West-Eastern DivanIn 1814, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe read the poems of the great fourteenth century Persian poet Hafiz in a newly published translation by Joseph von Hammer Purgstall. For Goethe, the book was a revelation. He felt a deep connection with Hafiz and Persian poetic traditions, and was immediately inspired to create his own West Eastern Divan as a lyrical conversation between the poetry and history of his native Germany and that of Persia. The resulting