The Magical Power of Objects in the Shahnameh: Classification and Analysis
elmira hasanzadeh
1
(
PHD Student/ Ferdowsi University of Mashhad
)
Mohammad Jafar Yahaghi
2
(
professor of literature at Ferdowsi University of Mashad
)
Keywords: Magical Belief, Magical Objects of Shahnameh, Subbotsky, Cassirer, Mythical Thought.,
Abstract :
The way characters in the Shahnameh interact with many objects, and their beliefs about these objects show that they believe many of these objects have magical and extraordinary powers. The main purpose of this article is to analyze and classify the origin of the magical powers of these objects based on magical causes. Our method is qualitative content analysis (deductive-inductive). To determine and extract the manifestations of magical beliefs about the magical power of objects, we used the opinions of experts such as Cassirer, Subbotsky, Mauss, Frazer, etc. In the next step, based on this theoretical foundation, we pursued the origin of the magical power of these objects in the Shahnameh. Our findings show that this magical power is always transferred to these objects through intermediaries.we classified these mediators of magical power in the Shahnameh as follows: non-human characters (animals, plants and demons), human characters (farahmand ancestors, farahmand kings, prophets, and people related to the devil), special places (planets and skies, transcendental places, and places containing sacred elements). In some instances, magical objects are connected to the source of power by multiple intermediaries. These mediators all directly or indirectly reach a mysterious and obscure origin that has two Ahuraic or demonic aspects and we called it the main source of magical power, and the above mediators are called secondary sources.
