Contribution of the Umayyad Poets in the Development of Ghazal
ABSTRACT !>-^r:p^
THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF Mottnx of ^fiiloiSoplip m ARABIC
BY (Mrs.) RAIS FATIMA
Sqa^i
DEPARTMENT OF ARABIC ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVER»iTX A L I G A R H 1989 ABSTRACT
TOPIC : CONTRIBUTION OF THE
UMAYYAD POETS IN THE
DHVELOPMENT OF <2tJAZAL, The Umayyad Era (661AJD-750 A.D.) is remarkably significant for Arabic Literature especially Poetry, During this period poetry underwent a seachange both in its content and style-qualitative and quantitative. It appears quite different from the poetry of earlier eraS/ as the Umayyads did certainly differ from their predecessors in politics and social life. They shifted the capital from Hijaz and took it to Damascus, The predecessors of the Umayyads were purely bedouin. Also* the Umayyads expanded their Kingdom through fresh con quests. Consequently, foreigners had started influencing them politically, socially, and culturally. Literature could not escape this influence, more particularly genre of the Ghazal, The present thesis aims at studying the aforesaid change and the influence of Umayyad poets and to take stock of their contributions to the development of Ghazal.
Chapters I and V are divided into a number of sections. The first Chapter deals with the origin and development of Ghazal from Pre-Islamlc days to the early Islamic Psriod.The Ghazal is supposed to be one of the earliest disciplines developed by the Arabs in the realm of Poetry. The pattern of (^lazal did not remain the same -2- because with the advent of Islam certain restrictions were put on its subject matter. Earlier the ^Ei^zal was only in the shape of Tashbib or NasTb in the Odes and did not have a separate form. Also, previous poets dealt with many subjects in one and the same Ode, These pagan poets hardly aj^eared to be concerned with the morality, as such, their compositions from Islamic standards often sound quite obscene, Islam emphasized the moral aspects of life, and, therefore, obscenity was discouraged in literary composition. However, poetry did not disappear just for this reason as the decent and moral pieces were permitted. The fair sex found mention in panegyrics, where poets tried to stress the virtue, morals, and chastity, which were possessed by the ladies belonging to families or tribes of adorned persons. Ladies also found mention in satire, these were of the enemy tribe and their vices, were, therefore, stressed. However, this interlude between Pre-Islamic and Islamic periods was short lived, and Arabic Ghazal regained a praiseworthy position with the establishment of Umayyad dynasty.
In general, the Umayyad Era is very important in Arabic Literature for now poetry of many kinds flourished, although the roots could still be traced to the Odes of -3-
the Pre-Islamic period. The Umayyads encouraged the full development of satire. Eulogy, Elegy and Love Poetry, i.e., igiazal. Now, the poetry of this period is divided into three mainstreams (1) the Traditional Ghazal. (2) the 'Udhrite Ghazal, and, (3) the 'Umarite Ghazal. This period may be considered the golden period in Arabic Literature, for it can boast of a galaxy of well-known and celebrated Poets like { Jarlr, Farazdalj, Ajchtal, Kuthayyir-'Azzah, Jamil-Bu^aynah and al-Majnun, 'Uinar b. Abl Rabl'ah, Al-'ArjI, Al-Ahwas etc.
In Chapter II, III, IV the general themes of the representative Ghazals of that era are highlighted. All these Chapters have presented the poetical specimens of the representative poets of the Gtiazal during the Umayyad days and assess their contributions to the development of Ghazal. It is also discussed side by side how much the verses of a Ghazal appeal to our hearts, due to the fact that, they depict the utmost warmth of emotions and sincerity of feelings. Mostly the poets in composing Ghazal paid their fullest attention and devotion to do justice to the poetic art itself.
Chapter III analyses the factors which contributed significantly to the development of the Ghazal, An out standing feature of the poets of Ghazal of these three -4-
periods/ viz^ Pre-Islamic, Islamic and the UmayyadS/ is that they represented the factors responsible for the development of Gljazal.
In the conclusion attempt is made to evaluate the extent of Umayyad poets' contribution to the airtistic elevation of Ghazal which became a source of inspiration for the later poets. This is also true about the poets of the 'Abbasid era, although this 1 tter era is thought to be the golden age of Arabic Literature, The 'Abbasids could in fact, boast of having good prose compositions and other kinds of poetry than Ghazal and the laurels for poetry have ultimately to rest with the Umayyads and the poetic traditions especially of Ghazal of this period.
Nevertheless, the classical tradition persisted because the supple love lyric which arose in later times seemed very different from the long, heavy, classical Ode, it Was really an adaptation of the amatory prelude of the tribal Ode, detached and handled as an independent unit. Contribution of the Umayyad Poets in the Development of Ghaza)
THI^IS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF. JBottor of $]^iIofi!op^p IN ARABIC
BY (Mrs.) RAIS FATIMA
DEPARTMENT OF ARABIC ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY ALIGARH 1989 ^( t\cc No. ''
^^^tSi^SFCTTdR J
31 \n :s92
T3921 1^a:fS5tr|/aM
Dedicated to my father - Hafiz Mohammad Ishaq - who inspired me to take up Arabic as a subject and who personally guided my further development in it. COl'TTENTS
Page No.
Acknowledgements
Transliteration Table I - II
Genealogical Table III
Introduction I - XVI
Chapter - 1
Ghazal before the Umayyads 1-40 I origin of the word Ghazal 1 - 6 II Ghazal in the Pre-Islamic Period 7-26 III Ghazal in the Early Islamic Period 27 - 40
Chapter - 2
Traditional Ghazal in the Umayyad 41 - 68 Period
Chapter - 3
•Udhrite Ghazal 69 - 112
Chapter - 4
•Umarite Ghazal 113 - 158 Chapter - 5
Factors of the Development of the 159 - 229 Ghazal
I Environment and Nature of an Arab 163 - 170
II Relation between Male and Female 170 - 186
III Arab's fondness of the Q^azal 186 - 195
IV Literary Salons 195 - 205
V Manifestations of luxury 205 - 229
Conclusion 230 - 247
Bibliography 248 - 255 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am highly indebted to Professor Mohd, Rashid, Chairman, Department of Arabic, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh whose personal interest and encouragement has^ in particular^ be en of inestimable help and inspiration to me. At the same time, I am also grateful to Dr. Abdul Bari, Reader, Department of Arabic, A.M.U,, Aligarh for his valuable advice and for the academic discussions that I had with him on the subject from time to time.
My sincere thanks are also due to Prof, R.R. Sherwani, ex-Chairman, Department of Arabic, Kashmir University, srinagar whose helpful criticisms and suggestions enabled me to complete the work in the thesis in its present form, I should not fail to thank Mr, S.M, Asadullah, Lecturer, Department of Sunni Theology, A,M,U,, Aligarh for his valuable suggestions.
I am really thankful to the entire staff of the Islamic studies and Arabic Department library, AMU for their cooperation and help especially to Mr. Yusuf Ali Khan who helped me in tracing out the books pertaining to my work. I owe more than I can possibly express to ray husband Dr, S.M, Imran who quite patiently and large heartedly shared with me the successes and disappoint ments during the course of my research work leading to the completion of this thesis.
Finally.I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my teachers, well-wishers, and relatives for their moral support, encouragement and help in finalizing the present thesis. I am also greatly thankful to Mr. Ziaur Rehman who typed this thesis.
(Rais Fatima) -1-
Transliteration Table
Consonants
\ a w> b k*» t (i:-» th x^ J T. h t Kh d > • ^ > R v/ Z • > t • Z ij • t c • gh f K / K -ii- J 1 r m u n -6 h ^ W a Y s^ ah (e.g.4-J>t Patimah) J) (article) al- ( 'l e.g. Abu'l) Long Vowels i C5 /• _p^ ^ u Short Vowels y a i "•" J> u Dipthong • !> aw (J • ay • • iyy • * «• I (final form) *• f uww •D 1(0 SI H H H x: x: C (t) (0 im >i H >i >i -H •H iW 3: •o .3 .IfO— 0) -"T^ s: 1 3 <0 a 13 S >^ 1 •H XI < » H (N• .1 u ro (t) H < nn- H (0 H H l-H I iH O Q) H 00 X! — m (D fH rH s(0 u I rH •iH fO o (t) m* c XI H o l< (t) < 3 0) to -'2 G XI (U _>ii 2rt H o "- ""•-^— 2 in P X- X) • H fO << ^ H (0 C (0 •*X3- 3 (0 S S 1' H H VO H -i-H N rt) CM INTRODUCTION To take up some aspect of prose or Poetry In general is a more difficult and pains-taking job than to do research on a literary figure and his achievements. The topic of the present doctoral thesis is the treatment of the Development of the Ghazal in Arabic literature. Though the poets who composed Ghazal in all periods of literary history are mostly criticised by those who are orthodox in their religious views, yet their Ghazals do have a universal appeal for the common reader. It is the Arabic word Al-Ghazal, extant in Arabia since the Pre- Islamic period, which was later adopted in some other languages like Persian and Urdu for love poems, A nximber of factors were responsible for the output of Ghazals in the Arabic literature. An attempt has been made in the present thesis to analyse some of these major factors. This thesis aims at evaluating contributions of the Gh,azal-Poets in Arabic. The sour es made use of in this regard are the authorities on literary history who furnish us with ample material for giving an account of these poets as well as for a critical assessment of their poetic excellence. This is obviously suppor-ted by the textual evidence of the available Dlwans of these poets. All references have also been thoroughly checked, I under- -li st and perhaps I had to face a little more difficulty than I had originally anticipated mainly due to non availability of Dlwans of soma o^ the concerned poets and I had sometimes in some cases no option but to rely upon the supplementary books. For writing the present thesis I had to go through the poetry composed during the Umayyad period and I discovered that the same couplets are attributed to different poets by different scholars (e.g. P. 16 Chap. Ill of the present thesis; verses of Kays b. Dharlh, Agjiani Vol, IX PP. 18 2-183 are given in the Diwan of Majnun PP. 50-51 with slight changes). After sifting the evidence I came to the conclusion that it was so because the art of writing was not so developed during the Umayyad period as it is now. The literary output especially in the domain of poetry, has been preserved mainly in anthologies or human retention. Further extensive research is needed to trace out the original composers of these poems. Chapter I of this thesis deals with three sub topics. Firstly, it has been tried to trace the origin -iii- of the word al-Ghazal because some people hold that it is not of Arabic origin. However, the fact is that it is an Arabic word and was used even by the pre-Islamic poets. Secondly, it is arguable whether the love poems composed by the pagan poets in the form of Nasib or Tashblb are entitled to be regarded as <21iazals or not. And it is also traced who was the first poet who composed Nasib. Though we do not get any poetical production of Ibn Ha^tiam, yet, perhaps it was he who started the lamen ting on the desolute ruined abode of the beloved as it is proved by a verse of Imru'al Kaysi , Thiirdly, the position of Ghazal in the early Islamic period has been discussed. In this connection references to a few contemporary poets have been made and their poetical expressions critically examined. This chapter is a necessary prelude to tracing the development of the Ghazal. In Chapters II, III and IV an attempt has been made to trace the development of the ^azal as well as the contri bution of the Umayyad love-poets. Chapter V is mainly 1. Da'irat al-Ma'arif, Vol. II, P. 441 2. "Halt at the changed rxiins of the abodes^so that we may weep on the desoluted abodes as Ibn Ijteidtiam has wept," v This verse is^ given in olwan pn P, 162. But there ijUxi? in place ofUJjt] and IbnKhidham in place of Ibn Hadfaam, -iv- devoted to examine the factors that played Important role in the development of the Gha.za.1 in Arabic literature. The caliphate of Mu'awiyah marked the end of the 3 era of the Orthodox or Rightly Guided caliphs arri the beginning of the Umayyad dynastic rule that lasted for about eighty-nine years until 750 A.D./132 A.H, There is 4 5 a chain of fourteen caliphs in the Umayyad Dynasty, Mu'awiyah b. Abl Sufyan 661 A.D,/40 A.H. Yazid b. Mu'awiyah 680 A.D./61 A.H. Mu'awiyah b, Yazid 683 A.D./64 A.H. Marwan b. al-Hakam 684 A,D,/65 A.H, •Abd al-Malik b. Marwan 685 A.D./66 A.H. Al-Walid b. 'Abd al-Malik 705 A.D./86 A.H. Sulayman b. 'Abd al-Malik 715 A.D./96 A.H. •Umar b. 'Abdal-'AzIz 717 A.D./99 A.H. Yazid b. 'Abd al-Malik 720 A.D./lOl A.H. Hisham b. 'Abd al-Malik 724 A.D./105 A.H. al-Walld b. Yazid 743 A.D./125 A.H. Yazid b. al-Walld b. 'Abd al-Malik 744 A.D./126 A.H. Ibrahim b. al-Walld b. 'Abd al-Malik 744 A.D./126 A.H. Marwan b, Muhammad b, Marwin I 745 A,D./127 A.H. 4. Sir William Muir: The Caliphate, PP. 309-432. 5. 661 - 750 A.D. -V- Mu'awiyah was the founder of the dynastical caliphate of the Umayyads. He introduced the hereditary system of rule in the Muslim Arabia. This step has been described by some historians as a very effective measure to end the bitter period of civil war among the Arabs* After Prophet's (Peace be upon him) death the non-existence of any definite law for electing a successor resulted in controversy and finally in civil war. It created differ ent creeds and sects challenging the fundamental concept of brotherhood given by Islam. Before the establishment of the Umayyad rule the third Orthodox Caliph ' Uthman war assassinated and 'All was elected next caliph by a group of the Muslims. The other group of the Muslims demanded from the Caliph 'All for the immediate punishment to the persons responsible for committing the crime, Mu'awiyah alongwith Talhiah and Zubayr was the most influential persons who demanded that the caliph's murder should be avenged. This led to the Battle of Camel under the leadership of the Prophet's wife 'A'ishah. Talhah and Zubayr were killed in this battle and 'All emerged victorious. Mu'awiyah, who had the organised support of the Syrian army was difficult to be subjugated, A battle was fought between 'All and Mu'awiyah at §iffln. When 'All was about to win the battle -vi- Mu'awiyah presented a proposal to him for the settlement of differences by referring the matter to two arbitrators who would pronounce judgement according to the Holy Ifur'an. The majority of 'All's rmy accepted it but a section of his followers objected strongly to the acceptance of arbitration and deserted *Ali, They came to be known as the KhariUtes. This sect was very fanatic. They repudiated the claim of 'All to the Caliphate after he had agreed to this arbitration, 'All won the battle of Naharwan against them but at the cost of his own life. After some time he was killed by a ^arijite. The Kharijites were not only a formidable force during the Umayyad period but remained a constant menace to the Umayyad dynasty throughout. The Shi'ah creed came into being with the death of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) when a section of the people in Madlnah advanced the view that the leadership of the Muslim Community should pass on to the family of the Prophet. They were in fact in favour of 'All to be caliph after the death of the Prophet, Though the Kharijites had revolted against 'All, yet they were united with the shi'ites in opposing the -vii- Umayyads as both the groups considered them to be usurpers. Consequently, they put their forces together to fight out the Umayyads. Thus the Shi'itea and the Kharijites emerged as a potential danger to the Umayyads. The Umayyads engaged a large number of spies to keep a watch on their activities and also persecuted them from time to time. Even then the Umayyads could not escape from their manoeuvres much too long. The issue of the Prophet's successor gave birth to the sect of Murji'ites also. They tried to maintain a neutral attitude and pleaded strongly for the postponement of the judgement and for leaving the whole thing to the God to decide in His own way. Contrary to this the Kharijites and the Shi'ites considered the Umayyads as un-believers. Thus apparently the Murji'ites were the supporters of the Umayyads but they never carried arms to fight for them. The Mu'tazilites also were not favourably inclined towards Mu'awiyah and the Umayyads. The followers of all these parties or sects considered the Umayyads to be the userpers, of the right of 'Ali, Therefore they raised a series of problems which the Umayyads had to face. Besides the absence of a definite law of succession^there were many -viii- other shortcomings too in the Umayyads, The Umayyad Caliphs revived tribal jealousies in order to serve their own purpose by playing off their influence which can be seen in the poetry of the contemporary poets. It divided the Muslims into two hostile camps and also served to ruin the empire. With the advent of the Umayyads a epoch making change occurred. This change was not only political but also cultural and social, Damascus became one of the beautiful cities of the world, the centre of culture, and the seat of the Islamic empire under the Umayyads, The rulers led a luxurious and majestic life after the fashion of the rulers of Persia and Rome, They introduced the practices of drinking, gambling, racing etc, in the society. The women occupied a prominent place in the society and enjoyed much freedom. They took interest like their male counter-parts in the intellectual activities and some of them distinguished themselves as scholars and poetesses. With many conquests the penisula was now no longer an island. It had been thrown open to the world. The major power still rested with the Arabs but the conquered races represented by the Persians, the Egyptians, and the -ix- Romans were exercising a visible influence on the cultural life of the empire which was fast under-going change, A number of their leading features were absorbed in the new system under the Umayyads, It is a fact that the conqueror of a country is not always a conqueror of everything. In certain matters the conquerors are also sometime conquered* The same happened with the conquerring Arabs, The conquerred nations though embraced Islam but they had their own Indi vidual traditions, they had their own poetry and literature. Some of them were intellectually superior to the Arabs, The Arabs had their own traditions and their own outlook towards life. Between the two i.e, the conquered and the conquerors there was conflict, struggle, and tension, especially regarding the social system and literature, particularly poetry. With the conquests the Arabic language spread throughout the empire. However, new surroundings were bound to react on the sensitive minds of the poets from Arabia. The result of this appeared in the co-existence of the two worlds, the old and the new, which was reflected in the love poetry of the Umayyad era. The Nasib or Tashbib of Jarlr, AJ^htal and Farazdak can be taken as old and traditional while the love poetry of the 'Umarites and 'Udhrites as new. As -X- the Umayyads were busy with the suppression of internal conflicts and the consolidation of their empire much progress could not be made in the domain of literature as a whole. However, great and significant contributions made in the field were of poetical composition. Though the Umayyad period was marked by turbulancea and conflicts of all kinds yet the rulers were mostly pleasure seekers. In the true Arab tradition they were fond of poetry, dance and music. Their court was thronged with scholars, poets and artists. Some of these caliphs were themselves famous Gtjazal - Composers, Among them the most famous are Yazld b. 'Abd al-Malik and al-Walld b. Yazid, Yazid b, 'Abd al-Malik was so much in love with a slave girl Habbabah that he expired within fifteen days of her accidental death. Many anecdotes about their love adventures have come down to us, Al-Walid b. Yazid was a famous poet, who wrote wine-songs, the themes of which were borrowed by the later poets, even by Abu Nuwas, an •Abbasid poet well-known for his wine-sohgs. He also composed poems in praise of women and Tashbib on Untn-i- 6 7 Habib, He was also an expert in music and singing. 6, Karam al-BustanI: Kutuf al-Agjianl, No,6, al-Walld b, Yazid PP, 75, 86, 7, Ibid. P, 91. -xi- In the Umayyad period the restrictions imposed by orthodox caliphs on composition of poetry were withdrawn. Umayyad caliphs themselves were great patrons of poetry which had again started to flourish and many inimitable poets appeared on the scene. Some of the Q shining stars in the galaxy of the Ghaza1 poets arei Kays b, Dharih - d. 688 A.D., Vol. VI; P. 55 Majnun bani 'Amir d. 688 A.D. Vol. VI; P. 60 Al-Harith b, Khalid al- Makhzuml d. 700 A.D. Vol. II; P. 155 Lay la al-AkljIliyyah d. 700 A.D. Vol. VI; P. 116 Jamil b. Ma'mar d. 701 A.D. Vol. II; P. 13 4 Tawbah b, al-Himyar d. 704 A.D. Vol. II; P. 73 'Ubayd Allih b. Kays al-Rukayyat d. 704 A.D. Vol. IV; P. 352. Al-A]ihtal d. 708 A.D. Vol. V; P. 318 Waddah a1-Yemen d. 708 A.D. Vol. IV; P. 69 Al-Ra'i d. 709 A.D, Vol. IV; P. 340 •Umar b. Abi Rabl'ah d. 712 A.D. Vol. V; P, 211 Kuttiayyir d. 723 A.D. Vol. VI; P. 72 Al-Ahwas d. 723 A.D. Vol. IV; P. 257 Nu$ayb d. 726 A.D. Vol. VIII; P.355 8, Al-Zirikli: Al-A'lam, Dates are given from the different volumes. -xii- Al-Farazdak d. 728 A.D. Vol. IX; P. 96 Jarir d. 728 A.D. Vol. II; P. Ill Dhu'l - Rummah d. 735 A.D. Vol. V; P. 319 Al-'Arji d. 738 A.D. Vol. IV; P. 246 Ibn-al-Dumaynah d. 747 A.D, Vol. IV; P. 237 'Urwah b. Udhaynah d. 747 A.D. Vol. V; P. 18 Ibn Mayyadah d. 766 A.D. Vol. Ill; P. 59 The 'Umayyad caliphs had genuine appreciation for poetry and were liberal in their patronage of poets. They were endowed with a fine taste for poetry and this was shown in their ability to cite verses appropriate to different occasions. Their sensitivity to good poetry was intense and spontaneous. They were particularly generous to poets and rewarded them lavishly which sometimes amounted to thousands of Dirhams. Once Kuthayyir gave - 9 such a description of Ghurrab in the presence of caliph 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan that the caliph gave it to the poet as a gift. Even 'Umar b, 'Abd al-'AzIz, called •Umar II for his piety and of rectitude, was fond of listening to poetry and showed regard to the poets from time to time. Once Kuthayyir with al-Ahwas and Nu^ayb visited caliph 'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz and sought permi ssion to recite some verses. He permitted but asked them to express only the truth. Nu§ayb»s refusal resulted 9. Yakut al-HamawI: 1-lu'jam al-Buldan, Vol. IV, P. 192, A place near Syria. -xiii- his banishment whereas Kuthayyir and al-Ahwas recited beautiful verses containing some Islamic ideas. Hearing these verses the caliph gave rich rewards to the poets. 10 Once Walid b. Yazld bestowed upon Ibn Mayyadah a very beautiful Persian slave girl. 11 There still exists a detailed account of how poet Nu^ayb got ten thousand — •>. — — 1 ? Dinars from 'Abd al-Aziz b. Marwan. Thus we find plentiful records of such momentous events and occasions when poets and singers received bounties from the Umayyad caliphs and from their Governors, The Umayyad caliphs and their Governors liked Ghazal more than any other form of poetry because the Ghazal couplets are characterized by an enchanting melody and direct expression of inner feeling that touches our hearts and minds, A significant feature of these Ghazals is the intensity of feeling and expression. According to Grunebauraj "This fascination with quaint, extra vagant, or extraordinary behaviour, aside from its usefulness to the literary purjxjses of the work in giving entertainment or arousing the wonder 10, Abu'l-Faraj al-lsfahani: Kitah al-A^anl, Vol, IX, PP. 248-251. 11, Ibid. Vol. II, P. 281, 12, Ibid, Vol. I, PP. 311-313. -xiv- of the reader, seems to represent a realization that in the depths of such irrational behaviour there may- reside a certain deep and paradoxical wisdom that is beyond the reach of the ordinary mind"1, 3 The opinion of this scholar regarding Majnun banl 'Amir, who was madly in love with his cousin Layla may be correct. Ever since many stories about the love experience of Maj nun-Lay la have been current all along. But they have been dramatized so often that they have acquired the status of a legend. This legendary tale has provided the theme for widely known theme of subse quent Persian and Urdu poetry too. When Layla was made to refuse to marry Majnun he roamed in madness, his health was ruined and in the end he died of lovesickness. All these may not be acceptable to the rationalistic mind of the modern reader. It is a fact that whenever v/e are presented with an impossible thing it looks like a legend. The same was the case with Majnun and Layla, The inten sity of their love was not acceptable even to the people of his own time. Otherwise Layla's father would not have 13, Grunebaum, G, E, : Arabic poetry, P. 113, -XV- grieved and regretted for not allowing Layla to marry 14 - him. Majnun is not just a legendary figure. In favour of this the answer of an 'U^hri can be cited. He was asked if his tribe was really the most tender-hearted in all Arabia and he replied : We were but the Banu ' Smir (b, Sa'sa'h) have surpassed us with their Majnun (the poet Kays b. al-Mulawweh)1. 5 The Ghazal reflects the love experiences and incidents relating to them which occured in the Umayyad age. The Gljazal poets enjoyed social security as well as royal patronage. The composition and recitation of Ghazal was popular in society owing to the infliox of wealth following conquests and political aggrandizement and introduction into the Arab population of foreign elements. Pleasure seeking was the dominant feature of the Umayyad society. However the refinement of amorous sentiment over and above the classical models of pre- Islamic verse can be seen in the work of such poets as 'Umar b. Abi Rabl'ah, Jamil b. Ma'mar, Kays b. Dharlh and Majnun bani 'Amir. Ghazal was closely bound up with music which also flourished simultaneously in that 14. Abu'l-Faraj al-Isfahani : Kitab al-Aqhani, Vol. 11/ P. 74. 15. Ibid. Vol. 11/ P. 30. -xvi- period. Love poetry became one of the main resources for writings on the theory of love and thus many useful books of literary importance like Jahiz's Risalah fi•1 Ishk wa-al-Nisa* and Risalah al-Kiyan; Dawud al- Isfahani's Kitab al-Zahrah; Ibn Hazm's Tawlj: al-Hamamah and Ibn Ahmad al-SarraJ*s compiled work Ma^ari^al- 'Ushshak (in two volumes) etc, came into being. The love poets tried to express the inexpressible, to say eloquently and memorably what other people could only stammer, or, even, might find unutterable. Thus the poems composed by the love-poets of the Umayyad age pro vide ample material on love from which the later poets and literary scholars got inspiration to write about love. Chapter 1 OiAZAL BEFORE THE Ul^YYADS i ORIGIN OF THE WORD "GHAZAL' The word 'Qbaaal* ( c3^) means "song. Elegy of Love*. Though the term Is Arabic yet In Arabic Literature it came into use very late. This word J//*^V was used by the Arab poets in their poems from the very early time, sometimes in the meaning of c---vAyand sometimes in that of CS^ V • But the word attitudes on the part of the lover. The word Ghazal, in a 2 line of Al-Akhtal is associated with Lahw "Pleasure**; in a contemporary poet surakah, the term appears in the phrase" '^\.J^\i](/-(Syy^. ^. we find also the mention of J^\ in the verses'of Al-A*sha . But Tarafah b. al-*Abd very long period back to Al-Akhtal, and Al-A'sha had used the word (_5y^^ ^" ^^® pretext of ^-r^) not only in one verse but 1. Encyclopedia of Islam, Vol. II, P. 1028. 2. Ibid. Vol. II, P. 1028. 3. Husayn, S.M. t JRAS, 1936, Poem No. 20, Verse 9, P. 621; Dfwan, P. 90, "He seeks pleasure in the (^azal of youth". 4. shaykhQ, Louis al-Yasu*l$ Kitab §liu«ara' al-Nasraniyyah, Vol. I, PP. 367, 368. 5. According to Al-A'lam, Tarafah b. al-'Abd (d. 564 A.D.) was senior to Al-A'sha, Maymun b. Kays (d. 629 A.D,). -2- in the four verses where he had described the love-story of Al~Murakklsh and Asma' in comparing his love for salma. The wor6(J^\was used by Imru«al-Kays also. Thus/ it is proved that worxJ Jj^W^s not unknown to the early Arab poets though they had used it in different meaning —— sometimes in the sense of o^V, sometimes in the sense of C^y^iand some times even in both the meanings. According to Lisin al-'Arab: The (^azal is the talk of the young boys and girls. The author of Lisan a1-'Arab also has given another meaning with the reference of Ibn sldahi The Ghazal is to take pleasure with the women. The realm of al-Ghazal acquired the position of a separate individual genre in the Arabic Literature in the Umayyad period. The meaning of Love-song inspired by youth- fulness is clear in a verse attributed to waddah, an Utnayyad Poet, where the composition of Gliazals and the fear of death are contrasted. Later on, the word Gliazal is defined by renowned critics like Kudamah b, Ja«far and Ibn Rashlk. Both of them have pointed out the difference between Nasib and Ghazal, Al-Rafi'I has said clearly that the Ghazal is 6. Dlwin, P. 78; Al-Bahbltl, Najib Muhammad j Tarlkh al-SJbi'r al-*ArabI, P. 103. 7. Dlwan, PP. 142, 143. 8. Ibn-Manzur al-MisrIj Lisan al-'Arab, Vol. XIV, P. 4. 9. Encyclopedia of Islam, Vol, II, P. 1028. 10, I^udamah b. Ja'fari Nakd al-slji'r, P, 42, 11. Ibn Rashlk: Al-'Utndah, Vol. II, P. 117. -3- the love of a man with a woman and their relation, and the 12 Naslb is the description of this Ghazal . The other form of the verb, Taghazzala ( cJ^^y^ )# before it meant "to compose love-songs", would seem to have had the meaning "to express a sorrow of Love". 13 Perhaps here sorrow means the "anguish of Love" which brings grief and sufferings for the lover. According to al-I?fahani the word»s comparative fonn Aghzalu icSiy-S) was used by Walid b. YezTd b. 'Abd al-Malik^^, To the same realm of ideas as Ghazal there is the verbal Noun "TashbTb" derived from the verb "Shabbaba", etymology of which was not discovered by none of the parti cular Arab Critics. The term is, obviously, derived from Shabab having the meaning of "youthfulness" or "Youth", It is frequently used as a simple synonym of Ghazal and Nasib. According to Ibn Durayd the term Nasib is more commonly used , Its origin still remains obscure. Perhaps originally it described a type of dedicated verse addressed to a woman; but the possibility of a relationship must not be excltided* The word Nasib, in ancient times designates 12. Al-Rafi«i, Mu9tafa Sadikt Tarfkh Sdab al-'Arab, Vol. Ill, P. lio. 13. Encyclopedia of Islan, Vol. II, P. 1028. 14. umayyad Caliph, 707-744 A.D. (Al-Zixikli» Al-A'lam, Vol. IX, P. 145); Abu'l-Faraj al-I^fahanl* Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. I, P. 118; Ibn-Rasfiiki Al-'Utadah, Vol. II, PP. 120-121. 15. Ibn Rashlki Al'Iftndah, Vol. II, P. 127. 16. Ibid, voi: II, P. 128, y^\cJS^^yi>^(^r^'^^'^ -4- the elegic genre in a list in which there also figure the poem of praise, satire and fakhr. In certain passages the verb Nasaba means "to sing of the beauty of a lady and the 17 agitation she inspires". It is well known that in its common meaning Nasib designates the amatory elegiac prologue ~ 18 at the beginning of a Kasidah, According to Grunebaumi "The theme of Nasib contains the "subtheme" of Atlal which in its tuim contains single traits such as greeting 19 the encampment , effacement of the encamp- on ment by the winds , putting questions to the encampment and finding it unable to 21 answer , the poet diverges to the other subjects. The description of these A-^lal was nothing but a kind of expression of relationship between the poet and owners of these AtlaJ, The levels of this hierarchy 22 may sometimes be increased". Different themes were combined in one and the same poem, either loosely or more logically and firmly connected and interlocked. Perhaps it was the reason that the Odes of early periods were comparatively longer than the latter poems. Its developments later on led to the gradual ti:ansformation 17. Abu'l-Paraj al-I^fahanTi Kitab al-Aghanl, Vol.VI, P. 219; Vol. VIII, PP. 99, 123; Cairo, 1923. 18. Encyclopedia of Islam, VoL^II, P. 1028. 19. •» v^ L-»Us\V^_J-c />_AL.JXJV^M 20, 21, 22. Grunebaum, G.E.V. t Arabic Poetry, P. 36. -5- of themes and sub-themes into, well defined independent genres, viz, ^umriyyat, Taraziyyat, Ghazal, etc, Ibn Rashik, however, quotes 'Abd al-Kariin that Poetry falls altogether into four-kinds^ ——r al-Madh, al-Hija , al-^ikmah and al-Lahw« Each of these has branches; to al-Madl^i belong Ritha (elegy), Iftikhar (self-praise) and Shukr (gratitude); to al-Hija belong Dhamm (the blame), 'Itab (reprovement) and Istabta' (to keep waiting); to al-Hikmah belong Amthal(Proverbs), Tazhid (renunciation of the vorld) and Mawa'iz (Sermons); and to al-Lahw belong c^iazal (love Poems), Tarad (hunting) and the - 23 description of Khamr (Wine) and Makhimur (drunk) , ibn Rashik again quotes Di'bal ( ^^y^p) that Tashbib belongs to al-Shawk (desire) and al-*I§hk (Passionate love) , The great scholars and literary critics have given different names to the poetry composed about woman and love; some call it Ghazal, others Naslb and still others Tashbib. But the difference between these terms is not so apparent due to which Ibn Rashik, in his book al-'Ulmdah, has acbnitted that Naslb, Ghazal and Tashbib all have the same meaning • 23. Ibn Rashllf i Al-»Undah, Vol. I, P. 121, 24. Ibid. Vol. I, P. 122. 25. Ibid. Vol.. II, P. 117. -6- Al-Hawfl as his own opinion had cited the saying of al-Jumahlj In the opinion of Ibn Sallam Ghazal, NasTb and Tashbib are the synonymous words, Al-Hawfl*s opinion is based on the three sayings of Ibn Sallam about the different poets. But these three sayings do not approve the opinion of al-Hawfl. The great writer ibn Sallam must have used all the thiree terms for all the poets on the same level to show synonymity between these 27 words. But he has used the term Nasib for Imru'al-Kays , Tashbib for Kuthayyir and in the same sentence Nasib for 28 — — Jamil, Ghazal for 'Umar b, Abi Rabi'ah and Ghazal and < f Tashbib (verb c_-^io^) both for 'Ubaydullah b. Kays al- - 29 Rukayyat, This shows that some difference does exist between these terms as his own words approve it. However, some difference does exist among these terms, Nasib is the poet's sentiment of love for the beloved while Tashbib is the description of the beloved's qualities, Ghazal, in modern time, is applied to the poetry which deals with all the siobjects related to a woman. It is the expression of Love towards her. It may also be called the description of the beauty, actions and sayings of a lady appreciated by the opposite sex. Thus we can sum up that Ghazal is the poetic genre which includes Tashbib as well as Nasib. 26. Al-yawfl, Ahmad Muhammad: Al-Qliazal fil 'A^r al-jShill, p.7, 27. Ibn Sallam al-JumahI» Tabkit Fuhul al-shu'ara', P.46, 28. Ibid, P. 461. 30, Ibid. P, 530, c> ii GHAZAL IN THE PRE-ISLAMIC PERIOD -7- The nomad was not very accurate about the exact nature of happiness. Happiness for him was the harmony of hvcnan being with nature, with the conditions of his temporal existence. Therefore,in spite of the fears, anxieties and hardships of his surroundings he continued with his own merry and happiness deriving every Joy and pleasure within his reach to the full, Arabic poetry vividly reflected this pagan attitude towairds life and through it we can hear the broad laughter of its carefree and boisterous singers. They were very frank and bold in their verses. The scholars of Arabic language agree that the term al-Ghazal means to talk about women and to express passionate 31 love for them. A large number of synonyms are used for the word al-Ghazal—al-Nasib, al-TashbIb, al-'Igl)k , al-Hubb, - - 32 al-Shagjiaf, al-Gharam, al-Hawa, etc. All these words are used in the meaning of al-Ghazal having three illustrationsi (a) Conversation with a woman and to love her, (b) The relationship which is expanded by this conversation and the period of this relationship,and, (c) Effect of this relationship and lamenting for it. 31. yassan, Abu Rahabi Al-Ghazal 'ind al-'Arab, P,7, >, -8- Thus,we can infer that all these terms are used for man's love for a woman and subjects related to it with slight differences among different scholars. Whenever the lover starts to converse to his beloved he has nothing in mind except the sweetness of the talk and whenever he has to depart from her he does not find himself but in a very wretched condition because the separation is for him an awful misery. Whenever he gets the opportunity to meet her, the beloved finds him an emaciated person while he begins to express his inner feelings to her in the words having subtle meanings. On the other hand, when he is separated and is oppressed he becomes very humble, svibmissive, imploring and humiliated as a result of which the beloved accepts his love after refusal and smiles after being angry. It is positively recognized frcxn the beginning that love is madness. Palling in love is an spontaneous affair as love is blind and makes the lover blind too. Mostly poets are reputed to be especially prone to falling prey to passions, becoming mad with love or becoming love's slave. Therefore, not only love poetry but the personal experiences of such poets, became the stuff of Literature. The intimate connection between love arid sexual enjoyment is perhaps the hall-mark of pagan type of love. It made the heathen poet to regard it as a great pleasure, like riding, hunting and drinking wine. Their -9- love-Joy helped them to bear the morbid, fearful and hard conditions of their lonely life in their ever silent deserts, In Tarafah's eyes, only three things made the life worth living, viz, Mine, Love and War: > ^y^\' •'AS,}^ 'Igii'itVJ "VtJ'SU^S Li>\>)>\/cst^ Likewise, Stendhal, while studying carefully the characteristics of love in different nations, begins the chapter devoted to Arabia as followsi 33, Diwan, PP. 32-33, verses No. 58 - 61; Al-Zawzani» Sharah al-Mu• allaljat al-Sab», PP. 60-61, "But for three things, that are the joy of a young fellow, I assure you I wouldn't care when my death-bed visitors arrive - First, to forestall my charming critics with a good swing of crimson wine that foams when the water is mingled in; Second, to wheel at the call of the beleaguered a curved- shanked steed. Streaking like the wolf of the thicket you've startled lapping the water; And third, to curtail the day of showers, such an admirable season, dallying with a ripe wench under the pole-propped tent". Translated by A.J. Arberryt The Seven Odes, P. 86. -10- "Love needs three things to flourish! youth, leisure and a belief that woman is an equal to love, not a devil to avoid. That is why the home and paragon of the purest and most genuine sort of Love are to be found in the 34 modest and gloomy tents of Arabia", The evolutionary history of Arabic Ghazal can be divided into five phases* (1) Qhazal in the Pre-Islamlc period (2) Qhazal in the early Islamic Period (3) ^azal in the Utaayyad period (4) GJiazal In the 'Abbasld period, and, (5) ^azal after 'Abbasid period to our age. We will go through the first two topics briefly and, later on, discuss in detail the third one as the topic under study is confined to this period alone. (1) Pre-Islamlc Ghazali To Arabs, the Pre-Islamic peJdLod is known as Jahlllyyah because of the less developed spiritual and moral life of the Arab tribes in that primitive age, Muslims term that whole 34, Kinany, A, Kh, i Development of Gljazal, P. 57. -11- period of Arabian history, i.e, from the earliest times to the day of advent of Islam, "al-Jahiliyyah", when it is said that Islam has put an end to the manners and customs of the Jahiliyyah they have in view those barbarous practices which were manifested as savage temper, the haughty spirit of Jahiliyyah, the tribal pride, endless tribal feuds, cult of revenge and many other pagan characteristics which were the especial themes of Pre-Islamic Fbetry. It is accepted proudly by 'Amr b, Kulthum, a great Pre-Islamic Poeti During the Pre-Islamic Period, intellectual life of the Arabs manifested itself in Poetry. So it is said that "Poetry is the register of the Arab si* A renowned scholar al-Jxomahi, boldly stated: Verse in the days of Ignorance was to the Arabs the register of all they knew and the utmost limit of their wisdom with it they began their affairs, and with it they proceeded. 