Department of Persian Language and Literature, Dezful Branch, Islamic Azad University, Dezful, Iran.
Abstract
Folk and oral narratives associated with epic literature, particularly the Shahnameh, have evolved as an extension of the Shahnameh-writing tradition. These narratives constitute significant sources that contribute to the understanding and resolution of complexities within formal epic literature. The late Abolqasem Enjavi Shirazi previously compiled and published these narratives in a three-volume set. One of the notable features observed in these narratives is the fabrication of reasons for certain events depicted in the Shahnameh. This study, employing a descriptive-analytical method, aims to present the reasons given for events in folk narratives and analyze them in comparison with the Shahnameh. The findings indicate that many of these events either have no stated reason in the Shahnameh (such as the reason behind the fragrant citron in Rostam’s hand or the motivation behind the composition of the Rostam and Esfandiar story) or, if a reason is provided, it differs from what appears in folk narratives (such as the reason for Zahhak being bound to the mountain, the enmity of Salm and Tur toward Iraj, and others). In these narratives, storytellers, influenced by popular perspectives, construct folk-based reasons for events. Notably, in many cases—such as the enmity of Salm and Tur toward Iraj, the whiteness of Zal’s hair and complexion, the battle between Kok-e Kūhzād and Zal, the hostility between Kay Kavus and Rostam, and Siyavash’s journey to Zabol— a woman is portrayed as the primary catalyst for these occurrences.
