Ahmad Shamlou

The Iranian poet Ahmad Shamlou died on July 24, 2000. Born in 1925, Shamlou had been called the most influential Iranian poet of this century. In a land where poetry is considered part of national identity, this was no small accomplishment. He was also a distinguished journalist with a witty and powerful language and humanistic views that brought him enemies as well as many friends.

Shamlou was a secular intellectual and humanist who was an icon for those who believe people deserve better treatment than what they received under the monarchist and the Islamic regimes. A long time ago he wrote: "My fear is to die in a land in which the wages of a grave-digger are more valuable than human freedom." In the tradition of great poets like Pablo Neruda and Nazim Hekmat, Shamlou found his source of inspiration among people's myths and tales.

One of his greatest accomplishments was a monumental encyclopedia of Iranian folklore called Book of the Street. This undertaking, which is in tens of volumes, has not been allowed complete publication by the Islamic regime.

Most of Shamlou's poetry evolved around the concepts of humanism, love and freedom, with all the complexity and mysticism love has in Iranian literature. Humanism is a universal concept in his poetry. He wrote poetry about "Vietnam's comrades" and any other human being who fought to be free. He started a project to introduce the most important poets from other countries to the Iranian public, which resulted in a series of audio tapes that popularized the poetry of Langston Hughes, Garcia Lorca and Margot Bigel.

During the years 1953-1973 when the opposition to the Shah was broken and stagnation became the main feature of political life in Iran, Shamlou did not lose his humanistic views. During his years of pessimism, he wrote love poetry for his love Aida. But even the love poems were universal rather than being an individual expression.

His death is mourned by those who value the human soul and emotions because he was the poet of our soul. Tens of thousands in Tehran attended his funeral with red roses in their hands and his poetry on their lips.

-Bahram Teymoorian