37 Whenever the poet composed his poems dealing with man, vriiether individuals or in groups i.e. tribe, sect or race, he has boasted about it as his value-principle. 35. Al-Zawzanit Sharal) al-Mu'allakat al-SabS P. 127, ••Beware I no one should treat us with imprudence. Our imprudence will surpass all the imprudent people." 36. "S^v^^VoVj^J^^Jz-^S^ " 37. Ibn Sallam al-Jumahl: Tabkat al-shu'ara', P. 10, -12- The poet was considered the spokesman o£ his tribe, extolling and encouraging its heroes and leaders* The bulk of Pre- Islamic Arabs were not made up of the merchants of the cities or the peasantry of the villages. The genuine representatives of the Arabs were the tent dwelling bedouin tribes of the endless Arabian desetts, whose superiority in nobility was recognized even by the settled Arabs, It was in them that the racial characteristics of the Arab nation appeared most distinctly and truly untainted by foreign influence. The Ghazal of Pre-Islamic period, in its meaning, was like a vast desezt the land of which at some places had pebbles and at other places it was elevated and bushy and at others it had oases in its sandy laps. It was pure bedouin verse which was bom in the deserts and nurtured by the nomad Arabs. Arabia at that time was a desolate desert land having scanty patches of pastures and streams here and there attracting the camel-gJfazing Arabs to migrate from one place to another for food, fodder and water. The cool oases* breezes and shady trees awakened the muse of poetry in them and inspired them to ooz out their passions in verses. All the Arab dwellers were divided into tribes and filled up with tribal pride which very often instigated them to pamper differences of opinion amongst themselves and draw out swords against each other leading to endless wars and rivalries. The tribal -13- poets had picturised such battles ('A_A>jLi*) which they had boasted of themselves till they had taken their indignified works as their dignities ( and had composed Eulogies« sometimes genuine and at other time exaggerated or even false, along with the elegies of their leaders. However, the high spirits of pagan Love Poetry or Ghazal are always accompanied by a sad and home-sick tune very near to melancholy. But this tune of home-sickness did not succeed in veiling the poet's cheerfulness and delight in talking about the flame of his old love. W, Blunt, referring to it, said: "There is no part of the earth's surface where love exist under such hard and endearing conditions as the Arabian des ert, where the soul of man and woman are knit as closely by the iiunense isolation of their lives, where either becomes so dependent on the other by the endless pressure of material dangers. Each little house of hair (tent) is as a fortress in the wilderness, set up in some far valley against the forces of nature and held 38 there by its dual garrison. 38. Blunt,W.J The Seven Golden Odes, P. 14, (Taken from Kinany, A.Kh. i Development of GJjazal, P. 56). -14- The thenes of Pre-Islamlc poetry were eulogy, elegy, satire, love or erotic poems, self pride and Chivalry3. 9 Nature was described more especially for its association with the people. The sight of the deserted encampments reminded the poet of his beloved. The animals also figured in connection with riding and hunting as well as similies. Neither the poets of the desexrt nor their audience knew the art of writing. So the preservation of the poems within the poet's tribe was confided to oral tradition only, Arabic Literature sprang into existence with an outburst of poetry. In the heyday of the classical Literature it was widely accepted that poetry was superior to prose and that the finest poetry was composed in the 6th and early 7th centuries of the Pre-Islamic Period, It is not known from which date the composition of poetry atSLrted, yet it is accepted that it was mostly current in the improvisatory 40 poems, i.e,, in the camel-man's chant. But as it is already stated that the preservation of the Literary matters was confided to the oral tradition due to the lack of the art of writing most of it has been lost. There were other reasons 40, ">-^jJL>" -15- also for example these camelman's chants had no literary- value for the Arabs of that time, as any type of study was not prevailing among them. For these reasons no example of it has come down to us. So we may conclude that most of the poetical masterpieces of many centuries might have been forgotten, and philological collection of work which started with the intellectual life of Islam had no material available from before the 6th century A.D, 41 The "seven odes" are the most famous survivors having literary value which appears to have been a vast mass of poetry composed in and about the Arabian desert during this period of the sixth century A.D. There is an important unanswered question that under what Influence, where and when the custom of pre facing the Ifagldah with an amatory elegiac prelude known as the Nasib was established? The answer to the question can only be guessed as the i^la^Idah was not a frame work, it was a lyrical movement consisting of a sequence in the key of Faktyr or sensual expression of the ego. So "it ia possible that the Nasfb owed its place to the very impor- 42 tance of the carnal and psychic impulses which it evoked". 41. Odes is used fordJcV>^« The title of 'seven odes' is given to the famous* seven powns named CJIJIAXX^^^;^^about which the legend is maintained that they were hung at the pagan shrine of the Ka'bah in Makkah. 42. Encyclopedia of Islam, VQI. II, P. 1028. -16- "Nasib is the invention of a certain - 43 44 Ibn Hidhani or of the famous Kuhalhil 45 or even in fact of Imru'al-Kaysi' But we failed to trace even a single verse of Ibn Hidtem, perhaps it is the reason due to which al-Jumahl at another place also had taken al-Muhalhil as the first 46 Arabic Poet and Imru»al-Kays after him. it is an eviden tial fact that the Nasib acquired the traditional place in Pre-Islamic Poetry as we see in every Kasldah, with the exception of Hamasah, which has reached us. The Kasldah (Ode) in its finest form as exemplified in the Mu'allakat, was an amalgamated expression of themes in a recognized sequence. It is more precisely, a series of pictures, drawn with skill and confidence over the life itself of the heathen poet and his tribe in the desert, of the wild creatuires of the wilderness and of the landscape in the midst of v*iich he and his tribe lived. This composite form, though seemingly incoherent, lent itself to endless variations,and, in the hands of a master, could flow naturally from one theme to another, Haywood is of the opinioni ' . ji 43. Ibn Sailam al-J\amahIt Tabkat al-Shu«ara«, P. 13'l^V^>^Ci>i^ 44. Ibid. P. 13; Ibn Rashlk: Al-«Umdah, P. 87, 45, Encyclopedia of Islam, Vol, II, P. 1028. 46, Ibn Sallam al-Jumahlj Tabkat Puhul al-shu'ara', P, 34, -17- "Thls early poetry had a characteristically rich diction, based on familiar imagery and a large vocabulary with a fair sprinkling of rare words, of forms not so common in later literature, especially prose. Such words may have 47 been culled from various dialects of Arabia". For a Pre-Islamic Poet the Kasidah was not limited to love poetry or Ghazal as was the case with the later poets, especially of the ttnayyad period. Ibn lilutaybah has given a beautiful description of a pre-Islamic Ode or Kasidah in his book, Kitab al-Shi'r wal-§l)u*ara'. He saysi ••I have heard from a man of learning that the composer of Odes began by mentionihg the deserted dwelling-places and the relics and traces of habitation. Then he wept and complained and addressed the desolate encanproent^ and begged his companion to make a halt, in order that he might have occasion to speak of those who had once lived there and afterwards departed; for the dwellers in tents were different from townsmen or villagers in respect of coming 47. Haywood, J.A.» Modern Arabic Literature, P.5; For example, words like (_jc^ij^^^o describe a certain sort of cloudy P. 276,No.4, -18- and going, because they moved from one water-spring to another, seeking pasture and searching out the places where rain had fallen. Then to this he linked the erotic prelude (Naslb), and bewailed the violence of his love and the anguish of separation from his mistress and the extremity of his passion and desire, so as to win the hearts of his hearers and divert their eyes towards him and invite their ears to listen to him, since the song of love touches men's souls and takes hold of their hearts, God having put it in the constitution of His creatures to love dalliance and the society of women, in such-wise that we find Very few but are attached thereto by some tie or have some share there in, v/hether lawful or unpermitted. Now, when the poet had assured himself of an attentive hearing, he followed up his advantage and set forth his claim ".^^ 48. Ibn Kutaybah: Kitab al-gbi'r wal-Shu'ara', Vol. I, PP 20-21; Translated by Nicholson, R.A,: A literary History of the Arabs, FP. 77-7E, -19- Othera refute the argtnnent of Ibn Kutaybah by asserting that the composer of Kasldah did not begin with the Ghazal to win the hearts of his hearers and divert their eyes towards him and invite their ears to listen to him but he did so for his own conveniencej to cheer himself up and stir up his genius and put it in the mood of poetry, Arab poet was not allowed to retrogress rather permitted to look behind but only with a rapid glance to help him to drive forward, somehow or the other, for pagan poets it was a means of beginning the Ode. We may say that it was a type of "Introduction to Kasldah", They used this Naslb or Ghazal or Introduction in all types of their poetry whether it was Fakhr, Hija, or Madh and even in some poems of Hamasah, They laid great stress on personal matters because they were very practical. So their Gtiazal was nearer to immorality and obscenity than modesty and morality. Whenever a poet celebrated the beauty of his beloved, he gave a realistic picture of. hers. He put special emphasis on the sweetness of her lips, the brightness of her face in darkness, the charm of her conversation, her fragrance and to the disapproval of the modest reader — the pleasure that she was able to give her lover in the Joy of physical union. There had been several love poets in the Pre-Islamic Period, According to Goldziher: -20- "The Arabic tradition attributes the origin of the Kasldah to Muhalhil ibn Rabl'ah, a leader of the tribe of Taghlib, who in a poem of this kind mourned the death of his brother Kulayb, which caused a long warfare between the tribes of Bakr and Taghlib, It was a remarkable moment of the inter-tribal history of Arab Paganism, It also demonstrates how insignificant motives eng endered the tribal wars which continued some times for many years* and which gave rise to 49 so many poetical utterances. There were many remarkable poets in the Pre-Islamic Period, Among them Imru'al-Kays and 'Antarah b» Shaddad were most famous. Both of them were in love with their cousins ( j-^^r^r^) and both were unsuccessful and dejected in their love-affairs, Imru'al Kays's most celebrated Kasldah opens with these verses* 49. Goldziher, I, i Characteristics of Arabic Literature, Translated by Somogyi, J. (ed. Islamic Culture, January, 1957), P.6, 50, Diwan, P,8, "Halt, friends bothi let us weep, recalling a love and a lodging by the rim of the twisted sands between Ed-Da}chool and Haumal, Too But 'Antarah b, Si)addad opens his Mu'allakah In a different style from Imru'al tCays. Once an 'Abai poet boasted of his greatness in Poetry, so in reply 'Antarah composed the Mu'allaljah which opens thusi 51 After reading such verses the readers long for the knowledge of the events of the poet's life which are connected with these places. Thus by such erotic prelude it seems that the poets want to inspire the reader's love for poetry. In spite of the heavy shackles of the tribal society the pagan poet was free and independent in his spirit^ views and actions. He was fully conscious of his prominent individuality. He was very proud of himself, proud even when he talked of his lost love and called it 51, Dlwan, P, 15, "Pfeve the Poets left a single spot for a patch to be sewn? or did you recognise the abode after long meditation? 0, abode of 'Abla at El-Jawa) let me hear you speak; I give you good morning, abode of 'Abla, and greetings to you". Translated by Arberry A,J,i The Seven Odes, P. 179. -22- "an ignorant^ foolish youthful conduct". 52 In the erotic prelude, which was the keynote of his song, we find points which convince us to infer that the poet is exaggeratedly boasting about his beloved's charm, Iraru'al Kays gave the description of his beloved by sayingi Al-A'sha had boasted proudly his love affair with not only one woman but a large number of themi The pagan amatory poetry was not only a mixture of longing for a lost love and boasting; it was also a strange combination of sensual description and refined emotion. Yet Imru'al-Kays, in his Mu'allakah, has maintained his self respect. He has said to his belovedj 52, Kinany, A.Kh,: Development of Ghazal, P, 50, 53, Dlwan, P, 45, "She shows me a waist slender and slight as a camel's nose rein, and a smooth shank like the reed of a watered, bent papyrus". Translated by A, J, Arberry» The seven Odes, P. 63, 54, Diwan, P, 254, "I used to attract Inexperienced girls, so much that they disregarded all blamers who wished them to break away from me". Translated by Klnany, A,Kh,: Development of Siazal, P,50, -23- jA (/^cii^t/\ ^ ^^\^ 3i^\^ c^'^^ c^Us After few verses he started to describe one of his night adventures and depicted it boldly in a very sensuous and, for some of us, iiuinoral way» By some critics the following argviment in support of such immoral and sensuous description is given. The wives of some poets belonged to a tribe which, for some reason or the other, had become their enemies and, having preferred to join their own people, were forbidden to see their husbands. The poets, therefore, at the risk of their life, paid them secret night visits of which they boasted in their Odes and which are to be distinguished from the immoral night adventures. Some historians hold that "ttii'- Jundab", mentioned by Imru'al Kays in one of his poems, is 55. Dlwan, P. 37, •'Gently now, Fatima i A little less disdainful I even if you intend to break with me, do it kindly. Puffed-up it is it's made you, that my love for you's killing me and that whatever you order my heart to do, it obeys". Translated by A.J. Arberryi The Seven Odes, P.62. 56, Dlwan, PP. 40, 42, "I came, and already she'd stripped off her garments for sleep beside the tent-flap, all but a single flimsy slip; I twisted her side-tresses to me, and she leaned over me; slender waisted she was, and tenderly plump her ankles," Translated by A.J. ArtoeriTr,» "The Seven Odes", PP. 62-63, -24- his wife and that "gha'tha" is Hassan's vdLfe. But it is an established fact that the heathen poet avoids talking about his wife in amatory prelude. So the two poets must have celebrated their wives* beauty before marrying them. For both imru'al Kays and I;Jassan addressed them as their "beloveds" and not as their "wives". The silence of the Pagan poets about their "wives" charm is not so remarkable after all; the Muslim Poets of the later period and the poets of Medieval Europe, did exactly the same thing. At the same time morality and chastity were also much appreciated by the pagan Arabs and praised in poems. Frtyn a moral point of view we can classify the ancient Gtjazal into two categories* Decent and Obscene. We do not mean here by "decent (;^a2al" the platonic love-poetry, but just this sort of verse in which the poet refrains from depicting vividly and lustfully the charm of his mistress, and also from mentioning what took place between them. Zuhayr, 'Antarah, 'Abid ibn al-Abrag etc. can be taken as the decent Gliazal Poets. And the obscene Ghazal is to be found mostly in the amatory preludes of Imru'al Kays, al-A'gha, Nabigjiah and yassan's poems composed before his approval of ISISTI. The description of wine, with which the beloved's saliva was compared, led the poet to depict the wine banquets that he had attended at wine shops to which he had -25- cotne across during his travels up and down the country and more especially in "Syria" ,and "Irak" in the north and in "Yemen" and "Hadramaut" in the south. In these shops, set generally on the main traffic roads/ the nomad was provided with wine and waited on by beautiful women whom he also portrayed in his verses. The Pagan Poets were so independent and so proud that they could not be good courtiers. 'Amr ibn Hind, the king of Hlrah, was so annoyed with the poets Tarafah and al-Mutalaramis that he plotted their deaths. 'Abid ibn al- Abras was killed by the king of ^irah and Nabig^ah al- Zubyani fled from the court of HTrah to the Court of Damascus, to save his life. However, it is a fact that Pagan Poets put their Ghazals at the head of their Odes like a bright crown reflecting their natural emotions and genuine love. Their amatory poetry or Gliazal might reflect their conception of beauty and happiness; their ideas about love, youth and life; it might also denote the degree of their cultural development; but it shows, first and foremost, that their barren desert, their hard life and their continued wars did not keep them away from enjoying life. We hear the ringing laughter of their joyous youth in their love- podtry. So we must not look in Pre-Islcffnic Ghazal any -26- social or moral sublimation, but it is a poetry of "great feelings in which they express their utter love utter happiness, and utter grief, in a direct and uncomprising way? 57, Kinany, A, Kh.i Development of Ghazal, P. 113, iii GHAZAL IN THE EARLY ISLAMIC PERIOD -27- The early Islamic period spreads over the period of the Prophet's invitation to new religion and the period of the Orthodox Caliphs. Arabs were so attached to their traditional religion and Customs that they put a great resistance against the new religion. So many wars were fought which are mentioned in the poetry of this period. Thus, the main themes of the Islamic Poetry were the faith of the Muslims in Islam, their longing for Jihad and martyrdom and their love for the Prophet. It is not correct to claim that Poetry ceased to be composed during this period as soma people mis-interpret the Surah al-Shu'ara» of the Holy Kur'an, However, it is true that the main themes of the Pre-Islamic poetry were now changed. Most of the followers of the new religion belonged to the generation of the Pagan Arabs, who were used to composing Poetry, As the new religion changed the way of their thinking and the mode of their lives so were changed the themes of their poetry. The fact is that the themes which were against the teachings of Islam were strictly forbidden. Islam, prohi bited drinking of wine and anyone who dared to go against this order was punished. A famous Poet of this period, Abu Mihjan, was addicted to drinking. So he was exiled by — 58 — 'Ulnar b. al-Kha^tjab. It is narrated by al-IsfahanT that 58. Abul-Faraj al-Iffahanl: Kitab al-AqhanI, Vol. XXI, P.320. -28- frotn his extle Abu-Mltjan fled and went to Sa'd b, Abi Wlkas whO/ on caliph's order, imprisoned him, Sa'd's wife, Salma, enquired the reason of his imprisonment. He said that he was imprisoned because he had said: Inspite of the fact that Abu-Mitijan was a drunkard, Islam had great impact on him. In his verses we find references to the oath taken by Allah at many places and such other references which only a Muslim can usei V In this period, which extends from the rise of Islam to the assassination of 'All, the fourth orthodox caliph, as in the Pre-Islamic period, it is rather difficult to group poets accurately. However the most convenient classification would probably be to divide them in two groups* 59. Abu•!-Paraj al-Isfahanli Kitab al-AgjianT, Vol. XXI, P. 3 25, "When I die bury me in the roots of Vine so that its roots drench ray bones (even) after my death", 60. Ibid. P, 320, "Praise be^to Allah who^has saved and rescued me from Ibn Jahra? while al-BusI, was held back". 61. Al-Zirikll: al-A'lain, Vol. V, P. 108^ Caliph 'Air was murdered in 66i A.D, by 'Abd al-Rahman b, Muldjam al-Muradl and was buried in Kuf ah,' -29- (a) those who expressed the dominant spirit of the time; (b) those who showed a secret or open rebellion against it. In the other words we can say that the first group comprised those poets in whom •Islam* has fixed its nails and the other group consisted of those who embraced Isian yet they continued to live a pagan life as far as wine, women and songs were concerned. They did not like the intervention of religion in their personal lives. Most of them lived far away from Madlnah, beyond the direct reach of the watching eyes of the orthodox Caliphs or of the Prophet's other companions. Some of them repented and accepted Islam late in their lives and became good Muslims/ such as Al-'Ukayshar, Abu Mil?jan and Hassan b, Thabit, Islam, as it was opposed to paganism, made the use of wine unlawful and one who dared to go against this law was officially flogged. Similarly the non-serious attitude towards women was discouraged as their status was raised and they were granted due respect. Thus in the Islamic period the position of Ghazal was weakened and the thinking of the love poets* was changed. The opening years of Islam were not much favourable to poetry. But it does not mean that poetry altogether declined due to the attitude of the Prophet as some critics have opined. The fact is that the Prophet had a dislike for poets not as poets but as adherents -30- and defenders of old ideals which were against the teachings of Islam, while, on the contrary, he honoured and rewarded those who employed their talents in the service of Islam, Hence the decent Qbazal was not discouraged and nobody objected to the amatory preludes of Hassan b, Thabit composed after his conversion to Islan, In the eulogy that Ka^b b. Zuhayr composed for the Prophet after his late conversion to Islam, the poet has dealt with three main themes on the pattern of traditional Ode, viz,the TasHoIb, the Praise of the Prophet, and the praise of Muhajirrn, When the Poet reached the verset 62 Prophet took off from his shoulder the mantle he wore and wrapped it on the shoulders of the poet as an honour and as a mark of his appreciation. This is a clear proof that the Ode and its theme were very much appreciated by the Prophet, If we find Ghazal in the form of Tastoib or Nasib in early Islamic poems it is an evidential fact that it was 62, Hasan , Dr, Saeedt Developipent of Arabic Poetry, P, 10, In olwan P.23,, There is c'p u>i ''verily, the Prophet is a light from'whkch illtynination is derived by others. Among the swords of Allah he is the unsheathed Indian Sword,*' -31- a deep rooted custom among the Arab poets to commence their poems vrith it. It was so deep rooted In Arabic poetry that a long period was needed to uproot this custom. It appears that Ghazal, as long as it did not cross the limits of decency, was permitted in early Muslim Society but the Prophet of Islam was critical of Pre-Islamic Poetry and of the superstition of the people, who attributed super natural powers to the pagan poets. The Prophet called poetry undesirable and misguiding, because it expounded tribal and faBnily pride, contrary to the Islamic principles of equality and brotherhood; encouraged revenge and blood feuds, as opposed to the Islamic values of unity and peace, incited lust and drunkenness in violation of the Islamic teachings of purity and piety etc, Islan came as a boon for the human beings which enlightened the hearts and the minds of the people and introduced reforms in their old habits, nature and cha racter, Arabs became busy in propagating the teachings of the new religion. They invited the infidels to embrace Isl^, The poets checked themselves from composing Ghazal in the pre-Islamic Style because Islam gave due respect and honour to a woman and the Prophet disliked the compo sition of Tashblb or Nasib or Gtiazal but on the imaginative female characters. The poets of the early Islamic period, -3 2- who were converted to Islan and whose poetry was influenced by their religion to a greater or lesser extent, stood just opposite to the poets of the pre-Islamic period in this respect. Among the poets who expressed the dominant spirit of the times we can mention 'Abdullah b, Rawaha, Ka'b b. Malik, Hassan b, Thabit, Ma*n b. Aws, Rafi* b, Ffciraym, Al-Nabi^a al-Ja*dl, and Ka'b b. Zuhayr (who was converted at a very late ^3©^, Impact of Islamic ideology sras visibly felt in the verses of these poets. The early Muslim society, as we have seen, was not very favourably inclined towards Ghazal, One of its first effects upon the poetry of this period was the omission of Ghazal in the odes. However, the lack of concern shown by the Muslim poets towards Gijazal in the prelude of their odes was not something undesirable. On the contrary, it stopped those poets who were not temperamentally sxiitable for it, from composing the erotic prelude necessarily. Now onwards it was handled only by those poets who really enjoyed composing it. It was often composed separately from the Ode, sometimes in a few lines, at other times in the form of short poo^s. So little by little it became a separate literary form of poetical composition and later in the Umayyad period it acqvdred complete independence. -33- There were some other poets who went against their time. They used a particular device to make Ghazal more tolerable to puritan Muslims. It was the emphasis laid by them on the chastity of their loved ones. So they high lighted in their amatory prelude, what they called the miserliness of their beloveds in love affairs, bringing out the fact that they never kept their promises —— a poetical way to suggest their chastity. They also pretended that they drew the pictures of the maidens after a dream vision. Ka'b b, Zuhayr, in his noted poem Banat su'ad, which he recited before the Prophet, began with Ghazal simply saying that his beloved never kept her promises. 63 a^\^V >L^\lLiirlJ^\ Al-Hutay*ah depicted the dream vision of his beloved in his eulogy written in praise of Caliph 'Uhiari 63. nTwan, P,8, "She does not hold to any commitment of meeting she has (already) spoken, but as sieves hold water". 64. olwan, P. 214, "Being separated Amaraa beCcBne a question for you and you meet her in the imagination. This imagination makes you sleepless and it disappears when the dawn arrives". -3 4- Llkewiae Ma'n b, Aws composed a poem for Caliph •Umar which opens with only one line of Ghazalj y^^^ 65 ^ Vi^ U^J^ 2^1^ ^r^ Al-Nabighah al-Ja'dT described his love more tenderly. In the amatory preludue of the poem which he recited to the Prophet, he has talked about his shyness in the presence of his beloved and showed how chaste was he in his lovej X y X >r X By these verses we can conclude that religion had affected poetry greatly in this period as it is a fact that man stands revealed through any and all of his words and works, Accofding to Grunebaum: 65, Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahanli Kitab al-AghinT, Vol. XII, P.50, "He (the Poet)^ was haunted by a dreart vision in the place Called ^st al-Jarathim, So his two friends slept but he was unable to sleep**. Translated by Klnany, A.Kh,» Development of Ghazal, P.149. 66, Diwan, P. 71, ••when I met her, I felt that the mantle of Coyness was thrown over me, whereas the mantle to which I had been used wasi Pride and Authority", Trans lated by Kinany, A,Kh.s Development of Ghazal, P, 152. 67, Ibid, P, 150, "I conceal her name but God knows the secrets of all concealed things". -3 5- ••Poetical production was Judged on criterion suggested by a peculiar moral realism. In an often quoted passage from the so-called "Surah of the Poets'*, those poets are berated in a context which tends to render suspect the very source of their inspiration. "Shall I tell you upon whom the satans come down? They come down upon every liar guilty,— They listen, but most of them speaK falsely,— And the poets them follow the be gulled, Seest thou not how they rove in every valley,~And that they say (in verse) what they do not do? 68 But the great scholar, Grunebavim, forgot to cite the following sentence of the Holy Kur'an which proves the acknowledgement of the early Islamic Poetry "Except those who are faithful and the doers of good deeds and those who mostly remember Allah and who take revenge after they are oppressed? 68. Grunebaxan, G,E,V, t ^Islam, P, 99, ^ -36- This line of Holy IjCur'an proves lawful to the Poetry of the Poets who composed it as revenge from the infidels. The same is the case with the early Islamic Poets. We can say that the spirit of Islam had a relation with the literary production of this period. In Islamic society the family feels disgraced when one of its womenfolk is mentioned by a poet as the object of his affections. 'Umar I went so far as to forbid love Poetry. Islam had an external i.e. social effect on the poetry of the Poets of this period. It was due to this fact that the poets sought such ways of celebrating their love, which were acceptable to the Muslim Society. When the Ghazal was forbidden by Caliph •Umar,Humayd b, Thawr, the poet, lent the charms of his beloved to a Sarha {a kind of tree) the beauty of which he celebrated in his 71 72 poems. It was a kind of metonymy and allegory. He has used it at another place where he has pretended to describe a pigeon with her young-one. In whole Dlwan of Hassan b. Thibit we find only five poems which had a 73 classical amatory prelude. Besides these poems there 70. Abu'l-Paraj al-IsfahSnTi Kitab al-AghinT, Vol.IV, P. 358. 71. Abu»l-Paraj - al-Isfahan!i Kitab al-AgJianl, Vol.IV, PP. 3 58-359J Faysal,* Dr. §hukrii Tatawwarul Ghazal, PP.200-201. 72. Paygal, Dr. ShukrI: Tatawwarul Ghazal, P. 208. 73. Ibid. PP. 220-223. -37- are two other poema which begin with two or three lines describing the abandoned abodd of the beloved and only one single line of Ghazal. The remainder of his poems have no Ghazal at all. Its reason was nothing but the impact of the religious spirit on these poets. The poets of this period as has already been noted expressed in their verses the new ideal of the society which was established by Islam, They were bound not to transgress the limit laid down by Islam so as to present the life of order, peace and high morality which Islam was striving to establish in Arabia, However, we have to admit that the traits which we have pointed out in the Ghazal of Muslim poets and which were favoured by Muslim Society, had not altogether been unknown to the Pre-Islamic Poets, But the Pre-Islamic Poets had not emphasized then to this extent. On the other hand, we must also admit that the development of the new tendencies in Muslim Ghazal was not only due to an external or social factor, i,e, the pressure of Muslim puritan life; it was equally due to an internal or individual's personal 74 factor; that the composers of the new Ghazal were Muslims, The new religion, Islam, found its way into their heart and modified their outlook on life and morals. Their conceptions, 74. Ibid, P. 203. -38- thoughts, feelings became different from those of heathen poets; and subsequently their ideas and emotions about vromen and beauty changed. If they praised the chastity of their ladies, they did not do so merely because chastity was highly appreciated by Muslim Society, but equally because they thanselves believed that it was a great virtue. In the poetry of this period the virtues and vices of women were stressed according to the object of the poem, Hassan drew the most obscene pictures of the wives of the infidel of Makkahj ^ ^ ^ On the other hand, the picture of 'A'ishah drawn by him shows how far the external and internal factors had affected the Ghazali ^ 76 75. Diwan, P.79, "I stand witness that your mother is one of the Prostitutes and that your father is one of the scoundrels". 76. Ibid,P. 188, "She is chaste, dignified, never suspected. She never speaks ill of other women. She is the wife of the best man in the world, as far as religion and rank (dignity) are concerned, who is the Prophet who shows the right path and teaches the highest virtues. She is a descendajit of the tribe of Lu«ay b, Ghalib, well known for its noble deeds and never fading glory. She is well bred.God refined her nature and purified her form evil and mischief*. Translated by Kinany, A,KhrDeve- lopment of Ghazal, P. 154, -39- Thus two new themes found its way Into the Gjjazal of this period and assigned a new object to the Poens, They were Panegyric and Satire, In the former the praised one was glorified while Satire was an effective way of ridiculing women and causing shame and disgrace to their families or tribes. The use of Satirical Qljazal became more frequent In the Ulnayyad period and poets employed decent and obscene themes alike for this purpose. The famous Utaayyad Poets of this type of Ghazal were Farazdak, Jarlr and Akhtal. In the pre-Islamic period Ghazal represented crude and sensuous love. In the Islamic period this love became refined and controlled by Muslim ethics. As a result of this, most of the poets preferred to avoid reference to their love. Only if they came to divorce their wives, for some reason or the other, they used to write verses about it to avenge their wounded pride and justify their behaviour in the eyes of the public. We can sum up that with the advent of Islib a new era star1:ed which brought a revolution in the life and idealogy of the Arabs, In this period poetry was given lesser emphasis than in the Pre-Islamic Age, There were two main reasons for this. Firstly the preoccupation of the Muslims with the study of the Holy Kur'an and its interpre tation on the one hand and with waging religious wars -40- (Jihad) on the other. Secondly, it took time to absorb the new concepts and spirit of Islam and to incorporate them into a mature literary output* The main object of the poems in this period was to defend the Islamic faith and expound the Islamic believes and idealogy. Islam began as a religious and social movement among the Arabs who, on their conversion, were supposed to undergo a basically religious process that we may call Islamization, chapter 2 TRADITIONAL GHAZAL IN THE UMAYYAD PERIOD -41- The Umayyad period begins soon after the assassi- — 77 nation of 'Ali b. Abl Talib, the last pious Caliph. During this period the Caliphate was shifted from Madlnah to Danascus as the consequence of which the centres of poetry were removed from Arabia to 'Irak, Syria and Hijaz because most of the nomadic tribes of Najd and Northern Arabia, which had produced the Pre-Islaraic poets of great reputation, had migrated to 'Irak, Syria and other newly- conquered provinces. The Umayyad Caliphs, like all the true Arabs, were the great lovers and patrons of Arabic poetry. The poets enjoyed immense hospitality, generosity and freedom in their courts. Islam had brought about a moral revolution in the Pagan life of the Arabs. The tradition of poetry, the foundation of which was firmly laid in the pre-Islamic period, continued to grow through the Umayyad and later periods. The poets had not lost their former position and importance in society. Till then they were considered to be the mouthpieces of the sentiments of the tribes and the party to which they belonged, Makkah and Madlnah also 77. Al-Zirikll: Al-A'lam, Vol. V, P. 107: Caliph •All b, Abl Talib was assassinated in 66i A.D.; Anwar Timir» Al-Shu'ar^' al-'Ushshak, P.20; Nicholson, R.A.j A Literary History of the Arabs, P. 193; Al-Mubarradt Al-Kamil, P. 929; Al-Hawfl, Ahmad Muhammad» Adab al- Siyasiyah, P. 19. -42- became wealthy cities and the ascetic mood of their people, who were hostile to some extent towards the poets, was relaxed. The political, social and economic changes gave rise to new theraes and new types of poetry. Now the pre- Islamlc themes of poetry became irrelevant to the new situations and environment of the Arabs, During the Uhiayyad period the Arab way of life was changed from the nomadic existence of the bedouins to a mature and refined urban pattern. The life of the civili zed cities further enriched the subject-matter of the classical poetry of the desert. With the conquests their association with the Greeks and Persians was extended, which brought about a great development in the Arabic music and dance. The musicians and the dancing girls of Arabia, following the Greek and Persian examples, changed the pattern of the life of the wealthy classes. These singing girls began to be welcomed in the homes of the wealthy aristocrats and the noble men. Many of them set favourite poetic passages to music, Arabic music was closely asso ciated with poems, and this resulted into the appearance of a new style of lyric poetry wholly devoted to the subject of love and romance. This new love-lyric or the Ghazal appeared in the now wealthy and luxurious cities of Makkah -43- and Madinah, Many prosperous Arabs bought the singing girls from the slave-markets and engaged them as music coaches to train their domestic slave girls in the art of music. Musical concerts became a regular feature of many aristocratic homes and friends and poets were invited to them. Of all the forms of poetry, only the Qhazal was sung in these musical concerts. Music to which Gl)a2al was put in the melodious tunes attracted almost all grades of Arab society including the religious men, legists, and tradition! sts. It was during the Umayyad period that the Ghazal made great progress. It was a very popular form of poetry relished by all classes of the Arabs, In the 'Abbasid period we do not find any school of Qljazal, Like the pre- Islamic poets they also took Ghazal as the introduction to poetry. Whenever the 'Abbasid critics describe Arabic literature, they do not talk about the pure Qljazal, We do not find that excellent tone and purity of subject- matter in the fragments of the 'AbbSsid GJiazal, which we find in the Umayyad Ghazal, The art of Ghazal was limited to the Umayyad poets only. Undoubtedly the Umayyad period was the "golden age" of Qhazal or erotic poetry. Due to the moral reformation that had taken place with the advent of Islam an interaction developed between -44- the Ghazal and the Islamic life. When it became pronounced the 'Udhrite Ghazal came into existence and when some diver- gences occurred in it the 'Umarite Ghazal was produced. 7a Thus, during the Umayyad Caliphate Hijaz saw the beginning and development of two main tendencies in love poetry — (1) 'Udhrite Qhazal composed by true lovers, (2) 'Umarite (^azal composed by amateurs. Besides these two main tendencies in the ^azal there was a third type of Ghazal also named as traditional 79 Gljazal composed by the poets who followed the foot steps of traditional pagan Ode composers. Both the 'Udhrite and the 'Umarite Gljazal were so developed in this period that a vast space is required to discuss it thoroughly. So both of them will be taken in two separate chapters. Here in this chapter, after a brief introduction of the two, the "traditional Gljazal** will be dealt with. The said "traditional Gt^azal" is nothing but the poems composed on the same subject matters as that of the pre-Islamic and to some extent of the early Islamic poetry. 