Investigation of the Importance of Gratitude in Sana'i Poetry

Abstract

To reach the sublime supremacy of being and achieve true satisfaction, human beings must go through stages and pass animalistic traits to pass the stages of spirituality and reach the highest level of obedience. According to the scholars, these stages are the steps that anyone who starts this spiritual journey should pass through to reach higher stages and advance on the road to human perfection. The mystical concept of gratitude, which has Quranic and religious origin, is of paramount importance in the literary, moral and cultural heritage of Sufis. In Senai’s school of thought, various degrees of gratitude have been introduced. True grateful people are those who do not feel restless in the troubles and sufferings of life and thank God with satisfaction and peace. In fact, Sanai explains the relationship between gratitude and calamity and believes that, by being grateful, one can be patient with calamity and adversity and gain endurance. Paying close attention to the issue of "gratitude" is one of the other issues that is available in this school of thought. According to Sanai, true gratitude is paying attention to God's permanent gifts and paying attention to God. In his works, Sanai has considered three main topics, namely human being’s gratitude to God, human being’s gratitude to other human beings, and God's gratitude to human beings. The present study, using a descriptive-analytical method, attempts to investigate the importance of gratitude in Sanai’s poetry.