Arabian poetry

By W. A. Clouston

IN the modern history of the world, no race or nation has figured so largely, or so widely and permanently influenced the destinies of mankind, as the race of shepherds, dwelling in tents, who have occupied the peninsula of Arabia almost since the Deluge.
Roused, from the fatal lethargy of the gross idolatry into which they had long been sunk, by the enthusiasm of one man, who substituted for their vain superstitions the simple but sublime formula of belief, "There is but one sole God," in the space of less than a hundred years these people had overrun and conquered a great part of the then known world, which they held subject for several centuries.

• Language: English
• Publisher: PubMe
• Release date: Feb 13, 2015
• ISBN: 9786050356878

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W.A. Clouston

Arabian poetry

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Table of contents

PREFACE.

INTRODUCTION.

I.—THE ANCIENT ARABS.

II.—THE MU‘ALLAQĀT; OR, SEVEN ANCIENT ARABIC PRIZE POEMS.

III.—GENUINENESS OF THE EARLY ARABIC POETRY.

IV.—ARABIAN LITERATURE UNDER THE KHALIFATE.

ON THE TOMB OF MANO. BY HASSAN ALASADY.

ON THE TOMB OF SAYID. BY ABD ALMALEC ALHARITHY.

ON THE DEATH OF HIS MISTRESS. BY ABU SAHER ALHEDILY.

ON AVARICE. BY HATEM TAI.

ON THE BATTLE OF SABLA. BY JAAFER BEN ALBA.

VERSES ADDRESSED TO A KINDRED TRIBE AT VARIANCE WITH THE ONE TO WHICH THE POET BELONGED. BY ALFADHEL IBN ALABAS.

ON HIS FRIENDS. BY MESKIN ALDARAMY.

ON TEMPER. BY NABEGAT BENI JAID.

THE SONG OF MAISUNA.

VERSES OF YEZID TO HIS FATHER, MOWIAH, WHO REPROACHED HIM FOR DRUNKENNESS.

ON FATALISM. BY THE IMAM SHAFAY MOHAMMED BEN IDRIS.

TO THE KHALIF HAROUN ALRASHID, ON HIS UNDERTAKING A PILGRIMAGE TO MECCA. By IBRAHIM BEN ADHEM.

ON THE INAUGURATION OF HAROUN ALRASHID, AND THE APPOINTMENT OF YAHIA TO BE HIS VIZIER. BY ISAAC ALMOUSELY.

ON THE RUIN OF THE BARMECIDES.

EPIGRAM ON TAHER BEN HOSEIN, WHO WAS AMBIDEXTER AND ONE-EYED.

THE ADIEU. BY ABU MOHAMMED.

VERSES ADDRESSED TO HIS MISTRESS, WHO HAD FOUND FAULT WITH HIM FOR PROFUSION. BY ABU TEMAN HABIB.

TO A FEMALE CUPBEARER. BY ABD ALSALAM BEN RAGBAN.

SONGS BY MASHDUD, RAKEEK, AND RAIS, THE THREE MOST CELEBRATED IMPROVISATORI POETS IN BAGDAD, AT AN ENTERTAINMENT GIVEN BY ABU ISY, SON OF THE KHALIF MOTAWAKKEL.

MASHDUD ON THE MONKS OF KHABBET.

RAKEEK TO HIS FEMALE COMPANIONS.

DIALOGUE BY RAIS.

TO A LADY WEEPING. BY EBN ALRUMI.

ON A MISER. BY THE SAME.

TO CASSIM OBID ALLAH, ON THE DEATH OF ONE OF HIS SONS. BY ALI BEN AHMED BEN MANSOUR.

TO A FRIEND, ON HIS BIRTHDAY.

ON A CAT, THAT WAS KILLED AS SHE WAS ATTEMPTING TO ROB A DOVE-HOUSE. BY IBN ALALAF ALNAHARWANY.

EPIGRAM ON EBN NAPHTA-WAH. BY MOHAMMED BEN ZEID ALMOTAKALAM.

FIRE: A RIDDLE.

TO A LADY, ON SEEING HER BLUSH. BY THE KHALIF RADHI BILLAH.

ON THE VICISSITUDES OF LIFE. BY THE SAME.

TO A DOVE. BY SERAGE ALWARAK.

ON A THUNDER-STORM. BY IBRAHIM BEN KHIRET ABU ISAAC.

TO HIS FAVOURITE MISTRESS. BY SAIF ADDAULET, SULTAN OF ALEPPO.

ON THE CRUCIFIXION OF EBN BAKIAH. BY ABU HASSAN ALANBARY.

ON THE CAPRICES OF FORTUNE. BY SHEMS ALMAALI CABUS, THE DETHRONED SULTAN OF GEORGIA.

TO LEILA.

