أخبار أبي تمّام مع الحسن بن وَهْب ومحمّد بن عبد الملك الزيّات

Abū Tammām, al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb, and Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Malik al-Zayyāt

١،٩١91.1

حدّثني عبد الرحمن بن أحمد قال

وجدتُ بخطّ محمّد بن يزيد المبرّد أنّ أبا تمّام كتب إلى الحسن بن وهب يستسقيه نبيذًا [الوافر]

جُعِلْتُ فِدَاكَ عَبْدُ ٱللهِ عِنْدِي	بِعَقْبِ ٱلْهَجْرِ مِنْهُ وَٱلْبِعَادِ
لَهُ لُمَةٌ مِنَ ٱلْكُتَّابِ بِيضٌ	قَضَوْا حَقَّ الزِّيَارَةِ وَٱلْوِدَادِ
وَأَحْسَبُ يَوْمَهُمْ إِنْ لَمْ تَجُدْهُمْ	مُصَادِفَ دَعْوَةٍ مِنْهُمْ جَمَادِ
فَكَمْ نَوْءٍ مِنَ ٱلصَّهْبَاءِ سَارٍ	وَآخَرَ مِنْكَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ غَادِ
فَهَذَا يَسْتَهِلُّ عَلَى غَلِيلِي	وَهَذَا يَسْتَهِلُّ عَلَى تِلَادِي
دَعَوْتُهُمُ عَلَيْكَ وَكُنْتَ مِمَّنْ	نُعَيِّنُهُ عَلَى ٱلْعُقَدِ ٱلْجِيَادِ

فوجّه إليه بمائة دَنّ ومائة دينار وقال لكلّ دَنٍّ دينار.

I cite ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Aḥmad as follows:

I came across a passage in al-Mubarrad’s hand that Abū Tammām wrote the following verses to al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb asking for date wine:

My life is yours! ʿAbd Allāh³¹⁴ is with me again

after he had withdrawn and distanced himself.

He has splendid comrades among the scribes

who discharge the duties of visiting and friendship properly.

But, unless you are generous to them, I think

they will face a dry reception.

Many’s the night star that brought wine from you

while other stars brought the rain of kindness in the morning!

One star slaked my thirst,

the other fed my wealth . . .

I invited the scribes at your expense,

since we have made you responsible for stored treasures.³¹⁵

Ibn Wahb sent him a hundred amphoras and a hundred dinars. “One dinar for every amphora,” he explained.

٢،٩١91.2

حدّثني عبد الله بن المعتزّ قال

صار إليّ محمّد بن يزيد النحويّ منصرفًا من عند القاضي إسماعيل وكان يجيئني كثيرًا إذا انصرف من عنده فأعلمني أنّ الحارثيّ الذي يقول فيه ابن الجهم^١ [الكامل]

لَمْ يَطْلُعَا إِلَّا لِآبِدَةٍ

ٱلْحَارِثيُّ وَكَوْكَبُ ٱلذَّنَبِ٢

دخل إلى القاضي إسماعيل فأنشده شعرًا لأبي تمّام إلى الحسن بن وهب يستسقيه نبيذًا لم ير^٣ أحسن منه في معناه وأنّه كره أن يستعيده أو يقول له اكتبْه لحال القاضي.

فقلت له أتحفظ منه شيئًا؟

قال نعم أوّله

جُعِلْتُ فِدَاكَ عَبْدَ ٱللهِ^٤ عِنْدِي

قال فأنشدته الأبيات وكنت أحفظها فكتبها بيده.

وهي هذه الأبيات التي ذكرناها.

١ ا: الذي يقول فيه ابن. ٢ ا: الدنب. ٣ (ير) زيادة يقتضيها السياق. ٤ (عبد الله) ساقط في ا.

I cite Ibn al-Muʿtazz, who said:

Al-Mubarrad the Grammarian paid me a visit, as he often did, on his way home from the house of Judge Ismāʿīl. He informed me that al-Ḥārithī—the one about whom Ibn al-Jahm had said:

Al-Ḥārithī and the Deneb star

rise only for extraordinary events³¹⁶—

had appeared before Judge Ismāʿīl and recited to him a poem by Abū Tammām addressed to Ibn Wahb with a request for date wine. The grammarian had never seen a better treatment of this motif, but he had been loath to ask al-Ḥārithī to repeat it or write it down in the judge’s presence.

“Do you remember any of it?” I asked.

“Yes,” al-Mubarrad replied, “it begins:

My life is yours! ʿAbd Allāh is with me again. . . ”

I recited the verses to him, as I had memorized them, and he wrote them down in his own hand.

Al-Ṣūlī: These are the verses quoted above.

٣،٩١91.3

حدّثنا أحمد بن إسماعيل قال حدّثني عبيد الله بن عبد الله قال

استهدى أبو العيناء مطبوخًا فوجّهت إليه بشيء منه فاستقلّه وكتب إليّ أقول للأمير ما قاله أبو تمّام لمحمّد بن عليّ بن عيسى القُمّيّ وقد استهداه شرابًا فأبطأ رسوله ثمّ وجّه إليه بشراب أسود قليل فكتب إليه [الخفيف]

قَدْ عَرَفْنَا دَلَائِلَ ٱلْمَنْعِ أَوْ مَا	يُشْبِهُ ٱلْمَنْعَ بِٱحْتِبَاسِ ٱلرَّسُولِ
وَٱفْتَضَحْنَا عِنْدَ ٱلزَّبِيبِ بِمَا صَحَّ	لَدَيْهِ مِنْ قُبْحِ وَجْهِ ٱلشَّمُولِ
وَهْىَ نَزْرٌ لَوْ أَنَّهَا مِنْ دُمُوعِ ٱلصَّ‍	‍بِّ لَمْ تَشْفِ مِنْهُ حَرَّ ٱلْغَلِيلِ
قَدْ كَتَبْنَا لَكَ ٱلْأَمَانَ فَمَا تُسْـ	‍أَلُ مِنْهَا عُمْرَ ٱلزَّمَانِ ٱلطَّوِيلِ
كَمْ مُغَطًّى قَدِ ٱخْتَبَرْنَا نَدَاهُ	وَعَرَفْنَا كَثِيرَهُ بِالْقَلِيلِ

قال فأرضيت أبا العيناء بعد ذلك.

We cite Aḥmad ibn Ismāʿīl, who cites ʿUbayd Allāh ibn ʿAbd Allāh, who said:

Abū l-ʿAynāʾ asked me for a gift of cooked food and I sent him some, but he did not think it was enough and wrote to me:

“I repeat to the commander the words of Abū Tammām to Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī ibn ʿĪsā l-Qummī when the poet had asked him for a gift of wine and the messenger took forever. Finally al-Qummī sent him a little blackish wine³¹⁷ and Abū Tammām wrote back in verse:

We saw the evidence of denial,

or what looks like denial, in delaying the messenger.

We are disgraced by this plonk:

a horrid sort of wine that he evidently enjoys.

A few miserable drops! Were they a lover’s tears,

they wouldn’t soothe his burning desire . . .

So we have written you this guarantee:

‘You will never be asked for this wine again ever.’

We have enjoyed the hospitality of many an ignoble man,

and we know from the little he gives what he thinks is a lot.”³¹⁸

I made it up to Abū l-ʿAynāʾ afterward, ʿUbayd Allāh added.

