Abdul Ali Dastghaib: Whatever we say has the aspect of advice!

Hamshahri Online – Farshad Shirzadi: Abdul Ali Dastghib, a critic and translator of philosophy, says: “In the new era, technological tools have entered Iran, but the understanding and understanding of the modern world is not good. Today’s youth do not have a correct image of the West and they know the history of their country for four thousand years. Nowruz days are a good opportunity for young people to take a look at some books of the authors I mentioned and get to know the history of Iran better. “The good book is still printed, but only in limited circulation.”

What book do you recommend the audience to read in Nowruz?

First, I would like to say something: the book has lost its generality at the moment. With the advent of smartphones and new online news devices, the book is no longer as important as it was in the old world. Of course, it is still effective in our country as a means of communication, albeit at a limited level. In cultural institutions, they don’t seek solutions to publicize book reading. That is, if they also provide information about this, i.e. reading the book, it will be considered as advice. So, naturally, it does not have a major effect. This is one of the defects of our society that reading rarely happens.

Why?

Because our society is still not used to reading and studying. For example, they say that about 32 minutes of reading is done every day and night, which of course includes audio books. With the advent of mobile phones and modern devices, the level of reading books has decreased. In the 40’s or 20’s, we used to refer to books when we wanted to pass our free time or do research. The book became important in the new era, that is, from the time of the constitution. So that many rulers, that is, those who became prime ministers or obtained important positions, were writers themselves. For example, Mohammad Ali Foroughi himself was a writer and a book owner. He wrote the book “The Path of Wisdom in Europe”. But gradually, as the new civilization entered Iran and our society became more technological, not only the habit of reading books and reading newspapers faded, but the discussion and conversation about books and newspapers also faded. So that now you rarely come across people who can be argued with like in the 40s. For example, in the 40s, we used to gather at Cafe Firouz, Cafe Salman, and Marmar Hotel and talk about Forough Farrokhzad’s poems and people like Sohrab Sepehri.

Did these cafes continue in Nowruz?

Yes. For example, I remember one Nowruz when the book “Huhr Aho Khanum” written by Ali Mohammad Afghani was published, we discussed about this book. Even some of the new poets and writers asked me, who had read the book, what the Afghani book says and what its importance is. Likewise, “Bamadad Khamar” was discussed in intellectual circles. On that date and during Nowruz of those years, we used to get together and talk about Shamlou and Nima’s poems.

What was the difference from today?

When you talk to today’s youth about western philosophy and even modernity, they don’t even listen. That means we cannot communicate with them. Refer to the books written about Molavi and Hafez, and you will find out how far off topic these authors are. For example, Dariush Shaygan has not read or digested Persian literature properly at all. He discusses about Hafez and Maulawi Bimahaba. Young people who study his works, for example, if Hafez’s poems are discussed and he comes across “Qaf Mountain”, he thinks that they should pick up a camera and go find the Qaf Mountain. This is despite the fact that modernity has not fully settled yet. That new civilization, its tools and devices have come to our country, but it has not come to its understanding. Therefore, public memory is very weak. Even I believe that the young generation does not know anything about the constitutional revolution and the fall of the Safavid dynasty. So, in my opinion, the best way to reconcile them with studying is to prepare programs for the young generation during Nowruz, so that this year’s Nowruz, the history of Iran and Iranian customs will be presented in a clear and flowing language, not with boasting, but in a real way. Watch and listen to podcasts, lectures or movies. Maybe if this happens, the young generation will get to know their historical past. Of course, there are other ways to present and spread book reading and newspaper reading. I have also told the managers of some newspapers that what you publish in your newspaper is available online 24 hours before.

So what should be done to return books and newspapers to the context of people’s lives?

It should be checked what the youth and people of the society want. What books have they read so far and in what fields of study do they have a background. In general, we have abandoned the youth. We have no means to introduce them to Hafez, Ferdowsi and people like Tolostoy and James Joyce, etc. It means that the young generation has an empty mentality. He neither knows the West properly nor understands modernity. In this circle as well, I think that the people who created the situation are to blame. People like Ahmed Fardid, Dariush Shaygan, Ali Shariati, Jalal Ahmed and Babak Ahmadi. These people, without reading the history of Iran and understanding Persian poetry and western philosophy, for example, publish a book like “Asia versus the West”. That they make a bunch of nonsense. For example, Dariush Shaygan is a very illiterate person. Someone who has been to France and learned French can easily plagiarize. For example, the book “New Enchantment” was stolen from a German author. He says something that, according to Sadegh’s words, Hedayat makes the cooked chicken on rice laugh. He wrote that we don’t have any writer who has the sharpness, intensity and sharpness of criticism of Sartre’s pen. In the same book, he says that the West cannot go to Mount Qaf instead! These thoughts are very dangerous for a nation that has a history of 4,000 to 5,000 years. Such a writer has not understood his past properly and he does not know Hafez and Molavi.

In my book about Maulvi, I mention that all those who have talked about Maulvi, such as Badi al-Zaman and Homai, their greatest art is to express what Maulvi himself said in simpler prose. In fact, this is not Maulavizology or Hafezology. We should know literary criticism and study books. We must know what the thoughts of young people are. At this historical moment, our youth should study briefly about the history of Iran, and what better opportunity than today. One of the best books about Iran was written by “Joseph Arthur Comte de Gobineau”. He was a friend of Iran and wrote a lot about Iran. Another book I recommend in this regard is “How Iran fell behind and Europe advanced”, which should be read in Nowruz. I advise young people to read the good book that is still being published but only with a smaller circulation, and especially to hear their problems of understanding and understanding from those who are more experienced. Don’t be like the intellectuals of these few decades who jump over the words. It is as if this group has solved all the problems when they say “modern civilization”! Young people and intellectuals should know the issues and see what the existing elements are. This year we should pay more attention to literature, books and philosophy.