Al‐Mutanabbi and the critics

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Al‐Mutanabbi and the criticsJulie Scott Meisami aa University of Oxford, The Oriental Institute, Pusey Lane, Oxford, OX1 2LE, UK E-mail:Published online: 28 Mar 2007.

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Arabic and Middle Eastern Literatures, Vol. 2, No. 1, 1999 21

Al-Mutanabbī and the Critics

JULIE SCOTT MEISAMI

"My friends, I see only one poet..."

A skilful poet takes pains to make the opening [of his poem], the transitionand after these the end, beautiful; for these are the places that attract theattention of the listeners and should induce them to listen. The early poets didnot devote too much attention to this. Al-Buhturl followed them in this,except for the opening; for there he took care to produce some excellentthings. Abu Tammam and al-Mutanabbl, on the other hand, went to greatlengths in their concern for the transition. Especially al-Mutanabbl did ex-ceedingly well in this respect. (al-Qadl al-Jurjani, 1966:48; translated by vanGelder, 1982:78)

Al-Mutanabbl is very much the critics' poet, not least because of his care for thestructure of his qasidas. No one has studied the poet's style more closely than hasAndras Hamori (1992); but there is, I think, still room for further refinement. In thisessay I will focus not merely on beginnings, transitions, and endings (the chief concernsof Hamori, as of the medieval critics), but also on an issue which has so far received lessattention, and that only in fairly general terms: that is, the manner in which poems areconstructed of smaller and larger segments. Where a poem's chief divisions lie canprovide important clues to its interpretation.

Let me start, however, with a few words about beginnings, transitions, and endings.Qasidas are generally classed as either mono- or poly-thematic (or, more properly,-generic). Victory poems—such as Abu Tammam's famous Amorium qasjda (to nameone widely cited example)—are generally of the former type, dispensing with the nasib(for which, as Hamori has noted, a gnomic prelude may be substituted); while moregeneral panegyrics (what Hamori terms "poems without events") more often tend toretain the nasib. (There are, as we shall see, exceptions.) Thus Ibn RashTq praises AbuTammam's opening line—

al-sayfu asdaqa anba'an mina 'l-kutubifi haddihi 'l-haddu bayna 'l-jiddi wa 'l-ldabi

The sword is truer in tidings than (any) writings:in its edge is the boundary between earnestness and sport (Abu Tammam,1951:ii, 45; Arberry, 1965:50)'—

because it announces the gharad of the poem immediately, via a sententious statementwhich the poem as a whole may be said to illustrate; and Ibn RashTq censures critics like

Julie Scott Meisami, University of Oxford, The Oriental Institute, Pusey Lane, Oxford OX1 2LE, UK. E-mail:[email protected]

1366-6169/99/010021-21 © 1999 Carfax Publishing Ltd

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22 Julie Scott Meisami

al-HatimT and al-Amidi for praising al-Buhturi's opening lines, because these often haveno relation to the poems they open (1907:i, 156). Similarly, Hazim al-Qartajannlobserves that monothematic qasidas

are best begun with the description of a condition that is closely related to theaim (gharad) of the discourse, as one opens the praise of someone arrivingafter a journey with congratulating him on his arrival and considering it a goodomen; or as one opens the praise of someone who has triumphed over hisenemies with the description of this and a congratulation on it. (1981:305; vanGelder 1982:185)

In fact, Hazim suggests, any poem, poly- or monothematic, should begin with a linewhich will indicate its gharad and also arouse a sense of wonder and expectation in theaudience, citing in illustration the opening line of a panegyric qasida by al-Mutanabb!—

Do you see her, because of the abundance of her lovers,thinking that tears come naturally in calamity? (1981:284; al-Mutanabbl1936:i, 268)—

in which both semantic and thematic links establish the connection between nasib andmadih. In short, "the opening (line/s) should be appropriate to the goal of the speakerin all its aspects", including style, diction, and topic (1981:310); and this principleapplies to the beginnings of individual segments as well. (Hazim coins the termtaswim—literally, the 'white blaze of a horse', that is, a distinguishing mark—"toannounce something and give it distinguishing features"; 1981:297). Hazim also notesthat it was the practice of the muhdathun to beautify the second line of the qasida so thatit supports or completes the first; thus for example al-Mutanabbl's second line:

How should you mourn her who sees every eyelidthat sees her, save her own, cut off?

The practice was extended to beautifying the line following the transition (takhallus; seebelow) as well (1981:307-8).

Al-Mutanabbi was regularly praised for his opening lines. The twelfth-century critical-Kala'l approved him for anticipating the madih in his nasib (1966:67; see van Gelder,1982:148-9), as had Ibn Sinan al-KhafajI a century earlier in his Sirr al-fasdha (1056),citing as an example the opening line of the qasida commemorating Sayf al-Dawla'sKharshana expedition of 339/950:

When, however, one begins with madih or another theme {gharad), it is bestwhen the beginning is an indication of the intended theme ... Thus, al-Mu-tanabbl began the ode in which he praises Sayf al-Dawla and provides anexcuse for his defeat at the hands of the Byzantines who killed or capturedmany of his army, by saying: "Others, not I, are deceived by most of thesepeople: if they fight they are cowards, if they talk they are brave". So he beganwith his (main) theme ... from the beginning of the poem. (1953:254; vanGelder, 1982:129).2

Diya' al-Dlnlbn al-Athlr (d. 1239) considered beginnings "one of the five pillars ofeloquence"; the opening of any work should indicate its intended meaning: "if con-quest, (it should deal with) conquest, if congratulation, congratulation, if mourning,mourning, and likewise with respect to other topics" (1959:iii, 96). "The beginning ofa discourse, whether poetry, sermons, orations, or epistles, should indicate (its) in-

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Al-Mutanabbi and the Critics 23

tended meaning"; because the opening part of the discourse is the first to be heard,"when the opening is appropriate to the meaning which follows the motives for listeningto it become greater and the reasons for heeding it are increased" (1956:187-8).Further,

the poet, when composing a poem, must consider: if it is pure panegyric andnot concerned with a particular event, he has the choice of opening it withghazal, or not doing so but proceeding directly to the madih ... But if the poemconcerns a particular event, such as the conquest of a fortress, the defeat of anarmy, or the like, he should not begin it with ghazal; to do so indicates theweakness of the poet's talent and his inability to achieve his goal, or hisignorance of how to put words in their (proper) places ... For ghazal isdelicacy pure and simple; but the diction in which such (weighty) events areversified consists of serious language and solid speech, which is the oppositeof ghazal. Further: ears will be waiting to hear what will be said about theseevents, and for a beginning which plunges directly into mention of them, nota beginning with ghazal. For important matters take precedence. (1959:iii,96-7)

Transitions might be of various kinds. They could be gradual, and sometimesdeceptive, as Ibn RashTq, who considered elegant transitions "a cause of delight to themamduh" (1907; i, 145), notes in discussing khwruj—"when you leave the nastb for themadih or something else with an elegant disengagement and then continue in what youhave gone into" (1907:156)—and takhallus, when "the poet makes a transition (fakhal-lasa) from one motif (tna'na) to another, then goes back to the first, and starts withanother, and then turns back to the previous one" (1907:i, 158; van Gelder,1982:118).3 "Something of this kind may occur when in the middle of the nastb part ofthe panegyric is inserted, devoted to the person whom the poet intends to honour in hisqasida; after which he returns to the nasib and only then goes back to the panegyric ...This type is called ilmdm" (1907:i, 159; van Gelder, 1982:119).

Ibn al-Athlr distinguished between takhallus, the smooth and flowing transitionbetween ma'am so that "the entire discourse is, as it were, poured into one mould", andits opposite, iqtidab, when the poet 'cuts off what he is talking about to 'start afresh'on a new subject, "be it madih, hija, or whatever" (1959:iii, 121). Takhallus properis "when the writer chooses a topic and, while he is occupied with it, choosesanother, making the first its cause, so that they are connected, without breaking hisdiscourse to take up another", and iqtidab ('truncation'), "when the poet breaks off thediscourse he is engaged in to take up another ... with no connection between the two"(1956:181).

Discussing the aesthetic rules pertaining to the construction and arrangement of thesegments (jusut) of the qasida, Flazim al-Qartajannl insists both that "those segmentsshould come first in the poem which relate to the intended purpose (gharad) of thediscourse as a whole", and that close topical connections should be observed betweensegments (1981:289). While the establishment of proper connections and transitionstakes place throughout the poem, and not simply at certain points, Hazim does,however, pay special attention to transitions between aghrad, and particularly betweennasib and madih, in 'compound' (polythematic) qasidas which may have one or severalaghrad. He identifies two possible types of transition: intentional (maqsud) and gradual,or unintentional and abrupt, giving an impression of spontaneity. "Specialists on badfcall a gradual transition takhallus; and when it is neither gradual nor abrupt but effected

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by means of a sudden turn (in'itdf tan) by way of apostrophe [iltifdt] (they speak of)istitrdd" (1981:316; van Gelder, 1982:186).* The two types may be combined; themuhdathun are noted for their use of both, in contrast to the 'ancients', who were, ingeneral, more abrupt (1981:317). "Both types of khuriij to the madih—whether connec-ted to what precedes or cut off from it—either contain in the rhyme of the bayt thename of the mamduh or the madhmum, or mention of the father (of one or the other);or this is placed within the bayt and it is rhymed by something else"; naming in therhyme-word is however preferable (1981:318-9).