78, Faysal, Dr, Shukri: Tatawwurul-GJjazal, p. 231, -45- The •Udhrite and 'lAnarite Ghazals were very close to each other but they did not have a common border. Both originated and developed in Hijaz but not in one and the same enviroiment. One of them was bedouin while the other was urban. The 'Umarite poets lived a settled life in Makkah and MadTnah as its leader 'Umar b. Abl Rabr'ah passed his entire life in Makkah and its other famous poet al-Ahwas b, Muhamnad lived in Madlnah, Contrary to thiS/ the 'Udhrite poets passed a nomadic life in the desert of yijaz or Najd as its leader Jamil led the life —80 of a bedoiiin in the valley of IjCura and its other famous poets, such as Kays b, Dharih, were leading a nomadic life in the desert of Madlnah and Majnun was also wandering in the desert of Najd. When we study the Gtjazal of this period, we find a striking similarity between the two schools with the exception that the 'Udhrite poets were satisfied with only one lady while the 'Umarite poets expressed their sentiments of love for many women. Thus, the 'Utnarite Ghazal was the poetry of impulse and unres trained nature while, on the contrary, the 'Udhrite Ghazal, which had a fixed purpose, was favoured by the poets who moved like saints among the 'Uhiarite Poets. ^asan. Dr. Saeedt Development of Arabic Poetry, P. 30; ^sayn. Dr. Tahaj Hadith,al-Arbi'a,' Vol. I, P. 184. -46- These two kinds of Ghazals •Udhrite and 'Iftnarite— neither originated in Syria nor in 'Iralj: nor even in Egypt but in Hijaz and this has been accepted by all the scholars 81 — including Dr. Taha Husayn. 'IraV and Syria produced renowned trio of al-Akhtal, al-Faraasdak, and JaHr, The first two came from 'Irik and lived in towns while JarTr despite his nomadic origin, spent most of his poetical life in 'Irak and Syria. According to Dr. Taha Husaynt So far as Syria and 'Irak are concerned the both provinces were the centres of Umayyad's political life. Syria was the seat of the Caliphate while 'Irak was the seat of insurrection. In Syria and 'Irak we find two types of poetry: the tra ditional poetry of eulogy, satire and praise and the political poetry in which the tribes used to boast their superiority over the others. 82 Thus, the "traditional Ghazal** is the expression of the thoughts of a group which confined itself to what religion had allowed and what did not harm their prestige. It was the group of the people who represented these lines of the Holy Kur'an: 81. Husayn, Dr. Taha: Hadith al-Arbi'a', Vol. I, P. 183, 82. Ibid. Vol. I, P. 183. -47- Yet they were not too much religioug in their verses as they had adopted it in imitation of their pagan predecessors. Jarir, al-Akhtal, al-Parazdak and al-Ra*i are the main pillars of the circle of the poets representing tradi tional Ghazal. The pure (Jljazal did not have such great influence over them as other kinds of poetry, viz political poetry, satire and eulogy etc, had. In fact, this tradi tional Qjaazal was continuation of the same old customary Ghazal of the pre-Islemic period. In other words It can be said that the traditional Ghazal was not adopted by the poets as a source of enjoyment but as a source to proceed to the other subject of the poetry like eulogy, satire or praise. It was the same Gljazal with which the pre-Islamic poets started their Kasidah, We can say that this tradi tional Ghazal was transmitted from the pagan poets. Like their bedouin predecessors the traditional poets were not chaste. They dealt in their poetry with the adventures of 83, Kur'ani Surah al-i^a^a^t 77, "And seek the abode of the Hereafter by means of what Allah has given thee, and neglect not thy portion of the world, and do good (to others) as Allah has done good to thee, and seek not to make mischief in the land, surely Allah loves not the mischief-makers". Translated by Maulana Muhammad •Ali, P. 757 . -48- the nomads. At the same time they mocked at their past youth in the style of the pre-Islamic bedouinism and simplicity. However, it was violative of the religious currents, prevailing in Makkah and Madinah at that time. From the very beginning, even in the pre-Islamic age, the poets achieved two main purposes through their poetry. First they tried to relieve their excitement and expressed their love or hatred. Secondly, they earned their livelihood through it. For a very short period, i.e. during the early Islamic period, its purpose of earning livelihood through it was put aside. But it again became prevalent in the Umayyad Court, Now it was modified on a larger scale by the altered conditions of life in this period. After a brief eclipse the Kasldah was Revived. Its first part was stereotyped and the second part i.e. praise or satire became more exaggerated. It was all due to the foreign, especially the Persian, influence. The fact was that the virtues or the vices to which these poets refered were not possessed by the persons about whom the poem was composed. Thus, the poet earned a lot of money through it in order to live in comfort. Another cause of the development of the traditional Ghazal was the affluence and opulenoe due to which the Arab patrons became -49- all the more wealthy. They paid high money to the poets either to be praised by them or to humiliate their opponents. According to Dr. K.A. Fariqj ••A poet, who upheld, in addition to the routine praise, the claims of an Ulmayyad Caliph the Coveted office of the Caliphate, rejected those of his rivals, such as the Shi'ites or the Zubayrltes, paraded the kingly merits of the patron or censured the tribes that had sided with his rivals or were hostile to his patron or averse to ack nowledging his allegiance, was sure to win the highest esteem of the patron and receive a reward of thousands of rupees, plus a herd of camels and a set of slaves to look after themi'^* The satire written by the poet al-AJsljtal on Anpars gave him the patironage of YazTd b. Mu'awiyah and his successor, •Abd al-Malik b. Marwan. In his satirical poem he has saidj 84, Fariq, K,A,, Prof,: A History of Arabic Literature, Umayyad Period, p, 25, -50- Thus, these poets exploited the Kasldah as a means to acquire wealth from the powerful and the rich people. Their adulation can not be explained in terms of tribal virtues but that of the political and religious contro versies. Now the situation and the environment had changed. So the themes of pre-Ialamic Kasldah became Irrelevant in this period but the evocation of the deserted encampments and of the journeys and the hunting still carried with it an emotional spell. In this way, the poets remained bound by the poetical tradition and the demands of their patrons. In ppite of the change in moral and religious temperament the Pre-Islamic poetic tradition continued to grow. In form and style this was the same as during the pre-Islamic age except an occasional reflection of the influence of Islam, Gibb has saidj 85, Abu'l-FaraJ, al-lsfahani: Kitab al-AgjianT, Vol, XV, p,33, "Give up the persuit of the glory which you do not deserve and take up your shovels, 0, the sons of Najjar (i.e. Carpenters). Vs^rily the riders know your backs, 0, the sons of the ugly plow men. The Kurayshltes gained all the glories and ranks and all the blames lie under the turbans of the Ansars*. -51- •*The passions of the Umayyad age were multiple and conflicting, and the poets shared in the general psychological inst ability and conflict of principles and parties. A copious sprinkling of Koranic phraseology and pious sentiment does not compensate for the coarser and shriller 86 tones of their verse." These venomous poets can be defended in the words of J.A, Haywood J "The Ommeyad age was one of political. Sectarian, and tribal partisanship, and this, too, entered into the Poetry. The Pre-Islamic concept of the poet as the spokesman of his community was adapted to the new conditions The Ommeyad poets, Farazdaq, JarTr, and al- Aklital were spokesmen of their generation in a broadly similar way. They were sometimes called the "poet of the palaceif 87 86. Gibb, H.A.R,: Arabic Literature, P. 43. 87. Haywood, John A,t Modern Arabic Literature, P.7; Farazdaq and Otneyyad are Verbatim. -52- Throughout the countries other than Hijaz the traditional ^azal, or we may say the classical Ghazal, was the only form of poetry which was cultivated by the well- known poets. It was appreciated and admired by the leaders^ officials and the cultured people. These poets of the Urnayyads were the direct successors of the pagan forrn of the Arabic poetry. It was the pagan style and form not in dea ling with the main subject but in composing erotic prelude, A traditional Gljazal poet of the Itoayyad period did not hesitate to borrow most of his ideas, similes, metaphors and images from his pre-Islamic predecessors. It is surpri sing that he regarded it a matter of pride. In spite of all these adaptations, and imitations it had its own individual characteristics. Their poems enable the readers to see the genuine Arab atmosphere though the subjects of the poems reflect the significant events which brought about epoch making changes. The Umayyad period was a period of transition from bedouin towartJs settled life. The Arabs applied all their ideals and imagery related to the desert life to the new environment as they had great attachment to tEheir deseriis and love for its free and adventurous life. It is due to this fact that we do not find in their poetry any descrip tion of the Syrian natural phenomena or that of the magni ficent landscapes of 'Irak, -53- The description of the scenes from the deserts, and shedding tears on the beloved's ruined abode were the rr.aln themes of the poetry of Dhul-Rummah, It is perhaps because of this fact that Abu-* Amr ibn al-'Ula' has saldj Dhu^-Rummah* 3 Tashbib and weeping on Atlal is in accordance with the style of the Pre-Islamic Poets: ' • .. J. P r. 89 -^J^\Jc^c0j\iJ^U^? C^Vi^ey-iScjLj'^M 88. Al-Zirikli» Al-A'lam, Vol. V, P. 319: "Poetry starts with Imru'al ^ays and ends with Otjul-Rummah", 89. olwan, PP, 14-15, "I halted my camel on the deserted abode of Mayyah and continued to weep on it and talking to it. I drenched it (with my tears) till its stones and the playgrounds were about to talk to me (through the grief and distress in which we both have been involved). Whenever the rain shower falls on its mounds its earth gives the fragrance of Musk as if its (of musk) powder is mixed with it, (I retnember the moment) when through the curtains you looked at us^O, the^black eyed gazelle with white chesty Mayyah swore by Allah that all what I have said to her was nothing but a talk of a liar. If it was so Allah may afflict me with unexpected mis fortune and I may pass my life continuously fighting with my enemies on my own land". -54- In the same way Jarlr has drawn moving and pensive pictures of his mistress*s ruined residence as well as that of his lost love; After going through the Edwins of these traditional poets we find the repetition of the same thanes which are very exhaustive. They failed to keep harmony between different parts of the Ode which was a great quality of the preceding pagan poets whom they imitated in giving expression to feelings, imagery, words, and even in the 90, Dlwan, P. 125, "Welcome to the desert having plantation in excess, mounds of sand, barren land and the forsaken place where no one meets, i.e. Remember all the places from where my beloved has passed. After you (l,e, after your departure) such a long period has passed that these places has become the target of the rainshower and the haunting spirits. The wind especially the eastern and western (wind) come repeatedly to it (i.e. the wind spins over it again and again) as the affectionate mother-camel licks the skin of its young-one again and again. We have made a pledge with her possessing the blessed white and deep black eyes. Her eyes were never grieved nor they were inflamed. Whenever they put antimony to their eyes (which are) not loathsome (It seems as if) they have put the fea thered blades on the arrows to prey upon the lovers". -55- structure of the Ode. Perhaps it was all due to the lack of genuine interest in this poetic art. They adopted it only as an imitation because they thought that a good poem must always start with an erotic prelude. It is due to this that they tried to start, their poem, be it a satire, an eulogy or an elegy, with it. In doing so they forgot that the repetition of a thing is never appreciated. It is true that the preceding pagan poets also had dealt in one and the same ode with so many things such as the descriptions of his beloved and her ruined abode, his own riding beast, his tribal or personal deeds and even the satire on his enemies. But the Pre-Islamic poetic pro ductions are the masterpieces of poetry in Arabic, It is so because they took genuine interest in dealing with each subject of their Odes, keeping uniformity and harmony among them. The other cause of this flaw in their Ghazal is that it generally had some other motives before them and there fore the poet, being in a hurry to pass from the traditi onal amatory prelude to the real subject of his interest, ended his Ghazal abruptly. In an eulogy composed for •Abd al-Malik b. Marwan, Jarlr passed from a conversation with his wife about poverty to the praise of the Caliph» -56- It was not only poet's own liking for amatory prelude but the distinghished persons, for whom the poems were composed, also appreciated it, when once Jarlr recited a mere eulogy to Hajjaj b Yusuf he asked himi "Where is its amatory prelude?.^^ The story is significant as it shows that the Ghjazal was restored to its former position in the Umayyad period. It crowned once again the head of the classical Odes. Dhu'1-Rummah, a noted poet, sought in Ghazal an effective key to poetry. Once he was asked: "What would you do if your means of composing poems is blocked? He said. How would my means be blocked while I have got its keys. He was asked: What is it? He replied> It is just to remember my beloved, 93 91. Dlwan, P. 77, <• Urn tiazrah consoled herself and saidj I see the people coming towards me with gifts. You may cherish her hope by giving her something soothing to her as she and her children are hungry. Soon I will visit the seas (of generosity). Keep away from me the annoyance of the blame and wait for my visit (to a generous man). Have faith in Allah that none is His partner and in success (which I will get) from visiting the Caliph, Help me, my parents may be sacrificed for you, with some of your gifts. Verily you are a pleasure giving person," 92. Kinany, A,Kh,x Development of Ghazal, PP, 173, 306, 93. Ibn Rashikx Al-'Umdah, Vol. I, P. 206. -57- This story shows that the famous poet believed that his poetic genius could never disappoint him as long as he began his odes with Ghazal, The (^hazal was equally enjoyed by the caliphs and governors and the aristocrats. They appreciated it not only because they actually loved it but also to show to the non-Arab Muslims their favou ritism and love for everything related to the ancient Arab culture and traditions, Al-Akhtal, in most of his eulogies and satires* passed swiftly from Ghazal to the description of wine and drunken people. The famous Ode composed in praise of Caliph •Abdul Malik b, Marwan he began with the journey of his beloved in the desert just like that of the Pagan Poet, Zuhayr, in his Mu'allakah, However, he has tried to show his originality by turning to the description of the wine 94 and his drunkardness in which his contemporaries Jarir and Farazdak never excelled him. Being a Christian he described the wine and wine-parties out of his own direct experiences of life as he had allowed himself to be indulged in drinking. But his two great contemporaries refrained themselves from the description of wine due to the prohibition imposed by Islam on wine. 95 94, Dayf, Dr, Shawkli Al-Tatawwur wa al-Tajdid fll Shi'r al- Utnawl, P. 107.' 9 5, Al-Hawfl, Ahmad Muhammadi Adab-al-Siyasiyah, P, 463, -58- After describing the wine parties and the state of being intoxicated he dealt with the main subject i.e. the praise of the Caliph, and the services rendered for the Umayyads by the poet himself and his tribe. 96, Al-Bustani, Fuwad Afrim: Al-Akht^al (Mada'ih Muntakhabah), P. 10, "The people come with'gifts from you in the morning and evening. The vicissitudes of fate disturb than through separation (from you). On the day when I proceeded with th®n I was like a drunkard of the wine made at Him§ or Jadar. It (i.e. this wine) is much better than the pitch- made wine full of dust and mud and the clods of mud are scrapped off from its spout. Its sharpness hit the talent of eloquent at his most vulnerable spot. Its intoxication is not removed from his heart. I am like that tortured person whose limbs are made handicapped or magic has afflicted his heart**,£ Hearing this Ode Caliph, 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan became so pleased that he exclaimed, "0, Akhtal i do you want to be announced as the best poet of the world?" (Hasan, Dr. Saeed: Development of Arabic Poetry, P. 43), -59- Parazdalc composed two kinds of Ghazalt Classical and obscene. Parazdak did not start each of his ode with the amatoiry prelude. Those very sane poems of the poet are rven more obscene than the 'Utaarite Ghazal. In them he depicted his adulterous adventures as Imxni'al Kays had done. Once he went to see his beloved, the wife of a commander, with the help of a rope. He has described this adventure of love in a poem. In the concluding portion of the poem he shamelessly has said: Although Parazdak*s family, had accepted Islam, many old pre-Islamic customs and traditions were being practised in the poet's family. It is because of this fact that Pre-Islamic touches in the style of the (3)azal of Parazdak are found and he was known as rough, dissolute, unprincipled and the follower of Pre-Islamic morals. Ijike his pagan predecessors he composed lengthy odes with the erotic prelude and gave a boastful description of the generosity and bravery of his family. The traditional Ghazal was, in its outlines, the same as the Pre-Islamic amatory preludet a lamentation on 97, Hakkl, Dr, Mamdul?: Al-Parazdal^:, P, 72; olwan, P, 72, ''she passed her night like the swinging cradle of a girl while her husband was making noise in sleep due to overeating, •* -60- a lost beloved and her deserted abode, and a vanishing youth. The bewailing on youth became the common subject in all the classical <2t)a2al of the Umayyad Period. The Pagan poets welcomed the old age as it was considered a symbol of wisdom but the Umayyad Poets hated and satirised it bitterly. Farazdak opend one of his eulogies composed in praise of 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan, satirising hoarinesst 98 JarTr expressed his hatred for greyness of hair in the following manner I • * • J- ^* ^ The heroines of the traditional Qbazal were neither libertine like their contemporary 'umarite mistresses nor were they strict like the town dwelling Muslim ladies. They were almost bedouins who made a compromise between paganism and Islam, They never considered it immoral to talk to young male fellows and to listen to their love- 98. Diwan, Vol. 1, P. 23, "she would laugh if she sees the greyness of hair spread all over me as if she has seen some wondrous thing._ She is from the ladies of Ban! Layth whose neighboresses are troubled by looking at their beauty and goodness i.e. they become jealous of them because of their beauty and goodness". 99. ofwan, P. 56j Al-Dahan, Samli Al-Ghazal, Vol. I, P. 97, "0, my heart \ What has happened to you that you are pinching me while the greyness of hair, i.e. old age has over-whelmed my youth**. -61- poetry. Like their pagan predecessors the traditional Ghazal poets of the Umayyad period drew pictures of their bedouin ristresses* physical beauty. These beloveds liked to talk to their lovers in the absence of the tribe's jealous and ireproaching men, Dhu'l-Rurnmah has said: Jarir has presented a good specimen of his mistress's physical beauty in the Pagan style. In spite of pagan influence these traditional (^jazal-poets had a high sense of morality. They were well aware of the demaircation between love and the forbidden thxngs. Even the reproacher, and slanderers failed to find any objectionable moment in their love affairs. JarTr has saidt 100. Diwan, P, 61, "When the jealous ones were away from them (i.e. the ladies) and the earth beoame bright for us on that short but blessed day. They became jubiliant and joyful as if the first showers of the smiling clouds had made them so", 101. Dlwan, P. 83, "When she smiles the setting of her teeth appears (shining) as if she is the raining cloud which is dripping and shining with lightning." -62- ^ ?. They portrayed their beloved as chaste and religious minded. They sought excuse even for their unkindness by saying that their mistresses preferred reserved attitude towards them rather than to commit a sin. Dhul-Rummah has said: 103 « \ Jarir has praised his wife in an elegy about herj 104 The influence of Islam on the traditional Ghazal can be traced in the description of the mistresses and their virtues. The traditional Ghazal poets, like their 'Udhrite contemporaries had faith in fatalism. They took falling and weeping in love as acts destined by God, DhiJl Rummah has said about his beloved: 102. Diwan, PP. 84-85, "One day when I came to her for a visit, the jeleous ones from the tribe turned pale, I tried to preserve my love because of the fear that the watchers, open and secret enemies might lay obstacles for it", 103. ofwan, P,13, "That girl with whom I have become related accidently (that is to say) a noble Muslim has been enchanted, is not an adulterous in the house of her neighbour and she is never reproached face to face or in absence", 104. Diwan, PP, 154-155, "She brought honour to an unimportant person till she was separated from him (by death) and she never said bad words about her husband, not even for the scarecity of food. She was noble to her husband and her neighbours were never frightened of Umroe Hazrah^s disasters". -63- Jarlr said to his mistress about his complaint of suffering to God t The traditional Ghazal poets of this epoch had not accepted the effect of the two new trends in Gljazal the •Utnarlte and the 'Udhrite — which were developing simul taneously in Hijaz. These two new types of Ghazals were popular among the people of their own groups. But the traditional Ghazal, though it lacked originality, was highly appreciated and lauded by all the Arab people and leaders as well as the caliphs and governors. These traditional Ghazal-poets paid frequent visits to Makkah and Madinah whose influence can be traced in their love poems. For example, in some poems of JaiTr and Dhul- Ruramah the influence of the 'Udhrite love can be traced. Jarlr said to his belovedj 105. Diwan, P.34, "Allah has said to your both eyes* Do to the intelligent men what the wine does. So they did as God ordered. Her smile is like a flash of lightning(in her anile her teeth become distinguished) as if they are (line of) daisy buds the colour of which the rain drops have made clear. •• 106, Dlwan, P. 490, "I wish that you had known that for our sake you have given shelter to a person whom I have met or you had heard my complaint to the Master of the Throne, -64- 107 Y^}l})sJ^c:>^yc^(j^'J ^^U;\iL^ci\5^ phul-Rummah has said to his beloved: 108 -• The •Umarite influence can be discerned in Farazdak's poetry. He has presented his adulterous love adventure in the style of Imru'al-Kays and 'lAnar b. Abl Rabl'ah. Such an obscene adventure caused his expulsion from Madlnah, The traditional ^azal of ideas and imagery did not make a significant contribution because it neither accepted Islamic influences nor those of the two new tendencies of poetry. We can find few innovations in ideas and imagery as both of them had been cultivated in accordance with the traditional concepts. Dhul Rummah has saidj 110 At another place he imagined his time passed with his mistress to be as pleasant as the shadow of a vineyard. like a person who is surrounded by the waves and when his_ship moves to and fro and he calls for (the help of) Allah secretary and openly," 107. Dlwan, P, 125, "Will you cure the heart which loves you to such a limit which 'Urvah hag not touched in love for 'Afra'". 108. Dlwan, P. 20, "There is love which is exterminated by separation but to me your love always fresh and evergrowing in strength;* 109. HaHkl/ Dr. Maradul>j Al-Para2da)j:, PP. 37, 70-72. 110. Dlwan, P.35, "When she departed with the Camels, (i.e. cravan) she was like a garden_of date palm of Cadesia or of Hajr (a market at Yamamah)". -65- Farazdak, in one of his poems, has compared his damsel with a palm tree and has said that he was not allowed, however, to enjoy its shadow or its fruit: The great pre-Islamic poets had given a brief account of their beloved's speech but the Uhiayyad traditional poets dealt with it in more detail, Dhu* 1 Rummah has saidi > r„ In the same way the great pagan poet, Imru'al- Kays has described the effect of his beloved's eyes on his heart in only one verse: The same idea has been detailed by Jarlr in the following verses: 111. Diwan, Vol. II, P. 230, "You are nothing but a date palm except that I find its shadow and its body for others than rae", 112. Al-Nuwayrl» Nihayat al-Arab, Vol. II, P. 70, "When we meet, embroidered (i.e. good) conversation like embroidered shawls goes on between us. This conversation cures and soothes from the love- sickness stationed in my heart like the fall of rain on drought hitted land." 113. Diwan, P. 38; Ibn Kutaybah: Al-shl'r Wal-Shu'ara', Vol. I, P. 56, "Your eyes streamed with tears only to pierce the interior of my bruised heart with their twin shafts." -66- AghanI narrates that the first verse is the "^ 115 best specimen of Ghazal among the Arabs. The later scholars like al-Marzubani and al-Sayutl, had also accepted the views of AghanI, Al-Marzubani narrates: Jarir is excellent in composing - 116 Nasib. On the basis of one or two verses a poet can not be taken as the best poet, Jarir himself had admitted that he was not very successful in Gbjazal* I have never indulged in love-affairs. If I had done so/ I would have said such a NasIb listening to which the old women would have wept for their lost youthfulness. But it is fact that he WaS the best composer of NasIb among his contemporary traditional love- poets, not the best poet of all the contemporary love poets. Though his Nasib lacked the depth of sentiments and the subtlety of the feelings, yet, it was full of love, youth and free from indecency and obscenity, 114, Sultin, Dr, Jamil: Jafir, P, 98; Dlwan, P, 49 2, "The eyes which are large and black have slain us but they do not call us to life again. They can throw on the ground even the wise man who can not move (i.e, they can paralyse the intelligent man) though they are weakest among the creatures of Allah", 115, Abu'l-Faraj Al-I§fahanl: Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. VIII, P, 40/ Al-Sayu-^I: Sharah Shawahid al-T5uqhannI, Vo, I, P. 47. 116, Al-Marzubanlj Al-Mawa^gijah, P. 124, 117, Al-BustanI, Fuwad Afram: Jarir (Ahajl wa Mafakjjir), P. 580, -67- having easy style. To some extent Akhtal tried to imitate him but did not reach to Jarir in composing Nasib, Thus the essential beauty of the traditional Ghazal, namely the depth of feelings and subtlety of the sentiments has faded away due to the lack of love mostly in the personal lives of these poets. So the Gt^azal of these three poets — Jarlr, Akhtal and Farazdak — was merely an amatory prelude in accordance with the Pre- Islamic Style, Some of these poets, like Farazdak and Dhu»1-Rummah, used uncommon words and terms in their poetry to show their absolute control over the language. It lacked in refinement, humour and melodious style. By going through the poetry composed by the tra ditional poets we find that the traditional Ghazal was not as developed as 'Udhrite and 'Umarite Ghazal was. The first reason was that those who had composed these poems were all court poets engaged by the Caliphs and governors. They took Ghazal only as their traditional heritage and as it was liked by their patrons and people of 'Irak and Syria, In spite of some weaknesses the traditional Ghazal appealed to the Arab people and moved their souls. We can say that with some modification it returned once again to crown the poems of the great poets of the age, Jurji Zaydan has opinedt -68- The poets have developed a belief among them selves that poetry Is not good if it does not posses the sentiments of the hearts. So the urban poets staft their poems with the desc ription of the beloved/ meetings and separations as the Bedouins used to start with the description of the departure and transfer and of the encamp- 118 ment's traces. 118. Zaydan, Jurjli Tarikh Adab al-Lughat al-*Arabiyyah, Vol. I, P. 268. Chapter 3 'UDHRITE GHAZAL -69- In the Utnayyad period, of course, poetry had acquired the position of a literary tradition. By that time the Ghjazal had been separated from the traditional Kasidah. There were two main forms of the Ghazal t the one composed by the true lovers and the other by the licentious poets. The former was cultivated by those who were in love with particular ladies whom they wished to marry. But failing in their intention or aim they took Ghazal as the medixjm of expressing their frustration and sad emotional experiences. Here a discussion will be made of the first type of Ghazal, the latter form of Ghazal will be taken later on. The form of Ghazal which represents true love is known as the 'Udhrite Ghazal. It was composed by pious and God fearing Muslims. They usually were unsuccessful in their love affairs due to the social and traditional as well as religious non-permissiveness. They pacified themselves with the idea that desires which incite evils are not liked by God, It was this opinion which was generally expressed by them in their love poems known as •Udh.rite Ghazals. It was not possible for this type of Ghazal to have flourished before the Umayyad Period; even in the -70- period of Orthodox caliphs In spite of the fact that the people of that period were more God fearing and pious than those of the lAnayyad period. We can say that it was so because in the beginning the Muslims were too busy in safeguarding^ establishing and giving a definite shape to the Islamic state. Hence, they could not spare much time to the aesthetic delicacies and finenesses of poetry. The world of im<3igination was very much direct and practical. It did not have the leisure of tasting the nector by practicing muse with ease. The 'Udhrite Ghazal could have influenced the rearing up a faithful and hard working nation and, simultaneously, influenced the peaceful social life for which they were struggling. Though these two phenomena, at that time, were in oppo sition to each other, yet, they wanted to bridge a comprcHnaise between them. In the early Islamic period the Ummah (Muslims) was busy in building up its moral according to the teaching of -^slam as well as in strengthening, governing, and expanding the Islamic state. They did not have time for any type of social entertainment. These two activities continued side by side only till the Umayyad period. It was the Umayyad period when the seedling of the 'Udhrite Ghazal was sowed to grow and develop with the full blossom so as to gain a reputation in the history of Arabic literature. -71- Dus to this reason we trace the origin of 'Udjirite Gjiazal in the period of Umayyacas and not in the period of orthodox caliphs who had been solely responsible for the shaping and establishing of the Islamic State. It is the Umayyad period when the nurturing of such people was completed, who combined the Islamic instructions with its (i.e. of 'Ucjhrite Ghazal) pathos, and its other basic outlines. It is true that even in the Umayyad period many conquests took place which stretched the boundaries of Islamic rule. They were also busy in the administration and manage ment of the newly conquered territories and there were many political problems to be solved. Even in such a condition we hear the melodious songs of the 'Udhrite Poets, Generally in those days the Ghazal was considered to be a blasphemy due to amorous sentiments which were depicted through its verses. Contrary to this, Islam brought a change in the mode of thinking of the people and diverted all their energies to the sole cause of the new faith. While this type of thinking had firmly imbedded in their hearts, it was not possible for them to return to such (religiously) objection able things. Yet some people realised sentiments influencing their life. So they became inclined to their groanings and anguishes and sometimes to their cheerful aspects. It was not the Case only with the group life of the people but with the individuals also. -72- We can say that the origin of the 'U^rlte Ghazal was not the outcome of any personally or historically limi ted incident. It was the expression of a compound type of sentiments and socio-religious bindings which was fully developed in the Umayyad period. Dr. ShawkT Qayf is of the opinion: The Ghazal of the poets of Najd was a prudential form of Arabic Ghazal in which they have propagated nobility, purity, chastity, and sanctity. The literary scholars and historians have attributed it to Banu 'Udljrah which has produced a majority of the poets who have composed this type of Ghazal. They call it the 'Udhrite Ghazal. It is a form of the Ghazal to which IslSn has provided elegance and, accordingly, it has represented the fair sex with a sense of glorified modesty and prudence. It is due to the fact that Islam has made all the internal and external sins 119 unlawful, 119. Dayf, Dr. Shaw]jJi Tarikh al-Adab al-'Arabi, Vol, II, P. 150. -73- It is accepted by all the men of letters that the 'Udhrite Poets drew their name from Banu 'Udhrgh which was a tribe noted for both, its brave warriors and passio nate lovers. It was a tribe which used to live a nomadic life. History stands witness to its bravery and dignified nobility even in the Pre-Islamic period. It has produced great warriors, leaders and poets as well as possionate lovers. During the Umayyad period this tribe gained glorious fame for passionate lovers. All of these lovers, except a few, died through lovesickness or became insane in despair. Every book of Arabic literature is full of their moving stories. Ibn Kutaybah has narrated some of these stories in his 'Uyunal-Akhbar. He has said: A tribesman was asked : To which tribe do you belong? He replied: To a tribe when they love they die, A maid servant, who heard him, said: By G!od of 1 20 Ka'bah they are 'Udhrites 7 Al-Nuwayri in his encyclopedic work, Nihayat al- Arab, has narrated some mournful stories of 'Udhrite lovers. He has said: The persons who have been killed by love are 121 many. They can not be enlisted. 120. Al-Dinawarl: 'Uyun al-Al^hbar, Vol. IV, P, 131. 121. Al-Nuwayri: Nihayat al-Arab, Vol.11, P, 184. -74- The most outstanding figure among the earlier - 122 ' U^rite martyrs of love was ' Urwah b. Hizam, He was perhaps the greatest 'Udhrite lover but not the greatest 'Udhrite poet. Jamil b. Ma'mar is renowned as Imam al- —" - - 123 MuhibbinTher or e 2Ja'eaweren soal-Ghaza many 'Udhritl al-Badawie love. poets that, as a matter of fact, all of them were not the descendants of Banu'Udhrah. They identified themselves like that because they sang on the same 'Udhrite love stings during the Umayyad period. 124 The most popular love lyrists of all these poets were Majnun-Layla, Kuthayyir-'Azzah, Ibn al- Dumaynah, Kays ibn al-DharIh» All of them spent a large part of their poetical life either in Makkah and Madlnah or outside the cities of Hijaz, either in the countryside or in the desert towns. The famous writer, al-Jaljiz, seems to be reflecting on one aspect of the * Udhrite poetic tradition when he explains the psychology of love that killsj 122. Al-zirikll : Al-A»lam, Vol. V, P. 17; Some are of_the opinion that he died in the reign of caliph ' Uthman, some say that he died in the period of Caliph Mu'awiyah, 123. Husayn, Dr. Taha: Hadlth al-Arbi'a', Vol, I, P, 293; Abu'l-Faraj al-Isfahani: Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. VIII, P.97. 124. Husayn, Dr. Taha: Hadith al-Arbi'a', Vol. I, P, 174. -75-. Hubb (i.e. love) is the root of Hawa (i.e. passion) and Hawa is from what 'Ishk (i.e. passionate love) branches off. 'Ishk is that which causes a man to wander about aimlessly or to die heartsick upon his bed. That has its beginning in bringing about injury to his mainly sense of honour and in his being filled with a feeling of sub- missiveness to those who surround his beloved. The fashion for the composition of poetry inspired by a sentimental and romantic kind of love seemed to have passed its height earlier and if there was some ground for its assertion in the Umayyad Period it was based on the preceding love theme. The 'Udhrite poets "had expressed in their verses the theory of strenuous Platonic Love" as it had emerged from two main elements, viz, the religious feelings and the emotional feelings, 'Udhrite Ghazal, being the main exponent of both of these elements/ is a kind of poetical wealth left as a legacy for us by the people whose love was conditioned by faith and chastity because Islam has never kindled the fire of such love which incul cates sin in human heart or mind as chastity and morality 125. Al-Sandubi, Hasani Rasa'il al-Jahiz, P. 266, 126, Husayn, Dr, Tahai Hadith al-Arbi'a', Vol,I, P. 187. -76- are the main teachings of Islam. Thus, the most out standing characteristics of the 'Ucjhrite love, or in other words, the themes of the 'Udhrite Ghazal, were based on intensity, despair, hope, chastity, and faith fulness. All these subjects were very much stressed in the love stories and poems of the 'Udhrite poets. Other aspects which we find in them are the hximility of the lover and cruelty of the beloved. They, like their Pagan prede cessors, dangled between hope and despair. They passed their life in pursuit of the fair sex without knowing what its result would be and used to recite their poems before them without gaining anything except having a glance of them or a short conversation with them whether their fair ladies were conjugally bonded with others or they were living far away from them, Thu's, the 'U^rite love was representing a unique ideal which marked the emotional ferment which was some-what an artistic revolution of the pious circles of Hijaz and its surroundings during the Uknayyad period. It was a type of compromise between their human instincts and their puritanical religion. They attached to it passionate feelings, but regarded chastity as its highest quality. Thus chastity was a new factor in love. It was difficult to understand for the people how a fiery passion -77- could be combined with chastity. But this difficulty had been overcome by the 'Udhrite. lovers of which they boasted in their poems. Jamil b. Ma'mar was reported to have said on his death-bed: 127 May Muhananad not be my saviour (in the other world) if my hand ever touched Buthaynah . for a suspicious thing. All 1 used to do is to rest her hand on my heart in order to have ^4 ^128 some relief. Due to the fact that they considered chastity to be the highest quality in love, the 'UtJiirite lovers died of lovesickness as the preservance of chastity was not possible 127, Peace be upon him, 128, Kinany, A,Kh,: Development of_Gha2al, P, 256; Abu-Sahal al-si'idl said J I went to Jamil (the lover of Buthaynah) and the signs of death were on his face. He asked met 0, Abu Sahal! Do you hope paradise for a person who has neither shed the blood nor has drunk wine nor has comni- tted vile deeds? I saidj Yes. By Allah I Who is that ? He saidi Myself. When I mentioned Buthaynah to him he saidi Today is my last day in this world and my first day of the Hereafter. May Muljammad, (peace be upon him) not be my premptor in the other world if I^ Staje=bad talked suspicious things, (Bayham, Muhammad^ 5?*^i^^^ atu ' fi Hacjarati 1-' Arab, P. 38), Aec No -78- without suffering. Due to this reason we get ccmplaints, ardour and fervour of emotions, fidelity and separation along with modesty, piety and faith in their Ghazal. They had to suffer tremendous pangs of expulsion, humiliation and threats at the hands of their damsels* parents or the public agents whenever they tried to visit their loved ones. The sufferings of these ill-fated lovers found an outlet through the mediiin of Ghazal because they did not have any other channel of expression. These emotional sufferings expressed in the 'Udhrite Ghazal were the personal expe riences of the poets, ICays b, Mulawweh, famous as Majnun- Layla, has saidj 'The 'Udhrite poets proclaimed that love was their fate decreed by God, the Almighty. They declared by using the fatalistic argument that they could not help loving their beloveds as Jamil has saidx 'f *• ^ 129. Diwgn, P. 28; Ibn Abl Sulayman Dawud al-I^fahanii Kitab al-Zahrah, P, 329; "They saidj If you like you may console yourself by forgetting her. I said to them; I do not want to do so". 