THE POETIC LIFE OF TUMADIR AL-KHANSA' BINT 'AMR
(C. 575 — 6664 A.D.)
by
Z.I. OSENI
In the last quarter of the sixth century and the greater part of
the seventh century A.D., there lived in Arabia a poetess named alKhansa She was a contemporary of the Prophet Muhammad, but
unfortunately, not much is known about her by the average student
of Arabic. Worse still, in English-speaking societies like ours, very
little is known about her life as a poetess. This paper aims,
therefore, at filling this vacuum by bringing into focus the poetic
life of the woman with illustrations from her poetry.
The paper is divided into three sections. The first is a
biography of the bard while the second one reviews her Diwan
(collected poems). The third section forms the conclusion. It ends
with opinions of some historical figures as well as renowned
Arabic poets of later ages regarding the position of al-khansa' as an
Arabian poetess, who specialized on the threnodic theme,
(A.) According the al-Isbahani, the full name of al-khansa is
Tumadir which means Brightness), daughter of 'Amr ibn al-Harith
ibn ash-Shand ibn Riyah ibn Yaqzah ibn' Usayyah ibn khuffaf ibn
Imru'al-Qays ibn Buhthah ibn Sulaym ibn Mansur ibn 'Ikrimah ibn
Khasafah ibn Qays ibn 'Ilan ibn Mudar. She was named al-Khansa'
because of her beautiful snub-nose which" was highly admired as a
mark of beauty in women at that time. Al-khansa's clan, 'Al ashSharid, was the most famous among Banu Sulaym during the preIslamic and early Islamic periods. In the eleventh century A. D.,
Banu Sulaym migrated to North Africa where they preserved their
idetity till the time of Ibn khaldun, the great fourteenth-century
historian who described them as "valorous and aggressive" .2 'Amr,
the father of al-khansa', was wealthy and influential amongst his
people. It is related that he used to hold the hands of his two sons,
19
Sakhr and Mu'awiyah, in gatherings and say "I'm the father of the
best of the Mudar tribe," and nobody would refute his statement.3
Utterances of self-praise like this, however, were not uncommon
amongst Arabs in the pre-Islamic era.
The exact date of birth of al-Khansa' is not known. This is
not surprising for, at the time of her birth, there were no significant
events to mark her out from other children in Arabia. It is her
subsequent emergence as an outstanding personality in the field of
poetry that drew people's attention to her. However, the year 575
A. D. has been suggested by an Italian orientalist,4 Gabriel, as the
year of her birth. Al-Khansa's two elder brothers, Sakhr and
Mu'awiyah, were born, according to Gabriel, about 565 and 570 A.
D: respectively.
In the 35th year of the Elephant,5 (i.e. about 607 A. E>.), the
narration goes,6 al-Khansa's father visited the fair of 'Ukaz with his
two sons, Sakhr and Mu'awiyah, and transferred some landed
property at al-WahTdah in Yathrib7 to Ma'mar ibn al-Haritb, the
grandfather of the poet, Jamil. The story is confirmed by al-AsmaT
who says that the document drawn up was still in the possession of
the descendants of Ma'mar during the reign of the Caliph Harun arRashld (786-809 A.D.). Assuming the document to be genuine,
Sakhr and Mu'awiyah were old enough about the year 607 A.D. to
take part in the business of their father. Hence the dates suggested
by Gabrieli for the birth of the poetess and her brothers cannot be
far from the truth.
The historical records on al-khansa1 are rather scanty as
regards her early life. Like other Arabian girls, she may have
tended, milked and grazed her father's sheep and camels. In
addition, she must have done oilier menial works at home.
(B.) The first man to make marriage proposal to her was the
unidentified leader of Badr's clan. In her Diwan, the poetess
mentioned his name only once, i.e. in her satire against Durayd.
Her refusal to marry Durayd, however, is recorded in detail in
Arabic literary history books.
20
It is narrated3 that one day, al-khansa' was busy tending
sommecaels in a solitary place, unaware that Durayd, ibn asSimmah, a famous old horseman and poet from Jusham clan, was
watching her. She later stripped hersel fnaked and look a refreshing
bath. Durayd greatly admired her beauty and composed an erotic
poem about her.
