N1 (71)

İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры

UOT 008:14

Vugar Karimli
PhD (Culturology), Associate Professor
Institute of Architecture and Art of ANAS
(Azerbaijan)
[email protected]

IDEAS OF TOLERANCE AND HUMANISM

IN IMADEDDIN NASIMI’S HERITAGE

Abstract. In this article, the author states that Imadeddin Nasimi is one
of the leading figures of artistic and philosophical thought of Azerbaijan and
the entire ancient East. Nasimi with his high intellectual and moral culture,
broad outlook and creative activity earned honored authority in the Middle
East. Nasimi’s ideas about moral improvement of human and his intellectual
creativity influenced positively on inhabitants of Muslim countries. Nasimi’s
ideas were based on a call for the formation of a society of highly cultured
people only through the moral improvement of human. This approach was
associated with a critical rethinking of life, condemnation of evil, cruelty,
fanaticism, ignorance, intolerance and other destructive human qualities
leading to estrangement, violence, conflict and war.
Despite the six centuries that have passed since the poet’s physical
existence, the interest in his personality and creativity does not weaken with
time, but on the contrary, increases. The ideas of tolerance and humanism of a
great thinker do not lose their relevance and today they are needed and more
interesting to future generations than their own age, to their contemporaries.
Key words: Imadeddin Nasimi, artistic image, hurufism, humanism,
tolerance.

Introduction. Nasimi’s heritage, which occupies one of the main places

in the cultural treasure of the Orient, is a rich artistic heritage of Azerbaijani
people. Genius Azerbaijani poet-thinker, philosopher Seid Ali Imadeddin
Nasimi was born in Shamakhi. The name “Imadeddin” means “support of
faith” in Arabic, and the pseudonym “Nasimi” – “morning light breeze”.
Nasimi was well educated, studied mathematics, astronomy, medicine, logic
and philosophy. He appreciated deeply oriental and ancient Greek philosophy,

90
İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры N1 (71)

new Islam and Christianty well, the literature of various nations of the world.
Nasimi was one the great scientists of his time, knew the wisdom of Islamic
Orient well and was very famous among his contemporaries. He mastered
perfectly all the delicacies of the Arabic, Persian and Turkic languages and left
a rich poetic heritage in three languages. Nasimi played a distinguished role
in the development and formation of both the Azerbaijani literary language
on the national basis of the 14th century and Turkic-Oghuz literary language
as a whole. From this point of view, the greatness of Nasimi is unequalled. It
was Nasimi who raised Azerbaijani folk language to the level of the classical
style of the literary language for the first time.
The interpretation of the main material. Imadeddin Nasimi was
certainly bright star in the sky of the world spiritual culture. He embodied high
morality and courage, the desire for self-knowledge and self-improvement,
the development of human values and creative activity demonstrating spiritual
relation with the great humanists of Asia and Europe, who were characterized
by the social conditioning of education.
Nasimi with his high intellectual and moral culture, broad outlook and
creative activity earned honored authority in the Middle East. The aspiration
to understand God not through fear, but through love for the progressive
development of medieval Islamic society is observed in his works. Nasimi’s
ideas about moral improvement of human and his intellectual creativity
influenced positively on inhabitants of Muslim countries. Nasimi’s ideas
were based on a call for the formation of a society of highly cultured people
only through the moral improvement of human. This approach was associated
with a critical rethinking of life, condemnation of evil, cruelty, fanaticism,
ignorance, intolerance and other destructive human qualities leading to
estrangement, violence, conflict and war.
Nasimi who based on sense and free intellectual search proclaimed non-
trivial ideas ahead of his time and created creative works of scientific and
humanitarian values that became the achievement of all humanity.
Imadeddin Nasimi lived at a time when feudal society was increasingly
secularized being in a natural contradiction with the thinking of progressive
people of the era. His ideas required innovations and transformation in the
field of ideology and technologies of human living associated with new
opportunities that opened education, enlightenment and progress of science.
The most educated people aspired to change the culture of feudal society by

