Notes: “3 denotes the notorious Arabic letter 3ain”
3antara son of Shaddad, a son of the infamous Arabian tribe
3abs. His mother was a black African slave woman, named Zabiba, he inherited
his mother’s black skin genes. His father recognized him as a slave child, as
it was the habit of Arabs of the time, when a child of theirs is born from a
slave woman.
One day, it happened that a rival tribe raided the nomadic
camps of the “children of 3abs” and routed their guarding contingents. They
looted a substantial amount of booty in the form of camel flock that day. So
the warriors of 3abs went out after them. The father ordered the brave son:
3antara, Attack!
The son answered: slaves are incapable of attack, they are
only able to milk and pack.
-
Attack and you’re a free
man! Said the father.
So he attacked and fought
valiantly. The father fulfilled the promise by recognizing him as a legitimate
son and passed to him his lineage.
This is the introductory story of the poet warrior, the
pre-Islamic Arabian knight, the brave hero, the enormous spirit, the
delicate heart, the open of chests, the chaste of hands.
He fell in love with 3abla daughter of his uncle Malik. She
was the beautiful maiden that fueled his poetic inspirations and fired his wild
imagination. His most infamous poem was placed sixth among the 7 best ancient
Arab poems, which were highly prized and revered among ancient Arabs, posting
them on the holy Ka’aba shrine in Macca..
It is said that his motivation of writing that poem was:
that one day, after campaigning bravely in one of the tribal wars, a man from
his tribe came forth swearing at him and mocking his black skin, that of his
mother and his brothers. He also discredited him by denying his poetic fervor.
3antara, swearing back at him, fell back on his proud tribal legacy, courage
and valiance. He then composed his famous poem beginning by describing his
amazing love to 3abla, his remarkable noble mount, and how he would never harm
or wrong do anyone just as nobody would dare to wrong do him. And even as he
drinks his mind into intoxication, he would always conduct himself in honor and
integrity, weather drunk or sober.
Translated by Almokhtar Bukhamsin from the book:
شرح
المعلقات السبع
Expounding the Seven Pendants, written Circa 1080AD
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق
أرحب بتعليقاتكم دائماً حول الموضوع مع خالص التحية.