٤،٩١91.4

ومثل قوله وَهْىَ نَزْرٌ لَوْ أَنَّهَا مِنْ دُمُوعِ ٱلصَّبِّ ما حدّثنيه أحمد بن إبراهيم الغَنَويّ قال

طلب أبو مالك الرَّسْعَنيّ وخاله ذو نُواس البَجَليّ الشاعر من صديق له نبيذًا فوجّه إليه بأرطال يسيرة فكتب إليه [الكامل]

لَوْ كَانَ مَا أَهْدَيْتَهُ إِثْمِدًا	لَمْ يَكْفِ إِلَّا مُقْلَةً وَاحِدَهْ
بَرَّدْتَ وَٱللهِ عَلَى أَنَّهَا	إِلَيْكَ مِنَّا حَاجَةٌ بَارِدَهْ

An incident Aḥmad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ghanawī related to us resembles the line, “A few miserable drops! Were they a lover’s tears.”

Abū Mālik al-Rasʿanī (his maternal uncle is the poet Dhū Nuwās al-Bajalī) asked one of his friends for date wine. He sent him a few pints, and Abū Malik wrote back in verse:

If you had given me antimony

it would just be enough for one eye.

By God, you gave small relief,

but then we asked for a small favor.

٥،٩١91.5

والبحتريّ يقول في نحو هذا لأبي أيّوب ابن أخت أبي الوزير^١ [طويل]

لَكَ ٱلْخَيْرُ مَا مِقدَارُ عَفْوِي وَمَا جُهْدِي	وَآلُ حُمَيْدٍ عِنْدَ آخِرِهِمْ عِنْدِي
تَتَابَعَتِ ٱلطَّاءَانِ٢ طُوسٌ وَطَيِّءٌ	فَقُلْ فِي خُرَاسَانٍ وَإِنْ شِئْتَ فِي نَجْدِ
أَتَوْنِي بِلَا وَعْدٍ وَإِنْ لَمْ تَجُدْ لَهُمْ	بِرَاحِهِمِ رَاحُوا جَمِيعًا عَلَى وَعْدِ
وَلَمْ أَرَ خِلًّا كَٱلنَّبِيذِ إِذَا جَفَا	جَفَاكَ لَهُ خُلَّانُهُ وَذَوُو ٱلْوُدِّ
وَمِمَّا دَهَى ٱلْفِتْيَانَ أَنَّهُمُ غَدَوْا	بِآخِرِ٣ شَعْبَانٍ عَلَى أَوَّلِ ٱلْوَرْدِ
غَدًا يَحْرُمُ ٱلْمَاءُ ٱلْقَرَاحُ وَتَنْتَوِي	وُجُوهٌ مِنَ ٱللَّذَّاتِ مُشْجِيَةُ ٱلْفَقْدِ
أَعِنَّا عَلَى يَوْمٍ يُشَيِّعُ لَهْوَنَا	إِلَى لَيْلَةٍ فِيهَا لَهُ أَجَلٌ مُرْدِي

١ ا: ابن أخت الوزير. ٢ ا: الطاءات. ٣ ا: بأخر.

Al-Buḥturī composed something similar for Abū Ayyūb ibn Ukht Abī l-Wazīr:

Be well! What can I do, what will my excuse be,

when the House of Ḥumayd visits me, the least of people?³¹⁹

One Ṭ after another Ṭ: Ṭūs and Ṭayy,

whether you say he hails from Khurasan or Najd.³²⁰

Friends visit me out of the blue,³²¹

with no wine to drink, they will have to leave with just a promise.

I have never met a friend like wine;

if it deserts you, its friends and lovers desert you too.

Youths are delighted that the start of the rose season

is now at the end of Shaʿban.³²²

Tomorrow plain water will be banned,

but upon arrival faces will grow sad at the loss of pleasures.

Come to our aid against a day that lays our joys to rest

and leads to a night that holds their final moment.³²³

١،٩٢92.1

حدّثني محمّد بن موسى بن حمّاد قال

وجّه الحسن بن وهب إلى أبي تمّام وهو بالموصل خلعة فيها خزّ ووشي فامتدحه ووصف الخلعة في قصيدة أوّلها [المنسرح]

أَبُو عَلِيٍّ وَسْمِيُّ مُنْتَجِعِهْ

فَٱحْلُلْ بِأَعْلَى وَادِيهِ أَوْ جَرَعِهْ

ثمّ وصف الخلعة فقال

وَقَدْ أَتَانِي ٱلرَّسُولُ بِٱلْمَلْبَسِ ٱلـ	ـفَخْمِ لِصَيْفِ ٱمْرِىءٍ ومُرْتَبَعِهْ
لَوْ أَنَّهَا جُلِّلَتْ أُوَيْسًا لَقَدْ	أَسْرَعَتِ ٱلْكِبْرِيَاءُ فِي وَرَعِهْ
رَائِقُ خَزٍّ أُجِيدَ سَائِرُهُ	سَكْبٍ تَدِينُ ٱلصَّبَا لِمُدَّرِعِهْ
وَسِرُّ وَشْيٍ كَأَنَّ شِعْرِىَ أَحْـ	‍يَانًا نَسِيبُ ٱلْعُيُونِ مِنْ بِدَعِهْ
تَرَكْتَنِي سَامِيَ ٱلْجُفُونِ عَلَى	أَزْلَمِ دَهْرٍ بِحُسْنِها جَذَعِهْ

يريد على دهر قديم وهو الأَزْلَم لطوله وقدمه وجذعه لأنّ يومه جديد قال لَقيط الإياديّ [البسيط]

يَا قَوْمُ بَيْضَتَكُمْ لا تُفْجَعُنَّ بِهَا

إِنِّي أَخَافُ عَلَيْها ٱلْأَزْلَمَ ٱلْجَذَعَا

I cite Muḥammad ibn Mūsā ibn Ḥammād as follows:

When Abū Tammām was in Mosul, al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb sent him a robe of honor trimmed with silk and brocade, and the poet praised him with a poem in which he described the robe. It begins:

Abū ʿAlī, you are the spring rain for pasture-seekers.

They may dwell anywhere in your valley, it makes no difference!

Then he described the robe:

The messenger brought me the stately garb

for both winter³²⁴ and summer . . .

Had it been bestowed on Uways³²⁵

his piety would have been overcome by pride . . .

Splendid, skillfully fashioned silk, its fabric ripples like water;

the east wind bows before its wearer.³²⁶

Choicest brocade; now and then it seems

as if my poetry were kin to its artful rosettes . . .³²⁷

Thanks to its beauty, you have allowed me to look down

on infinite time, ever ancient yet new.³²⁸

He means “on pre-eternal time.” Time is called “infinite” because of its length, both ancient and new, for every day is new. Laqīṭ al-Iyādī said:

People, may your best leader not be taken from you!

I fear time ancient yet new.

٢،٩٢92.2

وقد وصف خلعة أخرى أحسن من هذا الوصف وجوّده. حدّثني عَوْن بن محمّد قال حدّثني الحُسين بن وَداع كاتب الحسن بن رجاء قال

حضرت محمّد بن الهَيْثَم بالجَبَل وأبو تمّام ينشده [الكامل]

جَادَتْ مَعَاهِدَهُمْ عِهَادُ سَحَابَةٍ

مَا عَهْدُهَا عِنْدَ ٱلدِّيَارِ ذَمِيمُ

قال فلمّا فرغ منها أمر له بألف دينار وخلع عليه خلعة حسنة وأقمنا ذلك اليوم عنده ومعنا أبو تمّام. ثمّ انصرف وكتب إليه في غد ذلك اليوم [الخفيف]

