The Pitfalls of Prosimetrum in the Akhlaq-i muhsini of Husain Va'iz Kashifi

The Akhlaq-i muhsini, composed in 907/1501–2 by Kamal al-Din Husain Va’iz, known as Kashifi, a Timurid-era preacher, prosaist, and polymath, enjoyed great popularity in the late medieval Persianate world, as attested by the hundreds of manuscript copies in existence. The Akhlaq-i muhsini is a prosimetrical text in the full meaning of the term—that is to say, its structure is based on the regular alternation of prose and poetry. The ratio of prose to poetry is roughly 2:1. The problem is that rarely does Kashifi indicate the source of his poetic citations. Were the verses cited so well-known that his audience would have immediately recognized them? Or did Kashifi try to pass the verses off as his own? Unlike Sa’di, for example, who included in his Gulistan only verses of his own composition, Kashifi appears to cite only verses composed by other poets. An analysis of the sources of the poetic works chosen for citation will provide insights into Kashifi’s literary universe and perhaps that of his contemporary audience as well. The paper will use concrete examples to illustrate the relationship of the verses cited to the prose text. It will demonstrate how, in some cases, Kashifi has slightly altered the original poetic citations in order to illustrate or reinforce the point of a passage or an anecdote. In the final analysis, if most of the verses cited by Kashifi (not to mention the many anecdotes he relates), turn out to be the work of others, what is Kashifi’s role as author of the work? The paper seeks to draw attention to some of the pitfalls encountered in reading and interpreting the Akhlaq-i muhsini and other Persian prosimetrical texts dating from the late medieval period