91
N1 (71) İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры

overcoming social ignorance, rejecting its peculiar dogmatism and fanaticism,

everyday thinking, envy and other negative phenomena of life and stereotypes.
Gradually not only skill, organized nature and morality, but first of all scientific
knowledge and creative activity became the main driving force in the development
of culture of human and society thanks to the efforts of humanists. There was
an understanding that new ideas and knowledge support to progressive social
changes which meet the interests of human and society. Passive contemplation
was gradually replaced by an active transformation of reality, creation of the
surrounding world, which was based on a new culture of thinking [3].
But, in reality, salvation is in a spiritual culture, which includes not only
values such as beauty of the soul and faith, but also enlightened mind that
cognizes and transforms the surrounding world.
Imadeddin Nasimi was one of the powerful masters of the word, given by
the Azerbaijani people to universal culture. He elevated himself on the basis
of the rich cultural and spiritual heritage of the Orient and created the most
valuable pearls of the art of the artistic word.
The master’s works had a powerful influence on the development of the
artistic and social thought of a number of peoples.
One of Nasimi’s brilliant ideas is about perfecting human created by God in his
own image and similarity and endowed with heavenly qualities. Indeed, human
creates and transforms positively the world around him or himself, i.e. culture
with help of these qualities. And culture is a path to development and prosperity,
on which infinite possibilities are opened for a harmonious and worthy life
of people, the formation and development of human civilizations. Nasimi was
close to worldview of divinity of human nature highly appreciating the human
mind, work and dignity, ideally considering human as similar to the Almighty.
This philosophy of life was closely associated with the humanistic belief in the
celestial qualities of a cultured human, with axiological understanding as an
accomplice of divine creations. Nasimi with his humanistic worldview believed
that “educated and enlightened human living with the interests of the mind”
reflects the whole world and positively transforms the Universe. At the same
time, we see that human is created by God of whole world and carries the image
of the Creator in himself” in his worldview position.
The poet bore the title “seid”, which signified the origin of his family tree
from the prophet Muhammad. This fact was confirmed by Nasimi himself in
some of his ghazals. Some researchers hold to an opinion that the poet opposed

92
İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры N1 (71)

Islam, which is not entirely true. Nasimi blamed despotism, ignorance that
the medieval rulers showed. Indeed, the poet’s life and works coincided with
the invasion of Tamerlan horde in Azerbaijan. The Timurids preached Islam,
but at the same time they were distinguished by their cruel attitude to the local
population. This led to the fact that people began to hate, and the ideological
expression of the mass protest was the “Hurufi” movement.
The perfect human is all-powerful, the omnipotence of the Creator appears
in him on earth. You need to look for the essence of Nasimi’s philosophy in
this: “An al-hagg!” - “God is me!”, “God is in me!” “I was the embodiment of
secrets; I am a human, and God is in me, and his coinage appeared to me.” The
great Nasimi was the first, who put man on a par with in orient poetry, and the
Almighty, the Creator, Allah brought closer to human. It was for this divine
idea that he was arrested in Aleppo and was accused and executed as a heretic
according to fanatical worshipers by the Cairo Sultan Sheikh al-Muayyed
with an unprecedented anti-human sentence: “Cut off his head and limbs,
excoriate his skin and keep the body on the square for seven days and then
send to Alibey ibn Zulgadar, his brother Nasraddin and Osman Garayoluk,
who lost their way under the influence of Nasimi, too.»
The history of the Orient peoples knows many individuals with an iron
will who went to execution for their beliefs without changing them until the
last breath. However, none of these executions was as tragic and painful as the
execution of Nasimi. Already exhausted and dying, he continued to repeat the
words of his teacher, the basis of the Hurufis teachings: “Al-al-hagg” (“Allah
is me”). Then they asked him: “If you are Allah, why does your face turn
pale?” According to the folktale, Nasimi put on his last strength and answered
the executioners: “I am the sun rising over the horizon of great love. When the
sun makes its final journey, it turns pale.” So the great Azerbaijani poet died.
Nasimi’s poetic wisdom was emphasized by the gift of penetrating the
secrets of the invisible world. Perhaps that is why he was cramped in one
physically perceived world. As he expressed in his poems:
“Both worlds within my compass come,
but this world cannot compass me.
An omnipresent pearl I am
and both worlds cannot compass me.
Because in me both earth and heaven and Creation’s “BE!” were found,
Be silent! For there is no commentary can encompass me.”

93
N1 (71) İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры

The poet makes judgments about the limits and levels of human intellectual
capabilities, about the role of the sense and the knowledge of the divine light
revealed in a human, the knowledge of the universe and Allah as a means
for the artistic revelation of the philosophical problems of a perfect human.
Cognition and self-knowledge are the enduring motives of Nasimi’s poetry.
Sense is the greatest blessing granted to human by Allah. This gift puts human
above all creatures. Human is the crown of creation, worthy of worship. He
is a great power [2].
Nasimi believed that anyone who wants to understand the truth should
strive to understand human, his motivation and desire for beauty and good.
Human was the center of the universe for Nasimi:
“Oh you who call a stone and earth a precious pearl,
is not man who is so fair and gentle also a pearl!”
Legends tell about Nasimi’s courageous and steadfast behavior during
his execution. According to legend, one of the theologians who was at his
execution said that Nasimi’s blood was cursed, and all that it falls on must be
cut off by a sword and burned by fire. A drop of blood Nasimi hit the finger of
the theologian himself immediately after his words. The crowd of people who
was at the execution demanded to cut off the finger, the theologian frightened
by his finger and began to answer that he spoke allegorically. The dying poet
managed to compose a couplet on this subject, which later became a proverb:
“If they cut off the finger of the pious, they will turn away from the truth. If
they excoriate skin from head to toe of an unfortunate lover - he doesn’t cry”
[1].
Conclusion. Unfortunately, the tragic events that took place in Syria
in 2014 did not pass by the great poet. The tomb of the great thinker was
destroyed. As if six centuries later, Nasimi was executed again. However,
despite all this, Nasimi’s ideas, his calls for tolerance and peace will never be
ruined. Giving a summary, I want to note that despite the six centuries that
have passed since the poet’s physical existence, interest in his personality and
works doesn’t weaken over time. Nasimi did not leave this world — he lives
in the hearts of people, we are getting closer and closer to Nasimi, listening
to his ideas. The ideas of tolerance and humanism of the great thinker don’t
lose their relevance and today they are needed and more interesting to future
generations than their own century, to their contemporaries.