On the following day, Durayd went to the quarters of Banu
Sulaym to sec 'Amr, al-khansa's father, for his proposal to marry
her. He was received with all the respect he deserved. But Tumadir
al -Khansa' rejected the proposal, saying, "My father, do you regard
me as someone who would leave her cousins like the tips of spears
and marry an old man who would die today or to morrow?" 'Amr
left his daughter alone, and went to report to Durayd rather
tactfully that her reply was unfavourable.10
Another version of the story states that Durayd sought to
marry al-Khansa1 through her brother, Mu'awiyah, who was
incidentally an intimate friend of his. When Mu'awiyah wanted to
pressurize his sister to marry Durayd, however, she burst with fury,
saying. “Have you nothing else with which to please your friend
other than with me?
To conceive that Durayd went to seek al-Khansa's hand in
marriage through her brother atone could not have been the case
since there is some evidence to show that her father, 'Amr, was still
alive at that time. But one can reconcile the two versions by
submitting that Durayd may have gone, not only to the girl's father
but also to her brother, Mu'awiyah, so as to hasten their approval of
the marriage proposal.
Al-Khansa" resolved not to marry Durayd no matter how
intense the pressure put on her by her family was. When further
pressed, she composed a poignant satire against Durayd and his
clan, and vehemently denounced forcible marriage. The short
satire which was the first poem recorded for the poetess is:
"Do you force me — what a wonder! — to marry Durayd.
When I have refused the leader of Badr's clan?
God forbid that a short-spined, long-legged man
21
Of scanty means from (the clan of) Jusham ibn Bakr should marry
me.
He considers it a glory and an honour to accomplish
When he gives a piece of date fruit to a friend as supper
Were I to spend a morning amongst the Jusham as a bride,
That would imply spending the morning in impurity and
poverty."
2
Al-Khansa' rejection of DuraycTs marriage proposal to her coupled
with
this humiliating satire was too much for him to bear. He replied her
with
a poem which, in part, reads:
"May God protect you, O daughter of 'Amr's family
From the youth of my type and from me.
She says that I am a decrepit old man;
But I have not told her that I was born yesterday.
You cannot give birth to, or be married by, anyone like me,
As long as the night comes with a cold wind.13
Within a short time, the rejection of Durayd by al Khansa"
became the talk of the land. While Banu Jusham saw no reason
why a girl, no matter whoever she was, should reject their valorous
leader and poet, Banu Sulaym, on the other hand, felt proud of their
daughter whose character was as forceful as a brave man's. 14
Historical records are silent as to whether al-Khansa'
rejected any other man. However, she eventually married a cousin
of hers called "Abd al-'Uzza (Rawah).15 She had a male child called
'Abd Allah or 'Amr by him. The child was popularly known as Abu
Shajarah.
The birth of Abu Shajarah took place about 593 A.D. as
deduced from the fact that he was old enough about 613 A.D. to
stand by Sakhr, his maternal uncle, at the second retaliatory raid
against Banu Murrah in a place called al-Hawzah. Moreover, in
633 A.D. he was one of the apostates who renounced Islam
immediately after the death of the Prophet Muhammad.17
22
It appears that al-K.hansa"s marriage to 'Abd al-'Uzza was
an unhappy one. He was a gambler, and this landed the couple in
penury and the subsequent dissolution of their marriage about the
year 612 A.D.18
After parting with Abd al-'Uzza, al-Khansa1 married another
man called Mirdas ibn Abi 'Amir from Banu Sulaym. She had four
sons and a daughter by him. They were YazTd (or Zayd),
Mu'awiyah (or Hazan), ('Amr and_Suraqah (or Habirah). The only
daughter was called 'Amrah.;19 Al-Khansa?s marriage to Mirdas
could not have been earlier, or much later, than 612 A.D. This is
reasonable if we bear in mind that four of her children by Mirdas
were old enough to fight in the ranks of the Muslim army in 637 at
Qadisiyyah.
Apart from the children born by al-Khansa', Mirdas had a
son called 'Abbas who was one of the poets of the Prophet
Muhammad, but some writers also consider him as al-Khansa's
son.27 Basing my conclusion on the facts at my disposal, Mirdas
seems to have been a responsible, loving husband. He was brave,
generous, and considerate; hence al-Khansa' composed a deeply
emotional elegy for him when he died.
