.

  Suleiman Aʹm mash Makes a Night Assault on Ibn Ziad’s Camp.

  Kania, the King of Europe.

  Dorrar-al-Sadaf in Shaʹb ban.

  14. Imam Jaʹfa far Sadeq.

  Amir Teimour (Tamerlane).

  THE VATICAN COLLECTION

  The Vatican Collection is the most significant and extensive collection of Taʹziyeh plays in the world. This collection contains 1,055 manuscripts, including the earliest Taʹziyeh manuscripts in existence.

  The manuscripts were collected by Enrico Cerulli, who was the Italian ambassador to Iran from 1950 to 1954. He later donated his collection to the Library of the Vatican. When news spread throughout Iran that the Italian ambassador was buying Taʹziyeh manuscripts, many owners willingly sold their manuscripts to him. Some even wrote new Taʹziyeh plays and sold them to Cerulli, and he succeeded in collecting a vast number. This collection contains scripts that are not to be found in any other collection. Many plays in the Vatican Collection deal with non-religious subjects and characters, while adopting the structure of Taʹziyeh plays. This suggests that the Taʹziyeh was in the process of developing into a secular form of theatre independent of its religious origins. One might argue that, if the active life of the Taʹziyeh had not been weakened by the nationalistic and pro-Western movements of the 1900s, it could today have been as powerful a form of theatre as it had been during the Qajar period.

  The stories and characters of the Vatican Collection have been taken from a variety of sources, including the Bible, the Quʹran and Persian mythology. Titles like Julius Caesar (Nos. 2, 81), Adam and Eve (No. 74), The King of China (No. 212) and The Queen of Sheba (No. 1014) show the diverse nature of the manuscripts in this collection.

  A selective list of the scripts in Vatican Collection:

  Shimr’s Wife (Nos. 1, 56).

  Julius Caesar (Nos. 2, 81).

  3. Sacrificing Ismaʹil il (No. 11).

  The Martyrdom of Imam Hussein (No. 28).

  The Bazaar of Damascus (No. 43).

  The Martyrdom of Women of Qurash (No. 71).

  Adam and Eve (No. 74).

  The Birth of Jesus Christ (No. 82).

  The Birth of Imam Hussein (No. 97).

  Joseph in the Egyptian Bazaar (No. 99).

  Nasseredin Shah, the King of Iran (No. 158).

  The Death of Holy Mary (No. 172).

  Fatali Shah, the King of Qajar (No. 184).

  Joseph and Zoliycha (No. 193).

  The Birds of the Karbala (No. 201).

  Kai-Khosro with Solomon (No. 208).

  The King of China (No. 212).

  Judgment Day (No. 220).

  19. Saleh the Jew (Nos. 223, 252).

  Taxing the Taʹ ziyeh Groups by Mr Moʹin in al-Boka (No. 503).

  Yazde-Gerd, the King of Persian Empire (No. 579).

  The Miracles of Imam Abbas in the City of Ardebill (No. 624).

  Noah’s Ark (No. 625).

  Forty Jewish and a Mourning Woman (No. 637).

  25. Calling Himself God by Pharaoh (No. 645).

  The Seventy-two Martyrs of the Karbala Plain (No. 699).

  The Dervish from Kabul (No. 869).

  The Farewell of Shahr-Banu (No. 919).

  29. Cain and Abel (No.924). 30.

  Queen of Sheba(No. 1014).

  THE PARLIAMENT COLLECTION

  There are 260 manuscripts of the Taʹziyeh in the Library of the Parliament in Iran. Most of these scripts date back to the Qajar period and, in terms of their style, are very close to the manuscripts of Chodzko Collection. The importance of the Parliament Collection is that most Iranian scholars writing about the Taʹziyeh have based their work on these scripts. The Martyrdom of Qasim (No. 4), The Birth of Imam Hussein (No. 23), and The Martyrdom of Imam Mosa Kasim (No. 131) are among the famous scripts of this collection.