قَدْ كَسَانَا مِنْ كِسْوَةِ ٱلصَّيْفِ خِرْقٌ	مُكْتَسٍ مِنْ مَكَارِمٍ وَمَسَاعِ
حُلَّةً سَابِرِيَّةً وَرِدَاءً	كَسَحَا ٱلْقَيْضِ أَوْ رِدَاءِ ٱلشُّجَاعِ
كَٱلسَّرَابِ ٱلرَّقْرَاقِ فِي ٱلْحُسْنِ إِلَّا	أَنَّهُ لَيْسَ مِثْلَهُ فِي ٱلْخِدَاعِ
قَصَبِيًّا تَسْتَرْجِفُ ٱلرِّيحُ مَتْنَيْـ	‍هِ بِأَمْرٍ مِنَ ٱلْغُيُوبِ مُطَاعِ
رَجَفانًا كَأَنَّهُ ٱلدَّهْرَ مِنْهُ	كَبِدُ ٱلصَّبِّ أَوْ حَشَا ٱلْمُرْتَاعِ
لَازِمًا مَا يَلِيهِ تَحْسَبُه جُزْ	ءًا مِنَ ٱلْمَثْنَيَيْنِ وَٱلْأَضْلَاعِ
يَطْرُدُ ٱلْيَوْمَ ذَا ٱلْهَجِيرِ وَلَوْ شُبِّ‍	ـهَ فِي حَرَّهِ بِيَوْمِ ٱلْوَدَاعِ
خِلْعَةٌ مِنْ أَغَرَّ أَرْوَعَ رَحْبِ ٱلصَّ‍	‍دْرِ رَحْبِ ٱلْفُؤَادِ رَحْبِ ٱلذِّرَاعِ
سَوْفَ أَكْسُوكَ مَا يُعَفِّي عَلَيْهَا	مِنْ ثَنَاءٍ كَٱلْبُرْدِ بُرْدِ ٱلصَّنَاعِ
حُسْنُ هَاتِيكَ فِي ٱلْعُيُونِ وَهٰذَا	حُسْنُهُ فِي ٱلْقُلُوبِ وَٱلْأَسْمَاعِ

فقال محمّد بن الهيثم من لا يعطي على هذا ملكه؟ والله لا بقي في داري ثوب إلّا دفعته إلى أبي تمّام فأمر له بكلّ ثوب يملكه في ذلك الوقت.

Abū Tammām composed an even better description of another robe and excelled in it. I cite ʿAwn ibn Muḥammad, who cites al-Ḥusayn ibn Wadāʿ (al-Ḥasan ibn Rajāʾ’s scribe):

I was with Muḥammad ibn al-Haytham in Jabal province when Abū Tammām recited the following to him:

May your meeting grounds be watered by the first spring rains from a cloud

whose company is blameless among the dwellings.³²⁹

When Abū Tammām had finished reciting, Muḥammad ordered that he be given a thousand dinars and dressed in a handsome robe of honor. We passed the whole day with Muḥammad, as did Abū Tammām. He left and on the next day wrote the following verses to Muḥammad:

We were dressed in the garb of summer

by a generous man whose own garb is noble and heroic deeds.

A Sābirī gown and a tunic

like eggshell or snakeskin,

Like a shimmering mirage in its beauty

but unlike its false promise,

Finest linen, trembling in the wind

by unknown Fate’s heeded command,

Fluttering, as if it were ever

the heart of a man in love or the innards of a man in fear.

Hugging the body,

it seems part of your ribs and elbows.

Protection against the burning midday heat,

though its heat burns like a day of parting.

A robe from an illustrious, awe-inspiring man,

a generous heart in a great chest, and a mighty arm.

I will dress you in a tailor-made mantle of praise,

so much finer than my tailor-made robe.

The beauty of one is for the eyes,

the beauty of the other for hearts and ears.³³⁰

“Who wouldn’t give everything he owns for this?” Muḥammad ibn al-Haytham cried. “By God, I will give every piece of clothing in my house to Abū Tammām,” and he ordered the poet to be given every single garment he owned at that time.

٣،٩٢92.3

ونحو قول أبي تمّام في البيت الأخير قول عبد الصمد [الكامل]

بأَيْمَنِ طَائِرٍ وَأَسَرِّ فَالِ	وَأَعْلَى رُتْبَةٍ وَأَجَلِّ حَالِ
شَرِبْتَ ٱلدُّهْنَ ثُمَّ خَرَجْتَ مِنْهُ	خُرُوجَ١ ٱلْمَشْرَفِيِّ مِنَ ٱلصَّقَالِ
تَكَشَّفَ عَنْكَ مَا عَايَنْتَ مِنْهُ	كَمَا ٱنْكَشَفَ ٱلْغَمَامُ عَنِ ٱلْهِلَالِ
لِطُولِ سَلامَةٍ وَلِطُولِ عُمْرٍ	بَلَغْتَ بِكَ ٱلطِّوَالَ مِنَ ٱللَّيَالِي
وَقَدْ أَهْدَيْتُ رَيْحَانًا طَرِيفًا	بِهْ حَاجَيْتُ مُسْتَمِعِي مَقَالِي
وَمَا هُوَ غَيْرُ حَاءٍ بَعْدَ يَاءٍ	تُخُبِّرَ بَعْدَ مِيمٍ قَبْلَ دَالِ
وَرَيْحَانُ ٱلنَّبَاتِ يَعِيشُ يَوْمًا	وَلَيْسَ يَمُوتُ رَيْحَانُ ٱلْمَقَالِ
وَلَمْ تَكُ مُؤْثِرًا رَيْحَانَ شَمٍّ	عَلَى رَيْحَانِ أَسْمَاعِ ٱلرِّجَالِ

١ ا: حرجتَ منه حروج.

Abū Tammām’s last verse is similar to the following verses of ʿAbd al-Ṣamad:

With the most auspicious augury and the happiest omen

in the loftiest station,

You drank sesame oil and then emerged

like a blade from the burnishing.³³¹

He was revealed to you and you saw him,

as clouds part to reveal the crescent moon.

May you attain long nights

in long life and enduring well-being!

I dedicate to you the fresh and fragrant flowers

of my words which challenge my listener’s wit:

It is nothing but an Ḥ after a Y,

after an M before a D,³³²

Fresh flowers live for a day:

the flowers of speech never die.

Do not prefer flowers fragrant to the nose

to flowers fragrant to men’s ears.

٤،٩٢92.4

ولي أبيات من قصيدة مدحت بها صديقًا لي وصفت فيها الثياب وما علمت أنّ أحدًا وصفها حتّى قرأت شعر أبي تمّام وقد أحسن فيه غاية الإحسان. قلت [الكامل]

أَيْنَ ٱلدَّبِيقِيُّ ٱلَّذِي مَدَّتْ بِهِ	أَيْدِي ٱلنِّسَاءِ فَجَاءَ طَوْعَ ٱلْمِغْزَلِ
غَمَضَتْ حَوَاشِيهِ لِدِقَّةِ نَسْجِهِ	مِنْ غَيْرِ تَضْلِيعٍ وَغَيْرِ تَسَلْسُلِ
وَٱلثَّوْبُ١ قَدْ يَحْكِي بِدِقَّةِ نَسْجِهِ	نَسْجَ ٱلْعَنَاكِبِ بٱِلْمَكَانِ ٱلْمُهْمَلِ
شُغِلَتْ بِهِ هِمَمُ ٱلْمُلُوكِ وَأُمْهِلَتْ	صُنَّاعُهُ فِيهِ وَلَمْ تُسْتَعْجَلِ
فَغَدَا عَلَيْكَ مُهَلْهَلًا يَخْفَى عَلَى	رَاحِ ٱلتِّجَارِ وَلَيْسَ بٱِلْمُسْتَرْسِلِ
عِدْلُ ٱلْهَوَاءِ إِذَا صَفَتْ أَقْطَارُهُ	وَأَرَقَّهُ نَسْجُ ٱلْخَرِيفِ ٱلْمُقْبِلِ
أَوْ مِثْلُ نَسْجِ ٱلشَّمْسِ تَحْسِرُ دُونَهُ	وَتَكِلُّ عَيْنُ ٱلنَّاظِرِ ٱلْمُتَأَمِّلِ
فَكَأنَّهُ عَرَضٌ يَقُومُ بِنَفْسِهِ	مِنْ غَيْرِ مَا جِسْمٍ لَهُ مُتَقَبِّلِ٢

١ ا: والشرب. ٢ ا: متقبَّل.