22
(c.) No poem was apparently composed by al-Khansa' again
until tragedy struck her with the death of her two brothers. One
cannot ascertain, however, whether she composed some which
were lost and therefore not recorded. In 612, Mu'awiyah went to
fight the Banu Murrah, following a quarrel he had with Hashim ibn
Harmalah al-Murn at the fair of 'Ukaz over a woman a few months
earlier. Mu'awiyah's men were easily routed by the numerically
superior army of Banu Murrah and he was killed.23 Sakhr was
deeply touched by his younger brother's death. He led an army "of
Banu Khuffaf, a sub-tribe of Banu Sulaym and attacked and raided
the settledment of Banu'Asad, a sister clan of Banu Murrah. The
whole of Banu Ghatafan, which embraced Banu Murrah and
Bamf'Asad, pursued him vigorously. Though he and his men
gained plenty of booty, Sakhr was mortally wounded. He was bed-
23
ridden for along time and finally gave up the ghost about the year
615 A.D.24
With the death of Sakhr al-Khansa's cumulative calamities
reached an explosion point. Having suffered orphanage and
widowhood, the death of the poetess; brothers marked a turningpoint in her life. Consequent upon Sakhfs death, al-Khansa' never
contemplated the idea of marrying again." She spent all the
remaining part of her life in lamentation and mourning. The days of
her happiness were gone forever. Hence we hear her Sob:
1. "Oh my eyes, be liberal with flowing tears
And weep for the most wonderful protector of rights;
The leader of a people, noble in generosity
And born of a pure lineage.
When the news of his death reached me, I said, And people were vocal about the secret talk –
"My brother, you have departed from us.
And a barrier against visiting you had set in.
Many a benefit -you used to bestow
Upon families and little orphans;
Many a favour you have granted ;
"To those securely locked up in captivity!
May my people ransom the one whose bones
Have been forsaken to shine in the soft ground:
The victim of sharpened lances which are
Like the lightening which shines within the camps
Whoever wishes to weep over a great leader any day.
Let him weep for him (§akhr) with hot tears.
I swear by the House an its visitors when
They drive camels towards the place of stoning.
In life I shall never grieve for a deceased person
After you (Sakhr), as long as herds women yearn towards
their she-camels."25
On another occasion, the poetess composed the poem quoted
below to give vent to her sorrow and rouse her people to avenge the
death of her dear brother, Sakhr:
24
1. "Oh my eyes, pour forth tears continually
And weep for Sakhr with torrential tears
I was sleepless and I passed the night keeping vigil
As if my eyes have been annointed with pus,
Watching the stars - and I've not been charged with watching them
And at times wrapping myself in the ends of ragged clothes;
For I had heard - and it was no news to please me
Someone reporting who came repeating the message.
5. Saying "Your mother's son is (now) dwelling yonder in a tomb,
Struck to the ground beside the grave between certain
stones".
Depart them, and may God not keep you far (from Him) being a
man
Who eschewed injustice and ever sought after blood-wit.
You were possessed of a heart which harboured no wrongs,
Compounded in a nature that was never cowardly
Like the spear-point whose bright image lights up the night,
(A man) firm in resolution, free and the son of free men.
I weep for them youth of our quarter who has been overtaken by
death.
For every soul is an appointed time and season.
10 So I shall weep for you as long as the dove laments
And the night stars shine for the night-travellers.
I shall never make peace with a people with whom you were at war
Until the black cooking-pot of the (good) host turns
white."26
(d.) Following the bloodiess conquest of Mecca in 630 A.D. by
the Prophet Muhammad, tribal delegates from all over Arabia went
to Medina to declare their allegiance to the Prophet of Islam and
his mission. Al-Khansa' was a member of the delegation from the
tribe of Banu Sulaym. Consequently, she embraced Islam and sang
some of her elegies to the Prophet who listened intently to her. As
should be expected, however, her conversion to Islam at that age
25
did not eliminate her tenacity to some of her deep-rooted prelslamic habits, as the following cases indicate.
1.
All the attempts made by the Prophet to console her and
make«her stop her lamentation of the deceased which was
somehow regarded as un-Islamic, proved futile 27
2. On one occassion, A'ishah, the beloved wife of the Prophet, met
al-Khansa' wearing a special waist-coat (sidar) made of camel's
hair (as was the pre- Islamic custom of mourning) and walking on a
stick. Her back was bent and her head shaved. 'A'ishah reproached
her for her miserable appearance but the poetess lowered her head
and confessed sorrowfully that it was Sakhr's death which made her
appear like that.
She explained to 'A'ishah how generous Sakhr was to her,
especially during the hard time of her first marriage. She related
how she went to Sakhr several times for financial aid and how he
always divided all his money into two halves, and gave her the
better part. Sakhr's generosity, she continued, was so excessive that
Sulma, his wife, once protested strongly against it. On that
occasion, Sakhr simply explained why he was treating his sister
like that by reciting the following verse:
"By God, I'll not deny her what she chooses
She is chaste and had saved me from all disgrace (on her
part).
