TEHRAN – A selection of 50 ghazals by Persian poet Hafez has been published in Hungarian in Pecs.

The collection, which also contains the original Persian texts, was unveiled during a ceremony at the Embassy of Iran in Budapest on Tuesday, the Persian service of IRNA reported on Wednesday.

Iranian Ambassador Gholamali Rajabi Yazdi and Pecs Mayor Zsolt Pava attended the ceremony. 

Shiraz, the hometown of Hafez, and Pecs became sister cities in 2016.

Pava said that his interest in Hafez and his mysterious poetry made him publish the selection in the Hungarian language.

He expressed his hope that the book could help Hungarian people be familiarized with Hafez and Persian literature.

Hafez (c. 1325-c. 1389) originally named Mohammad Shams od-din gained the respectful title Hafez, meaning “one who has memorized the Quran,” as a teacher of the Quran. His poems reflect the Sufi’s burning passion for union with the divine.

The Divan of Hafez contains more than 500 poems composed in a style commonly known as “ghazal,” a poetic form that he brought to perfection.

Photo: Pecs Mayor Zsolt Pava (L) and Iranian Ambassador Gholamali Rajabi Yazdi pose for a photo during the unveiling ceremony of a Hungarian collection of Hafez poetry in Budapest on March 06, 2018. (IRNA)

RM/YAW