Simurgh

thumb|[[Sassanian silver plate of a simurgh (Sēnmurw), 7th or 8th century CE]]

The simurgh (; ; also spelled senmurv, simorgh, simorg, simurg, simoorg, simorq or simourv) is a benevolent bird in Persian mythology and literature. It bears some similarities with mythological birds from different origins, such as the phoenix ( quqnūs) and the humā (). The figure can be found in all periods of Iranian art and literature and is also evident in the iconography of Georgia, medieval Armenia, the Eastern Roman Empire, and other regions that were within the realm of Persian cultural influence.

Etymology

The Persian word sīmurğ () derives from Middle Persian sēnmurw and earlier sēnmuruγ, also attested in Pazend texts as sīna-mrū. The Middle Persian word comes from Avestan mərəγō Saēnō "the bird Saēna", originally a raptor, likely an eagle, falcon, or sparrowhawk, as can be deduced from the etymological cognate Sanskrit śyenaḥ (श्येनः) raptor, eagle and bird of prey, which also appears as a divine figure. Saēna is also a personal name. The word was lent to Armenian as siramarg () 'peacock'.

On the other hand, the phrase sī murğ () means "thirty birds" in Persian; this has been used by Attar of Nishapur in his symbolic story of The Conference of the Birds, the frame story of which employs a play on the name. The Conference of the Birds directly references Simurghs as being the birds involved in the tale.

Mythology

left|thumb|[[Samanid dynasty|Samanian Simurgh platter" (9th-10th century). Simurgh as a word in Persian is a double entendre (or Īhām), and can be interpreted as 30 birds. This plate depicts that interpretation. Attar of Nishapur also mentions this interpretation in his poetic book of Conference of the Birds]].

thumb|left|Ambassador with Simurgh design on his dress in the [[Afrasiab murals, 648–651 CE.]]

Form and function

The Simurgh is depicted in Iranian art as a winged creature in the shape of a bird, gigantic enough to carry off an elephant or a whale. It appears as a peacock with the head of a dog and the claws of a lion – sometimes, however, also with a human face. The Simurgh is inherently benevolent. Being part mammal, they suckle their young. The Simurgh has an enmity towards snakes, and its natural habitat is a place with plenty of water.

The Sasanians heavily used the Simurgh, both as their tribal emblem, but also in their art and propaganda.

thumb|upright|left|Zal and the Simurgh on the [[Mount Qaf]]

In the Shahnameh

The simurgh made its most famous appearance in Ferdowsi's epic Shahnameh (Book of Kings), where its involvement with Prince Zal is described. According to the Shahnameh, Zal, the son of Saam, was born albino. When Saam saw his albino son, he assumed that the child was the spawn of devils, and abandoned the infant on the mountain Alborz.

The child's cries were heard by the tender-hearted simurgh, who lived atop this peak, and she retrieved the child and raised him as her own. Zal was taught much wisdom from the loving simurgh, who has all knowledge, but the time came when he grew into a man and yearned to rejoin the world of men. Though the simurgh was terribly saddened, she gave him three golden feathers which he was to burn if he ever needed her assistance.

Simurgh also warns Rostam about the fate that awaits the killer of Esfandiyār and asks Rostam to consider surrendering to the Prince, and since he is a divine prince there would be no shame in surrendering to him. But Rostam refuses to accept either the shame of surrendering or being chained by anyone. Upon making this decision, Simurgh carries Rostam to the tamarisk tree, where he fashions the double head arrow with a feather of Simurgh and a twig of the tamarisk tree. When the battle resumes the next morning, Esfandiyār is blinded by a shot through the eye.

Before dying, Esfandiyār tells Rostam to take his son Bahman under his wing and not to blame himself: it was the false promise of his father and the Arrow of Simurgh that killed him. Esfandiyār tells Rostam that Goshtasp should be guilty as the real murderer. After his death, Esfandiyār is put into a box and was sent to Goshtasp.

In Persian Sufi poetry

upright|thumb|Simurgh from the works of [[Attar of Nishapur]]

In classical and modern Persian literature the simorḡ is frequently mentioned, particularly as a metaphor for God in Sufi mysticism.

The phrase also appears three times in Rumi's Masnavi, e.g. in Book VI, Story IX: "The nest of the sī murğ is beyond Mount Qaf" (as translated by E.H. Whinfield).

Through heavy Persian influence, the simurgh was introduced to the Arabic-speaking world, where the concept was conflated with other Arabic mythical birds such as the ghoghnus, a bird having some mythical relation with the date palm, and further developed as the rukh (the origin of the English word "roc").

Representations of simurgh were adopted in early Umayyad art and coinage.

In Kurdish folklore

Simurgh is shortened to "sīmir" in the Kurdish language.

The title of Salman Rushdie's first novel, Grimus (1975), is an anagram of Simurg.
Simurgh is the name of a proxy tool introduced in 2009 that helps residents of Iran avoid government censorship of websites.
The Crystal Simorgh is an award given by Fajr International Film Festival.
The Simorgh is one of the creatures encountered by the protagonists in the 2006 movie Azur & Asmar: The Princes' Quest.
The Simurgh is the name of one of the Endbringers in the 2011 Worm web serial.
In the Yu-Gi-Oh card game, Simorgh is the boss monster of its own archetype.
A Simurgh card from a fictional collectible card game serves as a major plot device in the sci-fi novel Entanglement, by Gibson Monk.
A simurgh appeared in chapter 49 of the manga Delicious in Dungeon as Laios contemplates various bird-like monsters. It is shown large enough to hold an elephant in its talons.
The Simurgh is featured in Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, a 2024 video game in which it indirectly grants the player character various time-manipulation powers used to progress in the game. It also serves as a plot device, as the antagonist of the game seeks to master its power.
In her poem "Garden Simurgh", Kathleen Raine describes how 'I hung out nuts for the blue-tits but the sparrows came, / All thirty of them / With a flurry of wings, / One mind in thirty vociferous selves...' eventually concluding that no 'wonder-bird' should be deemed 'more miraculous' than these 'two-a-farthing sparrows / Each feather bearing the carelessly-worn signature / Of the universe'.
The Simurgh is referenced in both Zeyn Joukhadar’s novels, The Map of Salt and Stars and The Thirty Names of Night. In the latter novel, an ornithologist names a (fictional) species of ibis Geronticus simurghus, after the mythical Simurgh.

Gallery

File:Zal in the Nest of Simurgh LACMA M.73.5.447.jpg|Simurgh at its nest

File:Bird Simurgh on Nadir Devanbegi Madrasah, Bukhara (Симург на Медресе Нодир-Диван-Беги, Nodir devonbegi madrasasi).jpg|Decoration outside of Nadir Divan-Beghi madrasah, Bukhara

File:Basawan. The Flight of the Simurgh. ca. 1590, Sadruddin Aga Khan Collection.jpg|Painting of the Simurgh made in the Mughal Empire

File:Detail. Simurgh platter. From Iran. Samanids dynasty. 9th-10th century CE. Islamic Art Museum (Museum für Islamische Kunst), Berlin.jpg|Simurgh platter. From Iran. Samanid dynasty, 9th–10th century CE. Museum für Islamische Kunst, Berlin

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Etymology

Mythology

Form and function

In the Shahnameh

In Persian Sufi poetry

In Kurdish folklore

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

External links