If I die she will rend her head-gear,
And wear a waist-coat made of hair.28
Finally al-khansa' told'Aishah that she would not deviate from
Sakhr's expectation nor falsify his words as long as she lived
.'A'ishah could not but pity the old woman.
The poetess had a similar experience with the Caliph 'Urnar
ibn al-Khattab (634-44 A.H.) at Medina. The Caliph rebuked and
warned her that the people she was mourning died in the age of
ignorance and are therefore parts of "the Hell's entrails". She
retorted that that was even a better reason for her to continue
mourning them. When, then she sang to him one of her numerous
26
compositions, the Caliph was moved with sympathy for her. He
asked people to leave the poetess alone as she had vowed never to
cease to grieve.29
Whether her conversion to Islam had a deep impact on her
or not the fact remains that she embraced Islam and all her children
became Muslim. But her first born, Abu Shajarah ibn 'Abd al'Uzza, was, as has already been mentioned, one of those who later
renounced Islam after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. He
joined the forces of the apostates and fought against the Muslim
army until the rebellion was crushed in 633 A.D. at the battle of
'Aqraba”. Being a poet himself, Abu Shajarah composed a poem on
how he watered his "thirsty" spear with the blood of the men of
Khalidibn.al-Walid, the Muslim commander.30 Apart from this
account nothing was recorded about Abu Shajarah other than his
subsequent repentance which the second Caliph, 'Urnar, did not
accept.
The next thing we hear about her four sons by Mirdas is
their preparation to join the ranks of the Muslim army which was
heading towards Persia. One certain night, she called them together
and advised them to uphold the sterling qualities of perseverance,
gallantry, firmness, and the fear of God. She advised them to fight
for God's sake till they die. 3'
That was the last night she and her four sons met. What she
heard a little after their departure was the victory of the ArabMuslim army over Persia, and this was occasioned by the battle of
Qadisiyyah in 637, Unfortunately, all her sons fell. When the news
of their martyrdom got to her, she simply said, "Praise be to God
Who had honoured me with their being slain. 1 have the hope that
my lord will join us together in the abode of Mercy". 32
, Al-Khansa's fame spread far and wide, and her name was
registered in the State Treasury? Bay! al-Mal'-as a female
companion (Sahabiyvah) and a mother of martyrs. She was paid a
pension on behalf of her deceased sons. 3 Of all her children only
'Amrah, her daughter, survived her.
(e.) The exact year of al-Khansa's death is not known. It is,
however, known that the Caliph 'Umar ibn al-Khattab continued to
27
pay her a pension until his death in 644 A.D. This means that she
lived after the second Caliph's reign. Krenkow says, "Al-Khansa
lived long enough to see the final victory of the new faith.34 But
this statement does not pin her death to any specific year. .
'Alqaman ibn Jarur is quoted to have told Mu'awiyah (the
first 'Umayyad Caliph - 661 - 680 A.D.) that he saw al-Khansa' in a
wedding procession of her daughter, 'Amrah, and that the poetess
was very old. From this. Kahalah infers that she died in 646 A.D.,
while Louis Cheikho suggests 680 i.e. the year of Caliph
Mu'awiyalVs death. 3S Gabriel and Fu'ad al-Bustam, however, took
the middle course, and suggest the year 664, since the poetess was
old enough by that time to support herself with a stick. 36 The year
664 is , perhaps, more likely to be nearer to the truth than the other
two extremes.
Whatever be the exact date of her death, the fact remains
that al Khansa' died in obscurity as she had emerged from
obscurity. The irony about her life is that while she spent all her
life composing elegies to mourn people's death, none of her
contemporaries appears to have composed any elegy for her when
she. herself died. Even her only surviving daughter who is reported
to have composed an elegy for her father. Mirdas, some years
earlier, did not seem to have composed a dirge for her mother. 37
This, however, might not have stemmed from disregard for her
mother. Perhaps, at the time of al-Khansa"s death, she was so old
that her demise was a sort of relief to her daughter who had had to
care for her all alone throughout the long years of her life.
(a.) Al-Khansir lived the most active part of her life in the pre
Islamic to era, and witnessed the rise of the new faith she is
therefore referred to as a mukhadramah-'K bard who lived in two
decidedly distinct eras. In the early days of Islam, there were many
Mukhatiram ports in Arabia, such as Hassan ibn Thabit the poetlaureate of the Prophet Muhammad, Ka'b ibn 7.uhayr, Labid, alA'sha and Jarwal ibn Aws who was popularly known as alHutay'ah.