13 0. Dlwan, P. 23, "One of my close relatives who liked me for adopting the right path reproached me about her, I told_himtWhat you notice in me about her, is decreed by Allah and who can avert what is decreed by Allah? Whether her love is right or wrong, it is not with my own i nt enti on." -79- Thus they took their love as something heavenly which required great moral power to bear sufferings caused by lovesickness. We can conclude that the 'Udhrites were the poets who believed in Fatalism which inculcated in their minds the idea that they must suffer and must be submissive to their fate in order to be rewarded in the life Hereafter. This ascetic attitude of the 'Udhrlte lovers towards life made them to renounce all the joys of this world as well as the sensual pleasure of love. It developed in them a comp romise between love and religion. It fortified the senti ments of love with the virtue of chastity. They did not want to get rid of their pain, because pain is the only genuine criterion of true love, so they repudiated the joys of life for the sake of their hopeless passion. Thus, they took love more seriously than their predecessors and considered it to be a fateful plague, Abu Muhammad Ja'far b, Ahmad al-Sarraj narrates from Muhammad b, Ja'far b-2ubayr that once the following conversation took place between •Urwah b, Zubayr and a man from Banu-'U(|hrah which Muhammad b. Ja'far himself heard. The 'Udhrite told him that he had left in the tribe thirty persons suffering from tuber- 131 culosis which was the result of their passionate love. 131,Al-Sarraj/ gheikh Abu Muhammad Ja'far b. Ahmad b, al- Husaynj Masari*'al-'U;^sJiak, Vol. I, P. 42, -80- It is narrated by Jamil b. Ma'mar al-'UgQ}ri that once he went to 'Abd al-Malik b, Marwan who said to him: Or Jamil I tell me something about Banu 'Udtjrah as I have come to know that they are people of literature and Ghazal, Jamil repliedr Yes, O, the caliph of the faithful,' Then he proceeded to tell him one of the most pathetic incident, which he himself had faced. The narration was that once they (i.e. Jamil and his people) went in search of a pasture which they found at a far-off place and there they pitched their tents, Jamil alone went for a stroll and forgot his way back to the tent till it became dark. All of a sudden he saw a door. He entered it and found a shepherd beneath a mountain. He was sheltering his cattle in a cave of the mountain. They both saluted each other and then the shephered asked Jamil : Have you lost your way? Jamil admitted it and asked the former to guide him. The shepherd asked him to take rest and wait till the night passed. Jamil stayed with him and was honoured by way of entertainment and feast. He prepared a bed for Jamil and he himself slept on the floor. In the night Jamil heard him weeping and making a complaint to some person. In the morning Jamil sought his permission to depart. The shepherd said: The hospitality is for three days,So Jamil continued -81- to stay with him and asked his name, his descent and his affairs. The shepherd told him that he was from the noble men of Banu 'Udhrah. On Jamil's enquiry as to what had made him to stay at that place, he told that he was in love with his uncle's daughter who too was in love with him. He proposed to her father to marry her but due to his poverty her father refused and married her with a man from Banu - Kalab. That person went away with her from her abode and settled with her at the place where he was now living. He disguised himself and became a shepherd so that she might visit him and he could meet her. He further, told Jamil about his love with her till it became dark. When the time of her arrival approached he was overwhelmed with emotions and waited for her. When a long period passed and she did not come as usual he became restless and said to Jamil: 0, my brother from Banu 'Udhrahi You stay here till I come back. I think something is wrong with my beloved. Then he went away. After a shortwhile he came back. There was something in his hands and he was wailing and sobbing. He told Jamil that his beloved had been killed by a lion while she was coming to visit him and it was her corpse. He put the corpse on the earth and asked him to look after it till he comes back. He went away and did not return for a long while. Jamil lost all hope of his coming -82- back. When at last he did come back^the head of the lion was in his hands. He started making scratches on the teeth of the lion and said to Jamil t 0, my brother from Banu 'Udhrahi very soon you will see me dead before yourself. When I die take care of me and of my beloved; keep both of us in one coffin and dig one grave for us and bury both of us in it and write the following two verses on our grave: You present these cattle to her husband and tell him our story. Afterwards he began to strangulate himself. In the name of Allah, Jamil asked him not to do so. But he refused and continued to strangulate till he fell dead, Jamil narrated that he shrouded both of them together and put them in the same coffin and buried them in one grave on which he inscribed the above two verses, Jamil presented the cattle to the girl's husband and told him their story. By hearing about this tragic incident, the girl's husband became so much grief stricken that JamTl started feeling pity on whimi , 133 13 2, "On the ground we were united in home and country i.e, we both belonged to the same home and the same family, and life was slow moving. But time and vicissitudes of fate severed our love. And now we are again united witliin the coffin", 133, Al-Nuwayrlx Nihayat al-Arab, Vol,II, PP, 195-197, -83- All the 'Udhrite. love poets were in love with their cousin sisters. They failed in their love as their uncles refused them to marry according to their choice as they considered it to be derogatory to marry off their 134 daughters to their lovers. So they uninhibitedly expressed their emotions through poetry and preferred to die love- striken than to live as a deprived and unsuccessful lover. They were of the opinion that the union with the beloved made the love to die down and subsided the passions for her as Jamil has said: The ' Ucihrite poets loved one particular lady and they became famous with the name of that particular lady. They used to take her as their object of love as well as Ghazal. They narrated their affairs with her as well as her qualities and coquetry. They became so famous for all this that many stotries were fabricated with their names. Sometimes it seemed that they were merely imaginary cha racters and had no real existence. But this apprehension 134, Al-Dinawarit 'Uyun al-Akhbar (Kitib al-Nlaa')* Vol.V IV, P. 128, An old lady had saidi . . », . ">V>^ W c) Wj>. (/e>> ^ v<^V ^5 OJ <^> W ^^^ ^ 13 5. Diwan, P, 21, "Passion subsides when we meet and it revives when I am separated from her". -84- is wrong. Somehow it was a great chivalrous moral of the •Udljrite Poets to devote their hearts to some particular lady of their choice. They considered it to be a part of chastity to be faithful to one girl and not to betray her. This is why their love-ethics and poetic values upheld chastity, faithfulness, and self sought sufferings. We find novelty in the imagination and ideas of the •Udhrite poets as they have personified love which would survive death and create hope of meeting their beloveds in the life after death. It was due to the introspection or self observation introduced by Islam into the individual life of the Arabs, So the poets became familiar with the practice of talking to their hearts and of discussing things with them. Whenever they thought to bring an end to their sufferings of love by snaping their relations with their beloveds, they found their hearts defending the damsels. Hence, we find frequent dialogues between the poets and their hearts, depicted in the 'Udhrite Qhazals. Majnun Bani 'Amir has said: 13 6. Diwan, p. H, "I requested ray heart for consolation but it said to me: "from now onwards be ready for the anguishes of love and do not be weary of patience". -85. This personification of love by the 'Udhrite Poets was also due to the factors of the real existence of spiritual and moral beliefs of the Muslims and the ideas of duality of eternal soul and perishable body. It had deve loped in their minds the notion of time due to which they thought that their love would survive their death. 'Urwah b. Hizam was waiting for the Day of Judgement because he was told that he would then meet his beloved: 137 Kays b. Dharih has saidi The personification of love was a literary device used by the 'Udhrite poets in their love poems. The reli gion of Islam had its influence on all the aspects of 'Udhrite love, namely chastity, faithfulness, personifi cation of love, despair, and the conception of an eternal passion. Chastity and faithfulness helped in producing such a magnificant G^jazal that it moved and captivated the hearts while the despair made it pathetic. The people of Hijaz and 13 7. Ibn Abl sulayman Dawud al-lsfahanl» Kitab al-Zahrah, p. 283, "Verily I desire for the Day of Judgement as it is told that I and 'Arfa' would meet on that day." 138. Al-Dinawarij_'Uyun al-Akbbar, Vol. IV, 145; Karam al Bustanij I^utuf al-AgJianI7 No.9, Kays b. QJbarlh, n.32, "My love wiil survive all the happenings and will visit us in the darkness of the grave". -86- its surrounding desert were living a life of despair like their contemporary inhabitants of Makkah and Madlnah who did not possess so much wealth that they could enjoy life by means of worldly pleasures. They were much influenced by Islam, So the concept of chastity and piety had occupied a high place in their hearts and they had given up fighting and such other means of entertainment which were prevalent in the pre-Islamic period and which were not appreciated by Islam. So they confined themselves to the poems full of agony alongwith chastity and piety. Overwhelmed with the anguishes of pain they used to compare their love with a piece of hot coal, unextinguishable blazing flame and sand grouse caught in snare. Tawbah b. al-yimyar has said about his heart as being entangled with desperate love: Majnun Ban! 'Amir described his suffering-heart as being grasped callously in the clutches of a wild bird whenever the name of his beloved, Layla, was mentioned before him: 139. Ibn Abi Sulayman Dawud al-I§fahani: Kitab al-Zahrah, p. 160; This verse has been attributed in al-Ag_hanI to Majnun Ban! 'Amir, Vol. II, P. 41; and it is also found in the Diwan of Majnun Layla, P. 82, "My heart in her love is like a sand grouse hurt by a trap, so it passes its night tugging with it, while its wings are dangled," -87- 140. j-unil b. Ma'mar has defined love in this manner: 141 Kays b, Dharih has talked about love thust The 'Udhrite poets adopted all these concrete images only to depict their feelings as it is very difficult for a lover to paint his inner world with a poetical lan guage. This is possible only for a person who has under gone deep and painful anguishes of love and emotion. According to Kinanyx 140, Abu'l-Paraj al-I§fahani: Kitab al-Aqhinl, Vol. II, p_, 68; This verse is given with a slight change in the DiwSn p. 73: It reads: \;:c>^ "The 'Udhrite poets were amazed by the irresis tible power of passion". They were possessed by it. Most of them, perhaps all, died of lovesickness and in despair. When Majnun bani 'ATiir lost his beloved, he found this vast world to be as narrow as a ringlets The 'Udhrite poets were overwhelmed by their love. They never cared for their individuality, independence, even for their life in the matter of passion for their beloved. Jamil b, Ma'mar has said: At another place he has expressed his desire thus: The passion of the 'Udhrite lovers was so powerful that no one except Allah could help them to bear it. So they turned towards God and requested Him to help them in their 143. Kinany, A. Kh.: Development of Ghazal, p. 266. 144. Abu'l-Paraj al-I^fahanTi Kitab al-AghanI, Vol.11, p. 68; Diwan, p. 73, "As if the vast space of the land is like a circle of the ring for me which can not be expanded in length and breadth". 145. Diwan, p. 24, "I have given up every wish from this world except her love. So I do not seek the world or any thing else". 146. Ibid, p, 69, "I loved life so that her life may be increased in return of my life". -89- affalrs. They prayed Him to Inculcate love for them in their beloveds. This is possible only for Him because He is the Almighty. He alone can do what is impossible. They complained about their agony and sufferings to Him for nothing but to gain His mercy. Jamil has saids Kays b. Dharih was of the opinion that the Orphan's complaint to Allah is more pathetic and effective. So he compared his complaint regarding his love affairs with that of the orphan's. He has said: By pondering on this verse one can imagine the hidden depth of the lover's agony as it can be compared only to that of a child who would have neither of the parents. This desperate attitude of the 'Udhrite lovers was a new thing in the Arabic Ghazal. It could not be traced in the poetry of the pre-Islamic love poets because they were pleasure-seekers. 147. Ibid. p. 38, "Beholdi I complain to Allah and not to the people about her love though the complaint of the beloved who inspires awe is necessary". 148. Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahani: Kit^b al-Aqhani, Vol. IX, p. 192; 'Umar Parru)ihj Tirikh al-Adab al-'ArabI, Vol. I, p. 425/ "I complain to Allah of Lubna's loss as an orphan complains to Him of the loss of his parents." -90- It is also very different from the attitude of the 'Umarite love - poets. The 'Udhrites were unselfish and faithful lovers of their virtuous ladies. It led them to conceive love as a fusion of two souls into one and a self-contained unity of the two lovers, Kutijayyir wished that he and his beloved had been created as a couple of Camels so that they could go for grazing alone into the deserts. This type of intimacy between the lover and the beloved,In spite of do minating passion, never transgressed the limits of morality. They were unmindful of everything, even of beauty which was the main cause of their disastrous grief and painful life. We find scanty description of beloved's physical charm in the 'Udhrite Ghazal, And whatever of it we find it is in restricted form and conditioned by religio-moral points of view. The similies used for this purpose were not indecent and repulsive as Kuthayyir had said about his beloved: 149, Karam al-Bustani: Kutuf al-AghanT, No, 13, Kuthayyir 'Azzah p. 170; Al-MarzubanI: Al-Mawashshah, p, 155 ^ "0, 'Azzahi We would have been a couple of camels for a rich person (that we have nothing to do for him but being free) we may have grazed under the open sky without considering the distance". -91- Love was a mystery for the 'Udhrlte lovers and they had tried to discover the secrets of their attachment to their beloveds by putting so many questions in their Ghazals such as: Why was love in his fate? Why did Allah make him to love his beloved so deeply? Why did the victim of love praise his murderer, i.e., beloved? Along with this we discover a sense of "Secrecy" and "favour" in their Ghazal though both the lover and his beloved were perfectly chaste and virtuous. For them the great favour from their honest beloveds was innocent meeting and conversation only. It made them so pleased that they wished their lives to be dragged. They wished to keep these meetings and conversation secret as even this type of meeting and conversation was not permi- siblG by the society then, Jamil b, Ma'mar has saidt Jamil has said that his love was from Allahj 152 y>y^Ji> 150, Al-Bustani Fuwad Afram: Al-Majani al-Hadlthah, Vol.11, p. 202, "Her face pleases the eyes of the beholders as if it is the coin of Heraclius, a Byzantine anperor, which is made of red gold and which proves to be superior when it is weighed. Sometimes it is pure honey and sometimes it is like the poison spread by Spanish flies", 151, Dlwan, p, 16, "I went near her house to visit her secretly till I entered its secret entrance", 152, Ibid, p. 20, "I told her:*You must know that there is an agreement between me and you with the consent of Allah", -9 2- Jamil claimed that his visit to his beloved was never intended by him: Kuthayyir was of the opinion: The 'Udhrite love and Poetry both were known as the love and Poetry of Endurance. There was a great struggle between minds and hearts of the 'Udhrites concerning their love affairs. Mostly the heart was found to be victorious over the mind. Sometimes both were balancing between passion and Chastity because the 'Udhrites had taken love as a religion due to which they used to attach much importance to virtues and holiness in love and sometimes blasphemous character was discussed in their poetry; for example, divine qualities were invested in the beloved as she was imagined to be a sacred and venerable person. Jamil b. Ma'mar went as far as to consider his beloved as the only person, after Allah, capable to bestow happiness on him: 153. Ibid, p. 21, "The ladies, due to their ignorance, under stand that when I visited them I did so intentionally". 154. Al-Bustani Fuwad Afram: Al-MajanI al-Hadlthah, Vol. 11/ p. 201, "We console our hearts by conversation and with it we heal the wounds of our hearts deeply afflicted by the fire of love". -93- At another place Jamil has said: This usage of religious concepts and sacred ter minology seems not to be a conscious effort on their part as most of them were deeply religious people and were much influenced by Islam, So these concepts and terminology might have crept into their poetry unconsciously. Or it may be said that by the use of religious concepts and sacred terminology they might have thought of giving importance to their love and beloved as at that time nothing was so important for a Muslim as his religion. Though they were religious and pious people, yet they became helpless in the matter of love which became a great influence in their lives. Hence, they combined the two most powerful motivations of their lives in their poetry. So to do justice with the 'Udhrites we should not accept it as a blasphemy. It was the climax of love that Majnun instead. 155. Diwan, P, 70, "After Allah you are the person who can make my life either happy or miserable if you so desire", 156, Ibid, P, 21, "They said; 0, Jamil i take part in Jihid, (I say) which JihSd other than her love I must intend? Every conversation with then i,e, the women is a bliss and their every victim is a martyr". -94- of turning his face towards the Ka'bah for prayer turned it towards his beloved's abode< The famous poet Ibn al-IXimaynah did not heaitate to ask his friends passing by his beloved's abode to throw a few stones at it as the pilgrims do at the satans at Mina, i.e., to say the poet has attributed to his beloved's abode the sanctity of Holy Mina along with the feelings that the bad people (like Satans) should not interfere in renternberlng his beloveds If we go through the olwans of the 'Udhrite poets we can trace so many verses with the sacred termi nologies and religious conception.Jamil b. Ma*mar was though aware of the punishment In the life Hereafter, yet he felt himself helpless to weep In his beloved's memory even in his prayers to Allah and spoiled his worships 157. Dlwan, p. 91; Ibn Abl Sula^man Dawud al-Isfahanlt Kltab al-2^hrah p. 28j Abu'l-FaraJ al-IsfahixiTi Kltab al-AqhanT vol, II, p. 56, "Lo and behold i When I stood for_prayer I turned my face towards her though my Mu^alla was behind me". 158. Diwan, p. 177; Ibn Abi sulayman Dawud al-I^fahax^t Kitab al-Zahrah, p. 268, In this book there IS^UA^J/'^" in place of " l^v/^"."They took a midday nap In ** their shadows with us and threw stones at them like throwing of pebbles by pilgrims at Satans**. -95- 159 Vx^^L^^l^J^j^^cJ V^s^W)yci cifUcp\ Majnun ban! 'Aoolr was so absorbed in the passion for his beloved that he became unaware of ntmiber of Rakats of prayers though he did not forget to pray. It shows the influence of religion on these poets as well as the impact of love I J, The adaptation of religious texros and ideas in expressing their love the 'Udhrites desired to bestow respectability on love in the Muslim society as it was looked down upon by the jceligious circles of the Muslims who accepted it only in spiritual form. The »Udhr±tes came to its rescue by elevating it with a high esteem through their attempts to blend it with religious allu sions and images. They were proud of their love and very devoted to it and they put great stress on chastity and morality. Only because of this reason the 'Udl^rites preferred separation to the meeting. Whenever they met they were frightened of being watched and reproached 159. I^wan, p. 62, "Whenever I pray I weep in my prayer remembering her. There is punishment for me for what is written by the two angels." 160. Ibn abl^Sulayman Dawud al-I^fahanTt Kitab al-Zahrah, p. 28# "l pray but when I remember her I fail to comprehend whether X have prayed two or eight rakats in the forenoon prayer". -96- though they were aware of the morals in those meetings. JamTl has saldt 161 The 'Udhrite love was to be presumed to reach the divine and become spiritual. The tendency of the •Udhrite love was similar to the tendency of Islam. For example, we could refer to the singleness of God as the model for having one single beloved amongst the 'Udhrite This monogamy in love affairs can not be traced either in their contemporairy 'Unarites or in their pi^-Islamic predecessors. The 'UdJirites , unlike their pre-Islamic prede cessors did not have any memorable past as the starting point of their poems* They had only their present which was full of tears, pains, grief and Yearning, They made it the base of their poetry and developed it on its relevant subjects, Wd find three main topics of their l6l. Dlwan, pp. 48-49, "Beholdl I never meet Buthaynah but I am always afraid of the world or on my camel's back. Though I have never seen a couple with higher morals than my camel and I", -97- poetry, viz, (1) the description of their own weeping and sufferings; (2) the portrayal of their unattainable beloveds^ and^(3) their wishes and hopes for the future, perhaps as a means of alleviating their present grief and sufferings. Regarding the poets' weeping and suffering, we find the following descriptions first the lover used to pass his time in weeping. Kuthayyir did not know weeping before his love to O^zzah, his belovedt . Jamil has described his weeping in this manners Abu Mushir considered weeping to be the main cause of his deteriorating healths 162. Abu«l-Paraj al-I^fahanTs Kitab al-Aghanl, vol.IX, p.29, "Before (meeting)'Azzah I did not know what weeping was nor the heart's pain till she turned her back (from me).* 163. olwan, p* 22; Karam al-Bustanls Kutuf al-AghanT, No.13, Jamil Butl)aynah, p,38, "I an moved to tears when the riders depart, remembering about you that soon (these) singing riders will greet you," 164. Abu»l-Paraj al-I^fahanls Kitab al-Aghanl, vol.XI, p.159, ••Do you not have a look at my physical chauige though weeping is not leaving me? i.e. I am continuously weeping due to which I have become physically weak*". -98- SecondlYt the poet used to describe his sufferings in the form of intensely burning passion. Ibn al-IXimaynah has saidt 165^1 ^y>j>^)Z^^C^j ^0'^y^cJ?^P^Ls'^^\j Kuthayyir has expressed the same idea a bit dlfferentlyj 166 Thirdly, the poet had expressed that he was' passing his life in despair and that his passion had made him absent minded. What a pity for Jamil who had become insane in his love for ButjhaTnah and he vras begging for a bit of a sense of wit from his beloveds Majntin had become so insane in his passion for Layla that he used to forget the direction of Ka'bah in his prayer. At another place he has acceptedt 165, Abu Tamroanij^ Al-9ama8ah,_Vol.III^ p. 1379; Ibn Abi Sulayman Dawud al-lsfahanis Kitab al-Zahrah; p. 42; Diwan p. 42, But it*is with^ little change i.e. in . the second line there is pr^>2i_^v^in place of ^-AJ^J^^ ; ''(0, my belovedi) you are/the c5ne who has perforated my heart with pain and ruptur«»d the wound of the heart while it was (already) wounded**. 166, Al-BustanT, Puwad Afrimt Al-Majanl al-yadlttiah. Vol,II, p. 202, ""She has shot at me the arrow of lancet having big lashes which has given no scratch on my apparent skin but it has penetrated stinging into my heart". 167, Dlwan, p, 20, "If I say to hen Return me some of my senae (which you have seized from me) so that with it I may pass my life, she turns and says: It (i.e. sense) is far off from you*«. -99- Kays b« Dharih has also saldt »• ** ^ •• Finally, the poet had painted his, wretched condition in such a manner that the other people began to take pity on him. Jamil has saidt Regarding the second thane, i.e. the portrayal of their beloveds, it has already been stated that physical description is very rare in the poems of the •Udhrite love poets as they were concerned only with the depiction of their present unhappy life. Whatever is found in them is independant of obscenity. They were interested in portraying the virtues and qualities of their beloveds, 168. Ibn Abi Sulayman Dawud al-IsfahanTt Kitab al-Zahrah, p. 24, "I am distracted from understanding any talk or discussion except what is about you and my occupancy is only your love". 169. Abu'l-Paraj al-I^fahanTj Kitab al-AqhanT, Vol. IX, p. 179, "After seeing her my eyes refuse to see all the other scenes and after talking to her my ears hate to hear any other talk i.e. None of the looks or sounds are fine to me after meeting her", 170. Diwan, p. 70, "After looking my wretched condition due to your love eveiryone will take pity on me may he be my friend or foe. 0, Buthaynah I your love has made me so pitiful that if I ask the pigeons to weep on me they will do so". -100- Kays b, Dharih has painted the beauty of his beloved like thlst ^ .'/ \ r ^ " ^ > p Along with it the poet was entirely devoted to his beloved and could not forget her. Jamil has saidi 172 cA_/-sS& Kuttiayyir was so impassionate to live near his beloved that he even desired to be a sccibby camel which is hated by the people t The poet after describing his grief and pains and longing for her beloved used to say that he had no more patience 171. Abu'l-Faraj al-lsfahanl» Kitab al-Aghanl, Vol. IX, p. 188, "Whenever I try to find her blemish I resemble her to the full moon and the simile of moon for her is enough for you as a blemish. Lubna has been granted superiority over the people as the Laylatul Kadr has been granted superiority over one thousand montfis*'. 172. Oiwan, p, 20, "We must continue in the same condition in which we were when you were near me (i.e. we must continue loving each other) though the favours you granted me were small"* 173. Karamal-BustanTt Kutuf al-Agjianl, No, 13, Kuthayylr •Azzah p. 170, "i wish that^we both were a couple of scabby camels. He who would see us would sayt These are two animals having scabbies which is contagious, even though, the female is beautiful. If we approach a spring its people would shout out to us, and the stones would continuously be hurled at us and we would be hit". -101- and that he was about to die. Only sometimes he was relieved by remanbrance of his beloved, Kays b. DharTti did not like patiences Jamil always made complaints to Allah about his love which had caused him paint ^ Majnun b, 'Anir had expressed the same feelings like this I 174, Abu«l-ParaJ al-Isfahanl: Kitab al-AqjjinT, Vol.IX, p. 196, "0, (my) heart i you told me that you had endured patience on separation from Lubna. But you will have its taste in future. Whether you die heartsick or live ailing, you have caused me such pain which I consider to be beyond your endurance", 175, olwan, p. 34, "To Allah I make complaints of the trouble and moaning sighs which I have received from passion and from the ignitting bums of which I have accustomed. And I have complained of the agonies of love within my heart and of the night full of prolonged grief". 176, Diwan, p. 31, "I am feeling the (love) sickness which has engulfed my body permanently and the prolonged grief, which I have to face day and night". -102- Majnun b. Amir also did not like patience. Once he said addressing his friend Kamkam b, Zaydi Majnun had said at another placet Kays b. Dharlh had said that he could forget his beloved only when he ^e>et«5 death : If it was impossible to meet the beloved, her remembrance or a reference to her in the conversation brought same relief to the poet as the dripping of the rain brings for all the human beings, birds and animals, as is expressed by Majnun bani 'Amiri 177, Ibid. p. 32, "If you weep because of the lightning which springs up the passion, I %d.H come to your help but if you have patience I am not a patient man", 178, Ibid, p. 51, "O^my^friend i I am dead or wounded due to (the love of) Layla which is something necessary for me. So pass by me and leave me alone",; It is given in name of Kays b, Pharlh in Aqhanl, vol, IX, p. 183 but the second line is like ^y-f>C>\^i>:)\^{S^jy^.^ --- 179, Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahanii Kitab al-Aghani, vol,IX,p.199, "The relatives saidt Have patience about her , I replied only when death approaches me", lao, Diwan, p, 42, This -verae la alao given In Kitab al-Zahrah on, p. 33 with a little change in the first line ci>,y>>'^>\ ^jjj^^'^l^^"Whenever Layli is mentioned I become so cheer'ful as a bird has a thrill of joy in the moisture of the rain". -103- Finally, we find in the poetry of the 'Udhxlte poets the expression of excessive love for the beloved. They humbly and totally dedicated their lives to her. In this regard they were of the opinion that they could be pleased even with a little of her favour. They could not love any other woman because they had given her preference over all the others. And in her love they had competed the other 'Udhrite lovers, Jamil b. Ma'raar has saidt 18 At another place he has saidi J' , Majnun sought relief like thist Jamil b. Ma'mar claimed that neither his predecessors nor his descendants could be equal to him in the matter of lovei 181, Dlwan, p. 62, "I see all the lovers except me and my beloved taking pleasure and rejoicing in the world, I and she walk in the country as if we two are the captive hostages of the enemies. I have assured her that I will not love any one except her and she has believed me without any security", 182, Ibid, p. 50, "If there are one thousand (ladies) other than Buthaynah, all of them are jealous(of her) and all of them have decided to murder me", 183, Dlwan, p. 19, "I wish that my eye could see the one who has seen you. Perhaps in this way for a moment I could get rid of my burning thirst (of love)". -104- ^8 tf^V^*e;l4>^V5 LSJ>^/ d^S'^l^^cJc/^^W^ V> But Majnun bad[ *&nlr had proved Jamil's claim as false. So, it created a controversy as to who was superior than the other. After going through his whole life it could be concluded that Majnun was a more devoted lover than JanTl. Majnun had challenged him with a tall claim in these wordsj 185 The poet laid special stress on chastity and virtuousness* Kutbayyir had claimed to be chaste in his love though he was passionately in love with her beloved for a long periods 184. 2f^(^/:JUrwah b, l;Iizam a famous 'U^Jirite lover and love poet (d, 650 A.D.), His father expired in his early childhood. He was brought up in his uncle's house with his cousin sister 'Afra* whom he began to love. He proposed for marriage. The girl's mother asked a large dower ( \y^ ) which was impossible for him to pay. Taking promise from his aunt to wait till he returned he went to his another uncle in Yemen to get the money. On his return he found that his aunt had given his beloved to another man in marriage. He went to visit her at her husband's house. Her husband entertained him with great respect. After staying there for some days he came back heart-broken. He was so distressed in love that he died in the way before reaching his tribe. He was buri^ in the valley of ^ra. (Al-A'lam, vol. V, p. l7); Drwan,p.23, "None even 'Urwah al-'Udhrl who sacrificed himself for love, has suffered like me in love, neither before nor after me,** 185. olwan, p, 44, "By my life J neither Jamil b, Ma'mar nor Muslim could reach the extent of my love for Layla*.; Muslim b. Ma'bad b, Tawwaf al-Walbi famous Unayyad poet, (Al-A'lam, vol. Villi p, 120). -105- Majnun had expressed his surprise that Layla had agreed to permit him to visit her vrhile it was a sin in her eyest The 'Udhrite poets focussed their attention only on their love and their agonies. They were left with very little time to pay attention to other objects/ even to their beloveds' physical portrayal. The pagan poets, on the other hand, were very much interested in depicting their beloveds' physical charms and the objects related to them. The •Utnarite poets who were the contemporaries of the 'Udhrite poets, were more concerned with the description of their love adventures. The 'Udhrites as has been indicated earlier, were chiefly interested in their beloveds' moral and temperamental qualities and virtues, viz^ their sweet conversation, strictness, cruelty, interest in secrecy, coquetry and chastity. Along with it, they took their beloveds to be superior to the other women in each and everything and considered them to be the cause and cure of 186. Karam al>BustanIi Kutuf al-Aqhani, No, 13, Kuthayyir 'Azzah, p, 191, "I told him that the love between us was devoid of indecency and its purity was old", 187, Abu'l-Paraj al-Igfahanit Kitab al-Agj^nl, vol,II, p. 57, "Did Layla agree on that I could visit her while she used to take it as a sin that she paid a visit to me". -106- the lovers* unhappy life full of agony and griefs at the same time. Majnun bani 'Amir has claimed thati Jamil claimed that his beloved Buthaynah was superior to all the other ladies: Majnun described his sufferings as being caused by the cruelty of her beloved* The 'Udbirite poets appreciated secrecy in love not only for themselves but also to be maintained by their beloveds. Jamil has saldt 188. Diwan, p. 42; Ibn Abl Sulayman Dawud al-Isfahan!: KltSb al-Zahrah, p. 33, but there is c^^as^ vO^in place of^^j^Sc^ln the first line, "I cured'^e agonies of Layla's love by loving her more as a drunkard cures the hangover of wine by drinking more". 189. Al-Dahan, Dr. Samli Al-Ohazal, Vol. I, p. 48; Dlwan, p. 27, "In beauty she is a moon while the other ladles are stars. What a difference there is between the stars and the mogn^j^. This verse is also given in Dlwin of Majnun Bani 'Amir, p. 40, 190. Dlwan, p. 15, "They are reproaching K:ays after that the passion has made him thin and weak while he has passed his night gazing at the stars and being perplexed and walling. How surprising it is that the people reproach a youth, who is sick and has lost patience for love*. -107- MaJnun was, though, so impasslonate for his beloved Layla that he was called insane yet he was aware of the value of chastity: The 'Udhrite poets were indulged in cherishing wishes and hopes for the future only as a pretext for alleviating their sufferings and griefs of their present distressed life. This wishful thinking gave a poetical charm to the 'Udhrite Ghazal. Jamil wished to stand near his beloved Buthaynah on the day of Resurrection and hoped that she would be buried beside his grave when she died: 191. Diwan, p. 31, "Remember the last night when she said: Do not disclose our secret when you leave us; and I abstain from doing so even when she turns away? 19 2. Al-Dinawari: 'Uyun al-Akhbar, vol. IV, p. 139, "When I go to bed and cover myself^ sltnnber does not overtake me (in the hope that) perhaps your imagination will unite with that of mine. And I come out of the gathering so that I may have a talk with my heart about you in privacy", 193. Diwan, p. 27, "I seek the protection of Allah from being seperated from Buthaynah in my present life as well as in the life Hereafter. May we become neighbours when I die. What a pleasant death it will be for me when she will be near to my grave". -108- What a strange wish was expressed by Majnuni The 'Udhrite poets were so keen in being near to their beloveds that they wished to be eaten up by the crows which went near to their beloveds and they did not even hesitate to envy the animals as no one interrupts them in their love affairs. Jamil went as far as to wish that he be incapacitated and have Buthaynah as his guidei The 'Udhrite world of vision did not consist of only the wishes and hopes^ rather it was full of real visions , Once Majnun saw some hunters taking away the ghazelle with its feet tied with ropes. He found some resemblance of his beloved to it. He imagined as if his beloved was going with fetters in her feet, so he bought 196 it from the hunters and set it free. 194. Diwan, p. 15, "They say that Layla is sick in 'Iralf. How I wish that I was a proficient physiciani" 195. Dlwan, p. 6l, "Would I have been blind and deaf, so Buthaynah would have guided me and her conversation would not have remained concealed from me". 196. Abu'l- Faraj al-Isfahanii Kitab al-Aghani, vol. II, p. 67. * '* -109- what a lofty flight of Imagination was represented by the same poet in the following verset Imagination turned Janil to the sky in the hope that Buthaynah would be looking at it at the same time* Igg > . r... o . .... J- 'v>^,cW>^>c>>k '^ ^\^ 197. Dlwan, p. 21; In Kitab al-Agj}anI, vol. II, p. 67, the first verse is like the "following and it is followed by two more verses. The second verse also differs from that given in the Dlwini '(yj>^^^^^^><^y>f^^ •*0/ the like of Layla. Do not be frightened because today I am your friend among the wild animals. While I have freed it from its shackles I tell it*.you have been liberated due to Layla, so you should be thankful to her. Your eyes are like her eyes and your neck is like her neck except that your shinbone is thinner than hers. 198. I^wan, p. 56; Abu'l-Faraj al-I^fahanli Kitab al-A^inT, vol. II, p. 57, "If I touch her with my hand her magical tenderness would moisten it and cause green leaves to grow upon its sides'*. 199. Diwan, p. 32, "I turn my eyes to the sky in the hope that perhaps my eyes would meet your eyes when it looks towards it". -110- When Kays b, Dharlh became disappointed of meeting his beloved again, he felt relief in this wayx 100 j^ ^\^t^ \^\ ^^ (^^(i^^ajilUj^^ The main objection made to the 'Udhrite poetry is that the 'Udhrite poets frequently put the new vd.ne in the old bottles because the main theme of Ghazal, i.e. love was not only confined to the 'Udhrite poets but it is equally common among all the poets, whether pagan or Muslims, This is true but we find a great difference between them. Their predecessor pagan poets as well as their conteraporarY •Utnarite poets had materialistic point of view and in their poetry they dealt with the things related to their day-to day life. On the other hand the 'Udhrite poets were mainly interested in reality, religion, hopeful wishes and vision, due to which their poetical productions were the most beautiful, impressive and inspiring. They possessed great power of expression and were so bold that in this matter they did not care even for their life. Due to this reason we can enjoy the 'Udjirite Ghazal with its moving senti mental and fascinating charms. Indeed when I was going 200. Abu'l-Faraj al-I^fahani: Kitab al-Aghani, vol. IX, p, 194, "Verily the breeze keeps us in touch with each other and at the sametime we look at the sun when it sets. And our souls meet in the residential quarter at night (i.e. in the dreams) and we know that in the day time also we take a nap". -Ill- through the poetry of the 'Udhrite love poets I was spell bound by its beautiful Imagery and its style of expression. It presented the whole scene before my eyes in the most vivid form. For example, we can cite Majnun's following verses t The 'Udhrite poets were very decent in the presentation of yearning in love and complaint of anguishing separation in their Ghazals. They were related to the tribe of Banu - 'Udhrah which gained fame for chastity and modesty in their love affairs. The Ghazal of the 'Udhrite poets 202 is also called the Bedouin Ghazal because it flourished among the unsettled people of the Desert, The 'Udhrite attached much importance to dignity and good reputation. They never permitted a poet to describe the physical beauties of a lady in his poems. They were so sincere in their love that they sacrificed each and everything, even their life, for its sake. They expressed in their poems 201, Dlwan, p, 19, "The camp sites which my funeral procession passes by will echo the sayingt 0, the carriers of me l,e, (my) dead body I put (or stop) it here. I stand witness by Allah the Merciful that_he who is a true believer and he who has hope in Allah will pray for me", 202. Ra'If Khuwayrli Al-Ta'rlf fil-Adab al-'Arabt, p, 133. -112- the delicacy of their feelings, their excessive love, pains of depression, sleeplessness and impatience in passion, agonies of separation, afflictions and dejec tions. These are the graceful mouldings to create the literary stuff vd.th the help of fine effective words and refined sentences, and it is free of indecency and lust. Due to these reasons we do not find in any other type of poetry what we find in the 'Udhrite Poetry or Ghazal. Here Keat*s verse truely applies to the 'Udhrite love poetry as in there too the sweetest songs are those which are sung in a pensive mood. Chapter 4 UMARITE GHA2AL -113- The advent of the Umayyad caliphate, with the transfer of the capital from Madlnah to Damascus/ led to the decline of the Bedouin influence. It also widened the range of po'etic themes. Two distinct types of love poetry^ i.e. Ghazal developed in HijSz — the chaste and the licen tious typeS/ named as 'Udhrite and •Umarite Gtjazal, The latter name was derived from the name of the famous love poet 'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah who composed Gtiazal about many women and towered above all licentious and amateurous poets. Among the kind of poetry that came to prominence in the last phase of the seventh century A.D.