Folio 179b | "The Townsman Robs the Villager's Orchard"
The Townsman Robs the Villager's Orchard
This folio surrounds a diliqan (or landlord) who invites a city dweller into his garden. The orchard is described as “adorned like the garden of paradise”, with rich grapevines and trees bearing apples, pears, and pomegranates. The townsman suddenly flies into a rage at the sight of the bounty and begins to break branches, tear the fruit from the trees and ravage the vines. The villager watches on in agony, not knowing how to stop the destruction.
“Who shares [my] pain, knows [my] pain, [but] the description of it is dull to those who do not feel my pain”, says the dihqaii (landlord)
In this image, the dihqaii stands in his orchard, gesturing to it in resignation as the city dweller pulls down the slender branch of a pomegranate tree and rips off a fruit. Other limbs of the tree hang damaged as if they have also been ravaged. Interestingly, the townsman is dressed in clothing associated with a “refined city gentleman” while the city dweller is wearing work clothing.
Below the garden scene at the gate, a gardener gives some grapes to a beggar on the street as an act of charity, a striking contrast to the violent actions of the city dweller.
There is contrast within the illustration between the four youths enjoying themselves in the pavilion, a common image in Persian painting associated with the idea of the garden as paradise.
The Use of Fruit in folio 179b
In this folio, fruit is used as a mechanism for emphasizing the actions of others, and for constructing a message about treating others with kindness and respect, a theme common in Jami’s work.
For the villager, the fruit in his garden is a representation of his livelihood and hard work. The garden is regarded often in Islamic literature and poetry as comparable to paradise, because plants and natural things are the creations of God. The townsman’s actions in destroying the villager’s garden shows his lack of regard or understanding for the villager’s work, but also for God’s creations and gifts to humanity.
The townsman’s acts of greed are contrasted by the actions of the gardener at the lower portion of the folio. The gardener gives a bunch of grapes to a beggar as he passes, providing an example of kindness and generosity. The use of the fruit in this context emphasizes the beauty in sharing God’s creations with those in need and taking part in acts of charity (essential to the Muslim faith).
Persian Poetry, Painting and Patronage: Illustrations in a Sixteenth-Century Masterpiece by Marianna Shreve Simpson, Freer Gallery of Art
https://www.asia.si.edu/explore/teacherResources/Connections_EastofEden.pdf