28
The story' is narrated of how an-Nabighat adh-Dhubyani. as
a judge of poetical compositions at the fair of 'Ukaz, proclaimed alKhansa" as the greatest of all poetesses. He went as far as to judge
her poetry as superior to the poems of Hassan ibn Thabit. 38 The
story seems to be a forgery as the contact between al-Khansa' and
an-Mabighah is very remote. If we accept the story as true, we
must do one of two things. First, we have to alter the dates of alKhansa' life drastically. This is because an-Nabighah was said to
have did in 604 A.D. at a time when Sakhr and Mu'awiyah were
still alive, a time \\hen the poetess had not yet exploded with her
threnodic masterpieces. Secondly, the date of an-Nabighah's death
has to be questioned seriously. It appears, however; that the whole
story was fabricated to bolster the poetic glory which al-Khansa
achieved later in her life.
It may be necessary at this juncture to state that Tumadir alKhansa bint 'Amr was not the only poetess of her time. Prominent
too amongst the female bards of ancient Arabia were.
1. Urom Firqah al-Fazzariyyah who emerged during the war of
Dahis andGhabra'.39
2. Najiyah bint Damdam al-Nurriyyah — who also thrived as an
elegist during the war of Dahis and Ghabra
3. Zaynab bint Malik of the 'Amir clan. She was a notable elegist.
Her elegies for Malik ibn Nuwayrah who was slain by Khalikd ibn
at-Walid after his alleged profession of Islam, made the second
Caliph 'Umar furious at Khalid's ruthlessness. This event added to
his dissatisfaction with Khalid and consequently, the latter was
humiliated and dismissed as a Muslim general.
4. Fakhitah bint 'Adt — an elegist.
5. Khalidah bint Hashim, a Meccan elegist.
6. Safiyyah bint 'Abd al-Muttalib, one of the paternal aunts of the
Prophet^Muhammad. She was an elegist.
7. Dahiyah al-Hilaliyyah who composed a love-lyric for one man
called 'Hablb.
8. Su'da al-Asadiyyah who also composed sweet amorous verses
for her beloved cousin.
29
9. Al-Khansa' bint at-Tlhan (different from the subject of this
study) who described her love for one Jahush al-Khafajf.40
10. Hind bint 'Utbah, the wife of Abu Sufyan and mother of the
founder of the Umayyad Dynasty, Caliph Mu'awiyah.4' She
composed elegies to mourn her father 'Utbah, her uncle Shaybah,
and her brother, al-Walid — all of whom were killed in the battle
of Badr (624 A.D.).
Among all the known poetesses of ancient Arabia, none
equalled al-Khansa" bint 'Amr in poetical output and elegance of
style, particularly in elegy 42 (B.)
1.
The survey of the pootical composition of al-Khansa' is
based, as should be expected, on the monumental collection of all
her known poems called Dnvan al-Khansa'. This anthology has
been published with some variations in different places 43 but the
two editions used in this study are those of Beirut.
The clan of Banu Sulaym preserved the songs of al-Khansa" right
from her life-time, and continued to pass them on with pride from
one generation to another until the eighth century A.D. when the
collection of the ancient Arabic poetry was being conducted by the
Rawis (rhapsodes),
The principal actor in the survival ot al-Khansa's poetry was Ashja',
the son of the sister of the poetess who died in the eighth century
A.D.44
Thus the Diwan of al-Khansa' which had been commented
on subsequently by a number of literary scholars such as Ibn asSikkit, Ibn al-A'rabi, and ath-Tha'alibi, came into existence. These
commentaries on it were preserved in two different copies written
in 839 A.D. by al-'Asimi and al-Karmam respectively. In 1896,
Louis Cheikho published them in Cairo with the title Anis al-julasa
fi sharhi Diwan al-Khansa'.
The most recent editions of al-Khansa's Diwan are
30
(a) the one published by Dar-Sadir Dar Bayrut, and
(b) the one published by Dar al-Fikr.
Both were published in Beirut; while the former (marked "a") was
published in 1960 the latter (marked "b" is undated, though it
appears to be new. I have examined the two editions thoroughly
and found that Diwan "a" has 96 poems of 915 verses (couplets)
while Diwan "b" has 95 poems of 907 verses, the difference being
a poem of 8 verses on page 138 of Diwan "a". The introduction to
Diwan 'a" written by karan al-Bustam is shorter than the one
written anonymously for Diwan "b".
