Mirror of the Invisible World

"Nizami (1141-1209) is the greatest poet of Azerbaijan and one of the most significant poets in the whole of Asia. He was born and grew up in Ganja, spending all his life in that region. He is the apostle of Eastern poetry and his Khamseh, his five epic poems, are his most famous work. He wrote in Farsi and today I think interest in his poetry is growing again. He invented the idea of Utopia and his poem ‘Leyla and Majnun’ has the roots of the Romeo and Juliet story in it. Apart from encapsulating 1,000 years of poetic tradition, he uses the most progressive thoughts, metaphors and symbols from the 12th century and you really feel connected to the time when you read him. The Russian translation is better than the English."