^the pagan elegiac genre received particular attention and subse quently developed into a special kind of poetry, known as (Jhazal in Arabic literature. The poets of this period, to a large extent freed itself from the grip of the poetic tradition set by their pagan predecessors. The Ghazal was a widely practiced genre, perhaps the most popular of the urban love-poetry, began in the Uhiayyad Period in the twin cities of al-Hijaz Makkah and Madlnah. Al-Hljaz enjoyed great importance even long before the advent of Islam, It used to be a very Important place for two reasons t trade routes to various countries Issued forth from here and intellectuals often used to sit-together to discuss various literary matters. With the advent of the -114- 'Iftnayyad era the style of life of the Arabs changed. They were greatly influenced by Greek and Persian culture. The Umayyad period is known as the period of expansion due to its many conquests. Many foreign intellectuals and singing girls and bards were brought as prisoners along with the wealth. Consequently the two cities of al-Hijaz rose high in status and became rich or affluent. Its people enjoyed such prosperity as their predecessors had never dreamt of. It brought about a great change in the outlook as well as in the life style of the people. The Uraayyad caliphs themselves were pleasure-loving aristocrats. They restric ted the charge of the administration and politics to a particular group of people and the remaining people were free to spend their time as they liked. According to Dr, Saeed Hasant "One section of the people of Makkah and Madlnah devoted themselves to religious studies in mosques, while another section gave itself up to a life of ease and 203 pleasure". 203. Hasan, Dr. saeedt Development of Arabic Poetry, P. 21» -115- The Unayyad Caliphs bestowed wealth upon these luxury loving people so that they might not involve themselves in politics. The twin cities of al-Hijaz Makkah and Madinah at that time were more peaceful than any other cities of the Umayyad empire. It also provided opportunities for leisure and enjoyment. All these circianstances put together helped the pleasure seeking Arabs to cultivate fine arts, especially music. Dr. Shawki Dayf considers the music as the fundamental reason for the development of the Ghazal. 204 The senti ments and emotions of the people refined by their subtle taste changed the whole complexion of the poetry of this era. The poets of this period were not in need of earning their livelihood through poetry. They were free to devote the whole of their energy to composing such love-poetry which could be sung on the musical instnjments. As a result of this a new style of poetry, i.e., Ghazal came into being. It was wholly dedicated to the subject of love and romance. Thus during the Umayyad period the love theme played a prominent part in literature through the Poetry which was known as Ghazal. The second important factor which contributed much to the development of the Gb^zal was the absolute reluc tance of the Umayyad government to do any-thing worth-while 204. Dayf, Dr. §hawkit Tarikh Adab al-'Arabl, Vol. II, p. 347. -116- to build up Muslim morality. Not only the Caliphs but their governors also proved to be autocratic administrators, They were not religious leaders. Moreover no voice of protest was raised by the religious scholars. These religious leaders of al-Hijaz being dissatisfied with the Umayyad rulers, kept themselves secluded in the mosques. They had no hold on public life. Consequently a carefree nroup of young people came into exist?nee. They behaved, in their private life, according to their desires and their slaves provided them with all kinds of recreation and enjoyment like wine and music. The poetry that came up during this period was also to be predominantly romantic in character so that it should fit into their life style and this poetry i.e. Ghazal was sung on musical instniments. Both the 'Ulnarlte and 'Udjirite poets had love as their main concern. The •Umarite poets sacrificed the true love for lighter feelings and for pleasure and the •UdJante poets rejected all types of pleasure for the sake of true love. The pleasure seeking poets were known as 'Uloaarlte poets. In other words we can say that the 'Uhiarite Ghazal was the poetry composed by amateurs who were not satisfied with one woman. They were attracted by every beautiful woman of a respectable family. They tried to mix with and talk to them. They took love "to provide -117- fun or please friends n^^ evoke admiration or relieve the boredom of their lei sural' 205 The most noted and renowned exponent of the 'Ifcnarite Ghazal is 'Ulmar b. Abl Rabl'ah, About these poets Dr. Taha Husayn, a renowned literary critic, has said: It is the Ghazal of Ibahiyyln who can be 207 called Muhakkikin, They sang love songs and also wrote about the practical aspect of love as was understood by the public. The leader of this kind of love-song was 'Urtiar b, Abl Rabi•ah« ,-r. U.20. 8 At another place the same learned scholar has described than more elaborately: These poets dedicated themselves to the sole cause of Ghazal, But they did not search this kind of love in the clouds. Nor did they take absolute chastity as something of great dignity. They were flirts and pleasure seekers and they enjoyed life. They sang out flirtations, 205, Pariq, K,A.» A History of Arabic Literature, p.34. 206. Free thinkers or unrestrained people. 207. Investigator or practical people. 208, Husayn, Dr. Tahaj Hadlth al-Arbi'a', Vol. I, p. 187. -118- expresaed pleasure seeking emotions and composed poems on this subject. But they did not excel in other branches of poetry as they excelled in the Ghazal, 209 These pleasure seekers were brought up in a lavish aristocratic society who failed to resist the temptation of their dissolute surroundings. Certain aristocratic elements renounced an active role and sought solace for their un satisfied ambitions in the persuit of pleasure and the taste for sentimental intrigues. For example Al-Ahwas and Al-'ArjT in the beginning devoted themselves to noble and serious causes but later on being distrusted and disapp ointed by the l*nayyad rulers, sought comfort in diverting their lives to pleasure and perversion. These pleasure seeking poets were town dwellers. They did not have enough opportunities or enjoyments like hunting and riding as their predecessor pagan poets had in their bedoxiin lives. So they had to be contented with the pleasures and enjoyments which a walled city could provide like music, wine, games, women and literary gatherings. The narrative literature collected by Abu'l - Faraj al-I^fahanl helps us to form an idea of what life in this circle of 209. Ibid, vol. I, pp. 174-175. -119- people was like. Women occupied an important place. Abu'l-Faraj al-lsfahani has narrated thus about Harith b. Khalid, governor of Makkah, who was a poet and in love with 'AUshah bint Talhah. Once Harith b, Khalid, then governor of Makkah, went for pilgrimage with the people and in the same year^ 'A^ishah bint Talhah also went for Haj. He was in love with her, .She asked him to delay the prayer till she completed her Tawaf. He ordered the muezzin accordingly. But the other pilgrims did not like this action on the part of the governor. He was deposed and was warned for his action by the Caliph. He said: By Allahi How worth less is his anger when she became pleased. By Allah, if she had not completed her Tawaf till night I would have delayed the prayer till then. 210 The aristocracy produced many poets like al-'ArjI, al-Ahwas and 'Unar b, Abi Rabi'ah who devoted their talents to the celebration of their love-affairs. The HijazT poets were primarily the poets of the desert school. But their surroundings simply brought about a development which 210. Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahanix Kitab al-Agjianl, Vol. Ill, p. 314. -120- set them aside front the mainstream of the bedotiln tradition, yet, often we find them weeping or Invoking the deserted encampment, describing the departure of the migrating group Including their beloveds. We find them walling their sorrows at the beloveds* separation. These elements were also the main themes of the (^aaal or Naslb put as a crown on the head of the pagan ode. For example one of his po«ns *Unar b, Abl Rabl'ah has started In the style of Mu'allakah of Imru'al-^Cays* , He continued to describe the departure of the dwellers of the deserted place and lamented the separation t ^ Al-'ArJl also has Invoked the deserted encampment t The other poem he opened like this* 211. Dlwan, p. 103, "Stop, at the dwelling place i The signs of Its people have been effaced. The wind and the rain have effaced Its traces.* 212. cTwan, p, 103, "The composite of the tribe, which was earlier Inhabited, has become desolate and now gazelles and cattle roam about In It, The vlssltudes of the time have changed it and the changing times bring about great alterations. So, they have shifted their abode from there". The other specimen is in Dlwan, p. 112. 213. riCwan, p. lo, "He (l,e, the reproacher) has brought to my memory the moments and the tent with which my life is connected and so I am unable to sleep (due to the memoirs of the lost love). -121- This type of verses in the Gljazal lead us to accept that the 'ISnarlte poets liked the realism of description. For a love poet the self expression was not possible without sincerity in its reference to life. Their poems seen to be the narration of known circumstances or real events. It is not far from reality when any thing related to forgotten person or thing^comes before the eyes it is remembered again as 'Umar b. Abi Rabi 'ah has saidt It is quite clear that the •Ulnarite Poets of Hijaz loved to note those details which evoked reality. Therefore we can say that the 'Utnarite Ghazal was marked by the expression of sentiments and emotions which were really felt. Dtju* 1 -Runtnah has saidi 216 J, X Al-'Arji described how he has passed his night in separation of his beloved* 214. Diwan, p. 20, "O, the dwelling place from which its people are missing and it has become desolate without its inhabitants" Wa^^ah al-Yemen also has composed the verses like this, Kitab al-AgJ}anr, Vol. VI, PP. 204, 220. 215. Diwan, p. 224, "The houses (in ruins) between the hills of Khaysh and Yasootn reminded me of (my) old passion". 216. Diwan, p. 12, "What has happened to your eyes from which water pours out as if it is flowing from a patch which has opened". -122- Dhu'l-Rummah has described the anguish of the separation like this J •umar b. Abi Rabl'ah has considered his days in separation to be too long to pass* 219 9 ' ^\^w/t^ ^y p 9 'J. . ^ > The 'Uhiarite love poets have painted the scenes in which the participants displayed their attitudes and reactions. Here we present such a scene out of many scenes depicted in 'Ulnar b, Abl Rabl'ah's love poetryt 217. Diwan, p. 11, "I endure the hardship of sleepless nights as if I remain sitting in search of griefs in them". 218. Al-Bustanl, Fuwad Afram: Al-Majanl al-tiadlthah. Vol. II, p. 228; Dlwan, p. 52, "(It seems) As if the Persian spears have penetrated into my heart. Nay# the burning of separation is even more painful". 219. Dlwan, p. 150, "The day in which I do not see you becomes lengthy and the day when you visit me becomes short". -123- In many cases these poets indicated the beloved by a fictitious name as Al-'Arji in his poem addressed his beloved as ••'2;.;>y^Vdj^-22l ^^^ luhiar b. Abi Rabl'ah addressed 'AUgliah bint Talhah as " "KUjiV'dJv/"?^^ We also find in the •Umarite Ghazal the thematic sequences of the obstacles encountered by the poet in seeking his mistress. In his poetic production we often find reference to the difficulties which arise out of the peculiarity of human nature, and to the quarrels and misunderstandings between him and his mistress, 'Umar b, Abi Rabl'ah complaining her has saidj 220. Dlwan, p. 314; Al-Bustanl, Fuwad Afram: Al-MaJanT al-Hadl^ah, pp. 194-195, "I remember (the day) when it is said to her, and my tears are flowing uninterruptedly on my cheeks. "who are you"? She replied, "I an the one whom love has made lean and weak and whom tzlals have made heart-sick. We are the people of Khayf from the people of Mlna. When we murder a person retaliation is not taken from us for the assassinated one". I said, "you are welcomed but our wish is that you tell me your name", she said, "I am Hind", (I said I) "Verily, your people are our neighbours, we and they are one". They told us, verily she has charmed you and what a charm was it! Whenever I asked;"when we will meet"? Hind laughed and said, "After tomorrow", 221. Dlwan, p. 17, "Mistress of the camel-litter", 222. Abu'l-Paraj al-Igfahanli Kitab al-Aghanl, Vol, I, p, 193J "Mistress of the mule". -124- Al-'Arji took weeping in separation from his beloved as J'. the cries of a raven( c—>\v-^ ) t •Urnar b, Abi Rabi'ah refused for what his beloved has accused himi ^ , , ^ 'i. , ^ This type of misunderstanding led to the rupture of relations between the poet and his mistress. 'Umar b. Abi Rabi'ah made complaint of it to his belovedt 226 Though the 'Wnarite poets were licentious and pleasure seeking people, yet they did not compose poems about wine. They, with a few exceptions, were wine lovers but they did not talk about it. One of the reasons for it 223. Al-Bustani, Fuwad Aframj Al-MajinI al-yadIthah,Vol.Il,P.193 ••You have obeyed the backbiting slanderers and the one who obeys the sayings of the slanderers has to be ashamed and repentant *•. 224. olwan, p. 23, '•He shed tears. So his companions reproa ched him when his crow cried with the disturbing separation". 225. Al-BustanI, Fuwad Afram: Al-Majanf al-Haditliah,Vol.II.P.188 Diwan, p. 306, "Layla sent secretly (a message to me in which) she reproached me and she considers me to be an irritated and extremely inconsistent lover. She says I Y®" fail to keep the promise you made with us. And by Allah I am not a defaulter to her. I am always trxie to my promise". 226. Al-Bustanl, Fuwad Afrim: Al-MajanI al-Hadlthah, Vol.11, P. 193, "You have left your lover today without any crime on his part and you have broken the bound of my love for you, so it has come to an end". -125- was that drirJcing wine had been made unlawful by Islam as influence of religion was not diminished completely. These people tried their best to drink wine in concealment as some of them who drank it publically were flogged. Another cause might have been that they were devotees and lovers of beauty. They were so absorbed in beauty that they did not pay attention to any other thing. We find in their Ghazal the allusion to wine in giving simile to beloved's saliva or face, 'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah has saidt Though 'Umar had never drunk, yet he ventured to give its resemblance with the saliva of his mistress. Contrary to this Dhu'l-Rummah has clearly said that his mistress's goodness resembled the goodness of water which when mixed with wine purifies the latter: 228 The other 'Uhiatlte poet, Al-'ArjI, compared his mistress's walk with that of a drunkard» 227, Dlwan, p. 146, "After she goes to sleep the choicest wine seems to flow on her mouth, i.e. her mouth looks beautiful like an over flowing bottle of the choicest wine". 228. Diwan, p, 42, "Her smile suspends the topic of the talk, i,e, what to say of her conversation, even her smile makes people spell bound as the water of clouds, i,e. the pure water of rain, switches off the intensity of wine's toxication when mixed with it". -126- 229 '^)6]^ >1: j^i ^^c^'jfv^c^ic^^ Only this type of usage of word al-Khamar (>^\) or al-sukr we find here and there in the 'mnarite Gfaazal. The 'Utnarite poets were the town dwellers. Most of 230 231 them were the sons of migrants and helpers of the Prophet or they were in strong friendly relations with them. For example, Al-'ArjI, who is called the successor of 'lAnar b, Abi Rabi»ah in Gl}azal, was the great-grandson of the 3rd - 23 2 - - pious caliph 'Utlynan, 'Umar b, Abi Rabi'ah's father was named 'Abdullah by the Prophet himself (peace be upon him) and was appointed goveimor of Janad, a famous city of Yemen by the Prophet and continued in the same position in the - 233 caliphate of the pious caliphs 'Utnar and 'Uthman. . As has already been stated, in the towns of al-Hijiz —— Makkah, Madlnah and Ta'if the art of singing was also developing 229. oTwan, p, 44, "You walk like a weak person who is dragging his apron (and) wine has diminished his wisdom to a great extent", 230. ^]j2f^\ 231. v/W-)^\ 232. Al-Sam'anli Al-Ansab, Vol. IX, p, 271 • ^J^^•J^^.&^\.Xr^" Al-Zubayri, Abu 'Abdullah al-Mus'ab b. 'Abdullaht Kitab Nasab Kuraysh, p, 118; Ibn Hazm: Jamharah Ansab al-'Arab, p.77. 233. olwan 'Uhiar b, Abi Rabl'ah, pp. 4-5; Al-Zubayrli Kitab Nasab Kuraysh, p, 317, -127- side by side of the 'l*narite Gh«zal. The main factor in developing these two arts singing and 'IJnarite Ghazal — was the desperation which had developed among the people of these towns as has been accepted by Taha Husayn alsox —These cities of Arab after the completion of the Muslims' victoiry, after it took active part in the political settlement of the caliphate, after it was shaken badly by Jihads, after the transfer of the capital to Damascus from Madinah and the transfer of the seat for the political opposition to •Irak from Madinah almost were kept away from interfering in the public life. It became exclusively devoted to private life. Thus being distressed its inhabitants felt desperation and grief because earlier it was the cradle of Islam as well as the source of its power. It was the place from where the victorious armies were dispatched, which conquered a large part of the world and eli minated the kingdoms. The caliphate emerged in it. From it the Sultan expanded the Caliphate on the earth. But now its people faced deprivation from everything. For -128- example the capital was transferred to Damascuss and the struggle between poli tical parties to 'Irak. The Syrian caliphs developed a bad opinion about the Arab cities. So they dealt with them with prejudice and harshness Along with this desparation these Arab towns became the seats of excessive wealth and affluences. The sons of the migrants and helpers, in Makkah and Madrnah were the owners of rich fortunes and their hands were full of what they had inhe rited from their forefathers in the form of property which they had acquired as booty in religious wars. They made themselves safe by secluding themselves in their houses. They formed a group of aristocracy. The Caliphs treated them generously in financial matter but otherwise harshly and cruelly. So these people refrained themselves from taking part in politics. When desparation combines with wealth it results in amusement ^ pleasure - seeking and extravagance. The same was the case in Makkah and Madlnah, The youths of noble families became melancholious singers -129- and extravagant in amusements. They tried to overcome the frustration by way of singing out their desperations with which they were confronted In public life, Anong these youths the famous poets like 'Utnar b. Abi Rabl'ah in Makkah and Al-Al?was b. Muhammad in Madlnah emerged and around them the group of singers 23 4 and jesters developed. The people of Makkah and Madlnah were in fact, a group of disappointed or sceptical persons who did not show any interest in the serious activity of the society in which they lived. They sought solution of their problems in merry-making and idleness. They secluded themselves from public life either by leading a hermit's life or by satisfying their sensual appetites. Pleasure-seeking had become a sort of philosophy and a way of life adopted by the 'Utnarite poets. This philosophy was not distinctly expressed by these poets but it may be clearly traced out in their poetic production and we can divide it in three partsi (1) Ideology related to love or pleasure-seeking, (2) Ideology related to religion, (3) The concept of decency in the matter of pleasure- seeking, 234. Husayn, Dr. Taha: yadith al-'Arbi'a*, Vol, I, pp, 188-189.' -130- As far as the 'Umarlte Ideology about pleasure and love is concerned, they laid much stress on both. The main source of their pleasure was singing and poetry. Many singers had become famous, along with the poets, Al-Qbarld, and Ibn-Surayj were two renowned singing bards. Once al-Harith b, Khalid, governor of Makkah, said to al-Gharldt 0, Gharld I if there had not been any source of pleasure in my sovereignty at Makkah except you it would have been quite sufficient, 0, Gharld i verily, this world is a place of embellishment, the best of the embellishments is what delights the soul; and only he under stands the real value of the world who under- 235 stands the value of singing. The 'Urnarite poets believed that life was short. One should enjoy it to the full before it comes to an end, Waddah has saidi •Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah incited his beloved Hind to disobey her elders at least for once because only the incapable person never breaks the rulesi 23 5. Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahanlx Kitab al-AghanT, vol,III, p. 323, 236, Ibid, Vol. VI, p, 224, "I do not forbid the soul from having its desires because everything will soon be over". -131- 237 The other source of pleasure for the 'Umarite poets Was love adventures. They put equal welghtage to love and singing because the poems composed about love were put to singing on musical instruments. In the society of town dwellers, who were the pleasure seekers, love was glorified, A group of people, including caliphs, leaders and senior ranking persons, all were of the opinion that it was love which purified and polished heart and mind, 238 23^ even the character of a person. Al-Sha*bi has saidi 240 — - 241 242 •Umar b, Abi Rabi'ah and al-Ahwas were also of the opinion that one who does not understand love is just like a hard rock. 23 7. Diwan, p, 313, "She should obstinate (to the orders of her elders) at least for once because only the incapable do not obstinate". 238. Al-Nuwayrii KLhayat al-Arab, Vol, II, p, 139. 239. Famous JurLs-consult from Kufah, Al-Zirlkll: Al-A'lam, Vol. IV, p. 18, 240. Al-Nuwayrli Nihayat al-Arab, Vol. II, p. 139, "If you are not in love and do not understand what is passion, you and the wild-ass are equal. 241. Al-BustanI, Puwad Aframj Al-MajanT al-Hadlthah, Vol. II, p. 193, 242. Al-Wagha«; Al-Mawaghsha, p, 60, -132- Thls trend was so prevalent among the 'Umarlte Poets that some of their poems seem mere inducement to love adventures. It helped them to instigate the Arab aristo crat ladies and female slaves to join in their flirtation and perverted life. Their most engaging pastimes were the company of beaxitiful and refined women and the celebration of their i eauty as well as their amours in love poems. They used to defend their love by refering to some moral aspect. 'l*nar b, Abi Rabl'ah defended his beloved Hind when her friends made fun of her for her desire that they should also admit her beauty as it was described by her lover. But they made fun of her as they were jealous of her beautyi Al-*Arji^ was called by his beloved at night when the people were asleep. But she also warned him of the dangers in this visit. So he saidi The second aspect of the 'Utnarite philosophy was religion. Though 'Uknarite poets were amateurish and 243, Diwan, p, 3i3, "They were jeaJ.ous of her due to her importance and from very old times jealousy is found in the people*. 244. Abu'l-Paraj al-l§fahanlt Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. I, P. 363, "I came walking in fright (of dangefT which I faced (boldly). To face something with frights in love ia noble. •• -133- p lea sure-seekers yet they were Muslims, They may not have been tke staunch followers of Islan but they believed in God, His Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and the Last Judgement. Along with this they were conecious of a great quality of God, i.e. His tolerant attitude towards sinners. Perhaps the kind of licence they enjoyed In life was largely because they believed that God is tolerant. They used to say that they were not devoid of hope as God is merciful and forgiving. They did not consider it to be harmful to love a beautiful creature of God. It was for them a very small sin with which they should mingle the good deeds which could please God and ultimately He would forgive their trifling sins. 'Umar b, AbT Rabl'ah once happened to see •A'ishah bint Talhah, the most beautiful lady of her time, when she was going round the Kabbah, When she looked at him she felt that 'Umar had fallen in love with her. So she sent her maid to him to telli Be afraid of Allah and do not say objectionable things. It is the place where shameful things should not be done. He said to the maid servant: Tell her my salam and assure her that the son of your uncle never 245 says but good things. 245. Ibid. Vol. I, P. 190. -13 4- Waddah has said: In Islam great significance is attached to repentance from which the 'Uhjarites tried their best to reap the benefit. Whenever they quelled their thirst for joy and sensual pleasure, they repented sometimes In the old age and sometimes before it. In one of his poems Waddah has expressed this intention very clearlyi J^:i^\ ^iA^(j^J^\ J'c^V r^v> •Oco'^ iulo 'Umar b, Abl Rabi'ah also repented though very late in his life. In one of his poems written as a letter to 'Uthayma, his beloved, with the Kunnlyat of Umma-al- Haytham he displayed his desire to repent as he became aware of his sin and the fright of the Last Judgement, He has said: 246, Ibid. Vol. VI, P. 220, "Every evening I follow the preachers with the hope of getting as much divine reward as the steps (I take to Join them)", 247, Ibid, Vol,VI, pp. 215-216, "o, Waddah i What has made you Involved In flirtation all the time? Are you not afraid of the nearness of death? Pray to the Owner of the Divine Throne and take the steps which will save you on the day of stumbling and slipping l,e, the Day of Last Judgement". -13 5- Decency was the third aspect of the philosophical Ideology of the 'lAnarite poets. They were aware of the fact that the religious group of their countrymen did not approve of their frivolous and licentious life. So often thrx>ugh their poetry they tried to assure themselves that they did not cross the limits of decency while they paid visit to their beloveds either in company or in seclusion. Once •Umar b, Abi Rabi'ah went to a mosque and Zaynab went there to meet him. In the way both were overtaken by rainshower. The poet's mistress expressed her unwilling- liness to be exposed in the clothes drenched in the rainshower, 'ISnar asked her to take shelter in the gallery of the mosque and ordered his slave to cover them with a 249 silken sheet. He explained his intention at length lest the step should not be misunderstood by any one. 248. Diw^n, pp. 221, 223; Al-Bustani, Fuwad Afram: Majani al-Hadlthah, Vol. II, pp, 183, 184, '•It (i.e. this letter) is from a lover who is stead fast in his love, who accepts his sin with a heart full of passion and who is punished (for the sin), not oppressed, I make penitence to you like the repentance of a sinner who is afraid of the punishment from a kind King, i.e. God? 249, Diwan, Beirut, 1952, p, 23 2, -136- Repentence was also taken by these 'Utnarite poets as an Important part of decency. Poet al-'Arji asked his mistress's maid servant not to disclose his identity and said that at that time he was madly in love with her. He gave the assurance that the day would come when he wpuld repent his sin. "^ vj^^L^^'Asyv^^-ciV Like their contemporary 'Udhrites the 'Ulnarites also believed in fatalism. It was their feeling that their love being intensive was beyond their control, Waddah has said: 250. Diwan, pp, 387-388, "Who will help a groaning lover who hides from the people the secret conversation of his heart which he has with Zaynab. I did not get from her (any) forbidden (thing) except that we both were in one silken cloth. We both indulge in secret conversations. We love without any sin. And the secret enemies and backbiters have been proved liars." 251, Diwan, pp. 5-6, "Do not mention myself to the enemies who will offer my flesh as meals due to their hatred for me. Do me a favour, you would be rewarded in a better way in return for it. I do got favours from your people sometimes. They become a shield for the lovers in this world (with the hope that) they perhaps would make them to repent for the sins they have committed? -137- 'l*nar claimed that his love had reached its extreme» At another place he has saidt The 'Uknarites irxSulged in this type of exaggeration to gain the favour and sympathy of their mistresses and to have protection against the section of the people who were called pious and who disapproved of their free love and pleasure-seeking life. Despite all, these poets could not escape the punishments at the hands of Umayyad Caliphs and the governors of Hijaz, Poet al-'ArjI was imprisoned and flogged by caliph Muhammad ibn-Hisham for his love poems on caliph's mother. Caliph Muhaimad ibn Hisham had sworn that he would not set him free till he was the Sultan. 255 Thus al-'Arji died in prison. Poet al-Ahwas was flogged 252. Abu'l-ParaJ al-Isfahan!: Kitab al-Aqhinl, Vol. VI, p, 218, (They are reproaching a person) whom they have put under Ahr^ and whom they have taken to Mina in the morning of the yaj day, (He i.e.) I do not have control over my passion and mind since I am attached to her (i.e. my beloved). So how the treachery is possible for me." 253. Dlwan, p, 277, "There is no love above the love I have for my beloved except that I kill myself or become mad? 254. Ibid. p. 268, ••Your remembrance for my heart is nothing except it increases my longing and madness for you." 255. Abu'l-Faraj ai-Igfahani: Kitab al-Aqhani, Vol. I, p. 381, But al-Zlrik li says that he was imprisoned by Makkah's Governor Muhammad b, Hishan on the charge of murder of •Abdullah b, •Umar and he expired in the prisons Al-A'lam, Vol. IV, p. 246. -138- and imprisoned for a long period by sulayman b. 'Abd al-Malik, Goveimor of Madlnah. 'Umar b, Abi Rabl'ah was accused of composing love poems on women pilgrims by 'Umar b. 'Abdal-AzTz and was banished to Dahlak.^^ The famous poet, Waddah was put to death by Caliph Walid b, •Abd al-Malik on the charge of composing love-poems on - 258 Ummal-Banin, the Caliph's wife. By going through their lives we come to know that the causes of all the punishment meted out to the •Uknarltes were their defiance of the moral values upheld by Islam though, they tried to defend their actions by saying that to love a beautiful creation is by nature destined by God. The Joys of the 'Umarites were sensual, not intellectual like those of their contemporary •ll^rites.. They passed a frivolous life having numerous love adventures. They were clever and daring. Consequently, their love poems were full of drama and h\»nour. 'lAnar b, Abi Rabl'ah has painted a dramatic picture of one of his love adventures* 256. Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahani: Kitab al-Aghani, Vol. IV, p. 2492 Al-Zirikir says that this order was given by Walid b. 'Abdal-Malik to the Governor of Madinahi Al-A'lam, Vol. IV, p. 257. 257. Al-2irikli» Al-A'lam, Vol^. V, p. 211; Ibn Kutaybah: Kitab al-shi'r wal-Shu»ara', Vol. I, P. 458. 258. Abu'l-Faraj al-Isfahani i Kitab al-AgJianl, Vol. VI, P. 206; Al-Zirikili Al-A'lam, Vol. IV, P. 69. -139- Waddah has no hesitation in mentioning his adulterous experiences in his love poemsi ' 259. Diwan, pp. 140-141, "I said« Who is this? She replied* It is I, on whom you have imposed the sufferings of a lengthy sleeplessness. Whenever you make a promise to me, you fail to keep it. Later on you come to me with an excuse, Allih may prolong your lifel Do you not have pity on me or your heart has become harder than a stone for me. When she finished her talk I said and my tears were running down like pearls: You must know, 0, the delight of my eyes, that you are like ears and eyes for me. So you give up reproaching me and excuse me and neglect the reckless sayings of the liars i.e. reproachers," 260. Abu'1-Paraj al-Isfahanlt Kitab al AghanI, Vol. VI, p.222; ••I strove for her after that her husband fell asleep in a cold night and her hand was his pillow. She welcomed me by the corner of her eye, saying: Soon you will get what you desire despite of the envy (of my husband)." -140- These lustful love adventures of the 'Umarltes remind us the love adventures of pagan poets like Imru'al- Kays and al-^A'sha who were more daring. But the 'Utnarites differ from them in other things. They did not hesitate in taking advantage of the religious congregations# even of the congregation at the time of pilgrimage which provided the opportunities of meeting with their mistresses. This aspect of the 'Umarite love adventures was original though it was a blasphemous attitude towards religion. For them the season of pilgrimage was a season of love adventures though the pilgrimage season has great importance and reverence for the Muslims, *Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah went far beyond in wishing that the whole year might be divided only into two seasons Haj and •Umrah when he could get the opportunity of meeting the beautiful ladiest A typical example is to be found in al-'ArjIi 262 N\^r/ v.>Ur,l -'> 'J \ 261. Jabbur, J.s. i 'Umar b. Abl Rabl'ah, Vol. II, P. 60, "The time would have been divided into two days one for Haj and another for llftnrah, •• This verse is given in Diwan, Beirut, P, 188 with slight change; and in Dlwan, Egypt, P. 485 among the verses which are said to be attributed to 'Lftnar.... -- cr^^ •- i}\^^ 262. Edwan, P. 74, "These ladies do not come on Haj for the sake of Allah but they come to assassinate the innocent simple minded people. She (i.e, the beloved) pierces the hearts with her eyes when she appears. She possesses the arrows which do not miss their aims," -141- It does not mean that the •Umarltes did not have any respect for the religious rites. But the fact was that Islam had put an end to the framework of the pagan tribal life. A sense of individuality was promulgating among them and they were not getting opportunities of showing off their individuality but in breaking the rules of morality and religion. As has already been said, they did not possess any glory to celebrate but their frivolous and licentious life. It was (even today, to some extent, it is true) also a contributory fact that the people who live in holy places usually become used to them and regard them with less reverence than occasional visitors. To them the proverbial saying that "a prophet is not valued in his own country" can be applied. They made themselves busy in their own matters and in their love poems they described their own personal experiences without any sense of decorum and decency but all this seemed imaginary. This sense of Individuality has influenced their poems as well as their private Life, For instance^it can be traced in the lines where the poets kept thinking of themselves only and desired for love and favours granted by their beloveds. Even in the matter of breaking promises they made excuses on behalf of their mistresses and said that it was fate and that Almighty had created such circumstances that they were separated, Wadcjah, the poet has said t -142- In the meetings during the pilgrimage mostly the mistress remained silent and it was enough for the lyricism of the poet which evoked a conversation. The poet himself talk on behalf of the beloved. This conversation seems to have actually taken place between the lover and the beloved, This amorous quest is recorded as an exploit by the poets. •Umar b. Abi Rabi'ah described his affairs with one of his beloveds, named as Nu'm thus: /• 263. Al-Dlnawarl i 'Uyun al-Akhbar, Vol. IV, P. 100, "When I said J come and do me some favour, she smiled and said I God save me from doing what is unlawful. She showed me no favour till I implored and informed her that Allah permits what is done in insanity," -143- 264, Diwan, pp. 418-419, "Nu'tn sent me the message thatt "Pay a visit to me"! I love her more than the irritated sender. I replied I can't do this. She saidt Assure the allegiance of an irritated lover, I said to Jannad t Take the sword and surround him (i,e, the messenger) carefully and look for the sun set. Saddle the horse al-Dahmi' for me and bring my raincoat. None of the living person should know my movement. And your meeting place is Bat;ha* at valley of Yajij or ravines at Mamru)sil in the valley of Mughrib, When we met she saluted and smiled and said like the saying of a reluctant person. The reproachers and the backbiters have made a breach between us. You have proved it true and you have not condemned it. So you have broken the rope of love from me and he who obeys the sayings of the reproachers in his love should be punished.'*; Nu*m was a ^ureshite lady^ (Karam al-Bustani : 'lAnar b, Abl Rabl'ah, K:utuf al-Aghani, p. 225); >U^was perhapg his_slave^ _ (Karam al-Bustani : **Uraar b. Abi Rabi'ah, Kutuf al-AghanI, p. 228), -144- Thus sometimes the event was pre-arranged and organised by the mistress themselves. The two lovers used to meet in a secluded spot. This licentious account ended with a physical description of the beloved and the sensual evocation of the lover and the beloved. 