A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
(500 A D-622 A D)
Menonim Menonimus
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
A Brief History of Arabic Literature (Pre-Islamic Period) by Menonim Menonimus Published by Growhills Publishing, Kamalpur, Barpeta (Assam)
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
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A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
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A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Foreword
I love reading and writing and so once I went through some Arabic books, especially through English translation (because my hold on Arabic is very little). Since writing for me is a medium of expressing my feelings, views, and ideas on things I come across, I wrote out the book “A Brief History of Arabic Literature, Pre-Islamic Period” within a very short span of time. Here I frankly acknowledge my weakness that this book is by no means comprehensive (exhaustive) but a brief one. Although it is brief, the book reflects my views on the Arabic language and literature that I formed while reading various Arabic books.
I hope that this book will be helpful for those who want to be acquainted with Arabic literature in a hurry. In other words, this book can be a tunnel through which readers can peer into the gems of Arabic literature.
Menonim Menonimus
Shanti Kanan
Contents
Chapter-1
Birth and Development of the Arabic language
Chapter-2
Characteristics of the Arabic Language
Chapter-3
Sources Importance and Position of the Arabic Language & Literature:
(a) Source of Alaric Language and Literature
(b) Importance of Arabic Language and Literature
(c) Position of the Arabic Language in the Present-Day World
Chapter-4
Birth, Development and Characteristics of the Arabic Language
Chapter-5
Birth, Development and Characteristics of Arabic Prose
(a) Arabic Prose: Birth and Development
(b) Characteristics of Arabic Prose
Chapter-6
Some Pre-Islamic Prose Writers
Sahban bin Wael
Kush bin Saidah al-Ayyadi
Hatim Tai
Chapter 7
Some Pre-Islamic Poets and Their Poetic Careers
Imraul Qays
Zuhair bin Abi Salma
Tarafa bin al-A’bd
Labid bin Rabiya
Antara bin Shaddad
Amar bin Kulthum
Haris bin Hillija
Al-Nabigha
Al-Asha
Hatim Tai
Abid bin Al-Abras
Abid bin Salat
Al-Shanfara, Al-Shamaul bin Adia
Chapter-7
Anthologies of Pre-Islamic Poetry:
The Muwallaqa
The Mufaddaliyat
Diwanul Hamasa of Abu Tammam
The Hamasa of Buhturi
Jamharat Ambaril Arab
Kitabul Aghani,
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter-1
Birth and Development of the Arabic Language
‘Language’ is a basic means of communication. Through language, one can express and shares one’s feelings, thoughts, emotions, etc. with others. According to a survey, there are about 6,000 languages in the world. But there is no definite answer as to when and how human language came into existence. Therefore, language is considered to be a blessing of nature to the human race. Scholars have divided the languages of the world into several groups according to their characteristics, such as the Aryan Group of Languages, the Teutonic Group of Languages, and the Semitic Group of Languages. Each language group is again subdivided into several smaller groups according to the similarities and differences among the languages belonging to the same group. Of course, this classification is seen to be different from scholar to scholar. The most widespread and largest of these language groups is the Aryan language group. About 47% of the world’s population belongs to this language group.
Arabic is one of the languages of the Semitic language group. The Semitic language group is said to have originated from the name of Sham, the son of the Prophet Noah. However, there is no definite information as to exactly when the Arabic language originated. But scholars speculate that the Arabic language probably dates back to the 8th century BC. However, it is unfortunate that no specimens of Arabic literature prior to the 5th century A.D. have been found. Of course, some ancient inscriptions indicate that the Arabic language was developed before the 5th century AD with considerable orally composed literature.
Scholars have divided the history of the Arabic language and literature into three main periods, namely, the Himyarite Period, the Pre-Islamic Period, and the Islamic Period. No written literature of the Himyarite era has been found. This means that the Himyarite Period of the Arabic language is in darkness. This era was followed by the second era of Arabic literature. This period is called the Pre-Islamic Period. The Pre-Islamic period is said to be begun in 500 AD and lasted until the time of Hazrat Muhammad’s migration from Mecca to Medina, i.e. 622 AD. It is estimated that more than two hundred poets were born in Arabia during this period, one and a half hundred years before the beginning of the Islamic era. The Pre-Islamic poets played a significant role in the development of the Arabic language and literature by composing lots of unique Arabic poetry and some prose literature.
The ancient Arabic language was divided into several dialects. Among them two dialects were very influential – one was the Southern Dialect and the other was the Northern Dialect. The recently discovered inscriptions prove that there were lexical and phonetic differences between the two dialects. However, in the course of time, the northern dialect became more influential than the southern dialect and the southern dialect gradually became obsolete. The Arabic dialect of the North later became the language of commerce and got spread to the whole of the Middle East, South Africa, and parts of Northeast Russia. Although the Arabic poets and writers of the pre-Islamic period created literature in Arabic and played a significant role in the development of the language, it was only during the Islamic era that the language evolved into a global language. The Koran and Hadith texts played a significant role in this regard. These Islamic texts provide stability and universality to the Arabic language and literature. The present Arabic language and literature refer to the dialects of the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula. During the different periods of the Islamic era, Arabic literature became stronger in different branches. From the last days of the Umayyad period onwards, Arabic became more widespread during the Abbasid period and became the major language of literature as well as philosophy, science, geography, history, politics, diplomacy, business, and commerce. It is important to note that the Arabic language has been able to retain its originality even as it has come into contact with different languages of the world. Of course, during the long Islamic era, it adopted some elements of other languages but they were Arabicized. Today, Arabic is one of the most important languages in the world. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter 2
The Characteristics of the Arabic Language
Arabic is one of the most widely spoken languages of the Semitic group of languages. Scholars believe that the Arabic language originated in the 8th century BC and it has evolved over a period of more than a thousand years and established itself as a stable, universal, and dignified language in the Islamic era. This language is completely different language from English or other European languages. The features of this language can be discussed from several angles as mentioned below.
Phonology: The phonology of the Arabic language is unique. It consists of a series of six difficult consonants (Kh-gh-h-h) and some strong consonants (t – d – s – z) that strongly influence the pronunciation of the vowel. It has three short and three long vowels like- (a – i – u). Arabic words begin with a consonant and are followed by a vowel. But long vowels are followed by more than one consonant and never more than two consonants together.
Morphology: An Arabic word has two parts —- (1) the main part which usually contains the consonant and gives the basic lexical meaning of the word and (2) the structural part which usually contains the vowel which is interconnected with the original consonant and gives a more specific grammatical meaning of the word. Thus the word ‘Kitab’ has a root (Ktb) which means written object. The word is associated with ‘Katib’, which means – one who writes, that is, a ‘clerk’.
Conjugation: Arabic root form is always regular and has two tenses. By adding a suffix the past tense or past participle tense is formed. Again an incomplete action is meant by adding a prefix. Sometimes by adding the suffix indicating number and gender the present or future tense is formed. In addition to having two tenses in Arabic, it also has imperative forms, active participles, passive participles, and nouns formed from verbs. Arabic verbs have three numbers- singular, dual, and plural, and it has two genders- masculine and feminine. Note that in classical Arabic there is no dual form of the first person and no gender differences but all the dual forms have been lost in modern Arabic for indirect utterances.
Pronouns: The declension of classical Arabic nouns had three factors namely – nominative, genitive, and executive. But in modern Arabic, nouns are not declined. Pronouns are used as suffixes and as separate words.
Syntax: The Arabic language obeys a dichotomy in case and mood. This is why Arabic is more flexible than other Semitic languages. Sentences in this language are usually short, although strong in expressing meaning. The Arabic phrases contribute to the logical arrangement of words and the generalization of abstract nouns. Another notable feature of the Arabic language is that, with all its richness, it is relatively free from becoming blended with other languages. Although Classical Arabic borrowed some words from other languages, they were Arabicized. Of course, to a lesser extent, this trend continues till today.
Rich Vocabulary: The Arabic language has a huge vocabulary. An Arabic verb can take more than a dozen forms. In Arabic, there are sixteen words to mean the ‘moon’, thirty words for ‘rain’, twenty-one words for ‘travel’ and ‘light’, fifty-two words for ‘darkness’, fifty words for ‘cloud’, and ninety-one words for ‘length’. There are different words to denote the hour of the night and more than a dozen words to denote ‘bow’. Thus the vocabulary of the Arabic language is enviably richer than the other languages of the world.
For all those linguistic features Arabic is considered to be one of the most respected languages in the world. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter-3
The Sources, Importance, and Position of the Arabic Language and Literature
The Sources of Arabic Language and Literature
Arabic is one of the oldest and most respected languages in the world. This language belongs to the Semitic language family and it originated in the 8th century BC. It is important to note that no written literature has been found in this language since its inception until the 5th century AD. However, it is estimated that the use of scripts in this language began several centuries before Christ and that some written literature was also created. But it is unfortunate that no specimens of pre-Islamic Arabic written literature have been found. However, there is no shortage of curiosity in the mind of scholars to know the history of such an influential language as Arabic. This is why they have unearthed some inscriptions and tablets from the pages of history and from them, they have come to some conclusions about the ancient Arabic language and literature. It should be noted that there is no shortage of sources of Arabic language and literature since the Islamic era i.e. 622 AD. This is because the tradition of regularly writing literature in Arabia began in the Islamic era. Inscriptions and clay tablets are the main sources of information about the ancient Arabic language and literature.
First, the efforts of archaeologists have led to the discovery of many ancient slates in various parts of Arabia. For example, some inscriptions have been found north of the Arabian Hijaz province. These scripts are very similar to the Shabai script. It is estimated that these were written around 500 BC. It is also known as the ‘Thamud script’ because it is found mainly in the area inhabited by the ancient Thamud people.
Second, some inscriptions have been found on the site of an ancient tomb at Namara, now near Damascus. These are believed to have been written in 327 AD.
Third, some inscriptions and clay tablets written in Arabic, Syriac, and Greek have been discovered at a place called Jabad in Aleppo. There is evidence that these were written in 512 AD.
Fourth, Arabic and Greek bilingual inscriptions dating to 58 AD have been recovered from a place called Arabar Harran. These inscriptions are said to be more ancient than Southern Arabic and Northern Arabic.
Similarly, some ancient earthen plates have been discovered elsewhere. These inscriptions and tablets are the main sources of the Arabic language and literature of ancient times. By studying these, one can know a lot about the birth and evolution of the Arabic language and literature.
The second level of knowledge about the Arabic language and literature is considered to be the literature of the pre-Islamic period. During the pre-Islamic period, from 500 AD to 622 AD, more than 200 poets, orators, etc. were born in Arabia and they gave birth to a large number of poems and prose in Arabic. However, it is unfortunate that many of them were composed orally and some of them were preserved for posterity by relying on memorization. However, in the Islamic era, the influence of poetry in Arabia waned and the works of the pre-Islamic era gradually began to fade from human memory. But the formal tradition of reading and writing in Arabia dates back to the late 7th and early 8th centuries, and on that occasion, some lovers of literature collected and preserved some of the lost pre-Islamic poems from the mouth of the folk. Some of the notable collections are- The Muallaqa, The Mufaddaliyat, Abu Diwanul Hamasa of Abu Tammam, The Hamasa of Buhturi, Ambaril Arab, Kitabul Aghani, etc.