With transition one always follows one of two methods. Either one proceedsgradually to what the transition is meant to lead to ... or the transition ... takesplace by means of a turning {iltifdt) of the mind from one domain (Jhayyiz) toanother, when it perceives one point after another. (And) then, at the lastmoment, it turns to what the transition is meant to lead to, by means ofsomething contradicting or contrasting, without an introduction that an-nounces it or a link that organizes the two parts, but by abandoning one forthe other all at once, in various ways. This is done when one notices that thetwo contrasting parts have a common attribute that is (at first) not perceived;then the transition from one to the other proceeds by way of a comparisonor representation (muhdkdt). Or (it is done) by turning away from one ina (certain) objective (maqsad) and relying on the other in it (viz. thesame maqsad); or by denying one of them what is granted to the other.Methods other than these are (also) possible. (1981:319-20; van Gelder,1982:186)

Hazim's discussion of transitions is linked to his analysis of the first fifteen lines of apanegyric by al-Mutanabbi to Kafur, to which I shall return. As for endings, van Gelderlists as the 'characteristic endings' one might expect to find in a qasida containing a'message': "a peroration consisting of a summary, a dedication, a final request, ablessing or curse, a maxim" (1982:79);5 and it is indeed such endings that are mostoften praised by the rhetoricians. Abu Hilal states, "We rarely find an eloquent (poet)who does not end his discourse on an excellent [badf] ma'nd, or (with) a beautiful,elegant phrase. The end of your qasida should be its finest bayt, and that most directlypertaining to the ma'nd you intended in composing it [the qasida]", he states(1952:443). His examples of'excellent conclusions' include several with sententious orproverbial statements or striking comparisons (1952:445-51).6

Says Ibn RashTq, "The conclusion is the base [qd'ida] of the qasida, the last thingwhich remains in the ears (of the hearers), and the way in which it becomes firm andunsusceptible of addition, as nothing that follows could be better. If the beginning ofa poem is its key, the end must be its lock" (1907:i, 159-60). Al-Mutanabbi, he notes,is known for the excellence of his endings; by contrast, many of the 'Arabs' did notconclude their poems, but simply stopped, "while the soul was still attached to themand greatly desirous of (more), so that the discourse remains truncated (mabtur)"(1907:i, 160; cf. van Gelder, 1982:120-1). Hazim terms ending a poem (or a segment)with a gnomic or persuasive statement tahjH (the 'white fetlocks' of a horse; analogousto taswim, the 'blaze', in beginnings [1981:297]). Al-Mutanabbi in particular was notedfor such sententious endings, and Hamori has discussed his use of them in detail,observing that they seem to decrease in the poems composed after the poet's Aleppanperiod.

The critics' discussions make clear that poets were expected to be highly sophisti-

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cated, and highly meticulous, in constructing their poems, and to observe care both onthe larger scale of the whole poem and on the smaller level of its individual segments.But what is a segment? And how do we recognize the divisions—major and minor, largeand small—on which a poem is based? We may begin by considering Hazim's dis-cussion of fusul.

Hazim (like medieval European critics) both analyses the division of a discourse intosegments on the basis of sentential content and also identifies larger divisions within it.Sentential divisions are perhaps the smallest meaningful units of the poem, andgenerally consist of one to three bayts; these sentential units are then organized intolarger segments, or sections. Poets, he states, divide their poems into fusul which treatdifferent aspects of their purpose, both for the sake of variety and for enhanced effect,paying special attention to their beginnings, which should announce the topic treatedso as to prepare the soul to receive what follows (1981:296). It is preferable to beginfusul with individual topics (ma'am juz'iyya), which have a personal import, and moveto general topics (ma'dnT kulliyya), which have a typical or universal import, rather thanthe reverse, as this is more effective (1981:295). The poet may also combine imaginat-ive and persuasive statements: al-Mutanabbl would often begin his fusul with imaginat-ive verses and conclude with a persuasive verse (bayt iqna't) "which supports thepreceding imaginative effect and disposes the soul to receive the imaginative verses ofthe following fasl. For this reason his discourse was the most effective" (1981:293).

Hazim divides the rules pertaining to the establishment and ordering of fusul intofour: (1) "determining the appropriateness of the matter of the segments and selectingtheir essential characteristics" (i.e., invention); (2) "arranging the segments and achiev-ing continuity between them"; (3) "arranging what falls within the segments"; and (4)"determining which segments should come first, which follow, and which conclude (thepoem)".

As for the first rule ... (the segments) must be proportionate (both) to thehearing and to the understanding, well connected, not allowing the compo-sition (of the poem) to slacken, and not distinguished from one another insuch a way as to make each as if it were separate in itself and (as if) it and theother verses were not contained in a structure of words and meaning by virtueof which it is placed in the position of beginning with relation to the end orend in relation to the beginning ... Fusul can be of varying extent as to lengthor brevity; abbreviation of fusul is permissible in muqatta'dt and for (poetic)goals treated in a graceful manner, for in such amplification would be heavy... But in long qasjdas and goals treated in an ornamental and imposing styleamplification is permissible ... (1981:288)

A segment should not be so lengthy that it cannot be grasped, understood and retainedby the audience; the segments themselves should be of a length appropriate to the genreor purpose of the poem, and proportionate with respect to length or brevity.

Concerning overall arrangement (rule 2), those segments should come first "withwhich the soul is concerned with respect to the intended purpose (gharad) of thediscourse"; and shorter segments should precede longer ones. As for the arrangementof the bayts within a segment (buyut al-fqsl; rule 3): "One should begin with the topicappropriate to what precedes; and if it is feasible in so doing that this topic be the chieftopic of the/<w/, and that which has the greatest portion of nobility, this is most brilliant,for the sake of the soul's reception of the segment. But many poets delay the most nobletopic, so that it may conclude the segment" (1981:289). Moreover, "the segment may

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be concluded with a bit of the aghrad of that which follows, or an allusion to one (oranother) of its topics" (1981:290). Such connections make for greater continuity andavoidance of abrupt transitions between segments; they also produce a certain allusiveoverlapping between the aghrad of contiguous segments.

The fourth rule, concerning connections between segments, subsumes four types: (1)that which "connects both expression Qibtird) and genre {gharad)", in which there is "arelationship between the end of one segment and the beginning of that which followswith respect to genre, and a connection with respect to expression, in that some of thewords in one segment demand some of the words in the other as to support andconnection"; (2) that which connects the expression without regard to the genre, "inwhich the beginning of the segment is an opening statement (ra's kaldm) and isconnected to what precedes with respect to meaning" (such a statement should containan expression of surprise or an invocation so as to vary the treatment of the topic): (3)"that which connects the expression but disconnects the gharad", which is inferior tothe preceding two; and (4), "that in which there is no connection either betweenexpression and expression or between one gharad and another appropriate to it, butwhich rushes upon the segment without containing any indication of what precedes itor any relationship between the two. Composition of this sort is fragmentary (mushat-tai) in every respect; but some excellent poets are allowed this at the transition (khuruf)between nasib and madih (1981:290-1).

HSzim's discussion of segmentation precedes his analysis of the nasib of al-Mu-tanabbl's panegyric to Kafur referred to above, which he divides into fusul of varyinglength, noting the ways in which transition is accomplished between them. In the nasibthe poet laments his banishment from his beloved (figuring his estrangement from Sayfal-Dawla), describes the dangers of his journey to Egypt, and praises his mount,concluding with a sentential passage which places the description in its emotional andmoral context, and then moving to the takhallus. Praise of Kafur (which includes arequest for his generosity) is concluded with a brief passage of fakhr.

Hazim cites lines 1, 3, 5, 7, 12 and 14 in discussing the division of this passage intofusul. The opening bayt of the first fasl (1-2) incorporates "wonder (ta'jib) at separationwhich is not followed by union", reinforced in bayt 2, which concludes the fasl andbrings in mention "of the days' stubborn persistence in making loved ones remote andenemies close, which is appropriate to (the topic of) separation". The second fasl (3-4)begins with astonishment at the swiftness of his separation and journey, and ends witha comparison of his state and that of him whom he left behind; the third fasl (5-6)juxtaposes the protection of darkness with the beloved's night-visit. The fourth fasl(7-11) begins with a description of his fearful state: "then he continued (ittarada) hisdiscourse in this fasl with description of the horse, in which he moved from individualto general topics, which makes it possible to consider this discourse one fasl or two, withthe beginning of the second (fasl; i.e. the fifth) his statement, 'Fine steeds, like truefriends, are few' " (1981:298-9).

It is clearly the sentential quality of this statement that makes it possible to read it asopening a new fasl; on the other hand, its relation to the horse description, of which itconstitutes a kind of generalized summation, makes it possible to read it also as acontinuation of the preceding fasl.

Then he opened the fifth fasl—or the sixth, by the second reckoning—withblame of this world and what it brings to him and (how) its adversities followhim, saying, "God curse this present world as a place for a rider to halt ...".