  THE MALEK COLLECTION

  The Malek Collection of the Library of Haj Hussein Agha Malek has 117 manuscripts. The collection (collected by Shoa-ol Molk) was recently transferred from this library in Tehran to the Library of Astan Qods Rasavi in city of Mashad. This is the only collection that contains some scripts that were written by a well-known poet, Nasrolah Isfehani, who is known as ‘Shahab’. This, perhaps, is why the poetry of some of the manuscripts such as The Martyrdom of Imam Hussein is more original and assured than that found in the scripts in other collections. A further feature that makes the Malek Collection important is that it contains several versions of a number of the Taʹziyeh. For instance, there are seven versions of The Martyrdom of Imam Ali, which provide perfect material for a comparative study of a single text that has been adapted by different performers.

  THE TAKIYEH-DOWLAT COLLECTION

  In 1988 an essay was published in Fasl-nameh Theatre (No. 2/3, Tehran) by Nadereh Badiʹi, claiming that a collection of manuscripts which had belonged to Moin al-Boka, the Master of the Taʹziyeh at the Takiyeh Dowlat, had been discovered and was in possession of Dr Mosafar Bakhtiar. As the Takiyeh Dowlat was the most important place of performance for the Taʹziyeh, and Moin al-Boka was the most important person in the Taʹziyeh during the Qajar period, the discovery of such a collection was, and still is, a very significant event. Unfortunately, however, nothing more has been revealed about this collection and my own efforts to get more information have not as yet been successful.

  THE KANON-KETAB COLLECTION

  Between 1951 and 1955 Kanon-Ketab, a publishing company in Tehran, published many lithographic copies of the manuscripts of the Taʹziyeh. These plays are not really a reliable source for any study, since they have been altered so much that they have little in common with the original texts. For this reason I have not used any script from this collection in my study of the Taʹziyeh.

  INDIVIDUAL MANUSCRIPTS AND COLLECTIONS

  There are many manuscripts in the hands of individuals, scholars, performers and collectors. Some of them have been published and some remain in unpublished form. A glance at the dates of the published collections shows that most of them were published after the Islamic Revolution of 1979, and this suggests that serious scholarly research on the Taʹziyeh has been encouraged since the Revolution.

  ʹ The following scholars have published some of the manuscripts that have been used widely by those wishing to study the Taʹziyeh:

  ʹ Anasori, Jaber, Adabiyat Namayishi Mashabi, Tehran, Theatre Arts Center, 1992.

  Anasori, Jaber, Shabi-Khani, Tehran, Theatre Arts Cen
tre, 1992.

  Baktash, M. and F.Ghaffary, Theatre Irani, Shiraz Arts Festival, 1971.

  Bayzaie, Bahram, Abbas Hindu, Cheragh Quarterly, No. 5, 1985.

  Fatali-Bayghi, D, Daftare Taʹ ziyeh, Nos. 1 & 2, Tehran, Theatre Arts Centre, 1992.

  ʹzi Honari, M., Taʹ ziyeh dar Khoor, Tehran, Ministry of Culture and Art, 1974.

  ʹzi Humayuni, S., Taʹ ziyeh va Taʹ ziyeh-Khani, Shiraz, Navid Publications, 1991.

  ʹziyeh va Taʹzi Malekpour, Jamshid, Persian Passion Plays, Tehran, University Press, 1987.

  NOTES

  1 . Chodzko, Alexander, Le Théâtre Persan: Choix de Teazies, Paris, 1878.

  2 . Ibid., p.35.

  3 . Hassan and Hussein, p. iv.

  4 . Ibid., p. v.

  5 . Having very long poems in the form of monologues, being written by a single author. See the Chodzko Collection.

  6 . Forough, Mehdi, A Comparative Study of Abrahams Sacrifice, Tehran, Ministry of Culture and Arts Press, 1952.

  Glossary

  Ahriman, the symbol of evil in the Zoroastrian religion.

  Ahura Mazda, the source of goodness and light in Zoroastrianism.

  Akhund, see Mullah.

  Ashghya, antagonists, bad characters.

  Ashghya-Khan, reader of Ashghya.

  Ashura, the tenth of Muharram, the day on which Imam Hussein and his followers were killed in the Karbala plain. It is the most important day in the Shiʹa calendar.

  Avesta, the holy book of the Zoroastrian religion.

  Ayatollah, sign of God, title of respect for a great religious Akhund or Mulla.

