TEHRAN -- Contemporary poet Ali Musavi Garmarudi believes that Prophet Muhammad (S) poetry in Iran dates back to one thousand years ago.

Garmarudi who was participating in the opening ceremony of the Congress of Prophet Muhammad (S) Poetry in Mashhad said that the poetry goes back to the history of Islam.

He pointed to several examples of poetry in praise of Prophet Muhammad (S) by Persian poets such as Ferdowsi, Nasser Khosro, Kasaii, and As’adi Gorgani.

Garmarudi further noted that Amir Khosro Dehlavi (1253-1325) was one of the poets who had many pieces of poetry admiring the prophet.

Minister of culture and Islamic guidance, several members of parliament, poets, and officials attended the opening ceremony today.

Abdullah Oztemiz from Turkey in Turkish language section, Ahmed Wasi from India in Urdu, Awazullah Bashara from and Sahami Al-Qarini in Arabic, and Saifollah Saifoddin from Uzbekistan in Russian are among the foreign participants, reciting their poetry in the two-day event.

The program is organized by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization (ICRO), and Khorasan Razavi Culture and Islamic Guidance Department and Poetry Union.

The organizers also hold expert-level roundtable discussions to discuss the biography of panegyrists.