'Umar b. Abl Rabl'ah has saidi 265. Diwan, pp. 103-104, ••she is well shaped. Her shoulders are not flabby, her embrace is complete and faithful. Her body is scented (not ill smelling). Her shin is so plxnnp that her anklets has become silent (i.e. they are not loose to make noise as her shin is not thin), she is full of property of beauty yet she is humble. Her cheeks are bright and she is so slender waisted that it seems as if it would be broken with the weight of buttcjcks. She smiles with bright and nicely arranged sharp teeth. Her lips are sweet and burnished. She is like musk mixed with the honey as if the snow is mixed with the wine when it was mellowed at Jadar. So (beautiful) is she who has taken away my wisdom and siezed it or who has deprived me of my senses and the charming girls betray me if they meet me" •145- There is one aspect in which the 'Uhiarlte* poets were equal to their contemporary •Ugiirite poets and their predecessor pagan poets. All of them never celebrated the charms and favours of their wives with a few exceptions/ though the reasons, differed. In the pre-Islamic period the poets were equally great fighters. They were busy in tribal wars and they had to battle for food and shelter. They had not much spare time for their erotic tendencies at home. On the contrary, the 'Umarites were prosperous and secure and had nothing to do but to enjoy the sensual life to their hearts' delight. Besides, they were boastful, They were strongly of the view that only those should be considered meritorious among their own group who were capable of having more than one mistress. Moreover, they were fully aware that in the Islamic society Taghbib or erotic poetry, was considered as something shameful. So they kept their wives away from it. They gave them such respect as was given to their sisters and mothers. The 'Umarite poetry reflected the spirit of the refined society. The great popularity that the 'Ulmarlte poetry enjoyed in the lAnayyad period may be attributed to the ease and grace of its style, its vocabulary is free from rare words. It aims at simplicity and naturalness. -146- The dialogue-form corresponding to the description of real scenes is frequent. It evokes the feelings and brings excitements of the heart and emotions. These poets were only interested in the emotional side of human nature, particularly in love while a group of the zealous Muslim warriors were busy on all the frontiers of the Muslim- Qnpire and the other group of the pious and ascetic Muslims were busy in the conquest of the inner world through the purification of the human soul from every weak or evil tendency. Like the 'Udhrites the •Unarite poets were not against the trials in love. They described its developments, signs and secrets as carefully and as minutely as their pagan predecessors did in case of the beloved's encampaments , natural sceneries and animals. wad<3ah described how intelligently and secretly his beloved had managed to visit him$ 266. Abu'l-Faraj al-I^fahani: Kitab al-Aghani, Vol. VI, P. 205, "She saidt "Meet me i I saia: How can I meet you while I am a man who fears for the disclosing of your secret. •• She said} compromise with my uncles and make friend ship with my brothers with whom you walk. Thus with them you visit me peacefullly. 0, Waddah 1 Thus the secret will not be revealedT -147- The Ghazal is nothing but the description of the poet»s love adventures, his own behaviour and the behaviour of the woman with whom he was in love. In the 'Umarlte poetry we find the description of the two sorts of women the beautiful and the adventurous and unrestrained and even sometimes cultured and refined female slaves. Secondly the Arab ladies belonging to the aristocratic families or the relatives of the great companions of the Prophet or of the leaders of Hijaz or of the Umayyad Caliphs. These aristo crat ladies did not want to be surpassed by the female slaves in any matter. But they never liked indecency, •umar b, Abl Rabi'ah had affairs with the maid servant of Ibn Tuffa^a, named as Hamidah, At the same time he did not hesitate to compose love poems about Sukaynah bint al-Husaynt , ^ 267, 'Ulnar Farrukh, Dr, j 'Unar b, Abi Rabi'ah al- Makhdhural P. 36; Abxfl-Faraj al-lsfahanit Kitab al-Aqhani, Vol. I,, P. 167, 268, Dlwin, P, 427, "Sukayna said while tears were flowing on her cheeks and her garment. He is that Muqhlri from whom I have not taken revenge though he prolonged my imprisonment (In love) and my desire (for him). The death may have come to us in those days. So we would have not been reproached for the love and passion? -148- He also described the love adventures with other aristo crat ladies like •A"'ishah bint Talhah and Patlmah bint 'Abd al-Malik. Mostly the 'Uttiarite Ghazal was devoted to these aristocratic ladies and their charming slaves. The •Umarite poets tried to induce these women to love and adventures and this objective was achievedx firstly by addressing the women's vanity and persuading them to become free and independent which was an indication of aristocracy. They laughed at their prosperous life, made promise to celebrate their beauty in love-poems, or gave them prefer ence to all their previous mistresses. Wa(^dah has said: 269. Abu'l-Faraj al-Isfahanl: Kitab al-Aghani, Vol. VI, P. 207, "She was a Kurayghite whose beauty illu minated her and she shone like sun. She surpassed the beautiful fair women with her beauty and clear skin. When she reached her full youth and veiled herself with her Rida', she did not pay attention to the girls of her age and continued to become more youthful." -149- The other means of inducement that they used was to stir their mistress's emotions and evoke the sympathy by claiming that they were about to die due to lovesickness. For this purpose the 'Umarite poets appealed to the hearts and minds t>f their mistresses. It is said that •Iftnar b. Abl Rabl'ah had fallen in love with Kultham bint Sa'd al-Makhdhumi, He sent his female messenger twice to her. But every time she abused and turned her back with anger. Lastly he purchased one aged female slave and promised her to set her free if she could go to his beloved with a letter and make her read it. This old woman managed to subside his mistress's anger and made her read his letter in a form of love poem. Consequently, the beloved agreed to meet him and married him. In this letter 'Umar has writtenx 270\^%(-^i/^'^MiJ'^ J^ ^(J, A, te,SAVS U ^J>:^(J 270. Ibid. Vol. 1, P. 196, •'You have killed me, 0, the magnificent one, without any crime or sin. Allah has revealed in the Kur'an firmly and clearly that one who kills some one in this manner without reta liation is an oppressor. Now you tell me what excuse you have to Allah in the matter of killing a person who is Muslim." -150- Wa^dah also adopted the same method of Inducement of the heart and mind of his beloved. He has saidi The •Umarite poets have used wit and intelligence in their attempts to get their mistresses's favour. They implored the ladies that they should make promise though they did not fulfil it. They would like to live in hope as •Umar has saidJ Later on these poets used to forget their own sayings and used to black mail their mistresses. They used to say that God had made it obligatory to fulfil a promise. If a promise is not fulfilled the person who had promised had to offer explanation on the Day of Judgement before God, Thus they urged their mistresses to keep their promises or to refer their case to a tribunal whose judges and witnesses were of their own choice.Al-*Arji has said* 271, Ibid, Vol, VI, P. 223, "You grant me a favour today or explain me for what reason you have killed a man who is a MuslimJ? 272. Diwin. P. 476; Abu'l-Faraj al-lsfahani: Kitab al- Aghani, Vol. I, P. 164, "Promise me to grant me a favour though you may not fulfil it. Verily to live in hope benefits a lover." -151- 273 'I''7''>'^7 '^,^i> r^x ' •> This type of verses shows that in spite of being licentious and amorous the 'Umarite poets were to some extent influenced by Islam, They were not fully erring people. In fact they were musllms by all canons of judgement. It shows that the Muslim institutions had influenced even the development of the conception of love during the Umayyad period, 'Umar b. Abi Rabl'ah went further to concieve the relation between him and his beloved alike to the relation between a guilty citizen and the administra tion of Hijaz: 273. Dlwan, PP, 194, 195, "Where is what you had saidi I will die before you? Where is the verification of what you had promised me? Set up such a Jury between us that neither you harm me nor he deals with me unjustly. You must know that in the court there is need of wit nesses or oath, so bring two witnesses (with you), 0, my beloved 1 if I had power regarding what you told me under the open sky when we met. Allah knows you would not have killed me although I might have fallen as a mairtyre at Hunayn, •* -152- ( 27 But the seriousness of the •Umarlte Poetiry was mingled with playfulness. It was a special quality by which it acquired its peculiarity in Arabic Literature. After going through the whole of the text, it seems impo ssible to draw any demarcation between its earnestness and its humorousness as we find contradiction in their poems. At one place the 'Umarite poets, urged their beloveds to be kind and to grant them some favour; and to gain their aim they used all the means/ and at another place, even in the same poem, they wished their mistresses to be unkind, liars regarding their promises and misers in granting favours. This contradiction obviously points out that they were the people who were fond of adventures. Like other adventure- loving people they believed that the kindness and generosity of their mistresses would make their love-affairs unevent ful and would diminish their joys of adventurism as has been admitted by al-Ahwa?: 274. Diwan, P. 223, "You are the princess. Listen to my sayings and understand something of what you have not underst,^oa. I ask your refuge from you in future to forgive me for my sins and be kind to me, •• -153- Thus the 'Utnarlte poets in general had two alms inducement of their beloveds to love and adventures and the description of their beloveds. These women were none but the aristocratic Arab ladies and their refined slaves, who, in their day-to-day activities, rubbed shoulders With the pleasure - seekers of yijaz. These pleasure-seeking poets gave description of their mistresses' beauty, adornment, fragrance and the sweetness of their conversation with more elegance and accuracy than their predeccessor pagan poets. Al-'ArjI has given the description of his beloved thus: By going through the Dlwans of the 'Umarite poets we find many poems having the same descriptions. These poets have dealt not only with the physical charm of their mist- ressess but also with their nature, coyness, intrigues and 275. Ibn-Abi Dawud al-IsfahanI:Kitab al-Zahrah, P. 165, "His attachment with love increased when she refused to grant him favour because the most desirable thing for a man is which Is forbidden" 276. Diwan, P. 182, "Her cheeks are roses and her saliva is wine and the gleam of her beauty is more illuminous than the moon. So there is one who has witnessed wine elsewhere than the vines and who has seen growth of roses elsewhere than the plants. The bird was about to flutter with Joy on her when it sang on a chor^3 (or string)." -154- coquetry in a playful mind. Their realism in this res pect was to the point and full of life and interest. Some times it became bold and aggressive. They have depicted their beloveds in their indoor life surrounded by their sisters, friends and female slaves. They have talked of their inti mate personal and confidential problems as if they them selves were involved in it. They did not hesitate to disclose the artifices used by their mistresses. Once al-*ArjI visited his beloved in the night in full moon. His beloved asked him to wait till it became darkj 9 Once when Wad<^ah was warned by his beloved of all sorts of obstacles in visiting her^he replied that he would be able to remove all the hindrances* Some of the •Uinarite poets showed reluctance in using the undignified tricks suggested by their mistresses. 277, Abu'l-Faraj al-Isfahani: Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. I, P,364, "She said8 I am agreed (to meet you)'~but you have cotne in the moonlight. Will you not stay till it becomes dark?" 278, Ibid, Vol, VI, P, 222, "(She aaidj) Have you not seen our enemies who are around us, and every slave is haughty and arrogant, I said to her» I am a man, so he must know, that when I take the sword I do not give attention to the numbers (of the killed people by me)," -155- Once •Umar'a mistress with her friends was going round the Ka'bah. The beloved asked her friend to wink at 'Ulnar who despised it. This is stated by 'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah in the following verses» Jf^d d4l 5C>o>^^ \S ^,k3cii4j:JJtr Al-Ahwas has claimed that treachery was not his habit: 280 ^./ were town dwellers, so there was no question of beloveds* final departure which might have prevented them from enjoying their love. Hence the next meeting was always possible. Moreover, as Islam had put an end to the tribal feelings, the jealousy of the one tribe with another was no more a hindrance in their love affairs, while these three things time, tribal jealousy and final departure of mistress's tribe for unknown places -— were main obstacles in the love adventures of the pagan poets. It made the pagan poetry more gloomy. Thus the 'Umarite love- adventures became less tragic but niore dramatic or more melodramatic as music and singing was mixed with it. The main obstacles in their love adventures were religious and morals taboos. But some of them were very bold to cross the religious and moral bounds. Due to this the 'Umarite poetry or Qhazal is called more aggressive and bold. Wadcjah has beautifully described one of his love adventures. Due to moral and religious fear his beloved did not want him to pay her another visit. But the poet removed her every fear and made her agree to visit him again» -157- 282 ^US ^^Ui,)c^\i M^ U^WCJI; The style of this 'Umarite melodramatic Gljazal is simple, easy and direct, it is fit for music and easy to commit to memory. Due to these qualities it had become very popular in the Umayyad period. Both men and women equally enjoyed it. The 'Umarite poets being pleasure- seekers sacrificed true love to sensual pleasure. They were bold and aggressive and to some extent impious in their Ghazal due to their sense of realism. It is the form of poetry in which the poets used to describe the beauty and 282. Abu'l Faraj al-lsfahani: Kitab al-Agjrianl, Vol. VI, P. 204, "She saidi Do not come to our house because our father is an ardent man, I said, I will ask for inattentiveness from him and my sword is severely sharp. She saidt The castle is between us. I saidt I shall climb (in) from its top. She said: The sea is between us. I said* I am an expert swimmer. She said: There are seven brothers around me. I said: I am the overpowering conqueror. She said: The lion is lying between us. I saids I am a voracious lion. She said: Allah is above us. I said* My Master is forgiving Merciful. She said* You have made me fatigued (or helpless) in the argument. So you come when the night watchers slumber down." -158- merits of the loved one and the pleasure of meeting with her, having very little consideration for the sense of honour. It has very subtle and delicate words and beautiful pen pictures. It expresses the fervour of emo tions and the elegance of sentiments. chapter 5 FACTORS OF THS DEVELOPMENT OF THE GHAZAL -159- There is no doubt that the poetry of love has played a great part in enriching Arabic Literature, The Arabic works on love poetry are eloquent testimony to its supreme influence over the minds of the Arab scholars of all disciplines and of all times. Poetry and society work upon each other. The existence of largely fictitious stories about romantic or love poets and their poetry clearly indicates that popular taste continued to add to the store of Umayyad podtry. It is an asserted fact that there must have been some factors inspiring these poets to write love poetry or Ghazal. Ghazal was a widely practiced genre and the most popular poetic tradition in the Umayyad age. The meaning of Ghazal is "to converse with a 283 v;oman and to love her." If we analyse this meaning of the Ghazal we come to the conclusion that it comprises three fundamental elements,viz : (1) the man who talks and loves (2) the mistress who hears his talk and gives response to his love, and,(3) the conversation which takes place between the two and stands witness to what occurs between the two as a result of the commitment of love. When a ligament connection is found among these three elements, Ghazal comes into existence. There was 283, Hassan Abu Rahab : Al-Ghazal 'ind al-'Arab, p, 12, -160- abundance of the three elements in Arabia, An Arab, from the very beginning, was a seeker of mirth, pleasure, and delightful amusements. It was the outcome of the environ ment and society in which he had to pass his life. An Arab, as we know, has a very tender heart. He was never too much concerned with the encumbrances of life though he used to be brought up amidst them and they had made the life dark and gloomy in his eyes. What he earned by his own power he considered it to be sufficient for himself because his life was hard and simple. An Arab is pure in nature and powerful in senti ments. He always finds the ways to increase these two of his natural characteristic qualities. An Arab is a poet by nature. He attains the highly appreciated posi tion by these verses which influence the hearts of the people. V/henever an Arab possesses all the qualities suitable to be a Qtiazal-poet he begins to compose the Ghazal, But the only environment was not enough for the poet to compose the Ghazal, If the mistress with whom he could have conversation had not been traced, and if the lady was not so beautiful as to stir his heart and sentiments, he would have failed to compose the love poems. As the environment or the existence of a lady was not sufficient to compose the poetry, in the same -161- way the beauty of a mistress was not enough for composing love poerns. All these elements along with poet's own sentiments, eloquence and style were equally important for a Ghazal to cow3 into existence. Men and women used to meet each other without any restriction or objection in Arabia at that time. It had become a habit of an Arab as has been narrated by Ibn al-Haytham 'Adiyya from Ibn 'Ayyash: Their men used tc have conversation with the ^ 4-u u . .^ 284 women and they never saw any harm m it. Thus the development of Ghazal in Arabic literature is fully based on these three elements man, woman and the conversation between the two. Arab is a nation of poets. But it does not mean that every Arab is a poet. It only means that poetry is a widespread gift among them in spite of differences in 285 its sublimity and scantiness. The poetry is an artistic skill which paints the inner feelings of the hearts and for this purpose many kinds of poetry are used. But the best representation of this artistic skill is made through the Ghazal. In it the lover talks about his beloved or 28 4. Ibid. P. 14. 285. Al-yawfi, Al?mad Mutiammad : Al-Hayat al-'Arabia Min al-Shi«r al-Jahili, p. 106. -162- about his yearning for her or his visit to her or his mental distress on her departure. Thus the Ghazal is the product of the sentimental love and the psychological condition of its composer. It is known as the poetry of emotional sincerity. On this basis it is distinguished from other poetical genres as eulogy. Satire, laudatory poems and boastful poems. In the same way the Ghazal is also called the poem of artistic sincerity because of the skillful representation of his tme sentiments by the poet before his readers. The readers think that it is not only the mirror of the poet's own sentiments but also of universal human beings. It is the everlasting glorious record of culture, morals, and habits, The love poets have given the description of spiritual and physical beauty of a woman as well as her diresses, ornaments, perfumes, and her adornment. They talk about her morals. They describe their feelings at the time of beloved's departure. They talk about the backbiters and the reproachers and even their own refuge at the ruined abodes. The Ghazal is a very old artistic creation among the Arabs and even today its importance is the same, yet Arabic poetry, especially the Gtiazal, has not affected the people much or reached to such an exalted position in any period as in the Umayyad period. There were so many factors which contributed to the development of the Ghazal during that period: -163- I, Environment and nature of an Arab II, Relation between male and female III, Arab's fondness of the Ghazal IV, The literary salons, and, V, Manifestations of Luxury. I. ENVIRONMENT AND NATURE OF AN ARAB j The environment and society are reflected in the poetry of an era because its composers are very much influenced by the surroundings in which they open their eyes and in which they are brought up. Their milieu plays the role of great importance in building up their character. Specially the environment and society have their bearing on the general character of the Arabs in the desert and on their attitude towards life, love and women which are the main themes of the C^azal, Ibn Khaldun is of the opinion that the climate has great influence upon human character as the inhabitants of the hot zone for example Negroes are very much fond of singing and dancing, "We have seen that Negroes are in general characterized by levity, excitability, and great emotionalism. They are found eager to dance whenever they hear a melody likewise, when those who enjoy a hot bath inhale the air of bath, so that -164- the heat of the air enters their spirits and makes them hot^ they are found to expe rience joy. It often happens that they start singing, as singing has its origin in gladness1.^ ..28" 6 The same influence of climate and surroundings Was discemable on the Arabs. Man is the builder of a nation. His habits, behaviour and modes change according to his environment and surroun dings. Their influence is reflected in the reflection of his talents and thoughts whether in the form of poetry or prose. It is obviously true that the concerned affairs of the Arabs in the Umayyad period were far different from that of Pagan Arabia or early Islamic period as is evident from their literature, especially poetry. By going through the evolutionary phases of Arabic Ghazal it can be assumed that the great factor of the development of <^azal is the love for the fair sex, which is embodied by God in the nature of an Arab, The desert was the great moulder of the Arab character which habit uated him to hardness and forced him to pass his life roaming to and fro across his barren country in search of 286. Ibn Khaldun : Mul^addimah, Vol. I, p. 86; Translated by Rosenthal, Franz, Vol, I, p. 174, -165- food and water for himself and his cattle. No leisure time was given to him. In his daily life he had no time for speculation or philosophy. Being a nomad, at every moment he had to be on guard, watching everything to acquire rapid conception and lightning decision ^iS he had to protect himself and his tribe against the many dangers produced by his environment. Always at every step he had to fight against hunger, thirst and the ruthless climate and other hardships of his stern existence. This developed a kind of practical outlook of everything in the life of an Arab along with a sense of individuality though his tribe played the institutional role in forming his per sonality. As the moral values, tradition and practical philosophy of life were to be found in the specific tribal ceremonies and customs which the tribesmen took for granted; he never criticised them, rather he moulded his mind, emotions, habits, feelings and thinking according to them. By nature the desert passes swiftly from freshness to dryness and its weather changes quickly from cold to warm and vice versa. In the same way the temperament of an Arab was liable to swing suddenly from one extreme to the other. This made his temperament a combination of opposite qualities. For instance, he did not hesitate to -166- slaughter his loved camel to feed his hungry guest or to go to fight with his tribe against a related tribe and to kill his dear cousin. These opposite qualities, along with his sense of individualism and his practical approach of everything, developed in him the characteristic feature of paganism. This paganism influenced very much in moulding an Arab's personality as a result of which he was unable to separate his inner world from the external world. In his eyes perfect life was that which allowed him to realise his full development, to satisfy his senses and instincts and call forth all his capacities. Ihn Khaldun has said that the abundance and scarcity of food affect the human body and character: "In spite of this, the desert people who lack grain and seasonings are found to be healthier in body and better in character than the hill people who have plenty of everything. Their complexions are clearer, their bodies cleaner, their figures more perfect and better, their characters less intemperate, and their minds keener as far as knowledge and perception are concerned. This is attested by experience 287 in all these groups," 287, Ibn i^aldun: Mul<:addimah, Vol. I, P, 87; Translated by Rosenthal, Franz, Vol. I, pp. 177-178, -167- The Arab of the desert was not concerned with his future or past. He was obliged to live a life of endurance, terror and suspicion. He was interested only in his present so his perception of everything was totally practical. He recalled his past only to illustrate the present, to make it clearer or more vivid. He showed very little concern for the future as his present business and problems did not spare time for him to ponder over the future. He sought his happiness in harmony with the nature conditioned with tanporal existence. He was pleased even with little. Therefore, in spite of the fears, anxieties and hardships of his surroundings he tried to savour every joy within his reach to the full. This pagan attitude towards life is fully reflected in the poetry of the age. The poet is free and independent in spite of the heavy pressure of the tribal society. In his poetry we find a beautiful picture of his short romance, the freshness and mirth belonging to his past. It does not mean that he was allowed to go backward; he was permitted to look behind only with a rapid glance which could help him to drive forward, Dr, Ahmad al- -Hawfl is of the opinioni The Arab country Is the country of light, where the sun journeys from the east to the west. And the light has more influence on the hxiraan -168- quallties than on the human body. For 288 this reason Goethe (d::>>^) used to say from the depth of his soul» I wish 28<3 for light, I wish for light. The same scholar has said at another place: And necessity of light is like the necessity of oxygen in the air. In the country rich in light, things become clear, the imagina tions are aroused, and actions become easy. Contrary to this in the country of darkness distress occupies the hearts and the poets 2Q0 see the confused and formal dreams, Hassan Abu Rahab saysi If the nature of an Arab was far from the love of a lady and far from ostentation, and if the means of life did not arouse his heart and condition, the art of ^azal would not have developed and there would have not been a charm for him in his ample sphere, 288. A German philosopher, poet; The Columbia Encyclopedia, p, 789; Ahmad 'A^iyyah-Allah : DSUrat al-Ma«arif al-Hadl^a pp, 135-136. 289. Al-Hawfl, Aljmad Muljammad: Al-Hayat al-»Arabia Min al- Shi'r al-Jahili, p, 106. 290. Ibid, pp, 106-107, -169- And it was said to Kuthayyir : Nothing has remained in your poetry, i.e. your poetry has become rotten. He replied» Azzah has died, so how can I be melodious, and the youth has vanished, how can I appeal (some one), and the Ibn-e-Layla i.e. 'Abd al-«AzIz b. Marw3n has died, so how can I wish? But the poetry depends on all these. ^* It shows that the presence of a beloved, youth and a laudable person are the main sources of composing good poetry. Arabic is the language of the melodious verses. In it we can find both lamentation and ringing suitable for poetry and music. Due to their love for fine arts, even today the Arabs are known all over the world. From the very beginning an Arab by nature was intelligent, sharp- witted, quick perceptive, having alert sense and exciting sentiments. He lived a tribal life. He defended the nobility of his tribe and propagated its encomiums and gave tongue lashing to its opponents. He was so sentimental that he was enchanted by beauty and painted his sentiments and feelings in his verses. These verses were chanted when 291. Hassan Abu Ra^ab : Al-Gtjazal 'ind al-'Arab, P. 15; Al- -Dinawari: 'Uyunal-Akhbar, Volj. II, P. 185; Ibn 'Abd Rabbihi t Al-'Ikd al-Parid : Tara'jf al-§hu'ari', p. 119. -170- drlving the camel, or on the watering place. These are the characteristic qualities of the Arabs and had become part of their nature. Though the social traits and norms used to change from time to time, yet they were not changed. The importance of a poet remained the same as was in the pagan Arabia, in the period of ignorance the birth of a poet in a tribe was celebrated like a celebration of marriage. In the early Islamic period a poet did not lose his import ance though Islam put a check on composing poetry. Good verses were admired. The Prophet (peace be upon him) himself gave his mantle to poet Ka'b b, Zuhayr as a mark of his admiration for his poetry which he heard. In the Umayyad period even religion could not be an obstacle for the poets. Though there were two great Muslim poets, viz, Jarlr and Parzadak, yet a christian poet, Akhtal, was crowned as the "Poet of the Umayyads" by Caliph 'Abd al- - 29 2 Malik b, Marwan. II, Relation between Male and Female: Prom the very day of the beginning of human life on this earth love exists between male and female, i,e, love is necessary in breeding the generations or for the exis- 292, Abu'l-Paraj, Al-IffahanI : Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. VIII, p, 29 4, -171- tence of human beings in this world. The Ghazal is nothing but a modified expression of this love between a man and a woman. In other words it can be said that Ghazal is a personal experience in words. A love poet paints the beauty of a woman as he himself percieves it. He does not rely on others' perception of beauty and he describes every-thing related to it, even his agonies and hopes. We can say that Ghazal is the fruit of the poet's perception of beauty. Thus the meeting of a man with a woman is the first demand of the (^jazal. If there had not been such meeting the Ghazal would have never come into existence. Neither the conversation would have taken place nor the sensitive description of meeting and separation would have been expressed. Without meeting no one can come to know the beauty and qualities of a woman which are to be described by its beholder. Not a single verse can be composed by him without meeting her while to describe the beauties and qualities of the beloved is the main characteristics of this art of poetry, i.e. Ghazal, The pagan Arabs has so great sense of honour that they used to infanticide their female child due to fear of humiliation by others in her youth. Yet the Arab woman was never captive in her abode. From the time immfflnorial she -172- v/as free to roam and she shared in many activities with the men. She used to graze cattle, to fetch water and to go for pilgrimage. She was permitted to go to the market for sale and purchase. She was allowed not only to attend literary gatherings but also to participate in them with men. During all her day-to-day activities she had the opportunities and freedom to interact with her male counter parts , In the early Islamic period also the woman was free but she had to abide by certain Islamic morals. Prom history it is evident that the women used to go to wars for looking after the injured even in the period of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the Orthodox Caliphs. Islam has forbidden Immodesty and impudence. Due to this we do not hear much about love lover - beloved and love poetry i.e. Ghazal in this period. In the Ufnayyad period we find two types of people those who strictly followed the path of the people of the early Islamic period, and those who transgressed it and adopted the path of the pre-Islamic pagan people. The first type of people had not loosened the grasp of modesty though they were helpless before their hearts and they sought shelter under the roof of poetry known as 'Udhrite Ghazal*. Contrary to this the second type of people were of the opinion that Allah, the great Creator, has created -173- beauty to be flourished and it will be our ungratefulness to Him if we despise it. They expressed their sentiments through the poetry named as 'Umarite Gtjazal', Somehow both types of Ghazals were the result of the relation of a man with a woman, whether it was modest or immodest. Men are by nature sentimental and sympathetica!, affectionate while the womenare sweet and weak by nature, A woman is sweet in words, in nature, in manners. It has never happened that she meets a man and does not move his heart. She arouses his poetic instincts which are the signs of the Ghazal sentiments which are sweet and effective, Hassan Abu-Ral?ab is of the opinion: If a beautiful lady had chanced to meet him on the banks of the river she would have influenced his heart and his feelings and if he was blessed with the talent of a poet he would have also composed beautiful Ghazal 293 on her. The verse based on the inner sentiments and the movements of the heart which is the iresult of this meeting of a man with a woman is called al-Ghazal, There are so many relevancies of link between man and woman which lead them to compose Ghazal, Some of them are as follows: 293, Hassan, Abu-Rahab : Al-Ghazal'indal-'Arab, p, 17. -174- (a) Grazing Pastures : The Arabs cultivated pastures and grass. Their lives were dependant on milk. So they had to tend the cattle and camels. No Arab became a young man till he had faced the hardships of this type of life. Even a girl used to help him in managing for the needs of life and she never felt it a shameful task. She also like the boys of her age, took the grazing of the cattle as one of her duties. So the young boys and girls had to roam in search of food and water. This provided an opportunity for them to meet one another and a conversation took place between the two. Both of them had to pass their whole day under one shade and at sun set they were parted. Again at the day break their meeting was renewed. This happened again and again. It is an accepted fact that the Arab was a sentimental gifted poet. He converted his this meeting into a beau tiful Ghazal, For instance^Majnun Bani 'Amir, who was in love with Layla, had accepted that they both were in love of each other even when they were children and they used to graze their cattle: 294-^ py^ '^C^^^ l ^W '^UJ^ci.^^ 29 4. Abu'l-Faraj Al^Isfahanl x Kitab al-Aghani; Vol. II, pp. 12-13; Diwan,' p. 8, "When we both were children we used to graze our cattle together. May it so has happened that I and she would not have grown up till this day and neither the cattle. -175- 295 Ibn Mayyadah , once, went in search of his camel, and reached Jubar and happened to be at the house of an old woroan who took him in her house for rest. On his entrance when her daughter ranoved the curtain and welcomed him, her beauty fascinated him and he composed a Gjia2al about her in which he said I^^^ ^ Jamil b. Ma'mar al-'U^tjri, it is said, was grazing his camels in the valley known as Bag_hid. Leaving them to wander about he slept. At the same time Bu^aynah with a neighbouring girl came there in search of water. Both of them passed by the camel herd and Buthaynah scared them away. Jamil felt that she being a lady how dared to scare away his camels? So he abused her and in return she also abused him, 298 Her abuse became amiable to him, so he said: 295. Abu'l-Faraj Al-lgfahani : Kitab al-Aqhani; Vol. II, pp. 228, 23 5-236; Mukh Dhu'l-Rummah has narrated how love between him and his beloved Mayyah began* once he, with his brother, went in search of their camels. In the way they came to a wateilng place near to which Mayyah was standing. ^u»l- Rummah saw her and fell in love with her. He stayed in her house for twenty years. Kuthayyir, the famous 'Udjj^rlte love poet, was once grazing his cattle and chanced to pass by the women of Banu Oamrah. He enquired about water from them and they asked 'Azzah' (who was a small girl at that time) to lead him to the watering place. Looking at her he was bewitched and fell in love with her. He has described this event in his poems. (b) Visits and Drinks« It was the habit of the Arabs that they used to pay visits to others as it is practiced even today. In these vi sits the young boys happened to meet the young girls, the result of which was "love" and Ghazal was the outcome of this love. 300. Hassan, Abu Rahabi Al-Qhazal'lnd al-'Arab, p. 19, 301. Hagsan, Abu Ral>abt Al-Qhazal 'Ind al-Arab, p.l9i Abu'l-ParaJ Al-IsfahanI t Kitab al AghanI, Vol. IX, p. 25, "" -177- ks we know, the Arabs were the people of valour and generosity, though they were forced by the hardships of life to travel and move fron one place to another. In these movon^its they had to face the hardships and diffi culties and they had to stay at some places In search of drinking water to quench their thirst or at an inhabited place to get some travelling provisions. These travels and visits to the populated places and watering places provided the opportunities to men of meeting women, due to which their sentiments were stirred as a result of which they composed love po^ns i.e. Ghazal. For Instance there is a narration how I|Cays b, Dharlh met his beloved Lubna. Once Kays b« Dharlh went for some requisites to the tents of Ban! Ka*b b. I^uza'ah. He stood at the door of a tent which was of Lubna, the daughter of al-Hubab al-Ka'blya, At that time her people were not present. He asked for water and she came out with it and gave it to him to drink. When he saw her he fell In love with her. He drank water. She then asked him to stay with them. He accepted her invitation and stayed there. When her father came he slaughtered a camel and gave him a hos pitable reception. After that Kays b, Dharlh went back -178- wlth his heart full of Lubna's love. His love poems composed for Liibna are the best representatives of these sentiments s ^ / ^ c , c* Festive Seasons of the Arabsi The festive seasons were the occasions for the meeting of men and vromen or the instigators of the emotions of the both. These were the main factors which kindled the feelings of love and passion in their hearts, due to which there was great production of love-poems. These seasons were like exhibitions of today where men and women get chance to meet each other. It was a peculiarity for the eyes of an Arab that it never chanced to fail from falling on a beautiful thing, the beauty of which inflamed the feelings of love and which was later described in their poetry. This poetry is known as (^lazal. The Arab ladies also participated in these seasonal gatherings and they had got the talent of a literary man or a poet. They used to recite sentimental poems which described the charms even of their own beauty, 302. Abu'l-ParaJ Al-Isfahinl^ Kitib al-AqhanT, Vol. IX, pp. 175-176; Hassan, Abu Rahibt Al-(^a2al'ind al-'Arab, p. 21. 303, Abu'l-Paraj al-l3fa^>anli Kitab al-Aqhanl, Vol. IX, p. 188, "My soul is related with her soul since our pre-creation days aix3 after that when we were in the wooobs and in the cradles. It increased with our growth till it became fully developed* Even when we die it will not break the pro mise i.e. the relation between we two'*. -179- Thus these festive seasons were for the youths the means of amusetnents and entertainments* They assisted them in meeting the opposite sex and In developing relations with them. The greatest of all these seasons was (iaj. The HaJ is an ancient rite which was well established In Arabia even long before the advent of Islam, Being one of tra ditional pagan practices of the monotheistic religion, ^aj for the people was a peaceful occasion of gathering. There they used to come to purify their hearts from the filth and corruptions of life. There they devoted their whole attention to Allah with the feelings of sxibmlsslon to repent for their sins. At the time of Muhammad (peace be upon him) the HaJ was so completely assimilated Into the Arab paganism that It lost Its original monotheistic message. Pagan customs Introduced certain undignified and disczrimlnatory practices in the HaJ. Islam took HaJ back to its original form and various aspects of HaJ consequently regained their significance. All were brought down to the level of equality by making them to dress in two lengths of white unstiched material with heads uncovered. Only the women were allowed to wear ordinary clothes covering all their bodies except their hands and faces. This also provided the -180- opportunity of invitation to the eyes of male pilgrims who by nature were the lovers of beauty, at the charming beauty of the female pilgrims. They used to defend their this sin by saying that Allah has created beauty to be beheld. Thus the amateurs sought provisions for their lustful lives even in the religious canons. It was the nature of an Arab, though he was pure at heart pious and God fearing» that whenever he happened to see a woman he was moved by her beauty, developed pass ionate love for her and talked about her assuming her to be one of the signs of Allah who has blessed her with a pretty face and adorned her with perfect beauty which manifests His glory and sublimity. As the pilgrims are instructed to refrain from abuse, lewdness or hostile argument, these poets defended themselves by putting forward the above mentioned arguments. Thus the ]|laj became for them a season of love-adventures. Most of the pleasure - seeking lovers cum poets used to come for HaJ not only from religious point of view but also to find an opportunity of having a glance at the beautiful faces. For instance, the great *Umarite love poet 'Umar b. Abl Rabi'ah was the frequent visitor during the Haj season. After reaching the gatherings of the pilgrims he used to -181- throw a glance around himself. And when he chanced to see a beautiful woman he began to talk about her and her charms In his verses. The following verses were composed by him at the time of Haj when he saw a beautiful lady with her friends walking between al-Ma^im and al-Hajar» 304 yi>iv ^4L/\S>(^. llii U)9^L^l^.