Parse: An Exploration of Critical Topics in Iranian Studies

Yann Damizen: Songs from Beyond the Grave

In the 90th episode of Parse, dive into the poetic retelling of Nizami Ganjavi’s timeless love poem, Leyli u Majnun, by the award-winning  poet and illustrator, Yann Damizen. In this book launch, you will hear from Aqsa Ijaz and Thomas Harrison who recently have translated Damizen’s work from French to English.   Dive into the poetic retelling of Nizami Ganjavi’s timeless love poem, Leyli u Majnun, by the award-winning  poet and illustrator, Yann Damizen. Majnun and Layla: Songs from Beyond the Grave Translated from French by Aqsa Ijaz and Thomas Harrison. Why do ancient tales resonate deeply even today? What makes a medieval classic relevant in our fast-paced, tech-driven world? In Persian literary culture, retelling the narratives of the past was more than mere repetition. It was about bestowing contemporary readers with the rich legacies of the past, offering them guidance and grounding to imagine a more equitable future. These retellings bore a transformative potential, challenging the established narratives, renewing them for the present, while ensuring their continued relevance. With Majnun and Layla: Songs from Beyond the Grave, Damizen revives this tradition, reimagining Nizami’s iconic tale of love, madness, and loss. For the first time, the story is retold from Leyli’s perspective, breaking the chains of poetic authority that silenced her for centuries.

Carlo Cereti: Eschatology and Apocalyptic Literature in the Zoroastrian Context

In the 89th episode of Parse, Professor Carlo Cereti will present and discuss several passages taken from the Avesta and from Pahlavi literature, highlighting the chronological development of Zoroastrian thought about the end of times. The earliest texts to be discussed date to the early Achaemenid or immediately pre-Achaemenid period, while the later ones reflect Zoroastrian speculation in late Sasanian and early Islamic times.   Carlo G. Cereti has newly joined the University of California as Endowed Ferdowsi Chair in Zoroastrian Studies and Professor of Classics and Religions, having served since 2000 as Full Professor of Iranian Studies at Sapienza University of Rome, Department of Ancient World Studies. From 2009 to 2017 he acted as Cultural Counsellor at the Embassy of Italy in Tehran. His earliest research work focused on the history of the Zoroastrian Parsi community in India, an intellectual interest that continued throughout his academic career, though currently his main research field shifted to Middle Iranian Languages and Literatures and more specifically to the study of Zoroastrian literature in Middle Persian.   To watch the full talk, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaXUp3YTu6o&t=531s [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaXUp3YTu6o&t=531s]

Nicholas Sims-Williams: Bactrian Documents and Archives

The 88th episode of Parse is an excerpt of a presentation given by Professor Nicolas Sims-Williams on surviving documents in the ancient Bactrian language, an Eastern Iranian language that has long been extinct. Numerous documents in Bactrian dating from the 4th-8th century CE have emerged since the early 1990s. They include letters, legal contracts and economic documents, mostly written on parchment; some of the latest documents are associated with a group of Arabic legal documents and tax receipts. Although there is no reliable information about where the documents were found, the majority can be shown from internal evidence to have been written in various parts of Northern Afghanistan. Very recently, a further collection of 4th-century Bactrian letters has come to light. These are written on birch bark and almost certainly come from somewhere to the south of the Hindukush. Dr. Sims-Williams describe these two groups of documents and discusses the question of whether either can be considered as constituting a single archive.   Nicholas Sims-Williams is an Emeritus Professor of Iranian and Central Asian Studies at SOAS University of London. He has published many books and articles on Middle Iranian texts and languages, including three volumes of Bactrian documents from Northern Afghanistan.    To watch the full talk, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1_b8k0D_PA&t=443s [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1_b8k0D_PA&t=443s]

Shiva Ahmad: Apocalyptic Playland

In the 87th episode of Parse, Learn more about the carefully illustrated worlds of celebrated artist Shiva Ahmadi, one of the featured artists in the exhibition Being & Belonging: [https://www.rom.on.ca/en/exhibitions-galleries/exhibitions/being-and-belonging] Contemporary Women Artists from the Islamic World and Beyond, which took place in the ROM July2023 to January 2024. In this illustrated talk, Ahmadi shares deep insight into her personal and professional histories, and how they filter through and are expressed in her creative work.  Shiva Ahmadi‘s works cover a broad diversity of media, including watercolour painting, sculpture, and video animation. Having come of age in the tumultuous years following the Iranian Revolution, Ahmadi moved to the United States in 1998 and has been based in California since 2015. Borrowing from the artistic traditions of Iran and the Middle East, she critically examines global political tensions and social concerns to create striking, provocative, and powerful creations.  To watch the full talk, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqxFi-02E90 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqxFi-02E90]

Jenny Rose: "A Nice Morality", Early Meetings between Zoroastrians and Americans

The 86th episode of Parse, is an except of Jenny Rose’s illustrated talk, based on research for her most recent book – Between Boston and Bombay: Cultural and Commercial Encounters of Yankees and Parsis 1771-1865 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019). Her book focuses on the early contact of Americans with Zoroastrians and their religion from the late 18th to the mid-19th century. American interest in the “Persian Religion” was informed initially through secondhand reports, but once direct trade with India was established close links were formed with Parsi merchants in Mumbai, which are documented in personal letters, journals, and logbooks now held in American libraries. This presentation explores some of these first-hand American records before a brief look at accounts of a few Parsis who made their way to North America at the time of the Civil War.  Jenny Rose is an adjunct professor and historian of religions in the Zoroastrian Studies program in Claremont Graduate University’s Religion Department. She holds a doctorate in Ancient Iranian Studies from Columbia University.Rose lectures extensively at other academic institutions, museums, and Zoroastrian Association events throughout North America and Europe. She also leads study tours of some of the most important archaeological, cultural, and devotional sites in Iran and Central Asia.    To watch the full talk, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNSPZhRXLYM&t=816s [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNSPZhRXLYM&t=816s]