A comparative study of the concept of love in Ghazali's “Sawaneh” and Wong Kar Wai's “In the Mood for Love”

Introduction: The concept of love has been challenging human logic and emotions since ancient times. Despite all studies and experiences, this concept still does not have a comprehensive definition in the world but it includes many humanistic issues and relationships. Scientists of various theoretical and practical sciences have been dealing with this topic for a long time, and in this research, the ideas of two of them have been reconciled. These two scientists are Wong Kar Wai, a renowned Hong Kong director known for his distinctive work style, and Abul Fatah Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Ahmad Ghazali, a great mystic from the late 5th and early 6th centuries. According to different requirements, the views on love are various, including religious beliefs, geographical conditions, intellectual development of the society, etc. It seems that these two thinkers, despite several centuries of time gap and thousands of Kilometers of spatial distance, have many points in common in this case, which can be due to the Eastern view (in the general sense) of love, but the reasons of these similarities are not the subject of the present discussion. This research aims to write dramatic texts (both plays and screenplays) that are deeper than the texts which are on the surface and so-called body, especially about love, which is the subject of Persian classical literature, for example, the prose of mystical messengers can be helpful in different ways. This research uses the library method and deductive reasoning with the movie script to demonstrate that elements within our classical literature, while not inherently dramatic, can serve as a solid basis for developing successful dramatic texts.
Background: The Book of Swaneh is the first Persian written treatise that only talks about love and has had a great impact on similar texts in the future. Examining this book is not possible only by interpreting the meaning of the words, and due to the existence of mystical beliefs, it needs a mystical explanation, which Riazi and Mujahed have done. In this regard, articles have been written about Sheikh Ahmad's book and beliefs, which have been used for a correct understanding of her words, such as Sarati and Shakeri.
Objectives: The movie "In the Mood for Love" is generally considered a successful movie in terms of reception by experts and critics, which achieves its purpose through the poetic use of the concept of love. This research is trying to express the beauty and potential of Eastern love (Whether Ghazali wrote it or Wong Kar Wai) and show its capabilities to create a magnificent dramatic work that can compete with Western versions. Meanwhile, their differences are also identified.
Method: First, it should be determined whether these two texts are compatible at all, or in other words, whether they are congruent or not. For instance, it should be proved that Ghazali also talks about material love like Wai. Of course, Ghazali's intended love is more sublime, but according to himself, it also includes physical love for humans and has no limited direction. After proving compatibility, a comparative analysis has been done.
Result: The results indicate that issues such as separation, connection, relationship between the lover and the beloved, destiny, and mechanisms of love are very similar in two texts. These similarities show their differences compared to Western and Hollywood love, which is the result of the way different cultures look at the issue of love. One is pure, sublime, spiritual and gentle, and the other is physical, humanistic, material, and wild.
Conclusion: The author can create a work that has something to say in the world of cinema and theater by using the capabilities of Persian romantic-mystical texts. The witness of this is the Wai’s movie, which is similar to Sawaneh in many ways.