I wrote some verses describing garments in a poem praising a friend of mine. I was not aware that anyone had described garments until I read Abū Tammām’s poetry, in which he utterly excelled in this. I had said:

Where is the Dabīqī cloth, stretched by women’s hands,

obediently rolling off the spindle?

Its thin weft makes its borders invisible

without any ribbing or fraying.

The dress’s thin weft mimics

a spiderweb in an abandoned place.

Kings were obsessed with it,

artisans, unhurried, were allowed to take their time with it.

Lightly woven it comes to you,

kept hidden from a quick and easy purchase.

As light as air, when clear and calm,

made translucent by the weaving of the winds, autumn’s approach.

Or like the weft of the sun’s rays which exhaust

and weary the observer’s eye.

Or like an accident³³³ existing in-and-of itself

with no body to inhere in.

٥،٩٢92.5

ولا أعرف شيئًا قبل هذا في وصف ثوب ولا غَزْل إلّا ما حدّثني به محمّد بن يزيد النحويّ قال

أنشدني عمرو بن حَفْص المِنْقَريّ لأبي حَنَش النُّمَيْريّ في رجل ولي الإمارة بعد أن كان حائكًا [الكامل]

لِلّٰهِ سَيْفُكَ مَا أَكَلَّ وُقُوعَهُ	أَيَّامَ أَنْتَ بِضَرْبِهِ لَا تَقْتُلُ
إِلَّا خُيُوطًا أُبْرِمَتْ طَاقَاتُهَا	تُثْنَى بِأَطْرَافِ ٱلْبَنَانِ وَتُفْتَلُ
بِيضًا تُبَاهِي ٱلْعَنْكَبُوتَ بِنَسْجِهَا	كَٱلرَّقِّ رَقَّقَ غَزْلَهُنَّ ٱلْمِغْزَلُ
مَا زِلْتَ تَضْرِبُ فِي ٱلْغُزُولِ بِحَدِّهِ	حَتَّى حَدِبْتَ وَزَالَ مِنْكَ ٱلْمَفْصِلُ
أَيَّامَ قِدْرُكَ لَا تَزَالُ نَضِيجَةً	مِنْ أَرْدَهَاجٍ لَيْسَ فِيهِ فُلْفُلُ

I know of no description of a garment or spun fabric any earlier than Abū Tammām’s apart from the one al-Mubarrad the Grammarian told me about:

ʿAmr ibn Ḥafṣ al-Minqarī recited to me the following verses by Abū Ḥanash al-Numayrī about a weaver who became governor:

How excellent is your sword!

How blunt its stroke on battle-days when you could not use it to kill

Threads, twirled and braided by fingertips

into twisted loops.

White, like fine vellum delicately spun on a spindle;

its weft vies with the spider’s web.

May you long strike spun fabric with its edge,

till your back bends and your wrist weakens,

While your pot cooks porridge, sweet, soft

without pepper’s bite.

١،٩٣93.1

حدّثني محمّد بن موسى قال

كان أبو تمّام يعشق غلامًا خَزَرِيَّا كان للحسن بن وهب وكان الحسن يتعشّق غلامًا كان لأبي تمّام روميًّا فرآه أبو تمّام يومًا يعبَث بغلامه فقال والله لئن أعنقتَ إلى الروم لنركضنّ إلى الخزر.

فقال ابن وهب لو شئتَ لحكّمْتنا واحتكمتُ.

فقال له ابو تمّام أنا أشبّهك بداود وأشبّهني بخصمه.

فقال الحسن لو كان هذا منظومًا خفناه فأمّا منثورًا فهو عارض لا حقيقة له فقال أبو تمّام [البسيط]

أَبَا عَلِيٍّ لِصَرْفِ ٱلدَّهْرِ وَٱلْغِيَرِ	وَلِلْحَوَادِثِ وَٱلْأَيَّامِ وَٱلْعِبَرِ
أَذْكَرْتَنِي أَمْرَ دَاوُدٍ وَكُنْتُ فَتًى	مُصَرِّفَ ٱلْقَلْبِ فِي ٱلْأَهْوَاءِ وَٱلذِّكَرِ
أَعِنْدَكَ ٱلشَّمْسُ لَمْ يَحْظَ ٱلْمَغِيبُ بِهَا	وَأَنْتَ مُضْطَرِبَ ٱلْأَحْشَاءِ بٱِلْقَمَرِ
وَإِنْ أَنْتَ لَمْ تَتْرُكِ ٱلسَّيْرَ ٱلْحَثِيثَ إِلَى	جَآذِرِ ٱلرُّومِ أَعْنَقْنَا إِلَى ٱلْخَزَرِ
إِنَّ ٱلْقَطُوبَ١ لَهُ مِنِّي مَقَرُّ هَوًى	يَحُلُّ مِنِّي مَحَلَّ ٱلسَّمْعِ وَٱلْبَصَرِ
وَرُبَّ أَمْنَعَ مِنْهُ صَاحِبًا وَحِمًى	أَمْسَى وَتِكَّتُهُ مِنِّي عَلَى خَطَرِ
جَرَّدْتُ فِيهِ جُنُودَ ٱلْعَزْمِ وَٱنْكَشَفَتْ	عَنْهُ غَيَابَتُهَا عَنْ نَيْكَةٍ هَدَرِ
سُبْحَانَ مَنْ سَبَّحَتْهُ كُلُّ جَارِحَةٍ	مَا فِيكَ مِنْ طَمَحَانِ ٱلْأَيْرِ وَٱلنَّظَرِ
أَنْتَ ٱلْمُقِيمُ فَمَا تَعْدُو رَوَاحِلُهُ	وَأَيْرُهُ أَبَدًا مِنْهُ عَلَى سَفَرِ

١ ا: القُطوب.

I cite Muḥammad ibn Mūsā l-Barbarī as follows:

Abū Tammām loved a Khazar page who belonged to al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb, whereas al-Ḥasan swooned over a Byzantine page belonging to Abū Tammām. One day Abū Tammām saw al-Ḥasan fool around with his page. “By God, if you rush to the Byzantines, we will hasten to the Khazars,” he warned.

“Why don’t you let me be the judge, and submit to my ruling?” al-Ḥasan replied.

“I think you are David and I his rival.”³³⁴

“If you had said this in verse, we would be afraid,” al-Hasan said. “But as it is prose, it is evanescent and without substance.” Abū Tammām then said:

Abū ʿAlī, come to my aid against the twists and turns of fate,

its events, its days and warnings!

You reminded me of the affair of David,

when I was a man whose heart was devoted to love and remembrance.

Will you hold onto the sun which never sets,

yet be in turmoil over the moon?

If you do not stop your pressing journey to the oryxes of Byzantium

we will rush to the Khazars.

His frown is where my desire resides;

it takes the place of my hearing and my sight.

The pants of many better-protected companions

and sacred groves have been put in danger by me.

I showed them the armies of my bare resolve,

and their hidden battlefield yielded a trifling fuck.

By God whom all limbs glorify

how greedy your eye and cock are!

You stay at home, your camels do not travel,

but your cock never stops wandering.³³⁵

٢،٩٣93.2

حدّثني أحمد بن إسماعيل قال حدّثني محمّد بن إسحاق قال

قلت لأبي تمّام غلامك أطوع للحسن من غلام الحسن لك.

قال لأنّ غلامي يجد عنده ما لا يجد غلامه عندي أنا أعطي ذاك قيلًا وقالًا وهو يعطي غلامي مالًا.