These collections are the main sources of the Arabic language and literature of the pre-Islamic era. By studying these materials one can get a clear idea about the development of the Arabic language and literature. It is important to note that the literature of the pre-Islamic period, especially poetry, gave a clear and definite structure to the Arabic language and scripts and established Arabic as a distinct language.
After this, in the Islamic era, Koran and Hadith texts gave stability and universality to the Arabic language and literature.
Importance of Arabic Language and Literature
Today the Arabic language is not the language of the Arabs only. It has now spread throughout the Middle East and around the world. Therefore, the importance of learning the Arabic language and literature has increased significantly. We can discuss its importance from various angles as stated below:
Educational Reason: The world today realizes that a nation can move forward on the pinnacle of modernity by means of education. That is why schools, colleges, universities, and other educational institutions have sprung up all over the world. Recently, with the spread of the Internet, there has been an explosion of human knowledge. So a nation is not satisfied with its own store of knowledge and it seeks to acquire knowledge from other countries and nations also. The world has begun to look at the Arabic language with dignity because of its rich literary heritage and so Arabic literature has been included in the curricula of various educational institutions and universities around the world. Therefore, the importance of the Arabic language has increased considerably. Recently, it is said that English writers of the Elizabethan period were also influenced by the Arabic poetry of the pre-Islamic period through Greek and Latin translations. This is why it is important to learn and study the Arabic language and literature. For example, some people learn Arabic to get a taste of the world-famous Arabic anecdote ”One Thousand and One Nights” (The Arabian Nights).
Political Reasons: There is a political reason for learning the Arabic language. This is because the Middle East, including the Arabian Peninsula, is now a major player in world politics, and the various European countries are focusing on expanding their political and economic dominance in the Middle East. As Arabic is used as a vernacular language in the Middle East, the importance of the Arabic language has increased in European countries. Arabic is currently used as the official language of 26 countries around the world. Therefore, the importance of the Arabic language and literature in the international context has increased considerably.
Economic Reasons: The world’s population has grown significantly. As a result, demand for food grains as well as other commodities have increased to meet the needs of the growing population. Huge reserves of oil and other natural resources have recently been discovered in the Arabian Peninsula as well as throughout the Middle East, and much manpower is needed to unravel them. This is why many skilled technicians and laborers from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and other Asian countries have taken refuge in Arabian countries seeking employment. They have taken to study the Arabic language and literature to facilitate communication with the local people of those countries. As a result, the importance of the Arabic language and literature has increased.
Cultural Reason: The Arabian countries have their own unique and ideal culture. For example, many people feel the need of studying the Arabic language and literature in order to get acquainted with their social, judicial, political systems and ideology.
Religious Reason: Another important reason for the growing importance of the Arabic language and literature is Islam, the religion preached by Hazarat Mohammad. We know that Islam originated in Arabia and did not remain to be the religion of the Arabs alone. The great message of this religion has attracted people from all over the world. As a result, Islam has spread to all countries of the world. Many non-Arab Muslims and even non-Muslims feel the need to learn the Arabic language to read the ‘Koran’ as well as Hadith texts in the original Arabic language. It is to be noted that in 1974, the General Assembly of the United Nations declared 16th December as ”World Arabic Language Day”.
For these reasons, the importance of the Arabic language and literature in the recent world has increased immensely.
The Position of the Arabic Language in the Present-day World
Arabic is now the mother tongue of 264 million people. It is the fifth most populous language in the world. The Arabic language was originally confined to Arabia, although it has been spreading worldwide since the 6th century AD, and continues to this day. As a result, the Arabic language has gained a respectable place in the world today. Even the United Nations adopted Arabic as its sixth official language in 1973. The Arabic language has not attained its present status in a day, instead, this language has taken almost one thousand and five hundred years to achieve this status. Of course, a number of factors have contributed to the conversion of Arabic into such a dignified language. These factors are discussed below.
(a) Until the 5th century AD, the Arabic language was restricted to Arabia as a branch of the Semitic language. But many poets and orators were born in Arabia between the 5th and 6th centuries. They gave birth to many poems of their own genius. In poetic power, their poetry was incomparable and unprecedented. As a result, the Arabic language has become quite widespread and popular. These poems were later translated into various languages of the world and other languages were influenced by this language. As a result, the status of the Arabic language and literature has increased.
(b) Another powerful reason why Arabic is now the most respected language in the world is that it is the language of the Koran and Hadith, the main texts of Islam. Muslims around the world learn the Arabic language and practice Arabic literature to understand the basics of Islam. As a result, the status of the Arabic language has increased and its position has become higher.
(c) Another reason for the current status of the Arabic language is that during the Islamic period, especially during the Abbasid rule, many research books were written in Arabic. For example, from the 8th century to the 12th century, in Islamic countries, extensive research was done on mathematics, geography, astronomy, chemistry, physics, law, philosophy, linguistics, economics, music, etc., and many valuable books were written on these subjects. During the middle ages, the whole of Europe was plunged into darkness but the Arabs had reached the highest level of knowledge. Their books were later translated into various European languages and some knowledge-seekers learned Arabic to gain that knowledge in the original Arabic language. As a result, the Arabic language gained a special status.
(d) In medieval politics, Muslims played a monopoly role. For example, Hazrat Omar, the second caliph of Islam, during his ten-year reign spread the Islamic empire throughout Persia and Rome. This was followed by the political domination of the Muslims in the Indian subcontinent. At that time Arabic was used as the language of politics and diplomacy. As a result, the Arabic language spread beyond the Arabian Peninsula to the whole of the Middle East, Asia, Russia, and Africa. In this way, for political reasons, Arabic has become a privileged language.
(e) The linguistic features of the Arabic language have also contributed much to becoming a worldwide language. This is because Arabic is one of the most beautiful, melodious, and rational languages in the world. A word in this language can provide a lot of meaning with a little structural change. For example, there are sixteen words to mean the ‘moon’, thirty words for ‘rain’, twenty-one words for ‘travel’, fifty-two words for ‘darkness’, fifty words for ‘cloud’, and ninety-one words for ‘length’. There are different words to denote the hour of the night and more than a dozen words to denote a ‘bow’. Thus the vocabulary of the Arabic language is enviably richer than the other languages of the world. As a result, Arabic has easily become an international language.
(f) The importance and prestige of the Arabic language has also increased considerably in recent times for economic and commercial purposes. Many natural resources have been discovered in the Arabian Peninsula, as well as in the Arabic-speaking Middle East, since the 1980s. One of them is petroleum. Almost all the countries in Europe depend on these Arabian countries for petroleum. That is why non-Arabic people opt to learn Arabic to get business benefits. As a result, the Arabic language has become more important.
These factors have made the Arabic language one of the most respected languages in the world. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter-4
Birth, Development, and Characteristics of Arabic Poetry
Poetry is the oldest, most complex, multi-faceted, most controversial, and widely criticized branch of literature. Poetry dominated the world literary empire for centuries till the advent of prose literature. But no one has come up with a definitive definition of what poetry is. Poetry has been defined differently by different scholars, although one definition does not match the other. Whatsoever the definitions are, by poetry, we mean an ornamental composition where emotion predominates.
Arabic, like most of the world’s languages, has a rich collection of poetry. None can say definitely when Arabic poetic literature originated but there is some testimony that the origin of Arabic poetry dates back to pre-Islamic times. But it is a matter of regret that no literary work prior to the fifth century has survived to the present day.
Scholars estimate that more than two hundred poets were born in Arabia between the beginning of the 5th century AD and the year 622 AD and that it was they who brought Arabic poetry to a high stage of development. Among the poets, born during that time, the most prominent were Imraul Qays, Zuhair bin Abi Salma, Tarafa bin Al-Ab’d Tarafa bin Al-A’bd, Labid bin Rabiya, Antara bin Shaddad, Amar bin Kulthum, Haris bin Hillija, Al-Nabigha, Al-Asha, Hatim Tai, Abid bin Al-Abras, Abid bin Salat, Al-Shanfara, and Al-Shamaul bin Adia. These poets composed their poetry orally. It is because at that time there was no formal literacy among the Arab Bedouins. So they had to rely on memorization. But in the course of time, only the most essential compositions were memorized and the rest was lost from human memory. The literature of the pre-Islamic period, therefore, disappeared from the pages of history due to a lack of proper preservation. Only a small portion of them was compiled in the works of some compilers during the Islamic period. A study of the poems preserved in those collections suggests that the poems of the pre-Islamic era were the basis of reflection on all aspects of the family, social, political, cultural, and religious life of the poets of that era. The content of their poems was also diverse, such as love, feud, condemnation, grief, nature, animals, etc.
The common features and themes of pre-Islamic poetry are being discussed in brief below:
Love: A study of pre-Islamic poetry reveals that a large number of poets started their poems with the theme of love. For example, Imraul Kaishe, the greatest poet of the pre-Islamic era, begins his famous Muwallaka poem with a description of his beloved’s abandoned abode. Similarly, poets like Zuhair bin Abi Salma, Labid bin Rabiah, Amar bin Kulsoom and others have started their poetry with love stories. For them, love was the motivation for survival, their constant companion. They were unprecedented, innovative, and sensitive in describing the physical beauty of their beloved. For example, some verses from Imraul Kaiser’s Muwallaka have been quoted below:
” I’ve got into those women’s inner chamber
Where no man entered before
And played so much.”
Sectarian Feud: Sectarian feud is a common theme in pre-Islamic Arabic poetry. At that time the Arab people were divided into many tribes and clans and there were frequent quarrels among themselves. One tribe wanted to dominate another tribe. As a result, the conflict continued from generation to generation. Each tribe had its own poet, and as a representative or mouthpiece of his tribe, he embodied the issues of heroism, valor, and pride of his tribe through poetry and denounced and rebuked the people of the opposition. So by studying pre-Islamic poetry, we can see a glimpse of the social, cultural, and political conditions of the time. For example, Zuhair bin Salam provided a detailed description of the long-standing dispute between the Awas and the Zubian sects at that time. Similarly, the poem of Tarafa bin al-A’bd contained the injustice done to him by his brothers.
Praise and Eulogy to Patrons: Another major theme of Pre-Islamic poetry was the praise and eulogy to the patronage of poets. At that time, most poets sought the patronage of leading personalities, courtiers, influential people, etc., and wrote poems praising their generosity, kindness, fame, and qualities. In return, they received donations, presents, etc. from the patrons and thus they made a living. Al-Nabighai, for example, received royal favor by describing the glory of the kings of Hira, and he had the privilege of spending almost 50 years of his life in the royal court of the kings of Hira.
Animals: All of the Muwallaka poets made references to various animals such as camels, horses, lions, tigers, etc. Imraul Kaish has a detailed description of camels in his ‘Muwallakat’. In the same way, the poet Tarafa bin Al-Abd makes a description of the camel’s back, thighs, head, neck, height, chest, shoulders, thighs, buttocks, hunting style, etc.
Wine and Merriment: Another theme of pre-Islamic poetry is wine and merriment. Poems by Imraul Qais, Antara bin Shaddad, Hilliza, and Sanfara have a theme of wine and merriment.