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Throughout he has connected his discourse with the finest continuity (ahsanittirdd), and has moved from one thing to another appropriate to it, or to itscause, and combined them purposefully. In this way his discourse is arrangedand segmented (mufassat) in the best fashion, and each part placed in thefirmest position.

This is the procedure which should be followed with respect to the openingsof fusul and the positioning of each. This branch of the craft is one of thegreatest pillars of disposition (rukn 'azim min arkan al-sinaa al-nazmiyyd), towhich only he can aspire whose matter is strong and whose talent is excep-tional. (1981:299-300)

Hazim's analysis proceeds along largely sentential and topical lines; but he is attentiveas well to the expressive devices by means of which topics are combined into acontinuous discourse. His perception of the nature of transitions from topic to topic, hisemphasis on maintaining continuity between what precedes and what follows (notmerely with contiguous segments but among the major topics of the whole poem), hisawareness of relations of contrast and congruence between segments, reflect a concernwith the poem's overall harmony. While one might object that Hazim divides the nasibmore narrowly than is necessary, there is no doubt as to his perception of theconnections between segments and of their function in both the nasib as a whole and,implicitly, with the remainder of the qasida. The recapitulation of such topics as painat separation, fear of enemies, loss of loved ones and hope of renewed prosperity,culminating in blame of the world, creates the context in which the madxh itself, inwhich many of these topics recur, must he read.7

G. J. van Gelder—who finds it "unfortunate that (Hazim) did not find a definition"of the term fasl (1982:178)—says of this analysis: "Apparently Hazim has no hard-and-fast rule by which to distinguish the passages unambiguously. Any such segmentationof a poem cannot be but impressionistic" (1982:182-3). It seems clear that for Hazim,a bayt is a sentential unit, a unit of meaning. A poem is composed of segments madeup of abydt linked by their topical or generic sense: the relation between fusul and abydt,and between abydt and the poem, is analogous to that between huruf (letters) andwords, i.e. the units of which they are made up and which, it is implied, have nomeaning independently.8 Van Gelder finds that Hazim adds nothing 'radically new ordifferent' to the 'traditional' concept of the poem, and suggests that, finding "thatGreek theory ... cannot be applied to Arabic poems in every. respect", he replaced"Aristotle's 'integrated unity' with the 'concatenated unity' described in the Minhaf(or, alternatively, that "Hazim, reflecting upon his own practice as a poet, introducedthe concept of the 'passage' as the nearest equivalent that can be considered as a'whole' "; 1982:189). But Hazim's analysis by divisio shows a clear understanding thatpoems observe principles of proportion and balance, as does his insistence that fusulmust be proportionate to both the hearing and the understanding. Moreover, ambiguityof division is built into the concept that topics, and genres, should overlap so as toprovide continuity, and this factor can produce different readings of a poem.9

Proportion and balance are marked features of Arabic poetry from the early Abbasidperiod onwards (as of Persian poetry virtually from its beginnings). But while variousstudies have attempted to identify larger units within the poem, few of these haveconsidered this specific question in detail. In his analysis of al-Mutanabbi's qasidas toSayf al-Dawla, for example, Hamori posits a typical schema for their construction (a

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schema which is, moreover, broadly applicable to both Arabic and Persian qastdas)(adapted from Hamori, 1992:7):

nasib > [and/or] gnomic meditationgeneral praise

summary (or) reference to the themeverb at head of line

chronicle

This schema is, however, directed towards revealing the macrostructure of the poem,its major movements. It is the argument here that, between Hazim's sentential divisions(carried out, lest we forget, in the larger context of the nasib as a unit), and Hamori's(and others') attention to macrostructures, there are precise and consistent principlesemployed to organize the poem, and that these principles are based on one majorfactor: that of proportion. That is: the poet selects a basic unit—which normally is notless than four nor more than seven bayts (sometimes, as we shall see, two closely relatedunits are employed)—upon which to construct his poem. This does not, however, leadto a simple division by the unit, as the basic unit is frequently varied by the use of thetechniques of amplification and abbreviation to form larger sections within the poem(e.g. of nine or twelve lines), and by the frequent interpolation of a unique,"anomalous", self-standing line.

To demonstrate this principle in operation, let me return to the panegyric to Kafur,composed (the commentators tell us) following the poet's receipt from him of a gift of600 dirhams on the occasion of'Id al-Fitr, in Shawwal 347/January 959 (al-Mutanabbl,1936:i, 176-87).

Kafariyya

Nasib

[8] (4) 1-2 Separation ( = cause of journey, 3);fika>fiyya3—4 Journey by evening wa-ghurraba (3)

Verbal link: repetition of 'ashiyyata (3, 4;initiates movement in time)

Overall link: mutabaqaFirst person(Transition: links gharad [journey] + 'ibara [time])

Rahil (5-8)

(4) 5-6 Journey by night: focus on poetWa-kam ... (transitional marker)'Second person

7-8 Journey by day: focus on horse taghrubuWa-yawmin ... (transitional marker; echoes 5)First personWa-ayni... 'aynayhi: links poet and horse;

sightMovement through time: evening > night >

morningOverall link: mutabaqa (dark/light)

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RaWWasf/Hikma/Shakwd (9-16)

[8] (3) 9-11 Horse(2) 12-13 Horses > friends (sententia) mu'adhdhabu

Wa-md (12; transitional marker)FT'ayni man ...: sight; contrast between poet

(experienced) and 'inexperienced*(3) 14-16 Complaint

Lahd lldhu (marker)Summation of nastb (cf. yd 'bnata l-qawmi)TajnTs: qaUn/qallibu (announces closure) qallibu

Madih (17-28)

[12] (5) 17 takhallus: links poetry, poet > KafurWa-akhldqu Kdfurin (marker)Summarizes 15-16; introduces praise: 'He'

18 Kafur (repetition) yatagharribuIdhd taraka (marker): generosity

19 Fatan (marker): boldness20-21 Idhd darabat ... tuzidu (cf. 20, 24): generosity

(pattern: generosity > war > generosity)Verbal link: idhd ... idhd, with change of

subject(7) 22-28 Direct address ('You')

22 Aba l-Miski (marker)23 'Our age ... your hand': mutdbaqa24 Idhd lam ... (cf. 18, 20)

Centre of poem: 22-2425-26 Yuddhiku (echoes 20-21, in opposing sense) > mughribu

Hanin (26)Occasion (7d al-Fitr)

27 Aba l-Miski (announces closure of thissection; frame) a'dhabu

28 Wa-kullu (marks closure): sententia

[11] (5)

yataqallibu

(6)

mikhlabu

29-3329313233

34-39

343336

Madih 2 (29-47)

EnviersYuridu bika (marker) (Present)Idhd talabu (cf. 20, 24)Wa-law (anticipates closure)Wa-azlama ...(Marks closure): sententiaPresent tenseVerbal frame: hussdd (29) ... hdsid (33)Refutation of the enviers: Kaffir's protection

of the IkhshididWa-anta ... salaltaWa-kunta ...Laqita

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37 (Wa-qadyatruku ...)38 Al-laqiika ... laqaw: verbal link (36-38)39 Thandhum khullabu

Change of person: announces closurePast tensekh-l-b: larger frameApocopation: anticipates closure

[8] (4) 40-42 Legitimizing motifs40 Salalta (marker): legitimacy by the sword >41-42 Dispenses with legitimacy by lineage43 Wa-ma tarabi: Summation: return to poet

(4) 44_47 Fakhr46 Shatraqa ... gharraba (cf. 3) maghribu

Journey of poems (positive) parallels poet'sflight (negative) in 1—4

The basic unit of four is established by the first eight lines of the combined nasfb-rahU(1-8); it is reconfirmed by the final four-line peroration,10 and further supported by theoccurrence of the rather back-handed expression of 'gratitude' at line 24 (the poem'scentre):

24 If you do not attach to me an estate or a governorship,your bounty robes me and your preoccupation unrobes me.

As Stefan Sperl, among others, has noted (1996), important things often happenaround the centres of poems; and this one is no exception, as request (22) and gratitude(24) frame the antithesis between 'our age' and 'your hands' (23), suggesting a readingquite the opposite from the surface meaning: if 'our time' is, for the poet, representedby Sayf al-Dawla, Kafur's generosity must be decidedly second-best by comparison. Inthis context, the recapitulation of the 'separation' motif (25) serves to remind us that,while Kafur may drink, and his subjects laugh, the poet still suffers the bitterness ofexile. Thus the sententia which concludes this passage (28), and leads to that on the'enviers' (29-33), seems similarly ambivalent.

The basic unit once established, the poet can begin to play with it. He does so, first,in the second segment, also of eight lines (thus balancing the first), but divided intosmaller units of 3, 2, and 3. The first lengthy segment of the madih (17-28) combinesuneven units (5 and 7) into a larger passage of 12; the second (29-39) featuresapocopation (5 + 6, rather than 7), thus anticipating closure. This is achieved in thefinal passage of eight lines (40-7), which combines acclamation of Kafur's 'legitimacy'(notably by the sword, rather than by lineage), with the poet's fakhr. The first passagebalances that of the poet's flight and the dangers that menace him (5-8); the secondreverts directly to the motif of wasl (1): whereas the poet is separated from his 'beloved'(read: Sayf al-Dawla), nothing can prevent his poems from reaching Sayf al-Dawla(wusul, 47), and perhaps thereby facilitating the much-desired reunion.

