TEHRAN – Hafez National Day was observed during a ceremony at his mausoleum in Shiraz on Monday.

Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati, a large number of scholars and experts on Hafez and interested people attended the ceremony, which was followed by a performance by Hamavayan Ensemble led by tar and setar virtuoso Hossein Alizadeh, Persian media reported on Tuesday.

Speaking at the ceremony, Jannati asked the Iranian sculptors to think of making a statue of Hafez.

He called Hafez the historical heritage and the credits of Persian literature like other Persian scholars and literary figures.

“The mysterious and enigmatic character of Hafez contains thousands of ideas and points, and unsealing these mysteries lies in the hands of the great scholars,” Jannati added.

Jannati also called the poetry of Hafez eternal and said that his divan is an ocean full of morals and a mystical journey in a simple and beautiful form.

Secretary of the event Behzad Moridi in his brief speech said, “People live with Hafez since he has not been repeated and is not dreary and repetitive.”

“In order to know the world of Hafez and his poetry, one needs to drown in his words,” he added.

The ceremony was brought to an end with a lecture delivered by expert on Hafez Asghar Dadbeh and a daf performance by a group of young musicians from Shiraz.

Photo: Hamavayan Ensemble led by tar virtuoso Hossein Alizadeh (3rd from right) performs during a celebration for Hafez National Day at his mausoleum in Shiraz on October 12, 2015. (Mehr/Amin Berenjkar)

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