Religion: Poems of some pre-Islamic poets have been found guilty of obscenity, although the themes of morality, humanity, benevolence and religious devotion have also been found in the poetry of some poets. For example, the poets such as Zuhair bin Salma, Labid bin Rabiah, Al-Nabigha, Hatim Tai, Umayyah bin Abi Salat, etc dealt with the themes of humane qualities. The poem, written by Labid bin Rabia after his conversion to Islam, deals with the themes of Allah, the ephemerality of human life, the Day of Judgment, and other Islamic philosophies. For example, the following lines of poetry may be quoted from Labid bin Rabia:
Thus the poets of the pre-Islamic era wrote poems on almost every theme of their daily life and by reading their poems we get a glimpse of all aspects of the social, cultural, political, and religious life of that era. After all the poets of this era tried to paint the picture of that time through their poems and succeeded to a great extent. Therefore, pre-Islamic poetry is called “The Register of the Arabs.
In addition to the themes of the pre-Islamic poems mentioned above, the Arabic poets naturally entered the world of poetry with strong poetic power and established poetry as a powerful medium of expression.
In addition to using metaphors, similes, symbols, and other literary ornaments, they used abundant innovative imagery in their poems. These stylistic features of the Pre-Islamic poems are discussed below in brief:
Simile: Simile is a type of figure of speech in which an object or the quality of an object is compared with another dissimilar object to increase the appeal of a thing. Poets of the pre-Islamic period frequently used similes. For example, they compared a woman to a full moon, egg, puppet, cow, deer, etc. They compared the face of a woman with a gold coin, the breast of a woman with the nose of a deer, the smell of sweat coming out of a beloved’s body with musk, and the saliva with the sweetness of honey.
Metaphor: A metaphor is a figure of speech in which one object is thought to be completely another object. The use of metaphorical rhetoric is quite common in Arabic poetry. The pre-Islamic poets imagined a man to be a tiger, lion, hyena, etc. On the other hand, a woman was taken as a deer, goddess, moon, star, etc.
Symbols: The pets of the pre-Islamic era subconsciously used many objects, animals, planets, and stars as symbols. For example, they used tigers, lions, hyenas, etc. as symbols of violence, force, semen, dominance, etc. The appeal of their poetry was greatly enhanced by imagining the moon, stars, constellations, Taurus, and the sea as symbols of women.
Imagery: In addition to the metaphors, similes, and symbols mentioned above, the poets of the pre-Islamic period were adept at creating unprecedented imagery. For example, a Pre-Islamic poet named Tarafa bin Al Abd drew strong imagery of his desire to meet his beloved as below:
Similarly, Amr bin Kulthum also invoked the imagery of the different parts of his girlfriend as below:
“The arms are as full as a barren camel,
The two breasts are swelling, touchless and soft
Ankle worn feet are as bright as a tube made of elephant teeth
She has become like a calf-losing camel in the separation of pain
And like a mother who has lost her child. ”
The poetry of the pre-Islamic period was unprecedented, unparalleled, and innovative in its poetic power which became the model of inspiration for poets over the ages.
The content and stylistic features of the poetry of the pre-Islamic period are discussed above. In addition to these, Arabic poetry has been divided into several categories according to its content such as Hamasa, Fakar, Ghazal, Ma’d, Risha, Hija, Wasaf, etc.
Hamasa: Arabic poetry which expresses heroism, the endurance of hardships, and firmness of mind against the forces of nature, is called Hamasa. Two scholars, Abu Tammam and Al-Buhtari compiled two anthologies of Arabic hamasa.
Fakhr: The poems which express details of the poet’s tribe, race, clan, family, etc., are called ‘Fakhr’. In such poems, the poets’ lineage, pride, vengeance, charity towards the poor, relationships with the neighbors, etc found their place.
Ghazals: The poems dealing with the theme of love were called ‘Ghazals’. Note that there is no fictional love story in Arabic love poems. The poets expressed their true love for their beloved through their poems.
Ma’dah: The poems that express the heroism, praise, eulogy, etc. of a leader of one’s own race, clan, or lineage are called Ma’dah.
Risa: The poems written mourning the loss of the poet’s son, daughter, brother, or close relative were called ‘Risa’, and such a poet was called ‘Marasia Poet’.
Hija: The poems that express condemnation and ridicule were called ‘Hija’. Such poems were composed in defiance of any weakness or strength of the adversary of any individual or tribe.
Wasaf: Wasaf was a genre of descriptive poems. In such poems, the descriptive character was attributed. Such poems were naturally long and contained descriptions of various subjects such as love, warfare, camels, horses, landscapes, etc.
Qasida: Qasida is a genre of poems composed in the rhythm of twenty-five or more lines. The poem contains descriptions of tribal wars as well as descriptions of the social life, beliefs, culture, ancestry, ancestral love, etc. of the Arabs. Such poems usually begin with a description of the place where the poet’s beloved lived, and then the poet recounts the happy days of the past spent with the beloved. This is followed by a series of poems describing various topics and praising the poet’s patron.
Note: The word ‘muwallaka’ is often used in the discussion of pre-Islamic poetry. According to some scholars, the word ‘muwallaka’ is derived from the Arabic word ‘ilk’ or ‘alkun’. This means something valuable or highly revered that is kept in the public eye. In this regard, Abu Jafar Annohas said that in the pre-Islamic era it was a tradition that every year the Arab poets, orators, and scholars gathered in the marketplace called ‘Ukaj’ near Mecca and recited their own masterpieces. The ‘Ukaj’ market was located between Nakhla and Tawf, 40 miles east of Mecca. The judges honored and awarded the winner in the competition and his poetry was hung on the doorstep of the Kaaba so that it could be easily seen or read by the public. It is to be noted that before hanging the poem on the wall of the Kaaba, the poem was presented to the king and was inscribed in golden letters as per his order.
These poems were called ‘Muallakas’ for hanging. They were also called ‘Jahbiah’ (golden poems) for inscribing with gold. The number of such ‘Muallaka’ was seven. Famous pre-Islamic Muallaka poets were: Imraul Qais, Labid bin Rabiah, Zuhair bin Abi Salma, Tarafa bin Al-Abd, Harish bin Hilliza, Antara bin Shaddad, and Amr bin Kulthum. It was also known as ‘Al-Shabou Al-Tiwal’ (the seven long poems) because of the length of the poems. During the reign of the Abbasid Caliph Mehdi, Hammad al-Rabi first compiled these famous seven (Muwallaka’) poems in book form. In addition to these seven muwallakas, some compilers had included the poems of Al Asha, Al Nabigha, and Ummaiya bin Abi Salat in the list of the Muwallaka poems. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter-5
Birth, Development, and Characteristics of Arabic Prose
Arabic Prose: Birth and development
‘Prose’ is generally defined as the language in which a person speaks without rhythm in his daily life. The language of conversation is often incoherent and varies from person to person or region to region according to the mode of their expression. But in regard to prose literature, when a subject or context is systematically expressed in a way that impresses the listener, it develops into a literary category. There is literature in all the languages of the world – either written or oral. Sadly, prose literature was not given as much priority as poetry in ancient times. So the provision of preserving prose literature in writing form started much later than poetry literature.
The Arabic language, one of the earliest languages in the world is rich in both prose and poetry. The tradition of creating literature in this language began in the pre-Islamic era but that era is famous only for poetry literature. Side by side with poetry literature, though in less quantity, prose literature, was also sprouted in this pre-Islamic era. It is important to note that the Pre-Islamic poets not only gave birth to poetry but also made it a great branch of literature. It is a pity that the prose literature of this age had not gained as much importance in the pages of history as the poetry literature. But it is a matter of sorrow that all the literature at that time was composed orally and was passed down orally from generation to generation. This is because the prose literature of the pre-Islamic period did not get any importance. As a result, the prose composition of this age has been lost forever. However, some of the prose samples can be found in some of the later collections. From these samples, we can get some clues as to the development of prose literature in the pre-Islamic era. The prose of the pre-Islamic period developed into three genres – war stories, proverbs, and narratives. These are briefly discussed below:
War Stories: In the pre-Islamic period, the historical literature of the northern region of Arabia was generally known as ‘Ayam al-Arab’, meaning the stories of the war. The people living in Arabia at that time were divided into different groups or clans, and there were frequent clashes, conflicts, and wars among them. And the stories of those wars were circulated orally and people listened to them with eagerness. Some of them added the role of their deity to the stories of the wars and some of them added aspects of their socio-cultural and religious activities to the stories. Those stories were usually arranged in spoken prose and they were passed down through generations. These descriptions were rich in hereditary information and reflected the characteristics of the tribes they belonged to. The social, religious, and political views were also reflected in these descriptions. The description of Ayam was characterized by the glorification of one’s own tribe or clan and the condemnation of the opposing tribe. In fact, for the individual members of a tribe at that time, it was necessary to know the personal qualities and adventures of the former chiefs of the tribe. For this purpose, every member of the tribe liked and listened attentively to the narratives of that war. Some of them wrote poems about the adventures of the tribes and while reciting those poems, they explained some episodes in prose and thus enlivened the story. The language of such prose stories was mutually compatible with its own content. The dimension of descriptions was functional and self-explanatory. The central theme of such a story was a detailed account of a particular battle or event. Each tribe had its own poets who wrote poems on the adventures and glorious deeds of their respective tribes and they were recited in tribal gatherings with explanatory notes in prose. Such descriptions continued to circulate among the masses until a more fresh and memorable event took place after that incident. Ayam’s stories were valued as social entertainment and were regarded as the collective property of the entire tribe. These stories have been circulating in people’s mouths for centuries without any change. But sadly, the narrators had no historical consciousness. Therefore, they did not take any steps to preserve them in writing.
Proverbs: In the pre-Islamic era, Arabic prose also developed and spread through proverbs. Proverbs were regarded as the product of the real experience of the wise people because they contained the deepest truths of life. Most of the proverbs were instructive and pre-Islamic speakers and poets used proverbs in their writings consistently. Even on the battlefield, poets resorted to proverbs to encourage their soldiers. Proverbs were popular by word of mouth in the early days, although they were later transcribed. Some examples of proverbs prevalent in the Pre-Islamic Era are as follows:
‘Nothing but iron can affect iron. ’
‘People fall because of greed. ’
‘Man is the slave to what he thinks.’
We find a chapter on proverbs in Ibn Abdur Rabbi’s encyclopedia. He added this chapter to the encyclopedia to understand the use of proverbs. Al-Maydani collected and narrated many proverbs, phrases, moral sayings, etc., which were prevalent in Arab society. Through these proverbs, we can learn about the lifestyle and cultural activities of the pagan Arabs. Proverbs have been interpreted differently by different scholars. The interpretation of some proverbs seems to be completely different from the original meaning. Scholars of later times tried to find out the true meaning of proverbs.
Narratives, Traditions, Legends, etc: The Arabs of the pre-Islamic period had a strong memory to keep in mind the long narratives, anecdotes, traditions, etc. They memorized them from generation to generation. Later, these traditions played an important role in the development of Arabic prose. Legends also played an important role in the development of Arabic prose literature in the pre-Islamic period. Legends are fictional stories orally composed to entertain the audience. Of course, some were based on real events. They were preserved in various literary and historical works written during the Abbasid Caliphate, especially in Abul Faraj Isfahani’s ‘Kitabul Aghani’. There were some storytellers at the time. They told various stories at markets, fairs, or public gatherings and earned money for their livelihood. For example, the Ukaj fair can be mentioned. It was the center of the social, political, and literary life of the Arabs. People from different tribes gathered there during the fair. The storytellers and the public speakers told different stories during the Ukaj fair. Among such speakers mention may be made of Kush bin Saidah al-Yadi, Amar bin Madikarib, and some others.
