A study of "The Baptized Son" by Leo Tolstoy with regard to teachings of Islam and mysticism

Subject Areas : Islamic Mysticism

Janolah Karimi Motahhar ¹ , Marzieh Yahyapour ² , Roya Gholamalishahi ³

1 - استاد زبان و ادبیات روسی، دانشکده زبان‌ها و ادبیات خارجی دانشگاه تهران.
2 - استاد زبان و ادبیات روسی، دانشکده زبان‌ها و ادبیات خارجی دانشگاه تهران.
3 - دانشجوی کارشناسی ارشد ادبیات روسی، دانشکده زبان‌ها و ادبیات خارجی دانشگاه تهران.

Received: 2017-09-11 Accepted : 2018-08-04 Published : 2017-08-23

Keywords: Orient, the Baptized Father, the spiritual guru, Islamic Mysticism, the Baptized Son, Leo Tolstoy,

Abstract :

Leo Tolstoy is one of the greatest renowned writers of the world who, in his works, adopts a special stance regarding issues of philosophical and mystical nature. This is quite visible in the story “The baptized son” which might be of clear conceptual resemblance for the oriental audience, especially those from Iran. While dealing with this story, the present article strives to maintain a conceptual interpretation of the elements that have caused a resemblance between the aforementioned story and the post-Islamic literature and mysticism of Iran. It also tries to disclose these similarities and at the same time clearly illustrate that the “Baptized Son” is an allusion to some Quranic stories. It also focuses on portraying the fact that concepts like sin and repentance enjoy a special place in the Iranian mysticism just as they do in this story. As this great author pictures, the main theme of the story is the ever-lasting struggle between vice and virtue, one of the major themes both in Islam and in Persian literature.