Monograph and play on Khoja Ahmed Yasawi presented in four languages in Astana
Astana hosted the presentation of two books by philology researcher, poet and scholar Ainur Abdirasilkyzy. The event featured the monograph Yasawi's Poetry and Turkic Literature and the historical educational play My Sheikh, Ahmed Yasawi. Both have also been published in English, Turkish and Russian, Qazinform News Agency reports.
Yasawi's Poetry and Turkic Literature is the result of 25 years of research and the first study to examine Yasawi's poetry within the broader development of Turkic literature. It also reviews domestic and international scholarship on Yasawi, analyzes existing translations of Diwani Hikmet, and outlines priorities for future research.
"This book is the culmination of many years of research. It reviews scholarship from around the world on Yasawi and his spiritual legacy, analyzes 17 Kazakh translations of Diwani Hikmet, offering a comparative and textual analysis of each. Until now, no critical scholarly edition of Diwani Hikmet had been prepared, and no specialized dictionaries were available, which has led to inaccuracies in existing studies and translations," said Abdirasilkyzy.
My Sheikh, Ahmed Yasawi explores the inner world of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi and those striving for spiritual growth.
"The play depicts key episodes from the life of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, along with historical and legendary accounts of his relationships with his teachers, disciples and the people. These stories are brought to life through artistic portrayals of Yasawi and his followers," the scholar said.
Abdirasilkyzy's academic supervisor, Doctor of Philology Temirgali Esembekov, also spoke at the presentation. He praised the monograph, highlighting its scholarly significance.
"This book demonstrates that Yasawi was a poet and that his works occupy an important place in the literature of the Turkic peoples. Until now, the poetics of Yasawi's writings had received very little scholarly attention. Ainur analyzed his poetry and its literary qualities, showing that Diwani Hikmet is a work of outstanding artistic value," he said.
According to the author, the next stage of the project will involve collecting and cataloguing all manuscript and printed versions of Diwani Hikmet, carrying out comprehensive textual studies, and preparing a critical scholarly edition of the work.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Kazakhstan and Türkiye would promote the Yasawi legacy.