The Prose of the Kahhins: In the pre-Islamic era, there was a class of people called ‘Kahhins’ who claimed to have invisible knowledge and thus they claimed to have the power of foretelling. They foretold the fate of human beings by looking at their hands, shapes, and faces. They were idolators. They presented their speeches in a language that was rhythmic, obscure, ambiguous, complex, and mysterious. Among the famous Kahhins of the Jahili era were Samla Ibn Hayya, Sawad Ibn Qarib, Mamur Al-Harisha, Gayatala, and some others. They also contributed to the development of Arabic prose by means of their prose-like composition.
With the advent of Islam in the seventh century, the language of the Qur’an and Hadith also played a significant role in the development of Arabic prose. This is because the language of the Koran was a wonderful combination of prose and verse. Therefore the people were easily influenced by the language of the Koran and thus they contributed much to the development of Arabic prose literature. The prose of the Hadith added clarity, simplicity, and universality to Arabic prose.
Thus Arabic prose literature developed during the pre-Islamic period.
The Characteristics of Arabic Prose
During the Pre-Islamic period, Arabic prose literature was in its infancy compared to the unprecedented development of Arabic poetry. The reason for this was that Arabic prose did not get as much importance as Arabic poetry. One of the main causes for this was that at that time all sorts of literature were composed orally and they were presented orally. The prose composition could not appeal to the feelings and sentiments of the general masses as Arabic poetry could during the Pre-Islamic period. However, prose literature began to take shape during the Pre-Islamic era. It is a pity that the prose composition that was born during that era was lost due to lack of preservation. In later times, with the efforts of some literary lovers, very few samples of pre-Islamic prose literature were collected and their study reveal the following characteristics:
(a) The scope of prose literature in the pre-Islamic period was narrow. These were limited to some war stories, proverbs, and narratives.
(b) The prose of the pre-Islamic period was composed of short sentences and rhythm was also used to some extent.
(c) In addition to mentioning the author’s name, identity, etc., the information about who got it from whom and told whom, etc. were clearly mentioned in their prose compositions.
(d) Proverbs were predominant in pre-Islamic prose. The authors enriched their works with enlightening proverbs and drew the attention of the audience.
(e) The language of prose writings was simple and straightforward, but the prose of the Kahens was complex and obscure.
(f) Oral language was predominant in the prose of the pre-Islamic period even though it was grammatical.
(g) Prose-Islamic prose was free from rhetoric.
(h) The prose of the pre-Islamic era was composed of its own Arabic words. They were not influenced by any foreign language. The following is an excerpt from the prose of the pre-Islamic period:
”The Almighty God has placed you in a very high and honorable position. You were born into a noble family and given an aristocratic home. He has made you the king of the Arabs and made them loyal to you. You are the right child of the rightful heir, in whose memory your greatness will always be alive and your heirs will be equally worthy and famous. “
It can be concluded that although the prose literature of the Pre-Islamic period could not go hand in hand with Arabic poetry, yet Arabic prose literature grew in that era, and later standing on them Arabic prose grew into a huge tree and helped Arabic to attain the status of one of the major languages of the world. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter-6
Some Pre-Islamic Prose Writers like Sahban bin Wael, Kush bin Saidah al-Ayyadi, and Hatim Tai
During the Pre-Islamic period, Arabic poetry got unprecedented development. But sadly, the development of prose literature was insignificant and primitive compared to poetry. However, it can not be said that prose literature was not practiced during that era. Although few in number, some writers created prose literature in pursuit of the necessities of life. It is a pity that the prose literature that was born in the Pre-Islamic period had been lost due to lack of preservation. Very few samples of prose literature of the pre-Islamic period were collected through the efforts of some literary lovers in later times. Among the writers who practiced Arabic prose during this period were Sahban bin Wael, Kush bin Sayidah al-Aiyadi, Hatim Tai, Amar ibn Aaj Zarb, Rabiah ibn Hozar, Hanayala ibn Dwerar, Amr ibn Kulthum, Johair ibn Janab, and some others. Let us be introduced to some of them as below:
Sahban bin Wael
Sahban bin Wael was a poet, prose writer, and speaker belonging to both the pre-Islamic era and the Islamic era. He was born into the famous Wael tribe of Arabia. The exact date of his birth is not known. It is said that he lived about one hundred and fifty years and was born long before the birth of Hazrat Muhammad (sm), the founder of Islam. He converted to Islam although he did not meet Hazrat Muhammad. He spent years of his life in Damascus with Muawiyah bin Abu Sufyan. He was an educated man and could read and write. He was wise and traveled to many places to gain knowledge. He also wrote some poems, although he became well known as an orator.
After his conversion to Islam, he devoted himself to the propagation of Islam and delivered religious discourses in various places. His speech was eloquent and effective. His language was simple but appealing. It is said that when he stood up to deliver a lecture, he took a stick and leaned on it. He could deliver consecutive lectures for a long time. It is said that during his entire speech he did not pause for a moment, did not sneeze, and never bowed his head. He sweated profusely but did not take any rest. His hold on the Arabic language was so deep and rich that he did not utter a word twice during his long speech. People from far and wide gathered to hear him speak. The main topic of his speech was religion, especially Islamic principles and Sunnah. For example, some excerpts from his speech are quoted below.
“The world is the abode of eloquence and behind it is the abode of determination. O man, go home from your traveling and do not let the curtains of your house be opened for him from whom your privacy is not hidden. ……. If a man is destroyed, people say, ‘What has he left?’ and the angels say, ‘What did he do? Give a little more and yes it will be yours, and don’t let go of it, it will be with you. ”
In the words quoted above, he has invoked people from a worldly life to the pinnacle of the afterlife.
Sahban bin Wael gave many speeches during his lifetime and through his speeches, he made significant contributions to the development and dissemination of Arabic prose. But sadly, his speeches have been lost forever due to lack of preservation. This is an irreparable loss to the Arabic language and literature.
Qus bin Saidah al-Iyadi
Qus bin Saidah al-Iyadi was a famous poet, prose writer, and orator of the pre-Islamic era. He was born in the Iyad tribe at a place called Najran in Arab. The names of his parents are not known. From an early age, he was thirsty for knowledge and learned about Christianity and Judaism.
He spent his youth in the court of the Roman emperor Kaiser and became a favorite of the emperor because of his honesty, philosophy of life, and wisdom. One day the emperor asked him, “What is the work of the best intellect?” In reply, he said, “Stay within the limits of your own knowledge.” He spent many years in the court of Kaiser and wrote many poems and delivered many speeches. He was known to have been one of the most learned men of his time and many people came to him seeking redressal of their grievances. “When settling a dispute, the plaintiff must prove his guilt and if the defendant denies it, he must take an oath,” said Kush bin Saida al-Ayyadi. He used the phrase “Amma Baad” (hereinafter) in Arabic. This rule is still followed today.
He is said to have lost two of his siblings at the age of about 50, and in their grief, he became gloomy. History testifies that in his old age he gave up worldly desires and devoted himself to the worship of Allah (God). This great man passed away in 601 AD.
Literary genius: Kush bin Saidah al-Ayadi was a philosopher, poet, prose writer, and orator. A brief discussion is done below on his prose composition.
He gave lectures to impart humane, moral, justice and religious education to the people. His speech was very eloquent and appealing. He delivered lectures at various public gatherings and was also invited to speak at the famous Ukaz Fair. He had once delivered a philosophical lecture in the presence of Hazrat Muhammad (sm) at the Ukaz fair. It is said that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was impressed by his speech and praised him much and prayed to Allah with all his heart for him.
He made lectures on many necessary topics relating to life and thus disseminated knowledge among the masses. But sadly, his speeches have been lost forever due to lack of preservation. One and half a century after his death, a few of his speeches were recovered from the public memory and were preserved in writing form. The following is an excerpt from one of his speeches:
“O mankind! gather here, listen to and remember, the one who is born will die. He who tastes death will depart. Whatever is to happen will happen. This dark night, this bright day, this ornamented sky, this radiant constellation, this rippling ocean, these strong hills and mountains, this vast expanse of plain, these ever-flowing rivers, all testify that there is a special great power in heaven. Where do these people go from where they never return? ”
The above-quoted lines prove that Kush’s prose was emotional and influential. He used simple, straightforward words, although he arranged them in such a way as to capture the emotional feelings of his listeners.
In a dark age like the pre-Islamic era, the statements of Qus bin Saidah al-Iyadi must be commendable. His prose works have been lost in the course of time, although it is undeniable that his prose played a role in the development of Arabic prose literature.
Hatim Tai
Hatim Tai was one of the most prolific writers of the pre-Islamic era. He was a poet and orator. He wrote poems and gave lectures on great human qualities. He was born in Najd, northeast of Medina. History is silent about his date of birth. He is thought to have been born in the first half of the sixth century. His father’s name was Abdullah Ibn Sa’d. He was probably born into a Christian family. His mother’s name was Inaba. She was a religious, compassionate, and generous woman. Hatim Tai inherited great human qualities from his mother. There is a legend about his birth that when his mother was pregnant, someone in her dream said to him, “What do you wish to have – a generous child, or a warrior like a lion, or ten strong sons?” His mother said, “A generous child.” After some months a child was born to her and she named the child ‘Hatim’ meaning a benevolent child.
Hatim Tai was religious, philanthropic, and very generous from an early age and he took food with guests every day. There is another story about him that his grandfather, one day, sent him to graze a herd of camels. Hatim donated a total of thirty-three camels. After this event, his grandfather left Hatim and moved away and begin to live in another place. It is said that Hatim Tai slaughtered ten camels every year during the month of Rajab and fed the people. He married a woman named Nawara and had three children. Two of them converted to Islam. Hatim Tai spent his entire life in the service of others and died in 603 AD.
He wrote poems and gave lectures on humanitarian issues. Hospitality, benevolence, generosity, courage, kindness to neighbors, etc. were the topics of his speech. In other words, his poetry and prose were completely humanistic. It is noted that there is no place for love, description of the female body, alcohol, pleasure, etc. in his writings.
The influence of monotheistic religion is evident in both his poetry and prose. He was a believer and believed in heaven, and hell.
In the age of ignorance, his writings were like a beacon of light. It was as if he wanted to eradicate the darkness of the human mind and wished to establish a beautiful humanitarian society through his writings.
His language was simple, elegant, and pleasant. He was inclined to preach the simple truth of life to the masses. Therefore, as a poet and orator of the pre-Islamic era, he was unique and original.
