Culture and context of Catherine of Siena and Hafez

 Catherine of Siena:

            Catherine of Siena grew up and lived in a time of turbulence and change in both Italy and Europe as a whole. She was born at the start of the Black Death that ravaged Europe killing a third of its population. Catherine’s home of Siena was reduced from a population of 50-60 thousand people in 1330 to less than twenty thousand in 1348 (Vauchez). The disease took the life of Catherine’s twin sister, and in an outbreak of it in 1374, Catherine lost three siblings and 8 nieces and nephews (Malone p.193). However, Europe was going through massive political, economic, and religious changes as well, all of which have left distinctive fingerprints on Catherine’s life and in her ministries. Catherine was born and raised in a wealthy family of mercantilists and wool dyers (Butler p.19) who were given increased political power and influence when ‘The Nine’ (a group of urban partisans of the Italian bourgeoisie) were overthrown and replaced by ‘The Twelve’ in 1355. As a member of the upper-class Sienese society, (with two of her brothers even being in the government) Catherine not only saw the immense wealth of the city but also the great corruption that accompanied it (Vauchez). Siena was one of the major economic centers of Italy, however, that wealth was not shared evenly among its population. Clergy represented 1% of the population yet owned 50% of the wealth in the city (Malone p.192). For someone like Catherine who had a deep understanding of the Christian call to poverty, this rightfully ignited her righteous anger. It was such people that she did not stop deploring in her many letters (Vauchez). However, the most significant change that Catherine witnessed happened in the political sector. She sought to unite all of humanity under Christ in love (Malone pp.196-197). One way she sought to accomplish this was by returning the papacy to Rome which she eventually accomplished in 1377 (O’Driscoll p.10). However, this victory of hers was short-lived as the church shortly thereafter underwent The Great Schism in which the church was divided in two after more than one person tried to claim the title of ‘Pope’. The last 18 months of Catherine’s life were spent desperately trying to reunite the church (O’Driscoll pp.10-11) and she is said to have died from a broken heart (Malone p.174).

 

Hafez:

            ‘The House of Knowledge’ and ‘The City of Saints and Poets’ are two of the many ways people have described the Shiraz into which Hafez was born and lived. It was a hub for culture, literature, art, and philosophy often being compared to Florence Italy (Leonard p.3) Despite the city’s political instability and violence (Limbert p.49), it fostered the ideal environment for the making of a great poet like Hafez. Following the fall of Mongol rule, Iran and Iraq fractured into many segments with each being controlled by a local dynasty including, but not limited to the Injuids (1325–1353), the Muzaffarids (ca. 1314–1393), and Jalayirids (late 1330s to 1432). The arts, including poetry, saw a particular flourishing under the rule of Shah Shaykh Abu Ishaq. This is partly due to the generous patronage that kings and rulers gave to poets to do their bidding such as lampooning political rivals and sending positive images of the king/ruler abroad (Dominic pp.12-13). During his lifetime Hafez had his fair share of the spoils of political patronage serving such notable people of power and influence as Shah Shuja who was a poet himself. (Dominic p.3) These rulers also lent their wealth to the funding of many colleges, universities, and Sufi centers across Shiraz which contributed to the city’s intellectual flourishing as well as to Hafez’s (Leonard p.3) However, the literary talent of Shiraz was not just limited to the praise and uplifting of those in authority. For instance, the anti-clerical and anti-Sufi sentiment was prominent in the writings of Shiraz’s poets including Hafez (Dominic p.11). In particular, Hafez was extremely critical of false Sufis (Leonard). Nor was it limited to male and heteronormative standards. There were several prominent female poetic contemporaries of Hafez including Jahan-Malik Khatun (Dominic p.6), and a fair amount of the poetry of the time included homoerotic themes and undertones (Domonic p.9).

 

Similarities in the culture and context of Catherine of Siena and Hafez:

            There are several notable similarities in the cultures and contexts in which Catherine of Siena and Hafez lived. Most notable is the fact that they both grew up in cities that were major economic, social, and intellectual centers. They also both came from wealthy, financially stable backgrounds and households. The notable difference between the two mystics lies in how they responded to their respective environments. Whereas Hafez fully took advantage of the wealth that surrounded him through the use of royal patronage, Catherine condemned the wealth and excess exhibited by those around her and threw herself into a life of asceticism and poverty. However, that is not to say that Catherine, like Hafez, did not have many connections with prominent and influential people in her time. For instance, it was Catherine’s many letters to Pope Gregory XI that convinced him to move the papacy back to Rome. Hafez, like Catherine, was also critical of several aspects of society that he found displeasure in including debauchery and false Sufis (Limbert p.73)

 

Sources:

 

Butler, Josephine Elizabeth Grey. Catharine of Siena : A Biography. 3d ed., H. Marshall, 1894.

 

Catherine, and Mary O’Driscoll. Catherine of Siena-- Passion for the Truth, Compassion for Humanity : Selected Spiritual Writings. Edited by Mary O’Driscoll, New City Press, 1993.

Dominic Parviz Brookshaw. Hafiz and His Contemporaries : Poetry, Performance and Patronage In Fourteenth Century Iran. I.B. Tauris, 2019. https://bereacollege.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1089126002..

 

Leonard Lewisohn. Hafiz and the Religion of Love in Classical Persian Poetry. I.B. Tauris, 2010. https://bereacollege.on.worldcat.org/oclc/680041068.

 

Limbert, John W. Shiraz in the Age of Hafez : The Glory of a Medieval Persian City. University of Washington Press, 2004. https://bereacollege.on.worldcat.org/oclc/758005969.

 

Malone, Mary T. Women & Christianity. Orbis Books, 2001.

 

Vauchez, André. Catherine of Siena : A Life of Passion and Purpose. Paulist Press, 2018. https://bereacollege.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1022075124.