EMBEDDED POETIC FORMS IN SAYQALI’S BAHROM AND GULANDOM: FUNCTIONS OF MUSADDAS, MUSTAZAD, AND QUATRAINS

This study examines the compositional and narrative functions of three embedded poetic forms in Sayqali’s eighteenth-century love epic Bahrom and Gulandom: musaddas, mustazad, and four-line stanzas (to‘rtliklar). The epic is predominantly organized in masnavi couplets, yet these inserted forms alter the pace, voice, and psychological density of key scenes. Using qualitative close reading, structural-poetic analysis, and contextual interpretation of the 1960 printed edition, the study asks how formal change contributes to characterization and narrative development. The musaddas spoken by the vizier Dastur employs six-line stanzas and a recurring closing distich to transform astonishment into counsel, recollection, and the restoration of Bahrom’s royal identity. The mustazad suspends plot progression during the meeting of Sarvoso, Ruhafzo, and Gulandom, using supplementary short lines and concentrated imagery to create a lyrical pause of visual and social harmony. The sustained sequence of quatrains in the first extended conversation between Bahrom and Gulandom functions differently: each stanza forms a compact speech act, while the alternating sequence gradually discloses identity, desire, resistance, humor, and mutual recognition. The findings show that Sayqali does not employ these forms as decorative insertions. Rather, formal shifts serve distinct compositional functions within the larger narrative and demonstrate a deliberate integration of lyric and stanzaic techniques into epic storytelling.

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