We may note also the use of such strategies as linking passages with rhymes derivedfrom the same root (e.g., gh-r-b, anticipated by gh-l-b in la; kh-l-b; q-l-b—all of whichwould count as forms of tajnis—and '-dh-b); the use of both verbal and thematicframing devices; and the constant recurrence of mutabaqa which underlies the poem asa whole, and marks off certain passages (especially the opening lines, where it isreinforced by parallelism and tajnis), of particular rhetorical and semantic density.

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Sentential phrases figure prominently at points of closure of segments (e.g. 28, 33), andalso as a means of announcing the move from nasib/rahil to ntadih (13).

In his study of al-Mutanabbl Hamori says of 'poems without events', i.e. poems ofgeneralized praise: "A panegyric with little or no reference to biographical details turnseasily into a porridge of virtues. Forms of local organization—the creation of blocks andpatterns of verses—often serve to ward off this peril" (1992:51). These "blocks" aregenerally sentential units linked by repeated words or motifs or by parallel construc-tions, as we have seen in the above example.11 The implication is that poems about'events'—for example those that include chronicles—will be different. Is this the case?Is it the presence of the chronicle that determines the poem's organization or are thetechniques shown above applicable to such poems as well? My argument is that theyare, and that a look at the second poem chosen for discussion here, written after Sayfal-Dawla's forced retreat from Kharshana in 339/950, will demonstrate this (al-Mu-tanabbl 1936:ii, 221-34; on the circumstances of this campaign, in which, arriving atKharshana, Sayf al-Dawla found the passes blocked against his return by the Byzantineforces, ignored advice to retreat to Tarsus, and suffered considerable losses beforemaking his escape with a small body of men, see the passage from Ibn al-Athlr quotedin Canard 1934:134-5, which Ibn al-Athlr presents as an example of 'the bad judge-ment of one who ignores others' opinions').

Kharshana I

Nasib (1-8)

[8] (4) 1-2 Me/other than me/those people -ada'u (la)3-4 Wa-md (marker) -ada'u (4b)

Amplification ('those people')Linking rhymeMutdbaqa (on various levels): appearance vs.

realityConcludes with general statement

(4) 5 A-atruhu (marker): 'Me' + majd (Hamori:'crescendo')

6 Kulli karimin 'every noble man' (implicitly: poet)+ tajnis (mashrafiyya/musharrafa)+ mutdbaqa (remedy/bane)

7—8 Wa-fdrisu l-khayli ... awhadathu"The knight" > He (SD) + mutdbaqa ('they/he') qadha'u (8)Parallelism (a-atruhu ... iva-atruku;

wa-'l-mashrafiyyatu ... wa-fdrisu; wa-awhadathu)Movement: poet > Sayf al-Dawla > poet

Madth 1 (9-16)

[8] (4) 9 Repetition: Bil-jayshi ... wa-'l-jayshi; tamtam"u ...yamtaniu

Generalization ('all armies') > exception ('thisarmy')

10-12 "He led .../no region .../Until he stood ...": mini-chronicle

(Cf. Hamori: onset of chronicle)

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(4) 13* Taqsim: Totality of destruction; parallelism14-15 Devastation of Kharshana16 Wa-law radhu ... announces closure of segment;

sight

Madih 2 (17-37): Chronicle

[8] (4) 17 Dhamtna d-Dumustuqsu 'aynayhi sight qazauLink with preceding segment: Domesticus (false

sight) vs. Muslims18-19 Valour of Muslims

Parallelism: Men + horses (brave); Luqan + Alis(victories)

20 Ka'annaha ...[9] (4) 21 Tahdi nawazirahd ... (true sight)

22-23 Confusion of Byzantines24 Ajalla min wuldi l-Fuqqasi (centre of poem)

Frame: Domesticus/sons of PhocasContrast between false (17-20) and true (21-24)

sight(5) 25-28 Wa-ma naja ... (perfect vb.) faza'u (25)

Anxiety of ByzantinesParallelism: yubashiru (26), yuqatilu (28); tajnu

(al-amna/aminun)29 Taghdu l-manaya ... ('crescendo motif); amplification

for emphasisReturn (momentarily) to SD, who controls the

manaya; closes section(4) 30-33 Surrender of (treacherous) Muslims

30 Qul lil-Dumustuqsi (opening imperative)31-32 Inferiority of Muslims who surrendered33 La tahsabu ... dabuu ... generalization (proverbial

statement; concludes segment)[8] (4) 34-37 Valour of (true) Muslims (asadu; contrast with

dabuu; mutdbaqa linking 33-34)34 Halld ... (opening question)35-36 Valorous Muslims/divine support37 Fa-kullu ghazwin ... wa-kullu ghazin (parallel)

Sayf al-Dawla/Domesticus frame segment (bycontrast)

Movement from Domesticus (falsity) to Sayfal-Dawla (truth)

End of chronicle

Madih 3 (38-^19)

[12] (4) 38-41 Praise of Sayf al-Dawla38 Yamshil-kiramu ... wa-anta ... tabtadiu (echoes

rhyme of la, 4)General statement + exception (parallels 9)

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39 Verbal echoes: fans; ghayraka (cf. ghayn, 1);mutdbaqa (fdrisfdjiz): 'you'/'they'

Man kdna ... (sententia)41 Lam yuslitn ... aslamahd: mutdbaqa + tajnis:

'he'/'they'(4) 42-45 Attack on base persons

42 Layta l-muluka (abrupt transition)43 Radita minhum ... "you'V'they"44 (Falsity of other poets)45 Dahr ('crescendo motif); indicates movement

towards closure(4) 46-49 Wa-md ... wa-md (46-47): links prince and poet

47-48 'Testing' (cf. 2) + amplification {wa-qad ... wa-qad);parallelism

49 Closure: sententia

The 'nasfb' of this qasida (1-8)—for it is so in function, if not in content—establishesthe basic unit of composition as, again, four (which seems to be al-Mutanabbl'sfavourite, although there are instances where he uses other units, e.g. five). Bayt 13(starred) occurs in the editions based on al-'Ukbarl's recension (al-'Ukbari notesparallels with lines by Abu al-'Atahiya—an obvious instance—and Abu Tammam).Bayts 12 and 13—

12 Until he stood before the walls of Kharshanato bring woe to the Byzantines, the crosses and the churches:

13 What they wed was for captivity, what they gave birth to was for plunder,what they accumulated was for destruction, what they sowed was for thefire—

are cited hy various critics as an example of jam' wa-taqsim, 'combining with division'(cf. Hamori, 1992:25-26). RashTd al-Din Vatvat states: "In the first bayt he combinedthe enemy's land and whatever was in it in general under the topic of distress; in thesecond he divided everything (to show) the nature of the distress to each thing fromthat totality' (1960:696-97). Al-'AbbasI, who cites the entire section of the poem whichprecedes these lines (and which demonstrates that various types of taqsim underlie thepoem as a whole), comments on the second: "He did not say 'Whom they married' or'to whom they gave birth', (both) so that this would agree with 'what they accumulatedwas for destruction, what they sowed was for the fire', and as an indication of contemptand lack of concern for them, as if they were not an intelligent species" (1947:iii, 6).There seems no reason, therefore, not to accept 13 as authentic. It forms a linking linebetween the two parts of the second section of eight bayts (9-16), the first part of whichdescribes Sayf al-Dawla's progress towards Kharshana, while the second focuses on thecity's destruction.

The second section of the madih (17-24) is, again, eight bayts, contrasting the falseperceptions of the Byzantines with the rightly-guided vision of the Muslims (anticipatedby law ra'dhu in 16), and framed by the two references to the Domesticus at 17 and 24.The third (25-33), of nine bayts, contrasts the anxiety of the Byzantines with the valourof Sayf al-Dawla; the concluding line (29), asserting Sayf al-Dawla's control over themandyd, is 'anomalous', an additional line inserted for purposes of amplification andemphasis. The final section of this macro-segment (30-37), again, contrasts thetreacherous Muslims who deserted Sayf al-Dawla to the valorous ones who followed

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him. The pattern in this section is 8 + 9 + 8; the movement in each segment is fromnegative (Byzantines; cowardly Muslims) to positive (Islam; Sayf al-Dawla). The finalsection of the madih (38-49), of twelve bayts, praises Sayf al-Dawla (38-41), contrastshis nobility with the baseness of the false poets (Hamori's reading, 1992:48) who onlyobserved the battle but did not participate in it (42-45), and concludes by linkingprince and poet and reverting to the opening motif: the disparity between appearanceand reality, between those who pretend to courage and those (like Sayf al-Dawla) whotruly possess it.

Al-MutanabbI had yet another occasion to commemorate a campaign against Khar-shana by Sayf al-Dawla, in the following winter (340/951-2), when bitter weather andheavy snow forced his army to retreat (1936:i, 268-80; the madih is translated anddiscussed by Hamori, 1992:64-70).