I cite Aḥmad ibn Ismāʿīl, who cites Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq as follows:

I said to Abū Tammām, “Your page obliges al-Ḥasan more than al-Hasan’s page obliges you.”

Abū Tammām replied, “Because my page gets from him what his page doesn’t get from me. I give his page chitter-chatter, and al-Ḥasan gives mine money.”³³⁶

٣،٩٣93.3

وقد روي هذا الخبر على خلاف هذا حدّثني أبو جعفر المهلّبيّ قال حدّثني ابن أبي فَنَن قال

أنشد أبو تمّام محمّد بن البَعيث مدحًا له وعند محمّد غلام خزريّ ومع أبي تمّام غلام روميّ فجعل محمّد يلمحه فقال أبو تمّام هذا الشعر الرائيّ.

والأوّل أصحّ.

This story is also told in a different version. I cite Abū Jaʿfar al-Muhallabī, who cites Aḥmad ibn Abī Fanan as follows:

Abū Tammām recited a praise poem to Muḥammad ibn al-Baʿīth, who had a Khazar page. Muḥammad started winking at Abū Tammām’s page, and Abū Tammām delivered these verses rhyming in R.

Al-Ṣūlī: But the former version is the correct one.

٤،٩٣93.4

حدّثني أبو الحسن الأنصاريّ قال حدّثني أبي وحدّثني أبو الفضل الكاتب المعروف بفَنْجاخ قال

كان الحسن بن وهب يكتب لمحمّد بن عبد الملك الزيّات وهو يزر للواثق وكان ابن الزيّات قد وقف على ما بين الحسن بن وهب وأبي تمّام في غلاميهما فتقدّم إلى بعض ولده وكانوا يجلسون عند الحسن بن وهب أن يعلموه خبرهما وما كان منهما. قالا فعزم غلام أبي تمّام على الحِجامة فكتب إلى الحسن يعلمه بذلك ويسأله التوجيه إليه بنبيذ فوجّه إليه بمائة دنّ ومائة دينار وخلعة وبخور وكتب [الخفيف]

لَيْتَ شِعْرِي يَا أَمْلَحَ ٱلنَّاسِ عِنْدِي	هَلْ تَدَاوَيْتَ بِٱلْحِجَامَةِ بَعْدِي
دَفَعَ ٱللهُ عَنْكَ لِي كُلَّ سُوءٍ	بَاكِرٍ رَائِحٍ وَإِنْ خُنْتَ عَهْدِي
قَدْ كَتَمْتُ ٱلْهَوَى بِمَبْلَغِ جَهْدِي	فَبَدَا مِنْهُ غَيْرُ مَا كُنْتُ أُبْدِي
وَخَلعْتُ ٱلْعِذَارَ فَلْيَعْلَمِ ٱلنَّا	سُ بِأَنِّي إِيَّاكَ أُصْفِي بِوُدِّي
وَلْيَقُولُوا بِمَا أَحَبُّوا وَإِنْ كُنْـ	‍تَ وَصُولًا وَلَمْ تَرُعْنِي بِصَدِّ
مَن عَذِيرِي مِنْ مُقْلَتَيْكَ وَمِن إِشْ‍	‍رَاقِ ثَغْرٍ مِنْ تَحْتِ حُمْرَةِ خَدِّ

ووضع الرقعة تحت مصلّاه وبلغ محمّد بن عبد الملك خبر الرقعة فوجّه إلى الحسن فشغله بشيء من أمره ثمّ أمر من جاءه بالرقعة فلمّا قرأها كتب فيها على لسان أبي تمّام [الخفيف]

لَيْتَ شِعْرِي عَنْ لَيْتَ شِعْرِكَ هٰذَا	أَبِهَزْلٍ تَقُولُه أَمْ بِجِدِّ
فَلَئِنْ كُنْتَ فِي ٱلْمَقَالِ مُحِقًّا	يَا ٱبْنَ وَهْبٍ لَقَدْ تَطَرَّفْتَ بَعْدِي
وَتَشبَّهْتَ بِي وَكُنْتُ أُرَى أَنِّـ	ـي أَنَا ٱلعَاشِقُ ٱلْمُتَيَّمُ وَحْدِي
أَتْرُكُ ٱلْقَصْدَ فِي ٱلْأُمُورِ وَلَوْلَا	عَثَرَاتُ ٱلْهَوَى لَأَبْصَرْتُ قَصْدِي
لَا أُحِبُّ ٱلَّذِي يَلُومُ وَإِنْ كَا	نَ حَرِيصًا عَلَى هَلَاكِي وَجَهْدِي
وَأُحِبُّ ٱلْأَخَ ٱلْمُشَارِكَ فِي ٱلْحُبِّ	وَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ بِهِ مِثْلُ وَجْدِي
كَنَدِيمَيْ أَبِي عَلِيٍّ وَحَاشَا	لِنَدِيمِي مِنْ مِثْلِ شِقْوَةِ جَدِّي
إِنَّ مَوْلَايَ عَبْدُ غَيْرِي وَلَوْلَا	شُؤْمُ جَدِّي لَكَانَ مَوْلَايَ عَبْدِي
سَيِّدِي سَيِّدِي وَمَوْلَايَ مَنْ أَوْ	رَثَنِي ذِلَّةً وَأَضْرَعَ خَدِّي

ثمّ قال ضعوا الرقعة مكانها فلمّا قرأها الحسن قال إنّا لله افتضحنا والله عند الوزير. وأعلم أبا تمّام بما كان ووجّه إليه بالرقعة فلقيا محمّد بن عبد الملك وقالا له إنّما جعلنا هذين سببًا لتكاتبنا بالأشعار.

فقال ومن يظنّ بكما غير هذا؟ فكان قوله أشدّ عليهما.

I cite Abū l-Ḥasan al-Anṣārī, who cites his father and Abū l-Faḍl the Scribe, known as Fanjākh, for the following:

Al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb was secretary to ʿAbd al-Malik ibn al-Zayyāt when he served al-Wāthiq as vizier. Ibn al-Zayyāt had learned about what was going on between al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb and Abū Tammām and their pages. The vizier instructed two of his sons, who were companions of al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb, to inform him of what was going on between them. They reported that Abū Tammām’s page had decided to be cupped.³³⁷ The page wrote to al-Ḥasan about this, and asked him for some date wine. Al-Ḥasan sent him a hundred jars, a hundred dinars, a robe of honor, and incense, and wrote the following verses:

I’d love to know, my most beautiful one,

did you go to the cupper to be cured from me?

God avert all evil from you from dawn to dusk, for my sake,

even if you have betrayed my bond!

I concealed my love as much as I could

but though I did not show it, it showed,

I stopped trying

that all would know of my pure affection for you.

Let them say what they please, as long as you are amenable

and don’t scare me with rejection!

Who will protect me from your black eyes

and your shining-white smile beneath a rosy cheek?

Al-Ḥasan hid the note under his prayer mat, but Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Malik al-Zayyāt heard about the note and wrote to al-Ḥasan, busying him with some task. Then he ordered someone to bring him the note. When he had read it, he wrote on the note the following verses in the voice of Abū Tammām:

I’d love to know about this “I’d love to know” of yours:

was it earnest or jest?

If your words were true, Ibn Wahb,

you mounted a surprise attack in my absence:

You imitated me—I thought I was

unique as passion’s slave.

I gave up aiming at all goals, and but for the slips of passion

I had been able to see my goal clearly.

I have no love for him who reprimands me,

if he is only keen for me to struggle and succumb.

I love instead the brother who shares in my love,

even if his passion is not like mine.

Like the two confidants of Abū ʿAlī³³⁸—

I hope my confidant will not share in my misfortune:

My master is another man’s slave.

Were it not for my bad luck, my master would be my slave.

My lord and master is he

who humbled and abased me!

