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This article continues the unfinished discussion of Tzvetan Todorov on the classification of ‘unreal literature’ in the West by expanding his idea about surrealist story as a genre. After defining the term surrealist story and its theory, the authors, drawing on the hypothesis that surrealism is an ancient phenomenon, analyze the components and atmosphere of a selection of mystical anecdotes. The results indicate that the surreal works in the East and the West, from the ancient times, have been grounded on similar theories and comparable elements.

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Regarding exegesis as a fundamental specificity of the mystical language, this paper introduces one narrative pattern in the mystical anecdotes. As in most of the didactic forms, this structure is constituted by a mistake and a punishment; but in this case, the mistake takes the form of a norm. A new mistake and its punishment are then introduced and the first overt mistake is not followed by the expected punishment. The emphasis on the second mistake is the result of a hermeneutical process. This pattern, as a result, proposes a narrative description of the act of exegesis in the mystical texts. From this point of view, highlighting some mistakes and overlooking the others can show the function of mystical conventions in the mystical narration. Although this interpretation is based on the structural and narrative aspects of mystical texts, it pays attention to the linguistic and conceptual aspects of these texts as well. 

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Earning a living maintains its manifestations in the lives of different strata of people in different forms and shapes and no group of people have been needless of jobs. A glance at the economic activities of Gnostics shows a group of them believed in working. This writing has studied the relationship between workers and their works. In this manner, initially the most important Farsi mystical books have been studied to portray the manifestations of jobs from their anecdotes. To this end, the books Tazakorat al-Oliaa, Al-Lama, Tabaqaat al-Sofia, Resaalat Qeshriyah, Nafahaat al-Ons, and, Samaraat al-Qods min Shajaraat al-Ons were studied and anecdotes related to work were extracted and studied. The results show that from the view of Gnostics, working gains meaning not only as a source of livelihood, but as a means for meeting the needs of the vulnerable and needy strata, within the framework of which the experts and their trainees also purify their soul. This in turn sets the stage for their spiritual development and brings out the best in them.