Under the pseudonym "Vazeh", which means "expressive, clear", he wrote in both Azerbaijani and Persian, developing the traditions of poetry in both languages.

He compiled the first anthology of Azerbaijani poetry and a Tatar-Russian dictionary for the Tiflis gymnasium with Russian teacher Ivan Grigoriev.

The main theme of Vazeh's works is the glorification of romantic love and the joy of life, but in some of his poems, he denounces the vices of feudal society and opposes slavery and religious fanaticism.

[b] According to Willem Floor and Hasan Javadi in The Heavenly Rose-garden: A History of Shirvan & Daghestan, by Abbas Qoli Aqa Bakikhanov, Vazeh was born in 1792.

In the "Official List of Service for 1845" (Russian: Формулярном списке о службе за 1845 год) it is written that Mirza Shafi is 40 years old.

At the same time, in the "Official List of Service for 1852" (Russian: Формулярном списке о службе за 1852 год), it is written that he is 45 years old, indicating that he was born in 1807.

[9] According to historian Mikhail Semevsky, Mirza Shafi was "a kind, simple man who was Tatar[c] by origin, and Persian by upbringing".

After returning to Ganja, Haji Abdullah argued constantly with the local mullahs and akhoonds (Muslim clerics) of the Shah Abbas mosque, trying to prove the inconsistency and absurdity of religious prejudices and superstitions.

[14] There he established close ties with other prominent figures like Khachatur Abovian, Abbasgulu Bakikhanov and Mirza Fatali Akhundov,[15] who was also his student.

[17] In 1844, the German writer and orientalist Friedrich von Bodenstedt, who showed a great interest in the life of the Caucasus and wished to take lessons in oriental languages, came to Tiflis.

[19] According to the historian Mikhail Semevsky, Adolf Berge met "a modest, about 60 year old Tatar" who was a teacher in one of the Muslim schools.

[20] The day of Vazeh's death was marked by a note in the Acts of the Caucasian Archaeological Commission and the poet was buried in the Muslim cemetery in Tiflis (now known as Pantheon of prominent Azerbaijanis).

[20] The main theme of Shafi's works was the glorification of romantic love and the joy of life, but in some of his poems he denounced the vices of feudal society, opposed slavery and religious fanaticism.

[15] He compiled the first anthology of Azerbaijani poetry and a Tatar-Russian dictionary for the Tiflis gymnasium with Russian teacher Ivan Grigoriev.

[15] Until the 1960s, it was believed that the literary legacy of Mirza Shafi Vazeh had been passed on only in the form of translations and that the originals of his poems were lost.

[21] In the 31 January 1963 issue of Literaturnaya Gazeta, it was reported that the originals of Mirza Shafi's poems in Azerbaijani and Persian had been found.

Bodenstedt writes: Mirza Shafi wrote very delicately and at the same time brought beauty and variety: he adapted letters to the content of the text.

[23]In his memoirs, Mirza Fatali Akhundov wrote that Vazeh "had the art of writing in beautiful handwriting, known by the name Nastaliq".

"[27] They have been translated into English, French, Italian, Persian, Hungarian, Czech, Swedish, Dutch, Flemish, Danish, Spanish, Portuguese, most Slavic languages and Hebrew.

He became the inspiration of the Haji Nuri character in Mirza Fatali Akhundov's play, Hekayat-e Molla Ebrahim Khalil kimiagar.