In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
With the pens of longing and the ink of love,
We record lines more precious than gold,
In describing the master of all creation, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
The Prophetic characteristics (Shama'il).
Chapter: What has been narrated regarding the description of the speech of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, concerning poetry.
The status of poetry is the same as the status of all other speech.
This is because poetry is measured, rhymed speech.
So, whatever of it is good in its wording and its meaning,
It is good and wholesome.
It is permissible to recite it and to listen to it.
And whatever of it is otherwise,
It is evil, and it is not permissible to recite it or to listen to it.
Al-Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, narrated in Al-Adab al-Mufrad,
On the authority of Abdullah Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both,
That the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"Poetry is like other forms of speech;
Its good is like the good of speech,
And its evil is like the evil of speech."
Ibn Majah and others narrated on the authority of Ubayy Ibn Ka'b, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
"Indeed, there is wisdom in poetry."
Meaning, some poetry is wisdom,
And some of it is not.
It was said to the Mother of the Believers, Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her:
"Did the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Ever recite any poetry?"
She said:
"He used to recite the poetry of Ibn Rawahah,
And he would recite his saying:
'And news will come to you from one you did not provide with provisions.'"
In this hadith,
I said to the Mother of the Believers, Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her—
Or rather, she was asked:
"Did the Prophet, peace be upon him,
Ever recite any poetry?"
Meaning, did he ever chant any poetry?
She said:
"He used to recite the poetry of Ibn Rawahah."
Meaning that he, peace be upon him,
Would sometimes recite the poetry of the noble Companion,
Abdullah Ibn Rawahah, may Allah be pleased with him.
And her saying:
"Like his saying:
'And news will come to you from one you did not provide with provisions,'"
Means that he would sometimes recite the words of others,
Like his saying:
"And news will come to you from one you did not provide with provisions."
This is a hemistich from a verse by Tarafa Ibn al-Abd,
In his famous Mu'allaqa, in which he says:
"The days will reveal to you that which you were ignorant of,
And news will come to you from one you did not provide with provisions."
The meaning of this verse,
As Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, explains,
Is that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
When he was delayed in receiving news,
Would recite Tarafa's verse:
"And news will come to you from one you did not provide with provisions."
Meaning: The days will reveal to you that which you were heedless of,
And one to whom you gave no provisions will bring you the news.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, he said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
"The truest word spoken by a poet
Is the word of Labid:
'Indeed, everything except Allah is false.'"
And Umayya Ibn Abi al-Salt almost accepted Islam.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"The truest word spoken by a poet."
The intent by "word"
Is a complete, meaningful sentence.
And it is here a hemistich of a verse spoken by Labid:
"Indeed, everything except Allah is false."
And its completion is: "And every blessing will inevitably vanish."
Labid is Labid Ibn Rabi'ah al-'Amiri.
He was a poet among the most eloquent of poets.
He came to the Prophet, peace be upon him, with his people,
So he accepted Islam, and his Islam was sincere.
He stopped composing poetry,
And said: "Allah has replaced poetry for me with Surah al-Baqarah."
And his saying: "Indeed, everything except Allah is false,"
The intent by "false"
Is that which is perishable and transient.
It was considered the truest speech of the poets
Because it conforms to the saying of Allah the Exalted:
“Everyone that is thereon will pass away;” (55:26)
And his saying: "And Umayya Ibn Abi al-Salt almost accepted Islam,"
Means Umayya Ibn Abi al-Salt was close to entering Islam,
Because he used to speak the truth in his poetry.
He was a devout person during the Jahiliyyah (pre-Islamic era),
And he would worship and believe in the Resurrection.
However, he lived to see Islam but did not accept it.
On the authority of Jundub Ibn Sufyan al-Bajali, may Allah be pleased with him, he said:
A stone struck the finger of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
And it bled.
So he said: "You are but a finger that has bled,
And what you have suffered is in the path of Allah."
In this hadith,
The Prophet, peace be upon him,
Went out one time on an expedition,
And a stone struck his finger, causing it to bleed.
Meaning his finger was wounded,
And blood appeared from it.
The intent by "finger" here is the finger of a man.
So he, peace be upon him, addressed it metaphorically,
Or literally, to console it,
Meaning: "Be steadfast,
For you are being tested with some pain and injury,
Yet you have bled,
And what you have encountered is for the sake of Allah,
So do not worry, but rather rejoice,
For the trial is small,
And the reward is great."
In this is evidence that a Muslim has a reward
For everything that befalls him if he seeks the reward from Allah.
