Introduction
Hamman Ibn Ghalib Abu Firas also known as Al-Farazdaq was an Arab poet who lived during the period from 614 to 730. This paper will focus on his works as well as early life that nurtured him to get into poetry.
Early life
Al-Farazdaq was born in Kazma (Kuwait) and moved to Basra together with parents where he lived. He came from the Darim community, which was part of the respected divisions of the Bani Tamim society. His mother came from the tribe of Dabba while his father followed Bedouin until the time Basra was founded. The father was also famous for his generosity and hospitality especially towards the less fortunate in the society.
When he was 15 years old, Farasdaq became a very popular poet, and he did so for a short period of time after receiving a word of advice from the caliph Ali that he devotes most of time to the study, understanding and interpretation of the holy Quran. He, therefore, returned to making verse and dedicating his time to the religion, but the ability was still inside him.
He would later make a comeback into poetry and began applying satire which he was talented in using the same to attack Bani Nahshal and the Bani Fuqaim. He was forced to flee to Kufa when Ziyad, a member of the Bani Fuqaim tribe became the governor of Basra in 669. The Emir of the city of Kufa, Said Ibn Al-As received him so well and he remained in the for a period of ten years while writing satires on the Bedouin tribe but kept off from the politics of that city. His works have been used for many centuries and are still preserved where they act as a source of inspiration for many leaders who seek to understand the challenges of the past and forge the way for the future.
His verses made him live a prodigal life because Caliph Marwan chose to expel him from the city where he was living but by then, Ziyad had died which paved for his return to Basra. He was able to work hand in hand with the person who came after Ziyad named Ubayd Allah Ibn Ziyad and started working again as a poet whose critique work of the society and people around him became noted. His matrimonial affairs took the center stage in this whole career.
He chose to Marry Nawar against her will and this is because he chose to use his power and prowess. She took an initiative to move to courts in Basra but all of them feared Farzdaq’s satire which meant that it was difficult for them to overturn the decision. Nawar chose to move to Mecca and appealed to the political content at that time who successfully convinced her to accept the marriage and move on.
This was a marriage that became very shaky and as a result of that, he took in a second wife as a way of annoying Nawar and a third wife came in after the death of a second one. He later chose to consent to a divorce that was presided over by Hassan Al-Basri. At this point, new subjects emerged and he chose to write about them in the spirit of a poet who was out to criticize. A feud between him and Jarir who was his rival and the Bani Kulaib community shaped his later writings.
All his poems have been published in the Nakaid of Jarir and Al-Farazdaq. Umayyad Al-Walid made him his official poet and a number of panegyrics were dedicated to him in this process. He became famous because of the famous poems that he gave in Makkah and it is because of this poem that he was imprisoned. His major works have been found to be inspirational in so many ways.
He regretted his divorce to Nawar many years later and this was as a result of things that were going through his life. He regretted what had happened at this point and therefore so many things came into interplay including the manner in which he decided to approach the issue later in life as he reflected back (Kalimat ash-shahadah). This had been recited for which he had recited for eighty years. He sang a verse that contained a strong message which was aimed at looking at the manner in which his life had transpired and how different factors had come into interplay to ensure that he divorced Nawar. Part of the lines in the song read as follows
Resurrection Day to drag al-Farazdaq’
I fear post grave events that are more painful
The poet praised Ibn az-Zubayr and then satirized Him when he fell in 692 and there are many reasons as to why he chose to do so. AI-Farazdaq had no reasonable option other than to acknowledge the new authority which had taken office at the time and this is what he was going through at. He was in touch with the Umayyad Caliphs from Mucawiyah to Hisham. These were turbulent times for him and there were so many things that were taking place and leadership of the day was not favoring poetry at all. He loved and hated many other leaders of the time and this can be seen in the way he satirized and praised them at different times. This is the main reason why many leaders chose not to cross his path because they knew what to expect at the end of the day.
Al-Farazdaq can be termed as an eccentric first order poet whose exploits and feuds that he had with Jarir and his community served to inform the kind of writings that he adopted all through. They provided what could be discussed for so many years and they formed the basis of future generations of Arabic poetry. His collection contains many thousands of verses which range from what is laudatory to what became so satirical in nature.
His works were a representation of Nomad poetry at its best and sincerity is what characterizes most of them but there is also evidence that there is the use of satire which added a lot of value to the entire genre. The manner in which he approached different issues in society and tried answering different critical questions can tell the reason as to why he was always colliding with leaders from time to time. Several works from this author have been featured in poetic journals all over the world.
Career as a poet
Ghalib was very instrumental in shaping the poetic career of his son and he is the one who presented him to the Caliph while stressing his ability to be able to compose poems. He was thereafter advised to learn more about the Quran and understand all basics about it with passion. He could not memorize anything from the holy book at this time and this is because of the manner in which things were taking place so fast and he had to adapt to the situation that was at hand. His father is said to have played a role in the conflict that ensued between Ali and Mucawiyah.
There are also different poems where Al-Farazdaq warned Muslims of so many things that they were supposed to avoid at all cost. His popularity rose as a result of the use of satire in most of his works and at the same time the increased conflict that was there between him and Jarir. There are several factors that affected the manner in which he related with those who were in positions of authority at the time and this affected his career a lot.
The satire approach to the poetry at this time was mainly supported by the need for people to ensure that they have discussed different aspects of the society that they were living in. This disagreement made Jarir compose a poem that was designed to disgrace his community and the manner in which satire was used demeaned women from that community. This led to the need to ensure that the clan has been saved and that is why al-Farazdaq was called upon to ensure that he has saved the entire clan from the shame that had taken place at this point.