“Put the note back where it was,” the vizier ordered. When al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb read it, he exclaimed, “God help us! O God! I am disgraced before the vizier!” He let Abū Tammām know how things stood and passed the note onto him. Then they both met with Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Malik. “We used these page-boys as a pretext to write poetry to each other,” they pleaded.

“Who would have expected you to do anything else?” the vizier countered. His words really cut them to the quick.

١،٩٤94.1

حدّثني محمّد بن موسى بن حَمّاد قال

كنت عند دعبل بن عليّ أنا والعَمْرَويّ سنة خمس وثلاثين بعد قدومه من الشام فذكرنا أبا تمّام فجعل يثلبه ويزعم أنّه يسرق الشعر ثمّ قال لغلامه يا نَفْنَفُ هات تلك المِخلاة فجاء بمخلاة فيها دفاتر فجعل يُمِرّها على يده حتّى أخرج منها دفترًا فقال اقرءوا هذا فنظرنا فإذا في الدفتر قال

مُكنِف أبو سُلْمى من ولد زهير بن أبي سلمى وكان هجا ذُفافَة العَبْسِيّ بأبيات منها [الكامل]

إِنَّ ٱلضُّرَاطَ بِهِ تَصَاعَدَ جَدُّكُمْ

فَتَعَاظَمُوا ضَرِطًا بَنِي ٱلْقَعْقَاعِ

قال ثمّ رثاه بعد ذلك فقال

أبَعْدَ أَبِي ٱلْعَبَّاسِ يُسْتَعْذَبُ ٱلدَّهْرُ	وَمَا بَعْدَهُ لِلدَّهْرِ حُسْنٌ وَلَا عُذْرُ
أَلَا أَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاعِي ذُفَافَةَ وَٱلنَّدَى	تَعِسْتَ وَشُلَّتْ مِنْ أَنَامِلِكَ ٱلْعَشْرُ
أتَنْعَى لَنَا مِنْ قَيْسِ عَيْلَانَ صَخْرَةً	تَفَلَّقَ عَنْهَا مِنْ جِبَالِ ٱلْعِدَى ٱلصَّخْرُ
إِذَا مَا أَبُو ٱلْعَبَّاسِ خَلَّى مَكَانَهُ	فَلَا حَمَلَتْ أُنْثَى وَلَا نَالَهَا طُهْرُ
وَلَا أَمْطَرَتْ أَرْضًا سَمَاءٌ وَلَا جَرَتْ	نُجُومٌ وَلَا لَذَّتْ لِشَارِبِهَا ٱلْخَمْرُ
كَأَنَّ بَنِي ٱلْقَعْقَاعِ يَوْمَ وَفَاتِهِ	نُجُومُ سَمَاءٍ خَرَّ مِنْ بَيْنِهَا ٱلْبَدْرُ
تُوُفِّيَتِ ٱلْآمَالُ بَعْدَ وَفَاتِهِ	وَأَصْبَحَ فِي شُغْلٍ عَنِ ٱلسَّفَرِ ٱلسَّفْرُ

ثمّ قال سرق أبو تمّام أكثر هذه القصيدة فأدخلها في شعره.

I cite Muḥammad ibn Mūsā ibn Ḥammād, who said:

I was with al-ʿAmrawī³³⁹ at Diʿbil ibn ʿAlī’s place in the year 235 [850],³⁴⁰ when he had returned from Syria. We were discussing Abū Tammām, and Diʿbil began to insult him and accuse him of stealing poetry. “Hand me that sack,” he said to his servant Nafnaf.³⁴¹ The servant brought him a sack full of notebooks. Diʿbil rummaged through them and pulled one out. “Read this!” he said. We looked at the notebook, and it read:

Muknif³⁴² Abū Sulmā, descendent of Zuhayr ibn Abī Sulmā, had lampooned Dhufāfah al-ʿAbsī in verses, including the following:

Tribe of al-Qaʿqāʿ, your lucky star rose in al-Durāṭ,³⁴³

pride yourself then on the fart!

Later Muknif mourned Dhufāfah:

Can Fate taste sweet after Abū l-ʿAbbās?

After him Fate is all bad and has no excuse.

You who announce the death of Dhufāfah, the death of generosity,

Perish! May all your ten fingers wither!

Are you announcing the death of a rock of the Qays ʿAylān

which pulverized the mountains of our enemies?

When Abū l-ʿAbbās leaves his place,

no female shall be fertile and conceive!

Rain shall not water the earth, nor stars travel,

nor wine delight the drinker!

On the day he died, the Banū l-Qaʿqāʿ were like stars in a sky

from which the full moon had fallen.³⁴⁴

Hope died with him,

now travelers have no reason to travel.³⁴⁵

“Abū Tammām stole most of this ode and incorporated it into his poetry,” asserted Diʿbil.

٢،٩٤94.2

وحدّثني محمّد بن موسى بهذا الحديث مرّة أخرى ثمّ قال

فحدّثت الحسن بن وهب بذلك فقال لي أمّا قصيدة مكنف هذه فأنا أعرفها وشعر هذا الرجل عندي وقد كان أبو تمّام ينشدنيه وما في قصيدته شيء ممّا في قصيدة أبي تمّام ولكنّ دعبلًا خلط القصيدتين إذ كانتا في وزن واحد وكانتا مرثيتين ليكذب على أبي تمّام.

Muḥammad ibn Mūsā told me this story another time and added:

I told al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb this. “I know this poem by Muknif,” he responded, “and I own a copy of his poetry. Abū Tammām used to recite it to me. None of Muknif’s poem appears in Abū Tammām’s ode.³⁴⁶ Rather, Diʿbil mixed up the odes, since they have the same meter and both are laments, in order to falsely accuse Abū Tammām.”

١،٩٥95.1

حدّثنا عبد الله بن الحُسين قال حدّثني وَهْب بن سعيد قال

جاء^١ دعبل إلى أبي عليّ الحسن بن وهب في حاجة بعد ما مات أبو تمّام فقال له رجل يا أبا عليّ أنت الذي تطعن على من يقول [الطويل]

شَهِدْتُ لَقَدْ أَقْوَتْ مَغَانِيكُمُ بَعْدِي	وَمَحَّتْ كَمَا مَحَّتْ وَشَائِعُ مِنْ بُرْدِ
وَأَنْجَدْتُمُ مِنْ بَعْدِ إتْهَامِ دَارِكُمْ	فَيَا دَمْعُ أَنْجِدْنِي عَلَى سَاكِنِي نَجْدِ

فصاح دعبل أحسنَ والله وجعل يردّد فيا دَمْعُ أَنْجِدْنِي عَلَى سَاكِنِي نَجْدِ ثمّ قال رحمه الله. لو ترك لي شيئًا من شعره لقلت إنّه أشعر الناس.

١ ا: جانا.

I cite ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥusayn, who cites Wahb ibn Saʿīd as follows:

After Abū Tammām’s death Diʿbil came to Abū ʿAlī l-Ḥasan ibn Wahb with a request. “Abū ʿAlī,” a man interrupted, “you insulted the one who says:

Your places, I swear, have decayed after my time with you,

and have faded like the threads of a coat.

You went to Najd after pitching camp in Tihāmah—

Tears, help me deal with the inhabitants of Najd!”³⁴⁷

“He excelled, by God,” Diʿbil cried and began to repeat, “‘Tears, help me deal with the inhabitants of Najd!’ God have mercy upon him.” Then he added, “If he had left me any of his poetry, I would have called him the best poet ever.”

