Actually the poet is searching a way to get rid of sorrow and forget complicated things. He is sick and tired of thinking deeply too much about the world and invite you to view the world through your heart and sentiments rather than brain and calculations. Have a look at this (by Hafez)
حدیث از مطرب و می گو و راز دهر کمتر جو
که کس نگشود و نگشاید به حکمت این معما را
But of course wine in Persian poetry is not necessarily the drink we know. I think this poem by Khayyam reveals some points:
زان می که شراب جاودانی است بخور
سرمایه لذت جوانی است بخور
Is there any drink whose effect is eternal? ;-)
After all, no one can exactly say what the poet means by his words. Even the greatest professors haven't gotten Hafez's secrets!
Anyway, I'd like to share a quote on here: "Poetry is like a mirror that you see yourself in it not the poet" ... So just look what you infer and don't think too much about the poet!
As Nazanin mentioned the concept and meaning can be different. Before the appearance and development of mystical literature (around 1100 AD) the meaning was mostly literal. After that the concept developed to many fields like mysticism, moral, etc...
در میخانه ببستند، خـــدایا مپسند
که درخانه تزویر و ریا بگشایند
Hafez
thank you dear nazanin!
Yes, , how one understands a poem varies from person to person. I always work first for understanding the literal meaning of the words. Then I interprete the poem in the non-literal meaning in my way. When one is starting to get to know someone, will be also influenced by the other persons personality in how to interprete what this person is saying and what this person means. I get a different experience with the poems of khayyaam than the poems of rumi. For me when khayyaam talks aboout wine , in many cases he means it literally while rumi means it mostly symbolically with hafez somewhere between them.
