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Mathnawi ( ), also spelled masnavi, mesnevi or masnawi, is a kind of poem written in , or more specifically "a poem based on independent, internally rhyming lines". Most mathnawi poems follow a meter of eleven, or occasionally ten, , but had no limit in their length. Typical mathnawi poems consist of an indefinite number of , with the rhyme scheme aa/bb/cc.
Mathnawi poems have been written in Persian language, Arabic, Turkish language, Kurdish language and Urdu cultures. Certain Persian mathnawi poems, such as Rumi's Masnavi-e Ma’navi, have had a special religious significance in Sufism. Other influential writings include the poems of Ghazali and ibn Arabi.Moral Conduct and Authority: The Place of Adab in South Asian Islam. (1984). Vereinigtes Königreich: University of California Press. Mathnawis are closely tied to Islamic theology, philosophy, and legends, and cannot be understood properly without knowledge about it.Swahili Islamic Poetry: Introduction : The celebration of Mohammed's birthday; Swahili Islamic cosmology. (1971). Niederlande: Brill.
Masnavi are usually associated with the didactic and romantic genres, but are not limited to them. There is a great variety among Persian masnavi, but there are several conventions that can help a reader recognize a masnavi poem. Most masnavi have a distinction between the introductory and body (although it is not always easy to determine where that is), praise of the one God and prayers, a eulogy of the Prophet, reflections on the value of poetry, and occasionally a description of an object as a significant symbol.
Certain Persian masnavi have had a special religious significance in Sufism, such as Rumi's Masnavi-i Ma'nawi, which consists of 6 books/25,000 verses and which has been used in prayer among many Sufi's, such as the Mevlevi Order.Friedlander, Ira. The Whirling Dervishes. New York: Macmillan, 1975. Print. While some legalists find the practice unconscionable, the Sufi scholar and jurist Abu Hamid al-Ghazali supported the use of poetry as worship.Al-Ghazali, Abu Hamid. "Concerning Music and Dancing As Aids to the Religious Life." Trans. Claud Field. The Alchemy of Happiness. Dodo, 1909. 27–32. Print.
In the 21st century, Ahmad NikTalab has been one of the expert poets of Persian masnawi.
Turkish mesnevi are strongly driven by their plot, and are usually categorized into three : (heroic), (religio-didactic), and (romantic). Some mesnevi were written with an understanding that the audience would appreciate the importance of the subject of the poem, but some were also written purely for entertainment purposes.
Mesnevi remained prominent in Turkish literature until the end of the Ottoman Empire, when it began to transform into more conversational and rhetorical literature. Few Turkish mesnevi have been translated into another modern language.
Early Urdu masnawi began during the 11th to 17th centuries. In the beginning of this period, many masnawi were religious in nature, but then grew to include romantic, heroic, and even secular stories. Early Urdu masnawi were influenced by Dakkani literature, as well as Persian masnavi. Because of this influence, many early Urdu masnawi were translations of Persian masnavi, although there are some original early Urdu masnawis.
Middle Urdu masnawi became prominent during the 12th to 18th centuries, when Urdu literature broke away from the Dakkani tradition. During the 12th to 18th centuries, romantic masnawi became very popular. Another new convention that appeared in middle Urdu masnawi was authors using their own personal experiences as a subject for their poem.
Modern Urdu masnawi began during the 13th to 19th centuries, during a time of literary reform. Masnawi as a whole became much shorter, and the traditional meters stopped being observed. These masnawis deal more with everyday subjects, as well as providing a medium for children's poetry. A well-known masnavi-writer in Urdu in recent times was Allama Dr. Syed Ali Imam Zaidi "Gauhar Lucknavi" (great-grandson of Mir Anees).
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