The details surrounding his biography are not clear. It is known that he worked during the reign of Ilkhan Abu Sa'id Bahadur Khan (1316-1335), and that he was also a contemporary of the Persian poet Hafez (d. 1390), who was also from Shiraz. It is unclear whether '"Shahin" is the poet's first name or his pen name. It is possible that he was from Kashan and that he was buried in Shiraz.[1]
His epic poem on the tale of Esther, Ardashir-nāmah, includes multiple stories in addition to the well-known biblical narrative.[5] For example, Shāhin also expounds on the adventures of Shiru, the son of Ardashir (Ahaseurus) and Queen Vashti.[1]
David Gilinsky, "An original critical edition with English translation of Chapter 26 of Ardashir Nameh", BA Finals Dissertation, Cambridge University, April 1992, available from Cambridge University Library and on SCRIBD.
Vera Basch Moreen (tr. and ed.), In Queen Esther's Garden: An Anthology of Judeo-Persian Literature (Yale Judaica): Yale 2000, ISBN 0300079052. Includes excerpts from Shāhin's epics in English translation
Musical Adaptations
In 2022, Iranian-Canadian composer, Iman Habibi, composed Shāhīn-nāmeh as a winner of the 2022 Azrieli Music Prize. Shāhīn-nāmeh is a 25-minute piece for orchestra and soloist on the story of Queen Esther from Ardashir-Nameh, and uses poetry from Shahin Shirazi's Ardashir-nameh. This piece was premiered by Orchestre Métropolitain and Sepideh Raissadat in Montreal.
Bereshit-nāmah
Shāhīn, Sefer sharḥ-i Shāhīn-i Torah, ed. by Simon Khakam (Jerusalem 5662/1902) (in Hebrew script).
Muntakhab-i ashʿār-i fārsī az āthār-i yahūdiyyān-i Īrān, ed. by Amnon Netzer (Tehran 1352 AH/1973 CE), pp. 58-106 (transliterated into Arabic script).
^ a bVera Basch Moreen (2012). Vera Basch Moreen (ed.). Queen Esther's Garden. Gorgias Press, LLC. ISBN 978-1-4632-0161-6. OCLC 774486158.
^Nahum M. Waldman (1989). The Recent Study of Hebrew: A Survey of the Literature with Selected Bibliography. Eisenbrauns. p. 168. ISBN 978-0-87820-908-8. OCLC 1024050467.
^Epstein, Marc Michael (2015-04-04). Skies of Parchment, Seas of Ink: Jewish Illuminated Manuscripts. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-16524-0.
^J. T. P. de Bruijn and Barbara Flemming, 'Yūsuf and Zulayk̲h̲ā', in Encyclopaedia of Islam, ed. P. Bearman and others, 2nd edn, 12 vols (Leiden: Brill, 1960–2005); DOI:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_1370.
^Moreen, Vera B. (1996). "The "Iranization" of Biblical Heroes in Judeo-Persian Epics: Shahin's Ardashīr-nāmah and 'Ezrā-nāmah". Iranian Studies. 29 (3/4): 321–338. doi:10.1080/00210869608701853. ISSN 0021-0862. JSTOR 4311000.
^Limbert, John W. (2011-10-01). Shiraz in the Age of Hafez: The Glory of a Medieval Persian City. University of Washington Press. ISBN 978-0-295-80288-6.
^ a bHary, Benjamin; Hayes, John; Astren, Fred (2021-08-04). Judaism and Islam: Boundaries, Communication and Interaction: Essays in Honor of William M. Brinner. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-45315-9.