Some scholars have said
That this verse was recited by the Prophet, peace be upon him,
From the poetry of Ibn Rawahah, may Allah be pleased with him.
On the authority of Al-Bara' Ibn 'Azib, may Allah be pleased with them both, he said:
A man said to him:
"Did you flee from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
O Abu 'Amarah?"
He said: "No, by Allah,
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, did not turn his back,
But the hasty people turned their backs,
And Hawazin met them with arrows.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was on his mule,
And Abu Sufyan Ibn al-Harith Ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib
Was holding its bridle,
And the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was saying:
'I am the Prophet, there is no lie,
I am the son of 'Abd al-Muttalib.'"
A man asked Abu 'Amarah,
Who is Al-Bara' Ibn 'Azib, may Allah be pleased with them both, saying:
"Did you flee from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him?"
He meant on the day of Hunayn.
So he answered him, saying:
"No, by Allah, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, did not turn his back,
But the hasty people turned their backs."
Meaning the first of the people who rush toward something,
And advance toward it quickly.
That was when Hawazin met them with arrows,
Meaning with spears and arrows.
Hawazin is a large tribe of the Arabs,
And they were the people of Ta'if.
They were among the best of people at archery,
And the greatest of them in their attention to it.
And his saying:
"And the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was on his mule,
And Abu Sufyan Ibn al-Harith Ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib was holding its bridle."
This Abu Sufyan
Is the cousin of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
And his foster brother.
He accepted Islam before the conquest of Makkah,
And his Islam was sincere.
He stood firm with the Prophet, peace be upon him, on the day of Hunayn,
And he took hold of the bridle of the mule of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
So that it would not advance toward the enemies.
And the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was saying:
"I am the Prophet, there is no lie,
I am the son of 'Abd al-Muttalib."
This is the point of evidence from the hadith,
Meaning: I am a Prophet sent by the Lord of the worlds, in truth.
Allah the Exalted has promised His Prophets clear victory.
And his saying:
"I am the son of 'Abd al-Muttalib,"
He attributed himself to his grandfather instead of his father, Abdullah,
As if it were due to the fame of 'Abd al-Muttalib among the people,
Because of the nobility of his reputation and his long life,
Unlike his father, Abdullah,
For he died young.
That is why many of the Arabs would call him,
"O son of 'Abd al-Muttalib."
On the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Prophet, peace be upon him,
Entered Makkah during the 'Umrat al-Qada' (the compensatory pilgrimage),
And Ibn Rawahah was walking before him, saying:
"Clear the way, sons of the disbelievers, for his path,
Today we shall strike you for its revelation,
With a strike that removes heads from their resting places,
And makes a friend forget his friend."
So Umar said to him:
"O Ibn Rawahah,
In front of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
And in the sanctuary of Allah,
You recite poetry?"
So he, peace be upon him, said:
"Leave him be, O Umar,
For it is faster against them than the striking of arrows."
The Prophet, peace be upon him, entered
Makkah during the 'Umrat al-Qada',
Which is the pilgrimage agreed upon
In the terms of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah.
And the poet of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
The noble Companion Abdullah Ibn Rawahah,
May Allah be pleased with him,
Was walking before him, saying:
"Clear the way, sons of the disbelievers, for his path."
Meaning: Move aside, O you disbelievers,
From the path of the Prophet, peace be upon him.
And his saying:
"Today we strike you for its revelation,"
Meaning: Today we fight you over the ruling of its revelation,
"A strike that removes the head from its resting place."
"Al-ham" is the plural of "hamma,"
Which is the forelock, the top of the head.
And "al-maqil" is the place.
The meaning is: Today we strike you a blow
That removes the head from its position and place.
And his saying:
"And makes the intimate friend forget his intimate friend,"
Meaning: That strike makes the intimate friend forget his intimate friend.
'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, objected to Ibn Rawaha,
Saying in the presence of the Messenger of Allah,
"Do you recite poetry in the sanctuary of Allah?"
As if he considered the recitation of poetry to be a grave matter
In this place.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to him,
"Leave him be, O 'Umar,
For it is swifter against them than the piercing of arrows."
Meaning: Let him proceed with his poetry,
For it affects them with an impact
Faster than the impact of arrows.
It is understood from the hadith
That poetry is a powerful weapon
If used properly,
And it is a form of jihad with the tongue.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said,
"Strive against the polytheists with your wealth,
Your hands, and your tongues."