2.
The authenticity of the pre-Islamic Arabic poetry as a whole
has been cynically questioned by Margoliouth and Taha Husayn
while its genuineness is affirmed to a great extent by scholars such
as Charles Lyall, A. J, Arberry and J. T Monroe.45 Whatever one
may say to support the authenticity of those 'ancient works, the fact
is that a good number of changes had taken place either
consciously or otherwise during the period in which this poetical
heritage was transmitted by memory. Such changes include
depaganisation, so to speak, omission, addition and the probable
reorganisation of the verses.45 In essence, however, the bulk of this
heritage should be regarded as genuine.
Although al-Khansa's poetry is nearer to the period of
recording of the ancient poems than the compositions called almu'allaqat, some retouching of it could not have been totally
absent. But in view of the fact that her poems were recorded early
from Banu Sulaym, such interference might have been minimal. In
addition to this, her Diwan contains true sentiments of the
Jahiliyyah period such as her pessimistic wailing and cry for
vengeance. These points attest to the fact that the collection should
be nearly wholly authentic.47
3.
In the two Beirut editions of al-Khansa's anthology, the
poems are arranged according to their alphabetical rhymes. Poems
rhyming in Ba' come first (as there are no poems in Hamzah-rhym
in her collection), while those in ya'-rhyme come last. No
31
chronological arrangement of her poems has been successfully
done because of the inherent difficulties in such an exercise. An
Egyptian writer, Dr. Bint ash-Shati' tried this with some of the
poems, but her suggestions still leave some gaps to be filled. For
example, the speculation is made that al-Khansa's second husband,
Mirdas, died before her brother, Sakhr, simply because the poetess
says in one of her elegies for Sakhr that she would never again
mourn the death of anyone after Sakhr.48 Basing her opinion on this
assertion, Bint ash-Shati' holds that Mirdas died before §akhr. But
in contradiction to this, al-Khansa' says in her elegy for Mirdas:
"Would that he could be visited by his wives and his children's
wives I"49 This gives the apparent impression that Mirdas died at
an old age when his own children had already married wives. We
should remember the speculations made by Gabriel that Sakhr died
about 615 A.D. i.e. two years after Mu'awiyah's death. One must
hasten to say that in the elegy in question which she composed for
Mirdas, we do not know whether the poetess is referring to her own
children's wives (which is more likely) or to Mirdas.'s sons by
another woman.
In view of these difficulties, the chronology attempted by
modern scholars like Gabriel, Fu'ad Ifram al-Bustam and Bint ashShStT should be handled with great caution. More research, which
is by far beyond the scope of this paper, will in future throw more
light on the chronological sequence of al-Khansa's poetry.
A renowned literary scholar, Hanna al-FakhurT, has referred
to the Diwan of the poetess as containing elegies alone.50 A close
examination of the work, however, reveals the incorrectness of the
statement, though elegy as a theme accounts for about eighty
percent of the anthology. Her Diwan contains poems on a variety
of themes such as satire (hija") eulogy (madih), self-praise (fakhr)
and idyllic description (wasf).61
In the fore-going discussion, it has been observed how alKhansa' spent most of her life composing elegies for her dead
relatives and husband. Her conversion to Islam in 630 A.D.
notwithstanding, the poetess continued to mourn her deceased dear
ones in a manner reminiscent of her pre-Islamic habits. The
32
Prophet Muhammad, Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab, and 'A'ishah, the
wife of the Prophet, tried in vain to stop her ceaseless tears over
Sakhr. Below is an echo of this lamentation :"My soul after Sakhr's (death)
Does acknowledge perdition.
(Afflicted) by it from Sakhr is a thing
Which defies -description.52
It should be noted that her elegies, were not entirely
pessimistic. She incited her people very strongly to avenge the
death of her brothers, and this, to a great extent, yielded positive
results. Recalling the murder of Hashim al-Murn by her people as a
retaliation for his murder of Mu'-awiyah, the poetess says:
' 'And we killed Hashim and his sister's son:
There won't be reconciliation until we take their hidden women
captive!
It has become customary that in tumult
We shall always triumph: for man seeks advantages."53
Thus the poetess lamented over the death of her relatives and
claimed to be the most afflicted person in Arabia. In view of the
sincerity, harmonious music, well-knit substance, and lucid style of
her threnodic poems, al-Khansa' has come to be regarded as the
greatest poetess, and one of the best bards in ancient Arabia in
general.