٢،٩٥95.2

ولهذا الشعر خبر حدّثني عبد الله بن المعتزّ قال

جاءني محمّد بن يزيد النحويّ فاحتبسته فأقام عندي فجرى ذكر أبي تمّام فلم يوفّه حقّه وكان في المجلس رجل من الكتّاب نُعْمانيّ ما رأيت أحدًا أحفظ لشعر أبي تمّام منه. فقال له يا أبا العبّاس ضع في نفسك من شئت من الشعراء ثمّ انظرْ أيُحسن أن يقول مثل ما قاله أبو تمّام لأبي المُغيث موسى بن إبراهيم الرافِقيّ يعتذر إليه [الطويل]

شَهِدْتُ لَقَدْ أَقْوَتْ مَغَانِيِكُمُ بَعْدِي	وَمَحَّتْ كَمَا مَحَّتْ وَشَائِعُ مِنْ بُرْدِ
وَأَنْجَدْتُمُ مِنْ بَعْدِ إتْهَامِ دَارِكُمْ	فَيَا دَمْعُ أَنْجِدْنِي عَلَى سَاكِنِي نَجْدِ

ثمّ مرّ فيها حتّى بلغ إلى قوله في الاعتذار

أَتَانِي مَعَ ٱلرُّكْبَانِ ظَنٌّ ظَنَنْتُهُ	لَفَفْتُ لَهُ رَأْسِيَ حَيَاءً مِنَ ٱلْمَجْدِ
لَقَدْ نَكَبَ ٱلْغَدْرُ ٱلْوَفَاءَ بِسَاحَتِي	إِذَنْ وَسَرَحْتُ ٱلذَّمَّ فِي مَسْرَحِ ٱلْحَمْدِ
جَحَدْتُ إِذَنْ كَمْ مِنْ يَدٍ لَكَ شَاكَلَتْ	يَدَ ٱلْقُرْبِ أَعْدَتْ مُسْتَهَامًا عَلَى ٱلْبُعْدِ
وَمِنْ زَمَنٍ أَلْبَسْتَنِيهِ كَأَنَّهُ	إِذَا ذُكِرَتْ أَيَّامُهُ زَمَنُ ٱلْوَرْدِ
وَكَيْفَ وَمَا أَخْلَلْتُ بَعْدَك بِٱلْحِجَى	وَأَنْتَ فَلَمْ تُخْلِلْ بِمَكْرُمَةٍ بَعْدِي
أُسَرْبِلُ هُجْرَ ٱلْقَوْلِ مَنْ لَوْ هَجَوْتُهُ	إِذَنْ لَهَجَانِي عَنْهُ مَعْرُوفُهُ عِنْدِي
كَرِيمٌ مَتَى أَمْدَحْهُ أَمْدَحْهُ وَٱلْوَرَى	مَعِي وَمَتَى مَا لُمْتُهُ لُمْتُهُ وَحْدِي
فَإِنْ يَكُ جُرْمٌ عَنَّ أَوْ تَكُ هَفْوَةٌ	عَلَى خَطَإٍ مِنِّي فَعُذْرِي عَلَى عَمْدِ

فقال أبو العبّاس محمّد بن يزيد ما سمعت أحسن من هذا قطّ. ما يهضم هذا الرجل حقّه إلّا أحد رجلين إمّا جاهل بعلم الشعر ومعرفة الكلام وإمّا عالم لم يتبحّر شعره ولم يسمعه.

قال أبو العبّاس عبد الله بن المعتزّ وما مات إلّا وهو منتقل عن جميع ما كان يقوله مُقرّ بفضل أبي تمّام وإحسانه.

There is a story about this poem. I cite ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Muʿtazz, who said:

Al-Mubarrad the Grammarian visited me. I wouldn’t let him leave, so he stayed. The subject of Abū Tammām came up in conversation. Muḥammad did not give him his due. A scribe from the Nuʿmān tribe was present at the gathering. I have never met anyone who knew more of Abū Tammām’s poetry. He said to the grammarian, “Think of a poet, then ask yourself whether he could compose anything like the following apology which Abū Tammām addressed to Abū l-Mughīth Mūsā ibn Ibrāhīm al-Rāfiqī:

Your places, I swear, have decayed after my time with you,

and have faded like the threads of a coat.

You went to Najd after pitching camp in Tihāmah—

Tears, help me deal with the inhabitants of Najd!”

Then he continued till he reached Abū Tammām’s apology:

Riders brought me something to think about—glory

before which I covered my head in shame and disgrace:

Betrayal is said to have destroyed Trust within my courtyard

and I let Blame roam loose in the plains of Praise . . .³⁴⁸

I am supposed to have denied many of your kindnesses,

like the kindnesses that bring the distant lover close,

To have denied that in which you dressed me—

looking back, it was a time of roses . . .

How on earth could I? My wits did not fail me after I had left,

and your favor did not fail.

Would I dress in foul speech someone

whose good deeds would lampoon me, were I to lampoon him?

A noble man: when I praise him, the world joins me.

Were I to blame him, I would do so alone . . .

And if there was any mistake or unintended slip on my part,

I beg forgiveness.³⁴⁹

“I have never heard anything more beautiful,” al-Mubarrad admitted. “Only two kinds of men would do Abū Tammām an injustice, either someone who knows nothing of the discipline of poetry and the science of proper speech or a scholar who has not studied or immersed himself in his poetry.”

Ibn al-Muʿtazz commented: Before al-Mubarrad died he retracted everything he had said about Abū Tammām and attested to his excellence and skill.

٣،٩٥95.3

أمّا قوله

أَأُلْبِسُ هُجْرَ ٱلْقَوْلِ مَنْ لَوْ هَجَوْتُهُ

إِذَنْ لَهَجَانِي عَنْهُ مَعْرُوفُهُ عِنْدِي

فهو منقول من شعر حسن لا يفضله شعر. حدّثني محمّد بن زكريّا الغَلابيّ قال حدّثني عُبيد الله بن الضحّاك عن الهَيْثَم بن عَديّ عن عَوانة قال

أُتِيَ الحجّاج بجماعة من الخوارج من أصحاب قَطَريّ وفيهم رجل كان له صديقًا فأمر بقتلهم وعفا عن ذلك الرجل ووصله وخلّى سبيله. فمضى إلى قطريّ فقال له قطريّ عاوِدْ قِتال عدوّ الله الحجّاج فقال هيهات. غَلَّ يدًا مُطلِقُها واسترقَّ رَقَبَةً مُعتِقُها ثمّ قال [الكامل]

أَأُقاتِلُ ٱلْحَجَّاجَ عَنْ سُلْطَانِهِ	بِيَدٍ تُقِرُّ بِأَنَّهَا مَوْلَاتُهُ
إِنِّي إذَنْ لَأَخُو ٱلدَّنَاءَةِ وَٱلَّذِي	عَفَّتْ عَلَى إحْسَانِهِ جَهَلَاتُهُ
مَاذَا أَقُولُ إِذَا وَقَفْتُ إِزَاءَهُ	فِي ٱلصَّفِّ وَاحْتَجَّتْ لَهُ فَعَلَاتُهُ
أَأَقُولُ جَارَ عَلَيَّ لَا إِنَّي إِذَنْ	لَأَحَقُّ مَنْ جَارَتْ عَلَيْهِ وُلَاتُهُ
وَيُحَدِّثُ ٱلْأَقْوَامُ أَنَّ صَنِيعَةً	غُرِسَتْ لَدَيَّ فَحَنْظَلَتْ نَخَلَاتُهُ
هَذَا وَمَا طِبِّي بِجُبْنٍ إِنَّنِي	فِيكُمْ لَمِطْرَقُ١ مَشْهَدٍ وَعَلَاتُهُ

١ ا: لمطرقِ.