Kharshana II

Nasib (1-4)

[4] 1 She > me (fiyya, minnt) mdjidu2 He (switch of person): proof of (1); tajms:

qddir/rdqid3 Man yashtahi: General ('he') >4 In kunta takhshv. specific ('you': advice to self)

Rakil + Takhallus (5-16)

[8] (4) 5-6 Alahha 'alayya ... marartu: cause>resultLinked with (4): tatasabbdka>suqm (result

of sibd);Linked with (6): tabnbi/'l-habibiPoet > horse (6)

7-8 Wa-md tunkiru ... ahummu: Horse>poet(4) 9-10 Wahidun ... Wa-tus'iduni: Poet > horse musd'idu (9)

Verbal link: musaidu/Wa-tus'iduni11-12* Focus on horse mardwidu

Parallelism (Muharramatun/muhallalatun, 12):marks closure, move to transition

[8] 13-20 Transition(4) 13-14 Focus on poet sa'idu (14)

Verbal link: mardwidu (\\)lmawdrida (13)15-16 Khalilayya ... wdhidu: links poet and Sayf al-Dawla

al-yawma (16): emphasis on time(4) 17-20 General praise of Sayf al-Dawla

17 Karimi 'l-tab'i anticipates 3618 Wa-lammd ra'aytu ...: links poet and Sayf al-Dawla;

echoes la ara (15)Test (by Time; Dahr as weigher of men; 'crescendo

motif) ndqidu19-20 Ahaqquhumu ... Wa-ashqd: contrast between Sayf

al-Dawla and Byzantines

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Madih 1 (21-36): Chronicle

[8] (4) 21-23 Shananta ... (onset of chronicle)22 Mukhaddabatun: centre of poem23-24 Tunakkisuhum ... wa-iadribuhum ...: Parallel verbs

signal closure(4) 25-28 Wa-tudhi (28): verbal parallel with 23-24 links

segments; change in subject marks new phase26-27 Asafnd ... wa-alhaqna ... parallels structure

of 23-2428 Wa-ghallasa ... (i.e., Sayf al-Dawla)

Change from plural to singular verb marks moveto new phase

[8] (4) 29-30 Fatan (marker) ... Akhu ghazazvatin jamidu (30)'Except when ...': centre of madihVerbal Jink with (1) (mdjidu/jdmidu)

31-32 Fa-lam yabqa ... tubakki ...: destruction(4) 33-36 Affirmation of Sayf al-Dawla's valour

33 Bi-dhd qddati l-ayydmu: marker (echoes hadhd, 20)34—35 annaka ... ka-annaka/wa-anna ... wa-anna: verbal links36 Wa-kullun ...: Summation; Sayf al-Dawla as exemplar

Wa-ldkinna: exception; tab'u 'l-nafsi...: echoes 17

Madih 2 + Peroration (37-44)

[8] (3) 37-41 Focus on Sayf al-Dawla37 Nabahta ...: introduces summation; parallels shananta38-39 Fa-anta ... wa-anta ...Iwa-anta: parallelism

Sayf al-Dawla as universal exemplar >Sayf al-Dawla as pride of Hamdan(God's warrior = Hamdan's warrior)

(2) 40-41 Wa-Hamddnu ... uld'ika: focus on Hamdan(3) 42-44 Peroration: links poet and prince

42 Uhibbuka ... wa-in Idmani: Return to nasib motif('blame')

44 Sententia: concludes poem; contrast between 'aql/jahlprovides comment on nasib

The rhetorical density of this poem contrasts with its more regular use of the basicunit of four bayts, established in the nasib and deployed to build up larger sections withlittle variation, except in the concluding praise and peroration (37-40; 3 + 2 + 3),where it signals impending closure. Another feature is a deliberate blurring of transi-tions, as for example in the transitional passage between nasib and madih (5-16), wherethe focus shifts between poet and horse (5-12), finally moving back to the poet and tothe takhallus that links him with his prince (15-16).12

That the qasida begins with a nasib is itself noteworthy, as victory poems customarilydo away with this type of exordium; but then, the event in question—the abortivecampaign against the Byzantines—was not a victory. The poet complains about the'blamers', who envy his beloved because his love has ennobled her (a nice inversion ofa familiar courtly motif), and vaunts his own virtue; still troubled by lovesickness

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(sibd, suqm), he embarks on the rahil, the dangers of which force him to travel sword inhand. The blamers of the nasib are ostensibly associated with those who envy his poetry(cf. 15); but the linkage of the poet with Sayf al-Dawla (16), together with the emphasison 'today', and the verbal link zoahtdun (9)/wahidu (solitary poet/unique prince),suggests that the subject of criticisms might well have been Sayf al-Dawla himself. Thissuggestion is reinforced by 41: Hamdan, in the person of its most illustrious scion, arethe "fangs of the Caliphate", all other kings "have no bite".

Ibn JinnI commented on the takhallus—

15 O my friends. I see only one poet (in the world);so why do (others) make claims, while I make poems?

16 Do not be surprised (at this); for swords are many;but Sayf al-Dawla is today unique—

"How excellently he accomplished this transition! For (he says): I am among poets asSayf al-Dawla is among swords" (1988:ii, 230-31). Generalized praise of Sayf al-Dawla's valour and generosity (17), followed by a reference to Time's testing of men(18), leads to the contrast between his nobility and the suffering he has inflicted on theByzantines (20). This provides the occasion to introduce a long passage on Sayfal-Dawla's previous victories which illustrates his exemplary status as a warrior forIslam (21-40), which commences, in the style of a chronicle, with a perfect verb(shanantd). Buried in this lengthy encomium, but positioned, so as to be clearlymarked, at the centre and turning-point of this part of the madTh (30), and furthermarked by the phrases Fatan yashtahl.. .IIAkhu ghazawdtin, is a half-line referring to thecampaign in question, introduced by ilia, which presents it as an exception to the norm.

30 A man of raids whose swords are never absentfrom their necks unless Sayhan freezes over.

Moreover, despite the universal devastation wreaked on this 'most wretched of lands',Sayf al-Dawla's valour and nobility earns him both the love and the praise of his foes.

34 But, because of the nobility of your valour, you,though their killer, are loved like a benefactor among them.

35 And the blood you shed is proud of you,and the heart in which you strike fear sings your praise.

36 For everyone sees the way of courage and generosity,but the mind is governed by its temper.

This reversion to the motif of love anticipates its repetition in the peroration:

42 O sun and moon of the Age, I love youeven if al-Suha and al-Farqadan [lesser stars] find fault with me for this,

43 Because your virtue shines bright,not because the life one leads with you is one of tranquil ease.

44 To love a few wisely is sound;to love many without discrimination is wrong.

The final line puts the poem's theme in its proper perspective: only the noble areworthy of love; and they are loved by the noble despite envious critics.

Three parallel situations are suggested by these lines: the love of the lady for the poet(because he is noble); the love of the poet for Sayf al-Dawla (because he is the mostnoble and virtuous of princes, as is further demonstrated by the fact that even his foeslove him); and, implicitly, the love of the prince for the poet (because he is the best ofpoets). Any 'lesser stars' (princes, courtiers, poets), who might be tempted to criticize

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Al-MutanabbT and the Critics 37

Sayf al-Dawla for failing to achieve his goal, or the poet for 'celebrating' this failure, areclearly to be numbered among the ignorant and ignoble, those who love as a result ofjahl, not of 'aql. The whole qanda stands as an apology both for Sayf al-Dawla, whosefailure was due to exceptional circumstances, not to any innate shortcomings, and forthe poet who, himself the best of poets, will celebrate this best of men.

The three poems discussed illustrate al-Mutanabbl's propensity for carefully struc-turing his qasidas in terms of their overall, proportional organization, as well as forlinking their various segments into larger blocks of meaning both semantically andthematically coherent. It might be argued that the poem might be divided somewhatdifferently; but any division which does not take account of structural proportions willultimately be both arbitrary and misleading. Al-MutanabbI is not exceptional in hisregard for proportion; but his style is, as the critics' remarks suggest, perhaps more fluidthan that of a poet like Abu Tammam, for example, with his complex architectonicconstructions, or al-Buhturi, whose poetic structures sometimes (though not uniformly)appear more fragmentary and less coherent.13 His structural strategies also demonstratethat, while poets adhere to principles of proportion—to keep their audiences on theright track and to facilitate memorization and recitation of their poems (a subject whichis beyond the scope of the present essay)—they were not rigidly bound by them, but feltfree to initiate variations once the poem's basic proportional unit(s) had been estab-lished. The judgements of the critics demonstrate their own perception of suchstrategies; and it is perhaps time to take the medieval Arab critics more seriously thanhas often been done in the past, and recognize their ability to grasp complex poeticstructures.

Notes

1. For other appreciations of this line see, for example, Ibn al-Athlr, 1959:iii, 103.2. For other examples see, for example, Ibn al-Athlr 1959:iii, 104-5.3. Van Gelder considers this a 'graded transition' which is more like istitrdd (1982:119).4. Van Gelder finds this passage 'problematical': "Although istitrSd is correctly described as 'a sudden

turn', to state that takhallus is always gradual is obviously untrue" (1982:186). The problem is oneof terminology rather than of practice; moreover, in this passage iltifdt does not refer specificallyto 'apostrophe', but to a 'turn' towards another topic.

5. Van Gelder derives these categories principally from Jacobi, 1971:65-100, and especially 79, andScheindlin, 1974:110-32.

