Reflection of Paradox in the Mystical Worldview of Bidel Dehlavi

Abstract

Bidel Dehlavi, one of the most prominent poets of the Indian style, views existence through a deeply philosophical and mystical lens. His poetry embodies spiritual experience and metaphysical contemplation. A striking feature of Bidel’s worldview is the presence of paradox—not merely as a literary device, but as a means of expressing the mystical perception of truth. Through apparent contradictions, Bidel seeks reality beyond dualities, where reason fails and intuition reveals meaning within contradiction itself. The aim of this study is to explore how paradox functions in Bidel’s mystical worldview, demonstrating the poet’s use of contradictory expressions to convey concepts such as the unity of being, annihilation and subsistence (fanā and baqā), and the harmony of multiplicity and oneness. This research, conducted through a descriptive–analytical method and within philosophical and mystical frameworks, reveals that Bidel’s poetic logic is founded upon a paradoxical structure—one that establishes a subtle and spiritual connection between reason and love, being and non-being, multiplicity and unity.