Abū Tammam’s words

Would I dress in foul speech someone,

whose good deeds would lampoon me, were I to lampoon him?³⁵⁰

are taken³⁵¹ from a beautiful poem that is unsurpassed. I cite Muḥammad ibn Zakariyyā al-Ghalābī, who cites ʿUbayd Allāh ibn al-Ḍaḥḥāk, who cites al-Haytham ibn ʿAdī on the authority of ʿAwānah as follows:

A group of Dissidents, disciples of Qaṭarī, were brought to al-Ḥajjāj. One of them was al-Ḥajjāj’s friend. Al-Ḥajjāj ordered that they be executed, but pardoned the man, gave him a gift, and let him go. The man returned to Qaṭarī. “Return to fighting God’s enemy al-Ḥajjāj,” he commanded. “Never,” the man said, “someone who unties a hand shackles it, and someone who frees a slave enslaves him.” Then he said:

Shall I fight the power of al-Ḥajjāj

with a hand that affirms he has set it free?

I would then be a base man

one whose foolishness ill rewards kindness received.

What shall I say when I stand facing him in the battle line

and his deeds argue in his favor?

Shall I say, “He did me an injustice”? No!

I would then truly deserve the injustice of rulers

And people would say that a good deed was planted in my soil

but its palm tree turned into bitter colocynth.

Take that! Cowardice is not my way,

I am battle’s hammer and anvil.

٩٦96

وجدت بخطّ أحمد بن إسماعيل بن الخصيب أنّ محمّد بن عبد الملك أوصل إلى الواثق قصيدة لأبي تمّام يمدحه بها أوّلها [الكامل]

وَأَبِي ٱلْمَنَازِلِ إِنَّهَا لَشُجُونُ

وَعَلَى ٱلْعُجُومَةِ إِنَّهَا لَتُبِينُ

فقُرئت عليه فلمّا بلغ إلى قوله

جَاءَتْكَ مِنْ نَظْمِ ٱللِّسَانِ قِلَادَةٌ	سِمْطَانِ فِيهَا ٱللُّؤْلُؤُ ٱلْمَكْنُونُ
حُذِيَتْ حِذَاءَ ٱلْحَضْرَمِيَّةِ أُرْهِفَتْ	وَأَجَابَهَا ٱلتَّحْصِيرُ وَٱلتَّلْسِينُ
إنْسِيَّةٌ وَحْشِيَّةٌ كَثُرَتْ بِهَا	حَرَكَاتُ أَهْلِ ٱلْأَرْضِ وَهْيَ سَكُونُ
أَمَّا ٱلْمَعَانِي فَهْيَ أَبْكَارٌ إِذَا	نُصَّتْ وَلٰكِنَّ ٱلْقَوَافِيَ عُونُ
أَحْذَاكَهَا صَنَعُ ٱلضَّمِيرِ يَمُدُّهُ	جَفْرٌ إِذَا نَضَبَ ٱلْكَلَامُ مَعِينُ
وَيُسِيءُ١ بِالْإِحْسَانِ ظَنًّا لَا كَمَنْ	هُوَ بِٱبْنِهِ وَبشِعْرِه مَفْتُونُ
يَرْمِي بِهِمَّتِهِ إِلَيْكَ وَهَمِّهِ	أَمَلٌ لَهُ أَبَدًا عَلَيْكَ حَرُونُ
وَلَعَلَّ مَا يَرْجُوهُ مِمَّا لَمْ يَكُنْ	بِكَ عَاجِلًا أَوْ آجِلًا سَيَكُونُ

فقال ادفع إليه مائتي دينار

فقال محمّد إنّه قويّ الأمل واسع الشكر

قال فأضعفها له.

وقد روينا من غير هذه الجهة أنّه أمر له بمائة ألف درهم.

١ ا: تسيء.

I came across the following in the handwriting of Aḥmad ibn Ismāʿīl ibn al-Khaṣīb. Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Malik conveyed to al-Wāthiq a praise poem by Abū Tammām. It begins:

I swear by the encampments,³⁵² they spell sorrow,

and speak clearly though dumb.

The ode was read to the caliph, including the verses:

She was offered you as a necklace, two strings of treasured pearls,

the tongue has strung together

Cut like pointed Ḥaḍramī slippers

with a narrow arch and tapered tip;

Tame and wild, the people of the earth take her everywhere,

while she stays still and serene.

When read out, her motifs are virgins

but her rhyme words matrons,

A gift to you from a mind that draws

from a brimming cistern when speech dries up.

Though this mind does not think highly of what it fashions,

unlike someone besotted with his children or his verse.

Its hope, ever intent on you,

directs its zeal and sorrow to you.

Perhaps what it hopes for, which does not yet exist,

will sooner or later exist through you.³⁵³

“Pay him two hundred dinars,” the caliph said.

“He has high hopes and is very grateful,” Muḥammad replied.

“Double it.”

Another source tells us that the caliph ordered that he be given a hundred thousand dirhams.

٩٧97

وأنشدني محمّد بن داود لأبي تمّام في آل وهب ما استحسنه [الخفيف]

كُلُّ شِعْبٍ كُنْتُمْ بِهِ آلَ وَهْبٍ	فَهْوَ شِعْبِي وَشِعْبُ كُلِّ أَدِيبِ
إِنَّ قَلْبِي لَكُمْ لَكَٱلْكَبِدِ ٱلْحَرَّ	ى وَقَلْبِي لِغَيْرِكُمْ كَٱلْقُلُوبِ

ولو كان هذا البيت الثاني في مدح آل الرسول عليهم السلام والتفجّع لما نالهم يوم كَرْبَلاء وبعده لكان فيه أشعر الناس.

Muḥammad ibn Dāwūd recited to me the following couplet by Abū Tammām about the House of Wahb, which he admired:

House of Wahb, every mountain pass you tread

belongs to me and every man of culture . . .

For you my heart thirsts like a lover’s,

but for others it is like any other heart.³⁵⁴

If this second verse had been about the family of the Emissary (peace be upon them) and the grief they suffered in the Battle of Karbalāʾ and after, Abū Tammām would have been the best poet.

٩٨98

وقد روى مسعود بن عيسى قال حدّثني صالح غلام أبي تمّام المنشد كان لشعر أبي تمّام وكان حسن الوجه قال

دخل أبو تمّام على الحسن بن وهب وأنا معه وعلى رأسه جارية ظريفة فأومأ إليها الحسن يغريها بأبي تمّام فقالت [الخفيف]

يَا ٱبْنَ أَوْسٍ أَشْبَهْتَ فِي ٱلْفِسْقِ أَوْسَا

وَٱتَّخَذْتَ ٱلْغُلَامَ إلْفًا وَعِرْسَا

فقال أبو تمّام [الكامل]

أَبَرَقْتِ لِي إِذْ لَيْسَ لِي بَرْقُ	فَتَزَحْزَحِي مَا عِنْدَنَا عِشْقُ
مَا كُنْتُ أَفْسُقُ وَٱلشَّبَابُ أَخِي	أَفَحِينَ شِبْتُ يَجُوزُ لِي ٱلْفِسْقُ
لِي هِمَّةٌ عَنْ ذَاكَ تَرْدَعُنِي	وَمُرَكَّبٌ مَا خَانَهُ عِرْقُ

Masʿūd ibn ʿĪsā transmitted the following, citing Abū Tammām’s page Ṣāliḥ (who was Abū Tammām’s reciter and had a beautiful face):

I was with Abū Tammām when he appeared before al-Ḥasan ibn Wahb. An elegant slave stood behind al-Ḥasan, waiting on him. Al-Ḥasan gestured to her, egging her on against Abū Tammām, and she improvised the following line:

Ibn Aws, you are as depraved as the Aws³⁵⁵

because you have taken a page as confidant and bride.

Abū Tammām answered:

Do you shine for me since I have no one to take a shining to³⁵⁶

in order to rekindle our passion?

I did not sin when I was young—

could old age then give me license to sin?

My ambition forbids it as does my pedigree

whose origin does not disappoint it.³⁵⁷