AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The seminar “Religious poetry, the connecting link of AhlulBayt followers” was held with the presence of Sayed Mohammad Javad Sheraft and Morteza Heydari Al-e Kathir, two leading religious poets of Iran, in the meeting hall of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly in Qom.
In this seminar, Murtaza Heydari Al-e Kathir, the secretary of the 13th Razavi International Poetry Congress, and one of the young religious poets of Iran stated, “Religious poetry is one of the most vivid and at the same time one of the most significant poems in the present era in terms of quantity. New works also need to be studied in terms of quality.
“From the poetry related to Ashura, we have both lamentation and epic conception, and both are necessary, and poets need to consider both. Because the audience of poetry related to Ashura is common people, poets choose the easy way, i.e., lamentation, to attract people. This has caused the epic aspect of the poem related to Ashura to fade. We are looking for a link between the lovers of AhlulBayt (a.s.). In our interactions with poets from other countries, they always say, “You need to mention and highlight the courage, gallantry, and justice of Imam Hussain (a.s.), as well as the beauties of Karbala.” This is a very important point to consider,” he continued.
About the necessity of conveying the message of AhlulBayt (a.s.) to all mankind through poetry, this religious poet emphasized, “AhlulBayt (a.s.) have come for all mankind. Some Shiites and lovers of AhlulBayt (a.s.) are so involved in their love and devotion to those nobles, that they forget the fact that other countries in other continents of the world should also have a share of the light of the Infallibles (a.s.). Therefore, we should diligently try and do effective work.”
“Humanity is thirsty for true justice, and the beauty of justice lies in the light of AhlulBayt (a.s.),” he added on the influence of religious art, “Cinema and artistic work are very effective for conveying religious and Shiite concepts. Enemies, especially Wahhabi-affiliated networks, seek to show Shiites anti-Sunnis and even anti-Prophet! But with the production and distribution of Prophet Yusuf (a.s.) TV series and other religious films, the audience will say that as Iran can make such artistic films, media propaganda against Iran and Shiites are fake news. Just as cinema, by spending huge costs, can have a quick and direct impact on the audience, with poetry, you can easily talk to the audience.”
Sayed Mohammad Javad Sherafat, another young religious poet of Iran, also said in the seminar, “In the poem related to Wilaya, we can encounter the status, name, and words of AhlulBayt (a.s.) in two ways, glorifying and analytical. It is possible to glorify the AhlulBayt (a.s.) and praise their status and words in poems. With our incomplete and weak understanding, no matter how much we try, we cannot show the dignity of AhlulBayt (a.s.) to the required extent. It is definitely not possible for us to imagine the position of AhlulBayt (a.s.). But it is very good and right to honor the AhlulBayt (a.s.), and this is a part of our religious poetry.”
“But besides glorification, if we analyze the human and divine behavior and speech of the AhlulBayt (a.s.), Muslims and even non-Muslims will be fascinated by the family of Revelation, and the circle of love for the AhlulBayt (a.s.) will widen. Christian poets who are infatuated with Imam Hussain (a.s.) and Imam Ali (a.s.), the reason for their devotion was through the behavior patterns of the AhlulBayt (a.s.), their quality of being role models, and their human behavior. Therefore, if in addition to glorification, we analyze the behavior of the AhlulBayt (a.s.), which there are many good examples in our literature, we will be able to introduce the AhlulBayt (a.s.) better and more. Another issue is language. Language and translation also required detailed discussions that we should discuss in the specialized meetings,” Sherafat added.
About the weakness of the media activities of religious poets, Sherafat said, “We have performed very poorly in publishing our activities and works in the media and virtual space. Therefore, it is necessary for religious poets to convey their works to the audience through different media.”
At the end of this session, which was held in the meeting hall of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, Murtaza Heydari Al-e Kathir, and Sayed Mohammad Javad Sherafat recited some of their poems.
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