On the authority of Jabir Ibn Samura, may Allah be pleased with him, he said:
I sat with the Prophet, peace be upon him,
More than a hundred times.
His Companions would recite poetry to one another,
And recall things from the affairs of the Jahiliyyah,
While he remained silent,
And sometimes he would smile with them.
In this hadith,
Jabir Ibn Samura, may Allah be pleased with him, mentions
That he sat with the Prophet, peace be upon him,
More than a hundred times.
His intent in mentioning this large number of times
That he sat with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Is to emphasize to the listener the matter he is about to mention.
And his saying:
"His Companions would recite poetry to one another,"
Meaning: In his presence, peace be upon him,
Where some would recite to others some of the poetry they had memorized.
They would talk and engage in discussions about the affairs of the Jahiliyyah,
Meaning: By way of criticism or as a narrative,
Due to the benefit or other reasons contained therein.
And the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Would sit with them while remaining silent,
And sometimes he would smile.
His silence, peace be upon him, and his smiling
Indicate his approval of their action,
Because he would not remain silent regarding falsehood.
On the authority of 'Umar Ibn al-Sharid, from his father, who said:
I was riding behind the Prophet, peace be upon him,
And I recited to him a hundred rhymes from the poetry of Umayya Ibn Abi al-Salt al-Thaqafi.
Every time I recited a verse,
The Prophet, peace be upon him, would say to me,
"Go on," until I had recited a hundred, meaning verses.
Then the Prophet, peace be upon him, said,
"He almost became a Muslim."
In this hadith, al-Sharid Ibn Suwayd al-Thaqafi, may Allah be pleased with him, mentions
That he was riding behind the Prophet, peace be upon him, on his mount.
This is a sign of his humility, peace be upon him,
For he would often let some of his Companions ride behind him on his mount.
Abu Zakariyya Yahya Ibn Manda compiled
The names of those whom the Prophet, peace be upon him, let ride behind him,
And their number reached about forty people.
He says: "I recited to him a hundred rhymes,"
Meaning: Of poetry,
From the words of Umayya Ibn Abi al-Salt al-Thaqafi,
Who was a poet of the Jahiliyyah.
Some of his poetry contained glorification of Allah the Exalted,
Praise of Him, glory be to Him,
And mention of the Resurrection and the like.
Al-Sharid says:
"Every time I recited a verse,
The Prophet, peace be upon him, would say to me,
'Go on,'" meaning: Add more.
Until I had recited a hundred verses,
Which is not a small number.
Then the Prophet, peace be upon him, said,
"He almost became a Muslim."
The call of the Prophet, peace be upon him, had reached him,
And he was close to becoming a Muslim,
But he died in a state of disbelief.
The matter belongs to Allah, before and after.
On the authority of 'A'isha, may Allah be pleased with her, she said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Used to set up a pulpit in the mosque for Hassan Ibn Thabit,
Upon which he would stand,
Boasting on behalf of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Or he said:
Defending the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
And he would say:
"Allah the Exalted supports Hassan with the Holy Spirit
As long as he defends or boasts on behalf of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him."
In this hadith,
The Prophet, peace be upon him,
Ordered a pulpit to be set up for Hassan Ibn Thabit,
May Allah be pleased with him, in the mosque,
So that he could stand upon it to recite poetry.
Hassan, may Allah be pleased with him,
Was the poet of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
And one of the most eloquent poets.
He would stand in the mosque on that pulpit
To boast on behalf of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Or to defend him.
This is a doubt from the narrator.
The meaning of "yufakhir" (boasting)
Is that he would mention the glories of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
And his virtues and high status.
And "al-munafaha"
Is the defense,
And the protection of the noble Messenger, peace be upon him.
This is a form of jihad with the tongue.
And her saying:
"And the Prophet, peace be upon him, says:
'Allah supports Hassan with the Holy Spirit
As long as he defends or boasts on behalf of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,'"
Meaning: Allah supports Hassan with the Holy Spirit
As long as he is occupied with supporting the religion of Allah
And strengthening the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said
To Hassan Ibn Thabit:
"Satirize the polytheists,
For the Holy Spirit is with you."
And in one wording:
"And Jibril is with you."
It is clear from this that the intended meaning of the Holy Spirit is Jibril, peace be upon him.
So Jibril, peace be upon him,
Would support Hassan, may Allah be pleased with him, in his poetry
In support of the religion of Allah the Exalted,
And in defense of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
The hadith has more to follow, if Allah wills.
And Allah knows best.
May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad,
And upon all his family and companions.