Many important historical and literary figures. in the Arab
world have expressed their opinions as regards the position of alKhansa' bint 'Amr as a poetess. The Prophet Muhammad is quoted
to have told 'Adr ibn Hatim at-Ta"i, that the best of all bards was
al-Khansa', contrary to assertion that Imru' al-Qays was the greatest
of them all.54
On one occasion, Jarir, the great satirist of Umayyad period
(661 — 750A.D.), was asked, "Who is the retest poet of all
people?” The poet replied, "I would have been but for al-Khansa'
where she said;
33
"The never-dying time is indeed wonderful:
It leaves the tail for us and plucks off the head.
It leaves passive people for us and grieves us;
By (snatching away) prudent ones and entombing their heads.
The ever-renewing days and nights with their long
Alternations are never damaged but men (easily) are.56
Similarly, Bashshar ibn Burd is reported to have said, "No
woman has ever composed a poem without it revealing an inherent
weakness." Then he was asked, "Is that so with al-Khansa'?" He
replied. "That one excelled men."56 Such was also the opinion of
al-Mahd! (775-85 A.D.), the third 'Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad.57
The verdicts of the above personalities show that she was a unique
figure in the field of Arabic elegy to the extent that her name has
become almost synonymous with elegy in Arabic literature,
NOTES AND REFERENCES
1. Al-IsbahanT, Abu al-Farj,, Al-Aghant, Vol. XV, (Cairo, n.d.) p.
76.
2; Al-Bustani, Fu'ad Ifram, Al-Khansa': al-Rawa'i 'Series No. 28
(Beirut, Catholic Press, 1958) "Introduction".
3. Ibid. The records at my disposal do not state whether both
Sakhr and Muawiyah had the same mother. Nonetheless, the
second poem quoted in Section 1C indicates that the poetess
and Sakhr had the same mother.
4. Ibid. "Introduction"
5. The Year of the Elephant ('Am at-Fil) is about 570 A.D._ It is
so named
34
because it was in it that Abrahah, the Ethiopian viceroy of
Yemen, came to Mecca with an army and an elephant to
destroy the ka'bah, Mecca's Ancient Temple. The expedition,
however, met a catastrophic end. (Qur'an 105:1-5). The
Prophet Muhammad is known to have been born in the Year
of the Elephant.
6. Krenkow, F., "al-Khansa'," in The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol.
II (London:
Luzac & Co., 1913), p. 901.
7. Al-Bustani, F. Ifram, op. cit., "Introduction'.
8. Ibid. "Introduction".
9. Bint ash-Shati1 Al-Khansa — Nawabigh al-Fikr al-'Arabi^ No.
17 2nd Edition (Cairo, Dar al-Ma'arif, 1963) pp. 25-7.
10. Ibid, p. 28. In ancient Arabian custom, a girl preferred to
marry her cousin rather than go and marry a "foreigner".
11. Al-Bustam, F. Ifram, op. cit "Introduction".
12. Diwan a!-Khansa' "a" with Introduction by Karam alBustam, (Beirut: Dar-Sadir, Dar Bayrut, 1960) p. 77. (See
the Arabic original in the Appendix, No. !.)
13. Al-IsbahanT, Abu al-Faraj, op., cit., Vol. XV, p. 76.
14. Bint ash-Shati', op,, cit., pp. 29f,
15.
Ibid. pp. 33-5. 4Abd_ al-'Uzza was also called "Rawari".
Many writers prefer to call him "Rawah" probably because
of the pagan origin of the former name.
16.
Al-Bustam, F. Ifram, op. cit. "Introduction". The name of
the place is variously written as al-Hawzah, al~Jawzahr and
35
al-Hawraht For a detailed acount of the encounters at alHawzah, see Muhammad ibn *Abd Rabbihi, Al-'Iqd alFarid. Vol. 21, edited by Karam al-Bustam, (Beirut,
matba'at al-Manahil 1953) pp. 63-8.
17.
"Ibid. Introduction"
18.
Ibid. "Introduction".
19.
Ibid. "Introduction" See also Bint ash-Shati' op. cit. p. 48.
20. The Battle of Qadisiyyah was fought in 637 A.D. between the
Arab-Muslim armies and the Persians. The former were led
by Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas while the latter were led by
Rustam. The Persians were vanquished and the fertile
lowlands of Iraq west of the Tigris lay open to the Arabs.
