This article presents a comparative study of the poetic visions of Hafez Shirazi and Urfi Shirazi, two of the most significant figures in Persian ghazal poetry. Despite living in different historical periods, both poets share profound similarities in their treatment of mystical love, symbolic language, poetic imagination, and critique of religious hypocrisy. Hafez represents the classical style of Persian ghazal enriched with spiritual depth and symbolic density, while Urfi emerges as a pioneer of the Indian Style, introducing bold metaphors, innovative imagery, and philosophical wit. The paper explores how both poets utilize traditional symbols such as wine, the tavern, the beloved, and nature to express transcendental experiences. It further highlights their shared aesthetic concerns, including linguistic innovation, metaphorical complexity, and mystical symbolism. Through close reading and textual analysis, the study reveals that Persian ghazal, as seen in Hafez and Urfi, is not only lyrical and romantic but also intellectually and spiritually sophisticated.
Keywords: Hafez Shirazi, Urfi Shirazi, Persian Ghazal, Mystical Love, Symbolism, Indian Style, Poetic Imagination, Sufi Aesthetics, Persian Literary Tradition, Comparative Literatur