6. Hazim's discussion of maqdtt, subsumed under fast wa-viasl, 'separation and joining', applies totechniques for ending single lines as weil as poems or sections of poems.

7. Cf. for example bayt 22 where, after praising Kaffir, the poet asks, "Father of musk, is there asuperfluity in the cup for me to take? For I have been singing a while since, and you have beendrinking"; 26-27: "I yearn for my people and long to be with them, and where is the 'Anqa' ofthe West in relation to the passionate lover? But if it be either the father of musk or they, you aresweeter and more delectable to my heart".

8. "The abydt in relation to an ordered poem (al-shir al-manzuni) are like isolated letters in acomposite word (or discourse: kaldm): segments (fusiit) made up of verses are like words made upof letters, and qasidas made up of segments are like expressions made up of phrases [alfdz] ... Justas words have two values [Ctibdrdn], one relating to their matter and essence and the other to themeaning they indicate, so are segments valued (both) for themselves and for what is connectedwith their form and denotation [wad'], and according to xhejihdt [the specific aspects of the aghrddto which they relate] the connected descriptions of which are contained in the segments'"(al-Qartajannl, 1981:287). Van Gelder objects that "whereas clear boundaries are crossed bycombining words into 'expressions' (into the realm of syntax) or by combining 'letters' or soundsinto words (from phonology into morphology and semantics), there is no such clarity between thelevels of lines and passages or between passages and poems" (1982:179). I would suggest that

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rather than viewing these various domains (syntax, phonology, morphology, semantics) as separate,Hāzim sees them as part of a hierarchy (that of intelligible speech), and intends an analogy ratherthan a systematic comparison; moreover, it might also be suggested that he sees ma'am" as semanticunits susceptible of combination (into lines, segments etc.) in the same manner as are words onthe syntactic level (cf. Williams 1980:ix).

9. To some extent, Hāzim's discussion supports Scheindlin's analysis of the poems of al-Mu'tamidibn 'Abbād (1974), although Scheindlin's approach is largely syntactic, while Hāzim's is topical:both tend to begin by isolating groups of two or three lines (although we should not forget thatHāzim also has in mind the nastb as a larger unit).

10. "The emotional or affective intent of the orator dominates all accounts of the peroration, whichwas said to have three pans, 'the summing-up; the indignalio or exciting of ill-will against dieopponent; and the conqueslio or the arousing of pity and sympathy' " (Vickers, 1990, citing Ad. Her.1. 10. 18).

11. Such techniques are not exclusive to al-Mutanabbl but are widely shared by both Arabic andPersian poets. Nor would Hamori assert that they are unique; he provides examples of similartechniques in a qasida by al-Nābigha al-Dhubyanl; see 1992:76-81.

12. Bayt 12 (starred) occurs only in the recension of al-'Ukbari. Thus the line numbering differs fromthat in Hāmori, who based his study on the edition of Naslf and Ibrahim al-Yaziji (the recensionof al-Wāhidī; see 1992:vii), and who in any case neither translates nor comments on the nasib andrahīl sections.

13. This issue will be addressed .at more length in a forthcoming study of poetic structures and theirrelationship to poetic meaning in medieval Arabic and Persian poetry.

Referencesal-'Abbāsī, 'Abd al-Rahīm ibn Ahmad (1947) Ma'āhid al-tansīs 'alā shatvāhid al-talkhīs, M. M. 'Abd

al-Hamīd (Ed.) (Cairo: Matba'at al-Sa'āda).Abū Tammām (1951) Dīzoān, Muhammad 'Abduh 'Azzām (Ed.) (Cairo: Dār al-Ma'ārif).Arberry, A. J. (1965) Arabic Poetry: A Primer for Students (Cambridge: University Press).al-'Askarī, Abū Hilāl (1952) Kitāb al-sinā'atayn, 'Alī Muhammad al-Bajāwī and Muhammad Abū

al-Fadl Ibrāhīm (Eds) (Cairo: 'īsā al-Bābī al-Halabī).Canard, Marius (1934) Sayfal Daula: Recueil de texts relatifs a l'émir Sayfal Daula le Hamdanide, avec

annotations, cartes et plans (Alger: Eds Jules Carbonel).Ibn al-Athīr, Diyā' al-Dīn (1956) al-Jāmi' al-kabīr fi sinā'at al-manzūm min al-kalām al-manthūr,

Mustafā Jawād and Jamāl Sa'īd (Eds) (Baghdad: al-Majma' al-'Ilmī al-'Irāqī).Ibn al-Athīr, Diyā' al-Dln (1959) al-Mathal al-sā'ir fī adab al-kātib zva-al-shā'ir, Ahmad al-Hūfi and

Badawī Tabāna (Eds) (Cairo: Maktabat Nahdat Misr).Ibn Jinnī (1988) al-Fasr, avi Shark Dīviān Abī al-Tayyib al-Mutanabbī, Safā" Khulūsī (Ed.) (Baghdād:

Wizārat al-Thaqāfa wa-'l-Funūn).Ibn Rashīq al-Qayrawānī (1907) al-'Umda fi sinā at al-shi'r wa-naqdih, Muhammad Badr al-Dīn

al-Na'sānī al-Halabī (Ed.) (Cairo: Muhammad Amīn al-Khānjī).Ibn Sinān al-Khafājī (1953) Sirr al-fasāha, 'Abd al-Muta'āl al-Sa'īdī (Ed.) (Cairo: Maktabat

Muhammad 'Alī Subayh wa-Awlādih).Jacobi, Renate (1971) Studien zur Poetik der altarabischen Qaside (Wiesbaden: O. Harrasspwitz).al-Kalā'ī, Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Ghafūr (1966) Ihkām san'at al-kalām, M. R. al-Dāya (Ed.) (Beirut:

Dār al-Thaqāfa).al-Mutanabbī (1936) Dīwān, with the commentary of al-'Ukbarī, Mustafā al-Saqqā, Ibrāhim al-Abyārī

and 'Abd al-Hafīz Shalabī (Cairo: Mustafā al-Bābī al-Halabī).al-Qādī al-Jurjānī (1966) al-Wasāta bayna al-Mutanabbī wa-khusūmih, Muhammad Abū al-Fadl

Ibrāhīm and 'Alī Muhammad al-Bajāwī (Eds) (Cairo: 'īsā al-Bābi al-Halabī).al-Qartājannī, Hāzim (1981 [1972]) Minhāj al-bulaghā' wa-sirāj al-udabā, M. H. Ibn al-Khawja (Ed.)

(Beirut: Dār al-Gharb al-Islāmī).Scheindlin, Raymond P. (1974) Form and Structure in the Poetry of al-Mu'tamid ibn 'Abbād (Leiden: E.

J. Brill).Sperl, S. M. (1996) Qasida Form and Mystic Path in Thirteenth Century Egypt: A Poem by Ibn

al-Fārid, in: S. Sperl & C. Shackle (Eds) Qasida Poetry in Islamic Asia & Africa: Classical TraditionsModern Meanings, vol. 1 (Leiden: E. J. Brill), pp. 65-81.

Vatvāt, Rashīd al-Dīn (1960) Dīvān (includes his Hadā'iq al-sihr fī daqā'iq al-shi'r), Sa'īd Naffīsī (Ed.)(Tehran: Bārānī).

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Al-Mutanabbī and the Critics 39

van Gelder, G. J. H. (1982) Beyond the Line: Classical Arabic Literary Critics on the Coherence and Unityof the Poem (Leiden: E. J. Brill).

Vickers, Brian (1990 [1988]) In Defence of Rhetoric (Oxford: Clarendon Press).Williams, Gordon (1980) Figures of Thought in Roman Poetry (New Haven: Yale University Press).

Appendix: TextsA. Kafuriyya

1 Ughālibu fika 'l-shawqa via-'l-shawqu aghlabu/via-a'jabu min dhā 'l-hajri via-'l-tvaslu a'jabū2 A-mā taghlalu 'l-ayyāmu fiyya bi-an arā/baghīdan tunā'ī avi habiban tuqarribu3 Wa-!i-'lāki sayri mā aqalla ta'iyyatanf ashiyyata sharqiyya 'l-Hadālā via-ghurrabā4 'Ashiyyata ahfā 'I-nāsi bī man jafaivtuhu/tva-ahdā 'l-tarīqayni 'Uadhī atajannabū5 IVa-kam li-zalāmi 'l-layli 'indaka min yadin/tukhabbiru anna 'l-mānaviiyyata takdhibū6 Waqaka radā 'l-a'dā'i tasrī ' alayhimīlvia~zāraka fihi dhū 'l-dalāli 1-muhajjabū7 Wa-yavimin ka-layli 'l-'āshiqīna kamantuhu/uraqibu fihi 'l-shamsa ayyana taghrubū8 Wa-'aynī ilā udhnay agharra ka-annahu/mina 'l-layli baqin bayna 'aynayhi kavikabū9 Lahu fadlatun 'an jismihi ft ihābihi/tajīu 'alā sadrin rahībin tua-tadhhabū