EXTEMPORE VERSES ON THE SULTAN CARAWASH, HIS PRINCIPAL MUSICIAN BARKAIDY, HIS VIZIER EBN FADHI, AND HIS CHAMBERLAIN ABU JABER. BY EBN ALRAMACRAM.

ON THE DEATH OF A SON. BY ALI BEN MOHAMMED ALTAHMANY.

ON MODERATION IN OUR PLEASURES. BY ABU ALCASSIM EBN TABATABA.

ON THE VALE OF BOZAA. BY AHMED BEN YOUSEF ALMENAZY.

TO ADVERSITY. BY ABU MENBAA CARAWASH, SULTAN OF MOUSEL.

ON THE INCOMPATIBILITY OF PRIDE AND TRUE GLORY. BY ABU ALOLA.

VERSES ADDRESSED TO HIS DAUGHTERS, DURING HIS IMPRISONMENT, BY MOTAMMED BEN ABAD, SULTAN OF SEVILLE.

ON THE CAPTURE OF JERUSALEM, IN THE FIRST CRUSADE. BY ALMODHAFER ALABIWERDY.

TO A LADY, WHO ACCUSED HER LOVER OF FLATTERY.

LAMIAT ALAJEM. BY MAUID EDDIN ALHASSAN ABU ISMAEL ALTOGRAI.

ON LOVE. BY ABU ALI, THE MATHEMATICIAN.

A REMONSTRANCE WITH A DRUNKARD. BY YAHIA BEN SALAMET.

ON PROCRASTINATION. BY HEBAT ALLAH IBN ALTALMITH.

ON THE EARLY DEATH OF ABU ALHASSAN ALI, SON OF THE KHALIF ALNASSAR LEDIN ALLAH. BY CAMAL EDDIN BEN ALNABIT.

THE INTERVIEW. A SONG IN THE RHYTHM OF THE ORIGINAL, WITH THE MUSIC ANNEXED.

PREFACE.

THE history of the present volume is soon told. I was engaged in collecting material for illustration of the migrations and transformations of Popular European Tales and Fictions, and, in the course of my researches, had occasion to consult the works of Sir William Jones, where meeting with his translation of the Mu‘allaqāt, or Seven Ancient Arabic Prize Poems, the idea occurred to me that a reprint of it would be acceptable to a few personal friends, interested in Asiatic literature. The project was readily approved; and it was suggested that these Poems might be interesting to a larger section of English readers. A tentative Prospectus was then issued, proposing to privately reprint Sir W. Jones’ translation of the Mu‘allaqāt and Carlyle's Specimens of Arabian Poetry. This proposal met with support, not only from English scholars and public libraries, but from many distinguished Orientalists; and it was resolved to add to the volume a selection from the Poetry contained in Hamilton's translation of part of the famous Arabian Romance of ‘Antar. The connecting of these selections with an outline of the leading incidents of the Romance was an afterthought. Even if Hamilton's volumes were readily accessible, which they are not, few mere English readers would care to go through his diffuse translation, which is rendered more unreadable by the magnificent poetry being printed without a break, often for two or more pages together. But the Epitome included in this volume will perhaps satisfy the curiosity of readers generally regarding a work of which assuredly a complete English translation will never be attempted.

The Shorter Arabian Poems, translated by Dr. Carlyle, and entitled, Specimens of Arabian Poetry—first published in 1796, and again in 1810—are confessedly paraphrases in English verse rather than translations. The selections, together with the translator's anecdotal notices of some of the authors, furnish, nevertheless, a concise history of Arabian literature during the most flourishing period of the Muslim empire.

But this volume must possess an interest and value far beyond what might otherwise possibly attach to it, in containing the famous Burda Poems of K‘Ab and El-Būsīrī, which are here presented for the first time in English, by Mr. J. W. Redhouse, whose high reputation for scholarship will be a sufficient guarantee to the English reader that the translations are as accurate as it is possible to render such enigmatical compositions into our language.

It may perhaps be thought somewhat strange that a mere English scholar—for my knowledge of Arabic is as nothing, and less than nothing, and vanity—should have undertaken the task of editing a thesaurus of Arabian Poetry. But the original plan was very simple; and, to be perfectly candid, I thought myself not altogether incompetent to judge of what would likely be of interest to intelligent English readers. How the task has been performed, readers will, of course, decide for themselves.

The want of uniformity in the spelling of Arabic proper names in the several sections of the book is thus explained: Sir W. Jones’ translation of the Mu‘allaqāt is reprinted literatim as well as verbatim; and the same has been done in the case of Carlyle and others whose translations have been reproduced. Nearly every English Arabist of eminence has his own pet system of transliteration; and where doctors differ, who shall decide? In the Introduction, however, I have generally adopted Mr. Redhouse's system, confident that in so doing I followed a safe guide.

The subjects of the Introduction are necessarily treated with brevity: the