94
İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры N1 (71)

REFERENCE:
1. Həbibbəyli İ.Ə.Cahana sığmayan Azərbaycan şairi. Azərbaycan qəzeti, http://
www.azerbaijan-news.az/view-161036/cahana-sigmayan-azerbaycan-sairi
2. Kərimli T. Nəsiminin humanizmi. https://azertag.az/xeber/1253487
3. Мавзолей Насими – еще одна утрата наследия человечества? http://
www.1news.az/news/m-n-bu-cahana-s-mazam-mavzoley-nasimi---
esche-odna-utrata-naslediya-chelovechestva

Vüqar Kərimli (Azərbaycan)

İmadəddin Nəsiminin irsində tolerantlıq və humanizm ideyaları
Müəllifin hazırladığı bu məqalədə İmadəddin Nəsiminin Azərbaycanın və
bütün Qədim Şərqin bədii və fəlsəfi düşüncəsinin aparıcı simalarından biri ol-
duğu bildirilir. Nəsimi özünün yüksək intellektual və mənəvi mədəniyyəti, ge-
niş dünyagörüşü və yaradıcılıq fəaliyyəti ilə layiqli nüfuz qazanmışdır. Onun,
insanın mənəvi yüksəlişi və intellektual mədəniyyətilə ilə bağlı fikirləri in-
sanlar üçün müsbət təsir göstərirdi. Nəsiminin fikri, insanın mənəvi cəhətdən
yaxşılaşdırılması yolu ilə yüksək mədəniyyətli vətəndaş cəmiyyətinin yara-
dılması çağırışı idi. Bu yanaşma pisliyi, qəddarlığı, fanatikliyi, cəhaləti, dö-
zümsüzlüyü və yadlaşmaya, qarşıdurmaya, zorakılığa və müharibəyə aparan
digər dağıdıcı insan keyfiyyətlərini qınamaqla əlaqələndirildi.
Dahi şairin fiziki varlığından altı əsr keçməsinə baxmayaraq, onun
şəxsiyyətinə və irsinə maraq zaman keçdikcə azalmır, əksinə artır. Böyük bir
mütəfəkkirin tolerantlıq və humanizm ideyaları aktuallığını itirmir əksinə bu
gün onlar gələcək nəsillər üçün daha zəruri və daha maraqlıdırlar.
Açar sözlər: İmadəddin Nəsimi, bədii obraz, hurufizm, humanizm, tolerantlıq.

Вугар Керимли (Азербайджан)

Идеи толерантности и гуманизма в наследии Имадеддина Насими
Имадеддин Насими является одним из ведущих деятелей художе-
ственной и философской мысли Азербайджана и всего древнего Вос-
тока. Своей высокой умственной и нравственной культурой, широким
кругозором и созидательной деятельностью Насими завоевал заслужен-
ный авторитет. Идеи Насими о нравственном совершенствования чело-
века и его интеллектуальное творчество оказали позитивное влияние

95
N1 (71) İncəsənət və mədəniyyət problemləri / Problems of Arts and Culture / Проблемы искусства и культуры

на жителей мусульманских стран. В основе идее Насими лежал при-

зыв к формированию общества высококультурных людей лишь за счет
нравственного совершенствования человека. Такой подход был связан
с критическим переосмыслением жизни, осуждением зла, жестокости,
фанатизма, невежества, нетерпимости и других деструктивных чело-
веческих качеств, ведущих к отчуждению, противостоянию, насилию,
конфликтам и войнам. Несмотря на шесть веков, прошедших со времени
физического существования поэта, интерес к его личности и творчеству
не ослабевает со временем, а наоборот, возрастает. Идеи толерантности
и гуманизма великого мыслителя не теряют своей актуальности, и се-
годня они необходимы и более интересны будущим поколениям, чем их
возрасту, их современникам.
Ключевые слова: Имадеддин Насими, художественный образ, хуру-
физм, гуманизм, толерантность.

96