10 Shaqaqtu bihi 'l-zalmaa udnt'inānahu/fa-yatghā tva-urkhīhi mirāran fa-yat abū11 Wa-asra'u ayya '1-wahshi qaffaytuhu bihi/via-anzilu 'anhu mithlahu hīna arkabū12 Wa-mā 'l-khaylu illā ka-'l-sadīqi qalīlatun/via-in kathurat fi'ayni man lā yujarribu13 Idhā lam tushāhid ghayra husni shiyatihSJwa-d'dā'ihā fa-'l-husnu 'anka mughayyabu14 Lahā 'Ilāhu dhī 'l-dunyā munākhan li-rākibin/fa-kullu ba'īdi 'l-hammi fihā muadhdhabū15 A-lā layta shxrthal aqulu qasīdatan/fa-lā ashtakī fihā tua-la ata'attabū ^16 Wa-bī mā yadhudu 'l-shtra 'annī aqalluhu/v>a-lākinna qalbi yā 'bnata 'l-qawmi quilabu17 Wa-akhlāqu Kāfūrin idhā shītu madhdhu/via-in lam asha tumlī 'alayya tva-aktubū18 Idhā taraka '1-insānu ahlan tvarā'ahu/wa-yammama Kāfūran fa-mā yatagharrabu19 Fatan yamla'u 'l-afāla ra'yan v/a-hikmatan/iva-nādiratan ayyana yards uia-yaghdabU20 Idhā darabat bi-'l-sayfi fi 'l-harbi kaffuhu/tabayyanta anna 'l-sayfa bi'l-kaffi yadribu21 Tuzīdu 'atayahu 'alā 'l-labthi kathratan/wa-talbathu amwahu 'l-samā'i fa-tandubū22 Abā 'l-Miski hal fi l-ka'si fadlun anāluhu/fa-innī ughannī mundhu hīnin tva-tashrabū23 Wahabta 'alā miqdari kaffay zamāninā/wa-nafsī 'alā miļdāri kaffayka tatlubū24 Idhā lam tanut bī day'atan avi wilāyalan/fa-jūduka yaksūnī via-shughluka yaslubu25 Yudahiku fi dhā 'l-'idi kullun habībahu/hidhā'ī via-abkī man uhibbu via-andubū26 Ahinnu ilā ahlī tua-ahviā liqa'ahumlvia-ayna mina 1-mushtāqi 'anqa'u mughribū27 Fa-in lam yakun illā Abū 'l-Miski atnhumu/fa-innaka ahlā fifu'ādī via-a'dhabū28 Wa-kullu' mri'in yūlī 'l-jamīla muhabbabun/via-kullu makānin yunbitu 'l-'izza tayyibu29 Yundu bika 'l-hussādu mā 'Ilāhu dāfi'unlvia-sumru 'l-aviālī via-'l-hadīdu 1-mudharrabū30 Wa-dūna 'lladhī yabghuna mā law takhallasū/ilā 'l-shaybi minhu 'ishta via-'l-tiflu ashy abū31 Idhā i 'ibūjadzoāka u'tū via-hukkimū/via-in talabū 'l-fadla 'lladhī fika khuyyibu32 Wa-lavi jāza an yahwu 'ulāka viahabtahā/via-lākin mina 'l-ashyā'i mā laysa yuhabu33 Wa-azlamu ahli 'l-zulmi man bāta hāsidan/li-man bāta fi na'mā'ihi yataqallabu34 Wa-anta 'lladhī rabbayta dhā 'l-mulki murda'anlwa-laysa lahu ummun hunāka via-lā abū35 Wa-kunta lahu laytha 'l-'arīni li-shiblihi/via-mā laka illā 'l-hunduwamyya mikhlabū36 Laqīta 'l-qanā 'anhu bi-nafsin kanmatin/ilā 'l-maviti fi 'l-hayjā mina 'I-āri tahrubū37 Wa-qad yatruku 'l-nafsa 'llatī lā tahābuhu/ioa-yakhtarimu 'l-nafsa 'llatī tatahayyabu38 Wa-mā 'adima 'l-lāquka ba'san via-shiddatan/tva-lākinna man laqazv ashaddu via-anjabū39 Thanāhum via-barqu 'l-bīdi fi 'l-bīdi sadiqunf alayhim wa-barqu 'l-bīdi fi 'l-bīdi khullabū40 Salaka suyufan 'allamat kulla khātibin/'alā kuili 'ūdin kayfa yad'u via-yakhtubū41 Wa-yughnīka 'ammā yansubu 'l-nāsu annahu/ilayka tanāhā 'l-makrumātu via-tunsabū42 Wa-ayyu qabilin yastahiqquka qadruhu/Ma'addu 'bnu 'Adnānin fidāka wa-Ya'rubū43 Wa-mā tarabī lammā ra'aytuka bid"atan/la-qad kuntu arjū an arāka fa-atrubū44 Wa-tddhulunī fika 'l-qaviāfi via-himmatī/ka'annī bi-madhin qabla madhika mudhnibū45 Wa-lākinnahu tāla 'l-tarīqu via-lam azal/ufattishu 'an hadhā 'I-kalāmi via-yunhabū46 Fa-sharraqa hanā laysa li-'l-sharqi mashriqunJvia-gharraba kaltā laysa li-'l-gharbi maghribū47 Idhā qultuhu lam yamtam min tvusūlihi/jidārun mu'allan aw khibā'un mutannabū

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B. Kharshana I

1 Ghayri bi-akthari hddhd 1-ndsi yankhadfu/in qdtalu jabunu aw haddathu shaju'u2 Ahlu 'l-hafizati ilia an tujarribahum/zaa-fi 'l-tajdribi ba'da 'l-ghayyi md yaza'u3 Wa-md 'l-hayatu wa-nafsi ba'da md 'alimat/anna 1-haydta ka-md Id tashtahi taba'u4 Laysa 'l-jamalu li-viajhin sahha mdrinuhu/anfu 'l-'azizi bi-qat'i 'l-'izzi yujtada'u5 A-atraku l-majda 'an katfi via-atlubuhu/wa-atruku 'l-ghaylha fi ghamdi wa-antajfu6 Wa-'l-mashrafiyyatu Id zdlat musharaffatan/dawd'u kulli karimin aw hiya 1-waja'u7 Wa-fdrisu 'l-khayli man khaffat fa-waqqarahdlfi 'l-darbi zoa-'l-damu fi a'tdfihd dufa'u8 Wa-awhadathu via-md fi qalbihi qalaqun/wa-aghdabathu wa-md fi lafzihi qadha'u9 Bi-'l-jayshi tannamu 'l-sdddtu kulluhumii/ztia-'l-jayshu bi-'bni Abf 'l-Hayjd'i yamtanfu