In this way, Hatim Tai contributed a lot to the development of Arabic poetry and prose literature. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter 7
Some pre-Islamic Poets and Their Poetic Careers
The pre-Islamic period in Arabic history refers to a year span from 500 AD to 622 AD. It was during this period that many great poets and orators were born in Arabia and they contributed a great deal to the development of Arabic poetry. Among the Pre-Islamic poets Imraul Qays, Zuhair bin Abi Salma, Tarafa bin al-A’bd, Labid bin Rabiya, Antara bin Shaddad, Amar bin Kulthum, Haris bin Hillija, Al-Nabigha, Al-Asha, Hatim Tai, Abid bin Al-Abras, Abid bin Salat, Al-Shanfara, Al-Shamaul bin Adia are famous. Let us introduce the poets with their poetic talents.
Imraul Qays:
Brief Life Sketch: Imraul Qays was one of the greatest and most influential poets of the pre-Islamic (Jahili) era.
It is not known exactly when he was born but it is deemed that he was born in the middle of the fifth century to the royal family of South Arabia. His father’s name was Hujr bin Haris. Imarul was the youngest son of his parents. His mother was the sister of Muhalhal, a leader of the famous Taghlib dynasty.
As Imraul Qays was born to a royal family, he enjoyed freedom from an early age and at one point he became addicted to alcohol and women. In his youth, he fell in love with a woman named ‘Fatima’ and then he composed poems narrating his love affairs with Fatima and used to sing in public. His father was very upset with his son’s actions and threw him out of the home. Being driven from home, he met some wicked boys of his age and began to roam about the desert. Imraul Qays, with his associates, spent his days sometimes hunting and sometimes robbing strangers and thus earned a living. During this time, he also composed poems and sang them in public. After spending some days in this way, he suddenly got a piece of news from home that his father was murdered by members of the hostile Asad community. As soon as he got this news, he said –
“When I was young, my father spoiled me. Now I’m grown up and he leaves me to take revenge. Today is the day of drinking alcohol, tomorrow is the day of revenge. “
After this, he spent drinking wine for seven days and seven nights and then said,
“I will not eat meat and drink wine, not wash my hair, not use oil, and not touch any beautiful woman until I avenge my father.”
In order to fulfill his promise, he left his nomadic life and returned home. But unable to get the support of anyone from his clan to fulfill his promise, he went to the court of Justinian, emperor of Byzantine. There he spent ten years and practiced poetry. It is noteworthy that during this time he had a secret love affair with the daughter of Emperor Justinian. Later the emperor was sad to learn about the affair and sent Imraul Qays away from the court. The emperor presented Qays with a pair of poisoned garments while saying goodbye. Qays was happy to wear the poisoned garment but within a few days, his body filled with sores and blisters and he died of this disease in 540 AD at a place called Ankara. As he was affected by sores, he was also called ‘Zulkuruh’ (a person suffering from sores). It is worth mentioning that Imraul Qays was also known as the ‘King of the Desert’ because he traveled all over the Arabian Desert.
Poetic Career: Imraul Kaiser composed many poems, although only a fraction of his works are available. ‘Muwallaka’ is his famous poem. This is a narrative poem. Eighty-one lines of the poem have been found. The poem is thought to have been longer. A study of his poetry reveals that the main themes of his poems are love, adventure, praise of heroism, condemnation of the enemy, and nature.
His ‘Muwallaka’ poem begins with the theme of love for his beloved. He is very skilled, tactful, and sensitive in describing a woman’s body. In describing the body of a woman, he resorted to a bunch of innovative imageries. No part of a woman’s body, such as breasts, buttocks, face, hair, skin color, body odor, etc., has been left out of his description. He created incomparable imageries while describing a woman’s body and compared her with deer, moon, bird, etc. He made his poems unique in poetic power by comparing his lover’s face with a gold coin, the breast with a deer’s nose, the odor emanating from her body with musk, and the saliva of his beloved’s mouth with honey. His attraction to women was unparalleled. His imageries show how powerful his poetic power was in portraying a woman’s body! The following is an excerpt from his muwallaka poem:
(a) ” I’ve got into those women’s inner chamber
Where no man entered before
And enjoyed so much.”
(b) As soon as you take off your clothes
the source of beauty comes out
And too many pearls and diamonds
I take upon my two palms!
(c) You showed me
The bright tenderness of your cheeks
With a look full of shyness
The deer of the forest feels shame
Oh, how beautiful!
The second theme of his poems is the praise of heroism and condemnation of his enemy. On the other hand, the description of the wild animals of the desert along with camels also finds a place in his poetry. He describes horses as follows:
“When the birds of the forest are still in their nests
I leave home at dawn
On the back of a short hairy, fast, beautiful, tender
And skilled hunting horse in the prey.
Intense is her speed all around. ”
His poems also contain a sensitive description of nature. In eight lines of his poem ‘Muallaka’, he portrays clouds, torrential rains, storms, etc.
In all, even though Imraul Qay’s poetry was fertile and appreciated in poetic power, Hazrat Mohammad called him the ‘leader of hell’ because of his unrestrained greed for women’s bodies and sensitive portrayal of woman’s limbs. On the other hand, Hazrat Omar and Hazrat Ali could not but appreciate his poetic power despite the obscenity.
It is safe to say that Imraul Qays was undoubtedly one of the foremost Arab poets of the pre-Islamic era. Perhaps it is because of his poetry that the poems of the Jahili era have been the subject of discussion from century to century.
Zuhair bin Abi Salma
Brief Life Sketch: Zuhair bin Abi Salma is one of the great poets of the pre-Islamic era. It is not known exactly when he was born but he is guessed to have been born in the early part of the 6th century in an educated and rich family of the Murra community in a place called Najd. His father’s name was Abi Salma. From an early age, Zuhair grew up in the house of his maternal uncle, Bashwama al-Gadir. Bashwama was childless though he was a very cheerful person. He was also a poet. It should be noted that almost all the members of the Bashwama family had poetic talents. Her two aunts, Salma and Al-Khansa, were famous female poets of the time. Zuhair grew up in a poetic environment and was inspired to practice poetry from an early age.
At that time there was a long-running civil war between the Abas and Zubian communities. Many people were killed on both sides of the conflict. Harim bin Sinan and Harish bin Auf, both leaders of the Murra community, later settled the dispute and established peace between the two communities. The peace-loving Zuhair was so pleased with this settlement that he composed a long poem praising Harim bin Sinan. After reading the poem, Sinan praised Zuhair for his poetic prowess and donated him a large sum of money. Being encouraged by this, Zuhair wrote many poems. But it is a matter of sorrow that most of his poems, except for a very small portion, have been lost for want of preservation.
Zuhair lived for almost a hundred years. He was a pious, generous, and kind-hearted man. He had a high level of judgment. He might have met Hazrat Muhammad, the founder of Islam. But he died a few years before Mohammad gained prophethood.
His Poetic Career: Zuhair bin Abi Salma is considered to be one of the three greatest poets of the Jahili era. The other two were Imraul Qays and Al-Nabigha. Zuhair became famous as a poet of eulogy (laudatory poems). His poems contain praise of his patrons, humane qualities, and heroic deeds. Like the poems of Imraul Kays, his poems contain poetic descriptions of camels. It should be noted that his poems do not contain any description of the female body as found in the poems of his predecessor Imraul Qays. There is no description of wine, merriment, and enmity in his poems. In contrast, his poems deal with human qualities, morality, justice, and righteousness. One of his poems deals with the oneness of God, belief in the Last Judgment, and so on. In general, his poetry is free from obscenity. For this quality Hazrat Omar, the second caliph of Islam praised his poetry.
In poetic style, his poetry was simple and devoid of difficulty. He used similes and familiar words in his poems to make the subject matter easier.
In conclusion, it is to say that the poetry of Zuhair bin Abi Salma is not as powerful as the poetry of Imraul Qaiser, although as a poet of humane ideals, Zuhair bin Abi Salma is considered one of the greatest poets of the pre-Islamic era.
Tarafa bin al-Abd
Brief Life Sketch: Tarafa bin al-Abd was one of the leading poets of the pre-Islamic period. He is best known, in the history of Arabic poetry, as a satirical poet. The exact date of his birth is unknown, although he is thought to have been born in the second decade of the sixth century in the famous ‘Bakar’ tribe of Arabia. His father’s name was Al-Abd. At a young age, he lost his parents and was taken care of by his uncle. But the uncle tried to deprive him of his father’s property by showing indifference towards him. As a result, Tarafa was deprived of good education and became corrupt, oppressive, and addicted to alcohol.
In his early teens, he fell in love with a young woman named ‘Khawla’ of the Tamim tribe. Although Tarafa loved her so much, she did not respond to Tarafa’s calling. Failing in love, he left home, wandered around, and began to practice poetry as a medium of expressing sorrow and grief.
Tarafa, being deprived of his father’s property, once went to the court of Amor, the king of Heera to alleviate his financial misery. Mutalammis, one of his elder cousins, had already been a royal poet of the king of Heera. There Tarafa composed a poem and the king was satisfied with him. Then the king appointed him as an assistant poet of Mutalammis.
Tarafa was an independent thinker and was adept at composing satirical poems centering on any one of his opponents. He wrote satirical poems about the court members and even about the king. One day Tarafa was drinking with King Amr at the palace. Then suddenly his eyes fell on one of the beautiful sisters of the king. No sooner had he seen her than he composed the following lines of poetry-
After hearing this piece of poetry, the king became very angry with Tarafa and intended to execute Tarafa and his cousin Mutalammis very cleverly. But the king planned to kill them in two different states, thinking that the people might revolt if the two poets were killed in their own state. With this in mind, the king ordered Mutalammis and Tarafa to go home on leave. While they were leaving the court, the king gave each one a royal letter to send to the governors of Bahrain and Oman respectively.
They started their journey back home carrying the royal letters. Mutalammis and Tarafa were both illiterate poets. They did not know how to read and write.
On the way, Mutalamis, being curious about what was written inside the letter, let a literate young man read the letter. Reading the letter, it was found that the letter had ordered him to be buried alive.
Mutalammis then threw the letter into the river and asked Tarafa to open the letter in his hand and read it. But Tarafa did not like to disobey the king’s order and delivered the letter to the governor of Bahrain. The governor did not kill Tarafa but captured him and sent him to the King of Heera. There Tarafa was killed in 564 AD.
Poetic Career: Tarafa bin al-Abd is known as a satirical poet, although he wrote poems on love, war, heroism, and generosity. He composed many poems, though only 250 of them are still available today. Among his compositions, the Muwallaka poem is the most famous. This poem summarizes many aspects of his personal life. At first, he gives an account of the injustice done to him by his uncle and cousins, then he describes the camel he used as a vehicle in twenty-eight lines. In his description of the camel, he used high fertile imageries, similar to that of his contemporary poet Imraul Qays. In his description of the camel, he was detailed and portrayed the pictures of a camel’s manner of walking, her back, thighs, head, neck, height, chest, shoulders, buttocks, etc.
After giving a detailed description of his camel in his Muwallaka poem, the poet turns to the theme of love and describes his love affair with his beloved Khawla. In between these descriptions he also talks about war, war tactics, courage, heroism, etc.
The language of Tarafa’s poetry is simple but amusing. His satirical poems criticize the social injustice and faults of his opponents.
It is worth mentioning that Tarafa bin Al Abd was an adventurous poet of the pre-Islamic era who wrote satirical poems even criticizing his patrons.
