Volume 17, Issue 2 (2026 2026)
JIM 2026, 17(2): 204-226 |
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Jamshidbolouki F, Rouhani M, Hasanpour Alashti H, Bagheri Khalili A. (2026). The Conceptual Metaphor of the Nafs as a Living Being in Rumi’s Masnavi. JIM. 17(2), 204-226.
URL: http://erfanmag.ir/article-1-1741-en.html
URL: http://erfanmag.ir/article-1-1741-en.html
University of Mazandaran
Abstract: (181 Views)
Ontological metaphor is a major type of conceptual metaphor through which events, phenomena, and abstract concepts are understood in terms of entities or objects. In the Masnavi, Rumi makes extensive use of metaphorical language to render abstract concepts concrete and intelligible, and his conceptualization of the nafs al-ammāra (the commanding/self-indulgent soul) is a prominent example of this practice. The present study adopts a descriptive-analytical approach to examine the conceptual metaphor of construing the nafs as a living being in the Masnavi. The findings indicate that Rumi moves beyond conventional mystical descriptions and develops a metaphorical-psychological conceptualization of the nafs. The personification of the nafs transforms it into an intelligible and dialogical entity, enabling the reader to recognize the mechanisms through which the lower self deceives and controls the human subject. Its animalization, by contrast, draws upon image schemas of obstruction, force, predation, and confinement to emphasize the instinctual and enslaving dimensions of the human primal self. This dual metaphorical representation is rooted in earlier religious and mystical traditions as well as in the cultural archetype of the “shadow,” yet it also reflects Rumi’s distinctive innovation in providing a cognitive embodiment of an ethical problem. The integrated metaphorical system ultimately serves not merely a descriptive function but a pedagogical and ethical one: it enables the spiritual wayfarer to conceptualize the struggle between uncontrolled impulses and practical reason and to transform the process of spiritual discipline into a more tangible and manageable form.
Keywords: Ontological Metaphor, Personification, Animalization, Nafs, Masnavi, Moral Philosophy, Impulse Control, Comparative Mysticism.
Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
مثنوی پژوهی
Received: 2025/09/25 | Accepted: 2026/02/5 | Published: 2026/07/28
Received: 2025/09/25 | Accepted: 2026/02/5 | Published: 2026/07/28
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