?Ali-nama

Until the discovery of the Persian ?Ali-nama, Ibn Husam's Khawaran-nama (completed in 830/1427) was believed to be the oldest Persian epic poem involving the often wondrous exploits of ?Ali b. Abi Talib and the beginnings of Shi?ism. The Khawaran-nama takes its inspiration from Firdawsi's Shah-nama (completed in 400/1010), but then adapted to fit the Shi?i theme, with ?Ali and his companions often taking the place of Rustam and other heroes. With this edition of the ?Ali-nama we now have access to a much older poem on this subject. Composed by someone using the alias of Rabi?, it was completed in 482/1089 in Khurasan, most probably in or near the town of Sabzawar, just seventy years after the completion of Firdawsi's Shah-nama. The text is important because long before others, it acknowledges the heroes of the Shah-nama, some of whom were actually written into the script.