Labid bin Rabiyah
Brief life Sketch: Labid bin Rabiyah was a prominent Arabic poet of both pre-Islamic and Islamic eras. He is considered to be the youngest of the Arabic Muwallaka poets. His real name was Abu Aqil Labid bin Rabiyah bin Malik bin Jafar. He was born in 514 AD to the famous Amir dynasty of Arabia. His father’s name was Rabiyah bin Malik. He was a generous leader. Labid bin Rabiyah inherited some of the greatest virtues, such as generosity, forgiveness, benevolence, and morality. Labid was inclined to poetry since his childhood. It is said that in order to test Labid’s poetic power, his elder brother once asked him to compose a poem about a piece of grass laying in front of him and then he wrote the following piece of poetry instantly:
“No fire can be lit by this grass
Can’t build a house.
It’s no one’s tool of joy
It can’t be used as a piece of wood
The use of its leaves is also very little
The branches are so soft
It is the worst species of the herb. ”
In this way, by composing poems, Labid bin Rabia established himself as a great poet. When he was over a hundred years old he was offered to convert to Islam. Then he, with some of his companions, went to Madina and met Hazarat Mohammad. There he listened to the reciting of some verses from Surah Bakara and converted to Islam. After converting to Islam, he gave up writing poetry. When he was asked why he gave up writing poetry, then he said, “Allah has given me the Qur’an instead of poetry.” He is said to have memorized the entire Koran in his old age. However, after his conversion to Islam, he wrote some poems, all of which were based on Islamic philosophy.
He lived to be 145 years old and died in 661 AD during the reign of Muawiyah.
Poetic Career: Labid was a prolific poet belonging to both the Pre-Islamic and Islamic eras. The influences of both eras are evident in his poetry. A study of the few preserved parts of his poems reveals that the themes of his poems were war, rural life, love, desert scenes, animals, human qualities, etc.
His famous Muwallaka poem, like other Muwallaka poems, begins with a love affair. It has depicted the scene of his beloved’s abandoned residence. He has shown skill in describing the solitude of the abandoned place very eloquently. It is important to note that there is no description of the physical beauty of his beloved in his poem.
In his famous muwallaka poem, after describing his love affairs, he gives an account of the camel he rode on, and he concludes the description of his camel by comparing it to a wild donkey.
This is followed by a description of a cow that had lost its calf along with a vivid picture of the hardships he encountered along the sandy way of the desert, describing the wind, clouds, rain, etc.
Overall Labid’s Muallaka poem is a poetic description of his journey through the desert.
Although Labid bin Rabiyah is a poet of the pre-Islamic era, his poetry is completely free from the obscene descriptions of women found in the poetry of other poets of that era. On the contrary, his poetry deals with the themes of humanity, patience, forgiveness, natural beauty, and life struggles in the desert.
From the viewpoint of poetic style, his poems are not as sensitive as those of Imraul Kaiser, although the ingenuity of narration and the combination of simple and complex words are present in his poems.
The poem, written by Labid bin Rabia after his conversion to Islam, deals with the themes of the greatness of Allah, the ephemerality of human life, the Day of Judgment, and other Islamic philosophies. Here, a few lines from his poetry are quoted as examples:
“Everything except Allah is worthless.
All happiness will disappear unconditionally
……………………………
The last trial day will unfold
All your actions in front of you
And Allah, the Almighty, will judge your deeds.
Listening to the verses of Labid bin Rabiyah, Hazrat Muhammad praised him and said, “The best verse that a poet can compose.”
It is safe to say that Labid bin Rabiyah was an exceptional poet of the pre-Islamic and Islamic eras whose poetry did not contain any description of inhumanity or obscenity.
Antara bin Shaddad
Brief Life Sketch: Antara bin Shabaddad was one of the greatest poets of the pre-Islamic period. He is also known as the ‘Military Poet’ for his heroic deeds in many battles during his lifetime.
Antara bin Shabaddad was born in 525 AD in a place called Najd in the famous Abas tribe. His father’s name was Shaddad and his mother was an Abyssinian slave. His father did not initially recognize Antara as his son because he was born in the womb of a slave-maid. But Antara was very brave, self-respecting, and heroic and he was determined to get his father’s recognition as a son anyway. It is worth mentioning that the child born in the womb of a slave girl in Arabia at that time was not recognized as a son and he had to live as a slave until he could do any significant work of honor. Antara became proficient in spear-throwing, horse-riding, and sword-fighting from an early age, hoping to gain the recognition of his father a son, and wanted to be free from slavery.
It is said that one day some people of the neighboring tribe forcibly took away the camels and sheep of the Abas tribe. Antara’s father ordered Antara to rescue the animals by attacking them. But Antara said, “I am a slave. A slave cannot fight. ” Then his father said, “You are free from today. Fight and rescue the animals. “Being Inspired by this, Antara jumped on the invaders with a sword in his hand and rescued all the animals from their hands. After this incident, his father declared him to be free and recognized him as his son.
It is learned that Antarai fell in love with one of his uncle’s daughters. Her name was ‘Abla’. But because Antara was the son of a slave-maid, Abla did not respond to her calling. Antara was disappointed by the rejection of love, although he went on composing poems with the joy of being freed from slavery.
He lived to be 90 years old and died in 615 AD.
Antara bin Shaddad wrote a number of short poems, although only 1,600 lines of them are found today. Antara bin Saddad’s poems were a reflection of his personal despair, love, courage, heroism, and rebellion against the aristocracy.
Antar’s Muwallaka poem is a descriptive poem of 92 lines. This poem was written on the background of the end of the famous Battle of Basus. Like other pre-Islamic Muwallalaka poets, Antara begins his Muallalaka poem with a love story. In the poem, the poet describes the pain of separation from his beloved, her physical beauty, etc. After this, the poet describes the war, the joy of drinking, the beauty of the camel, patience, etc. He concludes the Muwallaka poem with a realistic description of human qualities such as tenderness towards honest people, harsh attitude towards cruel people, generosity, etc.
Antara’s description is varied and realistic. His language is simple, rhythmic, and elegant. His imageries are adorned with wonderful and metaphorical ornaments. His narration was moderate and decent. No obscenity is found in his poems.
It can be concluded that Antara bin Shaddad’s Muallaka is written after the model of his contemporary Imraul Qays’s Muallaka but it does not have any obscenity as found in Qays’s poem. 0 0 0.
Amar Bin Kulthum
Brief Life Sketch: Amar bin Kulthum was one of the great poets of the pre-Islamic era. His full name was Abu Abbas Amar bin Kulthum. He was born in the famous Taghlib tribe of Arabia. The exact date of his birth is unknown, although he is thought to have been born in the first decade of the sixth century or the last decade of the fifth century. His father’s name was Kulthum bin Malik. He was a cavalryman from Mesopotamia. Her mother’s name was Laila. She was the daughter of the famous Muhalhal, the hero of the famous Basus war. He was a famous warrior and poet of his time. He is said to have been the father of Arabic qasida. It is said that the famous Battle of Basus started rounding his qasida.
Amar bin Kulthum was brought up in an environment of war and tribal conflict. This is why he was trained in martial arts from an early age and for his bravery and heroism, his tribe selected him as their team leader at the age of only fifteen. He inherited a sense of self-respect and independence from his parents. It is said that the people of the Taghlib tribe were self-respecting in their belief that they stood firm against any disrespectful behavior. It is learned that once the king of Heera, Amar bin Hind, called in Laila, the mother of Amar bin Kulthum, to the royal court and persuaded her to attend to the queen. But Laila, who had a sense of self-worth, denied it and cried out to his son Amr bin Kultum to protect her dignity. Then Amar Bin Kulthum with an open sword in his hand rescued his mother from the queen’s chamber. After this incident, the heroism of Amar Bin Kulthum spread all around.
He lived for more than eighty years and died in 61 AD.
Kulthum was one of the famous Muwallaka poets. It is not known how many poems he composed. But it is true that he was not a professional poet. He seldom wrote poetry. Only a small portion of his work is preserved. Love, family pride, war, etc. were the main themes of his poetry. Muwallaka is one of the most famous of his poems. The poem is thought to have had more than a thousand lines. It was through this poem that his name as a poet became well-known. The people of his tribe held the poem in high esteem and memorized it with great reverence as a symbol of national heroism.
Amar Bin Kulshum begins his famous Muwallaka poem with a love story in the traditional way. Here the poet’s pain of separation from his beloved is portrayed vividly. The poem begins with this, “O my beloved, while saying goodbye, give me a good drink so that I can forget the pain of my separation from you.” After this, the poet describes the physical beauty of his beloved. This description is very poetic and appealing. He described the various parts of the beloved as quoted below:
“The arms are as full as a barren camel,
The two breasts are swelling, touchless and soft
Ankle worn feet are as bright as a tube made of elephant teeth
She has become like a calf-losing camel in separation of pain
And like a mother who has lost her child. ”
After this, the poet goes on to describe the valor and heroism of Amar Bin Hind, the king of Heera, and praises the strength of his tribe and his heroic warriors.
Towards the end of the poem, he describes the horses used by his tribe during the war and says that they prefer horses with a few hairs that win the battle and return with the enemy’s horses, swords, and captives. Their heroic warriors are strong in the belief that they can resist all forces and extend their dominance wherever they wish.
In this way, the poet Amar Bin Kulthum has elaborately given an account of the pain of love, the praises of the king of Heera, the heroism of his family, etc.
His language is very captivating, eloquent, meaningful, and full of varied imagery.
To sum up it can be said that, as a poet, Amar Bin Kulthum possessed a powerful poetic power that was embodied in his Muwallaka poem. It is for this poem that he has drawn the attention of poetry-loving readers for ages.
Haris bin Hillija
Brief Life Sketch: Haris ben Hillija was one of the foremost poets of the pre-Islamic era. He is believed to have been born in the Banu Bakar tribe in the early 6th century AD. His full name was Abu Jalim al-Harith bin Hillija. From his childhood, he witnessed the occasional battle between the Banu Bakar tribe and the Taghlib tribe and made himself mentally strong and courageous. He was diagnosed with leprosy at an early age. But even with this illness, his mental state could not be weakened. Despite his leprosy, he fought in a number of battles, and in his old age, he took charge of the battles of his tribe. The war between the Banu Bakar and Taghlib tribes at that time resulted in considerable casualties on both sides. Harish bin Hilliza, a member of the Banu Bakar tribe, and Amar bin Kulshum, a representative of the Taghlib tribe, composed poems as the spokesmen of their respective tribes. Harish, like Amar Bin Kulthum, was a self-respecting person and never bowed down to anyone. He also had extensive experience and was adept in royal affairs. Therefore, at the end of his life, he got a seat in the royal court of the King of Heera.
Harish bin Hilliza was a poet of the pre-Islamic era and his poetry was influenced by his predecessors and contemporaries. The number of poems he wrote is unknown. Only his muwallaka poem has survived the ruins of time. This poem is a qasida and ends in 72 lines.
The poem is written in the traditional qasida style. The poet begins the poem with the theme of the farewell of his beloved Asma. He is in pain at the loss of his beloved. He reminds the past happy days with his beloved and says that he can not bear the pain of this loss. His tears are flowing from his eyes. Then he thinks that perhaps his beloved has set fire to wood on the top of a hill and her limbs are gleaming with the light of that fire. The poet, being desperate, rides on the back of a fast-moving camel and goes ahead in search of his beloved.
