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Complete graphs in the Rubáiyát

Complete graphs in the Rubáiyát. D.P. May.
Journal of mathematics and the arts, 8 (2014), nrs. 1-2, p. 59-67.

The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám has fascinated readers for centuries, and it has been translated and interpreted many times. In this paper, we will describe a few basic graph theory concepts, and discuss how graph theory can be used to explore the connections between the various quatrains contained in Edward FitzGerald’s several translations of the Rubáiyát. We will explain the process of searching for certain complete subgraphs of the full graph of the Rubáiyát, and will briefly discuss how these ideas may be relevant in other areas. These applications include analysing other collections of poetry, teaching certain types of incidence geometry and poetic forms for composing short collections of poetry.

Emotion and Closure in the Sound Expressiveness of Quatrains from Fitzgerald’s Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

Emotion and Closure in the Sound Expressiveness of Quatrains from Fitzgerald’s Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. C. Whissell.
Empirical Studies of the Arts 18 (2000) 2, p. 135-149.

Summary

This article follows two branches of Tsur’s cognitive poetic theory to their logical conclusion and applies them to Fitzgerald’s Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam where they are fully validated. The first branch emphasizes the expressiveness of speech sounds (phonemes) and the second branch the importance of the Gestalt principle of closure to poetry. Rubaiyat were phonetically transcribed and their phonemes were then categorized in terms of emotional character. The closural device of a return to baseline described the preferential use of active phonemes in the rubaiyat while the closural allusion of definitive termination described the preferential use of pleasant phonemes. Clynes’ concept of the essentic form for grief was used to explain the rise and fall of preferential activation in the first three lines of each quatrain. The emotional picture drawn of the rubaiyat on the basis of these procedures was one of fatalism or emotional resignation. General patterns and individual examples are discussed.

Poesie et traduction: Premiers jalons methodologiques …

Poesie et traduction: Premiers jalons methodologiques – Exemplification sur un quatrain d’ Omar Khayyam. Y. Gentilhomme.
Poetics, 10 (1974), PP. 131-146

Il s’agit en l’occurrence d’un poème du poète et mathématicien persan des Xle-XIIe s., Omar Khayyám, traduit en français par un orientaliste contemporain, Franz Toussaint.

The enigma of Edward FitzGerald

The enigma of Edward FitzGerald. J.L. Borges.
In: Other inquisitions, 1937-1952. London : Souvenir Press, 1973. ISBN: 0-285-64711-3

Borges ponders on the mysterious connection between Khayyám and FitzGerald. A miracle that happened: from the fortuitous conjunction of a Persian astronomer who condescends to write poetry, and an eccentric Englishman who peruses Oriental and Hispanic books, emerges a poet who does not resemble either of them. He suggests a deep-seated, a-Platonic connection between philosophy, mathematics, and poetry.

The Spiritual States (Ahwal) in the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

The Spiritual States (Ahwal) in the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Sri Wulan and Devi Pratiwy.
KnE Social Sciences, 3 (2018) nr. 4,pp. 864-877.

Summary

The Rubaiyat is the exposition of Khayyam’s contemplation of life and Divinity, which is highly appreciated, and of great importance in the world of literature and a stepping progress to spirituality. Concerning the contemplation of Divine existence, the poet has experienced spiritual states. These spiritual states or experiences are called Ahwal in the concept of Sufism. The Ahwal are the main concern of this study. This concept is referred to the classification of Ahwal given by Qushayri (1966). There are six forms of Ahwal expressed by Omar Khayyam in the Rubaiyat. They are Wajd `Ecstacy’, Dzawq `Taste’, Fana `Exctincion’, Baqa `Permanency’, `Ishq `Divine Love’, and Sukr’ `Intoxication’. Then, it is found that the six spiritual states, Ahwal, are undergone by Omar Khayam and they are reflected through his Rubaiyat.

Edward FitzGerald and the Rediscovery of Omar Khayyám for Persian Nihilism

Edward FitzGerald and the Rediscovery of Omar Khayyám for Persian Nihilism
In: Persophilia : Persian Culture on the Global Scene. Hamid Dabashi. Cambridge (MA), Harvard University Press, [2015]. 297 pp. ISBN: 9780674495777.

Summary:
From antiquity to the Enlightenment, Persian culture has been integral to European history. Interest in all things Persian shaped not just Western views but the self-image of Iranians to the present day. Hamid Dabashi maps the changing geography of these connections, showing that traffic in ideas about Persia did not travel on a one-way street.

Pope’s Iliad and E. FitzGerald’s Rubáiyát

Pope’s Iliad and E. FitzGerald’s Rubáiyát.
In: The Lesbian Lyre: Reclaiming Sappho for the 21st Century. Jeffrey M. Duban. Clairview Books, 2016. 832p. ISBN 9781905570799

Summary:

Hailed by Plato as the “Tenth Muse” of ancient Greek poetry, Sappho is inarguably antiquity’s greatest lyric poet. Born over 2,600 years ago on the Greek island of Lesbos, and writing amorously of women and men alike, she is the namesake lesbian. What’s left of her writing, and what we know of her, is fragmentary. Duban provides a reader-friendly overview of Sappho’s times and themes, exploring her eroticism and Greek homosexuality overall.

Omar Khayyam – Mathematiker, Philosoph und Dichter

Omar Khayyam – Mathematiker, Philosoph und Dichter
In: Strick (Ed.) 2020 – Mathematik – einfach genial! Berlin : Springer, 2020. ISBN 978-3-662-60448-9. Pp. 97-114.

Summary:

Der persische Mathematiker, Astronom und Philosoph Omar Khayyam fand eine geniale Methode, um kubische Gleichungen zu lösen: Für jede der möglichen Gleichungstypen entwickelte er eine geeignete Konstruktion. Berühmt wurde Omar Khayyam auch als Dichter – einige seiner Verse gingen als geflügelte Worte in die englische Sprache ein.