Zulaykhā's Displaced Desire in Jāmī's Yūsuf va Zulaykhā

Abstract

Focusing on Zulaykhā's desire for the Prophet Yūsuf in 'Abd al-Raḥmān al-Jāmī's (d. 1492 CE) poem Yūsuf va Zulaykhā, this article will examine some of the spaces and sites within the poem that are directly linked to Sufi themes and interpretations. I also argue that the institution of marriage acts as a context for Zulaykhā's displaced desire. Zulaykhā, who is married to Potiphar, the ʿAzīz (Master) of Egypt, transgresses the moral boundaries of the institution of marriage due to her profane love for the Prophet Joseph (Yūsuf). This transgression displaces Zulaykhā's desire from its religiously proper place in the realm of the sacred to the inferior and profane sphere. However, spaces are dynamic and hence polysemic. Thus, this article will also interpret Zulaykhā's body, her dreams, the depiction of Yūsuf as the mirror-image of divine, Zulaykhā's walled garden, and the doors of Zulaykhā's palace as sites for the production and reproduction of Sufi knowledge. Furthermore, it is only after enduring pain and suffering that Zulaykhā's transgression can be forgiven. Potiphar's death and Zulaykhā's widowhood, her breaking of the idol that symbolizes her profane love, and her conversion to Islam remove the obstacles caused by her transgression of moral boundaries and make her available for marriage to Yūsuf. The moral of the poem is that the realization of the (sexual, carnal) union between Yūsuf and Zulaykhā can only be possible through the intercession of the spiritual dimension; hence, this story is ultimately about the relationship between the sacred and the profane.