In this way, the poet gives an account of his pain of separation from his beloved and then recounts the battle of his tribe with his opponents. The narrative tells the story of a battle between the Banu Bakar tribe and the Taghlib tribe. In the middle of this description, he mentions the pride of his tribe and the friendship of the Bakar tribe with the king of Heera. The poet concludes the poem with a condemnation of the opposition Taghlib tribe by establishing the superiority of his won tribe.
Although the poem is written in the traditional qasida style, it is weak in poetic power. There is a lack of ingenuity and excellence in narration. His imageries are humdrum and unconventional. His language is simple but rhythmic.
Al-Nabigha
Brief Life Sketch: Al-Nabigha was a famous poet of the pre-Islamic era. His real name was Ziad bin Muawiyah and his nickname was Abu Omamah. The date of his birth is unknown, although he is thought to have been born in the first half of the sixth century. He was born in the famous Banu Zubian tribe of Arabia. He was known as ‘Al-Nabigha’ because of his great personality and his greatness as a poet. The tribe in which he was born lived in the province of Najd, north of Medina. He was acquainted with many pre-Islamic poets and was inspired to pursue poetry by them. He later went to the royal court of the King of Heera and developed an intimacy with the royal family. It is known from his poems that he appealed to the King of Heera not to persecute his own tribe in the northern part of the state. He spent about 50 years in the royal court of the king and he became the poet laureate of consecutive three Heera kings.
Al-Nabigha lived a dignified life in the royal court of the king of Heera. At that time, Munakhkhan, another young poet in the royal court of the king of Heera, became jealous of Nabigha’s royal patronage and tried to discredit him. It is said that once the king of Heera ordered Al-Nabigha to compose a poem describing the beauty of his queen. Accordingly, Al-Nabighai composed a fine poem depicting the beauty of the queen. In the poem, he described the beauty of the queen in a lively and vivid way, and even the secret parts of the queen were not left out from that description. The envious poet Munakhkhan, after reading the poem, complained to the king against Al-Nabigha that the queen had illicit relations with Al-Nabigha. As a result, his relationship with the king of Heera deteriorated and he left the royal court of the king of Heera and went to the royal court of Syria.
He spent several years in the royal court of Syria and wrote poems praising the princess. It is known that later on the king of Heera called in Al-Nabighak back to his court and he died there in 604 AD.
Al-Nabigha was one of the most prolific poets of his time. His poems do not contain any descriptions of adventures, landscapes, wine, amusements, etc. as contained in the poems of his predecessors. Instead, his poems contain praises for human qualities such as generosity, greatness, courage, and so on. Some of his lines were sarcastic, though they were simple and gentle. Some of the local events also found a place in his poems. His language was simple, rhythmic, and rich in knowledge.
After studying his poetry, Caliph Abdul Malik of the Umayyad dynasty praised him as one of the greatest poets of that era. Al-Duwali, the founder of Arabic grammar, called Al-Nabigha the best poet of the pre-Islamic period.
It can be summed up by saying that Al-Nabigha was a man of great and admirable qualities, and as a poet, he was moral and temperate.
Al-Asha
Brief Life Sketch: Al-Asha was a prominent poet of the pre-Islamic era. His real name was Maymun Bin Kayes. His birth date is unknown. But it is speculated that he was born in a simple family in a place called Najad in the first half of the sixth century but by means of his poetic genius he established himself as an honorable and influential person. The word ‘al-Asha’ means ‘a person with poor eyesight. This suggests that his eyesight was poor.
It is known from his poems that he had good relations with the then King of Heera and the Czech rulers of Persia. From his poems, it is also known that once the king of Heera captured some people and animals of his tribe and at the request of Al-Asha, the king released them. Another poem states that two of his tribesmen were once held captive by some leading men in Iraq and were released through the mediation of al-Asha. These events show that Al-Asha was an influential and dignified man.
It is said that he once went to Madina to meet the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam, and wrote a poem praising the Prophet.
But the Quraish of Mecca thought that if an influential person like Al-Asha would meet Hazrat Mohammad and convert to Islam then the influence and strength of Islam would increase a lot so they persuaded him not to meet the Prophet and offered him a hundred camels as gifts.
He died in his hometown in 629 AD.
Poetic Career: Al-Asha wrote a number of short poems. At present, only 2,000 lines of his poetry have been found. Most of his poems are satirical. Some of his poems are tragic. In addition to describing the physical beauty of his beloved in his love poems, he also mentions the mental state of his beloved. The issue of sectarian strife is also present in his poems.
As a poet, his language was a mixture of complexity and simplicity. Although he used rhythm in his poems, he was not aware of the rhythmic consistency.
Al-Asha, through his poetry, made significant strides in the development of pre-Islamic poetry.
Hatim Tai
Hatim Tai was one of the most prolific writers of the pre-Islamic era. He was a poet and orator. He wrote poems and gave lectures on great human qualities. He was born in Najd, northeast of Medina. History is silent about his date of birth. He is thought to have been born in the first half of the sixth century. His father’s name was Abdullah Ibn Sa’d. He was probably born into a Christian family. His mother’s name was Inaba. She was a religious, compassionate, and generous woman. Hatim Tai inherited great human qualities from his mother. There is a legend about his birth that when his mother was pregnant, someone in her dream said to him, “What do you wish to have – a generous child, or a warrior like a lion, or ten strong sons?” His mother said, “A generous child.” After some months a child was born to her and she named the child ‘Hatim’ meaning a benevolent child.
Hatim Tai was religious, philanthropic, and very generous from an early age and he took food with guests every day. There is another story about him that his grandfather, one day, sent him to graze a herd of camels. Hatim donated a total of thirty-three camels. After this event, his grandfather left Hatim and moved away and begin to live in another place. It is said that Hatim Tai slaughtered ten camels every year during the month of Rajab and fed the people. He married a woman named Nawara and had three children. Two of them converted to Islam. Hatim Tai spent his entire life in the service of others and died in 603 AD.
He wrote poems and gave lectures on humanitarian issues. Hospitality, benevolence, generosity, courage, kindness to neighbors, etc. were the topics of his speech. In other words, his poetry and prose were completely humanistic. It is noted that there is no place for love, description of the female body, alcohol, pleasure, etc. in his writings.
The influence of monotheistic religion is evident in both his poetry and prose. He was a believer and believed in heaven, and hell. The following quoted lines show that the theme of religion plays a dominant role in his poetry.
“O Maria, the wealth I have donated
I will get gratitude and value for that in my afterlife. ”
In another poem, he says,
“For whom do you gather so much wealth
After your death, all will be looted by your relatives. ”
In the age of ignorance, his writings were like a beacon of light. It was as if he wanted to eradicate the darkness of the human mind and wished to establish a beautiful humanitarian society through his writings.
His language was simple, elegant, and pleasant. He was inclined to preach the simple truth of life to the masses. Therefore, as a poet and orator of the pre-Islamic era, he was unique and original.
In this way, Hatim Tai contributed a lot to the development of Arabic poetry and prose literature.
The language of his poetry was simple, elegant, and pleasant. He was inclined to preach the simple truth of life to the masses. This is why he was unique and original as a poet of the pre-Islamic era.
Abid bin Al-Abras
Brief Life Sketch: Abid bin Al-Abras was one of the leading Arabic poets of the pre-Islamic era. He was probably born in the Asad tribe of Arabia in the late fifth century. This tribe was under the control of Hujar, the father of the famous pre-Islamic poet Imraul Qays. The name of his father is unknown. But it is known that his family was very miserable and spent their days in poverty. In the early part of his life, he did not write any poems. There is a legend about how his poetic power was awakened. According to the legend, one day he went to a pond in the middle of the desert with his sister named Mabia to fetch some water for a goat. But he was stopped by a man from another community who beat and kicked him and sent him away. Being insulted and tired, he went to rest under a tree and fell asleep. After a while, the person who had insulted him was going home and on the way, he saw Abras sitting under a tree and recited some obscene poems accusing him of committing adultery with his sister. Abras was deeply saddened by this humiliation and raised his hand and prayed, “O God, give me the strength to resist this humiliation.” After this prayer, he fell asleep and dreamt that a man put some hair in his mouth and asked him to get up from his sleep. After this, Abras gained poetic power and from that day he took to composing poems till his death.
He later went to the court of Hujjar and became a royal adviser and representative of the Asad tribe. He died in 555 AD in the court of Hujar.
Poetic Career: Abid bin Al-Abras composed many poems. But sadly, only a fraction of these poems have survived the decay of time. The poems that have come down to us show us clearly that he was a poet of high level. He wrote poems on the hardness of life, love, admiration, condemnation of adversaries, the roughness of the desert, nature, etc. His poems, like those of other pre-Islamic poets, also contain the description of camels. It is known from some of his verses that he was a believer in monotheism.
The language of his poetry was advanced and theoretical. His metaphor was amusing and interesting. The rhythm of his poems was free and short.
It is worth mentioning that Abid bin Al-Abras was one of the most popular poets of the pre-Islamic era and he made a significant contribution to the development of the Arabic poetry in the pre-Islamic era.
Umaiya bin Abi Salat
Brief Life Sketch: Umaiya bin Abi Salat was one of the most popular poets of the pre-Islamic era. His date of birth is not known. He is thought to have been born in the second half of the 6th century in the city of Taif. The name of his father is not known. Probably his father was a businessman and lived a prosperous life. He was a relative of Hazrat Muhammad from his mother’s side.
Umayya bin Abi Salat was involved in business with his father from an early age and traveled to Yemen, Syria, Bahrain, and other neighboring countries. From an early age, he was thirsty for knowledge and curious to know about existing religions. During his travels, he met a lot of priests and saints in different places. He exchanged views with them with great interest and gained a lot of knowledge about religion. His writings show that he was a believer in monotheism and was a staunch opponent of idolatry. It is said that he wished to be the ‘last prophet’ himself and during his travels, he heard about the birth of the last prophet from the monks of Syria. But when Hazrat Muhammad was proclaimed as a prophet, he was deeply saddened. According to one account, he accepted Hazrat Muhammad as the last prophet and came to Badr with the intention of meeting him. At that time some Bedouin people showed him a deep well where there were some corpses of his relatives who were killed in the battle of Badr. He was very sad to see this horrific scene and lamented tearing his clothes with grief. After this, he returned home without meeting the prophet and died after some days in 624 AD.
Poetic Career: Only a few lines of his poems have been found and from those, it is known that his poems were elegant and he wrote poems on the virtues of morality, religion, benevolence, kindness, greatness, etc. His poems are mainly of three types – eulogy, pride of his clan, and elegy. There are some thematic and ideological similarities between the poetry of Hatim Tai and that of Abi Salat. One of his poems tells the story of the sacrifices of Prophet Hazrat Ibrahim and Hazrat Ismail.
His expression was simple, his word choice was beautiful and accurate. In some of his poems on religion, he used obscure words.
Al-Shanfara
Brief Life Sketch: Al-Shanfara was a famous pre-Islamic bandit poet. The term ‘bandit poet’ refers to those poets of the pre-Islamic period who were expelled from their tribe unjustly or for some crime and lived a nomadic life with freedom. These poets wandered in the desert and made a living by robbing or intimidating people. Some of them made money by composing and reciting poems. Al-Shanfara was one such poet.