See Hitti, P. K., Histry of the Arabs, 10th Edition (London:
MacMillan, 1970) pp. 155f.
21. Al-Bustam, F. Ifram, op. cit.
"Introduction".
22. Dvwan al-Khansa' op. cit. pp. 124f.
23. Al-Bustam, F. I. op. cit. "Introduction".
24. Ibid. "Introduction".
25. Diwan al-Khansa' op. cit. pp. 68-70. See the Arabic original
in the
Appendix, No. 3.
26. Ibid. pp. 58f. This English translation is adapted from Arberry,
A. J. Arabic Poetry: A Primer for Students (London:
Cambridge University Press, 1965) pp. 38f. See the Arabic
original in Appendix, No. 14.
36
27. Az-Zayyat, Ahmad Hasan, Tarikh al-Adab al-'Arabi, 25th
Edition (Cairon.d.)p. 149.'
28. Al-Bustani, F. I. op. cit, "Introduction". See the Arabic text
in
Appendix, No. 5.
29. Bint ash-Shati', op. cU., p. 47.
30. At-TabarT, Muhammad ibn Janr, Tarikh al-Rusual wa alMuJuk, Vol. Ill, 2nd Edition (Cairo, 1969) pp. 266f.
31. Bint ash-Shati', op. cit. p. 49.
32. Ibid, p. 51.
33. Ibid. p. 54.
34. Krenkew, op. cit. p. 902.
35. Bint ash-Shati', op. cit., p. 54.
36. Al-Bustam, F. I., op. cit., "Introduction".
37. Bint ash-Shati', op,, cit., pp. 55f.
38. Ibn Qutaybah, Ash-Shi'r wa ash-Sku'ara', Vol. I, (Beirut, 1964) p. 261. This is vehemently criticized by.Taha Husayn in
his Fi al-Adab al-JahilT, 2nd Edition, (Cairo, 1927) p. 299.
39. The Wars of Dahis and Ghabra' raged for many years between
the tribes of 'Abs and Dhubyan. These fights stemmed from
a race between two horses, Daftis and Ghabra' on which
occasion the tribe of 'Abs accused the tribe of Dhubyan of
having cheater to gain victory for their horse. 'Antarah the
black 'Absite warrior distinguished himself both as a poet
37
and war hero in these wars. See Nicholson, R. A., A Literary
History of the Arabs, Paperback Edition (London:
Cambridge University Press, 1969) pp. 61 f and 114-6.
40. Al-HashimT, *Alf, A I- Mar 'ah fi ash-Shi'r al-Jahili,
(Baghdad, 1960 pp. 276-283 and 308f.
41. Ibid, pp. 308 .f
42. Ibid. p. 153.
43. Al-Bustani, F. I., op. cit., "Introduction".
44. Ibid., "Inroduction".
45. See Tatia Husayn op. cit., a book written to prove that the
pre-Islamic Arabic Poetry is not authentic. On the other
hand, J. T. Monroe tries to prove its genuineness in his "Oral
Composition in the Pre-Islamic Poetry - the Problem of
Authenticity", Journal of Arabic Literature, Vol. Ill,
London, 1972.
46. Ogunbiyi, I. A. "Pre-Islamic Poetry: Authentic or
Forged?"
Mimeographed paper, Ibadan,1968.
47. Krenkow, op. cit. p-, 902.
48. See Note no. 25 above.
49. Sse Diwan al-Khansa' , op. cit., pp. 124f for this threnody on
Mirdas.
50. Al-Fakhuri, Hanna, Tarlkh al-Adab al-'Arabi, 2nd Edition
(Beirut, al-Maktabat al-Bulisiyyah, 1953), p. 194.
38
51. An example of al-Khansa's satire has been given already.
Some examples of
poems composed on these
themes are in Diwan al-Khansa' op. cit. pp; 72, 74. 76, 77 and
129. But for the limited space at my disposal, I would have
cited some of her poems to illustrate these themes. In any
case, I hope to undertake a study of these themes in the near
future.
52. Ibid. p. 101. See the Arabic original of the extract in No. 6 of
the Appendix.
53. Ibid. p. 33. See No. 7 of the Appendix the Arabic original.
54. Bint ash-Shati', op. cit. p. 66.
55. Diwan al-Khansa' op. cit, p. 88. See No. 8 of the Appendix for
the Arabic
original.
56. Bint ash-Shati*, op., cit. p. 67.
57. Ibid. p. 67.
APPENDIX
39
40
41