  Azadari, mourning such as Taʹziyeh, rowza, processions.

  Azhan, the call to prayer.

  Caliph, successor to the Prophet. The Ruler of the Islamic world.

  Dasteh, procession, groups of people in black shirts who beat their chests with their hands or their backs with chains and sing religious songs in remembrance of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein.

  Dhikr, reminder. In Taʹziyeh, remembrance of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein.

  Duʹa, a, prayer.

  Fasilat-Khan, story-teller.

  Fatwa, a religious judgment issued by a great Ayatollah.

  Ghatha, song written by the Prophet Zoroaster.

  Ghavali, minstrelsy, telling a story accompanied by song and music.

  Ghusl, purification, ritual ablution.

  Guriz, digression in a Rowza or Taʹziyeh. This involves a ‘turning’ to the story of Karbala.

  Gusheh, sub-episode.

  Hadith, a report of the Prophet’s words and deeds.

  Hajj, pilgrimage to Mecca.

  Hamle-Khan, reader of Hamla-ye-haydari.

  Husayniyah, Takiyeh, a religious site which the rituals of Muharram and other mourning ceremonies are held. The place of performance for Taʹziyeh.

  Ibadat, worship.

  Imam, leader, the legitimate leader of the Islamic community.

  Imamzadeh, a shrine-tomb of a Shiʹa Imam or holy man or woman.

  ʹ Intizar, waiting for the coming of the Saviour, the hidden Imam Mahdi.

  Ithny Ashariyeh, Shiʹa, the followers of the twelve Imams who are considered to be the successors of the Prophet.

  Jihad, holy war.

  Karbala, the holiest place for the Shiʹa followers. It is located in Iraq, near Baghdad where Imam Hussein and his followers were martyred in AD 680.

  Kateb, copyist.

  Kufr, disbelief, rejection of God.

  Maddah, person who eulogizes the Prophet, His house and the Imams.

  Majlis, meeting. In Taʹziyeh, a performance.

  Maghtal, eulogy.

  Managheb-Khan, eulogy-teller.

  Marthiyeh, elegy.

  Minbar, podium, a raised platform on top of which a preacher sits.

  Moin al Boka, manager/director of Taʹziyeh, master of Taʹziyeh.

  ʹziyeh, master of TaʹMolodi-Khans, groups of women who perform Taʹziyeh for an all-female audience.

  Masque, Masjid, place of worship.

  Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar.

  Mullah, cleric, religious scholar, reader.

  Nakhl, a wooden bier used in Muharram processions.

  Namaz, the daily ritual worship.

  Olya, protagonists, good characters.

  Olya-Khan, reader of Olya.

  Qurʹa an, the Muslim holy book.

  Pardeh, a huge painted canvas illustrating the stories of Shah-Nameh and Karbala events. Pardeh-Dari, a visual form of story-telling, using pardeh.

  Pish-Vagheh, prologue.

  Rowza, preaching, recitation and narration of the tragedy of Karbala.

  Rowza-Khan, preacher.

  Sako, platform, stage.

  Sayyid, a title for descendants of the Prophet.

  Shabih, resemblance, another title for Taʹziyeh.

  ʹ Shabih-mozhack, comic episode, comic Taʹziyeh.

  Shabih-Saziy, impersonation.

  Shah, king.

  Shahadah, witness: ‘there is no God but God and Muhammad is the Apostle of God’.

  Shah-nameh-khan, reader of Shah-nameh.

  Shaykh, leader, chief.

  Shiʹa a, followers of Imam Ali.

  Shuhadat, martyrdom.

  Sufism, Islamic mysticism.

  Sunni, followers of the largest branch of Islam.

  Takiyeh, see Husayniyah.

  Takiyeh-Dowlat, Royal Takiyeh.

  Taʹ ziyeh, mourning, consolation, Islamic passion plays of Iran.

  ʹ Ta’ziyeh-Gardan, master of Taʹziyeh, manager/director of Taʹziyeh.

  Towhid, Divine Unity, a foundation of Islam.

  Vagheh, episode, the core plays of the Taʹziyeh.

  Zan-posh, male actors who play female roles.

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