(lecture in Dutch by Asghar Seyed-Gohrab at the launch of the Dutch scholarly journal ZemZem: Tijdschrift over het Midden-Oosten, Noord-Afrika en islam).

During this lecture, Asghar Seyed-Gohrab discussed the question of why Hafez has been continuously popular in the Persian cultural area for more than six hundred years. What makes his poems as emblems of Islamic piety for some people, while other readers see them as a rejection of orthodox Islam?     How can his poems about wine, homoerotic poetry and the criticism of the holiest Islamic principles be seen as the heart of Islam? In this lecture, Asghar Seyed-Gohrab examined Hafez’s reception history through a few examples to demonstrate his popularity as a poet for people from all walks of life.

Location: Huis de Pinto, Sint Antoniesbreestraat 69, Amsterdam
Date: Saturday June 25, 10:30 AM

Also have a look at https://www.zemzemtijdschrift.nl/ for more details about the launch of this new journal.