Document Type : Original Article
Author
Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Qom, Qom, Iran.
Abstract
Reward and punishment are among the prominent themes of mystical texts and have been discussed in various ways and forms in all divine religions. There is no divine book that does not mention reward and punishment for actions. The only difference is in the way of expression and the type of reward and punishment, and the time and place. Ferdowsi, as a wise poet familiar with Islamic and Zoroastrian texts, has expressed this moral issue in various language and expressions in the form of moral wisdom and teachings by gaining knowledge of the history of his predecessors and observing the failures of the unjust and the successes of those seeking justice. The present study, which has been conducted based on an analytical and descriptive method, has examined the position of punishment and punishable sins in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh. Ferdowsi always emphasizes that observing justice and avoiding moral sins such as greed, avarice, and lies are a condition for maintaining order and peace in society and the strength of governments, and those who are infected with these sins will eventually be punished. The findings of the research show that punishment, from Ferdowsi’s perspective, is an important moral and religious principle that is effective in establishing social justice and observing moral principles, and ultimately, bad deeds bring punishment and destruction, and this teaching is clearly expressed in the form of wisdom and stories in the Shahnameh.
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