An analysis of Good and Evil in the Dastan-e-Amir Hamza Sahibqiran

Author

Sarah ImranFollow

Degree

BS (Social Sciences & Liberal Arts)

Faculty / School

School of Economics and Social Sciences (SESS)

Department

Department of Social Sciences & Liberal Arts

Date of Award

Spring 2023

Date of Submission

2023-08-22

Advisor

Aliya Iqbal Naqvi, Visiting Faculty, Department of Social Sciences

Project Type

SSLA Culminating Experience

Access Type

Restricted Access

Keywords

Theology, Theodicy, Dastan-e-Amir Hamza, Islam, Zoroastrianism

Abstract

This paper is largely a thematic analysis of how the South Asian iteration of the great Perso-Islamic epic, the Dastan-e-Amir Hamza Sahibqiran, explores the concepts of “good” and “evil”, using frameworks informed by Islamic and Zoroastrian theology and theodicy. Chapter 1 defines the dastan genre and historically and culturally contextualizes the Dastan-e-Amir Hamza as a popular literary text with a deep history and broad geographical spread. Chapter 2 sets parameters of good and evil in terms of Islamic and Zoroastrian theology and theodicy, thereby establishing a flexible framework of good and evil. Chapter 3 analyses three central, overarching themes, namely ‘The True Faith’, ‘Trickery/Ayyari’, and ‘Gender and Masculinity’, in light of the aforementioned framework. The analysis predominantly focuses on Book 1, Book 2, and Book 3 of Musharraf Ali Farooqui’s English translation of the 19^th century Ghalib Lakhnavi and Abdullah Bilgrami Urdu version of the Dastan-e-Amir Hamza Sahibqiran.

Pages

iv, 63

Recommended Citation

Imran, S. (2023). An analysis of Good and Evil in the Dastan-e-Amir Hamza Sahibqiran (Unpublished undergraduate project). Institute of Business Administration, Pakistan. Retrieved from https://ir.iba.edu.pk/sslace/250