^ It was the Haj season in which mostly this great love poet •Uraar came into contact with most of his beloveds and he composed beautiful love-poems about them* It is accepted by all that he used to come for Haj only for the sake of these lovely ladies. Due to this he had desired that the Haj season must occur again and again so that he might be able to have a glance at his beloveds. Kudamah b. Musa has narrated: once he^ with his sister Zaynab, was going for *Umrah, When he was at Sarar he happened to meet *umar b. Abi Rabi'ah going on his horse. After the exchange of salu tation Kudamah asked him where he was going. He replied t I am told of a lady of my people* who has surpassed others in beauty. So I want to converse with her. 304. Abu'l-Faraj al-l?fahanl t Kitab al-AqhanI, Vol. I, P. 169; Dlwin, p. 136 " ''\:^)J^\^ " "In the night I saw her and her compaiiions walking between Maljam-e-Ibrihlm and Hajre-Aswad (the Black stone). They were fair, tender and gentle. They were walking disdainfully like a wild cow*. 305, A place ten miles away from Makkah, -182- Kudamah said to himt Do you not know that she is nty sister? He replied in the negative and feeling ashamed turned his horse back and vrent away to Makkah. It is the same Zaynab about whom he has composed the following versest ^ 3 07 (3Uv-^0^JUi^^>^r^ J^oVe^-Cvi/'e^NO'lo^^ During the Haj season *Umar b, Abi Rabl*ah saw a lady from 'Irak. Her beauty bewitched him and as was his usual habit, he followed her. Finally a conversation took place between the two. He proposed her marriage which she accepted on the condition that he should go to her city with her and ask her hand fxt>ro her family. He agreed and he stayed at her city in 'Irak for one day but he did not get any favourable response from her in spite of his re peated reminders of her promise. It became clear to him that the lady never intended to marry him but only to have his companionship in her return journey, to enjoy his love- 306, Abu'l-FaraJ al-Isfahanl^ Kitab al-Aqhani, Vol. 1, p, 104; 9assan, Abu-Rahab t Al-Gljazal ind al-'Arab, p. 23. 307. Abu'l-Faraj al-I^fahanl: Kitab al-Aghanl, Vol. I, p. 103; Hagsan, Abu Rahibi Al-GJiazal »indal-'Arabt p. 23; Diwan, p. 280, "0, my friends! Keep me away from blames and in the morning pay a short visit to (those) women in camel-sedans (then you) yourselves will be in the same condition as mine. Do not reproof me about the people of Zaynab because ray heart is pawned as captive with them." -183- poems and to get a place in his heart. Her intention was only to get fame of her beauty and elegance among the people through his love poems. So she made excuses that she was the widow of her cousin who had taken promise from her not to marry again, she sent him five thousand Dirhams which 'Umar returned. He came back to Makkah sighing over her separation with the grief that he failed 308 in marrying her. After this incident he composed a very famous Ghazal with the opening verset 2 09 ^'W^^XJ.cy '>'\ Jj,^^\, Many other great poets also used to roam on the way to the Haj and meet many beautiful ladies about whom they composed Ghazals. Dhu'l-Rummah had saidt •Abdullah b. »Utnar al-»Umarl had narratedt Once I went for HaJ and saw a beautiful lady who was talking loosely. I took my she-camel near to her then said to hen 3 08. Abu•!-Paraj al-lsfahani» Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. 1, pp. 170-171. ^ 309. Hassan, Abu Rahibt Al-Ghazal'ind al-'Arab, p. 24, *My friend has slept and I am not sleeping due to the feelings which has grieved me". 310. Hassan, Abu Rahab: Al-Ghazal'ind al-*Arab, p. 25, "Completeness of Haj is that the riding beasts stop at Kharlj:a' near the Pretty women not wearing the veil"; Kharka' is a place in the way to HaJ» "XSkut al-HamawT» Mu'jamal-Buldin Vol. II, p. 360. -184- Are you not afraid of Allah? She removed the veil from her face, the beauty of which dazzled the sun. She aaldt O, my uncle i It Is me about vhom al 'Arjl had saldi \J,- ' « ^ I /> It was the fashion of the day that the women used 312 to sit near the holy moaque of Makkah and talk about the poets and their poetry. Once when one of them cursed Jamil for composing love poems on women pilgrims another lady said I No, but Allah might have killed Kuthayyir 'Azzah when he had saidt 313 The third lady sald« Allah might have killed Nusayb when he had seddt 311. Hassan, Abu Rahabt Al-Ghazal 'ind al-'Arab, p. 25; jabbur, J.S. t'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah, Vol. I, p. 107; But Jabbur has given the name of the narrator as •Ubayd-Allah b. 'Umar al-'Umrij Dlwan, p. 74; (For Translation please see on Page No. 140, Ref. No. 262). 312. f \/Vj.^^f 313. Hassan, Abu Rahab : Al-Ghazal 'ind al-*Arab, p.26, "They appeared to us between the hills of Marwah and Safa walking like the swinging motion of the clouds on the pebby land. By Allah they were about to create a tumult for a repgnting man who was very humble due to the fear of Allah. •• -185- This event is also narrated by Yakut al-Haraawi 315 with the reference of Nusayb. . Not only did the women pilgrims hear about and discuss the poets and their poetry, they also liked to be mentioned in the Ghazals of these poets. These ladies wished to be loved by the poets and to be addressed by them even at the occasion of the HaJ and 'Umrah. It was- so because at that time paganism was again returning to the Society, Most of the (ghazals of this period were composed during the holy season of 'Haj, due to which one can not hesitate to conclude that the youths of the time used to come for Haj with the only intention to meet the young beautiful ladies. The same was the case with the young ladies. It is narrated that some of them became angry when poets did not mention their names and did not celebrate their charms in their (ibazals. Once the daughter of caliph 'Abdal-Malik came for Haj and •Uraar was warned by the Governor, HajjaJ b, YUsuf not to compose poems on her. So he refrained from it 314, Ibid, p, 26, "I am reproached for Layla and for the the sanctity which is between the place of Ibrahim and the curtains of Ka'bah. If I had the power about her, I would have alienated myself from Layla whether it was the day of shaving (in Haj) or of Immolation," 315, Yakut al-HamawI» Mu'Jam al-Bu]dan, Vol, V, pp. 116-117, -186- though she wished for it. When she completed her Haj she happened to meet a man in the way and asTced himj From where are you? He said t I am £rom hiakkah. She saidj curse be upon you and your city's people. He enquired I Why? She told s I came for Haj and entered Makkah with my beautiful maids match of whom you would have not seen. But 'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah has not provided us with his poems to be enjoyed with them in our journey. He saidt I have found him doing nothing except this. she saidt Bring something if he has said. You will get ten dinars for each couplet. He went to 'Umar and narrated the whole story, 'Umar saidt I have done. But I want you to keep it a secret. Then 'Umar recited two c^azals which were recited by that •a < g man to her and she gave him what she had promised him. Ill, Arab's fondness of the ^azali Arabs loved Gt^azal by their soul and heart since very early days. The Gt^azal remained developing in every period till it reached its highest peak in the Uhiayyad 316. Jabbur, J.S. t 'Umar b. Abl Habl'ah, Vol. I, p. HI. -187- reglme. It continued to be composed in the 'Abbasid period but it was not so rich and developed as that of the Umayyads, Actually the poets did not stop composing it in any age. In every age the poet got opportunities suitable for expressing his passion. And the people were always inclined to hear his poems and admire him. In the pre-Islamic period a Kasidah was never free from Ghazal even if it was an elegy while they both are contradictory in nature to each other. Mostly the Ghazal consists of joy, pleasure and entertainment. It reflects the cheerful heart and mind of the poet. Contrary to this an elegy is distinguished by the depth of grief and lamentation. It presents the picture of the poet's mood in sorrow and his lamentation. In spite of this the poets started the poems of all types, even an elegy with amatory prelude as the Arabs never considered a poem good which did not have Ghazal or Nftslb in the beginning. According to Ibn Kutaybah its reason was the incentive impulse which 1ns- 317 pired the Arabs to follow this traditional model. We find that the poet starts even a satire with ^azal bec ause a Qhazal reaches the ears, appeals to the hearts and brings solace to the mind, after which the poet starts a harsh, abusing and filthy satire. 317. Hassan, Abu Rahab i Al-tghjazal 'ind al-*Arab, p. 67. -188- 'All b. Yahya al-Munjim had said: I heard the narrators saying that the best of the people who composed Kasidah in the pre-Islamic period was Inuru'al- Kays when he had saldj 318 J ^j *.--*x>(J^>Ci>Oc*V^\i^ Not only the earlier poets but the poets of later periods early Islamic period and some poets of the Umayyad period had adopted the same trend of Ghazal i.e. the lamenting on the traces of the beloved's encampments/ and considered it as the criteria of good poetry. It is said that once at the time of hunting poet yazid b. Dabbah was with Walld. He recited to him an excellent eulogy but it was not started with Nasib, So Walid ordered the poet to write the TasJiblb first 31Q and then to sing it. The poet carried out his order. In the Umayyad period all the moral obstructions and prohibitions were detached from the life of an individual. The effect of it is evident in the poetry composed in this period. So the poets again returned to their paternal subjects like wine, love, slanderous satire, false praise in eulogy. They separated the <2isizal from 318. Ibid. P. 67. 319. Abu'l-Paraj al-lsfahanit Kitab al-AqhanI, Vol. VII, PP. 97-100; Hassan Abu Rahab: Al-Ghazal 'ind al-*Arab, p. 68, -189- the olden Kasldah and gave it the position of an Independent genre in Arabic literature, Ghazal took a new turn during this period. At the court of Damascus nobody cared whether the author of a fine verse was a Muslim or a christian. The poets were leaders of public opinion; their utterances took the place of political pamphlets or of party oratory for or against the government of the day. Nicholson^ R.A. cites an example: "On hearing Akhtal's ode in praise of the Umayyad dynasty 'Abd al-Malik ordered one of his clients to conduct the author through the streets of Damascus and to cry out, "Here is the poet of the commander of the Paithfull Here is the best poet of the Arab si** The Arabs' love for Ghazal reached such a limit that they honoured and considered superior and excellent a person who had composed GJiazal or Nasib. However, the scholars do not agree on the point as to who was the best love poet during this period. The Arabs were so great 3 20, Nicholson, R.A. » A Literary History of the Arabs, P, 242, -190- lovers of the Ghazal that they m®norized its verses hurridely and sang it in every assembly. They used to repeat the incidents mentioned in it and discuss them there. It was not the case with the male Arabs only. The Arab ladies also had the same love for the Gjjazal. The Ghazal was the main source to bring fame for a lady because as is stated earlier, the Ghazal is a poem which narrates all the qualities, beauties and dignities of a lady. It is by nature that the people love to be praised. But this feeling is found more abundantly among the women. An Arab lady hears the verses of Ghazal with interest being led by her habits, breedings and her surroundings in which she is brought up. These verses touch her heart and influence her sentiments and she derives pleasure from it. For this purpose she had to use all the means. She never concealed herself but kept her bright face unveiled. She never stayed in her house. She used to journey or roam from one place to another. She was frequent pilgrim for Haj where she could meet the poets who could talk about her beauty. She used to stay at the places of excursion and amusements. She never hesitated to send for a love-poet to hear him reciting his verses which gave pleasure to her heart with the feelings of passion and it was the climax of her life. -191- 'A'iahah bint Talhetihad defended her unveiling by saying: Allah, the most blessed excellent, has blessed me with the stamp of beauty to which I want the people to look and recognize my superiority to them. Why should I veil while by Allah I have no 321 blemish to be told by anyone: The same 'A'ishah bint Talhah, after she was" widowed, used to stay one year at Makkah and one year at Madinah, she used to go to Ta'if where she possessed a rich property and a palace. She used to make excursion there to have entertainment and to hear al-Numayri 3 22 reciting mostly the verses of <2hazal. Hind and Rabab once went to *Akik with the same purpose. When both were talking^ Khalid al-Kasri came to them. They asked him to bring 'Umar b, Abi Rabi'ah who after coming recited to them his verses of the gt^azal till 3 23 the evening. The Arab ladies used to instigate the poet by different ways till they succeeded in getting his favour 3 21. Abu'l-Paraj al-Isfahani: Kitab al-Aghani, Vol. XI, p. 165. ' "^ 322. Ibid. Vol. XI, P. 179. 323. Hassan, Abu Rahab i Al-$tlazal Ind al-'Arab, p. 71. -192- and he became ready to compose Ghazals about them and make them popular by reciting them among the people. •Umm al-BanIn, daughter of 'Abd al- * Aziz b. Marwan and wife of Walld b, 'Abd al-Malik, once at the time of Haj sent for Kuthayyir and Waddah al-Yemen to compose Nasib on her, Kuthayyir being afraid of her dignified position did not do so and composed Ghazal about her maid servant, while Waddah said Nasib on her and lost his life. Once 'Atikah, daughter of Mu'awiyah, went to perform yaj. When she was at Tuwa in Makkah she discontinued her journey and due to the increasing heat unvieled her face. At the same moment Abu - Dahbal# a famous love poet, passed by her and .was spell-bourdby her beauty. He stayed there looking at her for a long period and she was not aware of this. He wrote a Ghazal in her praise which was sung by the bards. When 'Atikah heard these verses she was 325 surprised and sent a robe to the poet as a gift. Due to their love for Ghazal Arab ladies loved the poets also. They used to lament on the death of a love poet because his death was a great loss for them. This loss was nothing but loss of Ghazal in which he used to 3 24, Abu»l-Paraj al-Isfahani : Kitab al-Aghani, Vol, VI, P, 206, ' "" 3 25, Hassan, Abu Rahab : Al-Ghazal 'ind al-'Arab, p, 72, -193- describe her dignities and glorify her qualities and beauty, which was sung by the singers. When 'Umar b. Abi Rabl'ah died the Makka^ ladies lamented and wept very much for him. One of them said : who will laud the women of Makkah for their beauty? She was told» Glad tidings for you that one youth from the sons of •Uthman, Allah might be pleased with him, known as al-*ArjI has grown up. He will take the place of 'Umar and will follow his path. She said I sing some of his verses. They sang some verses. Hearing them she wiped her eyes and said laughing: All the praises are for Allah who has not destroyed his ('Ulnar's) reputation, Kutljayyir and 'Ikramah, client of Ibn 'Abbas passed away on the one and the same day. It is said that all the Kuray§hites gathered in the funeral of Kuthavyir and no one was found to take the corpse of f^, u 3 27 •^Ikramah, 3 26. tiassanj^ Abu RaljabJ Al-<2^azal 'ind al-^Arab, p. 73; Al-Suyu^I t gharaji Shawahid al-Mughanni, P. 520; Dlwan al-'ArjT, p.4. 327. 9assan, Abu Rahab: Al-^azal 'ind al-'Arab, p. 73; Ibn Sallam al-Jumat?I s Tab^jat al-§hu'ara', p. 124; 'Ikramah al-Barbari (64§-723 Ad.) a great scholar of Tafslr. When the love-Poet Kutliayyir and 'Ikramah died on the same day it is said:-.\^}^5^^t;i|> Xc^ ^\^ (Al-A'lam/ Vol. V.pp. 43-44). ^ Y -194- When Majnun bani 'Amir died it is saidx None of the young ladies from BanI Ja'adah and BanI al-Harlsh was left from coming out crying and lamenting with grief on him and the youngmen of the tribe gathered weeping for him. Layla and her father also accompanied than weeping bitterly for Majnun and Layla's father was repentant for not marrying his daughter to him. It is narrated that wee ping men and women never in future gathered 3 28 in more numbers than that day. The same was the condition of women when Jamil said farewell to this world. There are instances proving that the verses of Ghazal were recited in the mosques and learned scholars of tradition and jurisprudence used to hear and enjoy them. For example, once 'Abdullah b. 'Abbas was in the Holy Mosque of MakXah^Nafe b. 'Azra^c accompanied by some people of the KJjawarji was also with him and was asking him questions. At the same time 'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah came there, Ibn 'Abbas asked him to recite some verses of Ghazal. 'Umar recited the Ghazal opening with the following versei 328. Abu'l-Faraj_al-l9fahanI : Kitab al-AghanI, Vol. II# p. 74; I^ssan, Abu Rahab t Al-Ghazal 'ind al-'Arab, p. 74. -195- when 'Umar completed his Ghjazal Nafe^ b, 'AzraH came forward and complained to him that instead of giving answers to the questions related to religion, he took 330 interest in hearing the Ghazal. The Arabs* love for Ghazal had no limit. The kings, diplomats and governors etc. considered it to be a 'touchstone* of civilization and good breeding for the people. They used to ask the scholars to narrate it to their children till they became able to understand it and feel its sentiments. We get very few instances when the kings and the scholars did not have love for Gliazal. ^V. Literary Salons: The literary salons were arranged in the annual fairs held at different places in Arabia. These annual fairs are called the Aswak, meaning the markets. The regular markets were already in existence among the Arabs before the advent of Islam. These Aswa^: al-'Arab were 329. Diwan, p. 84, "Do you come from the people of Nu*m early in the morning or do you leave at noon?" 330. Hassan, Abu Rahab: Al-GJiazal 'ind al-'Arab, pp. 75-76; jabbur, J.S. t 'Umar b. Abl Rabl'ah, Vol. 1, p. 155. -196- the places where the Arabs used to gather with the competitive sense in trade, bravery, as well as in literature. Among them orators used to give sermons. The literary men, especially the poets and singers used to come there to show their genius and talent. To satisfy their intense fervour for poetry the men and women used to assemble there.This practice continued even after the rise of Isl5m, These literary salons are also known as the Aswak al-Adab which were arranged in towns. In the pre- Islamic period the famous literary salons were Suk al- •Ukaz, Suk al-Majanna and Dhu* 1 Majaz. It is mentioned in the literary history that Suk al-'Uka? used to be - 331 arranged even after Islam till the year 129 A.H, It is also proved that it is this Suk al-*Ukaz where the Prophet (peace be upon him) called the Arabs to the new religion in response to which the Prophet's uncle Abu Lahab b, 'Abd al- -Muttalib said : 0, the people ! he is the son of my brother but beware of him as he is a great liar. 332 These literary salons for the Arabs were the seasonal gathering places where the people from every corner of the country used to come. There the poets 331. liiiafajl, Mu]iammad_'Abd__al-Mun'imi Al-Hayat al-Adbiyah, p. 89; Hassan, Abu Rafjab t Al-SUazal 'ind al-*Arab, p. 27; The Umayyad Caliphate ended in 132 A.H, 3 3 2. sa'eed al-AfghanI x Aswak al-'Arab, pp, 3 25-3^6, -19 7- composed poems and the competition used to be held. Everyone of them tried his best to come at the top of all the competi tors. Besides this, these Aswak also provided opportunity of meetings of men and women. Such meetings were never considered objectionable in their society. The poems composed by women were heard with the same enthusiasm with which the poems of men were heard, Al-Kbansa*/ a great elegiac poetess, had recited her verses at 'Ukaz in the presence of famous poets like Nabighah al-ZubyanI, Al-A'sha 333 '^ and i;Jassan b, 'Jhabit, It was so because an Arab lady also had the taste for literature and love for poetry, Arab women made the same contributions to literature as did Arab men. These literary salons had the same place among the basic factors of the development of Ghazal as the Haj, meadows and places of water. As a result of meetings in these salons sentiments of their hearts were stirred arvd they fell in love with each other. The poet, male or female, used to express sentimental feelings of love in Ghazals which became famous. Sometimes these Ghazals described the beauty and other qualities of the beloved, sometimes they narrated the conversation between the two, 333, Ibid, PP, 315-316. -198- sometimes cheerful feelings of meeting each other were depicted/ sometimes miseries owing to separation were expressed and sometimes lustful talks of the beloveds and their haughtiness were reflected. In the Umayyad period Marbad was a famous market place in Basrah. In the beginning it was a market of camels. Later on,it acquired the position of a literary salon of the people of 'IrSk, So the poets used to gather there to reveal their genius and talent. The importance of al-Marbad in this period was the same as that of al-'Ukaz in the pre-Islamic period. Therefore, it was called by the name of 'Ukaz al-Islam. But there was some difference between the two. 'Ukaz was situated in the centre of the Arabian peninsula. Hence the people who used to gather there were pure noblemen from Arabia. Not a single non- Arab carae there. Contrary to this,al-Marbad was situated near the Persian Gulf, So the influence of Persia was quite pronounced on the literature produced there and the non-Arab poets and literary men used to come there side by side with the eloquent Arabs. Marbad was an exhibition place for every tribe. Every poet used to come here with his own circle of the people. One poet used to recite the poem while the other used to reply it. And the people of their respective circle used to narrate them later on to the public, Ahmad Amin is of the opinions -199- Al-Marbad was the centre of lampooning between Jarlr, al-Farzadak and al-Akhtal# as a result of which the great polemic poetry came into existence and is known as al-Naka'id. Al-Kali in his book al-Amali has cited these two verses which Majnun had recited at Marbad: J,S, Jabbur has narrated from some one that he had seen Dhu'1-Rummah at Marbad, The poet among his groupmen was standing and he was reciting the famous poem opening with " v__^vJ^luj>\j^^N\a^ciL^.«*£.c3V>I<7' and tears were flowing from his eyes over his beard. Along with many other poets 'Umar b, Abi Rabl'ah, paid frequent visits to Mart>ad and there he composed and recited many artistic love poems. The fame gained by 334. Amin^ Ahmadx Duhal - Islam, Vol. II, p. 80. 33 5. Abu'l Faraj al-Isfahani: Kitab al-Aghani, Vol.11, p. 63£ Diwan, p. 93; Al-Kall, Abu-«Ali: Kitab al-Amali, Vol. II, P. 126/ In the last two books there is slight change of one word in the f4.rst line of the second verse : „v»-?'.\ . ..x fw* In Dlwan it reads asj In Amall it reads as: "0, the riders from Yemaiin i halt near us because my love is for Yemanites. I am asking you whether the people of Na'man valley asked you about the love of Na'man for us after our departure". 336. Jabbur, J.S. : 'Umar b. Abl Rabl'ah, Vol, I, P. 161. -200- 337 al-Kunasah at Kufah was equal to that of al-Marbad, The importance which is given to Delhi and Lucknow for the development of Urdu literature was given to Basrah and al-Kufah for the development of Arabic literature at that time. The greater part of Arabic literature is the production of these two famous seats of learning. Under the patronage of the Utnayyad caliphs these two cities became so important that people from distant places used to come to see them and to take part in the literary activities which took place there, P.K. Hitti says : "As the two sister cities of al-Hijaz, Makkah and al-Madinah became under the Umayyads the home of music and song, love and poetry, so did the twin cities of al-*Iraq# al-Basrah and al-Kufah, develop during this period into centres of the most animated intellectual 338 activity in the Moslem World". Among the love poets who distinguished themselves in these meetings were Al-Ahwas# al-'ArjI, Ibn Khalid, Waddah al-Yeman, Nusayb, Jamil, but the poet who towared above them all and rose like a lofty mountain on the horizon was 'Ulnar b, Abi Rabi'ah. 33 7. 9ayf/ Dr. ShawTjI: Al-Tatawvnar wa al-Tajdld fil Shi'r al- al-UmawI P. 81. 338. Hitti, P.K. t History of the Arabs, P. 241,Spellings are verbatim. -201- There were other gatherings besides Haj and Aswak as the rulers, governors, officials were also fond of poetry. So the ladies used to come to these meetings held for the recitation of poems. Dr. Taha Husayn is of the opinion* These gatherings were never devoid of ladies and they always participated in them. They used to arrange meetings in the wine shops, monasteries and in the houses of emirs and ministers. There they used to argue and 339 gratify their senses. There were literary salons for ladies also like those of man. These literary meetings or salons for the ladies were in no way inferior to those held by men so far as the merits of the recitation of poems and their under standing were concerned. In these meetings the ladies used to gather and did not hesitate to narrate all that which happened between them and their lovers. These narrations were nothing but talking about the meeting and separation, mere talk with the lover, or vigilance of the reprovers. They had a discussion among themselves about the poets composing Ghazals. As the ladies were allowed 339. Husayn, Dr. faha : Haditli al-'Arbi'a*, Vol. II, P. 32. -202- to join the gatherings of men in the same way these meetings of ladies were not banned for men. The reason might be assumed that both men and women found pleasure in the company of each other. When the ladies found a man with the poetic talent especially a love-poet, their attachment with him became intense as was the case with men when they came in contact with a charming beauty. Both men and women were delighted in the talk of love and passion. Hind the daughter of al-tlaritji al-Murriya, and her friends desired that 'Utnar b, Abi Rabl'ah should attend their gathering (or meeting) and recite his Ghazal for them. They sent IChalid al-KhirrIt to him, who instigated 'Umar to pay a visit to those ladies who excelled in beauty and elegance. He requested him to come in disguise as a Bedouin. •Umar came to those ladies as a Bedouin and after salutation recited the verses of Kutiiayyir, al-Ahwas, Jamil and Nusayb etc. They became angry with him and asked him to go back. Then 'Umar recited his own verses hearing which the ladies became happy and showed by their behaviour that they had recognized him. Hind pulled down his turban and said to him» -203- I have found you cheating us today. But we have cheated you through Khalid whom we had asked to bring you here in disguise. In this meeting 'Umar recited a Ghazal which opens with 3 40 the following verse. There are so many instances of the female gatherings. Whenever the ladies desired to hear a poet reciting poems or a bard singing love-poems for them, they sent for th«n through their slaves or friends. Only that female gathering Was considered to be successful in which there was a poet to compose or recite love-poems. The great author Flassan Abu Rahab has cited a quotation of Dr. Ahmad Dayf: The ladies exercised great influence in these meetings. The people thought it an honour to attend these meetings and they liked them. The literary scholars always gave preference to be present in those meetings which had 342 great effect on their moral. 340. Abu'l Faraj al-Isfahanlj Kitab al-AghinI, Vol. I, pp. 173-174. ' " 3 41. Dlwan, P. I69, "Have you not asked the abodes where they stayed in the spring__season at the place of Hullayat tin the way to Ta'if) and which are effaced and became desolated place?" 3 42. Hassan, Abu Rahab: Al-Ghazal *ind al-»Arab, P. 37. -204- These literary salons or meetings were the places where the poet used to sing the poems full of boastings whether of tribal solidarity or of love affairs like their pagan predecessors. Ibn Habib in his Kitab al-Mul>abbar has included the name of Hajjaj b, Yxisuf al-ThakafI among the eight names of the men who organized the literary 3 43 meetings. Dr. 'Umar Farrukh has also accepted it. He says; ^jjaj used to organize the literary meetings in the same manner as the Umayyad caliphs used t^o doA .34 4 Thus these annual fairs, or Aswak or literary meetings were a kind of forums in which poetic tournaments were held and the poets showed their skills. These literary meetings were the part and parcel of the Umayyad society. The importance of these literary meetings of the Umayyad age was similar to that of pagan social gatherings which the Arab tribes used to hold occasionally but those were not to be compared with the literary 'salons' in the Umayyad age. The latter were the achievements of a wealthy and well bred society living in riches, security and 3 43. Ibn tlablbi Kitab al-Muhabbar, P. 263. 3 44. 'Umar Parrukh, Dr. i Al-Hajjaj b. YUsuf al-Tha%:afI, p. 20, -205- laziness. In these salons highly educated men and women and well instructed slaves used to meet, converse, discuss literary subjects or listen to poets and singers or to recitors who narrated stories of love and adventures. In these salons the young aristocrats of Hijaz acquired a fair part of their literary culture. V. Manifestations of Luxury; It is a striking fact that in general the tone of life in Damascus in the Umayyad era was not greatly differ ent from what it is today. The closeness of the Umayyad period to the "barbarian" age, its many wars, and the unsettled social and economic conditions of the Muslim world, though, all militated against the possibility of intellectual development yet the seed was then sown and the tree of knowledge had its roots firm in the soil in that period. Its fruits were enjoyed by its descendant dynasty i.e. the 'Abbasids. Poetry and music flourished in the court of Damascus, though music was considered as diver sion forbidden by the Prophet (peace be upon him) by conservative Muslims who linked music and song with wine- drinking and gambling. Undoubtedly under the Utnayyads the greatest measure of intellectual progress was achieved in the field of poetical composition. The stern period of -206- conquests during the early Islamic days had inspired no poet in a nation of poets but with the accession of the worldly Umayyads the old connection between wine, song and poetry were re-established. For the first time the poet of love makes his full appearance in Arabic, Indulgence in luxury was rife owing to increased wealth and the super abundance of slaves. Undoubtedly Gj^azal is one of the great fine arts. It brings a shining colour of joy and happiness in the life. The hearts are most inclined to it when they are free of anxieties of life and calamities of time. Thus Ghazal is the sentimental product of the exited hearts full of joyful feelings. The happy and gay life has bonds of love with poetry i,e, Ghazal, There was a group of people for whom Ghazal was one of the instruments of luxury or pleasure. On the other hand there were some people who neither liked love poets nor love poems. With all their power and intellect they criticised both. It was so because they did not recognise it, they did not reach its high flight of imagination and they had not tasted what was in it. If by any means they reached it they considered it just amus«nent and expression of madness. -207- Regarding the values of these factors from the view of influence on the poet or on the people we can say that we see in the shape of beautiful Ghazal the influence of the poet's mind and heart when he is happy and pure at his heart and mind. Due to this he becomes capable of producing a pure, original, beautiful and skillful collection of Glj,azals adorned with sweet words and effective feelings. The people desire to derive fame and happiness through the poet's production which satisfied their sentiments. Thus we find even today a relation between the poet, his readers and his listeners These readers and listeners give preference to the excellence found in the poetical wealth by which literature becomes rich and by which people get pleasure as it is indicated by the anecdotes of the Gjjazal of which the literary books are full and which are narrated by generation after generation. It is a natural phenomenon of a human being that whenever he becomes prosperous, he begins to think of enjoying himself and polishing his emotions and sentiments. In the same way whenever he becomes powerful which brings peace and security to him he begins to think how to have entertainments for himself. He gets the opportunity and time to compose the Qliazal in which he finds nourishment -208- for his heart and mind. The saine was the condition in the Umayyad period. There was influx of wealth due to conquests and the political stability. So the QJjazal found a suitable atmosphere and fertile ground for its growth. Thus the manifestation of luxury was the main factor in its develop ment, of which are the following main sourcesi (a) Youth, (b) The slave girls, and,(c) Al-Ghina' a. Youthi Youth is a stage of maturity. It brings a great change in the life of an individual. It changes his atti tude towards life and society and he begins to establish his place in the social life. Prom the accompanying changes there emanate personal conceit and the forceful self- perception or love for pleasure, A young man only looks at himself and talks about himself and takes pleasure in self awareness and self importance. There are so many stories which reflect this attitude of the youths of the Umayyads. In the same way the love of childhood changes into strong passion whether it is for the people of the same sex or for the opposite sex, side by side in this stage of maturity he develops the taste for music and poetry, chivalry and adventures. It is worth noting that the Arabs were fond of seeing the qualities of good repute, self-respect, protec- -209- tion of the neighbour and freedom accompanied with 345 chivalry in their youths. These qualities are the main basis of a successful social and spiritual life, on which depends the acquisition of the Ghazal, Al-Tabrezi has admitted that the love of woman and passion for her 346 was the spirit of soldiership. Due to this we find many soldiery words used by the poets in their love 347 poems. The love-poets take their love affairs as a fight sometimes with the beloved and sometimes with her people. For the Arabs from the very beginning spiritual love and sensual pleasure were inter-mingled. Love without satisfaction of senses was no love. Their love was thus closely connected with the youth, Islam attached great importance to chastity even in love. The Prophet (peace be upon him) has saidt "One who loves and remains chaste and 3 48 then dies he dies as martyr." So the lovers were divided into two groups i licentious people known as "Umarites" and chaste people known as 'Ughrites',, 3 45, 'Abd al-Lat3^f §]aararahj Falsafah al-Hubb 'ind al-'Arab, P, 123. 346, Ibid, 128, 3 47. aj5Ul\^Ja^\ (The Murderous look), J^la$^\ (The arrow) ,<>^V (The bow), ^^^V (The danger) ,^t>*iV( The enemy), 4y2 Not only the young males but the young women of the Umayyad period also played a prominent part in the refined society of the 'Arabs as the greatest enjoyment was the company of the opposite sex. Abu Hazim, a pro minent disciple of the Prophet's companions, went once on a pilgrimage and saw a beautiful woman being admired by a group of pilgrims. He said to heri You are at a holy place. You are fascinating the pilgrims and putting them off their prayer. So you must fear Allah and be pious. Verily Allah has asked in His Book (you women) to conceal yourselves. She replied : I am from those ladies of whom the poet said J Then Abu ^azim said to his companionsi Let us invoke Allah not to punish this beautiful picture with the Hell. So Abu Hazim commenced his invocation 350 while his companions kept saying: Amen; 3 49. The verse is of yirith b. i^tiilid al-MakhdumIt "Remove the silken veil from her bright face and remove the printed upper gaJnnent from her body." It is also in Dlwan of Al-'ArjI (p.74), but the second line reads as :iUW'V>^.t^.rvi\ci^Jii»^V^ ^ 3 50. Al-KayrawanI i Zahrul-Adab, (Al-Mawaznah Bayn al- Shu'ari'), Vol. I, pp. 210-211. -211- Here we have to consider the youth of a poet, a man of letters, and a nation. As far as a poet is conceimed, till he is a youngman of good health and zeal he can utilise all the sources of composing poetry. So he fully dedicates himself to entertain the people by his poetry which is the best interpreter of all types of his life life full of smiles and mirth; life full of beauty, sweetness and purity; life full of love and passion. This picture of his life tells us about his inflamatory sentimental fee lings. He presents himself in his poetry as he is in his real youth happy, smiling, singing and dancing. He puts his spirit and heart in his poetry. Due to this his Ghazal has become in the poetry of this period a pleasing picture full of power, novelties, art and beauty. Thus the youth of the poet contributes very much in producing the love poems. When he reaches the old age, the prolonged calamities of life bend his back and the life becomes a distressed anguish for him. Now, being old, he renounces the manifestations of young life, especially its vanities and amusements. Now Gljazal is not suitable for him nor the love which was earlier the main theme of his Ghazal, When the great love poet Kuthayyir was asked the reason of his not composing poems, 351 he attributed its cause to the disappearance of his youth, 3 51, Reference ^fo.