Al-Shawanfarai was born into the famous Azod tribe in the southern Arab province of Yemen. His real name was Amr bin Rabiah bin Al Awas bin Al Hujar bin Al Azod. Many scholars have speculated that Shanfara was his nickname. The word ‘Shannara’ means ‘huge-lipped’. People used to call him ‘Shanfara’, probably because his lips were bigger than normal. His father’s name was Al-Rabia. His mother was an Abyssinian slave. She was the daughter of Fahim bin Kayesh. He inherited courage and strength from his father’s lineage and got black skin from his mother’s side. His father was a poor man who earned his living by hard work and sometimes by looting people. Shanfara did not get any chance to earn an education as he was brought up in the midst of adversity.
It is said that when he was a child, someone killed his father. After the loss of his father, he moved with his mother to his maternal uncle’s house. But there, he was accidentally taken prisoner by a man of the Shababa tribe and demanded two hundred camels as ransom. The family of Shanfara could not pay the ransom and then he was handed over to the people of the Salma tribe. From then on he began to live in the house of a man belonging to the Salma tribe. Once he caught a fever. He then called in the daughter of his foster father and asked him to pour water on his head. But the girl became very angry and insulted him. Shanfara then wanted to know her true identity from his foster father because he was unaware of his family identity. When he came to know about his ancestral identity he became furious and promised to kill a hundred people of the Salma tribe in retaliation for the injustice done to him.
After this, he somehow managed to escape from the Salma tribe and fled to a nomadic life.
During this time he befriended some ruthless young men and killed ninety-nine people of the Salma tribe. However, as the 100th man was about to be killed, the Salma tribesmen suddenly attacked and killed Shanfara in 510 AD and left his dead body in the sand of the desert.
A long time after the death of Shanfara, a man of the Salma tribe was going along the desert and found the skeleton of Shanfara on the way and kicked it with his feet. Unfortunately, a bone of his skull got into the man’s leg and the man later died of that injury. In this way, the promise of Shanfara to kill 100 people of the Salma tribe was fulfilled.
Shanfara, a victim of social injustice and oppression, lived a miserable life with a vengeful mentality.
Poetic Career: Al-Shanfara, was probably the poet of many poems, although most of them have been lost and those which were later preserved in various collections indicate that he possessed extraordinary poetic talent. Most of his poems were composed in protest of social injustice.
Among the poems written by him the poem entitled ‘Lamiyatul Arab’ is a famous one. This poem is a narrative poem. In the poem, he describes his bandit life, love affair, personal well and woe, violence, revenge, desert lifestyle, etc. The following quoted lines from his poem show that he suffered a lot from his relatives:
“O people of my mother’s family
Wake up from sleep and know
You have disrespected me a lot
I’ll leave you now and go a long way
You know the reason for my leaving
It is as bright as the moonlit night. ”
His love poems were romantic. But there is no obscene description of the female body in his poems. He tried to mark the woman as a symbol of good ideals.
The language of his poetry was eloquent and lecture-type, the rhythm was eloquent and the emotion was like an unobstructed river, the imagery was simple but captivating.
It is worth mentioning that among the poets of the pre-Islamic era, Shanfara was a uniquely appealing poet who proudly expressed his awareness of social injustice by giving a realistic poetic form to his own hard experience.
Al-Shamaul bin Adia
Brief Life Sketch: Al-Shamaul bin Adia was a famous poet of the pre-Islamic era. In history, he has been famous as a religious, loyal, humanitarian, promise-keeping, and truthful person.
He was born into a devout Jewish family in the Aus tribe of Hejaz province in Arabia. He lived in a fort called Abalak in Al-Tamiya, near Medina. He dug a ditch in Medina to give water to passers-by and thirsty people. For the convenience of the public, he built a market inside the fort and stored a wide variety of items that were easily accessible to the people.
He was unique in keeping promises. It is said that once a prince and poet by the name of Imraul Qays lost his father’s kingdom and was driven away by the troops of the king of Heera. Then Al-Shamaul bin Adia gave him shelter in the fort. There Imraul Qays kept some shields he had inherited with Al-Shamaul. Later on, the king of Heera came to know that Imraul was hiding in the fort of Shamaul bin Adia. Then the king sent an army led by Haris bin Jalim to catch Imraul from the fort. But Imraul Qays had left the fort before the army arrived at the fort. Then Haris bin Jalim ordered Shamaul bin Adia to hand over the shields of Imraul Qays that were kept with him. However, Al-Shamaul disobeyed the order, saying that he could not give away anything else. Later on, a son of al-Shamaul was captured by Haris’ forces outside the fort. Then Haris imposed a condition with Al Shamaul that if he handed over the armors (shields) of Imraul Qays then he would release Shamaul’s son. Otherwise, he will be killed. Then Shamaul said, “You can do whatever you want to do my son, I can’t hand over the property of other people that are kept under my trusteeship,”. This was followed by the loss of Al-Shamawal’s son. It is clear from the incident that al-Shamaul was an honest and truthful man. His story of truthfulness and hospitality is immortalized in history.
He died in Medina in 570 AD.
Poetic Career: Shamaul bin Adiya is thought to have written many poems. But it is a pity that only a few of his poems have been preserved. Feudal conflict, praise of his tribe and condemnation of the enemy are the main themes of his poetry. His poems also deal with the issues of truthfulness, conscientiousness, loyalty, kindness, humanity, and so on. For example, the following lines from his poetry may be quoted:
“When a person’s honor is not tarnished by inferiority,
He looks good in whatever clothes he wears.
If he never retreats from forbearance,
There is no other way to get good praise. “
His poetry is a mixture of simplicity and complexity. Some of his verses are very easy to understand and some are complex and roundabout. In order to express the heroism of his own tribe, he resorted to various imageries like the imagery of horse, rain, sword, etc.
“We have a mountain where we protect people who come to live in,
It is impervious, eye-rolling, and powerful;
Its roots are deep under the ground
Its branches rise up and touch the stars
It’s too tall to reach. ”
It is worth mentioning that among the poets who contributed to the development of Arabic poetry in the pre-Islamic era, the poet Al-Shamaul bin Adiya has a prominent place.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
Chapter-7
Anthologies of Pre-Islamic Poetry
Arabic Poetry flourished abundantly during the Pre-Islamic Period (500 AD to 622 AD). The Arabs of this age were divided into several tribes and each tribe had one or more poets and orators who represented their respective tribes by composing poems. As a result, Arabic poetry flourished in this era. But at that time there was no literacy system in Arabia. That is why almost all people were illiterate and they practiced poetry orally. This means that they composed poems orally and sang in public. The poems were passed down from generation to generation basing on memorization. But in the course of time, most of them were lost in the womb of oblivion. Only a fragment of the poems remained in public memory for the next two centuries. Later, in the late Umayyad period and early Abbasid period, some lovers of literature compiled some poems of the pre-Islamic period from the mouth of the folk and saved them from being lost forever. Some of the notable collections (anthologies) of Pre-Islamic poetry are- The Muwallaqa, The Mufaddaliyat, Diwanul Hamasa of Abu Tammam, The Hamasa of Buhturi, Jamharat Ambaril Arab, Kitabul Aghani, etc. Let us be introduced to these collections of Pre-Islamic poetry –
The Mu’allaqat
The Mu’allaqat (or Muwallakat) is a collection of pre-Islamic poems compiled by Hammad bin Al-Rabi, an Arabic poet of the eighth century AD. This collection contains poems by seven great poets of the pre-Islamic era. The word ‘muwallaka’ refers to something hanging. In the pre-Islamic era, a poetry recitation competition was held once a year in a place called ‘Okaj’ and the best poet was awarded in that competition and the winning poem was kept hanging on the wall of the Kaaba. Such poets were Imraul Qays, Zuhair bin Abi Salma, Tarafa, Labid bin Rabia, Antara bin Shaddad, Amar bin Kulthum, and Haris bin Hillija. Muwallakat poems were descriptive. These were called ‘qasida’. The main themes of these poems were love, tribal conflict, condemnation of rival enemies, praise of the poet’s patron, animal, nature etc. Although only a small portion of the pre-Islamic period poetry is preserved in this collection, yet by means of this collection we can get acquainted with some of the best poems of the Pre-Islamic period.
Mufaddaliyat
A famous collection of pre-Islamic poetry is the Mufaddaliyat. It was compiled by a man named Mufaddal al-Dabbi. The book was compiled in the 8th century AD under the direction of Caliph al-Mansur. The book contains 128 poems by 67 poets. The 47 poets among them belonged to both pre-Islamic and Islamic eras. In 1885, one-third of the book was published by Mr. Thorbeck with English translation, notes and explanations.
The Diwanul Hamasa of Abu Tammam
A notable collection of Arabic poetry is the Diwanul Hamasa of Abu Tammam. The word ‘hamasa’ means ‘adventure’ or heroism. This book is compiled by a poet named Abu Tammam bin Aush. After the name of its compiler, the book is called ‘Diwanul Hamasha of Abu Tammam’.
There is a legend about the compilation of this book. According to the legend, Abu Tammam the compiler of the book, during the last days of his life, went to meet Abdullah bin Zuhair, the ruler of Khurasan. When he went up to a place called Hamdan, snow began to fall on the road and it was impossible for him to proceed. Therfore he postponed his journey and stayed at a house of a local man. The man who sheltered him was fond of literature and he had a collection of many books in his house. During his stay there, Abu Tammam not only read the books from that library but also compiled a collection of some of his favorite poems or selected excerpts from them. In addition to the poems of the pre-Islamic period, many poems of the Islamic period were included in the collection. Of course, the names of the authors of many poems are not known. The book is divided into ten sections as below:
(1) Bab al-Hamasah
(2) Bab al-Marashi
(3) Bab al-Adab
(4) Bab al-Tashwabib
(5) Bab al-Hija
(7) Bab al-Adyaf al-Madih
(8) Bab al- Sair al-Nuwas
(9) Bab al-Mulah
(10) Bab al-Muzammat al-Nisa
The Hamasa of Buhturi
A few years after Abu Tammam’s collection of Hamasa, another man named Buhturi compiled a collection of Arabic poetry. The compilation is called ‘Buhaturi’s Hamasha’ after his name. He divided the book into several sections and added short notes to the poems. It is known from his notes that he evaluated the poems according to his taste. This collection is not equivalent to Abu Tammam’s Hamasa, although the book is considered a significant source of ancient Arabic poetry.
Jamharat Ambaril Arab
In the 10th century, a man named Abu Zayed Muhammad Al-Quraishi made a collection of Arabic poetry. In addition to the poems of the Islamic era, the book contains fifty-nine poems from the pre-Islamic era.
Kitabul Aghani
Kitabul Aghani is a powerful and widely acclaimed collection of Arabic poetry. The book was compiled by a researcher named Abul Faraj Ispahani during the Abbasid rule. The book is divided into several sections. Each section of the book contains poems on a specific subject and theme. It also contains writings on history, culture, religion, etc. The book is considered to be one of the major sources for the study of ancient Arabic literature, culture, civilization, religion, politics, and so on. 0 0 0.
A Brief History of Arabic Literature Pre-Islamic Period
The End
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