10 Qdda 1-maqdniba aqsd shurbihd nahahm/ald 'l-shakimi wa-adnd sayrihd sira'u11 Ld ya'taqi baladun masrdhu 'an baladin/ka-'l-mawti laysa lahu riyyun zva-ld shiba'u12 Hand aqdma 'aid arbddi Kharzhanatin/tashqd bihd 'l-Rumu wa-'l-sulbdnu wa-1-biya'u13 Li-'l-sabyi md nakahu wa-'l-qatli md waladu/wa-'l-nahbi md jama'u wa-'l-ndri md zara'u14 Mukhlan lahu 'l-Marju mamuban bi-Sdrikhatin/lahu 'l-mandbiru mashhudan bihd 'l-juma'u15 Yutammiu 'l-tayra fikim tula aklihimi/hattd takdda 'aid ahyd'ihim taqa'u16 Wa-lato ra'dhu hatodriyyuhumu la-banawAald mahabbatihi 7-shar'a 'lladhi shara'it17 Dhamma 'l-dumustuqsu 'aynayhi wa-qad taldat/sudu 'l-ghamdnti fa-zannu annahd qaza'u18 Fihd 'l-kumdlu 'llati mafiumuhd rajalunf'aid 'l-jiyddi 'Uati hawliyyuhd jadha'u19 Yadhn 1-Luqdnu ghubdran fi mandkhirihd/via-fi handjirihd tnin Alisin jura'u •20 Ka-annahd tatalaqqdhum li-taslukahum/fa-'l-ta'nu yaftahu fi 'l-ajtvafi md tasa'u21 Tahdi navidzirahd iva-'l-harbu muzlimatun/mina 'l-asinnali ndrun zva-'l-qand shama'u22 Duna 'l-sihdmi wa-duna 'l-qurri tdfihalunf aid nujusihimi 'l-muqwanatu 'l-muzu'Q23 Idhd da'd 'l-'ilju 'iljan hdla baynahumd/azmd tufdriqu minhu ukhtahd 'l-dila'u24 Ajallu min waladi 1-Fuqqdsi munkatifitn/idh fdtahunna wa-amdd minhu munsarfu25 Wa-md najd min shifdri 'l-btdi munfalitun/najd wa-minhunna fi ahshd'ihi faza'u26 Yubdshiru 'l-amna dahran zoa-hwa mukhtabalun/wa-yashrabu 1-khamra havilan wa-hwa mumtaqa'u27 Kam min hushashati bitriqin tadammanahd/li'l-bdtirdti aminun md lahu loara'u28 Yuqdtilu 'l-khatwa 'anhu hina yatlubuhuYioa-yatrudu 'l-nawma 'anhu hina yadtajtu29 Taghdu 1-mandyd fa-Id tanfakku wdqifatan/hattd yaqulu la-hd 'udi fa-tandafi'u30 Qul li'l-Dumustuqsi inna 1-muslimina lakum/khdnu 'l-amira fa-jdzdhum bi-md sana'u31 Wajadtumuhum niydman fi dimd'ikumu/ka-anna qatldkumu iyydhumu faja'u32 Da'fd ta'iffu 'l-ayddx 'an mithdlihim/mina 'l-a'ddi via-in hammu bihim naza'u33 Ld tahsibu man asartum kdna dhd ramaqin/fa-laysa ya'kulu Hid 'l-mayyila 'l-dabu'u34 Halld 'aid 'aqabi 'l-wddi via-qad sa'idac/usdun tatnurru furddd laysa tajtamfu35 Tashuqqukum bi-qandhd kuttu sahlabatin/toa-'l-darbu ya'khudhu minkum fawqa md yada'u36 Wa-innamd 'arrada 'lldhu 'l-junuda bi-kum/li-kay yakunu bi-ld faslin idhd rajduyi Fa-kullu ghazwin ilaykum ba'da dhd fa-lahu/zva-kullu ghdzin li-Sayfi 'l-Davilati 'l-taba'u38 Tamshi 'l-kirdmu 'aid dthdri ghayrihimi/wa-anta takhluqu md ta'ti via-tabtadfu39 Wa-hal yashinuka viaqtun anta fdrisuhu/iua-kdna ghayraka fihi 'l-'djizu 'l-dara'u40 Man kdna fawqa mahalli 'l-shamshi mawdCuhu/fa-laysa yarfa'uhu shay'un wa-ld yada'u41 Lam yuslimi 'l-karru fi 1-a'qdbi muhjatahu/in kdna aslamahd 'l-ashdbu taa-1-shiya'u42 Layta 'l-muluka 'aid 'l-aqddri mu'tiyatun/fa-lam yakun li-daniyyin 'indahd tama'u43 Radita minhum bi-an zurta 'l-viaghd fa-ra'avi/via-an qara'ta habika 'l-btdi fa-'stama'u44 La-qad abdhaka ghisshan fi mu dmalatin/man kunta minhu bi-ghayri 'l-sidqi taniafi'u45 Al-dahru mu'tadhirun wa-'l-sayfu muntazirun/wa-arduhum laka mustdfun wa-murtaba'u46 Wa-md 'l-jibdlu li-nasrdnin bi-hdmiyattn/wa-law tanassara fihd 'l-a'samu 1-sada'u47 Wa-md hamidtuka fi hawlin thabatta lahu/hattd balatatuha wa-'l-abtdlu tamtastu48 Fa-qad yuzannu shujd'an man bihi kharaqun/wa-qad yuzannu jabdnan man bihi zama'u49 Inna 'l-sildha jamtu 'l-ndsi tahmiluhu /wa-laysa kuttu dhawdti 'l-mikhlabi 'l-sabu'u

C. Kharshana II

1 'Awddhilu dhdti 'l-kkdli fiyya hawdsidii/wa-inna dajia 'l-khawdi minni la-mdjidu2 Yaruddu yadan 'an thawbihd wa-hwa qddirun/wa-ya'si 'l-hawd fi tayfihd wa-hwa rdqidu3 Matd yashtafi tnin Id'iji 'l-shawqifi 'l-hashd/muhibbun la-hd fi qurbihi mutabd'ida4 Idhd kunta takhshd i-'dra fi kulli khalwatin/fa-lim tatasabbdka 'l-hisdnu 'I-khard'idii5 Alahha 'alayya 'l-suqmu hand aliftuhu/wa-malla tabibi jdnibT wa-'l- awd'idu

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Al-Muianabbi and the Critics 41

6 Marartu 'aid ddri 'l-habibi fa-hamhamat/jawddiwa-hal tashju 'l-jiydda 'l-ma'dhidii7 Wa-md tunkiru 'l-dahmd'u min rasmi manzilin/saqathd dariba 'l-shawli fihi 'l-tvald'idu8 Ahummu bi-shay'in wa-'l-laydli ka-annahd/tutdriduni'an katmihi loa-uiaridu9 Wahidun mina '1-khuUdni fi kulli baldatin/idhd 'azuma 1-matlubu qalla 'l-musd'idii

10 Wa-tus'iduni fi ghamratin ba'da ghamratin/sabuhun la-hd min-hd 'alay-hd shawdhidu11 Tatkanna 'aid qadri 'l-tfdni ka-annamd/mafdsiluhd lahta 'l-rimdhi marawidu12*Muharramatun akfdlu khayli'ald 'l-qand/muhallalatun labbdtuhd wa-'l-qald'idu13 Wa-uridu nafsi zva-t-muhannadu fiyadi/tnavidrida Id yusdima man Id yujdlidu14 Wa-ldkin idhd lam yahmili 1-qalbu kaffahufald hdlatin lam yahmili 'l-kaffa sd'idu15 Khalilayya inni Id ard ghayra shairin/fa-lim minhumu 'l-da'tud tva-minnf 1-qasa'idu16 Fa-Id ta'jabd inna 'l-suyufa kathiratun/via-ldkinna Say/a 'l-Dawlali 'l-yawma vidhidu17 Lahu min karimi 'l-tab'i fi 'l-harbi muntadin/via-min 'ddati 'l-ihsdni wa-'l-safhi ghdmidu18 Wa-lammd ra'aytu 'l-ndsa duna mahallihi/tayaqqanlu anna 'l-dahra U-'l-ndsi naqidu19 Ahaqquhum bi-'l-sayfi man daraba 'l-tuld/via-bi-'l-amni man hdnat 'alayhi 'l-shadd'idii20 Wa-ashqd bilddi 'lldhi md 'l-Rumu ahluhd/bi-hddhd tva-md fihd li-majdika jdhidu21 Shananta bihd 'I-ghdrdti hand taraktahd/wa-jafnu 'l-ladhi khalfa 'l-Faranjati sahidu22 Mukhaddabamn wa-'l-qavimu sard ka-annahd/via-in lam yakunu sdjidina masajidu23 Tunakkisuhum tva-'l-sdbiqdtu jibdluhum/via-tat'unu fihim wa-'l-rimdhu 1-makdyidu24 Wa-tadribuhum habran wa-qad sakanu '1-kudd/ka-md sakanat batna 'l-turdbi 'l-asdviidu25 Wa-tudhi 1-husunu 'l-mushmakhirrdtu fi 'l-dhurd/via-khayluka fi a'ndqihinna qald'idu26 Asafha bihim yazuma 'l-Luqdni wa-suqnahum/bi-hinzita hand 'byadda bi-'l-sabyi Amidu27 Wa-alhaqna bi-'l-Safsdti Sdbura fa-'nhavid/wa-dhdqa 'l-radd ahldhumd toa-'l-jaldmidu28 Wa-ghallasa fi 'l-wddt bihinna mushayya'un/mubdraku md tahta 1-lithdmayni 'dbidu29 Falan yashtahi tula 'l-bilddi via-viaqtuhu/ladiqu bihi awqdluhu wa-1-maqdsidu30 Akhu ghazazvdtin ma tughibbu suyufuhu/riqdbahumu Hid zva-Sayhdna jdmidu31 Fa-lam yabqa illd man hamdhd mina 'l-zubd/lammd shafatayhd via-'l-thudiyyu 'l-navidhidu32 Tubakki 'alayhinna 'I-batdrTqu fi 1-dujd/wa-hunna ladaynd mulqaydtun kavidsidu33 Bi-dhd qadati 'l-ayydmu md bayna ahlihd/masd'ibu qavimin 'inda qawmin favid'idu34 Wa-min skarafi 'l-iqdami annaka fihimifald 'l-qatli mawmuqun ka-annaka shdkidu35 Wa-anna daman ajraytahu bika fdkhirun/via-anna fu'ddan ru'tahu laka hdmidu36 Wa-kullun yard turqa 'l-shajd'ati via-'l-nadd/wa-ldkinna tab'a 'l-nafsi lil-nafsi qd'idu37 Nahabta mina 'l-a'mdri md law hatoaytahu/la-hunnCati 'l-dunyd bi-annaka khdlidu38 Fa-anta husdmu 1-mulki via-'lldhu ddribun/via-anta liwd'u 'l-dini wa-'lldhu 'dqidu39 Wa-anta Abu 'l-Hayjd'i 'bnu Hamddna yd 'bnahu/tashdbaha mawludun kanmun wa-vidlidu40 Wa-Hamddnu Hamdunun wa-Hamdunu Hdrithun/wa-Hdrithu Luqmdnun via-Luqmdnu Rdshidu41 Uld'ika anydbu 'l-khildfati kulluhd/iva-sd'iru amldki 'l-bilddi 'l-zavid'idu42 Uhibbuka yd shamsa 'l-zamdni wa-badra.hu/v3a-in Idmanl fika 'l-Suhd zva-'l-Fardqidu43 Wa-dhdka li-anna 'l-fadla 'indaka bdhirun/toa-laysa li-anna 'l-'aysha 'indaka bdridu44 Fa-in qalila 'l-hubbi bi-'l- aqli sdlihun/wa-inna kathira 'l-kubbi bi-'l-jahli fdsidu

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Documents

Al‐Mutanabbi and the critics