The Arab land became so much accustomed to their satires until fans chose to take sides in the process. Fans of the two were divided and adopted their names based on which poet they supported along the way. There emerged the Jarirites and the Farazdaqites, which became so popular in the region and there were several things that followed it including bitter rivalry among them.
Al-Farazdaq died in Basrah, about the year 114/ 732 at the age of over ninety years and his works continue to sweep through the whole of Arab land and those who have a greater interest in the world of literature have ensured that they understand even better what needs to be done when analyzing them. The poet had spent the rest of his life while shifting political allegiance and this is because of the manner in which he repeated the turmoil that was characteristic of the political situation at his time.
He was quite fanatical about the preservation of his clan and its culture and that is why he went as far as making sure that they preserved their integrity and honor through writing. There is no instance that has been recorded in history when he was rude to the Banu Hashim. He was a giant among poets and this is because of the role he played in making sure that Arab literature has been shaped in one way or the other.
He was able to successfully compose a poem that was aimed at eulogizing Marwanid Caliph and the role that he had played in shaping Arab politics. His works at this time indicated that there was so much that needed to be done in terms of the way systems were working and how tribes used to relate to each other. He was well known as a pro-Umayyad poet and this was enhanced when he descended on top of someone else who had gone against Umayyad.
Contents of this particular eulogy worked to depict the manner in which political climates in the region were shifting and people were more concerned with the way this was happening. It was clear that he was at the center of shaping the way things were being done and the manner in which political decisions were being made. The language that he used in his poems was quite convincing and he sought to connect with people easily.
He was able to combine two things, the power of glorification and satire so as to ensure that desired effect has been realized. He attacked Mu’awiyyah in. a satire, on account that he had misappropriated properties that belonged to his uncle and this was quite unacceptable in a way because it killed democracy. The poem earned him banishment from Basra and this is where he chose to become even more vocal and deal with things that were taking place in the political arena. It is through the self-glorification theme that he was able to tell all things that affected the common man but many leaders did not like the inclusion of his self-praise in most poems that he was writing for them. He brought out the other side of himself and many people were not happy especially those who were in political circles and were looking for means of clinging to power.
Al-Farazdaq saw himself as the most generous individual with a lot of courage which assisted him to face different leaders and write whatever he thought about them in a manner that was satirical. He looked at different aspects of leadership and the way things were unfolding which meant that he was a mirror of society. He used his talent to confront so many people and went to places where many people never dared to even think of. When Jarir’s work had dealt a major blow to the entire clan, he was called in and never disappointed in his writing which left many people wondering about his capacity and ability to deal with different problems.
He applied imagery of wild animals and was very popular because of the way in which he used to describe different instances in his life through his work. His mastery of the Arabic language worked as a way of making sure that he achieves what was required of him within a short period of time.
Al-Farazdaq chose to repent to God in his old age and this is because there are so many dynamics and twists that were taking place in his life and also need to ensure that he has freed his conscience. He went as far as describing Satan in a satirical way because he believed that he had lured his away from the ways of righteousness and the manner in which it had been living before was distracted. He says that when his grey hair came and his end drew near, there are so many things that he had to do in order to return his glory and also ensure that he was on good terms with his creator. He lived a very simple and isolated life at this point in time. He chose to ensure that he was on good terms even with those he had offended along the way.
The life of this particular poet was characterized by conflicts with other poets who also sought to establish their place in Arabic literature. In addition to Jarir, he was able to satirize other authors such as Miskin Ad-Darimi and At-Tirimmah. There are so many things that they did to ensure that this was countered and at some point, he was accused of having plagiarized some verses from different poets which did not go down well with them.
There are different things that they were doing and the fact that he chose to take some material from them even complicated the entire situation. He often looked at himself as being unique in one way or the other because of the way in which his work was being looked at from different aspects and how he rubbed shoulders with the mighty in the society at the time. The conflict is said to have been good for the entire society because the critique highlighted different issues that were affecting people and how leaders had neglected them.
In terms of the style that was applied by Al-Farazdaq, he used very difficult words to ensure that imagery had been brought out of his work and there were means through which he interacted with the audience through different stylistic devices. There are several things that can be noted especially in terms of word usage for this author and how he has approached the whole issue of politics and society.
He went beyond the rhetoric and grammar of the Arabic language which he used. His works have a great historical value because of the manner in which he referred to different historical events that took place at his time. He sheds light on the exploits at the time and the manner in which they contributed to poverty that was clearly affecting populations.
He was a force to reckon with in the arena of poetry and this is evident in the manner in which he articulated all his issues and his subject matter through. He was so much interested in politics and social life. His life and career focused on exposing the rotten part of the society but at the same time offered solutions to the manner in which it was supposed to be handled. He is known to have put the Umayyad administration on the spot through his works of literature and this heavily benefited the entire society.
He was tough and bold in the manner in which he tackled what he came across in his entire life. He combined this with a sense of pride which meant that the confidence that he had in himself was unrivaled and was brave enough to interlock with the mighty in society at the time through his poetic skills.
He was a man of honor and always ensured that he kept an eye on power from a distance so as to reduce the level of conflict while at the same time making sure that things were right. He aimed at educating and controlling behavior from a different angle which he sought to perfect. His work was a true expression of happenings that were real and mostly affected many people in society. When he died, his rival Jarir was able to eulogize him in three different poems that were aimed at looking at the manner in which his works impacted the entire society and promoted societal well-being.
He was termed as a great person and a blessing to Arabic poetry by many people in centuries to come. There are so many lessons that readers can draw from this work and the manner in which the poet worked closely with political leaders to highlight different themes.