India, Feb. 6 -- Best to start at the beginning. Farsi took its earliest form a long time ago in Persia. The language thrived in its homeland, and gradually transcended the geographical borders of modern-day Iran, building homes in other lands. Take Delhi's Mirza Ghalib, acknowledged among the greatest poets of Farsi.

Some decades ago in a politically turbulent Iran, a young man had to leave his country, and was eventually obliged to make a new home in the Netherlands. All these years later, he has become a bestselling author writing in Dutch.

This afternoon, the worlds of these two literary figures of the Farsi universe intersect. Kader Abdolah of Delft is in Ghalib's Delhi, heading to the latter's tomb. He reaches Ghalib Academy, the ...