*'291, Page No. 169 of the thesis. -212- When a literary man is young and in the bloom of his youth, he accepts every thing which is fascinating and beautiful, which kindles his feelings and touches his heart. He finds all these in the verses of Ghazal. That is why he studies and teaches the Ghazal. He acquires its words with its meaning to quench his thirst for it. Poets are encouraged when they find people who can understand their verses and dive deep to fetch out their concealed meanings full of profound emotional appeal. This the reason why scholars and critics evaluate a work of art. By these evaluations and criticism the poetry of the poets becomes known to every one at every place. Every tongue recites it and it affects every heart. That is why the poets are considered magicians and their Ghazal is held in great demand. As far as the youth of nation is concerned, it has great influential power. A great source is provided for it from the glorious factors of the blessings of life. It is this condition under which people live and grow up and it fulfils their hopes. They find in it possibilities and opportunities in abundance to be happy and joyful. The love poets particularly find in this condition what gives strength to their poetic art, polishes their passion and stirs their sentiments. It inspires them to tell the -213- people what is beautiful, what is sweet melody/ and what is charming and seducing. It makes their life very fine, skillful and active. When the youth of the poets, the youth of the literarymen whether from among the readers or hearers —— and the youth of the nation are mingled in one, the verses out of the poetical production become more powerful and surprisingly beautiful. These verses are known as Ghazal, Thus the Qhazal is the most powerful and effective poe tical expression of the youth. It is crystal clear that during the Umayyad period the Arab nation was in its prime of youth. The art of Ghjazal was so developed in this period as none of the poetical arts in any period has ever developed. (b) The Slave Girls t Slavery remained an essential part of the social structure during the Umayyad period. Slavery arises from war and conquest. When there was no war for the supply of slaves fresh sources as piracy and kidnapping were traced. At first man simply killed his victims and sometimes ate them. But when he adopted a settled way of life he found it more useful to spare their lives and enslave them, thus -214- freeing himself from the burden of regular work. Female slaves became a source of pleasure. It is the nature of an Arab to love a woman. The love for any other thing was not equal to this love. The female slavery was known to the Arabs even before Islam, Female slaves were used as singers, dancers and concubines. The maidens among the slaves continued to occupy the same position even after the advent of Islam, Some of them exerted appreciable influence over their caliph masters. We study much about these slave- girls in the Arabic literature. They had acquired a place of great importance during every period in creating atmosphere and conditions conducive to the creation of great literature. They used to sing with elegance in soft and beautiful voice/ especially the verses from the Ghazal, Dr. Taha Husayn has said about such women: They were well educated, authority on poetry, good reciters, good in music and they excelled in it. They had acquired the knowledge of all the types of litera ture famous at that time. They stood firmly in the discussions with the poets, learned scholars and experts of language. -215- Due to this they were distinguished and given preference on the chaste and noble ladies because their chastity and nobility became obstruction between them and conversation with the men," 352 Numerous instances of love of such maidens are recorded in the writings of the Arabs. Caliph Yazld b. 'Abd al-Malik had a very pretty - 353 slave girl named FJabbabah, He loved her very much. He used to shut himself with her neglecting the affairs of the state and enjoyed wine, her song and dance. On one such occasion the maid girl, Habbabah, was choked by one of the pomegranate's grains and died on the spot. The Caliph was so shocked by this accident that in no case he was ready to quit her corpse. When the corpse began to disintegrate, on the request of his attendants the caliph became ready for its burial. But after only five days his love for the dead girl induced him to open her grave. On the earnest request of his brother, Muslimah, he permitted closure of the grave. But he was so distressed with her death that he remained on bed lingering speechless for 3 52, Husayn, Dr. Taha; Hadith al-*Arbi'a', Vol. II, P, 104. 3 53, Ibn ^Ch^ldun : Tirikh, Vol. Ill, P. 178, -216- seventeen nights and afterwards he expired and was buried by the side of his beloved maid servant. 354 It is the same Habbabah who was famous for her singing. She through her singing had made famous the love poems of many love poets. It was she about whom many love poets had composed Ghazals. For instance, Waddah al-Yeman had said about her before she was purchased by caliph Yazidi , , , . ,r 355 It is said that the love poet Al-Ahwas sent to Habbabah some verses of his Ghazal to be sung by her in the presence of caliph Yazld. When he heard these verses he enquired about its composer and sent for him and rewarded him generously. 354. Lane, E.W. j_Arabian Society, PP. 208-210; Zaydan, Ibrahim:Nawadir al-'Ughi^alj:, P. 27; Payid al-'UmrusI: Al-Jawarl al-Mughanniyat, P. 107. 355. Abu'l-Paraj al-lsfahani : Kitab al-Ag_hanI, Vol, VI, pp. 216-217; Fayid al •UmrusI t Al-Jawarl al-Muqhanniyat, P. 98, "What has happened to the heart which is not obeying the reproachers nor is improving (from its ailment). Pretty yabbabah has put his heart in trouble with her physical beauty and her coquetry. With the bewitching eyes stained with the collyrium she walks rapturously like a man who drank the mellowed winefA Urdu // \'-,' ^ , j, {'' •, ^ • i 7 poet says: ^ yj^ycr^d/ ^ JU/ ^ A (^ ^/- 356. Fayid al-'UmrusI : Al-Jawarl al-Mughannlyat, P. 100. -217- The sefond maid servant of caliph Yazld b. 'Abd al- Malik was Sallamah who like Habbabah, sang the Ghazal of 3 57 al-Ahwas« Al-Kumyat a well-known poet* was friendly with AlwTs and he was the opponent of the Umayyad, Once he went before caliph Yazld who showed Sallamah to him and asked him whether he had ever seen the beauty like that of her. The poet replied in the negative and said a GJjazal in praise of his opponent's maid servantj The caliph on hearing these verses laughed and ordered 3 59 him to be rewarded. It was not the case only with Yazld but every well- to-do man in that period used to have slave maidens. Most of their masters were in love with them. Some of them 357. Ibid . P. 87. 3 58. Ibid. P. 93, "She is (bright as) the sun of the day in beauty except that she is bestowed with superiority to it in assassinating the wity people. Her skin is tender and she is mellow, coquettish, lean in physique and well shaped. Her coquetry adorns her, her teeth are clean and her talk is like singing and not dry. She has been made (beautiful) beyond imagination. So, 0, the son of 'Abd Manaf I Pay, head to my sayings." 359. Ibid : P. 93, -218- cotnposed love poems for these slave maidens themselves, while others recited the verses from the love poems of the other poets. The masters of these beautiful maidens were so proud of possessing them as a man possessing a huge property feels proud of it. Sometimes the masters permitted them to appear unveiled before their friends and sometimes a curtain was put and they used to sing behind it. There was a large number of these slave maidens. They possessed reasoning power, sharp wit and literary taste» All these qualities possessed by a lady, were enough to instigate and seduce a man. Yet, there was another great quality of these slave maidens, which added to their attraction in the eyes of men. It was their melodious "singing", which being sensitive and delightful for the hearts, was infused in the spirits of the 'Arabs, It is true that the poetry presents a clear picture of the time in which it is composed. So we get innumerable verses of Ghazal related to these slave maidens. In these verses there are the descriptions of their beauty, their coquettish talk and walk, and their embellishment which had induced the sentiments of their lovers and left them completely enchanted. Thus these slave maidens by being the actual inspiration behind the <2bazal had really enriched the literature. -219-' (c) Al-Ghina* t During the early centuries of Islam^ Syria under the Umayyads (661-750) developed itself into a great cultural centre. The music of Arabia was brought into contact with the musical traditions of Syria, Mesopotamia and Persia. This resulted in the cultivation of a new pattern of Arab music. The singing of poetical lyrics in Arabic was retained in the new performance techniques and new musical instruments. All Jihad Racy has saidt "Court affluence and acquaintance with the worldly splendor of conquered empires sti mulated humanistic interests and artistic and intellectual tolerance on the part of the Arab rulers. In a short time court patronage of poets and musicians became common practice, in contrast to the antipathy of some early Muslims towards music and 360 musicians? Al-China' is one of the methods of expression of human emotions of a nation. It interprets the sentiments 3 60. Hamarneh: Genius of Arab Civilization, PP. 121-122. -220- of pleasure or grief and the natural impulses of a human being. The meaning of the word Al-Ghina* is song or singing but it also stands for music as it is accepted by the 'Ikhwan al-Safa', as they say: After a serious study of Al-Ghina' we can say that it is the poem which can be sung on the musical instrument, Al-Mas'udr is of the opinion that al-Ghina' has been developed out of al-Huda« (camel man's chant) which was the original form of poetry ajnong the Arabs and the extracts of which are not available to us. According to al-Mas'udl none of the nations except the Persian and the Greek could be compared to the Arabs in the matter of pleasure seeking 363 and enjoying life. Al-Ghina* like music is closely connected with verses. In fact al-<^na * is the source of all poetry, and the singers have sung these verses according to the rules of Al-Ghina' which have been changing from time to time. 361. Rasa'il lUlwan al-§afa«, Vol. I, PP. 196-197, "Al-Qtjina' is made of_AllTtan (airs or tunes), the Lahn is made of Nagtiroat (musical notes), and_the_ NagJTinat are made of NaljarSt (drumbeats) and I^jjta'at (rhythms)". 3 62. Al-Mas'udI : Murujal-gtiahab, Vol. IV, P. 159. 3 63. Ibid. P. 159. -221- The Arabs were so fond of singing that their ladies even used to sing on the occasion of death also. So, we Can say that probably much of the pre-Islamic poetry was sung by the Arabs but we hardly find any particular poet whose verses were especially sung. The pagan Arabs used to sing and dance whenever they got the opportunity whether it was raining, or victory at battles, or marriage, or the biirth of a child. Pagan al-Huda« was the original form of this type of poetry i.e. melodious song though they have become now extinct. For the Arabs nothing but the poems were the stuff of al-China*, Specially the Ghazal which was supposed to be the interpretor of the sentiments, became the main subject of al-Ghina', The great scholar al-Jahiz says: As far as the pleasing melody in the Gijazal's verses is concerned it is one of the privileges of the women. It is desir able that the verses of Ghazal, Taghblb, love and passion should be sung for the women for whom they have been composed, 364 364. Al-Sandubl, Hasan : Rasa'il al-Jahiz, P, 269. -222- In the beginning the poems of praise, pride and chivalry were the stibject matter of al-Ghina', Parmer, a famous professor of Music has said: "It was the women of the tribes who Joined in the music of the family or tribal festi vities with their instruments, a custom which continued down to the time of Muhammad, whose nuptials with Khadija were "celebrated with great festivity, mirth, music, and dancing". At Uhud (625) the journey of the Quraysh was enlivened by the women led by Hind bint 'Utba singing war-songs and laments for the slain at Badr, and playing their tambourines (Dufuf sing. Duff). At the onset to battle,they were still singing and playing". There were a group of singing girls who became an integral part of social life of Arabia. Singing concerts were very often held in which these singing girls used to sing. About these singing girls al- Ja^iiz has said: 365. Farmer, H.G. : A History of Arabian Music, P. 10. 366, 'Abd al-Salam Muhammad Harun : Rasa'il al-Jahlz, Vol. II, P. 176. -223- "The cleverest of them know by heart four thousand songs and more, each of two to four lines. Multiplying it up, this comes to around ten thousand lines in which God is never once mentioned except inadvertently, and the poet never once draws attention to the danger of divine punishment or the need to seek one's reward in the world to come. They are all on such subjects as adultery, procuring, 'Isbg, youthful dalliance, yearning desire and amorous passion." It is true that the pre-Islamic poetry is full of description of wine, youthful amusements and adventures. These verses were sung in the market of 'Ukaz, The Arabs from the very beginning loved composing and listening poetry. It was their atmosphere and natural surroundings which forced them to seek opportunities for laughters and merriment in their lives. They used to sing after being delighted by the beauty of the nature. For this they never cared whether it was a private place or a public place, 3 67, Pellat, Charles j The Life and Vtorks of Jahiz, P. 267. -224- The singing was so intimately associated with the concept of beauty that they could never put them into separate cate gories. The singers used to buy beautiful maid slaves and after making them experts 368 in singing sold them at high prices. All this was not limited to a particular gfoup or period. ghaw^ci Dayf has said: It was the general view of the people that the days and nights were made for singing. At every place and time we could hear people 3 69 talking about singing and singers. In the Umayyad period the caliphs and all the people holding significant positions liked music and singing. Keeping of the singing girls and bards was considered princely splendour; it was also not taken as low grade profession. The princesses and the ladies of aristocratic families were very fond of singing, •Atikah, daughter of Mu'awiyah, was favourably inclined to it, 368. Jabbur, 'Abd al-Nur t Al-Jawarl, P, 63. 369. Dayf, Dr, §iiawki : Al-Shi'r al-Ghina'i fi al-Amsar al-l3lamiyyah,'vol. II, P. 61, 370. Bayham, Muhammad Jamil : Al-Mar'atu fl ^laciaratil 'Arab, P, 83, -225- So the art of singing had been developed side by side with poetry. Due to this the Umayyad period is called the period of luxury and singing , During this period the twin cities of Hijaz Makkah and Madinah surpassed all the cities of the Umayyad empire particularly in the matter of singing and composing poetry. Institutes of music were established to entertain the people. They used to come to Haj not for the sakd of religion but for hearing the songs of the famous singers of the two cities. Farmer has saidj "The leading musicians appear to have made rather comfortable livings. They were in constant demand at court,the houses of the nobility and aristocracy". 371 In this period new musical notes had been developed. On the line of these musical notes the love poets composed their G^iazals. 'Umar b. Abl Rabl'ah was the most capable poet among them. He himself was a great 3 71. Farmer, H.G. : A History of Arabian Music, P. 67. -226- lover of the art of singing. He had two leading singing bards, viz^ Ibn-Surayj and Al-Qharid as his bosom friends who used to sing his Ghazals. Shawki Dayf has said: None of 'Umar's verses was heard till it was not sung by his singing baipds —— Ibn - - 372 Surayj and Al-GharicJ. once Ibn-Surayj halted near a garden on the way to Haj and started singing out the following verses: when the pilgrims heard him singing they gathered around him. One of the pilgrims became afraid that the pilgrims in general would be distracted from the rituals of Haj, He therefore said to Ibn-Surayj: You have deviated them from Haj and have bewitched them. So beware of Allah and leave them," 374 On this Ibn Surayj stood up and the pilgrims went away, 3 72, Dayf, Dr, Shawki : Al-shi'r al-Ghina'i fi al-Amsar al-Islamiyyah/Vol, II, P. 138, 3 73, yassan, Abu Rahab: Al-Ghazal 'ind al-Arab, P, 51, "For whom is the fire which never dies on the elevated land of Khayf on the side of the spring, l remained sleepless to remember the sites of her (abode) and the heart yearned for her memory. 374. Ibid, PP. 51-52, -227- •Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah was very fond of singing. He used to be enraptured after hearing it. Once 'Azzah al- Mayla' sang before 'Utnar b, Abi Rabl'ah his own verses. Hearing them he tore his garment and screaming a loud cry he fainted. When he regained his senses some people said to him t It suits the people other than you, 0, Abu Khattab, He replied : When I heard it, by Allah, I could not control my soul and mind. It was not the case only with •Umar but Ibn-Kays al-Rukayyat, al-'ArjI, al-Ahwas etc, also equalled him in their love for singing. They dedicated their lives to poetry and singing, Gtjazal became the main subject of singing. 'Umar's Diwan is the best specimen of it in which we do not get anything except Gl)azal or verses related to love, lover and beloved. These Gjjazals are not lengthy as lengthy poems do not very often suit the sin ging. I'his singing also served to bring people together. 375. Ibid. P. 5l2_ It is narrated by Fayid_al-«Umrusi that once Ibn Abi •Atilj:, 'Umar b, Abi Rabi'ah and Al-Al>was went to Jamllah, famous songstress of Madlnah, When she sang some of 'Umar's verses hearing thgm 'Umar cried and tore his shirt and garment, Jamilah gave him another dress which he wore and went back. After arriving at Makkah he sent a gift of ten thousand Dirhams and ten garments to her as it was not customary for the_Arab nobles to accept gifts from songstressj^ (Al-Jawari al-Mughannlyat ; P, 67), But Musi Sulayman says that hearing these verses all the dignitaries present there tore their garments and fainted. (Al-Adab al-Kasa§I 'ind al-'Arab : P, 83), -228- Due to their love for the art of singing most of the poets were in friendship with the singing girls. It is said that 'Umar b. Abi-Rabl'ah, Al-Ahwas and Al-*Arjl were friendly with the songstress Jamllah, The main cause of this friendship can be traced in the co- relation which was maintained between (^azal and al-2l3iina' , The beauty of poetry is enhanced when it is sung. It is also a fact that the caliphs and other dignitaries mostly used to be in love with some particular lady. They asked the renowned poets of the time to compose verses on their love and the singers* male or female, used to sing these verses of Qtiazal in the musical sessions. Sometimes a pretty singer also happened to possess melodious voice and a particular poet was attracted to and finally fell in love with her and began to compose poems on his love for her. For example Al-»Arji and Al-Ahwas had the same — — 3 76 relation with Jamilah, a beautiful songstress of Madinah. Singers also used to sing the Ghazal which were really composed in their own praise in assemblies and musical concerts. Thus there was a great relation between ^jazal and al-Ghina«, There was Ghazal where the Qljina' was found. According to Nicholson : 3 76, Fayid, Al-'UtnrusI : Al-Jawarl al-Muqhanniyat* pp. 68-69. -229- "Henceforth the worx3s and the melody are 377 inseparably united," Dr. Taha Husayn saysi There is no doubt that the singers acqviired the licentious verses from the people of MaXkah and Madlnah and the •Udhrite verses from the bedouins, as the stuffs for the tuning/^(^jj>)and singing (9^1^)). Dr. Shawkl Dayf is of the opinion that; The poets passed their lives for the sake of love and Ghazal, It is the subject which the singing bards and songstresses desired and to which every male and female felt 3 77. Nicholson, R.A. » A Literary History of the Arabs, P. 236. 378. Husayan, Dr. Taha : Hadltji alWirbi'a', Vol. I, P. 190. 3 79. Dayf, Dr. Shawki t Tarikh al-Adab al-«ArabI, Vol. II, P. 3 47. CONCLUSION -230- The greatest contribution of Arab civilization was its language, the highest achievetnent, according to the Arabs, besides the Kur'an was poetry. It is this poetry the conception of which Al-Sayuti, quoting Ahmad ibn Paris has summarisedt "Poetry is the archive of the Arabs; in it their genealogies have been preserved; through it we can learn the glorious deeds of the past; with it we learn the Arabic language. It sheds clarity on the darkest and strangest things found in the Book of God and in the tradition of God's apostle 380 and that of His companions and successors". It is very true that from the very beginning of Arabic Poetry great poetic accomplishments were made by Arabs and this has been considered as special characteristic and something that distingviishes them from the others. Various branches of Arabic literature originated and developed from poetry. Poetry was a means of communication of ideas, ^azal was an important genre in the realm of poetry, Ghazal means to talk about a woman, her love and things related to her. Very 3 80, Al-Sayu^i t Al-Muzhir, Vol, II, P, 470; Translated by Vicente Cantarino t Arabic Poetics In the Golden Age, P. 26. -231- llttle difference was found out between I^gan Nasib and later Ghazal, Abu Zakarlya xahyi al Tabrayzi has said In his coramentary of Hamasah Abu Tammamt Naslb is a poet's description of a beautiful woman and news about her aversion for him. And it is not ^azal. ^azal is the celebrity of 381 women's love and of the amorous desires. According to some scholars there is some difference between Nasib and GJ^azal. in favour of their view they ar^e that Bab al^Nasib i.e. the chapter of Naslb and Bab al-^)azal i.e. the chapter of ^azal are 382 separately written in the literary books. But in fact Qi^azal Includes the Nasib (i.e. poet's sentiments of love for the beloved) and the Tas|;^Ib (i.e. the desc ription of beloved's qualities). The study of the development of Qjazal can be divided into three phasest (1) Pre-Islamic (2) Early Islamic, and, (3) Utaayyad Arabic poetry is the only significant branch of Arabic literature whose roots go back beyond the rise of 381, Carlue itolinoi Tarlkh al-Xdab al-'Arabiyyah, P. 102, 382. For example in Al-'Utadah of Ibn RagM^:, Na^id al- Shi'r of ^udamah b« Ja'far and Clnawarl's *Uyun al- Akhbar etc. -232- lalam. In the pre-Islamic period Ghazal had not acquired an independent position. It was in the shape of Nasib or erotic prelude. They used it as medium for their poetic expression. It was so touching and colourful that the audiences always felt tempted to know what happened next. Narration of these events used to be the favourite pastime of the poets as they cherished to recount the story of the bygone days and lost hopes. Therefore they never talked about the love affairs of the present days as was the case with the Umayyad poets. It is perhaps largely because of this reason that ^azal could not develop in the pre-Islaraic period as it did in the Uhiayyad period. In the early Islamic period love poetry had the same significance as in the pre-Islaraic period but with certain modification. As Islam emerged it began to put some restrictions on poetry. To compose Nasib was prohibited as the women were treated with respect by the Islamic society. The reference to the fair sex is found in two types of poetry — in praise of Muslim ladies as 'A'ishah, wife of the Prophet, (peace be upon him) or in the satire composed on infidels. It is wrong to say that Islam has banned the composition of poems as it is proved that the Prophet, (peace be upon him) himself employed poets as his official spokesmen who answered the -233- attacks on Islam made by the infidels through their poems« Dr. Shawki Dayf with the reference of al-Aghani has narrated! When a group of Kurayshite poets ridiculed the Prophet he asked his helpers t What prohibits the people who have helped the Apostle of Allah with their weapons« from helping him with their tongues? Hassan b, Thibit, Ka«b b. Malik and 'Abdullah ibn ~ 383 Rawabah came forward, to defend. Carlue Nalino saysi A new kind of poetry named as al-GJiazal originated during the caliphate of 'All b. Abl Talib, Its first exponent was perhaps -384 Abu Dahbal al-Jumahi. The great scholar Nalino is not sure about Abu Dahbal*s being the first love poet as he has used the word (perhaps). It is a fact that Abu Dahbal can not be enlisted in the category of the pure love poets like 'Umar b. Abi Rabi'ah, jarall b. Ma'mar and Majnun Bani 'Amir who passed their whole lives in composing 383. payf. Dr. 5Uawki : Al-Shi'r al-Ghina'l fil Amsar al-Islamiyyah, Vol. I, P. 96, 384. carlue Nalino t Tarlkh al-Adab al-Ovrabiyyah, PP. 103-104. -234- only Ghazal, Contrary to them Abu Dahbal was a great 385 panegyrist of Mu'awiyah and 'Abdullah b. zubayr. The UJnayyad period was in many respect the period of incubation for the arts especially for literature. If any branch of literature developed fully during this period it was the love poems which played a very prominent part in social and cultural developments and was sung for its own sake, Dr, Taha Husayn has accepted it as a new A new art, named al-^azal, had developed among the Arabs, The poets adopted the ideology of the two schools -— one belonged to the category of lust in which 'Umar b, Abi Rabl'ah was the most towering personality. The other one laid stress on chastity and Jamil b. Ma'mar was the leader of this school of poetry. Along with these two schools there was a third one also in which the poets followed 386 the path of their pagan predecessors. The pagan love, as depicted by the pre-Islamic poets, was practical, expeditious and connected with the pleasure of the youth. The pagan poet has expressed his own personal feelings. 385. Al-Zirlklli Al-A«lam, Vol, P. 149, 386* Husayn, Dr, Taha t Hadltii al-Arbl'a*, Vol, II, P. 19. -23 5- Islam has divided the human entity into soul and body and subsequently it took love and pleasure as two different things. Islam has introduced the introspection into the inner life of Muslims and has urged them to curb their desires and to observe chastity. Thus the 'Uijhrite love, vrhich was a kind of compromise between sensous love and religio-moral values which brought richness and purity in the emotional life of the Arabs, may be said to have developed under the shadow of Islam, During the Uraayyad period the 'Udhrite love flourished in Hijaz, Due to the influence of religion we do not find the description of the physical charms of the beloved in the Ghazals of the •Udhrite lovers except the description of eyes having powerful magical effect on the lovers. It is also the main characteristic of these •Udhrite lovers that they loved a particular lady. Thus the •U^rite Ghazal represented chastity, piety and morality which are the values cultivated by Islam, This type of Gljazal was the result of deprivation as free mixing of men and women and their close relations were strictly forbidden by Islam, So they, took poetry as a source of defusing their inner pains, being hurt from the arrows of the cupid who is taken blind, Al-'AJjkad has said: -236- We never take birth when we desire nor we love when we intend. It is fate and divine decree according to which we are 387 bom, we die and we love. Due to this fact their own lives were tense and pensive, so their poetical productions were too melan cholic as poetry is the personal experience of ones own life. Their love was not sensuous. They were of the opinion that union spoils love. Thus laying emphasis on morality and piety they made a compromise between their natural feelings and religion. Opposite of the 'U^ijrite love was the 'Utnarlte love. The 'Umarite lovers were very bold in expressing their love in Otjazal, They attached main importance to pleasure and enjoyment in their poetry. They did not confine themselves to one lady. They were the worshippers of the beauty. They celeberated the charm and love of every beautiful woman whom they were acquainted with. They took religion and personal life as two different things. Being the lovers of the tiruth they sometimes did not hesitate to depict some objectionable things which they personally experienced in their love affairs. These were the group of the poets who were rich and had not taken poetry as a means of earning their livelihood. They were aristocrats and pleasure seekers, 387. Al-Tabbi'• Abdullah Anis t Al-Hubb wal-^azal, P, 21. -237- The 'Uknarlte love poems which were full of the poets' personal love adventures, were enjoyed and appre ciated not only in the popular meetings and literary solons but also in the palaces of the caliphs and the governors of the provinces as the religious influence had diminished due to pleasure seeking and the influx of wealth. Because of the conquests the foreign influence had become strong. So the taste of singing and music had also developed. The poets began to choose clear and simple words, a sweet and melodious style and lyrical metres for their verses which could be set to music. Singing and composing Ghagal were not considered a low grade profession. There were the family members of the rnigrants and the Helpers as well as nobility from the Kurayshites among these poets and their audiences, and Makkah and Madlnah twin famous cities of Hijaz had become overcrowded with them. Some of the Umayyad rulers were th^nselves fond of Ghazal though it was composed on their own daughters. Mu'awiyah did not show any anger despite the fact that his own daughter was the subject of the love poems. Not only that, when the girl's brother came to the caliph with this complaint he defended the poet and assisted him in 388 fleeing from the anger of his son. 388- Bayham, Muhammad jamll t Al-Mara'tu fl Hadarat al- •Arab, PP. 43-45; Carlue tteilinoi Tarllch al-^dib al- •Arabiyyah, P. 104. -238- The (^jazal and singing were so absorbed in the lives of the people of the Umayyad age that not only the maidens but also the married aristocrat ladies wished to be mentioned in the love poems. Once the daughter of caliph 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan went for Haj. The caliph gave the warning to ' Utnar b. Abl Rabl'ah for not choosing his daughter as the subject of any love-poem. But after completing her Haj the princess complained to a man that •Uraar did not visit her and asked him to recite his verses with the promise of reward of ten Dinars in return of every 389 verse. It was because no poetiry in Arabic literature has succeeded more than the »Uhiarite Ghazal in describing women's moods, coquetry, artifices, love for men and adventuxres. Once mother of Muhammad, the daughter of Marwan b, Al-Hakam went for Haj and sent one thousand Dinars to •umar b, Abi Rabi'ah requesting him to compose ^azal and mention her name in it. The money with some additional 390 gifts was returned by the poet as he was not greedy nor he used his poetic talent to amassfortune, 389, Bayham Muhammad J^mTlt Al-Mara*tu fi Ha^arat al- •Arab, P,'47. 390. payf. Dr. Stiawkli Al-Shi»ral-Gt)ina*I fil_Am9ar_al- islamiyyah. Vol, I, P. 133; zaydan, Jurjij Tarlkh Adab al-Lughat al-»Arabiyyah, Vol, I, P. 270, -239- These love poets, irrespective of being * u^hrite or •umarite, with the exception of the traditional poets, never made their poetry the means of earning money. But their aim was to please their damsels and to bring forth the amusement for the masses which had become the spirit of the society. These poets of this period composed lyrical love poems in which they expressed their erotic feelings. The aristocrat ladies even from the noble families used to sit in groups making discussions about these poets and their poetry and even their own personal love adventures with thera in such a way that the others were inspired to meet them. Once Sukaynah, daughter of Husayn b, 'All b. Abl Talib with her companions sent for •Umar b, Abl Rabi'ah at a place near Madlnah and passed the whole night in having conversation with him and hearing his ^azals. At the dawn when the time of depar ture came 'Umar said to her : By Allah I am not in need of visiting the holy grave of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as I do not like to connect your visit with anything .391 else. And he went back to Makkah. This shows that these poets were honest as well as faithful in their love. They did not like to mix their 391, Carlue ^teilino t Tarikh al-Adab al-'Arabiyyah, P, 107. •240- love with anything else even with religion as they considered it pure betrayal. But they did not hesitate to use the religion in their love affairs as they used to come for Haj only to meet their damsels and not for the sake of religion. They never hid this motive for Haj and without any hesitation they pronounced it in their love poems which were sung and heard in public. These love poets attached no importance to any other subject satire, elegy and eulogy but to love only. Their main aim was to compose <2tiazal on ladies. Once caliph Sulayman b. 'Abd al-Malik asked 'Umar b, Abl Rabl'ah: What prophibits you from our praise? •Umar re plied t 39 2 I do not praise men but I praise women. Thus the task of praising caliphs and governors was taken in hand by the poets of traditional or classical Ghazal, This traditional Ghazal was rather like that of their pagan predecessors, an amatory elegiac prelude in the fornri of Nasib as we find in the poetry composed by al-Farazda^:, al-Akhtal and Jarir who specialized in the laudatory, satirical and descriptive styles. Though 392. Jabbur, J.S. i 'Umar b. Abi Rabi'ah, Vol. II, P. 96. -241- they were town-dwellers yet they have described ruined abodes and desert scenery. They did so only in imitation of their pagan predecessors. Therefore, the Naslb or Ghazal portion of these poets cannot be equalled to those of their pagan predecessors who depicted their surroundings as well as their own emotional experiences in their poems. There was lack of harmony between the different subjects dealt in one poem of these poets because after Naslh or Ghazal they abruptly changed the subject of their Ode. We can say that this great flaw in their poetry, inevitably brought about decline in the traditional Ghazal, The reason of this may also be traced in the exhaustion of subjects. Now the poets were fed up with the traditional themes of the poetry which was admitted even by some of the preceding pagan poets. 'Antarah has said: 393>r5^c:>( ^ A^A^\y>l^ <-W Zuhayr has said: 393. Al-Zawzni: ^aralj al-Mu'allakat al-Sab', P. 137, "Have the poets left any patch to be sewn?". 39 4. 'Umar Muhammad Daudpotaj Influence of Arabic Poetry on the Development of Persian Poetry, P. 3 5, "We say nothing but the borrowed thoughts of the others or we repeat our own words already said". -242- So the Utnayyad poets took only the subject 'love* from the many themes of the pagan Kasldahs, Verily love poems were nothing but the story of intimate relationship with the women folk. In fact love for the women is found in every period as well as in every people. The love for the fair sex has been the main theme of poetry from the very beginning. None of the people can be found on the world's map whose poetry has such emotional depth as those of the Arabs, These verses are the tongues of the poets' hearts full of passions. The relation between love and Ghazal may be compared to that of perception and expression, Ghazal is the exact interpretation of the sentiments and feelings of a lover whether he is happy or grieved. Thus the Ghazal's main subject is love or passion. The Umayyad poe^s detached one of the themes of the pagan Kasldahs and applied their whole energy in developing it. The Qhazal became independent genre and great advances were made in it during the Umayyad age. The liteirary concept of love primarily remained unfocussed owing to the lack of any poet able to express -243- himself in the verses with such authority as of 'Umar b. Abl Rabl'ah, Nusayb, al-Ahwas, Jamil b. Ma'mar, Kuthayyir, and Majnun bani 'Smir. They dealt with love in their Ghazals according to the canon already established in the traditional NasTb but they developed it as a separate form of poetical composition, Nov/ it acquired the position of being the main occu pation of wealthy and idle town dwellers. The people now acquired luxurious tastes in the new environment which resulted in the refinement of sentiments and emotions that had never been attained by their fore fathers. Consequently the love poems of this period also underwent change and differed substantially from those of the earlier times. In the Umayyad period the hold of religion diminished and the Ghazal resumed its development with new strength and richness and the most outstanding trends of (^azal of the time namely the 'Udhrite and the 'Umarite (^azal flourished. The 'Udhrite poets described three worlds in their Ghazals: the real one in which they lived and suffered, a world of religious feelings and a world of visions, dreams and wishes. The pagan predecessors and the 'Umarite poets, on the other hand, lived in and dealt with one single world; that of reality. The 'Umarite ^azal was rather gay and melodious and was highly appreciated by the -244- pleasure seekers, sung in the literary salons and recited by attractive singers in public and musical concerts. Ghazal is the literary discipline which corresponds to the life of both the male and female. The woman of the Uitiayyad period secured fame through it in the society. The poet being her companion in love overcame his natural shortcomings. It was the beloved who brought forth the exhilaration, goodwill, wrath, distress and pleasure in his life as she was the semblance of the celebrated beauty in his world. She flared up his imagination and provoked his pen as a result of which he did not feel the wastage of his valuable time in filling the papers with her description. Thus (ghazal is nothing but the sturdy and vigorous sentiments expressed in words by those who sensed or perceived it or pen picture of beautiful ladies painted by those who were in love with them. These ladies did not consist of any especial group. They could be singers, maid servants or a lady from an aristocratic or noble family. They along with other factors, played an important role in provoking a poet to write love- poems. -245- In the pre-Islamic period there were very few love poets who could be counted on the tip of the fingers. Due to the lack of development in the art of writing most of the pagan poetry has been lost. Contrary to this in the Umayyad period there were ' nnumcrable love poets. Thus a great poetical change occured in the Umayyad period. The Umayyad poets contributed much to the development of Ghazal. If a collection of the Ghazals of this period is compiled it will be a very huge/ gorgeous and voluminous book. We can say that the Umayyad period was the 'Golden Age' of Arabic Literature from this point of view as none of the periods of Arabic Literature could ever produce Ghazals so developed and so rich in style, diction, and imagery. Even the 'Abbisid period which is mostly accepted as the 'Golden Age' in Arabic Literature, cannot equal the Umayyad period in this respect. In the 'Abbasid period the Ghazal was not so much developed as it was in the Umayyad period, though some 'Abbasid poets tried to follow the path of •Umar b, Abl Rabi'ah and Jamil b, Ma'mar. The scholars mention the names of the poets like Baghijhar b, Burd, al-'Abbas b, Ahnaf, Abu Nuwas, Abu Tammam, al-Buhituri, al-Mutanabbi as the great representative poets of the 'Abbasid age. As for as the first two poets namely Bashj^liar b, Burd -246- and al-'Abbas b, Ahnaf are concerned their whole poetical compositions are not based on Ghazal, Their verses are the fragments of love addressed to some female personalities or composed at the request of certain aristocratic women of Baqhdad, Abu Muwas's wine songs are more effective and full of imageries than his Ghazals. Abu Tammam, al-Buhturl, and Mutanabbi were very famous and great poets but they dealt with other subjects than love in their poetical compositions. They can be called the traditional or the classical poets who, in fact, had confined themselves to prefacing Kasidahs with Naslb as was the practice with their pagan predecessors and the Urnayyad trio, al-Farazdak, al-Akhtal and Jarlr. We do not find such emotional exaltation and vastness of imagination in the fragmental pieces of Qliazal of these 'Abbasid poets as in the Ghazal of the Urnayyad period. The Urnayyad love poets have not dealt with only one but all the aspects of love. We find in then the tenderness of sentiments, the contrivances, the ambitions the hopes, patience, self-restraint and loyalty. By going through their Ghazal we can sum up that the Gljazal is the language of heart which only a heart can understand. So a good Ghazal is that which touches hearts. It presents a -247- very fine and true picture of the condition of the lover and the beloved. In it the Umayyad poets did excell. 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